Liitha slid of the bare back of Yazi, loosening the reins and hanging them over a branch leting the mare walk as she wanted to grass. Her sack on her back she walked down to the secluded pond, she was sure some others must know of this, but obviously few cause she never met anyone here. It was hot and she had been on guard duty earlier the day, but a week back in the city. Loosening her braid she shook out her hair, she most prefered the road dust in this heat to the crowding of guard duty down in the city.

 

Luckely she had the afternoon free to cool down and that was just what she planed to do as she sliped out of her uniform, folding it even if it where full of flecks. With a last look up on Yazi she steped into the water, it could hardly be said to be cold but definantly cooler than that of the frying sun. Diving down she swam for a more shadowed section of the pond and floated up near the waterfall under the branches of a big old willow, closing her eyes she rendered herself over to listening to the music of the nature.

 

She could hear the sicades play, the rusteling of leaves as Yazi moved about, dozing where she lay in the shallow she enjoyed beeing out of the sun and just relaxing, thinking back on her travel now ended.

It was amazing how light a rock pack felt on a person compared to the weight of a few knots of rank on a persons cloak. They dragged on you until you felt like a shell of the person you used to be. or at least thats how Jasen had come to feel after he had been raised to an officers position. He remembered with a certain fondness of his trainee years, with all the friends he used to train with. Everyday had been an adventure, something new just around the corner no matter where they turned. Life had been care free and bright, and safe. Now as he returned from yet another meeting with the commander of the guard, he yearned for just one more chance to dance with life as he had in his youth.

 

Back in his room, Jasen looked at the bottle of brandy that had taken up a permanent residence on top of his night stand. The murky liquid had been a constant companion with him these past twenty years as he and his men had marched, fought, and died for the sake of the women in the tower. He regretted none of his decisions, but Jasen had always wondered what life would ahve been like if he never picked up the sword. I'd probably be sitting down with my family now for dinner. My wife would be setting the table, and my sons would be washing their hands and faces clean after a hard days work on the farm. And I would have liked a daughter too, one that was still clinging to her mother's apron strings, wailing over the most minor injury. And I would know nothing of the world, instead I would be lost in the routine of farming and never truly have lived. The bottle went back down on top of the table. Jasen could not just spend the night drinking and thinking about another life, one that would never happen. He would go out, and try to recapture a part of his youth. Tossing his red cloak away, he picked up a stained green one and left.

 

He knew exactly where he was headed. Back when he had been a trainee, he and his friends used to sneak off the ogier grove and swim under a waterfall. They would laugh and splash one another until they grew tired and napped under the warm sun. He had not been there in years, and missed the slapping of the water on the rocks as it fell, and the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves. His feet remembered the way, and shortly he had arrived. Time has not touched this place at all. It is exactly as it was all those years ago, he thought to himself as he unbuckeled his cloak. His cloathes soon found themselves in a small pile, and with a large whoop, he leapt into the water.

 

The cold sent tingles up and down his skin, making him shiver for the briefest of moments. All the years seemed to melt away as he enjoyed himself like he had not down in years. Jasen was floating on his back when he heard the whinny of a horse. Someone else is here! He swam desperately over to where his clothes were, not wanting anyone to see him act in such an unprofessional manner. He had a reputation to maintain and could not be seen splashing like a wool headed trainee. But before he could reach the edge he heard a voice. A womans voice. "Well lieutenant, what do we have here?"

 

Lt. Jasen Pontean

the whine from Yazi had Liitha snap back to consious, her hand went to her ancle where a knife was fastened as she was already turning in the water to dive out of reach from anyone. Coming up several feets away from where she had been she looked around before sliping her head over the surface, eyes first scaning till they reached the disturbance in form of a man scurying for land.

 

A quick second scan revealed no other personalities and no horse except Yazi who stood looking at her from the edge of the pond, her eyes back at the man she tilted her head as a thougth dawned on her and she realised she knew the man in such a hurry to get up and out of the water. Well hidden with all of her except the head bellow water she couldnt help let out a chuckle as she realised there where no treath to the situation. And likely as not Yazis warning whine had taken him aback as the mare last she had seen where heading for the woods and such likely been out of sigth when he arived.

 

"Well lieutenant, what do we have here?"

 

She waited for him to turn, tilting her head and blowing hair out of her face as she bent her leg so she could fasten the dagger in its sheet again. "Sorry if she spooked you.." Lii's tumb hicked in the direction of the mare, "..she got me too, I have never seen anyone else in here and asume by that likely you havent either, so just random misfortune of heat that brougth us on the same thougths this day it seems" she smiled. She could hear Yazi take up the grasing again, and threw a look in the general direction of the mare, she needed uter training it seemed to work properly as an alarm.