sixwordstories | (no subject)

Definitely agreed on that one. [Jackie leaning on her surfboard, dressed in a wetsuit.] Are you with that beach party that's going on tonight? They said they're roasting a pig, all hawaiian style and everything.

[Oh. Well. If he's not going to give her grief about being out at... whatever time this is. Morag relaxes her defensive reaction and nods.]

The later the better, with a night like this. It's... quieter and all.

Nope. [He doesn't even glance in that direction, preferring to keep most of his attention on the shoreline.] Just keeping an eye on them until the lifeguard arrives.

[Not unless she's doing something stupid like poaching endangered species at night. Her business is her own until it encroaches on his.]

The sea is rarely quiet, but I suppose it's less loud than during the day with a bunch of people around.

[Poaching? Surely not. Morag doesn't care for poachers. ...Although she might have been fishing. Just not in this form. And, true, until she finds a local to discuss it with she's got no notion which fish are all right to eat.]

That's the way I was thinking. You'd be some fool to come here if you didn't like the sound of the sea.

[On the matter of locals, though. She cranes her head at him, eyes sharp in the dark. He's not the kind of company she'd look for out here tonight, on this tide. At least, she doesn't get that sense of him.]

Is that what you're out for? Just to... swim?

That's awfully nice of you. Most don't even think or care if there's a lifeguard on duty. [But it definitely helped cut down on drowning accidents.]

Nice? [He looks somewhat doubtful for a few seconds, then shrugs it off. That's kind of the last thing he's doing it out of. Kindness. Hah.]

Rich kids down from the Hamptons. Some are smart enough to arrange a babysitter to keep them from being fatally stupid.

True. Hopefully till they're old enough to know better...or get less dangerous hobbies.

Have you been in the water yet? How are the waves?

[The non poisonous, easy to catch, not-a-shark kind? It should be fairly easy to find a school of fish smaller than tuna and make sure there aren't any other predators in the vicinity while snacking.]

Hate to tell you, but there are a lot of fools in the world.

[His smile is oh so innocent, in that it's really not.]

More or less, yup. Easier to enjoy the view sans tourist crowd. What about you?

[Luckily her bird-self has some instinct for these things, and tonight's been decent eating. Though she doesn't intend to avoid the predators forever, a lone fledgling's got to be a little smart.]

Aye, and if the sea upsets them, it's their own fault. They've got all the land to hide on.

[She eyes that smile and hunches a bit in her heavy coat, still wondering.]

Same. Night like this, I couldn't resist. [And she'd be surprised if she's the only one. It's a nice coastline.] ...So you're out here many nights, then? Do a lot of people come out?

[Arthur is fairly sure he just said something along those lines, so he'll ignore the first part of her comment.] Things are calm and quiet close to shore. Storm brewing further into the deep you get.

Pretty sure there's more water than land, but I'll go along with your point anyway.

[What? It's a totally harmless smile.]

Sometimes. I'm out here frequently, but other people come and go with the weather, especially the benign sort.

Well, no-one wants to be out when it turns rough.

[By which Morag means, she doesn't expect he'd be out then. Right?]

It's a pretty stretch of shore, though. Is it all just tourists who come here?

Oh, yeah. No one in their right mind would be out there during a strong squall.

[Or, you know, the guy who practically lives in the water.]

No, there are locals out here too, but when the tourist season cranks up, the population swells to two or three times what it is during the lean months.

[She gives a nod, mouth drawing into a short, satisfied smile.] Only the fools.

[His other remark brings the frown back, however.] That much? You must be driven mad with them. I dunno what we'd do if they outnumbered us at home.

[His answer isn't much more than another smile and a grunt that's open to interpretation.]

Tourist bring a lot of money to help the economy. You deal during the season and hope the next year is better than the last during the winter.

The money helps, all right.

[It's a bit of a grudging admission. These things don't matter to her as much as they will one day, when she truly understands the need.]

And they're not as bad as some for sticking their noses in places.

So come and swim then.

[ What a cunning grin, she has! ]

Yeah, it does.

Tourists are nosy? I had no idea.

Not with the likes of you, lady.

[Yeah, very similar to the grin belonging to the woman who tried to kill him a few years back.]

The conservationists are worse. Them and the birders.

You're talking about scientists, I think. They come to the Keys regularly to study marine life.

Rude, turning down such a generous invitation.

[ She splashes at him, still harboring that grin. ]

And why not?

Some of them are. Most of them just have cameras. [She glances around.] There been any around recently?