An Image Of The Past (Tess)

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

When Tess cast out a second time, she didn't watch careful where he was and Rahul had to jump back out of the way or else he might have gotten hooked accidentally.  He was about to reprimand her for being careless but she seemed to be enjoying the moment, Rahul was loathe to ruin it with too many rules right off the top.  But he couldn't just let it go unremarked so he compromised.  "Remember to watch for other around you when casting, okay" he mentioned gently and once more guided her in the proper way to reel in.

Her third cast out was better.. in that at least she wasn't close at all to hooking him that that time.  Nor the fourth and fifth casts either.   She was getting the hang of it.  Rahul smiled.   He was just considering on setting up his own hook and line when Tess gave a bit of a squeal.

He look up from his scrounging in the tackle box to see her hoping on the spot.  Her excited words had him looking to the rod and sure enough the tip with bowing with the tug of a fish.

"Reel it in" he encouraged even as she remembered on her own.  He pulled from the tackle box a wooden handled net and moved to the edge of the creek. "Keep reeling in nice and steady."

From his spot on the shore Rahul had a clear view of the fish the Tess had on her line.  It was two-tone colored fish with stubby antenna.

"Oh yes. Tess... it's rainbow fish!" he exclaimed as his sister reeled in the fish closer and closer.

As the fish caught sight of him though its fight increased - rainbows were known to be strong fighters.  Fearing that the fish might jerk the rod right out of his sister's hands Rahul stepped out into the water with the net to scoop the rainbow fish before it could possibly get away.

He however wasn't prepared for how slick the creek bed stones were and as he reached out to net the fish.  His feet slipped out from under him and he plopped face first into the water!

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

When her brother reminded her of checking for others around her before casting Tess nodde her head as the light wind tugged slightly at her curled hair while she kept looking out at the creek.

She had to cast a few times, every time reeling the line back in slowly. She was very motivated and focused these first attempts and she was lucky that she felt a tug at her line so soon.

Excitedly she reeled the fish in that was at her line, though she noticed that it got harder the more of the line she reeled in. She watched as her brother walked past her towards the shore with a net in his hand. Tess watched agog what Rahul was doing while the line started to bow more heavily with the fish starting to fight. Tess let go of the reel to hold the rod with both hands so it wouldn't be jerked out of them, without realizing that letting go of the reel meant the fish could get away. But luckily Rahul had been quick enough to scoop the fish up in the net before that could happen.

"A rainbow fish?!", Tess echoed excitedly. She just had to see it and was about to run over to him when she heard a slight slippery noise and then her brother plopped face down into the water. The sight was so comical and with Tess not really having a sense for concerning situations started to laugh helplessly.

With the net back in the water the fish fought more and more and then found the way out of the net - and then started to swim off as fast as it could. Tess - not prepared for that and her mind being elswhere than thinking of keeping hold of the fishing rod - felt a hard jerk and the rod slipped out of her hand.

"Oh no!", she exclaimed, her voice still mirthful but surprise coloring it as well. She started to run towards the shore to chase the rod while she then looked over to her brother to look for him, anticipating that he'd gotten to his feet by now.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Though it was a nice warm early summers day, the creek they fish was glacier fed.  The waters were bitingly cold and Rahul tried quickly to scramble himself up and out of the water but it was easier said than done.  The algae coated rocks were slick, as he'd just discovered, and finding purchase on them to stand up was difficult.  He could hear his sisters laughter and felt the net in his hand go empty as the rainbow fish escaped.

Tess' exclamation drew his attention as he hand over hand, crawled his way out of the river and back onto the shore.   He looked over to see her chasing along the shoreside as the fishing rod bobbed along the creek to get hung up on a fallen tree stump.

Fearing that she might attempt to retrieve the rod herself and fall in as well, Rahul called out to Tess.  "Tess! Just leave it for now.  I'll get it!"

He crawled his way further along the slippery rocks until he had dry land under knee and could get to his feet without fear of slipping again.   All the while he kept watch on his sister.

He figured this would make a good teaching moment.  "This is why you always let someone know where you are or better yet always have a partner.  Someone to help if an accident were to happen."

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Tess stopped when Rahul called out to her to stop her from wading into the water to get the fishing rod. Her head turned to the side she saw Rahul crawling his way to dry land. His soake clothes stuck to his skin and Tess now became aware of the seriousness of the situation.

Running back to her brother, leaving the fishing rod behind, she looked at him. "Did you hurt yourself?", she asked worried now. Reaching for his hand she grabbed it in hers only to feel how cold it was. "Oof!", she exclaimed. "Cold!" She glanced back to the fishing rod and then looked back up at her brother with big sad blue eyes. "Is the fish gone? I'm sorry I've lost the fishing rod."

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Rahul shook his head at Tess' question.  "No I'm fine, the water cushioned my fall." he teased.  Her comment of him being cold was absolutely correct.  Even as he stood on the sun-dappled creekside he was still mostly in shade and he could feel shivers begin to shake his body.

Tess' apology drew his attention back to her.  "That's okay Tess.  It was  my fault for falling in."  He glanced about a moment, noting that the rod hadn't actually gotten far..  he could see it maybe 30 ft down the creek hung up against some bounders and the bend of the tip showed surprisingly that the fish was still on!

"Actually Tess... take a look... you're fish is not lost yet. We're going have to go retrieve the rod." he stated.  "Or well, I am..  but what I want to know from you.. is afterwards... do you want to fish some more?  Or will you want to go home?  If we stay we're going to need to build a fire... or I'm going to be too cold to do anything.  So what will it be, bug? Stay - have a fire... maybe cook up the fish you caught. Or grab the rod and take your fish home to show Dad"

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Tess could see her brother was starting to feel really cold. She looked around and then exclaimed disappointedly to Rahul, "We don't have a blanket!" She knew when she felt cold at home Rahul or her dad would wrap her in a cuddly blanket. "We need to take one with us next time!"

At Rahul's pointer Tess turned around to look down the creek. She saw the fishing rod where it had got stuck. To hear that her brother said that the fish was not lost made the girl's face beam. Her mind was on getting the rod and the fish back but Rahul wanted to know something else from her first. Turning her head up, big blue eyes looked up at him from an adorably cute face.

"Can we take the fish home to show dad and make a fire there to cook the fish?!", she asked hopeful.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Rahul had to agree that a blanket would have been ideal right about then.  "That's an excellent idea for next time."

His little sister's suggestion to combine going home and having a fire to cook the fire earned a smile from Rahul.  "Yeah, we can do that. You stay here.  I'll go get the fishing rod and fish."

Rahul walked along the side of the frigid creek until he was in line with where the rod was stuck.  He broke off a low tree branch and using it like a staff, cautiously made his way into the ice cold water to retrieve the fishing rod.

The water was bitingly cold and Rahul had to go thigh deep before he was able to reach the snagged wooden rod and untangled it from the rocks.   He tested the line and found that yes the rainbow fish was still hooked.   With his teeth beginning to chatter, and his hand shaking he began heading back to the shore.

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

As Rahul walked along the side of the creek, Tess didn't obey completely to what her brother had said. Instead of staying where she was, she ran after him to the spot where he waded into the cold water.

"Careful, Rahul", little Tess called as she watched her brother walking deeper into the water. Then, the water high thigh's level, he was able to reach for the fishing rod. She beamed and bounced on the spot once when she saw that the rainbow fish was still there as her brother made it safelty back on land. He shivered and Tess felt bad for her brother. "You're gonna catch a cold!", she exclaimed, repeating the thing she had heard several times when she had been bathing in the lake despite the weather not being right for that.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

Tess was there on the shore to greet him when he cautiously made his way back.  With a slight tremor to his hand, he held out the rod to her.  "Reel it in again.  This time I'll try not to spook it."

At her worried exclamation that he was going to catch a cold. "Well nothing is better for a cold than some nice hot fish soup.  So you have to land that fish for me."

He gave a nod of encouragement.  "Nice and steady and don't let go of the rod."

He considered for a moment helping by holding the rod and just having her reel but he wanted to Tess to be able to do this on her own.   He thought the experience would be good for her.  He smiled and suppressed another shiver of cold.

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

"You're shivering!", Tess observed as her brother handed her the fishing rod. She took it from him and turned back to the creek, clutching the rod in her hand tightly. She didn't want to lose the fish again. That she was needed to get the fish for her brother so he could have something to warm him up tonight was an extra incentive to the little girl.

The fish was as hard as before, but this time, Tess was braced for that and took firm hold of the fishing rod while she reeled it back in slowly but steadily. "We have it! Any minute now!", Tess grinned. As the fish came into more shallow water it made the water splash as it still fought, but it would not escape again.

Once it was in the net and securely on land Tess curiously peeked into the net to take a look at the fish she caught. The bright colors were beautiful. "It's so pretty!" She glanced up at her brother who surely was still freezing. "You carry the fish, Rahul, and I carry the flowers, okay?" She ran back to where they had put the flowers and carefully dug them out of the wet sand.

As they went, Tess ran ahead, jumping over rocks and branches that the wind had taken off the trees. "Will we go fishing tomorrow again, Rahul?", she asked. "Then we can take with us a blanket ... and dry clothes for you! And while we're there, the wet ones can dry! And we'll have less laundry to do!"

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Ba'ku - Creek]

As a big brother, Rahul definitely felt it was his place to teach and guide little sister.  She was inquisitive with bright mind.  There was little that she couldn't do, if first shown how.  So it was with the fishing.  Her second attempt at reeling in the fish, had her prepared to the pull on the rod and tug on the line.

But this time, she managed to land the fish. Rahul had scooped it from the shore with the net.  And now at her prompting, it was time to go.   Rahul took the rod from Tess and showed her quickly how to secure the hook for onto an eyelet for traveling.  Then he bagged up the fish and packed up the hand net and they were set to head back home.

Rahul carried the fish and the fishing gear.  Tess carried the flowers.  Not quite equitable but she was only 7.  There was time enough still to let her enjoy being a kid.  She ran on ahead and Rahul followed behind more carefully since his wet shoes could get slippery and the last thing he needed was to take a tumble on the path - again.

Rahul's ankle had healed up well after the last time but it was common knowledge that sprains weakened the joint, making them more susceptible to further injury.   Of course the Starfleet officer had offers to father to heal Rahul's injury the next morning, but thankfully his Dad had told the Science officer that that wasn't necessary.  Within a few days his ankle was feeling better.

Hearing Tess ask about going fishing tomorrow, Rahul chuckled.  "Sounds like a great plan, Tess.  Though hopefully I won't need dry clothes tomorrow."

Not long after they got out from the shade of the trees and into the warmth of the light, Rahul's shivering subsided.  And soon after that the pair were back at home, though Rahul kept sniffling.   It seemed while Tess had caught a rainbow fish, Rahul had caught a cold.

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Ba'ku - Creek >>> Village - Skuyanhjin home - Year 2376]

The prospect of going fishing again with her brother the next day had Tess cheering. On the way back home Tess was chatting and singing songs she had learned while she picked more flowers to add to the ones she already had. By the time they got home she had collected a nice bouquet.

From the distance, once the house came into view while the sun slowly started to set, she saw her father chop wood in front of the house while Benjin sat in the grass in safety distance but close enough that Ishto could have an eye on him and played peacfully with some toys - together with Fabiano.

"Pa!", Tess called excitedly and ran unchecked into his legs to hug them briefly but tightly before she held the bouquet of flowers up to him. "Look what I collected on the way!", she beamed. "I've caught a rainbow fish!", she told him in excitement.

NPC Lt. Fabiano Moreno
[Ba'ku - Village - Skuyanhjin home - Year 2376]

Fabiano looked up from where he was playing with Baby Benjin - the boy had been fussy so Fabiano tried to occupy the child while his father was chopping wood for the night -, a smile tugging at his lips when he saw Tess. The girl was always so full of energy. The mention of a rainbow fish caught his attention. He didn't think he had seen one before and was pretty sure it was not in the database yet. "Did you enjoy your fishing trip?", Fabiano asked with a smile.
His eyes then caught Rahul and he raised his eyebrows at the sight of the boy, arriving home in wet clothes.

"Uh-huh!", Tess nodded her head eagerly, then she ran back to Rahul. "Can you show them the fish, please?", she asked and alredy pulled at the bag she had seen her brother putting the fish into, too impatient to wait until Rahul had actually time to react to her request.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Village - Skuyanhjin home]

Rahul watched as Tess ran up ahead to excited inform their father as to her catch.  Ishto reached down and took the offered flowers from Tess as he commented about the bouquet. "These are wonderful, Tess.  Thank you.  They will brighten the dinner table tonight."

Her news of the fish was met with warm smile.  "A rainbow fish.  That's good eating.  I guess we know what's for dinner tonight."  He looked towards Rahul and the wet attire.  "Are you okay, son?" Ishto asked concerned.

Rahul nodded at his father's question, slightly embarrassed but had his attention diverted when Tess began pulling at the bag that held the fish.  "Easy Tess.  I'll get it out in a moment."

He closed the distance to his yard and set down the fishing gear to the side, before opening the fish sack. "You can show off your fish, while I put away our gear.  Use two hands!" he advised as he started towards the shed.

[Tess tLhoell]

Tess Skuyanhjin (7 years old)
[Village - Skuyanhjin home - Year 2376]

At their father's question if Rahul was okay, Tess gave the verbal response to her brother's silent one. "He fell into the creek when we were fishing there because the fish pulled the fishing rod out of my hand. We can make a fire so he can warm up!"

She then moved over to her brother when he pulled the fish out of the bag and put it carefully in her hands. At his intstruction to hold it with both hands she nodded and gripped the fish tightly. It felt ice cold and slimey, but Tess wasn't squeamish about it. She beheld the opalescent sceales of the fish with gleaming eyes as she then turned to her father to show the fish to him with a beaming grin. "They look so pretty", she smiled as she looked at the scales. What she didn't realize yet was that the fish - after the scales were removed - looked just greyish. But dried they would make for pretty items for simple jewellery.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Rahul Skuyanhjin (16 yrs old)
[Village - Skuyanhjin home]

Rahul groaned at hearing his little sister answer with blunt honesty about his mishap with the fish.

"I was attempting to retrieve the net and slipped on the slick rocks." he explained not that it sounded any better.

Ishto looked from one to the other as each spoke, smiling.  Rahul seemed uninjured, capable of walking back down the mountainside.  With his concerns about his son alleviated, Ishto turned his attention to the fish that Tess held out proudly.

"Wow!  That is one colorful fish.  The eye catching color reminds me of most tropic fish on Earth." Fabiano remarked as he picked up Benjin and came closer to get a better look.  He reached out a hand and ruffled Tess' hair affectionately.   "Nice catch there, tesora."  The Italian nickname meant 'treasure' and Fabiano knew Tess loved to seemingly hear her name spoken in his foreign language.  He was considering on asking Ishto if it would be okay to teach Tess Italian, but hesitated because he was concerned of Rahul's reaction to such an offer.   Despite the time he'd spend with the family, Rahul refused to accept him.  The boy was a lot like his father in that respect.  Very unbending or so it seemed. Much like Ishto's refusal to forgive Tamonar.

"I think your idea about a fire is an excellent one at the same time we can cook the fish."  Ishto paused a moment fixing his gaze steadily on his daughter.  "Tess, you do realize that it is the responsibility of the one who caught the fish - to clean it as well?"

From the shed, Rahul called out as he finished putting away the gear.  "I was planning on instructing her on that next."

. . .

The rest of the late afternoon was spent showing Tess how to 'clean' her catch.  Rahul was very watchful given that it required the use of a very sharp filleting knife.   While he oversaw Tess, Ishto built up a fire in the fire pit until there was a good bed of coals on which to cook over.   His clothes dried while the fish cooked.  And though he put on a scowl, even the tall tales about the fishing done on alien planets were enjoyed by everyone. In all it was an day Rahul would treasure.