The Fuller's Apprentice (The Chronicles of Tevenar Book 1) (13 page)

Josiah grinned in commiseration. To change the subject, he asked, “So, Noam, what guild do you belong to?”

“I’m a cooper. My uncle’s my master. We make the best barrels in Darilla.” He launched into a description of the process of barrel-making. Josiah listened with interest, although the others acted like they’d heard it all before. “What about the rest of you?”

Keren was a herder, Abra a brewer, Edria a hunter. Yan was going to apprentice to his mother as a carpenter. They were all eager to talk about the details of their crafts. Finally Josiah turned to Ledah. “What about you?”

Ledah shrugged. “I’m a basketmaker. I’m apprenticed to my grandmother. But it’s not like I get to spend a lot of time on my craft.” She waved at the others. “None of the rest of them do, either. It’s different in big towns like Korisan where people actually earn their living with their craft. I mean, we all send in our Guild dues every year so we’re proper members, but most of us do a little of everything, whatever our families need. We all have our own gardens and animals, and pretty much everyone spins and weaves and sews a little, and builds and brews and fishes, too. Grammi and I aren’t really needed all that much. Everyone knows how to weave a simple basket.”

Her voice lost its cynical tone. “Grammi’s taught me some interesting techniques, though. She says they’ve been passed down from master to apprentice for years here in the mountains. I bet down in Korisan they’ve never seen anything like it.” She eyed Josiah speculatively. “I’ve thought about moving to Korisan after I make journeyman. Mother has a cousin who’s a basketmaker in Tathorlith. She’s bound to know a master in Korisan who’ll take me. I don’t want to stay in Darilla all my life.”

“You’d love Korisan.” Josiah told her. “I mean, there’s nothing wrong with Darilla,” he hastened to add. “It’s just… small.”

“Exactly,” Ledah said with a grimace.

The trail they followed narrowed until they had to go single file. It wound steeply up, between and over large boulders and scatterings of smaller rocks. At times they had to cling to drooping branches to haul themselves up, or boost each other past a particularly difficult spot. The conversation died away as they gave all their energy to climbing.

The path bent away from the river, and Josiah lost track of its gentle gurgle. But he heard a muted roar in the distance, which grew louder and closer as they advanced. The trail leveled for a bit, went up a little ridge, around a bend, and the waterfall was before them.

The river poured over a sheer rock wall and fell, white and foaming, at least fifty feet to a deep pool at its base. Rhododendron bushes grew thick around it, their pink and white blossoms scenting the air. The ceaseless roar of the water filled Josiah’s ears, and the wind blew spray into his face.

Josiah stared in wonder for a long moment before he joined the others scrambling down the rocks to the edge of the pool. He followed their example and sat down on a boulder to strip off his boots and socks.

His feet were hot from the long walk, and he anticipated the cool water with pleasure. But when he plunged his feet into the flowing stream, he gasped in shock. The water was so cold it made his feet ache. They went numb as he stepped cautiously into the shallows.

The others laughed at him. “What do you expect?” Edria asked. “It’s only been a few weeks since the last of the snow melted. You might still find a patch or two, if you went up high enough.”

“You get used to it after a few minutes.” Yan waded toward a cluster of large rocks that stuck out of the water a few feet in. “It feels great in the middle of summer when it gets hot. It doesn’t stay quite this cold, but almost. We always come out here and swim on Restdays.”

Keren chimed in. “This is only the second time we’ve come this spring. We have to remember to cut some rhododendron branches to take back with us.” She followed Yan out to the rocks in the midst of the stream. When she got there, she pulled one of Galia’s fruits from her pocket and bit into it.

The rest made their way out to the rocks, Josiah in their midst. The wet stones were slick under his feet, dropping away suddenly to hidden holes, then leveling into an area of sharp gravel. He stepped out of the gravel onto a rock that looked stable, but it shifted under his feet, and his other foot came down on a slippery patch. He lost his balance and almost fell, but hands reached out to steady him and help him to the safety of the broad slanted boulders.

Scrambling up, he leaned back with the others on the sun-warmed surface of the stone. He peeled his fruit and bit into it, the sweet juices trickling down his chin. They set bits of peel adrift on the stream and watched the current whirl them away, bobbing and spinning until they got stuck in a drift of sticks and leaves or vanished out of sight around the bend.

They lay back a while and let the warm spring sun bake them. Then Abra jumped up and went climbing across the rocks, picking her way to the far side of the stream where a tumble of boulders invited exploration. Noam followed her, and the rest trailed after. They climbed among the boulders, enjoying the challenge of balancing and reaching, finding a path to ever more inaccessible spots. Edria and Keren reached a thicket of rhododendron bushes, and pulled knives from their belts to cut long trailing branches covered with blooms. They handed them down, and the others passed them from hand to hand until Yan piled them by the edge of the water, waiting to be carried back to the village.

Noam looked appraisingly into the deepest part of the pool, wiping sweat from his forehead. “I’m hot.” He trailed a foot in the water thoughtfully. Then he made his decision. Stripping off his tunic, he draped it over a branch and stood, clad only in his breeches, poised over the water.

Ledah gasped. “Noam, it’s freezing!”

Abra chimed in. “You wouldn’t dare.”

Noam grinned at them. “Watch me.” He took a deep breath and dove into the pool.

He surfaced and waved back at them. His lips were tinged blue, but he was grinning. “It feels wonderful. Really.”

Keren glared at him, her hands on her hips. “Noam, you idiot! Mother’s going to be furious with you.”

“Don’t tell her, then.” Noam stroked toward the churning foam at the base of the falls.

“I won’t have to when you come home with your breeches soaked!” She shook her head, but the other girls were giggling and pointing, obviously impressed with Noam’s daring.

“Come on in,” Noam yelled over the water’s roar. He climbed onto a rock at the edge of the falls, letting the falling water beat down on his broad shoulders. He dashed a hand against the surface of the pond, sending a splash of water in their direction.

The girls shrieked and scrambled back, but they never took their eyes off the young man in the water. Ledah bumped into Josiah without even seeing him.

Josiah looked into the dark depths of the pond and felt the water frigid on his feet. He pulled off his tunic, folded it on the rock, and stood there a moment shivering, the wind cool on his bare skin. He closed his eyes tight and dove into the water.

The cold hit him as hard as a blow, penetrating to his bones in dull pain. He surfaced and gasped for breath, kicked wildly to stay afloat, and pushed his mop of curly hair out of his eyes. He forced a grin onto his face and waved at the girls, enjoying their cries of dismay. He struck out toward the rock where Noam was perched. Reaching it, he clambered up. Noam grinned and thumped his shoulder.

Josiah edged his way closer to the crashing water. He hadn’t realized just how much speed the water built up as it fell freely, many times his height, from the rocks above. Steeling himself he pushed his shoulders under the pouring flow. The water pounded with the force of dozens of hammers, stinging sharply. He straightened himself against the weight. Was this how the cloth felt, pounded beneath the stocks?

Noam plunged back into the pool, and Josiah followed, his shoulders tingling with relief. He was acclimating to the chill of the water now. It was starting to feel almost good, a bone deep thrill joining the ache.

He and Noam paddled around the pool, splashing each other and beckoning the girls to join them. They rolled their eyes and shook their heads, but Yan took off his tunic and stood nervously on the edge, gathering his courage. As they watched, he plunged in, surfaced with a yelp, and scrambled out again.

They laughed at him. He wavered on the brink of the pool. The girls urged him to come to his senses and get dressed, while Josiah and Noam encouraged him to join them. Yan eased himself into a waist-deep spot and stood there, shivering.

Josiah flipped onto his back and floated, looking up at the blue sky and the sun and the glittering white water tumbling down. He felt wonderful, no longer cold at all. He closed his eyes and listened to the girls chatter, outrage tinged with admiration, and smiled to himself.

He dove beneath the surface, came up, and looked around. The pool was fairly small. A few strokes took him to the far side. Looking up, he saw a rock outcropping projecting above. He studied the steep tumble of rocks at the cliff’s base until he spotted a handhold, and then a place to put his feet. Without really thinking about it, he ventured out of the water and up onto the rocks. In a few minutes he was far above the pool.

“Josiah!” Ledah shouted over the roar of the waterfall. “What are you doing?” Her voice was angry.

Josiah grinned. She was worried about him. But he was full of confidence, his hands and feet solid and sure on the rocks. “I’m trying to get up to a place where I can jump.”

He grabbed a branch and hauled himself up a few more feet. Nearly there now. Ledah yelled at him, but he ignored her. He looked down. Below, Noam climbed out of the pool and followed him up. But he was too far behind to catch up before Josiah reached his destination.

At last he was there. He stood up, steadying himself with one hand against the vertical cliff, and crept out along the projecting spur of rock. The pool was a dark circle directly below him, much smaller than he had imagined it would look. The water poured down barely more than an arm’s reach away, its roar filling his ears, its spray slick on the rock under his feet.

Noam stopped climbing and watched. Josiah yelled and waved until he was sure all eyes were fixed on him. He curled his toes over the edge of the rock, heart pounding louder than the falls in his ears. Terror ran through his limbs and tightened his throat. He drew a deep breath and jumped.

For an endless instant he hung in space. He plunged into water shockingly cold again, sensation bursting through his body in a thrilling wave. He surfaced, shook drops from his face, and laughed in delight.

He stroked over to where the girls watched, clustered on the edge of the pool, sitting with their feet dangling in the water. He pulled himself up and propped his elbows on the rock. “That was incredible. You really ought to try it.”

“You’re crazy. You know that, don’t you?” Ledah kicked a splash of water at him. He returned it, but missed her, soaking Edria instead. She splashed back at him, aided by Keren, and for a few moments it was a full fledged water fight.

Yan had acclimated to the cold and was paddling around in the pool, but no one noticed him. He yelled and pointed. “Noam’s going to jump!”

They all stopped and watched as Noam paused on the brink for a moment, then leapt. He plunged into the pool and surfaced with the same excitement Josiah had felt on his face.

Josiah swam back over to the far side and climbed the rocks again. It was almost harder this time to force himself to jump, but he did, and was rewarded with the glorious thrill of free fall and icy plunge. He and Noam took turns climbing and jumping until they were both exhausted. They crawled out onto the rocks beside the girls, shook as much water as they could from themselves, and stretched out in the sun to dry the rest.

Josiah drowsed, thoroughly happy. He thought about moving, but he was so comfortable, and there was no hurry. His body was mostly dry, and though his breeches would take much longer, they were no longer dripping. His tunic was just over there. He’d get up and put it on in a moment, when he could summon the energy.

A warm touch settled on top of his outflung hand, fingers wrapping lightly around his. Startled, he jerked his eyes open. Ledah sat beside him, looking out over the pool, her hand clasping his.

He sat up, careful not to disturb her hand, and looked around. Keren and Edria were busy carrying armfuls of rhododendron branches across the stream, focused on picking their way across the uneven rocks without falling. Yan was still paddling around in the pool. Noam and Abra had withdrawn a little way down the rocks. They stood together, Noam’s arm casually around Abra’s waist, heads bent close together. As he watched, Noam’s face moved down, Abra’s tilted back, and their lips met.

Josiah swallowed, pulse pounding in his ears. Back home he hadn’t been quite old enough for his group of friends to have started pairing off yet. He’d still mostly associated with other boys, while the girls were off busy with their own concerns. Only in the past year or so had he begun to lose his childish scorn of all things female, and to notice with interest the changes taking place in his female peers. He’d only recently started to toy with the idea of touching, and kissing, the thoughts stirring intriguing and alarming reactions in his body.

Now an older girl was expressing a subtle but unmistakable interest in him. He felt much the same as he had perched on the rock high above, both eager and terrified. Greatly daring, he looked at Ledah and tentatively tightened his fingers around hers. Her hand felt soft and comfortable in his, the warmth of their contact spreading through him in a tingling wave.

She turned to him and smiled, scooting a bit closer. “I’m really glad the wizard let you come up here with us, Josiah. It’s been fun having another boy around. You wouldn’t understand how it is, with just a few families in the village. We’re stuck with whoever happens to be near our age.” Her full lips pouted. “Back in Korisan, you must know lots of boys and girls.”

“I guess so.” Josiah quailed at how stupid that sounded. But Ledah continued, not seeming to notice anything wrong.