(Untitled)

[noonelaughed]

Chris has spent most of the morning tidying up. Maybe it's a bit mental, but at this point, the floor's got so many clothes carpeting it, and so many dishes and other shit he's nicked from the compound that he's lost track of Anwar something like five times in the past week. It's long overdue, even for Chris

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[little_moons]

"What the hell are you doin', man?" I say, coughing out a laugh as I come up beside him, looking down into the water like maybe that'll explain things, but it really doesn't.

Mack and Flo are close behind, in tiny bathing suits, one pink and one green, with matching Audrey Hepburn sunglasses that are, for today, their very favorite things in the world.

[noonelaughed]

"Shhh, you're gonna scare all the fish," Chris says, only glancing up in Neil's direction for a moment before he's looking at the water again. He's been standing here long enough that he's not about to take his eyes off of the water for too long. It'll be just his luck that one will be along just as soon as he stops looking.

[little_moons]

"Fish?" Mack says, hurrying to stand beside him, leaning over to peer down into the water just like him, "Why you catchin' fish?"

"Careful, Munchkin," I mutter, even though she and her sister have been able to swim before they could really walk.

[noonelaughed]

"To keep," Chris answers, looking up at Mack. He's always been shit with kids, but at last Neil's are old enough that they can talk and all.

"You've got a pet too though, right?"

[well_yeah_but]

Surprisingly enough, Tony follows Chris' train of thought easily enough once he takes in the entire picture. The expression of earnest concentration is what put it all together so quickly; Tony can't recall the last time he saw Chris that focused on anything.

"You ought to get in," he advises as he steps across the damp sand to stand beside his friend and peer curiously into the water.

[noonelaughed]

He hears Tony's voice but doesn't look up at him just yet, eyes trained on the water below. It'd be just his luck that he'd look away and he'd miss a fish worth catching.

"Can't, mate," he replies, "Then I'd have to stand there for fuckin' ages while I wait for them to get used to me in there."

[well_yeah_but]

"As opposed to standing here for ages while you wait for one to swim close and slow enough for you to ambush it," counters Tony with a quirk of his mouth. "Brilliant plan, you're right."

[noonelaughed]

"Yeah, well, I haven't exactly done this before, have I?" is Chris's reply. He's convinced this is the right way to go about it, though, they're much more likely to come near him if he's not actually in the water.

Though, if he's got to stand there much longer, he might give Tony's way a go anyway.

[halfscarlet]

"This is an interesting picture," Billy said, standing a little ways behind Chris and whatever he's doing. It looked like he was trying to catch some fish, but going about it entirely the wrong way.

Not that Billy had any idea what the right way was, but he was sure it didn't look like that.

[noonelaughed]

"You think of a better way to go about it, then," Chris replies, looking over at Billy. It's not like he's got a net or anything, or like this is as simple as catching a toad in his shirt. Fish are fast, especially the little ones, and they've got to be decently close to him for Chris to even have a shot here.

[halfscarlet]

"I'm not saying I have a better way," Billy pointed out, slipping out of his sandals as he moved closer to the water to get a good look at whatever it was Chris was trying to do. "I'm just saying it looks funny. Are you fishing?"

[noonelaughed]

"Somethin' like that, yeah," Chris answers, and he looks at the water again. Shit. He's probably scared them all off now by talking to Billy.

He's always wondered though, how that works. When he's underwater, everything's all muffled, so he doesn't know just how they'd hear him talking anyway. He'd guess it's the vibration or something, but that makes about as much sense as the other thing.

[endlessdel]

The world is upside down. Water in the sky, the air and clouds beneath her feet and everything is rushing to her head. Delirium stared at the boy with the glasses and then she laughs. Laughter sounds so much better upside down, distorted like the world around her.

"wHatchA doiNG?" Del asked before collapsing into a pile beside him laughing the entire time. Standing on ones head was hard. "Are you trying to catch water?"

[noonelaughed]

"Quiet or you're gonna scare 'em all away," Chris replies, glaring over at the woman for a moment before he turns his attention to the water again. There's a little blue fish that's been daring enough to get close, and though it's too far away for him to reach at the moment, he's sure it'll swim near again.

[endlessdel]

Delirium pressed her hands over her mouth, going quiet very suddenly. Crawling very quietly she moved over and looked at the fishies in the water.

"Oh, oh you're getting fishies? I like fishies, my sister had lots but then no fishies. And just an empty sad tank," Delirium said whispering quietly. Delirium watched quietly wondering if the strange boy could catch the little fishies and she could talk to them. Del missed having fishie friends.

[noonelaughed]

"What'd they all die?" Chris asks, his voice low now. "That's shit. Sorry." He's had enough fish himself that he knows how shit it is when they die. But it's easy if you don't know what you're doing, or if you forget to feed them for too long. Sometimes it's harder that it might seem, keeping them alive.

[yeah_wow_lovely]

She doesn't come here often. After all, it's the pool she leapt into hoping to never resurface again, but Cassie finds she doesn't mind so much when she passes by.

And so, it's with only small knots in her stomach that she approaches, only to feel them ease at once at the sight of Chris. "Oh wow," she says in genuine delight. "But, you're here."

[noonelaughed]

"'lo, Cass," Chris says, and only glances up at her for a second before he's looking at the water again, eyes peeled for the blue fish he's sure he saw not too long ago. It was too fast for him the first time, but now he's determined to get it.

"I'm tryin' for one of the little blue ones. What d'you think?"

[yeah_wow_lovely]

"I think they sound lovely," says Cassie, even if she's not sure she's ever seen any in this particular pool, but there some are details in life that Cassie fiercely absorbs, and some she lets simply float by her.

"Chris?" she asks, grinning. "Do you mean to catch them with those little cups in your hands?"

[noonelaughed]

"That's the plan," Chris confirms, with a bit of a nod, "From these to the bowl, then I reckon I'll figure it out from there."

He hasn't got an aquarium or anything just yet, but all they'll really need is a bit of clean water. They're on an island, so there's loads of that.