Watching Shilah work on those stick-spears had been inspiring to say the least. When Percy was younger he'd be as eager to fiddle and contrive as your average pup, even if the results were... well, mixed might still be putting it too kindly. He was never very skilled, but that didn't mean he couldn't try again! And besides. Inspired. It would totally work out this time. It helped that his goal was simple too. He was just gonna get a stick, use a rock to splinter the ends, and then stab some fish. It was the perfect plan! Fishing without getting wet? He was a genius. Gathering up a few good sticks had been the easy part. He was feeling confident as he sat there on the river's bank below the falls. He had a good dozen or so to choose from, and a good rock to bash 'em with, and hopefully there were loads of fish in the deep, cool water. His spirits were high. He wedged the end of one stick between to rocks and pressed down, and... the end didn't splinter like he'd envisioned so much as it just got kinda crushed... but that was fine! He moved onto Stick #2, undeterred, but maybe that one was... too green still, because the same thing happened. He tried a few more, some dry and some fresh, some big and some much smaller. In the end he had three sticks left, but his spirits were no longer high. Percy frowned at the waterfall, as if it were responsible for his failures. Probably was. Waterfalls were jerks, everyone knew that. Maybe sticks were stupid too, and he should probably just get in the damn water. Ugh. "Talk" "Listen" Think

Svala had settled away from the crowd. It was a gorgeous evening but she didn't care to be in the center of the going-ons where wolves were being particularly drunk and amorous. She glanced out at the ocean for a moment before turning back to her fire. She had some whole five-leaf grass plants that she wanted to process. A decoction of the root and an infusion of the rest of the herb would be sufficient. Svala took the plants in her mouth and chewed them apart right at the root so she could separate the parts that she needed. She set the root down on a rock and mashed at it with her claws before scrapping it into a ceramic bowl. Taking the rest of the herb she mashed and squashed it with her claws before setting it in a separate ceramic bowl. She just started going to grab her water skin when she noticed a very handsome young man doing something odd with sticks. Oh to be young again. She wasn't quite sure what his plan was but he seemed pretty frustrated. Svala cleared her throat and called out. "Um, excuse me sir, what are you doing with those sticks? Do you need some help?" "Talk" "You" Think

To find that his repeated failures were being witnessed by someone else was a blow to Perseus' confidence for sure. Not that he didn't have plenty of that to spare, so all it resulted in was him tipping his head back and letting out a frustrated, if still somewhat comedically exaggerated, groan. He turned to see a woman, older than himself by the look of it and smaller in stature. Gesturing with a limp paw to the splintered mess before him he groused out, "I'm just a simple guy, tryin' to stab some fish, and my brilliance is being foiled by reality. As usual." He flopped sideways in a dramatic, defeated huff. Maybe he was laying it on a little thick now that he knew he wasn't alone out here, but so what? It'd been too long since he'd gotten to clown around (approximately 24 hours, at least) and the situation certainly warranted it. Who the hell did these sticks think they were? With his face pressed against the ground his words came out a little garbled, but he still tried his best to explain further. "Figured if I split up the stick ends, made 'em into prongs, I could stab fish better." He kicked out a hind leg, sending some of the debris left over from failed attempts scuttling farther down the beach. That oughta show 'em... "Talk" "Listen" Think

Svala chuckled as the man explained that he was trying to fish. "Well, that sounds like a good idea to me. I do have a bone knife if you wanted to give it a try but I use it more for herbs. I'm not sure if it's strong enough for sticks." She trotted back to her bundle and dug around until she found the antler knife. She brought it over to the man and set it near him. "You're welcome to give it a try. I'll be here awhile as I finish up my projects." Svala returned to her bundle and grabbed her water skin. She uncorked her water skin and added water to the bowl with the mashed five-leaf grass roots. Taking a stick in her mouth she gave it a quick stir then carefully scooted the bowl toward the fire using a pronged stick. She'd need to get it good and boiling for this to work. Taking the rest of the mashed herb she carefully scooted it into a glass jar, which had also been sealed with a cork. "My name is Svala, by the way." She took a moment to take stock of the weather as she noticed a few clouds sinking low in the horizon, scattering the light of the setting sun. She hoped for a good, clear night for her crafting. "Talk"