[Trade] Come into the water

It had been several seasons since the trio of two suchomimus and utahraptor had met for the first time. Their encounters were rare, as they lead extremely different lives- Fable spent her time with her family in her home far inland, and 5827 and Eshei spent their time with their respective packs out on the waters edge. Still, they would regularly run into each other, back at the pond where they had first met as a kind of escape from the world around them when things became too overwhelming.

Fable was the one to arrive last this time, an inverse to their first meeting. The day was quite hot, and she had to repeatedly shake her feathers out and hop between patches of shade to avoid overheating. Eshei was sprawled out in the shallow waters, and a dark shadow in the water revealed where 5827 was hiding.

“Fable!” Eshei greeted, standing and shaking water off herself as the raptor approached. Fable didn't dodge out of the way, instead allowing the droplets to hit her and add some relief from the sun. “Glad you could join us.”

“Fable?” 5827 rose her head out of the water, a large amount of water dripping down back into the water. “Fable!” The black suchomimus lunged for the shore, and Fable had to step back to avoid getting tackled. Despite the fact they were around the same age, the suchomimus were much larger than the adolescent raptor- not for the first time, Fable cursed the fact her kind was one of the smallest species of dinosaur released. 

“We didn't expect to see you here today.” The black feathered suchomimus continued, seemingly oblivious to the near collision she had caused. “It’s hot even for us, and we can just dive underwater! How do you escape the heat?”

Fable snicked a bit, hopping forward and nudging against Eshei. “We do have shade, you know. Plenty of caves and dens too where we can hide from the heat. Granted, Im sure swimming is a more… active way to cool off.”

The brown suchomimus had a mischievous twinkle in her eye as she nudged against the much smaller carnivore. “You know, you could still take us up on that offer.” Eshei teased. The brown suchomimus was referring to something the duo brought up every visit- teaching Fable to swim. Each time the raptor had refused, citing various reasons. It was too cold out, she didnt want to get her feathers messy, and that she had just eaten. Each time the suchomimus had let the topic rest, but the looks on their faces revealed they knew the real reason- Fable was scared. Thankfully, they respected it and never pushed the manner.

However, today was different. Maybe it was the scorching heat that lingered on Fables feathers and invaded the air she breathed, maybe it was the fact that she wanted to prove to herself she was capable- whatever the reason, she considered it- and eventually yielded with a “Ok.”

Eshei and 5827 stared in astonishment, before looking at each other. “Wait. Did I hear that correctly?” 5827 blurted out, tail thrashing in the water behind her. “You want to swim?”

Fable shuffled nervously. “Y-yeah. I figured it's time to learn. It's hot enough, you know?” She straightened up. “So how are we gonna do this?”

The two suchomimus looked between each other, before back at Fable in confusion. “What do you mean?” Eshei asked.

A cold trickle of doubt trailed through Fables feathers. “Wh-what? How did your parents teach you to swim?”

5827 shrugged. “It kinda came naturally to use. Suchomimus are able to swim as soon as we are born- some parents even push their kids into the water.”

“Mine did that!” Eshei chirped. “It wasn't dangerous, of course. They were there to help us. But. Uh. That may not be the best idea with you.”

“I agree.” Fable responded weakly. “Maybe… maybe I can swim between you? You can keep me afloat with your arms and keep me from sinking with your flanks?”

“I think that would work.” Eshei thought, before turning to 5827- who gave her nod of approval. “Alright! Let's do this.”

Fable nervously waddled into the water, the two larger carnivores following close on either side. The water was warm, but with each step it slowly became cooler and cooler. Her feathers instantly became soaked and plastered to her side. It was not an uncomfortable experience, although it was an odd feeling that left her feeling heavy and off-balance.

Eventually the water became deep enough that her feet couldn't touch the bottom. Fable quickly figured out that swimming was much harder with an armful of wing feathers- when she attempted to paddle forward with them, the increased weight made it much harder for them to be driven forward. She was thankful for the ever-present presence of the suchomimus at her side- Eshei and 5827 pressed against her, supporting her enough she could quickly push herself back up whenever she started to sink.

They weren't even halfway through the small lake when Fable began to tire, however. Her forearms burnt from the strain, and her tail ached from the constant thrashing. She attempted to gasp to take in more air, only for water to fill her mouth. Fable coughed frantically, stalling in the water. This was a bad idea-

Thankfully, she had support. Fable yelped as Eshei dipped away only to surface underneath her, allowing the utahraptor to rest upon her like a log. “T-thanks.” She panted, spitting out water. 

“Maybe we went a bit too hard for your first lesson.” 5827 frowned, drifting around the two.

Fable sighed in relief, shaking out her wing-feathers. “This is much nicer.” She admitted. “I'm not too heavy for you, am I Eshei?”

“Nahh!” Eshie craned her long neck around to look at Fable. “It's like carrying a few fish.” She winked. “If this is what it takes to help you cool down and learn to swim, it's worth it!”

The three drifted together in comfortable silence. Even without being beneath the water, it was far cooler than the shade was. Fable hummed. This was nice. Maybe swimming wasn't cut out for her- but hanging with her friends? Made it worth it.