Yet another Thursday Prompt, again about Aslan and Ash. This one is long, and i love it. I don't think it's mature enough to be rated mature, but if you all think it should be, -please- tell me.

Enjoy! ^^

Quick Read:

First Fish

Water is a wonderful thing. It’s perfectly pure, and tasteless to boot. It’s also like a mirror, and I love mirrors. When it’s calm, you can see yourself, the sky, the ceiling, a wall, or the face of the tired horse who’s leaning over your shoulder and waiting for you to get done using the sink. Ah, I love water.

On Saturday, being the lion that I am, I slept in by accident. I always sleep in the nude, since it’s comfortable, and this morning was no exception. I woke up to a knock on the front door, and noticed that it must have been at least the third one. I glanced at the clock. 6:48. “Shit!!” I yelled, scrambling up. I glanced at the mirror as I ran, and thanked God. I leapt to my closet and pulled on a pair of pants fast, barely zipping them, then sprinted downstairs to get the door.

Ash had his hand raised to knock again, almost scowling, the muscles of his arm bulging. I think I’m glad he wasn’t moving his hand to knock right then, even if I deserved it. Anyways, he was wearing a thin sporting jacket that was open partway to reveal an orange shirt. He had on a pair of snug-fitting blue jeans, with a boot cut. Different from his normal tennis shoes, he was wearing a pair of plain brown hiking boots. On top of how he looked, I could see his eyes raking my bare torso, and I wasn’t sure I disliked that. “Aslan! Finally! Are your parents gone, or just very deep sleepers? I’ve been out here for nearly an hour,” he huffed slightly, but smiled. “Mind if I come in? It’s not exactly cold out, down here, and I think you need to get ready, anyways.”

“Er, sure. Sorry about taking so long. I kind of…Slept through my alarm.” I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly, a light blush forming on my cheeks.

He smiled cheerfully at me. “Don’t worry. No harm, no foul.” Stepping by me, he investigated the house nonchalantly. I think what he noticed first was how orderly, yet disorderly it all was. “Parents gone, eh?”

“Er…Yeah. For the rest of the month. Uhm…There’s some food in the fridge if you want to eat something. I need to go get ready, alright?” I blushed a bit more, feeling vulnerable without a shirt, and with a dirty, tangled mane.

“I’ll be fine. Go get ready.” He nodded up the stairs, then flopped onto the couch.

I nodded and dashed up to my room, grabbing a good pair of jeans, some underwear, and a blue and gold tee shirt. I dashed to the bathroom, tossing off my jeans as I went. I locked the door and started practically scrubbing at different places with a stick of deodorant. I didn’t want to take a shower, because if I did, well…There hadn’t been a bulge holding my pants up at the door for nothing, and I didn’t want to take the time to take care of that. So I scrubbed with deodorant until I was pretty sure I smelled mostly clean, then dressed quickly. I grabbed a comb and hastily raked the tangles from my mane, hissing slightly. It’s never good to comb something as big as a lion’s mane very quickly. It can hurt.

I sighed contentedly when I was finished, setting the comb down. I looked…Well, presentable. I slowly walked out and grabbed a thin jacket from my room, then called down the stairs, “Ash, will I need more than what I’m wearing?”

“Well, I had planned to stay the night…,” he called back.

I blinked, then blushed. Staying the night in the wilderness with Ash…Well, it was, and still is, an appealing thought. I hurried back to my room and grabbed a bag I always keep in my closet, but rarely use. It’s a fair-sized duffel, big enough to hold enough clothes for a few days, if packed properly. I grabbed a couple pairs of jeans and some tee shirts, stuffed them in, then zipped it up.

Slinging it over my shoulder, I slipped on a pair of boots that I had actually bought only a couple weeks ago, when my dad promised to take me hiking with my mom and him. Of course, he only took her, but I wasn’t angry. Hell, now I was overjoyed by it. Anyways, I slipped them on, then hustled downstairs, smiling at Ash, who’d barely moved an inch.

His eyes were closed and he was stretched out on the couch, hands behind his head. I smiled and walked over loudly, tapping his shoulder. He yawned awake, then smiled up at me. “Ready to go?” I nodded. “Then let’s get going!” He jumped up, and bustled me out the door, where I saw his car for the first time.

It was a white, four door Jeep. I walked over, admiring it and nodding to myself. Ash grabbed the duffel from under my arm and tossed it in the trunk, then opened the passenger door with a bow. “Your chariot awaits, my lord.”

I laughed, and got in. “Oh, hush up.” He closed my door with a bark of laughter, then got in the driver’s seat. As he put the key into the ignition, I lazily slipped into my seat-belt. I never liked the things, but I’m no idiot. I’d prefer to live, than die because I wasn’t wearing what other guys refer to as “kid safety” devices.

Ash slipped into his own belt and backed out of my driveway. “It won’t be too long of a trip, Aslan. So try and get some sleep, if you’re still tired.” He smiled at me warmly.

I shook my head. “I’m ot really tired. Just…Heavy sleeper.” Blushing, I grinned at him.

He chuckled. “I’ve heard all about lions and their naps. Well, the scenery’s not so bad.” He glanced at me with a wide smile on his face as he slowed to a stop at a red light.

I blushed and chuckled. “No, I don’t think it could be better.”

Laughing, he accelerated when the light turned green, and I sat back, looking out the windshield. We stopped at a few more lights without much conversation, then we were finally out of the city.

Now, I’ve never really been out of the city much, but I love it whenever I do leave. But I’d never been in the direction Ash was taking me, or at least not directly; north.

There were fir trees and evergreens, and I looked back to see that we were above the city now. We’d been going steadily upwards. I glanced at Ash. “We’re going up?”

“Oh, not too far up, but yes. I know a lovely spot to camp up by a lake; great fishing. Won’t be too long now.” He smiled at me.

After about a half-hour, he turned onto a smaller road, which led to a parking lot. It was empty, so he parked the Jeep in the farthest spot. He got out almost immediately and stretched, as did I.

Popping my neck, I asked, “So, how long of a hike is it?”

“Maybe ten minutes, if we walk slowly. You can see the lake from here,” he pointed off into the trees. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it? The fishing is great.” He smiled at me from across the engine housing.

I looked. It really was beautiful. The water was calm, barely a ripple to disturb it. And, if I hadn’t known better, it looked clean enough to drink from. “It’s wonderful. I’ll bet the fish are as big as my arm.” I grinned.

“Oh, I’ve seen bigger, here. Now, come on; grab your duffel, and let’s hike!” He hoisted up three quite large bags from the back of the Jeep and hoisted them, two over one shoulder, one on the other. Whistling, he jogged off into the trees. I blinked, the grabbed my duffel and sprinted to catch up.

We jogged for a bit, and I noticed that he wasn’t heading straight for the lake, then he turned left. I breathed in deeply. The forest smelled of pine sap, and the air was thin and cold. I also smelled Ash’s deodorant, or maybe that was just the scent of horse. Either way, I liked it. Anyways, he jogged us in a zigzag course to the bank, and plopped his bags down. I tossed my lone duffel by his, and blushed. I should’ve offered him my help, but I think he would’ve refused.

“I’ll be right back; I need to grab the poles. If you know how to set up a tent, could you?” He asked me, panting a bit.

“I’ll get them, Ash. You’ve carried enough.” I tried to turn, but I felt his hand on my shoulder.

He turned me around to face him, and he was smiling. “Aslan, set up the tent; I’ll get the poles.” And he was off before I could muster the willpower to say no.

Sighing softly, I went about setting up the tent. It was a fairly standard affair; four poles bent to a point at the top, tarpaulin covering them and the ground. I looked in my duffel, remembering something. “Aha!” I shouted, as I searched the outer pockets. My dad had made me pack my duffel once, and told me to leave a blanket in it. Not to sleep under, but for a tent. It was bit enough to cover the whole floor of the tent, and it would definitely make it more comfortable.

I glanced back towards the parking lot, and saw Ash loping back to me. The wind shifted a bit, and I smelled him; dear God, he smelled muskier than before. The smell of it made me blush, and hurry into the tent to spread the blanket.

When I came out, he was almost the campsite, so I waved at him and smiled. I could smell him still, and it was a very…alluring scent. Heady and hearty; tough and…salty? I blushed as I registered the thought, and what it could mean.

He ran up to me, his fur glimmering in the sunlight with a thin sheen of sweat. He carried two long fishing poles, one in each hand “Phew! Good run. Now, have you eaten?”

I blinked, and then my stomach growled. “…I don’t think so.”

“Haha! Just noticed now, too?” He laughed, and I heard his stomach, too. “Come on; let’s catch us some breakfast.” He tossed me a pole, and I caught it deftly.

“Uhm…How do I - ?” I started to ask.

“I’ll teach you once we’re down at the lake.” Whistling a jaunty tune, he walked down to the lakeshore, which was no more than a few yards away.

“This is how you do it; cock your arm back, like this.” He angled his casting arm backwards, and I imitated the motion. “Now, flick it forwards - gently, gently!” Flicking his line forward, he landed his bobber a good way out on the lake; I imitated the action, sticking my tongue out of my mouth for concentration.

Flicking my arm forward, I felt a bit of resistance on the line, and looked back. The hook had apparently caught on to my duffle. After I had slapped a palm to my face, and Ash had laughed, I extricated the line from my bag, and tried again.

This time my cast went almost as far as Ash’s, and I heard him whistle loudly. I glanced at him, grinning. “You’re a natural,” he smiled at me.

He taught me how to bait the hook next, digging a small tub of worms from one of his bags. It was pretty easy; I only pricked myself a couple times. He showed me how different it was to cast with bait, and I caught on quick.

We chatted idly, waiting for a nibble. Suddenly, my bobber bobbed, and I jumped up. Biting my lip, I waited. It was like waiting for a storm to break; it took forever. Finally, the bobber went under, and I heard Ash shout, “Go! Reel it in! Now!” I flicked the pole backwards, and began to spin the reel backwards quickly. Gritting my teeth, I pulled hard; it was almost a struggle. After a moment, a fish broke the water, my hook caught in its mouth; It was huge! I pulled hard, and it flopped to the shore. I looked at it; it wasn’t as big as my arm. No, it was as big as both my arms.

Ash was breathing excitedly. “My God, Aslan…Your first fish…” He shook his head. “It’s huge!” He smiled at me. “Congratulations.”

I shook my head now. “I wouldn’t have caught it if you hadn’t taught me how; now, what do we do with it?”

“Well, it’s already dead by now; ‘drowned’, you could say. So, I say we cook it.” Nodded at me, he leaned down to it and began to remove the hook from its mouth.

“Alright. That thing looks delicious; I bet it’ll be even ebtter when you’ve cooked it up right.” I chuckled, setting my pole down and going to find some stones; Ash hadn’t brought enough stuff in his bags to have brought much cooking gear.

When I was lugging enough stones under my arms and on my shoulders to make a ring, I headed back to camp. I set up a circle with them, a bit away from Ash, then headed off to grab some dry branches and brush, as well a few large pieces of wood. When I came back, Ash had cleaned the fish and gutted it, and had it on a skewer. He smiled at me widely. “I cans ee someone know a bit of what he’s doing.”

Soon enough, I had a small fire going, and the fish was searing above it. By now, it was well past noon, and the aroma of whatever he’d used to prepare the fish was wonderfully tortuous. Ash could see me drooling, and I could see him doing the same; he’d also brought some vegetables along, and had put them on skewers of their own. It all looked too delicious.

We talked at length, until it was all done cooking. Then, ravenous, we tore into our chosen food; by now, it was late afternoon.

“Ooogh, that was delicious, Ash.” I lay back on my hands, smiling warmly at the horse and patting my stomach.

Smiling back, he said, “I’m glad you think so.” He stifled a yawn, lying back himself. “I think we should get to bed; I know I’m at least tired. We can fish some more tomorrow.” He got up slowly, heading to the tent.

I tossed a good bit of sand on the fire, and stomped on it until it was out, then followed Ash to the tent. Inside, he was already half-undressed, having stripped his shirt off. I blushed, and hesitated. He whinnied and grabbed my hand, unexpectedly pulling me on top of him. He rolled me to the side. “Aslan, honey…We’re going to be sleeping in the same tent tonight,” he locked his arms around my neck warmly. “We should be comfortable.”

I blushed hard, but took my shirt off slowly. If he was shirtless, I could be too. I kicked off my boots as he snuggled up to me. I could see the setting sun through the tent, and I loved it. I nuzzled his mane softly, as he nosed the trailing part of mine that fell onto my bulky, muscular chest. I think that’s how we fell asleep; well, it’s at least how I did, and I don’t think I’d ever slept as well before.