he sun rose, as it was accustomed to doing, slowly lighting the sky before finally slipping above the mountain which shaded the village by the sea. The village was already awake and bustling, the people who lived in the village left their beds before the sky began to lighten, the menfolk leaving their homes to go out in the fishing boats to bring in the catch which would feed their families. The boys and girls of the village left their homes once the sky began to lighten, dragging their small one-person boats down to the beach, loftily ignoring the cries of the younger children who begged, bribed and cajoled to be taken out in the small boats, the older children knowing it was more than their life was worth to take the small children out before the elders of the village decided they were old enough. The older children climbed into their boats and paddled out to the rocky area, near the cliffs, but not too close, incase a storm sprang up, and there they tied their boats together to rocky outcroppings where they went diving for pearls which would supplement the income of the village. After the boats had gone, the young children returned to playing by the ocean - there was not a child in the village who could not swim, each new baby was taught early in life, and each child taught the dangers of the ocean as well as the pleasure it could bestow. The ocean still claimed lives, with restless squalls and thrashing rains, but with the teachings the villages kept their small ones safe. The children knew to stay out when a storm was brewing was to risk a beating, and so if the clouds began to darken, they collected their belongings and trotted off home to their mothers and sisters. The young women of the village, once they had put up their hair, no longer went out diving for pearls, but stayed in the village and helped their mothers tend the farms. A few homes had small boats still laying beside the back door, where the mothers of the house had kept the children home to help with the livestock, but most of the children were out on the ocean, waiting for the sun to top the mountain. The older women of the village, who had borne and raised children ruled the village. The council of elders consisted of those women who had shown they had a head for the matters of the village, and it was they who made the decisions for the village. They decided if a girl was old enough to put her hair up, or a boy old enough to join the menfolk out on the fishing trips, and they who decided when the boys and girls were old enough to join the diving for pearls - and at a word from the circle of elders, the father would craft for his son or daughter a small one-person boat, and the child would know that finally he was old enough to be considered a useful member of the village. They also handed the negotiations with other villages, exchanging fish for vegetables and wheat, and trading the pearls for metal and lumber which the village blacksmith could use to craft tools, and the men could use to build houses for newly married couples. For this reason, the circle of elders always paid close attention to the courtship rituals of the young men and women, and each mother spent portions of their time chatting with the members of the circle.

As soon as the sun topped the mountain there was a splash as the boys and girls began diving for pearls, and the village became a bustling port as the men brought the fishing boats in, heavily laden with the morning's catch, which they then set about sorting and gutting while the seagulls crowed overhead, begging for scraps and stealing what they could. The sorting and gutting would take all morning, then the men would pause for lunch in town, and go out again in the afternoon, coming home at dusk. The young women swept out the houses while their mothers prepared lunch and mended the nets of the menfolk. In one house, all was quiet. The house belonged to the village herbalist and midwife, who was one of the circle of elders. Her husband had been claimed by the sea 5 years ago, and she had only one daughter living at home, her son having left the village with the blessing of the circle to become a warrior, as had her nephew, who she had raised when her sister died in childbirth. The girl was almost 20, and had put her hair up several years ago at Beltaine. She had stopped diving for pearls shortly after her 14th birthday, when her father had been claimed by the sea during a storm, and her mother had began teaching her the basics of midwifery and healing, and accelerating her education in herbs from being able to identify, to learning all the uses of said herbs. Jade would be the next village healer, and in the past 5 years, had learned almost as much as her mother. Sarah considered that Jade knew enough to take the majority of the village healing, which helped her in her declining years. Sarah was just past 50, and she knew well the life expectancy for women was 60 to 65. She wanted to become merely an adviser, rather than an active healer, and she wanted grandchildren. Her sons, for she always thought of Erick as her son, as well as Marc, were both grown warriors now, and it was unlikely that they would suddenly return home and marry. Jade had put her hair up 3 years ago, and Sarah knew she had a soft spot for the son of their neighbour, who, coincidentally, had reached marriageable age the same time as Jade. Sarah had high hopes for Darryl and Jade, and if things went the way she hoped, she would soon have the grandchildren she craved, and with her marriage, Jade would reach equal standing to the other women in the village, who would then finally allow Sarah to retire in peace.

This morning Sarah was going to a meeting of the village council, where they would discuss the potential marriages, and the young boys and girls and decide who would be allowed to put their hair up or join the ranks of the men, and who would remain diving for pearls until the next year. Jade was to gather herbs, as some of their stores were running low, and as the sun crested the mountain, Sarah began the 1 mile walk into the village, and Jade left by the back door and walked slowly towards the woods with her basket.

Jade was tall and lithe, as were all the people in the village, a legacy of spending all day swimming for pearls as children and hard work as adults. She had the dark skin typical of her people, and her waist-length brown hair hung in a single thick plait down her back. She wore the long skirt of a woman now, rather than the short knotted sarong the children wore, and a light cotton blouse over her breast-band. Jade glanced towards Darryl's house as she passed it, wondering if he was home or at the docks, but all she saw was Darryl's mother. Jade raised a hand in greeting, but didn't stop. She wanted to be back quickly today, for it was bout time for Marc and Erick to come home for their yearly visit. They had not come the previous two years, having sent messengers to say that they were far away to the north, and their leave would be spent in the villages near where they were fighting, but this year there had not been a messenger, so Jade hoped that soon they would be arriving, and she wanted to be there when they arrived. Jade quickly filled her basket with herbs and returned to the house where she strung them up for drying before sweeping out the house and scattering new freshening herbs on the floor. Jade had just began preparing lunch when she heard a step on the gravel outside. Walking up the path was a tall, roughly clad, unshaven man, and Jade felt a moment's disquiet as she realised she didn't know where the dogs were. She was about to whistle for them, when the man broke into a familiar whistle, and Jade's heart lifted. That was a whistle she would know anywhere, and she sprung out the kitchen door and fairly flew down the path to launch herself, laughing, into the arms of the soldier.
"Oh, Erick, it's been so long! Where's Marc? How have you been? Why haven't you shaved?"
Erick laughed and disentangled himself, holding her hands.
"Your wayward brother will be along shortly, we went into the village first and he's bringing Mother. I have been in rude health for almost all of these past 3 years, and I haven't shaved because I haven't a mirror and we've been marching home for 3 weeks! Now, Jade, if you will release me, I'm dying for a wash, a shave, some tea and lunch!"
Jade laughed, and pulled him towards the house, where she suddenly released him and rushed to fill the kettle and make the requested tea. Erick watched, bemused, then headed up the stairs to the bedroom he and Marc had shared since they were boys. The rucksack was dumped on the bed, and while Jade was down in the cellar gathering more food for their lunch, Erick stole the kettle and took it upstairs where he filled the basins with hot water. He then refilled and replaced the kettle on the stove and vanished back upstairs before Jade re-emerged. The door opened and Sarah entered with Marc, and there was another joyous reunion before Marc followed Erick's path to their room.

"She pleased to see you?" Erick greeted Marc as he closed the door behind him.
"Very much so. And you?"
"I got attacked on the path," laughed Erick. "Have a wash and a shave, old man."
Marc laughed at Erick, who had gone all streaky, and set to with his own basin of water.
"There's no hope for it, old man," Marc said eventually. "We'll have to go down the ocean and have a dip and scrub after lunch."
The old cotton trousers the men wore no longer fit them properly, so the dirty, travel-stained clothing was put back on, and they went down for lunch.

Lunch was a merry affair, with the boys revealing that they had served their 10 years in the army, and could now return home for good. Jade sat at the table and surveyed the two men she loved as brothers - Erick was the older and taller of the two, and looked more like Jade in physical appearance than Marc, who was actually her brother. Jade and Erick both took after their mothers, who had been twin sisters, and Marc took more after his father. After lunch, Jade announced that she still had nutmeg to gather, and the boys announced their intent to wash, so they decided they would go together to the far side of the cliffs. The usual washing place was closer to the house, but the siblings were loathe to be parted again so soon. And so Sarah gave her blessing, and the boys and Jade gathered their washing and Jade's basket, and the three of them ran lightly across the fields towards the far side of the cliffs where the nutmeg trees grew. Again, Jade glanced towards Darryl's house as she passed it, and was this time rewarded when the door opened and he hailed her. Jade set down her basket, and smiled at him as he approached, Marc and Erick standing beside her.
"Good afternoon."
"Good afternoon. Not fishing today?" Jade queried.
"Not so at all. I was out this morning, but my father is taking care of my share of the catch because Mother needed my help with the fences."
"So you are going out again this afternoon?"
"No, I have a free afternoon," Darryl grinned. "The fences didn't take long. Where are you off to?"
"We're going to gather nutmeg, and Marc and Erick will do their washing. Does your family need anything?"
"Not that I'm aware of. If you'll stop here on your way back, I can let you know for certain and then I'll come and collect it from you tonight," Darryl suggested hopefully.
"Why don't you come along with us?" Erick suggested, seeing the way things lay between Darryl and Jade. "Marc and I will be enough of a chaperone, and we'll have a nice afternoon of it. I'm sure Jade would rather your company than ours."
Jade protested laughingly, but added her entreaty for Darryl to join them. And so he called to his mother, and the four of them walked to the far side of the cliffs, with Jade collecting herbs and a few seagulls eggs when the mothers were foolish enough to leave the nests unguarded. When they reached the nutmeg trees, they dropped the washing in a heap, and set about gathering nutmeg. When the basket was full, Jade left it in the shade and the four of them gathered the washing and walked to the stream that fed into the ocean. Darryl and Jade sat in the shade of a tree and talked quietly while Marc and Erick did their washing, and the afternoon passed slowly with laughter and chatter as they washed their clothes and hung them to dry on nearby trees. Then the boys began to look longingly towards the water, and so Jade excused herself to walk along the beach. Modesty was nonexistent between children of the village, but once one became men and women of the village, proprietary was observed. For this reason, Darryl stayed with the boys and swam, rather than join Jade on the beach.

Jade slipped down to the beach, leaving the boys to strip off their clothes and wash them, and then dive into the river, scrubbing their bodies with sand until the road dirt which had been firmly embedded in their skin was finally gone. Jade tucked up her skirt and wandered down the beach, keeping an eye on the sun and ocean, and an ear on the laughter of the boys enjoying the afternoon. As she rounded a curve in the beach, she spotted a black lump further down the beach, and thinking it was a seal, hurried towards it. As she approached, Jade began to notice planks of driftwood, washed up by the tide, but ignored them to get to the seal. As she approached the shape though, Jade realised she was looking at a human, not an animal.

Jade knelt at the side of the creature, and blurred her vision, the way her mother had taught her. It seemed impossible that the creature was alive, yet the colours came into focus, showing Jade that it was half-drowned, and badly wounded. Jade carefully turned it over onto its back, and brushed the hair from its face. Jade began breathing into the mouth of the creature, as her mother had taught her, and after a few minutes, it gasped. Jade turned it to its side, and it vomited up an impossibly large amount of sea water, coughed and choked, and began breathing for itself. This gave Jade a chance to examine the creature, and saw it was blue around the mouth, and blood was oozing slowly onto the sand. The clothing it wore was leather, which was why she had at first assumed a seal. The creature moved itself, then lost consciousness again.
"Darryl! Erick! Marc!" Jade shouted. "Come here, I need you!"

Marc and Erick had both carefully shaved and washed their hair, then emerged from the water and allowed the sun to dry them while chatting casually to Darryl about his intentions towards their sister. They each drew on a pair of light cotton trousers, which were short but acceptable while the rest of their clothes were drying. The men were walking towards the beach to collect Jade when they heard her shout. A glance at each other said all they needed to say, and the three of them began running in the direction of her voice. When they saw the figures low on the sand ahead of them, they shouted and ran forward harder. Marc and Erick both wished instantly for the swords they had left with Jade's basket of herbs, and Darryl's heart clutched within his breast at the thought of anything happening to Jade. A moment later, Jade stood, and their fears abated as they realised it was not she who was in danger.
"What is it?" demanded Erick.
Jade gestured to the figure on the beach. "It's half drowned, and injured. I need it in the stream so I can clean the wounds."
"What's wrong with the Ocean?" Erick asked. "Salt is good for wounds."
"I need to see what I'm doing," Jade explained patiently. "And it's bleeding. Have you heard of sharks before, Erick?"
"Alright, alright," he admitted. "The river it is."
Marc picked up the creature and followed the others back down the beach. Darryl took Jade's hand as they walked, and she shot a look at her brothers, but noticing that neither of them appeared to care, gently squeezed Darryl's hand. Back at the stream, Jade waded into the water, and waited impatiently until Marc followed her.
"Darryl, I'll need my herb basket, can you get it please? And then a fire? Erick, I'll need you in here."
Darryl nodded and jogged back towards the basket and Erick joined Marc and Jade in the water. The gently flowing water of the stream was drawing away blood at a swift pace, and with the removal of the seaweed and sand, Jade finally noticed that the creature was a woman.
"I suppose modesty will have to be hanged," Jade commented wryly. "We have to get the clothes off. Do you have a knife?"
"Don't need one," said Erick. "Lift your hands, Marc."
With Marc keeping the girl's face out of the water, Erick picked at the laces of the bodice until they came undone, and a darkening of the water heralded the removal of the girl's top.
"Definitely a woman," commented Marc with a grin at Erick, who grinned back and set to work on the girl's trousers.
"Eyes front," Jade scolded, primly, "and I'm not going to ask how you know how to remove a woman's clothing when you're not married. Lower her into the water a bit more please, Marc."
Erick and Marc grinned at each other again, and Erick succeeded in removing the rest of the girl's clothing. Jade marvelled at the girl's pale white skin as she examined the wounds. Darryl returned and started a fire, placing Jade's herbs onto the ground with Marc and Erick's swords. Jade used her fingers to brush the remaining grains of sand out of the wounds, and noticed that some were deep and would need careful healing, while others were only shallow and would heal by themselves. Jade left the water to gather a skirt she detested, and cut it into strips with great pleasure. Then she spread Erick's travelling cloak by the fire and instructed the boys to lay the girl on the cloak. Jade bandaged the wounds, and gathered the girl's damp hair away from her body and covered her with Marc's travelling cloak, and then sat back.
"Well?" asked Marc eventually.
"She needs to warm up. I've done what I can for her wounds here, and we don't have a pan to heat water so I can't make anything to give her. The time in the water has cleaned the wounds quite well, so hopefully they won't fester. She has several cuts that need proper attention, but I think if we let her rest until she wakes up, we'll be able to take her home more easily."
The four of them sat around the fire and waited for the girl to awaken, but as the sun began to sink towards the horizon, Jade decided they couldn't wait for the girl to wake up any longer. The boys gathered their clothing and extinguished the fire. Marc wrapped the girl carefully in the cloaks and lifted her again, Darryl and Erick carried the now clean clothing, and Jade carried her herbs. Darryl walked with them to the house, then departed for his own, while Jade, Marc and Erick set up the girl in the patient's room. Then, after she was set up, Jade banished the boys from the room, and set about treating the girl's many wounds.