Top Wing - A New Addition

11 - To The Waters of Big Swirl

Summary — Brody gives Tara a surfing lesson while showing her around the surface of Big Swirl Island's waters. The two run into trouble when Captain Dilly and Matilda mistake Tara's cloud pendant for treasure.

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(⁠◍^ᴗ^◍⁠)⁠✧⁠*⁠。

Tara stood at the beach, her gaze flitting between the sand and the sea as water lapped upon the shores.

'So, Tara,' Brody had asked, when the cadets were making their beds. 'You know how you weren't able to finish your tour of Big Swirl Island because of Baddy's interruption?'

'Yeah ...' replied Tara, feeling sour at the thought of her interaction with Baddy. 'Why?'

'Well, how about I take you on a tour of Big Swirl's waters? You can try out turbo surfing, it'll be fun!'

'Turbo surfing?' Tara repeated, taking a moment to think.

Would Brody find me uninteresting if we hang out? Tara thought. What if I end up embarrassing myself? What if he ends up thinking that I'm weird?

Though ... this was a good opportunity to get to know him. It's important to get along with the cadets since she would be working with them ...

... And because she did want to try to be friends with them.

'Sure, we can go after training!'

So now, she was here.

'Do you know how to swim?' Brody asked.

It was probably safe to say that she knew the basics, like how to stay afloat and tread water, but that was it. The temperature of Montane Boscage's waters was comparable to the icy caps of the mountains that the island was famous for, so swimming was not something people did.

'Um, kind of,' replied Tara.

'Do you know how to tread water?'
'Yup.'
'Hm, I think that'll do,' concluded Brody. 'And anyways, I'll be here if you end up falling into the water!'

Brody gestured for Tara to put the board down on the water. 'Okay, so when you step on the board, shift your legs on either side of the surfboard to aid your balance and hold yourself upright.'

Tara laid the board down on the water and stepped on the surfboard, following Brody's instructions. The surfboard bobbed up and down as she swayed on her feet.

'... So, I just have to push down the pedal with my foot?'

'Yup! That's all you need to do!'

Tara pushed down on the pedal. The motor's engine rumbled, and the surfboard started to move forward.

She kept her weight on her front leg ... but the surfboard overturned, and Tara fell into the water.

Emerging while coughing, she looked up to see Brody wading towards her.

'Tara! Are you okay?'

'No— I mean, yeah, I'm fine!' She spluttered, swimming back to shore.

Tara had trouble not obsessively analyzing every aspect of what happened, being preoccupied about figuring out how and why that happened and how to avoid it in the future.

What did I do wrong? Was it because I wasn't balancing on the board correctly? Or was it just the velocity? Brody must think I'm stupid ...

She must've seemed quiet after the incident to Brody, because he then reassured her: