The Field

Who: Coop and Adnan
When: after dark
Where: down by the water
Rating: PG for makeouts and dirty thoughts

As predicted, the day had been hot and still and sticky. Adnan was fairly certain he sweated off about ten pounds as he and the men worked on hauling felled trees back to the island. They'd quit a little earlier than previous days, so as not to completely exhaust themselves, and he'd taken on the task of cleaning himself up. He might not have bothered, but for one thing. He had a date tonight. Which was just strange to think about, but undeniable. After washing thoroughly with the soap pods, and again wishing desperately that he had another pair of jeans, he went about setting up.

Adnan dug a small pit in the sand and built a fire in it -- something he was actually pretty good at -- then went to fetch some food to cook over it, including some of the flat bread the girls had made that morning. What he would've given for his mother's advice. But one worked with what they had. There was no way to avoid being hot, and he considered just going shirtless, but decided against it. He chewed on a couple of the mint-brush pods for his teeth, splashed some more water on his face, and then went in search of Coop.

( Or something like that. )

A restless, still night of oppressive heat falls upon the camp. Across the water, even the laughers seem to be chuckling half heartedly, having to drag their thick fur around. They seem ill-tempered and violent across the water. Near the spring, the grazers and marmites seem equally irritable and combative. There's an unrestive sense to the night, the animals all over the island are moving tonight. People are sweating through their sleeping bags and clothes and are generally feeling soupy.

Everywhere, all over the island, the damp air and oppressive heat is having a nearly wonderous effect on the bushes. Their clustered and numerous buds are opening gracefully, quick enough that the human eye can watch it happen. Each graceful pink throated flour exhales a breath of pale pink pollen as it opens which drifts on scant breezes or coats the ground near the clumps of bushes. As people walk over them it stirs up a cloud of the stuff around their feet and legs.

With so much of this pollen around, it's inevitable that people may inhale it, or absorb some of it into their skin. The poor unsuspecting inhabitants of this tiny island are about to discover that the pollen of these bushes is this world's natural aphrodisiac. It gets people's blood up, one might say, in an amorous and euphoric sort of way. This can be dangerous because it lowers peoples inhibitions. They may be more inclined to fight for what they want. The children are unaffected as it only seems to strike those who've already gone through puberty.

Disasterous for some? Just good fun for others? We shall see.

( Mod Notes - Please Read )