Swimdle

Appearance

Swimdle is an otter of average height and build —that is, a bit less than a fathom tall, long and slender, with much of his height being flexible torso. They are of indeterminate age, clearly an adult somewhere between youth and senior. Their fur is a typical muddy brown with a cream underbelly, and their eyes are dark as polished obsidian with a mischievous twinkle in them at all times. His paws are nimble and never idle, always gesticulating, polishing a trinket, or weaving grass into and out of various shapes.

Apparel

While Swimdle never seems to wear quite the same outfit more than once, he always dresses in worn-down clothing. Never actual rags, but certainly never finery: weather-beaten overcoats and patchy bumble-wool cloaks paired with rumpled tunics and pants with holes and sandals that seem just a few weeks away from coming apart. The only distinctive accessory always found on his person is a well-loved blue tweed flatcap.

Merchanting

Unlike most peddlers, Swimdle has no cart or packbeetle to carry things from town to town. Instead he finds an abandoned stall, stack of boxes, battered old rug, or other convenient corner to set up in. Even his wares are ever-changing; he'll be hawking driftwood and seaglass in one town and misshapen metalwork in the next. The one consistent thing he will always offer is a chance to make your life easier, but it never comes in a form one would expect.

Personal History

Not much is known of Swimdle's past, and they will never give a straight answer to any personal question. Instead he will offer a tall tale that quickly wanders away from the subject and circle back around to something he is trying to sell you. Some speculate that Swimdle is some degree of divine, and one rumor states that he is actually Kol, the North Wind, in disguise. If asked directly he will just laugh and say, "What do you think?"

Encounters

Some of our travelers first encountered Swimdle in the bridgetop town of Darkwater Crossing during the season of Leap. He captivated Reva with a fine bone comb, slightly broken and clearly fished from the riverbed, which she purchased as the rest of the group approached. Alder seemed to know him well already —unsurprising, given his well-traveled nature. They had a brief conversation about some of the locals before moving on.
  Our travelers encountered them again in the bustling port city of Shimmerport, selling misshapen glassware and used fishing implements from a pile of barrels on the pier. He posed a riddle to Almond, saying: "What has less holes the more you tear it?" After letting her think for a bit, he grinned and held up a ragged-looking fishing net before being chased off the pier by the iguana skipper Old Man Salty.
  Our travelers' next encounter with them was within the walls of Tara, the tea house at an ancient crossroads shrine. Unusually he was not there to sell, but simply to enjoy the atmosphere and services of the hallowed place. He and Alder had another, deeper conversation, in which they discussed the mysteries of divinity and fate. Alder seemed to read an unspoken truth in Swimdle that they did not give freely but also did not deny, and wished them well in their travels.
  Swimdle briefly appeared outside the gates of Spillover Orchard, selling lemonade made from the local fruit. He greeted the group merrily but did not follow them inside the gates. He also appeared in the labyrinthine river-port city of Twisting Tributary as a background character, with his usual hawker call: "What do you lack?" However, our travelers did not directly interact with him this time.
  Swimdle's latest appearance was, surprisingly, in a rather secluded spot: making camp on the quiet banks of Cauldron Lake. Our travelers stumbled across his campsite in the course of finding one for themselves, and he offered a small selection of hand-carved talismans for a modest price. At first, no one took up his offer, and the group moved on. After an encounter with Skip's reclusive aunt Hazelnut who revealed to Odi that Skip was the child of his dear friend (Macademia, now deceased), Skip and Alder took a walk around the lake together. Passing through Swimdle's campsite again, Skip decided to barter with him for a little dragonfly charm carved of jade, because it reminded them of their mom. Skip offered Swimdle an old toy they had kept from their home, and Swimdle accepted the deal, telling the child that the charm would keep them safe. He wished them both well on their travels, saying: "I'm certain we'll meet again soon!"