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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 15:14:48 GMT -5
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 15:55:02 GMT -5
Hello, Cres signing in! This is a small thread where I will be posting one-shots based off prompts for the WFF 2017 Beach Bash 'Fic Clash, which is run by the wonderful and majestic Tuesday. I am very excited to get started, as I have taken a little break from writing and am ready to get back into the game! I hope to finish all 31 prompts, but we'll just have to see what I can do. I hope you enjoy. They will be following the Meri family, a sea-loving group that has always lived and died by the sea for as long as they can remember. These one-shots will be spanning many different perspectives, each with their own unique take on what it means to be family and what it means to love the wild oceans that inspire us with a single glance.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 17:50:41 GMT -5
The sky was beauty and grace, stained with pinks and golds as the morning struggled into existence, throwing off darkness like a heavy shroud. However, it paled in comparison to the fierce splendor of the crystalline sea, which heaved as it caught the sun’s reflections. It captured the rosy hues of the sky, letting the colors seep into its once-gray waters slowly, becoming an ever-shifting portrait of the dawn.
On the beach, silhouetted against the picturesque seascape was a tabby she-cat walking through the sand. She gazed out onto the waters, her thoughts lost somewhere in the mazes of her ever-shifting mind. The silence was serene, but it was soon to be broken.
A small kitten scampered over the dunes, losing her footing several times as she tumbled forward in a constant state of motion, half running and half falling all the while. Her thin pelt nearly matched the color of the sand around her. She squeaked with childish excitement as she caught sight of the older cat, her face lighting with happiness.
“Abra, Abra! I was wondering where you’d gone. I have to talk to you,” the little she-cat cried, bouncing over to the tabby, who smiled down at her kindly, with a hint of weariness in her gaze.
“Yes, Kaiona, what is it?” Abra asked gently. “No need to yell, my dear.”
“Everyone back at camp is waking up, and they’re all starting to fight. A lot of them were picking on me, Muir and Mary especially. Well, I justthought youshouldknow.” She sped through her words, slurring the last bit together in her haste to speak. She pouted, obviously upset that her siblings had been teasing her.
“Thank you for telling me.” Abra sidled forward towards the ocean, and then sat next to it, curling her tail around her paws.
Kaiona walked around her, prodding the tabby with her paw. “Don’t you think you should come back with me? They’re really starting to get annoying!”
“No, I don’t think so. Look how beautiful it is here. Let’s just sit and watch. Come, look at this with me.”
“But…” She trailed off, somewhat flabbergasted that her tattling hadn’t caused the effect she’d been hoping for. She floundered, searching for words to make a statement. “I wish you had never taken in so many other kits!” she said, triumphant in the finality of her proclamation. Abra didn’t even react.
“Come.” This time, it was a more than just a suggestion. “I want you to see this.”
The kit stomped grudgingly over to sit beside Abra by the sea, sighing with great dramatic flare. “What is it?”
“Do you see this starfish, here?” Her sweeping tail gestured to the animal, which was a cheery shade of reddish pink, half submerged in the sand as water washed over it. It was larger than normal, nearly the size of Kaiona herself. “Pretty, isn’t it? What can you tell me about it?”
Her woes were nearly forgotten at the sight of the huge creature. “Whoa, it’s huge! Plus it’s really bright.”
“Yes, but other than that, I mean.”
The kit hesitated, unsure exactly what the point of this was. “Um, it has five legs, I guess? Mom, what are you trying to tell me?”
“I’m getting to it. Watch.” Using a claw, Abra poked it several times. Suddenly, the stagnant starfish sprang to life, it’s limbs pulsing with motion as it tried to pull its body away from the sharp object repeatedly striking its back.
“Cool!”
“I know, right? See, it doesn't move using just one of the arms. It uses all five.”
“So?”
“The same goes for you and your siblings. When you work together, you can thrive. But if you argue and strike out on your own, you will not survive as a team,” Abra explained patiently, her voice soothing. “You need them, and they need you. They are as much a part of you as your fur, even though you’re not related by blood. You are just an arm in the starfish of our family.”
Kaiona looked away, her green eyes narrowing. “I mean, I guess,” she mumbled.
“No, not ‘I guess.’ I’m right about this, Kaikai,” her mother said as she used her favorite pet name for her youngest daughter. “You must learn to get along with them. Now tell me, are they really bothering you for no reason?”
The kit looked down at her paws, sheepish. “Well, I mean, I did maybe wake a few of them up by accident.”
Abra chuckled, getting to her feet. “Let’s go back to camp. Maybe I can help you work something out.”
“Okay, okay,” Kaiona said, bouncing on her toes, her excitement already returning. “C’mon, let’s!”
“Just remember the starfish.”
Kaiona looked up at her mother. “I will.”
₪₪₪
It was dawn, and the sea rested calmly below the horizon. The waves were tinted with red, looking almost like blood. Kaiona and Abra sat together, shoulders brushing as they shared their grief through silence. The only sound was the constant slapping of the waves against the sand until the younger dared to speak.
“You always said we needed each other, Abra. How can we manage without Muir?” she asked quietly, her eyes darkening as she thought of her brother’s final moments as he lay sick, coughing constantly.
She was a tad bit older now, though very much still in the awkward stage between kithood and adolescence. The sadness etched on her features gave her a maturity; the joyful aura she had once carried was still there, but muted.
Abra did not answer right away, but instead she stood slowly, as if the sorrow had crawled into her, stiffening her joints and saddening her heart. She walked over to the tide pools scattered across the beach, staring down at their still water, so unlike the madding rush of the sea.
She walked alongside each for a while, peering down each until at last she stopped. Kaiona halted beside her. “Abra?” She looked worriedly at her mother.
“Look.”
She looked, and she saw. At the edge of the pool, a starfish rested, and it was eerily familiar and yet not at all. A bright cherry pink, it brought back memories of the day on the beach long ago. It was smaller, but still, Kaiona couldn’t help but notice the similarities. This one, though, had only four limbs.
“I see it.”
Abra smiled at it, her eyes mirroring the water. “Look at it. It’s missing a limb, Kaiona. Just like we’re missing Muir. But it still lives on. And see?” She pointed to the stub where an arm had once been. It was short and knobbly, but still it was there, valiantly trying to regenerate. “It’s regrowing.”
“Are you saying we can just regrow and forget him?” Kaiona asked bitterly, staring down at the creature with anger in her expression.
Abra pivoted to look at her, eyes deep with love and wisdom. “No. Never forget. But you will survive. You will survive for him, to keep his memory alive.”
Kaiona was silent for a moment, staring coldly at the starfish as it wriggled its way across the sandy bottom. “I don’t care about a damn starfish.” She leaned forward to swipe at the little thing, but her mother held up a tail to block her. Kaiona retracted her outstretched paw sullenly.
“Don’t.”
“Why not?” She glared at Abra, who looked back calmly until Kaiona could no longer return her stare and had to drop her gaze.
“I miss him.” Her voice cracked halfway through. "I want him, not a starfish."
Abra sighed. “I miss him too, Kaikai. I miss him too.”
₪₪₪
You’re not even my real mother. You don’t know me!
Kaiona’s words echoed in her ears, replaying over and over again in a tsunami of regrets. She hadn’t thought about them, but out they’d come anyways in a fit of rage. She paced, scolding herself inwardly as the sun dipped low in the sky. How could she have been so stupid? She was older now, a young adult, and she should have known better.
She was gathering the courage to face Abra’s steely disapproval and more terribly, her hurt. Kaiona had said cruel things to her before, but never anything that could cut so deeply. She had taken her mother’s greatest passion and her greatest insecurity and turned it against her in a way that could not be reversed.
But still, she could try, and so that was what Kaiona hoped to do as she made her way down the dunes once more and towards the lonesome form in front of the water. She normally ran and leapt over the sandy hills, but today she dragged her paws. At last, she came up beside Abra, who stood stiffly.
Abra did not move, but stayed completely still as she stared out to the point where the stormy sky met the cold frothy waves. With the weak morning sun doing little to light the area, it made for a very gloomy scene. Many creatures lay scattered over the beach, helpless and beached by the recent winds and rain.
“I’m sorry.” The words were pitiful, a trifling peace offering.
No response came. “Abra, I’m sorry. I was angry. I didn’t mean it. I’m so, so sorry,” she pleaded. “Talk to me.”
Another few agonizing seconds passed by before she replied. “I know you’re sorry, Kaiona. I knew you would be sorry as soon as you said it, but that doesn’t change what you really think,” she meowed tiredly, still not meeting the adolescent’s desperate gaze.
“No, really. You are the only mother I’ve ever known. I love you, Abra. You have to believe me. I didn’t mean what I said; it’s not true. You do know me. You know me better than anyone. I’ve walked with you along these beaches so many times. You have taught me so much,” she protested, stumbling over her words.
Abra blinked slowly as Kaiona trailed off, running out of steam.
“Sometimes, I wonder why I took you all in,” she whispered, so quietly that Kaiona almost didn’t catch it. It was almost as if she was talking to herself. “Sometimes I think that I will never be a good enough mother, not as good as a real one. I think that I will never make a difference; there are thousands of homeless kits out there, and I can only care for a few.”
Kaiona was shocked by this admission of the heart, unsure how to respond.
“I…”
Abra continued, her face serious. “But then, then I remember why.” She walked over to the nearest starfish, which lay stark in its red coloring against the packed brown sand. It was completely an utterly average, on amongst hundreds of stranded starfish on the shore, and yet Kaiona couldn’t help but stare at it as memories trickled back to her of lessons, of times spent staring at other starfish, just as red as this one.
“You do?”
Abra reached down and grasped it gently in her mouth. She padded carefully to the ocean, the water swirling around her legs, and with a flick of her neck, dropped it into the water. “You see, there are thousands of starfish on the beach today, and many of them will die, scalded by the sun. Some would say that it is not worth it to save them. I say differently. I made a difference for that starfish, didn’t I?” It was not a statement, but a soul-searching question.
Kaiona nodded, looked at her mother in the eye. “You did. You made a difference for that starfish. You made a difference for me,” she murmured. “I say it’s worth it.”
A small smile slipped onto Abra’s face at that. “Oh, Kaikai. I think it’s worth every moment, every hardship too. I can only save so many, but I try my hardest.”
Her daughter nuzzled her softly. “So many starfish, or so many kits?”
Abra contemplated this for a moment. “Both.”
And then they each ran to throw another starfish into the sea.
₪ 2. SEA FOAM ₪
Muir was dying.
He knew he was dying. The terrible thing was that he could do nothing to stop it.
The tuxedo tom stared dully at the brown-gray wall of the cave, his lids heavy and straining to close and draw him into eternal sleep. His once-strong frame had withered away to nothingness, and so his bones jutted painfully into the floor despite the lovingly arranged feathers and soft plants laid down to cushion him.
His head was wrought with fire and he felt his as if his lungs were shrinking, shrinking away endlessly until they would be nothing but empty, shriveled bags. There was nothing left for him, no hope to grasp onto; the illness had eaten him slowly, chipping away at his health until there was nothing left but a soul in an empty, useless vessel.
When he had first felt the symptoms moons ago, they had been small and unnoticable. He had ignored them. After all, it had only been a small bite from a weak, starving intruder. Muir and his siblings had chased him off easily, and frail tomcat had scampered off, a feral look flashing in his malevolent yellow eyes.
He had forgotten about the scuffle until the first illness had struck. His sisters, Lainey and Kainona, had both fallen ill alongside him, with a wracking cough, but they had recovered quickly. He had not. Abra had hovered over him for what seemed like weeks, for he could not seem to shake it off as he usually did.
That was only the beginning of the long, painful path leading to his demise.
Abra entered the cave, grasping moss that she had found in the forest soaked in fresh water. She hurried to his side and sat beside him, stroking his flank with a gentle tail. “I’m here, Muir. How are you feeling?”
“I want to go to the ocean,” he mumbled, half-delirious.
Muir could vaguely make out the sound of Kaiona’s voice in the distance, but Abra turned to shoo her away. “Go away, dear. Tell everyone to give Muir and I some time alone,” she ordered firmly. The tabby twisted to look at her son once more. “You’re okay, dear. You have to stay here in the cave. Take some of this water I brought, won’t you?”
Muir shook his head and batted a feeble paw at the dripping wad of green. Despite the aching thirst, he found he didn’t want it.
“Mother, I’m going to die, aren’t I?” he choked out, his head pounding with a thousand headaches. “Tell me the truth.”
Abra stared down at him, a million emotions flitting through her gaze. “Muir, don’t ask that.”
“Mother, tell me the truth, please.”
“No, Muir, I-”
“Tell me,” he said suddenly, his fierce amber eyes snapping open with temporary fire. “Mother. Am I going to die soon? Tell me now. I can handle it, I swear.”
She paused, struggling inwardly, but at last her honesty won out.
“Yes.” The word was a fragile whisper, fraught with sadness and overflowing with incredible motherly grief for the defeated shell of her son before her. “Yes. I’m so, so sorry, darling. Yes, you are going to die.”
Muir felt the small bit of remaining energy draining away at that one word. Yes. That one positive statement made him weary, so weary. There was nothing left to do but wait for darkness to claim him, now, nothing to do at all. Except for maybe, maybe one thing.
He forced his eyes to open one more time, and his gaze locked onto hers with longing.
“Mother, take me to the beach one more time.” It was a desperate final plea, a last grasp at the life he had once had. He needed to see the waters one last time before he was gone.
“Of course.”
₪₪₪
So they went, his siblings, Kaiona and Dilan, supporting him on either side, half dragging him across the sloping dunes. Once he had run, leapt across the sand. He had always beaten the others, even Dilan, who had always been speedy. Muir couldn’t bear to think of it. It filled him with fire to think of all that he would never have, filled him with indignation and overwhelming exhaustion.
“You can do it, Muir,” Dilan said, his tone bright and energetic, as usual. “Come on, just a few more steps.”
“I don’t know,” he muttered, feeling utterly weary. He was starting to wonder if this had been a bad idea.
Kaiona glanced worriedly at him. “Look, just lean on us, okay? You’ll be just fine.” There was a false optimism to her words that fooled no one, and from the look on her face, Muir could tell that she wasn’t convinced herself.
Abra padded forward, darting around him like a mother sparrow circling her nest as she barked out nervous commentary on the situation. “Are you sure you’re okay?” “Be careful, Kaikai!” “Dilan, watch out for that driftwood, will you?” “Muir, we can turn back if you want.” “Go slower!” “I don’t know it this is a good idea.” “Dilan, that’s not safe!”
At last, irritated, Dilan snapped, “Look, mom, we know, alright? Muir is fine. He wants to do this!”
Abra fell into distraught silence at this.
At last the reached the sea. The sky was as dull as his mind, flat and utterly cloudy. The sea somehow seemed even more infinite than usual today, with its gray expanse stretching on and on forever until it reluctantly brushed the horizon. It lapped gently at his paws, pulling him forward and beckoning him to the watery depths. Muir glanced down at the foamy, eddying waters swirling around his paws and haunches.
Tired, he thought. He was so tired.
“Kai, Dilan, leave us for a moment, will you?” Abra asked softly. Aware of the importance of the situation, the two young cats shot a worried glance at each other and scampered away, their feet sending showers of sand flying in their wake.
They sat, Muir leaning heavily on his mother, who bore his weight without complaint. Muir thought back to all his time on the sand, often spent with his mother. He conjured bright memories of sunsets spent playing with his siblings and mysterious tales woven beneath the bright noon sun by Abra. He remembered learning how to swim, and countless mornings spent splashing his brother and sisters with salty sprays. Now there was none of that joy, only dreary illness weighing down on him, clouding his mind and stealing his strength.
“Will you tell me a story?”
“Of course, darling. What kind of story?” Abra asked, her voice soft and tender.
Muir rested his head on her shoulder, closing his eyes. “Maybe one about the sea? Tell me a story about the sea,” he murmured, and so with a deep breath Abra began to weave her tale.
“Do you see the sea foam?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, long ago, when the world was wild and sparking with magic and lore, there was the sea. There has always been the sea. And once the sea was clear and sparkling and calm, like a sheet of ice, but that was not to last. The animals and creatures frolicked, but deep within the waters, a great monster was born. It was huge, larger than a thousand cats put together, with teeth like oak trees and fins like islands, and a million legs besides to help it swim and walk. It began to kill, destroying all in its path, and nothing could stop its reign of terror.” She paused, catching her breath.
“Go on, please.” Muir let himself fall into the story, forgetting all of his pain in the images of the great monster.
“The heavenly gods saw the terrible destruction, and they knew that after it had conquered the sea that it would come to the land and would stop at nothing to destroy the world. So the sky gods came to the sea and they stirred the waters into a great whirlpool. From this whirlpool a new spirit was born of the waters, and she knew the secrets of the oceans. She was nameless, but she was mighty, and she was told that when she calmed the Beast, she would receive her name and immortality,” she continued. Her voice was stronger now, gaining energy from the momentum of the myth.
“She came to him, blue fur bristling in all her glory, and she battled him fiercely, for she wanted her true name. They fought for moons and moons, battling back and forth, and they caused the seas to heave and foam like it never had before. They were evenly matched, and they raged across the great expanse of the sea. At last, though, she struck the last blow, wrenching his great heart out with her very claws. He was grievously injured, but still his body writhed after defeat, for he too was immortal. So she sliced his body into tiny pieces and cast it about all the sea. Then she whipped and whipped the waters, whipped it so hard that the waves reached the stars. She did this so that he would be destroyed and that his essence would be forever broken into a million pieces.”
“She sounds so strong,” Muir commented wistfully, the fearsome blue-furred she-cat dancing through his mind. “So what happened then?”
“She was made a true goddess, of course. They named her Neiredi and she ruled the sea. It never quite returned to how it was before; there will forever be waves lapping at our paws. And the foam is the monster forever trying to reform. He gathers together bits and pieces of himself at time, only for Neiredi to pull him apart again and again. But still, they say that the foam is power, for all the creatures of the sea join it as well, and if one could truly gather all of it together, they could rule the seas alongside the Beast.”
Abra paused. “And that is all.”
Muir was silent for a while. He felt the emptiness in his bones returning in full force as the story ended. The pain and the sickness came crashing back into him, and he stumbled suddenly, nearly falling. Abra shoved her shoulder beneath him to catch him just in time.
“Muir, Muir, are you alright?” she cried, her eyes filling with distress.
“Mother, it’s time for me to die. You told me yourself,” he rasped, coughing weakly.
“No, no, no, stay with me,” she ordered, her voice cracking. “Stay with me, my darling.”
He was silent for the longest time. They only heard the distant screech of the gulls and the insistent, demanding lapping of the tide.
“Mother, where am I going?”
“What do you mean?”
“When I die, I mean.”
“When you die?” Abra bit her lip as she stared at him. “I- no one really knows. I like to think that your soul travels to live with one of the gods, any of them. Wh-when cats, die, though we usually bury them. Their bodies, at least, so they can rest peacefully in the earth.”
Muri sighed, a long, pained sound. Struggling with all that he had, he managed to get back to his paws. “Just promise me one thing.”
“Anything, Muir. Anything, just name it.”
“Give me to the sea when I die,” he asked, staring out into the waves. “Throw me into the water.”
Abra looked at him, bewildered by this strange last plea. “But Muir, your body will just float in the water. You don’t really want us to do that, do you?”
Muir shook his head. “I know, mother. But I want to be part of the sea; I want to, need to be part of its power and its life. Please, mother, promise? You have to promise me,” he begged, a fierce longing entering his eyes.
“Alright, Muir, I promise. I just can’t bear to think of you leaving me,” she said, anguish filling every fragment of her voice. “I just can’t. Oh gods, Muir.”
He smiled stoically, nuzzling her gently.
“I know, mother. But when you look out onto the sea foam, you’ll know that a little part of it is me, won’t you? You said the Beast never died fully, right? Well, maybe it will be the same with me. Maybe little bits of me will be out there forever, and I’ll never really leave you. Maybe.”
Abra let out a strangled, painful sob. “Oh, Muir.”
₪₪₪
When he died the next morning, they threw him into the waters.
Every day, while the morning was still young, Abra went out to stand in the waters.
Every morning, she touched the sea foam, and each time, she felt him.
₪ 3. SAND ₪
“Do you know why we live by the sea?”
The troop of exhausted, irritable young cats moaned at their mother’s question. “Mom, we don’t need a bedtime story, alright? We’re getting way too old for that,” Dilan said with a snort, fluffing his dark tabby fur as he circled the cave, obviously feeling very rebellious. They had all reached the awkward stage where none of them were grown up, but they like to pretend that they were "mature."
“Yeah,” Kaiona added, nodding at her biological brother as she ran over to join him, not to be outdone. “We live by the sea because there’s enough food here. That’s it. Right?”
Mary huffed from her nest, ginger tail swishing lazily in the air and copper eyes half-closed. “I’m too tired, anyways. Let’s just go to sleep,” she drawled, with a distinct air of disdain.
Lainey glared at them, bouncing up and down to stand by her mother. “Look, Mom’s just trying to be nice. Let’s hear her out, will you?” she scolded, her black coat fluffed with righteous indignation.
Ronan, the youngest and the runt of the group, looked worriedly at his siblings, yellow eyes filling with concern at the brewing conflict, but he didn’t speak.
Abra sighed dramatically, playfulness twinkling in her eyes. “I don’t have to tell you, if you don’t want. We could just all go to bed, though I suppose I might forget the story. A shame; it was a good one too,” she remarked teasingly, moving over to poke Dilan in the belly with a paw. He squeaked and scrambled away, his ego injured.
Ronan looked horrified at this. “No, no, Mom, tell us. You guys don’t have to listen anyway. Here, just tell Lainey and me. We’ll listen, I swear!”
"She isn't going to forget it in one night, you genius," Mary said caustically.
Abra ignored the she-cat's gibe and sat slowly, beckoning the two closer with a smile. “Okay, fine. You two only, alright? No one else.” She shot a mock-stern glare at the others, who pretended not to care.
“Fine with me,” Mary muttered, settling down. “I’m gonna get some sleep.”
Ronan and Lainey sprinted over, excitement lighting their gazes. They were getting older, yes, but not quite so old that they couldn’t enjoy a good tale. Besides, Abra was practically a master weaver of legends, and even the oldest of cats could enjoy one of Abra’s masterpieces.
“So, I will ask again. Do you know why we, the Mari family, live by the sea?”
“Like Kaiona said, because there's lots of fish and food and also because the sea is fun to mess around in,” Dilan said, shoving himself into the little triangle they had formed. “Obviously.”
Their mother shooed him away, tsk-tsking all the while. “Go!”
He walked off in a huff, rolling his eyes.
“No, the real reason is because of the first Meri ancestor. They called her Terrin, and she did not have kits. She was brave and headstrong, with brown fur and flashing yellow eyes. Instead of a family, she loved the land. She worshipped the earth gods, notably Gailum, and so she dedicated her life to roaming the terrain. She was happy despite never having children, and she was astounded by the vastness of the earth. But one day, she came to the edge of her shore, and she saw the sea. She laughed at it, mocked it, but truly she was confused and astounded, for she saw how much vaster it was than her precious land.”
“Ooh, what did she do then?” Kaiona piped up, her sand-colored head popping up from her nest. “I mean, obviously the sea’s bigger. I dunno why she was so surprised.”
“I thought you didn’t want to listen to a stupid bedtime story,” Lainey pointed out crossly. “So why are you doing it anyways?”
Mary groaned. “Just shut up and stop yelling, will you? You guys are impossible,” she snapped.
“It’s okay, they can listen if they really want,” Abra said, clearly amused by the situation.
“So Terrin was jeering at it, and of course, Neiredi heard and was enraged. In all her glory she arose from the waters, and she cursed Terrin. She rose from the depths of the ocean, dripping and with great anger in her gaze. Terrin was afraid, but she stood her ground.
'For your arrogance, I curse you to never be able to leave the seaside and explore the land you love so well,’ she thundered. Terrin was devastated, but she persevered, hoping that one day the sea goddess would let her leave."
“That’s such a dumb she-cat,” Dilan said scornfully. “That’s a stupid reason for why we live here anyways.”
“Look, I told you listening about some barnacle-brained she-cat wasn't going to be worth it. And don't you have any volume other than screaming?” The complaint came from Mary’s nest at the far end of the cave, where she was fruitlessly trying to get some rest.
Ronan shot a protesting glance at Dilan . “But she’s not done yet. Give it a chance, will you?”
Abra swatted at him, causing him to fall backwards into a pile of feathers. “Oof!”
“Something happened though, that day at the shore. Something slowly began to change her heart, and she grew to love the waters. She relished the feeling of the racing across the sand, wind in her fur. She swam for hours, flitting through the salt water with laughter. Terrin repented for her arrogance, and Neiredi heard. She forgave, for just as the ocean is quick to storming anger, it is quick to peaceful calm. When Terrin was praying on the beach one day, Neiredi came, her blue fur blustering in the wind. She blessed Terrin and released her from the curse, though Terrin wanted to stay anyways. Can you guess what the blessing was?”
Lainey bounced up and down. “Ooh, ooh, I bet it was good, wasn’t it? I bet Terrin was really happy.”
“Well, thank you Queen of Obvious. Isn’t that the definition of a blessing anyways? That it’s good?” Kaiona countered, earning her a hurt glare from her sister.
“Shush, be nice, Kaikai,” Abra scolded. Kaiona only rolled her eyes, though she did lapse into silence.
“So blah blah blah, Terrin lived happily ever after and now we live by the sea. Great. End of story.” Mary cracked open an eye to glare at her siblings. “I told you idiots it wouldn't be that exciting anyways.”
“Just cause you're a few moons older than all of us doesn't mean you can be rude,” Lainey complained.
“Yeah!” chorused Kaiona and Dolan, not letting the opportunity to get back at their bossy sister slip by. “You're not even that much older.”
“Guys, can’t we get back to the story?” Ronan asked somewhat pleadingly. “Stop fighting!”
Abra cleared her throat pointed. “He makes a good point,” she commented. “I mean if you want we can all just rest now. It's ridiculous how much you all are squabbling.”
“Yes, finally,” Mary said, an aura of victory about her. “Let’s sleep.”
“No, no, Abra, keep telling it,” Lainey said firmly. “Just because everyone is acting bratty doesn’t mean you can’t tell it to me!”
Kaiona marched over. “Oh gosh, thanks. We all appreciate how easily you’re willing to turn on us.”
“Just shush, Abra’s going to finish now. Right?” Lainey looked hopefully up at her mother, her expression utterly innocent.
She chuckled and gave in. “Alright, if you promise to be quiet. So you see, Neiredi bestowed her blessing on her.
‘Pick one thing, anything you see, and I will reward you somehow,’ she told Terrin, her tone hinting at mystery and magic.”
Terrin laughed, confused, but she picked anyways. She looked down at her paws and spoke the first thing she saw. ‘I choose the sand,’ she decided.”
So Neiredi proclaimed, ‘Then I promise that your family will be as numerous as the grains of sand scattered throughout the world. As long as you stay near my domain, your family will thrive, and I will never let you die out. From now on, you will be known as the Meri family, and whenever people hear your family name, remind them of me.’ And that was that. We are the Meri family, and we will never leave the sea. We will stay here forever, living to the fullest, for the sea blesses us and gives us a life the inlands cannot.”
She paused, and Abra noted with a wry smile that everyone, even Mary, was leaning forward and watching her intently with wide eyes. She got to her feet and began to usher them to bed, one by one. They went, though Dilan threw off her guiding tail and marched into it by himself.
“Wow, that’s pretty cool,” Ronan murmured.
“Maybe it was a little better than I thought it would be,” Kaiona muttered reluctantly.
“And you know what? I chose you to share in the Meri name; I picked you out. Each and every one one of you. ” She made her rounds, bopping them lightly on the head with a paw. They stirred, making little noises of protest.
She stood in their midst, taking a deep breath. “Sleep well, my dears, and dream of the sea.”
₪ 4. WAVES ₪
When the strangers showed up, Ronan was afraid.
He found them on one of his daily walks; ever since Muir had passed, he had taken to spending more time alone. They came stumbling through the dunes, half-delirious. There were two, one large and one small, and the first thing that he noticed was their eyes. They were haunted and weary, with an desolate vacantness to them that made his skin grow cold.
When he saw thim, he turned and he ran, his silver tabby pelt bristling instinctively.
“Wait, please, stop!” He froze at the rasp from behind him. He wasn’t quite sure why he didn’t keep going, but something broken in her tone made him turn to face her.
“What do you want?” Ronan whispered, a shiver of uncertainty sprinting down his spine.
His instincts were screaming, Run, go, escape. Still, though, a small part of him considered the desperation of her cry and made him stay.
The cat stumbled forward, her lilac colorpoint coat bedraggled and dull She had several open wounds scattered about her body, and they were oozing with infection. “Help. We’re lost. We need help,” she begged. “Please, my son needs help.”
The smaller of the two cats stared blankly at Ronan in a way that made him feel distinctly uncomfortable. With his white fur and pale orange eyes, he looked almost like a ghost, and that did not sit well with Ronan, who had always been the jumpiest of his siblings. Like his mother, he had cuts and slashes on his flanks and even one across his face.
“I-” He hesitated, stepping back. There was an air of not right about them, though he wasn’t sure why. He just knew. And yet, they were so pitiful looking against, huddled against each other. Ronan was small, and yet he still felt that he could have taken both of them on in a fight. They were skinny, with sharp angles where there should have been gentle curves.
“Please.”
“Alright, alright, fine,” Ronan muttered, making the decision instantaneously. “Follow me.”
He walked slowly back to the home cave, where he hoped Abra would be waiting there to help them. The tom couldn't help but glancing back at them repeatedly as he went, just to make sure they wouldn’t try anything behind his back.
They trailed behind slowly, obviously tired. Ronan did not attempt to engage them in small talk, and he was extremely grateful that they remained silent as well. He picked up his pace as he neared the area.
“Mother? Guys, I found some uh, cats on the beach,” he called tentatively.
A handful of heads popped out immediately, blinking in the afternoon sun. “Who is it?” demanded Dilan, his tone sprinkled with curiosity.
“Whoa, gods, they aren’t looking so hot,” Mary commented, her eyes flickering up and down as she sized the two newcomers up in rather callously.
“You know they can hear you, right?” Lainey snapped. “Honestly, the nerve you have sometimes.”
“Abra, come on!” Dilan called, turning to run back inside.
She emerged within moments, and as she caught sight of the mother and son her eyes grew wide with concern. “Oh goodness. Are you two okay?” she asked, running over. “Ronan, where did you find them?”
He had tried to slink off without anybody noticing and he stopped abruptly at the query, looking slightly guilty. “Uh, down in the dunes to the south.”
“Please we need food and aid. We can leave as soon as you need us to, but if you have any kindness in your heart, take pity on me and my son Dusan.” The lilac cat faced Abra, pulling him close with a tail.
Dusan remained silent.
Abra didn't have to hear anything else before she sprung into action like a mother bird tending her chicks. “Of course. Come, let me get you a meal and I'll try my best at healing those wounds you've got there.” She ushered them into the cavern, where the others awaited with a chorus of questions. Ronan turned to leave; he had no desire to speak to them, not after they had spooked him so badly.
He knew they would be in good paws. They didn’t need him.
But when looked over his shoulder he saw Dusan staring directly him. His orange eyes were chilling and he tilted his head curiously, as if he was trying to ask him something. Ronan couldn't help but feel like the young tom’s eyes were boring into him, into his soul.
He turned and fled.
₪₪₪
When he returned that night after a long stroll to clear his head, the she-cat, who he soon learned was named Talia, had settled in a bit. Kaiona and the others were corralled on one side of the cave. Obviously Abra had told them to leave the visitors alone, or he was sure Kaiona and Dilan would have already marched right over and started shooting questions at them.
“Where the heck have you been?” asked Dilan, beckoning him over. “Isn't this way more interesting than your dumb walks? Talia and Dusan are really strange.”
Ronan trotted towards them. “Uh, yeah. I mean, I guess. Not really.”
“Did they tell you anything about where they were from or their past?” Kaiona queried. “Abra won't let us talk to them. She says we’ll ‘bother’ them. As if!”
“Yeah, yeah, like you could ever not bother someone,” Mary scoffed.
“Oh be nice for one moment, won't you?” Lainey glared at her. “There’s more important things than you being mean right now.”
“No, they haven't told me anything. I didn't really talk to them. They creep me out,” the small tom admitted, starting to feel jittery again. As if to prove his point, Dusan swing his gaze around to fix on Ronan once more as their mother slathered his sides with herb paste. “See, look! All he does is stare!”
Dilan stood behind his little brother and made a face, contorting his face into a grotesque grimace. “Ew!” Lainey cried. Dusan didn't even flinch.
“Wow, he is weird,” Dilan said, in awe. “Everyone reacts to my level 10 ugly face!”
Kaiona shoved him aside impatiently. “Like making faces will get him to talk.” She made exaggerated motions and mouthed, Hello, Dusan, very clearly. The white tom wasn't fazed.
She sat back. “I dunno. Weird. And the mom hasn't really said much either, just a bunch of babbled excuses about not knowing the terrain well enough to survive.”
They all quieted staring at the two, running through all the possibilities for their past, fanciful and realistic alike. They had succumbed patiently to Abra’s healing processes, and they didn't speak a word now.
Talia still had an air of nervousness about her. Her son was different; he was as blank as a stone, no expressions leaking through.
When she finished, Abra crossed back to her kits. “Leave them alone. They're tired. Don’t bother them about their backgrounds.” Her expression made Ronan wonder if she wasn't telling them something, but he did not ask.
₪₪₪
Ronan awoke with a jolt, Dusan’s flaming eyes still seared into his eyes. His nightmares had been filled with the visitors staggering towards him, surrounding him. He knew it was ridiculous now. There were only two of them of course — how could two cats surround him? — and they had done nothing to threaten him so far.
A noise to his right made him turn suddenly and crouch back down into his nest in a defensive manner. He watched as Talia rose from her nest and exited the cave. She looked as if she was trying to be as stealthy as possible.
I should go back to sleep, Ronan told himself. But of course, he didn't because damn it, he was too intrigued for his own good. He waited until she had gone a good way from the entrance before he dared to move.
Light in his paws, he darted out and made sure to stay several shark-lengths behind Talia as she went. She was not too hard to track, as she had no idea she was being tailed.
The lilac she-cat made her way to the shore where she paused, staring out at the waters. Ronan ducked behind a clump of reedy plants, peering through them. Despite the acute feeling that something was very, very wrong, Ronan had to admit that the night was beautiful. The moon was as full as a round as could be, set against a sky painted with a thousand shades of blue and black and gray, all swirled together to form a single canvas. Silver flakes were scattered amidst the darkness, paling in comparison to their brighter, eldest sister. The moon had a twin, rippling and twisting beneath it, but a twin nevertheless, and the sea was sporadic in its rushing, more unruly than it should have been on a calm night like this. Or perhaps it was just Ronan’s imagination.
Suddenly she began to speak and Ronan nearly screamed in surprise. He barely caught himself in time. “I'm sorry, Dusan,” she called softly, her voice lost to the cresting waters. “I can't wait any longer. The waves are calling.”
With that, she moved with such swiftness that Ronan barely had time to comprehend her motion. He blinked and she was in the water, splashing, moving forward purposefully. Wait no, he almost called, but a strange part of him held him back, though he wasn’t quite sure why. It was as if vines were curling around his legs, rooting him to the spot where he stood.
He blinked again and she was diving, diving down into the slapping surf, the frothing liquid swallowing her whole. Something about the motion of the cresting swells gave him the distinct impression that it was hungry. very hungry.
And then she was gone, lost to the covetous waves.
₪₪₪
Ronan crept back to the cave, trying desperately to process what he had just witnessed. Suicide, it was suicide. He should have tried to talk to her, should have tried to stop her. It’s just that it had been so sudden and abrupt. She had seemed so certain about it, too. Why? he wondered, but no matter how much he wrestled with the thought he could not come to a reasonable explanation except for the possibility that she had been tired of life’s cruelties. It didn't seem quite right, but nothing else was plausible.
Hent back to his nest and curled into a ball. Sleep did not come.
₪₪₪
“Where’s Talia?” Abra asked, alarm ringing in her voice. Ronan sat bolt upright, his expression somewhat wild.
“Dang, someone’s a little freaked out,” Mary said snidely at his bewildered, alarmed expression. “Chill.”
Dusan was sitting too, his posture mirroring Ronan’s. He still didn't speak.
“No one’s seen her?” Abra asked again, slightly more force behind her question. She was met with several “no”s and a shrug from Mary who said, “Don’t look at me!”
“But why would she just disappear? Without Dusan?” Kaiona wondered.
“I dunno. Maybe she was called away by a secret cult and-”
“Stop it, Dilan! I'm sure that’s not making Dusan feel any better.” Ronan supposed that Lainey was probably right about that, but then again he hadn't seen the tom show a single bit of emotion so far. He wondered if anything could faze him.
Abra turned to face him, as he had been the only one not to answer. Dusan turned to stare at him as well, and he shrunk back a little under those terrible orange eyes.
“Well, Ronan? Do you have any idea?” Abra asked again, hopeful. “Poor Dusan here is all alone. Oh gods, I can't believe this could happen."
He had never told Abra anything but the truth, but something made the word suicide become stuck in his throat. The lie was out of his mouth before he could changed his mind. “I have no idea.”
Abra sighed, obviously very concerned. “Well, I guess we'll just have to go looking…” Her words faded into the background as he locked eyes with the white tom.
There was something unreadable there, and it intensified as he stared.
Why had he lied? Ronan wasn't sure. It didn't make sense; there was nothing he gained from lying. And yet this whole thing had him feeling very, very off, and somehow he felt bringing up what he had seen would be of no help to anyone. Maybe it was just his own cowardice, not wanting to admit that he had done nothing to stop her, though. He wasn't sure.
Dusan did not break eye contact, and Ronan felt compelled to maintain it.
“She’s gone,” Dusan rasped suddenly, surprising everyone. His voice was deep for his young age and rough like coarse sand. It was as cold as the winter sea and uncannily emotionless.
At this his siblings lapsed into a chatter of furious whispers as they debated the events of the night and morning, not to mention Dusan’s first words spoken with them.
“Don't say that, dear. I'm sure we'll find her,” Abra said, trying to maintain optimism. She padded over and tried to stroke his side with her tail. He flinched away, still looking at Ronan, and she stopped.
Ronan wondered how much he knew.
From then on, when he looked at the sea, he saw her ghost.
And he could never forget the waves' hunger.
₪ 5. STORMS ₪
They said the gods were angry that year, and Dusan couldn’t help but agree.
The family that had taken him in when Talia had gone stayed huddled in their cave whenever the violent storms came.
Dusan understood. After all, when the clouds came and the sky and the sea met in a wild dance of passion, air and water and fire clashing in an intricate waltz, it was hard not to be afraid. When nature was so much larger and so much mightier, it was one’s instinct to hide.
Not his, though.
So they stayed stashed away in the dark, but he sat outside for what seemed like the umpteenth time, reveling in the tempest. The spray and the rain slapped him endlessly, caking his formerly pristine pelt with salt and grime, but he sat, always placid as the storm raged. He smiled at the winds whipping cruelly around him, buffeting him this way and that; this was the only thing that made him smile.
“Dusan, please come inside,” Abra called fruitlessly once more, her voice whipped away by the gale into nothingness. Dusan knew that she expected no answer from him, so he gave none.
The tom knew that she thought he was strange, though she would never admit it. They had taken him in, yes, but he would never truly be one of them. Dilan laughed with Kaiona about him behind his back, gossiping about his ever so mysterious past. At least Mary was honest; she mocked him to his face. Lainey pretended to stand up for him, but it was obvious she thought exactly the same thing and was just doing it to feel self-righteous. He did not need or want her false protection.
But then there was Ronan. Ronan was different. When Dusan had met his wide yellow gaze that fateful night, Ronan had seen deeply into him, just as he had seen Ronan. He avoided him, though it was unnecessary; the silver tom practiced enough obvious evasion for the both of them.
In this instant, though, he cared even less about what they thought of him than usual, which was saying something. He let all of his thoughts of them fly away. This was what he lived for.
Dusan loved being part of something so much larger, so much more powerful than himself. It was exhilarating, being soaked to the bone in a combination of fresh and saltwater, being pummeled by the power of nature. So he laughed, laughed with abandon.
He laughed because he loved it.
He laughed, for the bitter storm raging around him matched the one roiling inside.
₪ 6. SHIPS ₪
Mary smirked at Dilan. She was going to crush him and enjoy every second of it.
It was a beautiful day, with fluffy white clouds bouncing through the sky and a soft breeze rippling through the palm trees and brushing the surface of the sea affectionately. All the better for revenge, she supposed.
Normally, she sat out of her siblings’ games, thinking them immature and far below her. Today, though, she had decided to join for the sole purpose of making her annoying siblings, especially Dilan, pay.
She had woken to find that slimy seaweed paste smeared all over her face, and though he had made no admissions, Mary was sure that he had masterminded it. She never really got along much with the others, but he was the worst, even more insufferable than Lainey, who frequently tried give her lectures. His stupid little grin and guffawing when she had confronted them had confirmed this immediately, though she was fairly certain all of them had taken part in it.
She narrowed her eyes and gave him an icy stare. You’re going down, loser, she thought, digging her claws into the wood beneath her. They, meaning Lainey, Dilan, Kaiona and herself, were each floating on a piece of flotsam, mostly old branches and pieces of trees they had found and dragged from the forest.
Ronan and Dusan had declined the offer to play, which was no big surprise to any of them, especially Dusan. He never seemed to want to do anything but pace by the ocean and sit silently. It was extremely strange, and Mary made sure that he knew it. Not that he seemed to care, but that didn't deter her. Mary never missed a chance to scorn him.
“Are you guys ready? Everyone sure they know the rules?” Kaiona called, her voice floating over the waves to reach Mary. There wasn't so much a set of rules as a single objective: fight the enemy “ships." Everything was encouraged except for claws. No other restraints were in place, which made for a wild game.
No
They knew about ships, the strange floating contraptions built by the two-legs, due to Abra. They had only glimpsed one a single time from far away, as they lived in a rather sheltered, uninhabited cove. Abra had explained what it was and told them about how in the past sometimes two-legs had wars on the water, battling until one sank boat or took over the other. Now of course, it was all stories and none of them had ever seen a fight like that, due to the increasing rarity of two-legs. However, that didn't stop them from taking the concept and turning it into a competition.
This was no meddling kittens’ playtime game. This was war, and Mary was determined to win.
She grinned, flicking a glance to the shore, where she saw Abra watching. “Ready!” she yelled loudly, already relishing the thought of victory.
“Go!”
At Dilan’s cry, they were off, paddling towards each other with desperately churning paws. It was harder than Mary would have though, but after spinning her branch around a few times she got the hang of navigation, at least mostly.
She bore down on her brother aggressively. “You’ve got it coming for you!” she yowled, and his eyes widened in alarm before narrowing in concentration.
“You wish!” he yowled as she approached, laughing at her. “No way- Ack!” Dilan was cut off as Mary collided with his makeshift raft, jolting him backwards. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Kaiona taking on Lainey, but all of her focus was on wiping the smug look off of his face.
She threw herself forwards suddenly, landing on his slab of wood and bark. Dilan returned the favor, ramming into her. They tussled, claws sheathed, though Mary could bearly to resist the urge to give him a nice slash on the flank.
“Ugh!” she yelled, scrambling to find footing on the raft, which was pitching this way and that. “You're going down!” She dealt him a cuff to the head.
“Never!” Dilan responded with a head butt to the flank. They faced off, darting forward to deal blows back and forth.
The two hadn't realized it, but behind their backs Kaiona and Lainey had made a tenuous truce. Abandoning their ships, they had slipped quietly into the water and were now advancing without notice.
“Ready?” Kaiona whispered quietly, her voice masked by Mary’s indignant shrieks of rage and Dilan’s taunts.
“Yeah.”
“Now!”
They both ducked beneath the water and heaved upwards. Dilan’s ship flipped immediately, sending the fearsome pair splashing to their watery demise.
“What the-?” “Oh my gods!”
Mary surfaced, followed by Dilan. “You little brats,” she cried, furious.
Lainey grinned at Kaiona, who cackled in turn. “Nice job! You didn't see it coming, did you barnacle-brains?” Kaiona gloated.
Mary gritted her teeth at this; normally she was the one mocking, not the other way around.
“I think we win this round,” Lainey said confidently. “After all, that was clearly a winning move.”
“You wish!”
Now Dilan and his older sister shared a look; their rivalry had been subdued by the sheer audacity that had been shown in tipping their raft. It was two against two, a final showdown for the ages.
The opposing sisters saw what was coming and they looked at each other, hesitating. At the exact same moment, all four lunged for the ship that had formerly been Dilan’s, legs churning as they groped for a paw-hold.
“Attack!” “Get them!” “Never!” The wild cries rang out and the siblings disappeared into one huge tussle of legs and paws flying back and forth across the wood. They fought tenaciously, neither able to gain the upper ground but neither willing to give in. The ship in question tossed this way and that, tumbling over and over and rocking violently. It was no longer about fun for any of them; it was about glory and winning it all.
At last Mary and Dilan emerged victorious, ending Kaiona’s last stand by shoving her into the salty water rather unceremoniously. She splashed into the water, legs flailing.
Lainey pouted, treading water. “Nice job, I guess,” she muttered grudgingly, having accepted defeat.
Kaiona bobbed up for air, glaring at the two.
Without warning, Mary turned to ram into Dilan with her shoulder. He had taken a short break to catch his breath, and he wasn't expecting it. The tabby tom tumbled backwards, landing besides his two defeated sisters.
“Stay sharper next time,” Mary called smugly as he resurfaced. “I guess that means I win.”
They were all thoroughly exhausted, and even Dilan, who was normally a fireball of energy, looked as if he was resigned to his fate.
“Fine,” he grumbled. “Let's just collect the other ships and call it a day. I swear though, I’ll-” He stopped, looking around. “Hey wait, where'd they all go?”
Mary looked as well, a retort on her lips, but it died as she saw that he was right. Her branch, as well as Kaiona and Lainey’s wooden rafts, had disappeared. They squinted far out to sea, wondering if they’d floated away, but they were gone.
“Weird! And there wasn't even much of a wind or a current,” Lainey commented. “Wonder what happened to them. I mean, maybe they just stopped floating...?" But that didn't make sense; they had been completely buoyant just moments earlier, able to hold the weight of several cats.
Mary’s euphoria was dampened a little by this strange occurance, though she wasn't sure why. It shouldn’t even worry her. She had gotten what she’d come for, victory, and that was enough. “Whatever. Let’s go in now.”
Did they just sink? She tried to push the thought away; she didn't want to be agonizing over this. They could always make another expedition to the woods nearby and search for newly fallen trees to replace the three that had vanished.
The red-furred she-cat hopped into the water and began to propel the remaining ship back to shore, Kaiona jumping in to help out.
When she made it to land again, she ran over to Abra, who was seemed to be trying to engage Dusan in some sort of conversation. From the looks of it, it didn't appear as it was going too well, as Dusan was faced away from her. Disrespectful clam-hole, she thought angrily, though she knew it was slightly hypocritical of her. She had done the same thing to Abra numerous times before.
“Hey, Abra, were you watching? Did you see the other ships disappear?” she asked, giving no extra details and expecting Abra to give a plausible explanation immediately. Abra was as dependable as a rock in the sea, ever surrounded by wild chaos but never giving in. She always had answers, at least as far as Mary knew.
Abra paused for a while, which caused Mary to sigh impatiently. He other siblings had come to join her, shaking the salt water off of their fur. They made for a very wet, befuddled huddle. Dusan walked away, clearly not interested.
“No, I wasn't watching,” she said finally, her words measured, much to their disappointment. “What do you mean?”
Kaiona started to speak, but Mary cut her off, stepping forward. “We were all fighting over one, but when we looked around the other three were gone. Are you sure you didn't see anything?” she asked again. “There’s no way they just… blinked out of existence.”
Abra shrugged, somewhat reserved all of the sudden. “No. I didn’t, sorry. Perhaps they just got waterlogged and sank,” she suggested. “I’ve seen that happen before.” There was something guarded in her eyes. Or maybe Mary was just imagining that; she wasn't sure.
Mary looked skeptically at her. Abra was far more knowledgeable about these types of thing than she was, even if she didn't like to admit it. Looking around at the others, she could tell they were confused as well.
“I mean, I guess…” Mary trailed off, hoping to bait Abra into saying more. But Abra seemingly wasn’t interested and began to walk away, leaving Mary feeling stupid.
I mean, she’s probably right, the ginger cat reasoned, shrugging. Who am I to doubt her?
Mary followed her mother. “C’mon guys, let's just go take a nap or something.” They frowned at her but for once seemed too weary to counter.
“Fine,” Dilan mumbled. “I’m feeling dead, anyways.”
“Same,” Kaiona agreed.
They all trooped into the cave together, and when Mary collapsed into her cushion of feathers and leaves, she could almost forget about the missing ships completely.
But not quite.
as she felt herself falling into the abyss of sleep, she wondered.
Is Abra lying?
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 19:44:27 GMT -5
“Leave him alone, won’t you?” Lainey demanded, staring her sister down fiercely.
Mary looked over her shoulder from where she was standing outside the cave, taunting Dusan. Dusan didn’t look the slightest bit miffed, but still, Lainey felt the need to step in. After all, it was entirely probable that he just felt so hurt by Mary’s words that he had lost the ability to speak up for himself.
Okay, maybe not, she admitted to herself; the white tom seemed utterly disengaged from everything and everyone, including Mary. However, Lainey was determined to uphold Abra’s code of honor, which, while not technically in existence, was what she viewed as the most important thing in her life. Abra would definitely not approve of this. As she was currently distracted by a squabble between Kaiona and Dilan, Lainey supposed she would have to step in.
“Why should I?” Mary said with a sneer. “It’s not like I’m lying about anything. He is in fact a snobbish loser who never deigns to speak to us, his oh-so loyal subjects,” she said sarcastically, her tone scathing. “It’s like he expects all of us to worship him or something.”
Lainey paused, hoping that maybe Dusan would respond, but when he didn’t she sighed dramatically. She was really getting tired of doing this. “Mary, you should be a whole lot nicer. He’s technically our brother now, just as much as Dilan is,” she scolded.
“Yeah, well you shouldn’t try to act like my mom,” Mary retorted. “And besides, this idiot deserves it. He treats Abra like whalecrap and is rude to everyone. Not to mention, you’re a helluva big weirdo,” she said, aiming the last sentence at Dusan, who didn’t seem the least bit upset, as usual. In fact, he smiled ever so slightly, which Lainey found surprising. Alright, so it was more of a irritated smirk, but it was out of the ordinary.
“It’s fine,” he said dismissively, his voice rumbling strangely like it always did when he decided to speak. Times when he talked were few and far between.
Still undeterred, Lainey pushed on, ignoring him. Brashly and without thinking, she said, “Look, Mary. You really need to stop being so nasty, right now. I’m ordering you! Dusan lost him mom. He’s still having a hard time with that, and-”
Dusan shot her a glare so cold that she could practically feel it boring down into her. He had made it clear earlier that he didn’t want his mother being mentioned, and they had all generally adhered to that until now. She knew immediately that bringing Talia into this had been a mistake. A big, big mistake.
“Don’t you ever. Talk. About. Her. Again.” he hissed, his orange eyes flaming and his words filled with sharp rage. “You think you’re so good, standing up for me. Well, look, I never asked for you to fight my battles just so you can feel all self-righteous. You make me sick with all your fakeness. Leave. Me. Alone, will you?” His words were forceful, hammering into Lainey and making her take a step back.
Lainey bristled. Overreacting, much? How dare he talk to me like that? After all the times I’ve defended his sorry hide, she thought, furious.
Mary took a step back, trying to melt into the background.
“Maybe there’s a reason Talia left. You ever thought that maybe she ran away because she hated you so much, huh?” she snapped mockingly, without thinking. She suddenly realized that all eyes were on her, including Abra’s.
Dusan paused for a second, and there was silence. Lainey had just enough time to regret her words.
Then he was flinging himself at her, his body nothing but a white blur. In the next instant, Lainey was down on the ground, trying to throw him off as he rained blows down on her, claws out.
“Ack! Ack! Get him off! Ow! He’s hurting me!” she screeched, utterly shocked. She wriggled and squirmed, trying to get him off her, but he wouldn’t let go. His claws kept falling, falling down on her.
“Stop this!” Abra’s voice rang out with cold disapproval, causing everyone, even Dusan, to cease. It was so uncharacteristic of her, and everyone, especially Lainey, was astonished.
Running over, Abra hauled Dusan off somewhat roughly. Dusan slid off, scowling darkly but without complaint.
“Dusan, you need to stay here,” she told him, and he skulked off to the back of the cave.
“Are you okay?” Abra asked Lainey, though she was not quite as gentle with her words as usual.
“I’m fine,” Lainey muttered, getting to her paws. She had several scratches along her flank and face, and they stung, but she didn’t want to admit it.
“Good. Come with me. We’re going to take a walk.” It was not an suggestion, and her tone was firm.
“But Abra-”
“Now.”
Lainey bowed her head and followed.
₪₪₪
“Let’s go to the tidepools, shall we?”
Lainey only shrugged sullenly in reply, staring out at the peachy sunset as it leached the blue from the sky. The day was irritatingly hot.
Normally she would have been excited about the suggestion, but not today. The tidepools were her favorite place in the world, and she knew that the Kaiona and the others loved them as well. Located on the northern edge of the beach, it was a slight walk from their cave, but not far enough to be an inconvenience. The beach was rockier there, with coarse sand that was harder on the paws and stone that had worn away underneath centuries of tides to form basins.
The miniature lakes of seawater were an ecosystem of their own. Teeming with life, they housed a glorious rainbow of anemones, sea stars, and much, much more. Revealed twice a day at dawn and dusk, Lainey loved to visit and coo at all of the creatures with her mother. However, today was different; she was not looking forward to chatting about the events of the evening.
They walked without speaking for a bit, but eventually Abra turned to glance at Lainey, who groaned inwardly.
“So, do you want to explain?”
“Not really.”
“How about you do it anyways?” She looked pointedly at Lainey.
“Mary was making fun of him, and so I was just trying to make her stop. You know, just like you always do. But Dusan got really upset for no reason,” she said weakly, trying to excuse her behavior.
“No reason?” Abra looked dubious.
Lainey ducked her head sheepishly. “Uh, I may have mentioned that he probably missed Talia…?” she said, though she somehow turned it into more of a question than a statement of fact.
Abra sighed, sounding very longsuffering. “Lainey, you know that’s still a very sensitive subject for him. I thought we agreed not to mention her?”
Lainey looked away, not wanting to make eye contact. She didn’t want to face the disappointment she was sure lurked there. Lainey had always been the good girl and the rule follower. This felt incredibly foreign and, honestly, a little scary for her. She couldn’t remember the last time Abra had been angry with her.
They continued forward, just starting to crest the sandy dune leading to the tidal flat.
“Yes, I remember. Look, I’m sorry, alright? I was just so angry, I…” She trailed off, eyes wide as she took in the scene before her, shocked. “What?”
The tide pools were gone.
There was nothing left but dry, cracked stone and empty hollows where water had once been. Forgetting their conversation, Lainey rushed down to the pools, the breeze and momentum whipping through her black pelt. She rushed from pool to pool, checking to see if maybe one of them had been left unscathed, but they had all been sucked completely dry. Even the animals were gone, returned to who knows where. Not one barnacle or starfish remained; they were just gone, as if they had never existed to begin with.
A strange lump began to rise in her throat. “Abra, where did they go?” she asked, looking this way and that. "Why are they not here?"
Abra had not moved from the top of the dune. She seemed even more appalled than her daughter, her eyes widening. Now, startled by Lainey’s cry, she began a slow descent.
“I- I don’t know, darling.” There was something wrong with her voice; it was higher than normal and sounded strained. Lainey shot her a concerned look.
“Must... threatened?”
Lainey’s head snapped around at her mother's mumble. “What did you say? Threatened?”
“Nothing, nothing. Just talking to myself. Ignore me.” Abra took a breath, composing herself. “I mean, it has been awfully hot the last week or so. We haven’t been to the tide pools in a few days. Perhaps they just dried up.”
Dried up? That makes no sense. The pools had been there for as long as she could remember, and moons ago Abra had told her that the tide pools were almost ageless, having existed for years.
“I don’t think that’s what happened.”
“Really? I’m sure that’s what it was. Absolutely sure. I’ve heard about this happening before,” she said, though it sounded almost as if she was trying to convince herself.
“Are you okay, Mom?”
Abra was trying to hide it, but she looked distinctly… afraid. Yes, Lainey was fairly sure that fear glittering in her eyes. But maybe not. Maybe she was just as confused and surprised as she was about the mysterious missing tide pools.
“I’m- I’m okay. Come on. Let’s go back now.” Abra turned abruptly to go.
“Are you not telling me something?” Lainey asked, persistent. “You seem really-”
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. Now let’s go,” she snapped, which was abnormal for her. "We should check on the others."
Lainey shrunk back under her uncharacteristic scowl. “Okay, okay, I’m coming.” She scrambled over to her mother and followed her meekly as she began to head back.
Still, though, she couldn’t help but sneaking a glance back at the former tide pools. They were nothing but basins now, hollow and lacking.
There was something haunting about them, almost creepy. The life in the was gone, wiped away utterly.
Lainey snuck a glance at her mother, and she saw that her brow was furrowed. Obviously, something was upsetting her.
The question was, what?
And why?
₪ 8. MESSAGE IN
A BOTTLE ₪
A small she-cat toddled across the beach, her tiny paws sending up miniature sandstorms in her wake. She was followed by another, tall and majestic with a light tabby pelt so alike her own. The elder of them was somber and strong, with the air of a cat that had battled seas and storms alike but had yet to be overtaken completely by the waves.
The little kitten laughed as she neared her prize, oohing at the beautiful treasure she had spotted from afar.
It was almost as large as she was, coiled beautifully into a loose spiral. The outside was speckled with a thousand shades of browns, and endless sea of tans and earth tones, but the inside was what made it truly exquisite. Stained an iridescent coral pink, it was almost the shade of the sunrise above the little she-cat’s head. almost glittering in its smoothness. The interior had an unearthly, shimmering quality to it that mystified and captivated her. One end tapered into a handful of dainty whorls, while the other widened into a delicate opening.
“Do you know what this is, Abra?” the older cat asked calmly, nudging the object closer to her. The kitten attempted to scramble onto it but slid off promptly.
“No, no, tell me?” little Abra asked, looking up with wide, eager eyes. “Tell me, mama!”
Diondra nodded. She was unruffled and as serene as the calm sky above. “This is a horse conch, Abra. See how big it is? That's what sets it apart from the other shells and ocean trinkets.”
“I see!”
“Neiredi sends these to us. They carry her messages to us, and the Meri family alone can understand. They are meant only for us. Lean in, listen to the inside. Do you hear anything?”
Abra did as she was told, sticking what seemed like half of her head into it in her eagerness. She closed her golden eyes, concentrating on the sounds. It sang to her, curling gently around her ear and into her consciousness. The song was ethereal, reminiscent of the sea breezes and hot days, tides and gulls’ drifting cries. It danced in a watery melody, bringing joy to her heart and weaving its essence into her soul.
It wasn't a spoken language, unlike anything cats used to communicate. It was the unimaginable might of the sea sending great wishes to its faithful vassals through pure magic, and Abra loved it.
“Sea… welcome… happy… peace… calm… new… sea… keeper… in-between…”
After what could have been a lifetime or but a second, the melody faded and the sounds of the sea drifted away, though it was already stored in deep within Abra.
“Diondra, it spoke!”
“I know,” she said solemnly, her serious guiding words in stark contrast to her daughter's innocent wonder. “What did it say?”
“It said the something about the sea. About calm? A keeper? In-between?” she asked, hoping for explanation.
“Ah yes, for you are a keeper of the sea, just as I am and all of those before me were and all of those after you will be. But now you needn't worry, for it is at peace. There is nothing wrong, no terrible storms brewing. So you see, whenever the waves must speak to us, they will send a horse conch.”
“Every time?” Abra squeaked excitedly.
Diondra stared down at the tabby kitten, serious and with a touch of sternness flickering in her expression. “Most times, yes. You must never ignore a conch like this one, or the consequences will be grave. Neiredi does not like to be ignored. And you must listen carefully when you do, for it will divulge its knowledge only once, for one cat, and never again. Do you promise to always do that? Every time, no matter what the circumstances?”
Abra nodded, just beginning to grasp the seriousness of the lesson.“Yes.”
“Are you sure?” Her yellow eyes burned into Abra in a way that she could never forget.
“I am."
₪₪₪
Abra looked down at the horse conch she had stumbled upon, her gaze as intense as Diondra’s had been all those years ago. It was a different perspective, a different conch, and a different feeling hovering in the air.
The sky was dark, veiled with night. No longer was Abra happy and her childish innocence was long since lost, dulled by the realities of adulthood. Perhaps it was just the shadows casting it in such an unflattering light, but this conch was ugly and hulking. Crudely designed by nature, the outside a blotchy mess of dull, pasty browns, and the sight of it filled her with sickening, worrying dread.
She had not encountered one in what felt like ages, and she had hoped to never see one again. A worthless hope.
It was the same beach, it was the same concept, and it was still her.
She had no desire to lean in, had no desire to kneel and listen to her fate. Her mind urged her to leave, to walk away, but she could not. Her heart called her, reeling her in close like starving prey. Gasping for nourishment, it knew bait lay before it, but it was too hungry for information to care. Abra did not want to, but she knew she must.
After all, she had promised.
So she fell slowly to her knees beneath the stars and the moon, sand molding beneath her weight. Abra pulled the conch close to her. Tilting her head downwards was almost painful, for she knew what the message would be. There had been warning after warning, but this would confirm her suspicions.
When her ear touched the cold, smooth shell, she was dropped into a whirling ocean, rushing with anger and fear. This was no kind message, but an urgent one, and its tone reminded her of water swirling ominously, wind just starting to whip it into madness.
The melody, fast and rough, slipped into her as it had before, drilling into her mind and causing her to gasp aloud. This was not kind and gentle, but grating and portentous.
“Sea… coming… warning… prepare… sea… storms… war... be ready…”
Abra shoved the conch away as the noise ceased, foreboding crashing into her at full force.
No, she wanted to scream. Oh gods, no. She had lived so long in denial, moons that she had instead devoted to raising her beautiful sons and daughters. It had been worth it, or so she had thought.
But it was coming, bearing down on her swiftly. She didn't want to tell them, not after she had hidden the truth for so long. She had buried it masterfully it with love and laughs and fantastical stories whispered before bed, a master of deception. The she-cat still wasn't sure if she could bring herself to tell them, though one thing was clear.
She could no longer continue to refuse her fate, or her childrens’ for that matter, for it was advancing with vengeance. Time was running out, slipping like water out of her outstretched paws.
Be ready, it had told her, but she knew she was not.
₪ 9. SHARKS ₪
Abra moved silently, her measured breaths mingling softly with the mesmerizing, constant slap of the slumbering sea. Her mind was the opposite of the sea tonight; it was an agitated whirlpool, panic and uncertainty commandeering her thoughts.
“I saw you.”
“Who’s there?” Abra called nervously. She whipped around as a figure detached itself from the gloom of the nearby palm tree, almost as if materializing from thin air.
The tom paced forward, his fiery eyes strangely cruel in the dim lighting. Illuminated by the moon, his white coat gave him the appearance of a phantom, only half in this world. He seemed strangely out of place amidst the sandy terrain.
“Dusan. You scared me.” Abra stood her ground, but her heart was still pitter-pattering faster than it should have at the sight of him. “What do you mean, you saw me?”
“I saw you down by the beach. Listening to the conch,” he said simply, and by his tone she could tell that he knew exactly why she had been listening to the conch. She suddenly felt stripped bare before him, which was unsettling considering his young age. There was no hiding from him; he always seemed to be there, watching and waiting.
She had taken Dusan in, yes, but Abra had never felt like anything more than just a steward or a temporary caregiver to him, let alone his mother. Sometimes he unnerved her, for he seemed to be aware of everything, and she was never quite sure how much he knew about her family and their lore.
Then of course, there was the matter of his background and his mother, who they had never found despite sending out numerous search parties. He never spoke of it, but Abra had quite a few theories about his past. However, she wasn’t sure if she wanted any of them to be right besides the most obvious, logical of them.
“You had no right to follow me,” she told him, feeling oddly tense.
“Oh, but I think I did. You can’t keep me from going anywhere. Don’t underestimate me, Abra. I am far more in the know about what’s going on than any of your children,” he said coolly, his voice calm but his words carrying just the slightest baleful hint. “You can’t lie to me.”
This sent a chill racing through her, and she took a step back. “Are you threatening me?”
“Does it feel that way?” he countered cryptically.
“I don’t know. Should it?”
“I’m not sure.” He looked her dead in the eye, and she felt unable to turn away. There was a certain darkness there, lurking behind the flames, that made her wary. “But I am not stupid, and as much as I hate to admit it, neither are your children. You cannot put this off forever, Abra. They already suspect, with the vanishing tide pools and the missing pieces of driftwood. They doubt you.”
“What are you talking about?” she demanded defensively, appalled by his sheer gall.
He has no right to accuse me of such things, she told herself, but inwardly she had to admit that he was just voicing the truth.
He chuckled, a cold, cynical sound that was the opposite of what a laugh should be. “Don't play dumb, Abra. We both know what’s coming, and it’s coming fast. If I were you, I would not hide so much from them. In my experience, I've found that it only makes for more, ah, pain in the end.” She couldn't help but notice how he seemed to relish the word pain, swirling the word around in his mouth languorously as if it were fresh water on a hot day.
Abra paused, unsure exactly how to answer this challenge of sorts. Dusan’s piercing gaze and smirk made it hard to concentrate and form cohesive thoughts. He had a way of doing that to cats, even the most level-headed ones.“I know, it’s just…” she trailed off helplessly, hating herself for not having a retort.
Dusan turned on his heels with a dismissive shrug. “You must make your choice, Abra. I will not try to lecture you on right and wrong. After all, you are my 'mother,' and that would not be right,” the white tom drawled mockingly. He glanced back over his shoulder, his expression intense and almost malevolent.
"Do not speak to me that way." Abra stared after him, an ocean of turmoil rushing and crashing inside of her.
He smiled ever so slightly. It was not a kind smile, but a dangerous, terse one. “Just remember, Abra, the blood is in the water now. There is nothing you can do about it. And soon the sharks and the beasts will be coming out to play,” he murmured.
“So you have a choice: prepare your family or not. Will you be the hunters or the hunted? It's your choice. I'll enjoy watching.”
Abra stood rooted to the spot as he left, unable to pull her eyes from his retreating form, a pure blotch against the dim backdrop.
His words rang in her ears.
Soon the sharks will come out to play.
Abra knew that he was right.
₪ 10. SQUID ₪
From the moment Dilan laid eyes on the tom, he did not trust him.
Dilan had to admit that he was good-looking, with clear blue eyes that made him think of the sky, a muscular, proportionate build, and a thick, luxurious fawn tabby pelt. He seemed poised, with the ghost of a charming smirk playing around his mouth and an aura of confidence hovering about him. In fact, that was what made Dilan uneasy — he seemed a bit too confident in himself.
He had emerged from the forest, running into them as they had just been finishing up a quick check of the surrounding territory. Trotting along as if he hadn’t a care in the world, the stranger had approached them without seeming the tiniest bit fearful.
“Hello. My name is Gaines,” he meowed calmly, his voice warm and melodious, redolent of sun-warmed rocks and grassy fields, green and lush.
“Why are you here?” Dilan asked, unable to keep a note of hostility from his words. If Gaines’ articulation was slow and calm like the earth, his was hasty and quick, evoking images of the boiling sea, whipped wild by the wind.
Kaiona did not seem to have the same reservations.
“Nice to meet you! I’m Kaiona. This is my brother, Dilan,” she said, padding forward with a shy smile. This was unusual; Kaiona was never shy, in his experience. He frowned, shooting her a look that asked, Why did you tell him our names? She surreptitiously ignored it.
Gaines grinned back, and this annoyed Dilan. “I’ve just come to see the sea. I’ve never seen it before. Could you take me there?” he asked, zeroing in on Kaiona, who seemed utterly transfixed by his gaze. To Dilan, he sounded oddly scripted, as if he had rehearsed this hundreds of times before.
Dilan strode forward somewhat aggressively. He had always been a little protective of Kaiona, as she was the only one of his siblings who was actually related by blood to him. Not that he didn’t love the others, but they had always shared a special bond. He felt as if Gaines was trying to encroach on this.
“Why should we trust you?” he challenged. “How do we know you’re not here for some other reason? Huh? Maybe you should get out of here before Kai and I chase you away myself.” A twinge of guilt niggled at him — it wasn’t like Gaines had done anything wrong — but he pushed the thought away and scowled.
Kaiona rolled her eyes. “I don’t know why you’re being so rude, Dilan,” she snapped, shoving past him to come face-to-face with Gaines. “It’s not like he’s threatening us. He’s just asking for us to show us the beach. Is there anything wrong with that? We’re really close to the sea now; if you listen closely, you can hear it. I-we can take you.” She correcte her stumble quickly. The last two sentences were directed at the fawn-furred tom.
Dilan gave her a close look over. He knew his sister well, and he could often tell what was on her mind. In this case, though, she was making it so obvious that he was sure anyone could surmise her thoughts. It was clear she was smitten, or at least fascinated, with the visitor.
Gaines shook his head, backing away with a slight sadness in his expression. “No, no, I understand. After all, it’s not like you know me. I’ll be on my way now, if you’d like,” he offered softly, in a way that was completely unprovocative and forlorn. Dilan was aware of the fact that each of his honey-sweet words was like a tentacle, wrapping gently around his sister to reel her in. He was losing her to Gaines, though he wasn’t exactly clear why it bothered him so much. It shouldn't even have been a competition.
Yes, why don’t you leave? Dilan thought spitefully, and he was just about to say so when Kaiona jumped in again.
“No, don’t go! Come on. I’m sure our mother will welcome you. We can take you to her now. Right, Dilan?” she asked, shooting him a glance that was part pleading and part threatening.
He couldn’t resist her, though he groaned, exaggerating the sound. How had he so easily gotten Kai’s approval? “Fine. We’ll take him back to Abra. But if there’s any funny business we’re chasing you out, Gaines,” he snapped. “Same thing goes if Abra doesn’t like you. Got it?”
The blue-eyed tom nodded, looking extremely grateful. It’s an act. All one big act, Dilan thought, but he couldn’t be sure. “Oh, thank you so much. I really appreciate it. I’ve been wandering for days now.”
Kaiona rushed up to stand beside him. “Come on then, let’s go!” she said, enthusiasm in her mew. He laughed and followed, leaving Dilan behind. He fumed in their wake, feeling unsettled by the ease with which Gaines had won his sister over.
He tried to reassure himself. Maybe you’re just being paranoid. You’re just jealous that Kai seems more interested in her than you. Calm down.
He had almost convinced himself halfway when Gaines turned to glance back quickly. There was something almost malicious there in his countenance — gloating triumph? — but he turned to face forwards again, quickly, leaving Dilan to wonder if he had truly seen it.
He shadowed them warily, and as he did so he thought back to the stories Abra had told him about the ten-tentacled creatures that haunted the deep sea. They would stalk their prey and then suddenly, when they came close, latch onto it with sharp suckers. Then they would tear their meal apart piece by piece while it was still alive, struggling and bleeding out into the sea.
Dilan had gotten the uncanny feeling that Gaines was exactly like a squid, luring Kaiona in with his charisma and grace. Already he had a tight hold on her, but he supposed he would have to wait and see if the worst part, the vicious, feeding frenzy, would come to pass.
He hoped against it, but he suspected that his hopes wouldn’t make a difference in the end.
There was something Gaines wasn’t telling them, or so he suspected. Dilan was determined to find out what.
₪ 11. THE SHALLOWS ₪
Kaiona padded beside Gaines, nodding at his every word eagerly.
Oh gods, what’s wrong with me? she wondered, feeling her face grow hot as he spoke. She had never been one to fawn over the few toms she had met outside of her family.
Her experience with them had been limited to just a few living a half day’s walk down the beach and the couple that had wandered out to the beach. None of them had been particularly agreeable, at least to her. She had left Lainey and Mary to their flirting then, disgusted. But Gaines was entirely unique, his own specimen. He was like a shining starfish compared to the others, who seemed like nothing but mere barnacles now.
“Kaiona? Are you okay?” His voice jerked her out of her thoughts.
“Oh, yeah,” she said, flustered and hating herself for it. “Sorry, I was just thinking. We’re almost back to our cave, though. I’m sure Abra will be here to welcome you.”
“Thank you for taking me. I really appreciate it.” Gaines smiled at her, and a wave of giddiness swept through her, though she tried to suppress it. She felt strangely helpless with him, and it was both exciting and terrifying at the same time.
She turned back to glance at Dilan, who was trailing behind moodily. “No problem! And look, I’m really sorry about my brother. He’s just-” His tail swept around to touch her mouth, and she stopped immediately, stunned by the contact.
“Shh, no need to worry. He’s just a little territorial, jealous that you want to talk to me. Don’t worry about it. Besides, aggression is a natural instinct for most toms,” he said smoothly, explaining away her worries without a hitch. “I’m not offended.”
She found herself incredibly relieved. “I’m so glad. I’m sure we can work things out with him. Look, we’re here,” she said hopefully as they neared their home cave. The ground had slowly begun to become more and more sandy as they had walked, making the effortless transition from earth to beach.
“Abra?” she called tentatively.
Her voice floated out from the entrance in the side of the sea cliffs, sounding somewhat strained. “Oh, good! I’m glad you and your brother are back. I need to talk to all five of you about something important. Your sisters and Ronan are out hunting, but they should be back any second.”
A little confused about what she was speaking about, Kaiona replied, Huh? Mom, I found a visitor. I brought him here to meet you.”
“What?” Abra asked incredulously, rushing out into the open immediately. She stalked over to Gaines, looking him up and down neutrally. “Who are you?”
He nodded respectfully, and suddenly Kaiona was nervous for him. “I’m Gaines. I-”
“He’s a stranger, and I don’t know if we can trust him,” Dilan interjected fiercely, coming up from behind. “Something seems off with him.”
Kaiona whipped around, scowling. “Look, Dilan, leave him alone for once, won’t you? You said you’d let Abra decide if he could stay.”
“Whoa, whoa, slow down there, Kaikai. Stay? I don’t know if we can take in another cat, not with Dusan already here,” Abra said guardedly. She stared at Gaines hard, narrowing her eyes at him almost as if she were searching for something in him.
“I do not need to stay for long, or at all. I simply was hoping for directions to the sea. I’ve never seen it, and Kaiona here was kind enough to say she’d bring me. She also wanted to introduce me to you, but if you’d like I can always leave,” the tabby tom added easily, looking inexplicably comfortable despite the tense situation.
“Abra, come on! Give him a chance already! I don’t understand what you have against him,” Kaiona cried, frustrated. Why do they all hate him so much? Can’t they see what I do?
“We’re just being cautious, Kai!” Dilan countered. “We don’t know anything about him.”
“You could ask me, you know. I’m right here,” the visitor said calmly, sounding almost bored. Kaiona admired him for his level-headedness, but her brother seemed to read it as mocking.
“Well, you could always be lying,” Dilan shot back. “Ever heard of such a concept, Mr. Perfection?”
Gaines didn’t answer. At that moment, the trio of siblings returned from their hunt, hauling several large fish in their mouths. They took in the fraught, strained scene with concern. Ronan dropped his fish and promptly took off. Ever since Dusan had arrived, he had been particularly jumpy.
They all watched him go, but made no attempt to coax him back.
“Who is that?” Lainey asked, glancing at Gaines with interest. Kaiona felt a stab of possessiveness at the way her eyes roved over him.
“What’s going on?” Mary demanded. “I get forced to go on a stupid hunting patrol with these losers and I miss all the action? Typical.”
“This random stranger just showed up and-”
“Gaines asked if we would take him to the sea-”
“I met Kaiona and Dilan coming out of the-”
They all spoke at once and stopped at once when they realized that they would not be heard. An awkward truce fell upon them as they waited for each other to seize the chance and speak.
At last, Abra spoke, her tone flat. “This is Gaines. Dilan and Kaiona found him. He says he was traveling to find the sea.”
Lainey stepped forward a little. “Well, I don’t see why he can’t hang around. I’m Lainey, by the way.”
Gaines smiled at her. Kaiona scowled at her sister.
“Well, just let him go to the sea. Then he can leave.” Mary smirked. “I don't get what the big deal is.”
“He wants to stay. Or at least, Kaiona wants him to stay,” Dilan meowed, upset. “That's the problem. We don't even know anything about him.”
“I told you earlier. You could always ask me.” Gaines looked pointedly at him, an undertone of sharpness in his words for the first time.
“Well, I think-” Dilan started, but Abra cleared her throat loudly, causing him to stop in annoyance.
Abra swept her gaze around the clearing. “Look, Dilan, calm down already. I don’t know about this, Kaiona. I’m sorry Gaines, but we’re going through a lot right now. You can go see the ocean if you want, but after that I think it’s best you leave us for now.”
At this, Kaiona exploded. “What the hell do you mean, ‘going through a lot’? We’re not! I don’t get it: you take in Dusan, a scheming little brat who doesn’t talk to any of us, but you refuse to even give Gaines shelter for one night? Why are you being so rude, Abra? What happened to the starfish, huh? Making a difference? You don’t seem to be doing that now.”
Abra recoiled, almost as if attacked. She was silent for a moment, and when she spoke again her voice was low. “Look. I really need to speak to you and your siblings right now, Kaiona. So come into the cave, all of you. Now. This is not something that I can put off. Gaines, the ocean is close, just over that crest. I'm sure you can hear it and find your way there by yourself.”
Gaines nodded and was about to speak, but Kaiona overtook him, and when she did he looked pleased with the way she was defending him. “No way! I don't want to have a stupid family meeting over some ridiculous missing tide pools. Gaines is way more important than any of your crap. I’m taking him to the beach. You can't stop me,” she hissed. “Let's go, Gaines.”
She whipped around and sped off without hesitation. He obeyed the order without question, falling into a run beside her as she sped away, ire rushing through her.
“Kaiona, come back here. Now!” Abra ordered, but there didn’t seem to be much energy in her words.
Dilan snorted. “Let her go. No one can speak reason into her. She’s smitten with the stupid cat.”
Their voices faded away as they neared the sea, drowned out by the soothing rush of waves. Kaiona ran, letting the pounding of her heart calm the hurt and fury searing her.
At last she reached the seaside, and she stopped. The water pulled gently at her paws, urging her to enter into the salty depths. “Welcome to the sea,” she whispered breathlessly. “It's beautiful, isn't it?”
He nodded and came up behind her, looking out and out to the point where the horizon met the endless ocean. “It’s huge. It's amazing. Thank you for taking me, Kaiona. I'm sorry for causing such a rift with your family. I really will be leaving soon, since you obviously don't have room for another cat,” he said worriedly. Kaiona deflated a little.
“No, don't leave. I'm sure I can convince them,” she rushed to say. “But let's not talk about that right now. Come on, let's wade in the shallows a little.”
Gaines suddenly looked apprehensive. “Kaiona, I don't know about that. I just wanted to see the ocean, not swim in it.”
She regarded him. What's the point of coming to see the sea if you're afraid of it? “Aww, come on. It would make me feel better after everything,” she coaxed.
“I don't think so,” he said, his confident veneer slipping away for a second. “No. How about you tell me about your life instead? What's happening around here and what the beach is like?”
“Please, Gaines? For me? I'll tell you in the water,” she begged.
After a hesitation, he agreed. ”Fine. But you tell me everything I ask about, alright?”
“Okay. But come on! You'll love it.”
“I don't know about that,” he said rather darkly, in a way that threw Kaiona off a little. However, she quickly recovered as they waded into the frothy water, Kaiona excited and Gaines looking absolutely pained.
The light blue-gray liquid reflected the sky, and it swirled around them as the moved forward until they were in up to their bellies. It soaked into their fur, splashing and seething around them. Kaiona sighed happily. She had always adored swimming in the sea, or even just standing in it.
Gaines looked nervous. “So uh, Abra mentioned missing tide pools? What's that all about?”
“Oh that. Well, my sister Lainey and Dusan, who Abra took in, got in a fight. So Abra took Lainey on a walk to talk about it, you know? It was low tide and all, meaning the water was drawn back, but when they came to the tide pools, they were all dried up.”
“Interesting. You don't know why?” He was watching her intently. She liked the fact that he was looking at her, but his gaze drilling into her so deeply that she was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable.
“No. All the animals and stuff were gone and everything. It's really weird. And now they don't fill back up any more the waves just don't go up that far anymore, so they don't get filled. Same thing went for some pieces of wood we were all messing around with. Three just vanished. We have no idea why.”
“Are you sure?” Gaines’ tone made her feel a little like she was being interrogated.
She shot him a questioning look. “What do you mean, ‘are you sure’? Yes, I'm sure. Why do you care so much?” She was genuinely curious.
“I mean, I just wanted to think about it. You know, in case you were forgetting something,” he said vaguely, giving her a grin that quickly made her unease fly far from her grasp. “Uh, so think we can get out now?” He still looked slightly awkward and nervous standing in the water.
“In a minute. Don’t you like it? The water feel so nice! We've only been here for about thirty seconds! Ask me another question,” Kaiona suggested, feeling slightly thrilled by the fact that his full attention was on her.
“Um, so have you always lived by the sea?”
“Yup. It's my home for now, though I might move out eventually. I'm getting a little old and I can't handle Dilan and the others sometimes.”
“Move-” He stopped, looking out a few shark-lengths from them. “What was that?”
Kaiona looked where he was pointing with his tail. There was nothing there, only rippling cobalt water. “What are you talking about? Nothing's there.”
“No, I saw something. A shadow in the water. It was big.” For the first time since she'd met him, which albeit hadn't been long ago, he seemed completely shaken.
“It's fine. Sharks and stuff never come to the shallows. We're fine,” she reassured him. “I promise. Besides, I know how to deal with animals in the sea. We're safe."
He backed up nervously. “No, Kaiona, I'm going to get out now. I don’t feel comfortable. Okay?”
Kaiona was baffled by his sudden skittishness . “There's nothing out here, though. But if you want, I guess…” She trailed off as he hurriedly splashed to shore, pulling himself up onto the sand.
She, too, made her way back to land as well, feeling some of her euphoria drain away with the water dripping from her fur. “Hey, are you okay? I thought you would like wading in the shallows with me.” She was disappointed.
Did I say something wrong? Or maybe he really did see something out in the waters, she thought. Whatever it was, he was thoroughly alarmed.
“Hey, look, it's not your fault. It's just, I'm not really comfortable being in the sea. I’m not really a fan of it,” the tom clarified, shaking back and forth as if to rid himself from the sea water as fast as he possibly could.
Kaiona eyed him, baffled. “But Gaines, I don't get it. You said you journeyed specifically to see it. Right?”
He looked slightly panicked, as if he had said something wrong. However, he regrouped quickly. “I- well, it is beautiful. It's just, I have to get used to it, you know? And besides,” he said, stepping closer to her, his still-damp flank brushing against hers. “Half of the fun is meeting wonderful cats like you along the way.”
Kaiona almost let out a yelp of pleasure and surprise, but she caught herself just in time, sparing herself embarrassment. All of her suspicions were tossed away immediately with the thrumming of her heart. “I'm glad,” she managed to get out.
Suddenly, though, he pulled away. “Kaiona, I should go now. I need to meet some cats, alright? They’re expecting me.”
“What? I-I thought you said you traveled from far away?” she asked, unsure once more.
“Yes, but I met some others in the way here. I promised I would go back to them and lead them here, to the sea. But Kaiona, I swear. I'll come to see you soon.”
He mind was whirling, trying to process everything that he was saying. But her mind had been scrambled by his touch, and so she nodded and hazarded forward, saying, “That doesn't make much sense...” Even in this state of mind, his excuse sounded flimsy and contrived.
He leaned in to lick her gently on the forehead, and she closed her eyes as he did so. “I know. It will all be clear soon, though. Listen to Abra, but don't believe everything she says; she knows more than she's telling, but may try to sway you in the wrong direction. Thank you for taking me in and showing me your home.”
“That’s not an answer, Gaines. I thought you trusted me! Don't believe Abra? What do you mean? Tell me what's going on!”
“I can't. I'm sorry, but I can't. Look, don’t think badly of me. I’m not lying to you; I really told a group of cats I’d guide them to the sea when I found it.”
“Why?” she snapped, hurt and bewildered.
“Because they were kind to me, but I was the only one willing to go ahead and search for it. I'm going to leave now, but watch for me. I'll be back as soon as I can, I swear.” He turned to go, a charming smile on his face, as usual. “Don't forget me. Promise you won’t chase after me?”
“Wait, no!”
“Please, Kaiona, just promise me?” He sky-blue eyes were pleading and lucid, drawing her in so she was unable to say no.
“Okay, fine. Just come back fast, okay?” she said reluctantly.
“I will. I’ll be back.” With that, he turned to dash away into the dunes. She watched as he ran with legs pumping until fast, faster than she would ever be, until there was nothing left to see of him but a cloud of dusty sand.
She could have chased after him, but her vow held her back.
Despite his explanation, she was still certain that he was hiding something, hiding something big. She was enamored with him, but that didn’t mean she was stupid. The she-cat thought back to Abra and her insistence on a family meeting.
Listen to Abra, but don't believe everything she says. What in the gods’ names is that supposed to mean?
Kaiona sighed and made her way back into the water, puzzling over his words. She always thought the most clearly in the shallows.
I’ll be back. Despite her newly formed mistrust, she hoped desperately that he would return.
₪ 12. SUNSHINE ₪
Ronan was beneath the palmetto trees when his siblings tracked him down, his fur crisscrossed with zigzagging shadows darting this way and that in mesmerizing patterns.
Mary stalked forward, looking hassled. “Ronan! Let’s go,” Mary snapped. We’ve been out for ages looking for your sorry hide.”
Ronan shrunk away from his aggressive sister. He was always nervous now that Dusan was here, with a dark feeling churning inside of him endlessly, with no respite. Ever since he had watched Talia disappear into the ocean. The guilt ate away at him, making him paranoid that someone would somehow discover his lie. Dusan’s icy glares and cold sneers made him wonder if he knew what Ronan had seen. Ronan hoped desperately that he had not.
The arrival of Gaines, plus all of the tension surrounding his circumstances, had pushed Ronan over the edge. The attractive tabby tom had felt wrong somehow to him, in the same way that Dusan felt off somehow, as if he did not mesh with them. Even now, a good few hours after he'd fled, he still had no desire to return to the cave.
“No, I think I'll stay here,” he said shakily, hating how weak his voice sounded. He shrunk back into the shade, making no attempt to summone courage. Hiding was what he was used to, and he found that usually it worked when trying to avoid disaster.
“Mom said she needs to talk to all of us,” Lainey said, glancing over her shoulder. “I think she's following. Come on, Ronan. Gaines is gone to the beach with Kaiona anyways. He’s not around to freak you out.”
"And thank the gods for that," Dilan mumbled, stalking over to stand next to Lainey. From the look on his face, he was still ruffled from his hostile encounter with Gaines.
Ronan shook his head vehemently. He wasn't sure he wanted to hear what Abra was going to say. He had always intuitive, and recently the aura he'd been sensing around her had not been positive, but one of stormy brooding and deep-seeded fear. He had no clue why.
“That's it,” Mary fumed, marching over to him, her copper eyes flashing in the light. “I'm done with all of you and your stupid games. You're coming with us.” She tried to shove him with her shoulder, but he danced away nervously just in time.
“I said no, thanks,” he meowed, trying to slink away deeper into the grove. Mary stopped him with a fierce glare, freezing him in place.
“Come on, Abra ordered us to find you,” Lainey added, and she seemed sure that would sway him. “It’s not like anyone’s going to hurt you.”
He refused to respond.
At that moment, Abra came bursting towards them, looking worried. “Ronan! Don't go running off like that. We must have a family gathering. It's important.” She stopped the edge of the trees, the sunlight bathing her tabby coat.
He frowned but made no move towards her. “A-about what?” he demanded suspiciously, thousands of possibilities, most of them terrible and bloody, flipping through his mind in a barrage of fear.
Abra paused as if she were struggling for words. “About everything that's been going on lately. I-I have to explain.”
Ronan stayed where he was, uncertain at this. On one paw, he was curious about the missing tidepools and the mysterious visitors showing up. On the other paw, though he didn't like to admit it, he was afraid, deeply afraid. He had a terrible feeling swirling inside him, and he wondered if staying in his own little bubble of safe denial would be easier.
“Let's go, loser,” Mary meowed. “I don't want to do this any more than you do, but Abra really wants to.”
"No use hiding back there," Dilan commented sharply with an eye roll.
Ronan made a decision. “No,” he whispered simply, all of his trepidation pouring out into that one word. He turned on his heel and made to take off again, which he seemed to be doing a lot of recently. Running is always safe.
However, he was stopped cold in his tracks by Abra’s agonizing cry. “Please, Ronan. This is a matter of life or death. Come out of the trees, I'm begging you,” she pleaded, the depths of anguish in her cracking voice catching him by surprise. The desperation in her words chilled him to the core — they confirmed his worst, darkest fears — but the sadness, the overwhelming panic there moved him to turn around slowly.
“What is it?” he managed to choke out, his voice slow and pained. “Tell me, Abra, before I lose my nerve.” He wasn’t lying. Ever muscle in him was screaming to run, to get far away from all of this mystery and intrigue and what he hated most, death. Everything always seemed to come back to death.
The image of Muir’s wide, vacant eyes still haunted him at night.
She took a shaky breath to match his, and suddenly Lainey, Dilan, and Mary felt somewhat like afterthoughts. He locked eyes with her, and in them he saw the same fear; it was like looking into a mirror.
“Come out into the sunlight, Ronan. I must tell you things that you should have known long ago,” she said softly, her voice heavy.
His head was a war zone, one side fighting vehemently to stay in the dark and the ignorance, where he would be safe and happy — well, as happy as he could ever be — and the other waging war for him to go towards Abra, to embrace the sunlight and the truth. He did not want the truth, for he was sure that there was nothing good to come of the missing ships, the disappearing tidepools, and the strangers.
“Come, my dear,” Abra sighed. “Let me tell you.”
And so at last he came reluctantly, the light winning small victory. As he went, the afternoon sunlight assaulted his eyes with bright warmth. “I don't think I want to know,” he replied quietly.
Abra nodded, and in her face he saw understanding. He realized then that out of his family, only he and Abra likely knew the true burden of knowledge. It weighed him down every day, every moment, and he knew by the look in his mother's eyes that her emotions were the same as his. “You must, though,” she replied. “There is no escaping it, Ronan. I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
Lainey hurried towards them, staring attentively at her mother. She glanced back and forth between the two, confused. To Ronan, she was barely a blur in his peripheral vision. “Shouldn't we wait for Kaiona?”
Abra shook her head. “We will have to do without her. Time is running out. I will tell her everything later, if I can.” Her tone implied that she wasn’t sure if later would ever come.
“Well, get over with it already!” Mary said suddenly, causing them all to jump. She had been unusually quiet, and her words snapped them back to awareness of her presence. However, Ronan thought he detected a slight wavering in the usual confidence of her new.
Abra took a long, measured breath while staring at her paws, trying to gain some composure. At last it her head snapped up, and she began like she would with any other story.
“In the beginning, there was light and dark. But you see, there is no evil in the darkness as you might believe. No one wants the dark. No one likes to think they are evil. The evil comes from fighting the for the light, fighting over what people think are ‘good.’ The sunlight is desirable. The suffocating blackness is not. People justify their actions by saying they are fighting for goodness, but they lie. They fight for themselves and for their beliefs along.
“Competing for the light, for the power, has always been the earth and the sea. It has never changed. They have battled since the beginning of time, and they will battle until the very end of all we know. And sometimes they do not even face each other, but simply rage, rage for they want more. Sometimes there is civil war, internal struggles in the sea and the land. This is the truth of all existence: war. ”
Ronan listened, horror and apprehension twining to build up in his chest. There was something so right about her words, and a part of his soul knew instantly this was no legend, no myth.
This was the truth, and he could not deny it.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 19:50:40 GMT -5
Lainey was small. She was nothing but a shadow against the sand, with her pitch black coat rippling in the ocean winds. The storms had just passed, leaving the shore strewn with glorious treasures of every color and shape and size imaginable.
She stood beside her mother, puffing out her chest. The little kitten looked adoringly up at Abra. With Abra, she felt if she could take on the world.
“Look, mother, I found a shell!” she squeaked excitedly, pointing eagerly to a cracked duck clam, dull and rough.
Abra took a look at it and laughed kindly. There were thousands of others exactly like it scattered around, but she was tactful enough not to tell her daughter that. “Darling, it’s beautiful. But how about you look for one without a crack? Then maybe you can take it home.”
“Oh, okay!” She took it to heart, nodding earnestly. The she-kit scampered over to the right and then the left, back and forth down the beach. She gave each shell only a fleeting glance, trying to find the perfect one.
At least, she stopped, victorious. “Look, mama! I found a really pretty one,” she squeaked, beckoning her mother over.
Abra hurried over to see what Lainey was looking at. Half-buried in the sand was a delicate white shell, bright against its beige background.
“Isn’t it nice?” Lainey asked happily, brushing the sand away with a gentle paw. The shell was pure and delicate, half splayed open. The two sides of the long shell were still connected, held together by what appeared to be a tenuous connecting piece.
Abra smiled. “Did you know that what you have found is very rare?”
Lainey looked ecstatic. “Wow, really?”
Abra caressed it, running her paw over it very carefully. “Yes, really. This is an angel wing shell, or angel wings., as I like to call it. I have never seen one fully intact like this, especially after such a rough storm. Normally the pieces are broken apart, halved.”
“I think it’s a whole lot better when they’re connected,” Lainey proclaimed, dancing around her find with pride.
Her mother chuckled. “Of course it is. These shells are a reminder of the benevolent spirits the gods send to help us mortals sometimes. Some of them are rumored to have wings, huge white wings sprouting gracefully from their backs. they use them to go places we could never even dream of. They are very important, for if they are broken, the angels cannot fly, and they are trapped like a normal cat.”
“Whoa! they can fly with them? That’d be so cool!” Lainey interrupted, eyes shining.
“Yes, they can fly. Angel wing shells represent the kindness that the gods and the spirits show to us. When I see one, I remember all of the wonderful things that the gods have given us like the sky and the sea and family.” She bopped the little kitten on the nose with a tail. "And you, of course."
Lainey giggled and nodded. Inwardly she stored the memory away. But she did not stow it away as a memory of gods and magic.
She had never known Abra to tell a single lie, and her mother was her idol in all ways. To her, the shell represented her mother’s goodness and her integrity. It represented all that Abra was to her: mother, friend, role model.
So she took the angel wings back to the cave that night, grasping it ever so cautiously in her mouth, careful not to crush it with her teeth. It was a hard balancing act, finding just the right enough force to hold it with, but she managed to pull it off. She tucked it away in a crevice in the wall, where she was sure no one would ever find it.
Sometimes, when her siblings were out or late at night when everyone had fallen asleep, she took it out and admired the way it shone, its symmetry, its beauty. She liked to imagine sometimes that it gave Abra her powers of virtue and motherly love, and that she was responsible for caring for it.
It was perfect in her eyes, just like Abra.
₪₪₪
Lainey listened attentively to her mother, confused. Abra had told them that she had something very important to talk to them about, but now she was telling them what sounded like a story. It didn’t make any sense to Lainey, who had always been concrete and a realist.
“This is the truth of existence: war,” Abra said dismally, and as soon as she paused Lainey took the opportunity to speak.
“Abra, I don’t understand. What does this story have to do with the tidepools and Dusan?” she asked tentatively. She had been under the impression that Abra had wanted to speak to them about the recent event, not tell them some made-up fairy tale. Perhaps it’s a metaphor of some sort?
Abra looked at her strangely, as if she didn’t understand the query. “But this does have to do with some of those things. Listen, Lainey. Listen, and you will understand.”
Lainey was even more baffled by this cryptic answer. She shot a look at her siblings. Dilan and Mary looked as weirded out as she felt, but Ronan seemed completely enthralled in the story. He was staring at Abra, nodding seriously at her, as if he somehow understood something the rest of them didn’t.
“I have something I have to tell you. I wish I had told you earlier, but I didn’t. I’m-I’m sorry. The Meri family is not what you think we are. I have hidden things from you all that I never should have.”
“Wait, what?” Lainey asked incredulously, her mind whirling on overtime. It just didn’t make any sense to her. What is Abra talking about? How could we be something other than what we are? She had never seen her family as special, other than maybe the fact that they had no father figure and were all adopted.
“Listen, won’t you?” Ronan asked, his voice as close to rudeness as it had ever gotten before. Surprised, Lainey shut up and did as she was told.
Abra looked practically heartbroken as she continued, her words slow and painful and her eyes swirling pools of and guilt. “We are not normal. We have never been normal. There is a reason we live by the sea, and it is not necessarily a good reason. Most of the myths I have told you over the years, the stories, have a grain of truth woven into them. There is magic in the world.”
Lainey laughed. This was ridiculous. It has to be a joke or an elaborate story, she thought to herself, trying to let go some of the chaos swirling inside her head. “Great story, mom,” she said, cracking a small smile. “You can’t be serious, though.”
No one else laughed back, though Mary did offer a small smirk.
Abra gazed at her, her expression one of such resignation and sadness that Lainey knew instantly that it was not a lighthearted moment as she wanted it to be.
“Lainey, I’m sorry. This is all true. This is what is really happening now. There is magic in the world.”
Lainey shook her head, staunchly in denial now. It just couldn’t be. It sounded so real the way she was explaining it, and yet it couldn’t. There was no magic, no legendary powers. No wars between good and evil, gods and monsters. She had loved her mother’s tales for as long as she could remember, for she had always found them a release from the real world. But they could not be real.
“N-no. You’re m-making this up. This is-is a joke,” she stuttered nervously, trying to think of all the possible scenarios in which Abra wasn’t insane for telling her this. “T-those were all just stories earlier. Right? Tell me that they were just stories.”
Abra sighed, and in her sigh was mixed enough weariness for the world and the seas combined. “Lainey, you have to believe me. Please, believe me. I’m so sorry this is hard for you. I’m so sorry for telling you lies for all these years. Forgive me. Please. This is the truth,” she said, her words thick with anguish. “I’m so sorry.”
Lies. The word echoed and spun in her head, waxing and waning, bouncing around and around. It was a terrible word, and with it her world came crashing down around her, swept away by tsunamis of distrust and terrifying, paralyzing doubt.
Suddenly, it was if she saw her mother with new eyes. Liar. She had been her superstar, the cat she had looked up to for all her life. Lainey had never, ever been able to find fault in her. Abra had never told them anything but the truth — or at least I believed that, she thought bitterly. How can I know what was true then, now?
To her, Abra had been perfect. Lies. All lies.
In mind's eye, she watched at Abra’s angel wings shattered into a million sharp fragments.
She wondered if she would fall to earth without them.
Liar.
₪ 14. FISH ₪
Mary was angry, and her frustration was as red-hot as her flaming pelt. It was searing, leaping flames eating her up inside, pushing her to fury and indignation.
“Mary, you have to be more responsible!” Abra scolded, leaning down to lick little Lainey on the head, who was young and small, with sobs wracking her body. There was a long, jagged cut on her leg, blood sealed over with a poultice to help it heal.
Mary bristled. The whole situation was so unfair. Lainey had begged to follow her, and Mary had said no. She had wanted to be alone for once; her squalling siblings made the cave feel tiny. But when she had snuck out to climb some of the sea cliffs, her sister had followed, getting injured in the process. “Well, maybe I don’t want to be the oldest anymore!” she yowled at Abra, her little claws sliding out. “I’m sick of it! Lainey and the others are all brats, but you always blame me, me, me. Why don’t you ask Lainey why she followed me? Huh? Maybe it’s her fault!”
Abra shook her head. “Don’t you dare scream at me, Mary. You should never have been climbing anyways. Your sister could have died!”
Mary ground her teeth. I’m done with this, she thought angrily. “Well, too bad!” she retorted, spinning away to sprint outside.
“Mary, get back here!” Abra called forcefully, but Mary didn’t heed her call. She was smart enough to know that her mother would never leave Lainey, the golden child, especially not when she was injured and sobbing. She had weighed the risks and decided that fleeing wouldn’t have any consequences. Hopefully, at least.
Mary didn’t respond, but only ran faster, flying over the sandy ground until she was at the beach. She didn’t even stop then, but went plowing forward into the surf, half falling into the foamy waves. It was a devilishly hot day, the sun baking everything into submission. Only the ocean could resist its blistering rays, and only barely at that.
The cool waters, only slightly warmer than usual, were a relief to Mary. She splashed thoughtlessly forward, letting the it engulf her. The sea soaked through her fur, and she felt herself relax slightly. Abra had told her never to go swimming by herself, but she didn’t care. Even at such a young age, she was already a strong swimmer. Mary was still incredibly angry, her heart beating in a too-fast rhythm, and her mind was spinning off in a million different directions.
I wish I was Abra’s favorite. I wish I wasn’t the oldest. It’s so stupid, she fumed, paddling around aggressively as she could manage, splashing water in her wake. I’m always alone. I’m expected to lead, to be responsible. I don’t want to anymore. I just want a friend. I just want someone to be with, someone who gets me.
Just as the thought was released into her mind, the spot she was swimming suddenly grew cold. She was slightly surprised, but knew that sometimes currents ran hot or cold and certain areas could vary in temperature. It wasn’t too unusual.
At that moment, she felt a nudge on her leg. She shied away, peering into the water. A shadow lurked in the water, about as big as herself. Not quite afraid but a little nervous, Mary attempted to swim away. The figure came alongside her quickly, bumping into her legs and making her squirm.
The water was somewhat clear, as it was a calm day. So she squinted and tried to peer down at the thing, which appeared to be a large fish, from what she could tell. Perhaps a bluefish? she thought.
“Hello, fish,” she muttered, her foul mood somewhat lightened. “What are you trying to do?”
The creature, nibbled at her toes in response, making her laugh. “Why are you following me?” she asked it, cracking a smile to break the monotony of rage.
The agile, ever-moving fish butted its head gently against her flank. She laughed, her fury trickling away like the sea from her paws.
“Nice to meet you,” she said, poking it back impulsively. It was smooth and had a slimy quality that the prey they ate didn’t seem to have. The fish darted away immediately, causing Mary to frown in disappointment as it swam away.
“Wait, don’t go!” she called.
At her order, it turned swiftly, cutting back towards her and building up speed. But no, that was impossible; it couldn’t understand her after all. Perhaps it had spotted something to eat. She watched curiously as it picked up speed, zooming towards her. By the time she realized that it was barreling towards her, it was too late to move, so she curled herself into a ball instinctively.
To her surprise, it flung itself out of the water, flying over her head. She uncurled to stare. Its blue scales flashed against the sun, a thousand water droplets sparkling on its sides. It was beautiful, and Mary watched in wonder. Its body flexing, it arced up and then back down again to land with a splash.
“That was amazing!” Mary cried before she snapped her mouth shut, realizing that it was probably stupid to be talking to a fish who couldn’t understand a word she said. Still, though, she couldn’t help but admiring it.
She could have been imagining it, but she could have sworn that the creature flapped its pectoral fins quickly at her before disappearing back into the depths just as swiftly as it had come. She blinked, and it was gone again, for good this time.
The ginger she-cat could almost imagine that it had been a daydream, but it was imprinted so vividly in her memory that it had to have been real. She stored the remembrance away, sure that she would never forget.
She knew that she was not going to tell anyone about what she had witnessed, especially Abra and Lainey. There was no good reason to.
After all, she wanted it to be her secret.
₪₪₪
“I’m so sorry.” Abra’s words rang around them. Mary looked carefully at Lainey, and from her expression one would think that her world had gone up in flames.
Mary shook her head. This was hard to believe — of course it was. Abra was claiming that sorcery was alive, a force in their world, and from the way she was setting herself up, it seemed to Mary that the Meri family had something to do with everything: magic, the sea, the gods.
Normally, she would have scorned such wild fantasies, but Abra’s desperation and cracking voice made her think otherwise. She had always been good at reading people, seeing them, and it was often how she found their weaknesses. When she glanced at her mother, she saw nothing but regret and truth residing in her eyes.
“Don’t give mom a hard time, Lainey,” she snapped, knowing very well that their roles were usually reversed. Most times, it was Mary being rude to Abra and Lainey defending her, but in this case she could see that Abra seemed to be on the verge of a breakdown and that her sister seemed completely unable to forgive her. “This isn’t the time.”
Lainey shot her a wounded glare, as if she couldn’t understand why Mary would defend her, but the ginger she-cat shrugged it off. She had never really liked Lainey much, anyways.
“Keep going, Mom. Finish,” she said calmly, which she found ironic. She was usually never the level-headed, collected leader, despite being the oldest. She had always felt she was expected to be like that, and so all her life she had relished rebelling.
Dilan nodded, sharing a glance with her. His annoyance with Gaines seemed to have faded somewhat. “Yes, please. You can do it.” He seemed interested in Abra's news, but far more reserved than usual, as if he didn't want to reveal his real opinions.
Abra took a shaky breath. “Our family must always continue, for we are the keepers of the sea and the land. We bridge the gap. It is our responsibility to keep the peace, or the world may just rip itself apart. Our family line must never end, for we were established long ago near the beginning of time for this very purpose.”
“Is that why you adopted us, then?” Lainey snapped. “To continue the ‘family line’ or something?”
“No, I loved you all from the moment I saw you,” Abra said quickly, backtracking as fast as she could. “I promise you, never doubt that, Lainey. I have always thought that taking you in would make a difference. I wasn’t wrong. You have made my life so much better. I chose each one of you.”
Lainey laughed bitterly and was about to speak when Mary butted in. “Okay, Lainey, you’ve had your share of whining,” she said sharply. “Abra’s never going to finish if you keep complaining.”
Lainey glared, but Mary did not lower her gaze and instead matched it perfectly. She had moons of experience with dirty looks, and she was not going to back down now.
Abra continued in a whisper. “I only ever wanted to protect you. I thought that the sea was at peace. I thought that I could give you a life free of worries, free of the weight I felt on my shoulders when I was younger. I was wrong. The sea is stirring, preparing for war. I don’t know why. I don’t know against who. It could be anyone. It could be another goddess vying for Neiredi’s throne. It could be a sea monster. It could be any of the gods challenging each other. All I know is that strange things are happening. The ships and the tidepools and Talia vanishing? I think that the sea is retreating. It is restless, consolidating its forces and churning in ways that it never has before. I don’t know what to make of it. I have no idea. But I must prepare you for this somehow.”
Dilan piped up. “How are we supposed to be prepared? The sea could sweep us away in a second. We are powerless against it,” he pointed out, and Mary had to admit he had a point.
“But that's not true, is it?” Ronan asked, and all eyes whipped over to him. He had been quiet for so long that the other had almost forgotten him. His vacant, worldly stare made him appear half in another world. To be honest Ronan gave Mary the creeps sometimes, ever since Dusan and Talia had showed up. “We do have power, don't we, Abra?”
Abra stared out beyond them, her eyes unfocused, and Mary knew that she was looking towards the sea. “You are right, Ronan. We have been gifted with great power. Haven't you ever listened to the ocean? Wished something of it? Often times, if we care enough, it will obey. Evey bit of sea life knows our name, and all the fish respect us,. For now, at least.”
“Like, magic?” Mary demanded, thinking back to times spent swimming alone long ago. “Is that what you're saying? Can we control the sea? Is that the extent of our… powers?” she asked, hating how the word “powers” made it seem like some cliché, stupid bedtime tale.
“Yes, magic. To some extent, if you practice. We have saltwater in our blood, but we have earth as well. It is a balance, for we must stand between the oceans and the land. Our call to the sea is stronger, but some of the Meri family find they have an affinity for the earth as well. I should have taught you all of this so long ago. I should have prepared you earlier.”
“Mom, it's okay,” Dilan said firmly, and Mary thought she could detect a hint of uncertainty in his tone. “I promise. We're not angry, don't worry.”
“Maybe you aren't,” Lainey hissed. “You think this a joke? Abra lied to us all this time. She deceived us. How can you trust her?”
Mary snapped around to face her. “Didn't you just hear? Mom said she's sorry, you clam-hole. She said she regrets it. Can't you give it a rest for once in your life?” she retorted, stomping over to get in Lainey’s face. “Ever think about maybe forgiving?”
Lainey was not cowed. “Don't tell me what to think, Mary. You're not the boss of me, no matter what you might think. And you know what? I'm done with all of this. I’m done with Abra, and I’m done with you being stupid, as always. Of all of us, I would have thought you’d be the most skeptical. After all, you're always mocking everyone. I guess I was wrong, though. You're just stupid. I'm going to find Kaiona.”
She turned to stalk off without warning, her eyes flashing with icy bitterness.
Abra looked helplessly at her retreating form, sorrowful.
“Mom, it's okay. She'll come around. How about you finish telling us everything?” Dilan coaxed. “Like why that hell Gaines showed up, not to mention Dusan and his mother. Does that have anything to do with all of this? Dusan has never really seemed to fit in with us.”
Abra did her best to shake off Lainey’s outburst. “I don't know. That's the problem. I don't really know anything except for the information my mother passed on to me years ago. Something seemed off about them, yes. But I don't know what. I don't know why. I could be wrong. My magical senses are not what they used to be. They could be agents of the sea. But that's not the important thing for now. Right now, you three -- and the other two, hopefully -- need to learn all you can about the Meri lore. A storm is brewing, the sea has told me. I have to teach you all I can before it breaks,” she said, sounding determined.
“Are you sure they aren't a problem?” Ronan asked, his expression going so blank for a moment that Mary wondered what he was hiding. “Are you completely sure?”
Abra shook her head, not picking up on anything amiss with his tone. “They have done nothing it harm us so far. We don't have time to fret over them. There is only now, these moments, and any training I can give you.”
Training. Power. Mary had always been one to long for something better, to wield greatness. Now was her chance. She found a strange excitement bubbling up inside her. It was just like that time when she had been nothing but a kitten, swimming with fish. She was filled with a sense of newfound fascination, of something even like wonder again.
Yes, Abra had said there was chaos and a terrible storm, but Mary managed to gloss over most of that. She could handle conflict. She was not afraid.
She could almost imagine herself riding waves, commanding sharks and sea creatures as she laughed. What a ridiculous dream, she thought wryly to herself, but still, the fantasy lingered.
“Well, what are you waiting for?” she breathed. “Take us to the sea. Teach us.”
₪ 15. PALM TREES ₪
Abra brought them to the waters.
Dilan plunged in without a word, splashing in up to his chest. He was still trying to work through everything that Abra had told them. It seemed unbelievable, but the bizarre happenings seemed to support her explanation. He looked over at Mary, who had entered beside him. She seemed resigned and determined to learn whatever Abra could teach.
If Mary, who was usual the most scornful of Abra’s tales, believed he supposed that he probably should as well. His mouth quirked into a wry smile. Only something like this would ever having him agreeing so easily with Mary.
Kaiona was nowhere to be found; they had searched the beaches for a bit, but she had followed Lainey’s course of action and stormed off somewhere in a huff. Abra had decided at last that they would have to do without their two absent sisters.
The ocean swelled and ebbed around him as he looked to his mother. “Listen to the thrum of the waves,” she murmured. “Take in your surroundings. Let your spirit loose, let your heart be free. Let everything else trickle away.” Her voice was calm and whispery, almost as if she was reciting a mantra, dredged up from memories long ago.
Dilan tried to do as she said, but struggled. His mind was adamantly clutching onto the stress of the day; memories of Gaines’ smirk, Kaiona’s indignant snarl, and Lainey’s wounded fury stayed embedded firmly in the forefront of his consciousness.
“Dilan, you’re grimacing. Mary, you look like you’re going to attempt a murder, and by your expression, Ronan, you’d think that a shark is about to eat you alive. Are you sure you’re doing as I’ve asked?” Dilan jumped at Abra’s voice, as he had been immersed in thought.
“Uh, I’m trying?” Dilan said, but it was more of a question. He glanced over at his siblings. Neither of them looked very at peace with themselves, let alone the ocean.
Mary scowled.
Abra moved closer to Mary, the water swishing gently around her as she did so.
“Look, your minds need to be in the right place for this to work at all. Even if you were completely relaxed, I doubt you could do anything. It takes time.”
Ronan glanced over. “Well, from what you've been telling us, we don’t have any of that,” he pointed out.
Abra sighed, seeming harried. “I know, I know. How about you try again, then?”
Mary clamped her eyes shut again, and Ronan followed suit, but Dilan shook his head. He just couldn’t stand this right now. “I think I need to take a break to clear my mind,” he muttured.
Abra nodded. “Well, I guess if that would help you. Just come back quickly. I don’t know how much time I’ll have left to teach you everything you need to know.”
Incredibly relieved, Dilan waded back to shore. He tried to do so quietly, so as not to disturb Mary and Ronan. Of the two, only Ronan seemed to have any success doing as their mother had asked. His expression was starting to become placid. Mary still seemed tight, like she was trying too hard.
The tom pulled himself up onto the shore, shaking himself dry. The salt water leapt from his pelt, spraying the sand around him with droplets. The motion was almost comforting; he had performed it so many times before after emerging from the waves. During a tumultuous time like this, such familiarity was a relief.
He turned to the left and began to pad along, the soft sand molding around his paws as he walked. Suddenly, he heard a voice.
“Struggling a bit, hm?” it asked bitingly, with a hefty dose of scorn woven through the question. “Abra really should have told you all earlier.”
Dilan’s eyes snapped up. It took his eyes a minute to find the pure white pelt of his least favorite sibling, if you could even call him that, hidden amongst the leafy green palm fronds laced above his head. He had never really seemed like one of their siblings, no matter how much Abra tried to include the rude, distant tom.
“Dusan,” he said evenly, tilting his head up to look at him and struggling to be polite. “Yes, it is tough. How much do you know about it?” He had a sneaking suspicion that Dusan had been at least partly aware of their family’s past before the rest of them had suspected anything.
“That is a question that I might not answer. At least not now,” he drawled. Though he couldn’t see his face, Dilan could almost hear the smirk that seemed to be Dusan’s signature expression. “Care to join me up here? There’s a nice view. You might be able to gather your thoughts better up here.”
Dilan snorted. “Thanks, but no thanks.” No way he was going to perch precariously in a palm tree while the most infuriating cat he’d ever met needled him about his family’s shortcomings. “I’m not really big on heights.”
“Poor, poor Dilan. You know, I can tell that you’re confused about all of this. Perhaps if you climb up beside me I can tell you what I know? You know, to help you get a better grasp of things?” The voice came floating back down, this time sopping with overblown sympathy and venom that made Dilan want to snarl, hurl an insult up at the insufferable tom, and stalk off.
And yet, part of him longed desperately for more information. Abra had honestly been rather vague, and he couldn’t be sure she had told them everything. Besides, he needed a second source to confirm or deny his mother’s stories. As much as it pained him to admit, he didn’t quite trust Abra completely, not anymore.
So, trying to set his pride aside, Dilan responded, “Alright, fine. But this better be something good, or I’ll rip your sorry hide into shreds.”
“Understood.”
Dilan dug his claws into the base of the palm directly next to the one already occupied — there was no way he was going to be sharing one with him, especially considering that these weren’t known for being the most stable of all trees. He shimmied his way up the rough bark, using his legs to propel himself upwards. He had done this a few times before. He could vividly remember Kaiona challenging him to a palm-climbing race. It had ended with him falling and breaking his leg. He hadn’t tried it again since.
Eventually, he made its way to the crown of old leaf bases at the top. The tree swayed a little as he tried to get situated, making his stomach churn. He hated heights desperately, and even though the trees they were in weren't all that tall at all, he was still uncomfortable.
“Having some trouble?” Dusan asked with a mocking laugh, glancing over from his tree, which was maybe a two tail lengths away.
“Shut up. Just tell me what you know,” he snapped, digging his claws in firmly and imagining that he was back on the ground.
The view was fairly good; they could see the blue-gray sea stretching out endlessly in one direction, with cresting waves rising and falling constantly. In the other direction, there was land, just as never-ending. Palm trees and beaches faded to muddled forests and meadows in the other direction. The breezes whipped through their fur a little more vigorously than on the ground.
“Oh, what I know? Well, I’m sorry to say, but not much. I was eavesdropping of course, on Abra’s big reveal to you all. Honestly, she’s covered most of it. Your family is the stuff of some vague myths, back inland, but nothing really specific. Just a few tales of a magic family that maintains the sea or something like that. I really am sorry to say, but I don’t really know if that’s enough to help.” It was quite obvious that he was not that sorry.
“That’s it?” Dilan asked disgustedly, his irritation spiking. “You dragged me up here just to tell me you were eavesdropping?”
“Well, I mean, honestly, it was fun watching you groan and grimace at the height. I just wanted to see if you could do it,” he said with a self-satisfied chuckle that made his adopted “brother” want to leap over and shove him out of his palm.
“Well, you’ve had your fun, then. I’m leaving,” he muttered, turning to figure out the best, safest way back down.
“Oh, wait! I just remembered something,” he said, feigning surprise. “Really, I wanted you to come up here to see if you could sense what I can.”
“Sense? What the hell does that mean?” Dilan asked sharply, tired of his games.
He gestured with his tail inlands. “I mean, can’t you feel it? The tension in the land? Something’s approaching fast, and what from what I can tell it’s coming from that direction.” He freed a paw to point in the direction of the forests. “I could be wrong, though. You can’t see it, exactly. But you can feel it if you know what to take note of.”
Dilan snorted in disbelief. “Yeah, right. Like I’m supposed to believe your crap.”
“Don’t be small-minded, brother,” he said, using the title caustically. “I swear it, I’m not lying. Abra knows what I’m talking about. I’m sure she feels the pressure building. It’s only a matter of time before it breaks. Stare out into the distance and focus. Maybe you’ll be able to feel it too.”
Reluctant, Dilan tried half-heartedly to do as he said. At this point, he would do anything for more knowledge. He was tired of being in the dark. He surveyed the patchwork of brown and green cobbled together before him, straining to sense something, anything. He could feel the sea’s mighty presence behind him, and the ever-moving air swirling around him. The land was a silent, hulking thing, and no matter how much he zeroed in on it he couldn’t seem to get a good reading on it. After a few moments, during which he was sure Dusan was sniggering behind his back, he was almost ready to give up. Just as the thought crossed his mind, though, he was suddenly hit with a wave of… something.
It was incredibly foreign, and he could almost pretend he was imagining it except for the fact that he definitely wasn’t. It was pure, unadulterated force and power, with an tinge of solidity that reminded him of unmovable mountains and gigantuan rocks that stood against the test of eons. He almost fell backwards, but thankfully he was holding onto the palm for dear life. It seemed to be marching forward, and he got the sense that it was advancing with some aggression.
He had no idea how exactly he was getting all of these details from sitting at the top of a palm tree, but he was definitely noticing something.
It continued to roll over him with less strength, and he managed to sit upright again, but it was definitely still there, lingering.
“You felt it.” It was not a question, but a statement of fact.
He nodded. “I felt it, yes. What is it?”
Dusan shrugged, his expression unreadable. “I’m not sure. But it’s approaching us quickly. Very quickly. And I’m pretty sure it’s not coming from the sea. I assume you agree?”
“Yeah, it seems to be nearing from the land.” He turned to face the white tom. “Why did you bring me up here to feel it? Why did you tell me?” This didn’t fit with Dusan’s mocking, rude demeanor. Usually he did everything he could to ruin their lives and was the epitome of unhelpfulness.
Dusan turned his eyes away, like he didn’t want to acknowledge that’d he’d done something that could in any way be considered nice or even tolerable. “Don’t think I’m doing you much of a favor. Abra already knows; she feels it too. I just wondered if you as well,” he said, brushing away the question with a familiar smirk. “Apparently you can.”
Dilan paused, trying to read into the tom’s words. He wondered if maybe, just maybe, this was his way of paying them back for taking him in after his mother’s passing. It was hard to tell with him, though.
After a long pause, he finally said, “Well, I should be getting back. Abra said I still had a lot to learn.”
Dusan didn’t say anything, and so he turned to climb back down again, trying to get a pawhold in the flaky bark. Just as he was about to lower himself down, though, Dusan spoke again.
“We’re running out of time, you know.”
The ominous sentence hung in the air, crackling with mystery and danger. It was the first time that Dusan had included himself in the family with the collective “we.” Normally he distanced himself from the others. It felt almost as if he wanted to say, I’m running out of time.
Dilan frowned, and struggled to find a good answer to this. “I know,” he answered at last. “That’s why I have to get back to Abra.”
The ghostlike tom merely stared after him, his flaming orange eyes boring into his back as he made his way back to the ground.
As Dilan pivoted to run back to the sea, he could hear Dusan’s words drifting down to him.
“I think it’s too late.”
₪ 16. REEFS ₪
WIP
₪17. JELLYFISH ₪
WIP
₪ 18. TIDES ₪
WIP
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 19:55:37 GMT -5
WIP
₪ 20. DIVING ₪
WIP
₪ 21. KELP ₪
WIP
₪ 22. CORAL ₪
WIP
₪ 23. CRABS ₪
WIP
₪ 24. SWIMMING ₪
WIP
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 20:08:00 GMT -5
WIP
₪ 26. PIER ₪
WIP
₪ 27. SHORE ₪
WIP
₪ 28. DRIFTWOOD ₪
WIP
₪ 29. BREEZE ₪
WIP
₪ 30. ISLAND ₪
WIP
₪ 31. UNDERTOW ₪
WIP
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 20:19:35 GMT -5
Not really sure if I'm gonna put anything here, but I figured I'd slap it down just in case!
₪ Ping-list ₪
Just ask to be added! I will be tagging everyone on this list when each new prompt is released.
₪ ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏ
Writing by yours truly, as well as the coding. However, I drew inspiration from the pre made thread belonging to ~Sapphire~.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 20:22:19 GMT -5
extra save
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 20:22:47 GMT -5
And this is now open for posting, guys! I'm so ready to get this party started!
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Post by kinkajou on Jun 29, 2017 21:13:27 GMT -5
So fancy  |
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 29, 2017 21:23:56 GMT -5
Haha thanks! It definitely took a good half hour or more, so I'm glad you like it  !
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jun 30, 2017 15:52:46 GMT -5
Getting so hype for this guys! It's so soon, I can feel it.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 1, 2017 0:51:08 GMT -5
And the first prompt is up! Woo, I'm so excited!
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Post by Headphone Actor on Jul 1, 2017 4:02:58 GMT -5
I'm not crying, you're crying!
In all seriousness, your Starfish was super sweet, Cress.
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Post by » ѕнαdσω ⚔️ on Jul 1, 2017 10:57:51 GMT -5
Awwwww you pulled at y heartstrings with that, Cres! ;-; Abra has got to be the sweetest cat I've ever seen. A heart of gold that one.
I loved your descriptions of the scenery by the way. I could easily imagine myself there. Really well done!
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 1, 2017 15:51:33 GMT -5
Thanks guys! That one was kinda personal for me since I was adopted and all that, so I kinda put myself into Kaiona's shoes for a little bit.
Aw, I appreciate it Shadow. I really love description; it's kinda like painting a picture with words, which I find enjoyable.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 1, 2017 16:13:59 GMT -5
Yup, that was what I was taking inspiration from! Alright, sounds awesome! Thanks, Tues. And yeah, haha, I wouldn't be giving breakdowns either. I probably wouldn't even get through all of them; your speed judging skills are impressive haha.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 1, 2017 17:01:57 GMT -5
I know, my mom read it at dinner one night and it just stuck on my head because I loved it so much. Being a family with lots of adopted kids, including myself, I feel like I have an interesting perspective on the whole matter.
Haha yup, you'e basically mastered it. It's kinda an art, and I'm in awe of your speed reading.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 1, 2017 19:48:09 GMT -5
yeah, it totally does! lol yup. I mean, I'm a speed reader too, but things like Curse really challenged me with super long chapters. I only wanted to spend so long sitting staring a screen, so I upped my game xD
Also, I just realized something. If we're going by the TC rubric, does that mean I need to be titling each of my prompts? Or is it okay not to? Just wondering, because I don't want to lose points for that.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 2, 2017 19:51:28 GMT -5
ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏ And the next piece is up for sea foam!
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 3, 2017 16:17:56 GMT -5
ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏ"Sand" is up! I have to say, I'm really enjoying these more light-hearted pieces. Usually I like to write darker one-shots, but the prompts just makes me think of cheery things and so that's what I write about, haha. Though some of them might take a more serious turn later, who knows.
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 4, 2017 14:55:55 GMT -5
ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏ - Fourth prompt is now posted! I hope to get two more up today, but we'll just have to see how much I can do! c :
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 4, 2017 16:29:04 GMT -5
ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏ"Storms" is now posted!
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Post by ☾ Cʀᴇsᴄᴇɴᴛ ☽ on Jul 5, 2017 13:57:54 GMT -5
ᴛᴜᴇsᴅᴀʏoh my gosh, what? 10? That's my first ten ever! I mean I know I got a point for title, but wow. Also, prompt 6 is up! I'm going away for vacation the last two weeks, so I'm trying to knock out two a day hehe.
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!
