Haley Thistle
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Selkie & the Beast : Part One (rough draft)
🕑 Added 2021-09-02 20:01:00 +0000 UTCKota was born the youngest of four, as well as being the only male. Even with three older sisters, Kota was known as the most beautiful of his pack. This was something of a problem for Kota, who often received unwanted attention for his appearance. His sisters, all powerful hunters in their pack, often protected him. Ivet, Kari, and Nina often surrounded Kota when they traveled and hunted, keeping him safe while also warding off any unwarranted advances that may befall him.
Over time Kota had taught himself how to avoid these confrontations. He often kept to himself, sometimes reading from books he found on the shore. He was good at hiding, and could often camouflage himself to match the area. Kota was not bothered by his appearance, he didn’t mind that he had beauty more than handsomeness like the other males. What bothered him was how people seemed to feel that they were entitled to his looks. His beauty was like honey attracting flies who all assumed it was okay to touch him in one way or another. This was why Kota kept himself at a distance from everyone besides his sisters.
“Perhaps if you find someone who is much bigger and stronger, then everyone else will be afraid to come near you,” Ivet suggested one day. “We will not be around forever to fill that role.”
“But who could ever be that big and scary?” Nina asked as she continued to crochet her new net. “They would have to be as large and as frightening as Kota is lithe and beautiful.”
“That would have to be some sort of monster, wouldn’t it?” Kari’s mind was already drifting off. “They’d have to be truly gruesome to match our Kota, wouldn’t they? Probably something with lots of teeth and hair.”
“You think too highly of me,” Kota tutted. “Besides, something like that would probably be just as annoying as the others. It wouldn’t matter to me their size or appearance just so long as they see me beyond my face.”
“A cold brat?” Ivet said with a smirk, causing Nina and Kari to giggle along as well.
Kota sighed, closing his book then pulling his coat up around his shoulders. “If such a monster existed and they liked me beyond my looks, I would fall for them.”
Ivet sighed. “But people are always going to see you. Your looks will always be important, Kota. It takes time for people to see what’s really there, and if you don’t give them that chance-”
Kota stood up in a huff. “Then I’ll find someone who's blind.”
“Don’t get so upset about it,” Nina tried to coax him. “Come sit down and help me finish this net.”
“I want to go for a walk,” Kota muttered under his breath. “I’ll be back later.”
“Be careful,” Ivet called after him as he walked away.
Kota walked off along the beach then climbed up a rocky slope to get to the top. There was a tree up there whose roots wound through the earth and clung to the rock so it precariously held onto the edge and dipped over as if looking at itself in the sea below. For some reason, Kota admired this tree. He sat down amongst the many roots and gazed out across the ocean. The sky was dappled blue and pink, fading into a lavender hue near the water. Clouds gathered in wispy thin lines along the surface while the sun began to make way for the moon.
Sighing deeply, Kota wondered what it would be like to travel out so far to see where the sun fell into the ocean while the moon rose from the depths. As a child, he often dreamed of finding this place and hopping onto the moon just as it came out of the water. He would rise into the sky and stay there on the surface where he could make a kingdom for himself.
The clouds began to gather, becoming more dense and dark, turning the sky into a purple shade of gray. The sun faded slowly, making the sky both dark and bright at the same time. Out in the distance, Kota saw something that looked like a castle. He squinted his eyes so he could see better and lightning flashed from the clouds. That instant bright flash of light illuminated the castle from behind. Kota had never noticed this before in all the years his family had been coming to this beach. He thought, only briefly, that perhaps this was the castle on the moon.
His thoughts turned when thunder grumbled and growled in the distance. Kota knew he’d have to get home soon, if there was a storm coming, then that meant no hunting and that meant the whole pack would be swarmed onto the beach. If anyone was unaccounted for, it usually was a cause for worry, sometimes panic. Gazing out one last time, Kota tried to find that castle along the horizon. When his eyes could no longer focus on it, that was when he went back to his sisters.
The storm that came raged for a few days. The selkies sought shelter on land, going into some of the caves, or even venturing into the small town. Kota and his sisters took to one of the caves in order to stay close to a greater part of the pack.
One day, when the weather was not too violent, Ivet decided to go outside and try to get some supplies. Food was running low and it was becoming difficult to ration equally. Ivet was the strongest, so she thought it would be best for her to go alone.
“Let me go too,” Kota offered.
“You should stay here,” Ivet said sternly.
Kota frowned. “And do what exactly? I’m a good swimmer, and I throw a net better than you do. It would be best if we both went anyways, just in case anything were to happen.”
Ivet was uncertain, but she agreed with her brother’s logic. “Fine. You just have to promise me to stay close beside me.”
Kota gave her a smile to assure her. “I will, that shouldn’t even be an issue.”
The two then ventured out of the cave together, finding the sky dark and gray. It was still raining, but the winds had died down and the sea was not as choppy as it had been. The two pulled up their coats and dove into the water. They swam far out, going down where they knew the fish would go. At first they didn’t see anything, so they went on a little further.
As Ivet was intent on the hunt, Kota felt as though they were being watched. He felt an itch along his scalp, and when he turned, he thought he saw something big and dark behind him. He tried to reach out to Ivet, but she was more focused on finding food. Kota tried to brush it off and stayed close to his sister, but the feeling continued to poke and pull at him.
Above them, the water shimmered then flashed bright white as lightning struck. Ivet froze in attention while Kota ducked against a nearby rock. Ivet turned quickly, grabbing for Kota. the storm was beginning again and they would need to get out of the water as quickly as possible. They swam together, going as fast as possible. More lightning burst along the surface of the water, causing Ivet’s hand to squeeze tighter and harder around Kota’s.
They came to the surface to breathe, and Ivet saw they had gone out much farther than she had originally thought. Her face was tense and pulled tight, but she didn’t want Kota knowing how worried she really was.
“Come on!” She pulled on him again. “We have to hurry!”
“I’m trying, but I’m getting tired,” Kota huffed.
Ivet’s expression pulled even more. “Then just hold onto me, I’ll swim for the both of us. Don’t let go of me, Kota.”
Kota squeezed her hand. “I won’t. You can’t let go either.”
Ivet began to smile, but it faded all too fast. “Kota-” the air squeezed from her lungs.
Kota turned and saw the ocean had risen up behind them, taking the shape of a monstrous cliffside. The two swam, going as fast and hard as they could, but when that watery cliff fell, it didn’t matter how strong Ivet was or how good a swimmer Kota was. The water beat them with a terrible force and broke their grip on each other. Ivet was sent one way, while Kota was pushed another.
The force of the water pushed him upwards, getting him caught in the current and buffet of the storm. He was knocked around rocks and pulled through sharp gales. He was pushed under the surface where he no longer could move. Something hurt so badly that he couldn’t lift himself, he couldn’t make himself swim. He felt the world around him begin to fade as the water pulled him deeper and deeper away. For a second, the enclosing darkness looked like a giant hand reaching out to take him. He was grabbed by the back of his coat and taken away.
The sound of the storm rumbled in his dreams. As Kota began to stir, he felt like he was floating. Not in water, but in air. Was he rising with the sun? Had the storm taken him to the place of his fantasies. Perhaps this is where all sealife went when they passed, rising with the sun to the highest point in the sky where they swam in the everafter.
Kota opened his eyes, seeing neither sun nor sky around him. There were sharp, jagged amethysts hanging above his head. For a moment, he thought he had washed up into a cave, but his body was covered by blankets. His body still ached, so it was hard to rise. He whimpered in pain as he sat up, clutching his arm around his chest as he sat there.
The room around him was dark and lit by a torch and several small candles. The walls were covered by more amethyst and flowering salt. A crab skittered from the window and the floor, going under the bed that he was in. Kota reached around his shoulder for his coat, but to his horror, he found it wasn’t there. Despite the pain, he struggled, trying to find his coat. It wasn’t lying beneath him, it wasn’t on or under the blankets, it was nowhere to be found. Kota shuddered, fearing it was lost in the ocean, or even worse, someone had found it. He tried to get up from bed, but the pain that radiated through his leg was almost too much to bear. He collapsed in pain over the side of the bed and whimpered.
Tears fell from his eyes and splashed to the floor. There was too much to think about to just fixate on one question. That was, until he heard footsteps coming from down the hall. He stayed there, huddled over in pain while he listened to the great strides that came closer and closer to him.
“You poor, darling thing,” a deep voice rumbled like the thunder outside. “Do you need some help?”
Kota flinched but he didn’t rise. Whoever it was came closer and Kota could see their feet. A big hand then touched his back and helped move Kota back into bed.
“I know you are in pain, your leg alone looks chewed in the mouth of a horrible god.” The big hand cupped Kota’s head to ease it down upon the pillow. They were big, whatever they were. Something dark and horrible like the watery cliff that had pummeled Kota and Ivet apart.
“Stay put, little beauty, I will take care of you.” They tucked Kota back into bed then smoothed the blanket down. “Much better.”
“No,” Kota snapped.
The creature turned, and in the light of a candle, Kota saw something that might have been features, but their whole body was dark. “No?”
“What is better about this? I don’t know where I am and I am being tucked in by some stranger! What is good about this? What is keeping me from panicking?”
“You are alive, you were saved-” the creature tried to soothe.
“I was separated from my sister!” Kota’s voice continued to get louder and louder. “My coat is missing! What am I supposed to do here? Rest?”
“It would be a start.”
“No!” Kota yelled. “I want my sister!:
The creature was quiet, swallowing as they tried to figure out what to say next. “You were the only one I found, and I saw no coat with you.”
Kota grit his teeth together and sat himself back up. He was so used to having Ivet, Nina, and Kari always at his side, he wasn’t sure what to do or say. He gripped the blanket so tight that his hands wouldn’t shake, and he bit down upon his tongue so he could focus on that pain. “And who are you?”
“Esperance,” he answered shakily. “This is my home and-” he took a step back and Kota could fully see him. His eyes went wide as he gazed at the strange and malformed creature before him. Esperance had a hunched shape, bending down so his body looked almost bent in half. Most of him blue-black, but there were speckles and spots of white. The large hump on his back curved down into his great arms which were thick and heavy with even bigger hands. His legs seemed short and a long tail curled around his feet. His head was large and domed with his jaw and chest fading into pale white.
Kota just stared, his mind had gone blank from the sight.
“I see,” Esperance chuckled. “I know my appearance may be strange, but I assure you that you will come to no harm here. You will be well taken care of, I assure you that.” His big hand laid upon his chest and he bowed his head. “I will be yours, beautiful lady.”
“No,” Kota said again, this time soft and quiet. “Not a lady.”
Esperance’s eyes narrowed and his shoulders curled forward. “I beg your pardon? What was that you just said?”
Kota licked his lips then slowly moved his hair from his face. Stubble could be seen on his chin and jaw. Esperance’s jaw opened as he slowly came to the realization. Inside his mouth was a great tongue and many sharp teeth.
“I’m a man,” Kota answered. “I know my appearance can fool some, but I am a man.”
Esperance’s eyes darted up and down then fell upon Kota’s face. “Well, then that would have to be my mistake! You are very attractive, and I tried not to um-” He shuffled back towards the door. His lumbering form had to turn sideways in the doorframe in order to fit, and even then he had to curl his tail tightly around his legs to make room. “I’m very sorry.”
Kota was still taken by Esperance’s appearance. He had never seen something so strange and monstrous in all his life. “Who are you?”
Esperance stood a bit taller. “I told you, my name is Esperance, and this place is my home. I will take care of you until your sister can find you. Maybe then you can put in a good word for me with her.”
Kota furrowed his brow. “What?”
“Nevermind,” Esperance cleared his throat. “You just rest. I know this all seems very strange, but there really is nothing to fear here. You’re very safe.”
“Your assurance does little to help,” Kota huffed. He pulled back the blanket so he could look at his leg. Parts of his leg were wrapped up, and much of it looked bruised and scraped from thigh to ankle. “That explains it,” he grumbled under his breath. He touched his leg and it felt incredibly hot. He sighed with worry, this was all he needed. Strange place, strange host, injured leg, along with his missing sister and lost coat, Kota simply felt like giving up.
“It’s a miracle you made it through that storm,” Esperance said gently. He came back through the doorway again. “You washed up on the beach here; as soon as I saw you, I carried you in and took care of you. For a while, I was scared you would never wake.”
Still uncertain, Kota covered his leg back up. “What is this place?”
“I’ve known this place as the moon castle,” Esperance answered. “For the time being, I live here.”
Kota gasped softly as images from his childhood daydreams floated back to his head. The ideas for his kingdom and the palace he would inhabit began to emerge from his memory. Much like the moon, they rose from watery depths, shaded gray and purple, shimmering with starlight and the last rays of the sun. He had imagined a palace that glowed with cool lights, but felt warm like sunbathed stones. This place felt nothing like his daydream, but had he washed up on the moon after all?
Kota looked back towards Esperance who turned away shyly. “The moon castle?” he asked softly.
Esperance nodded, looking up then ducking his chin back down. “It’s a safe place from the storm,” he replied. “I’ll let you rest. But before I do go, is there anything you want? Perhaps you’re hungry? I could go and fetch you something.”
Kota laid back with a frown upon his lips. “No. I think I just need to be alone for a while.”
“If that changes, just call for me.” Esperance left the room and Kota could hear his footsteps vanish into the distance.
It didn’t seem like something that would happen anytime soon. Kota laid there and closed his eyes, hoping when he opened them it would all be a dream. As he tried to sleep a strange noise came to his attention. He stirred, looking across the dark room where the singing came from outside. Kota sat up with some effort, trying to peer through the blinds of the window, but he couldn’t see anything.
The sound was carried up by the storm, and it sounded both dissonant and melodious. It was a song with many different voices in the choir. Kota perked up more, trying to hear it and understand it. The song was loud and strange, almost sad in the tones it brought. Kota wished then he could get up out of bed and go to the window to see what was making it. Instead all he could do was listen to the sadness that came from just outside of moon castle and let it fill his heart.
