The Pirate & The Porcelain Doll (WAYHAUGHT)

Chapter 4

Wynonna was the first to grow concerned by their absence. She and Nicole's brother were tasked with walking in the direction Nicole and Waverly were seen heading, in the hope the pair had become distracted while playing and simply lost track of time. Visitors to the beach were already packing up, heading to their lodgings or homes, as Wynonna marched behind Edward. "I don't see them," she said, her eyes scanning the emptying horizon.

"They're probably by the rocks," Edward replied. "We always go there when we're here. Probably hiding."

"I hope so. Waverly will be getting tired I imagine. How far?"

"Not far. There, those rocks ahead. Come on, I'll race you."

Wynonna was in no mood to race a boy across a beach, but her concern for Waverly was growing with every footstep forward. Reaching the rocks, panting, she had difficulty climbing in bare feet, Edward helping her find footholds. There was no sign of them, Edward standing with hands on hips, looking in all directions. "There really isn't anywhere they could go," he said, suddenly stopping, looking towards the cliff beneath the castle. "Unless..."

"Unless what?" Wynonna asked.

"No. She wouldn't. It's far too dangerous. But..."

"Edward, what? Do you know where they are?"

Edward pointed to Merlin's cave, the waves crashing against its mouth sending angry white spray into the air. He began clambering down boulders in a frantic effort to get to the opening, Wynonna following as best she could not fully understanding the situation. There was no way to reach the entrance, the water too high and too far in to be safe to wade out, or in Edward's case swim out. All they could do was shout from the shoreline in the hope of being heard.

It was no use. Their voices were drowned out by the roar of the sea as it swept in and out of where Nicole and Waverly were trapped. "Don't be afraid," Nicole repeated, over and over, hugging Waverly to her, the pair shaking as their wet costumes sucked the heat from their bodies. "It won't be long. See, the water is dropping. I promise, it won't be long."

Waverly clung to Nicole for dear life, afraid if she let go her pirate, or she, would be swept out to sea never to be seen again. She was terrified, to the core of her being, so traumatised she no longer could process what was happening. All she knew was Red, her Red, her pirate was there to protect her, keep her from being taken by the monster, the dragon whose roar was deafening.

"I'm not scared," she said, her grip tightening around Nicole's neck as another powerful wave swept past. "I have you."

"Oh Wiggle, it's perfectly alright to be scared. I'm scared, but I'll keep you safe. It won't be long. It won't be long. Shall I tell you a story while we wait?"

Another powerful wave surged past, Waverly squeezing Nicole's neck tighter. "I want to go home Red. Please, can we go home?"

"Of course we can. But, first I must tell you the story of the pirate and the porcelain doll. Would you like that?"

Waverly nodded, her mind in need of distraction from the peril they faced. Nicole spun a tale so fantastic Waverly found herself forgetting where she was as her Red, her pirate told her of a sad and lonely porcelain doll who wanted friendship, found one day by a kind pirate with only one eye who took the doll with her on voyages across the sea, showing the doll many splendid things in the world. And, how they fought a noisy dragon who thought he could scare them with his roar, the pirate telling the dragon to be quiet as he was scaring her beloved porcelain doll.

Wynonna knew their efforts were in vain, watching the water enter and leave the place where Edward suspected their sisters might be. "I'm going to get help," she shouted. "We can't do this on our own."