Gifted Pelt

Chapter 32

Her magic surges and she shifts on instinct as she falls into the icy water. She doesn't have to think about it at all, her human form rippling into her seal form at the same moment her feet touch the bitterly cold water. Her head bobs above the water just as she hears Kōri shout, his voice strained.

"Astrila!"

She lets out a bark and hears the whoosh of air as he exhales, relieved. Astrila hoists herself out of the hole to look at him curiously, the edges of the ice scraping against her skin painfully. It's surprisingly easy to do, maybe because her instincts are driving it? Either way, she hoists herself up onto the ice and makes her way towards Kōri. Thankfully, the ice doesn't groan beneath her in seal form, likely because her body weight is more spaced out. When she gets close to him he sags, his pain disappearing. Kōri smiles shakily at her.

"You scared me."

Astrila huffs, "Why?"

"I was afraid that you wouldn't instinctually shift because you're still new to your selkie form."

She noses him in the side. "Well, I'm alright."

Kōri laughs. "I can see that, Astrila."

Astrila snorts out an amused puff of air. "What are you waiting for? Are we going swimming or not?"

"Oh yes, we are going swimming!" He shifts right there, rippling into his seal form. His eyes are brimming with delight as he noses her in the side. "Let's go!"

Astrila snorts with laughter and moves towards the seal hole once more. She gives the spot where she fell through a wide berth, the jagged edges of the hole glinting maliciously in the sunlight. When thy reach the seal hole, Kōri slides right onto the thin layer of ice separating the water and the air. It cracks beneath him and he slides into the water. His white head appears a moment later and he scrapes away the rest of the ice to fully open the hole once more. Then with a flick of his tail, he sinks back into the dark water, giving Astrila room to enter. She tips her snout down and slides, slicing through the water with barely a ripple. Her eyes open beneath the water with surprising clarity, so much better than on land. She easily finds Kōri, his white coat standing out against the darkness of the water. He looks at her, a question shining in his dark eyes.

"You ready?"

"Yes."

He shoots off into the water and she follows him easily, her body sleek and powerful, streamlined as it cuts through the water. There is a surprising lack of biodiversity here in the lagoon, she was expecting fish or other small organisms. But there is nothing. She looks over at Kōri with confusion in her eyes.

"Shouldn't there be something here? Life?"

He nods. "Yes, there should. It's like something is wrong."

The words of the wind echo in her mind once more. Something is coming. Be prepared. Learn what you can. Astrila gulps and dives to search the bottom of the lagoon. Kōri follows her, in part because of how close he has to stay to her and in part because he wants to know what is happening as well. There is nothing at the bottom, no sound but that of the shifting ice above them. Astrila angles up to return to the surface, but is startled by two things at once and reels back through the water. A chill bites through her pelt as it rushes through the water, whispering the same warning as the wind.

Something is coming. Be wary. Prepare and learn what you can. Or all hope is lost. Hurry and learn.

The second thing is the appearance of glowing eyes in the water. They are bright blue, and Astrila can see swirling darkness around and behind them. Kōri is at her side an instant later, and he takes one look at the thing - the creature - and nudges urgently at her side. He tries to push her up, up, up towards the surface, but she is too stunned to move. The eyes disappear but Kōri nudges her again, more urgent this time. She twists to look at him, and her eyes widen at the panic in his.

"Kōri, what's wrong?"

"Get up to the surface. Now. Now, Astrila!"

She doesn't argue, instead shooting up to the surface, straight for the seal hole. When she reaches it though, she doesn't go through. She turns to Kōri.

"What's going on?"

His eyes are still wide and panicked. "Go through, now."

"You first."

He seems urgent for her to go through before him, but she won't. He's going up first. They stare at each other for a heartbeat before he relents and hoists himself out of the water. She sees him shift back into his human form and then crouch at the edge. He hisses at her.

"Get out of there now, Astrila!"

She huffs but starts to pull herself out, spurred on by the fear in Kōri's eyes. She is halfway out of the water when her magic flares to life and screams at her.

"Look out!"

She barely has enough time for her eyes to widen in alarm before a painfully cold, clawed hand wraps around her flippers and yanks her back into the water. The last thing she hears before her snout slips back beneath the surface is Kōri's agonizing scream.
________________________________________________________________________________
Why do you think the water repeated the message? Why was there no life in the water? What scared Kōri? What was that thing they saw? What pulled Astrila into the water? What do you think will happen next? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.