Kōri sighs. "It's been a lot of little things, I suppose. You didn't understand what I meant that morning the pain paralyzed you, you told me that you meant nothing by what you meant earlier, and we just dance around each other each and every day. We're Siqiniq, but every moment you seem to deny it. It's like you don't want to feel what you do."
Astrila shakes her head. "I didn't understand what you meant then, but that was in the moment, Kōri. I understand it now. When I said that what I was saying earlier meant nothing, it was because I didn't know how to explain it. Last of all, we don't dance around each other, Kōri."
He raises an eyebrow. "Yes, we do."
Her lips twist up into a tiny smile. "Dancing implies that it means nothing. So the use of dancing is incorrect."
His wide eyes stare at her for a moment before his head tilts back and he laughs to the sky, deep and joyful. When his chin dips back down so he can look at her, his eyes are bright and glittering.
"I can't argue with that, Astrila!" He frowns. "So you're saying we've just been misunderstanding what the other meant all this time?"
She nods. "I think so."
He smiles. "It won't be happening now then. Shall we finally go to Seal Rock?"
Astrila's beam is brighter than the sun. "Yes."
He leads her down to the cove at last, the snow beneath their feet lit in such a way that it reflects rainbows back into the world. The ice is thick enough that they can walk all the way across the small bay to the rock at its center. The rock is massive, large enough that several igluit could fit on its flat top. Kōri sits right in the center and waves for Astrila to follow suit. She sits atop the snow with barely a sound, just the barest whisper of shifting ice crystals. She leans against his warm side and stares out at the cliffs. He shifts to look at her, and without looking herself, she can sense his frown.
"They still make you uncomfortable, don't they?"
Astrila shrugs. "Perhaps they may always do so. But for now, they bring chills to my blood if I get too close."
He pulls her further into his side. "I won't let you fall from the cliffs again, I can promise you that. If you ever did, I would save you again."
Her next words are careful. "But you can't save me if I fall when the distance pain paralyzes you."
He scowls. "I will still try. It is your choice if that ever ends."
Astrila pulls back to look at him, her eyes filled with emotion. It may have come slowly, but it's here. She can't deny it or herself, she loves him. She can see that he loves her as well, she can see it in every one of his actions.
Her next words are soft, nervous. "And what if I'm ready for that?"
His dark eyes snap over to look at hers, slightly wide in shock. He studies her for a moment.
"Are you sure?"
Astrila grins at him. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Silence. Then, "Would you like to explore the caves?"
Astrila's brow crinkles. "What caves?"
His eyes fill with amusement as he nods towards the edge of the rock to his right. "Funnily enough, the entrance to the caves is where the mouth of this stone seal would be."
Astrila raises an eyebrow. "So you're saying that this rock doesn't just look similar to a seal, it essentially is a giant stone seal."
He laughs. "I suppose so. Do you want to explore?"
Astrila's eyebrow lifts again, having barely lowered. "Of course I do. Do we need anything?"
He shrugs. "Just ourselves."
"So lead the way."
He carefully picks his way back down the rock, the ascent being so much easier than the ascent. It always is, no matter where you are. Hills, rocks, anywhere. Sure, you have the momentum going down, but that same momentum also works against you. Once they are back on the ice, he leads her around the edges of the stone seal towards its head. Looking up at it now, Astrila actually notices how much it does look like an enormous seal, frozen to time inside the very stone it would have liked to rest upon.
She trails her gloved fingers across its side, wondering if it ever was real. It looks too much like a real seal for that to be untrue, but giant seals don't exist, let alone turn to stone. Kōri stops before a gaping hole in the rock, shaped exactly like a mouth. If she looks hard enough, she can see indented whiskers on either side of the mouth. Astrila swallows hard, something churning within her gut. This is too strange, too wrong. She is about to pull away, to beg Kōri not to go inside, when her magic whispers to her.
"Don't be afraid. No harm will come to you in there."
"Why?"
It doesn't answer for a long moment. "It is the first selkie to ever find this island. When he passed, he came here and became the island's guardian. Old magic of protection, very old. He shall never harm those who mean well to the selkies and the island."
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Did you expect that to happen? What do you think of Seal Rock? What do you think they'll find inside the caves? Tell me your thoughts!
Sorry that there is no map today, it wouldn't load.
On a different note, wish me luck on my AP Chem Exam!
Happy reading and I'll see you next Chapter!
~Goddess of Fate, signing out.
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Gifted Pelt
FantasíaAstrila is a normal girl in her Inuit tribe, but is left alone by her mother's death. She runs to the cliffs that overlook the sea and grieves, before she slips and falls off of the cliff into the icy sea. Something saves her, but what is it? Join h...
