The Selkie
Apr. 13th, 2011 10:32 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
escerePrompt: 11 April “She goes for a swim but can't come back, for she has become a mermaid.”
She was gone. Jonah had watched the sleek body disappear into the waves from the beach, knowing it was over. He couldn’t blame her; he had been told time after time that it would end this was because it was the nature of her kind. After she was gone, he turned his back on the setting sun and made his way up the beach. His home was still there, looking out over the ocean, proving that the world wasn’t over. Everything looked the same, as if his life hadn’t dramatically changed since he left it that morning.
The kids came to greet him as he opened the front door of the two story house. His sister, Alicia, hung back despite the questions in her eyes. She knew something wrong; Jonah swore she could always sense when something was about to change. She had shown up the first day he had met Helen without notice, same when each of the kids were born at the exact right moment. When he had needed to leave that day to follow Helen, Alicia had appeared with no phone call needed so that she could watch the kids. That didn’t mean she didn’t expect an lengthy explanation of what had happened and she had had hours to wonder about it.
It was past the children’s bed time so Alicia helped Jonah put the three to bed. Doug and Kyle were easy to distract from questions about their mother, but Muriel was at the age were she didn’t let go so easy. Jonah hoped that she wasn’t turning out like her aunt. Eventually the three were asleep and Alicia turned to questioning him about the events that had taken place that night.
“Where’s Helen?” Alicia asked. She was trying to make the question innocent, but that was ruined by the questions that filled her eyes every time that Helen was late.
“She’s gone back home for a visit,” Jonah copied Alicia’s tone.
“Is she coming back?”
Jonah allowed the room to fill with silence as he went to fill the kettle with water and set it to boil.
Alicia gave up waiting for him, “That’s it, then.”
“I’m sure she’s be back,” Jonah said, the whiteness of his knuckles on the handle of the kettle displayed his unease. She wouldn’t abandon the kids.” He avoided his sister’s gaze, not wanting to see the pity in her eyes.
“What happened?” Alice asked, removing his hand from kettle in order to take over the tea-making.
“I’m not sure,” Jonah sat down at the table, his voice sounding hollow, “it all happened when I was gone.”
“But she found it?”
“Murry found it, I think. She had no clue what she had found or what it would do,” he shook his head, “I should have hid it better.”
“I’m not sure it would ever be safe. Not even on the moon,” Alicia told him, “It’s part of the cycle. Not matter where you hid the thing, she was going to end up with it.”
“But could she had waited!” Jonah stood up so quickly the table jumped, “What about Douglas, Kyle and Muriel? Don’t her own children matter?”
“Of course they do,” his sister puled the kettle off the stove a second before it screeched. She got two mugs down and a tea pot, fix up the tea before she brought it to the table.
She sat down beside him and moved his mug in front of him, “She loves her children. But she’s staring at temptation ever day. That’s why I suggested you move.”
“I tried,” Jonah admitted quietly as fell back into his seat, “I just wanted her to be happy.”
“I’m not sure if that was possible,” Alicia said, “she was torn between you and the kids, and the sea. You can’t blame her for her choice.”
“I thought we would be enough.”
Alicia couldn’t say anything, just looked out the window to the sea where the seals swam in the moonlight. The two were so wrapped up in thoughts that they didn’t heard the sounds of feet tiptoeing down the hall and back to bed.
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Notes: Helen is a selkie, in case you can't tell. It's the age-old story. The marriage of humans and the fae never work. I'm think this might be the prologue to a story about Muriel and finding out about hidden history. Or her name might be changed to Morgaine. I'm not sure. Which is more normal sounding, cause I like Morgaine. Don't you wish every person who didn't feel like they belonged were secretly half-fae? ... or not. They might end up dangerous. Selkies=awesome and I dressed up like one for Holly Blacks and Cassie Claire's Underworld Ball even if no one could tell. I want to make a unicorn costume and a swan maiden costume cause they would be awesome.
She was gone. Jonah had watched the sleek body disappear into the waves from the beach, knowing it was over. He couldn’t blame her; he had been told time after time that it would end this was because it was the nature of her kind. After she was gone, he turned his back on the setting sun and made his way up the beach. His home was still there, looking out over the ocean, proving that the world wasn’t over. Everything looked the same, as if his life hadn’t dramatically changed since he left it that morning.
The kids came to greet him as he opened the front door of the two story house. His sister, Alicia, hung back despite the questions in her eyes. She knew something wrong; Jonah swore she could always sense when something was about to change. She had shown up the first day he had met Helen without notice, same when each of the kids were born at the exact right moment. When he had needed to leave that day to follow Helen, Alicia had appeared with no phone call needed so that she could watch the kids. That didn’t mean she didn’t expect an lengthy explanation of what had happened and she had had hours to wonder about it.
It was past the children’s bed time so Alicia helped Jonah put the three to bed. Doug and Kyle were easy to distract from questions about their mother, but Muriel was at the age were she didn’t let go so easy. Jonah hoped that she wasn’t turning out like her aunt. Eventually the three were asleep and Alicia turned to questioning him about the events that had taken place that night.
“Where’s Helen?” Alicia asked. She was trying to make the question innocent, but that was ruined by the questions that filled her eyes every time that Helen was late.
“She’s gone back home for a visit,” Jonah copied Alicia’s tone.
“Is she coming back?”
Jonah allowed the room to fill with silence as he went to fill the kettle with water and set it to boil.
Alicia gave up waiting for him, “That’s it, then.”
“I’m sure she’s be back,” Jonah said, the whiteness of his knuckles on the handle of the kettle displayed his unease. She wouldn’t abandon the kids.” He avoided his sister’s gaze, not wanting to see the pity in her eyes.
“What happened?” Alice asked, removing his hand from kettle in order to take over the tea-making.
“I’m not sure,” Jonah sat down at the table, his voice sounding hollow, “it all happened when I was gone.”
“But she found it?”
“Murry found it, I think. She had no clue what she had found or what it would do,” he shook his head, “I should have hid it better.”
“I’m not sure it would ever be safe. Not even on the moon,” Alicia told him, “It’s part of the cycle. Not matter where you hid the thing, she was going to end up with it.”
“But could she had waited!” Jonah stood up so quickly the table jumped, “What about Douglas, Kyle and Muriel? Don’t her own children matter?”
“Of course they do,” his sister puled the kettle off the stove a second before it screeched. She got two mugs down and a tea pot, fix up the tea before she brought it to the table.
She sat down beside him and moved his mug in front of him, “She loves her children. But she’s staring at temptation ever day. That’s why I suggested you move.”
“I tried,” Jonah admitted quietly as fell back into his seat, “I just wanted her to be happy.”
“I’m not sure if that was possible,” Alicia said, “she was torn between you and the kids, and the sea. You can’t blame her for her choice.”
“I thought we would be enough.”
Alicia couldn’t say anything, just looked out the window to the sea where the seals swam in the moonlight. The two were so wrapped up in thoughts that they didn’t heard the sounds of feet tiptoeing down the hall and back to bed.
--------
Notes: Helen is a selkie, in case you can't tell. It's the age-old story. The marriage of humans and the fae never work. I'm think this might be the prologue to a story about Muriel and finding out about hidden history. Or her name might be changed to Morgaine. I'm not sure. Which is more normal sounding, cause I like Morgaine. Don't you wish every person who didn't feel like they belonged were secretly half-fae? ... or not. They might end up dangerous. Selkies=awesome and I dressed up like one for Holly Blacks and Cassie Claire's Underworld Ball even if no one could tell. I want to make a unicorn costume and a swan maiden costume cause they would be awesome.