It made my heart ache when Maeve’s shoulder brushed gently against mine. It should have been Avesta there at my side. I should have never let us be separated. But we were separated-- my fault for staying-- and the heartache was entirely my own doing. I smiled, sad and thoughtful, and for a moment I was… elsewhere. Far above the lake full of lanterns, far above the rolling prairie and jagged mountains of my youth. I was above the clouds, above the stars. I was far enough away that I could see my sister, a tiny grey blur somewhere across the sea, and I could see myself far below, and I told myself we weren’t really that far apart. It was just a matter of perspective, and I was too close to the matter to see things as they were.
This thought lasted just a moment before I returned, with no small disappointment, to my body and its heartache. Maeve at my side seemingly careless as a butterfly as we walked step by step into the water.
“No, but I know what kelp is. Are they made of kelp?”
It was actually a very logical conclusion to come to, and while ridiculous to imagine a kelpie made of actual kelp, one did have to wonder at the origins of the name. I did not laugh, although the idea was charming. “From what I’ve heard, they aren’t made of kelp. Just flesh and blood like the rest of us.” My smile was warm-- despite my reluctance I began to like Maeve. Being around a younger girl felt… easier, somehow, than the company of most strangers. Maybe it was because looking at her was almost like looking at a younger version of myself. Maybe because I didn’t feel like I had anything to prove to her.
“No, I don’t think they live in the lake.” My nose wrinkled with amusement at the thought. “At least, I’ve personally never seen one here. But there are tales of them surfacing on nights when the moon is full and low, and the water still as glass.” My voice had drawn low and dramatic, my words infused with a drama that was unlike me. I loved a story that was-- if not quite scary-- full of mystery. “It is said that kelpies are more shark than horse, although they look very much like us. Some tribes are known for their extreme beauty, luring unsuspecting mares and stallions into the water where-” I swallowed the graphic details. “they’re never seen again.”
I let the sentence sit dramatically between us for a long second, and then I flicked my tail to splash water on the younger girl. “But don’t worry. Even if there was a kelpie hiding in the deep, we’re protected by all these wishes.” The lanterns bobbed around us, a rainbow of hues all lit with a warm, flickering glow.
“What did you wish for?” I asked finally, because I had been wanting to ever since we set our lanterns afloat-- and I never could resist a good question.
- - -
@Maeve
