I breathe a sigh of relief when Aspara says they don't live in the lake. I was worried for a moment that we'd have to watch ourselves out here or we were disturbing their home. Although, I'm a bit surprised they're not made of kelp with their name and all. In fact, as she tells me the story of them, it's all very new to me. I listen carefully.
The way she tells stories holds my attention even more than most stories do. I can imagine a creature coming out of the water with the moonlight shining on their coat. Then as she describes them more, they turn into more of a monster with sharp shark-like teeth. It all sends shivers down my spine.
I think maybe she picked up on my fear because she splashes some water at me with her tail. She says the wishes will protect us and it makes me feel better. I flick some water back at her though because I don't let others get away that easily. I giggle as it becomes a bit of a game.
Then, she asks me what I wished for. I have to think back for a moment because I almost forgot, but then it pops back into my head. "Courage," I say simply, although the word has a much stronger meaning than I know yet. For now, I just know that I want to be stronger in many ways. Telling Aspara my wish ends up making me think about it more, so I decide to tell her like it's our little secret. "I want to be as great as Momma, as both of them. Momma Zahra is carefree and Momma Morr is so brave. I… well I don't want to hurt anyone, but I just want to be as great as them. Like the good things about them."
I find myself feeling a bit sad and nervous, so I quickly change the subject. "What about you?" Hopefully it's something cooler than what I wished for.
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