Lavender murmured to Helen, “Which selkie is that?”
“I don’t know. We can’t see properly unless the sea-through lifts that light up, and I don’t recognise the voice. I’ve mostly met selkies at feasts, speaking loud and clear, not whispering like this. It could be any of the big male selkies …”
Helen moved round the trailer for a better view, but she couldn’t see their faces, just their bare feet and the pebbles.
The low selkie voice said, “Now you have played your games, what do we do next?”
“We? There is no ‘we’ any more. You and your family failed us.”
“We failed you ? That fiasco today was your plan. We did all you asked of us, but it was not enough.”
“We have another plan now, and we don’t need you.”
“But … but …” the selkie spluttered, and Helen almost recognised the voice. Desperate to see who it was, she went further behind the metal trailer and clambered onto the tyre, to see if she could get a better view from higher up.
“But …”
“All we ask of you now is your silence.”
“For my silence, will I still get my crown?”
The sea-through laughed. Helen, teetering barefoot on the wheel, grabbed at the edge of the trailer to hold herself up.
“No, you greedy seal. For your silence, you get to keep your life! Not be stung and swallowed! For a crown, you’d need to give us …” The sea-through’s voice dropped so low Helen couldn’t hear the next few words.
The selkie answered in a despairing whisper, “I can still help. I still have influence. You could let me …”
Then Helen’s bare foot slipped again on the worn rubber of the old tyre. She jerked forward so she didn’t fall off the wheel, and thumped her knee against the side of the trailer. The thud was as loud as a drumbeat.
She heard gasps, then a flurry of splashes.
She scrambled round the side of the trailer, but the lantern had flickered out, and the beach was too dark to see anything. “Light!” she whispered to Lavender. “Light! We need to see who that was.”
Lavender lifted her wand. A circle of bright clean lightballs rose up and floated to the edge of the sea.
Helen saw a shiny head disappear under the water. She sighed. That dark fur could be any seal.
Then she looked nearer to the shore. The sea-through had stopped to pick up its globe and empty sack, so it was still in the shallow water. And it was changing.
Under the bright light, Helen and Lavender saw the sea-through’s skull and skeleton dissolve into its gooey flesh, as its landform twisted into a circle round its own innards, and then spread out into a bell-shaped lump of transparent jelly round the pale pink belly. The sea-through pulsed off into deeper water, its lacy stings stretching and growing into dozens of thick ropy tentacles, which towed the globe and the sack behind it.
“Yuck!” Helen grimaced. “I thought it was horrible when it was on land!”
“It took much longer to transform than the selkie, which changed so fast we’ve still no idea who it was,” said Lavender.
“But we did hear a lot about their plans.” Helen began to limp back towards the campsite.
Lavender snorted. “I’m not sure I know much more than I did. Whatever they were planning today failed, and whatever the sea-through is planning next the selkie can’t help with. What else do we know?”
“We know that whatever it’s doing, it hasn’t given up.”
“And we know it doesn’t like you, Helen, and it still wants your coral necklace.”
“It’s not a necklace any more.”
“The sea-through doesn’t know that. You’re still in danger, so I think we should sleep in the boys’ tent tonight. Anyway, we need to tell them what we’ve heard.”
Helen muttered, “If we can wake them up.”
Lavender laughed. “If prodding them doesn’t work, you could fall off something. That makes enough noise.”
Helen rubbed her bruised knee. “Or you could tickle them!”
The boys had been too sleepy to
“I don’t know. We can’t see properly unless the sea-through lifts that light up, and I don’t recognise the voice. I’ve mostly met selkies at feasts, speaking loud and clear, not whispering like this. It could be any of the big male selkies …”
Helen moved round the trailer for a better view, but she couldn’t see their faces, just their bare feet and the pebbles.
The low selkie voice said, “Now you have played your games, what do we do next?”
“We? There is no ‘we’ any more. You and your family failed us.”
“We failed you ? That fiasco today was your plan. We did all you asked of us, but it was not enough.”
“We have another plan now, and we don’t need you.”
“But … but …” the selkie spluttered, and Helen almost recognised the voice. Desperate to see who it was, she went further behind the metal trailer and clambered onto the tyre, to see if she could get a better view from higher up.
“But …”
“All we ask of you now is your silence.”
“For my silence, will I still get my crown?”
The sea-through laughed. Helen, teetering barefoot on the wheel, grabbed at the edge of the trailer to hold herself up.
“No, you greedy seal. For your silence, you get to keep your life! Not be stung and swallowed! For a crown, you’d need to give us …” The sea-through’s voice dropped so low Helen couldn’t hear the next few words.
The selkie answered in a despairing whisper, “I can still help. I still have influence. You could let me …”
Then Helen’s bare foot slipped again on the worn rubber of the old tyre. She jerked forward so she didn’t fall off the wheel, and thumped her knee against the side of the trailer. The thud was as loud as a drumbeat.
She heard gasps, then a flurry of splashes.
She scrambled round the side of the trailer, but the lantern had flickered out, and the beach was too dark to see anything. “Light!” she whispered to Lavender. “Light! We need to see who that was.”
Lavender lifted her wand. A circle of bright clean lightballs rose up and floated to the edge of the sea.
Helen saw a shiny head disappear under the water. She sighed. That dark fur could be any seal.
Then she looked nearer to the shore. The sea-through had stopped to pick up its globe and empty sack, so it was still in the shallow water. And it was changing.
Under the bright light, Helen and Lavender saw the sea-through’s skull and skeleton dissolve into its gooey flesh, as its landform twisted into a circle round its own innards, and then spread out into a bell-shaped lump of transparent jelly round the pale pink belly. The sea-through pulsed off into deeper water, its lacy stings stretching and growing into dozens of thick ropy tentacles, which towed the globe and the sack behind it.
“Yuck!” Helen grimaced. “I thought it was horrible when it was on land!”
“It took much longer to transform than the selkie, which changed so fast we’ve still no idea who it was,” said Lavender.
“But we did hear a lot about their plans.” Helen began to limp back towards the campsite.
Lavender snorted. “I’m not sure I know much more than I did. Whatever they were planning today failed, and whatever the sea-through is planning next the selkie can’t help with. What else do we know?”
“We know that whatever it’s doing, it hasn’t given up.”
“And we know it doesn’t like you, Helen, and it still wants your coral necklace.”
“It’s not a necklace any more.”
“The sea-through doesn’t know that. You’re still in danger, so I think we should sleep in the boys’ tent tonight. Anyway, we need to tell them what we’ve heard.”
Helen muttered, “If we can wake them up.”
Lavender laughed. “If prodding them doesn’t work, you could fall off something. That makes enough noise.”
Helen rubbed her bruised knee. “Or you could tickle them!”
The boys had been too sleepy to
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