[SRP] Waves Full of Stars (Katlego, Chizoba)

[Geyser Eelborn]

Her rescuers turned out to be an Usdia and a dragon-otter. The dragon-otter’s name was Okpokoro, and so far as Katlego could tell, he was a neurotic mess, always worrying about something. He rubbed her the wrong way, but somehow, in spite of his more aggravating personality, he wasn’t the one that was getting on her nerves more, making every part of her fight-or-flight instincts act up.

No, that was the Usdia. Her name was Chizoba, and while Kat had seen Usdia before, she’d never seen one quite like Chizoba. She looked like a cross between an Usdia and a Seathi, with her fins and barbels and hind legs. It was fascinating, but repulsive, a mixture of the familiar and the bizarre. But even if she’d been an ordinary Usdia, or an ordinary Seathi for that matter, it wouldn’t have made a difference. Kat didn’t like other soquili. She never had. Her family had never been big, and she’d been living on her own for most of her life. Other soquili just got in the way, and Big Ones were actively dangerous. No, soquili were nothing but trouble, she knew that in her heart of hearts. So being stuck here, in this den, injured and unable to fend for herself while one of the smartest creatures in the world came and went as it pleased, fully capable of hurting her when she was vulnerable?

She had to get out of this place. But first she had to heal. Her legs hurt all the time, and so did her tail. Points of agony she couldn’t ignore, no matter how hard she tried. She wanted to be free of it, but there wasn’t anything they could do but wait until she got used to it. She thought sometimes that if she was able to talk, her voice would have been hoarse from the pain and she would have spoken of nothing else.

It had taken a while for Okpokoro and Chizoba to realize that Kat couldn’t talk. They’d been trying to communicate with her, and Chizoba in particular getting frustrated that Kat wouldn’t answer verbally, before it finally occurred to the blockheads that Kat might not be able to speak (not that she wanted to, speaking was highly overrated!). Perhaps I should reevaluate what I said before. Maybe soquili in general are the smartest creatures there are, but some of them are pretty stupid. To give them credit, though, once they figured that out, they didn’t just talk over her like she’d expected, like beavers and raccoons did. They’d ask her questions, yes-or-no type questions, ones she could answer without needing to speak. And they did try to talk about her behind her back when she couldn’t hear them, which was…

Well, to be honest, she didn’t know if that was better or worse. On the one hand, it was polite of them, and showed at least some awareness that she was a person, with feelings, who wouldn’t appreciate being talked down to or treated badly. On the other hand…on the other hand, some small, spiteful part of Kat wanted to be treated badly. She wanted a justification for hating the presence of other soquili.

Not that I really need an excuse, but…

But she needed an excuse to hate Chizoba, who brought her into her den, who brought her food, who would bring her water, who rescued her from the tomb of the branches of the river. Just thinking about it now made Kat shudder. She’d never been claustrophobic before. She spent winters hidden in dens like this, hiding out from snow storms and winter freezes in floating dens in the middle of the lake, where she knew that the water wouldn’t freeze around her. And it was built a lot like Chizoba’s den, from reeds and rushes and everything intertwined and interwoven. She shouldn’t feel afraid. She should feel safe here, and cozy. But she didn’t. She felt afraid. More afraid here, lying in the shadows, all alone, than when another soquili walked in. Someone else there who could hurt her should make her feel more vulnerable than being alone.

But it didn’t. It almost felt like…comfort.

But that didn’t make any sense. Other soquili were not comfort, they were danger! They were aggravation and heartbreak and other terrible things, she didn’t want to be happy to see Chizoba walk in! She glared daggers at her hostess, snorting and baring her fangs, as modest as they were. Go away! I don’t want you here! I don’t want to spend time with you!  

[Geyser Eelborn]

The Seathi was a strange guest. She still couldn’t figure out the other mare’s name, though sometimes Oko would take a go at it. He would start guessing random names, and as soon as the second one had left his lips the Seathi would be snarling at him, ready to rip him apart.

Or so it seemed to Chizoba. She had to intervene every time this happened, and she was getting more and more frustrated at the hostility. We’re trying to help you!! she wanted to scream at her guest. But it would do them no good to be arguing. And besides…she could kind of understand the Seathi’s point. If Chizoba had been in her situation—injured, far from home, traumatized by the disaster that had brought her here, stuck in a small, confined space with a stranger that she didn’t know she could trust—yeah, she’d be pretty distrustful too! And short-tempered.

She’d actually sort of expected to be more short-tempered right now, to be honest. But in spite of her frustrations with her house guest, she had sort of…gotten used to the Seathi. She never tried to attack Chizoba or Oko (unless severely annoyed, but it wasn’t that hard to figure out what would severely annoy her and avoid it), she wasn’t loud or obnoxious, and while she did take up the best part of the den, she was injured, it made sense that she would take up this space. So all in all…it was going a lot better than Chizoba had expected? If for no other reason than she had expected to have to force the Seathi to sit still while her legs healed. In that regard, at least, she was being a model patient.

But she must have been feeling cooped-up. She’d been here for a month, and Chizoba knew that if their places were reversed, Chizoba would have been going insane by now. Especially for a fellow aquatic! Chizoba’s den was humid, but that was nothing prepared to proper water. So while the Seathi napped in the den, she fixed up the old raft that they had used to bring the Seathi here, and made a plan.

When she stepped inside, ducking her head to get in under the lintel, she saw that the Seathi was awake, watching her, sniffing the air. Chizoba took a deep breath. “Look,” she said. “I know you’re probably not in the mood for it, but tonight’s the peak of Glow season, and it only lasts a couple more weeks. So I was wondering if you wanted to come with us tonight to the shore to watch the waves.”

The Seathi stared at her, eyes narrowed. But they were always narrowed, so Chizoba didn’t think that meant much. But finally, the Seathi nodded, trying to get up. Her legs had been bound with sturdy oak branches and lengths of flattened reed, but they wouldn’t heal for at least another few moons—Beaver Moon, perhaps, when the increased rain on the delta spurred the clans of large rodents throughout the deltas to shore up their lodges and prepare for the stormy season. If they were lucky, her legs might be healed up by Crane Moon, but that would require her to stop moving her legs like that.

The Seathi must have noticed her look of disapproval, because she glared at Chizoba and flashed her fangs before finally setting back down. The Nixie nodded approvingly at her and turned to the entrance of the den to call for Oko, pretending not to notice the toss of the Seathi’s head that was no doubt a rude gesture.  

[Geyser Eelborn]

What the heck was Glow Season? That’s what Kat wanted to ask, but couldn’t. Whatever it was, it would get her out of this den, maybe even get her into the water. They’d been reluctant to let her go into the water—perhaps they thought she would drown if she couldn’t swim with her legs and tail. Maybe they were right. But it had to be better than convalescing here with nothing to think about but pain and how much she distrusted her own kind. Whatever it was, it had to be better.

She let herself be carried to the raft, watched as Chizoba slipped into the water and Okpokoro slithered onto the raft with her. She had half a mind to snap at him, make him go away, but she decided against it. Too much effort. It wasn’t as warm here as she might have expected in the lowlands, despite the time of day—late afternoon, nearing evening. The sun was making its inexorable fall to the horizon, and in a moon or two this time of day would be insufferably hot. It had been overcast for much of the day—perhaps that was why it was cool. Was that common here on this river? Was this just how it was in the lowlands?

Everyone always said it was warm in the lowlands. Well, I don’t think I can get any lower than here, so why is it so cool? It had better not be because she was injured!

She watched the banks of the river slowly glide by, overshadowed by trees and shrubs, watching the turtles sunning on submerged logs and the fins of fish effortlessly swimming beneath the surface. She wished she could join them. When the waves of water lapped over the edge of the raft, it felt blessedly good on her skin. The water here tasted strangely salty, and the further Chizoba dragged her raft, the saltier the water got. There was a strange sound coming from ahead, too, like waves lapping on the shore of the lake, but bigger, heavier. The hillocks turned into great hills of sand.

And then they turned a corner of the river and Katlego felt her eyes go wide.

They were right.

They were right.

Forever.

Not even a smudge! On the horizon! Just water!

That sound, it was waves, it was waves!! And now there was a breeze, and suddenly she was glad she wasn’t wet, because it would have been so cold? But then, she’d be warmer in the water.

Oh! The water! She had to swim, she had to get off this raft right now, she had to feel it!

“Hold on there!” Chizoba barked. “You can’t swim, miss! You’ll drown!”

I can hold my breath longer than you! she wanted to tell the nosy walker. I’ll be fine! And with that, she wriggled off of the boat and into the water. The water here was shallow and fast anyway, she could keep her head above the water. Which she did right now, to stick her tongue out at Chizoba. See? She was just fine!

…Okay, so how could she steer herself, then? She could still move her legs, sure, but she knew even as she did it it wasn’t a good idea. There was a reason that everyone feared leg injuries, and as at home in the water as a Seathi was, they still used their legs when they swam. But she didn’t have time to worry for long, because out of nowhere came Chizoba, holding her up on one side. “Honestly,” the other mare said. “No sense whatsoever.”

For once…for once, Katlego couldn’t begrudge Chizoba her words or attitude. The other mare’s body was a solid presence against hers, holding her up and helping her as the river got shallower and shallower. Finally, before Kat was reduced to crawling like a worm, she gave up and scooped Katlego onto her back and carried her onto the sand. Instinctively, Kat’s legs and tail clamped around Chizoba’s body, triggering more pain. She hissed at the Usdia and nipped the back of her head to show her disapproval. She did not consent to be picked up like a, a common animal!  

[Geyser Eelborn]

“Yeah, I know,” Chizoba said. “I deserved that.” But she couldn’t help it, she hadn’t wanted to see the Seathi struggle on the sandbar like a beached whale. This wasn’t the main channel of the river she’d brought the Seathi on—the main channel ended at a pebbly beach that was very unpleasant to sit on, and didn’t have any interesting rocks on it. But this one, this one was a perfect mix of sand that felt good to lay on and large boulders sitting below the tideline. For viewing the Glow Season, there was no better beach in the area. Hence the name it had borne long before Chizoba made the estuary her own.

“Welcome to Glow Beach!” Oko chirped. He was a few paces behind them, dragging the raft onto the sand so that it wouldn’t be swept out to sea. It was a small beach as beaches went, sandwiched between two branches of the river, but it was a popular place. Most animals who could take time from their schedule came out here at some point in early summer to watch the waves crash at night, but she knew that most of them had already come, and besides, it was nesting and breeding season for most species. Tonight, it would just be the three of them on the beach.

Chizoba laid herself on the sand, letting the Seathi slide off of her back. She seemed enchanted by the ocean, unable to take her eyes off of it. Chizoba smiled at her. “It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

The Seathi still didn’t look at her, just nodded her head. Her legs were splayed out in front of her, but Chizoba could tell that she would have rather tucked them underneath her by the way her legs twitched. Her tail, which they hadn’t been able to splint, was curled up underneath her like a hermit crab’s tail.

“We have to wait until sunset, though,” Chizoba added. “Sorry about that. I thought it would take us longer to get here.”

The Seathi didn’t reply for a second. When she did, it was a small nod, as though she wasn’t properly paying attention. It must have been ages since she last saw the ocean, Chizoba thought. Now she finally gets to see it, but she can’t swim in it. The idea of it made the Nixie’s chest ache. She remembered the one brief trip she’d made into the mountains once and how eager she’d been to see the ocean again. Part of that had been plain homesickness, or a new appreciation for her turf…but some part of her believed that she wouldn’t have been quite so lovestruck by her home when she returned if she had been returning to a forest or a cave or a tundra. No, it was the ocean itself. It had a life of its own, and she wanted the Seathi to see it.

But why? Was she trying to show off the beauty of her territory (which reached into the bay they now sat at the edge of)? Was she trying to impress the other soquili? Or was it something more than that? Maybe she’ll be happier, easier to live with after this. But even thinking that made her feel small and petty and worthless. It didn’t make her feel the same way that watching her watch the ocean made her feel.

She watched the waves, trying to distract herself from those intrusive thoughts, which were soon joined by how good it felt to have the Seathi leaning against her. Which was—dumb?! Silly?! She had Oko to lay next to her, and liking another soquili leaning against her—well, that was borderline romantic talk, it made it sound like she was in love with the Seathi? Which she wasn’t! They’d only just met, they barely knew each other! We’re not even friends! I mean, not yet, anyway. Probably not ever. If someone was looking at us from the outside, they’d think—that’s stupid, no one can read my thoughts, no one can see what I’m thinking, why am I trying to justify myself to someone else?!

“I’d like to know your name,” Chizoba said as the sun set over the ocean. “So that I can think of you as something other than just ‘the Seathi.’”

The Seathi turned and stared at her, ears backwards. She gestured at her mouth with her hoof. The gesture was clumsy, but the meaning was clear.

“I know,” Chizoba sighed. “But I can guess, can’t I?”

“I tried that already,” Oko grumbled on the other side of her. “She got mad at me.”

The Seathi nodded, though Chizoba noticed that she didn’t spare Oko a glance.

“Well, I’d like to try anyway,” Chizoba said. “Maybe we can pantomime it. First syllable of your name, what does it sound like?”

“...” The Seathi’s eyes narrowed, but her ears had relaxed, so Chizoba thought she might be safe. When she finally moved, she licked her leg.

“...Lick? Groom? Bathe?”

The Seathi shook her head, miming washing her ears with her hoof, licking her chest. She looked like one of the cougars they saw occasionally passing through, or a bobcat or… “Cat?”

The Seathi smiled. Chizoba stared at her. She’d never seen the Seathi smile before, and yet…

“Okay, so, first syllable cat. Any other syllables?”

Kat nodded, but turned away from Chizoba. Apparently she didn’t want to play this game anymore. She seemed tired, or maybe preoccupied. That was fair. They’d already gotten something from this. It was a good start, and that would just have to be good enough for Chizoba. “Okay, Kat,” she said.

Kat didn’t reply, just snuggled closer to Chizoba’s body, and once again, all three of them fell silent as they waited for night to descend.  

[Geyser Eelborn]

It would do for now. She could mime out the rest of her name later, but the last syllable, ho, was taxing her brain right now. Besides, she wanted to watch the sun set, not play charades! She was here, now, watching the sun go down on the ocean! Actually watching it! She’d wanted to do this since she was just a little foal and now she was actually here, watching the sunset on the ocean!

This was why she had been trying to break the beaver dam. This was what she’d been dreaming of all this time. The dream she thought she had lost when she was swept away from home and marooned in the swamp. The dream of someday coming here, to the ocean, to the Great Water from which all water flows. She didn’t know how Chizoba had figured out that she wanted to come here, but somehow she had, and now Kat got to be here, watching the sun set, watching the waves roll in as the tide slowly but surely fell from the beach. Or…rose. She wasn’t sure which. If she could have figured out a way to ask Chizoba, she would have, but that was far too much miming!

If the Wishing Star had been out right now, she would have sent it a message. I know I asked to see the sea. But I could have done without the injuries and almost dying!

When the sun finally set, she felt a sad little moment of sorrow to see it go. Their evening at the beach was over. Now she’d have to get up and leave the ocean for another day. Why didn’t we come out here in the morning so we could enjoy it all day, why did we have to come out here at night?!

But when she tried to get up to leave, Chizoba stopped her. “It’s not over yet,” she said. “Wait.”

Fine then. If the walker wanted to drag Kat’s carcass back to the den in the dark, then she could do that. Kat would sit here for a while watching the waves roll in, let the ocean finally seep its way into her bones and her blood, where it should have been all along, since the very beginning.

But as the last sunlight faded from the sky leaving only the stars behind, she saw it. The black waves weren’t black at all. Her eyes went even wider. They were…blue?

Blue…and glowing. It was like…like all the stars in the sky had come down into the waves. As they broke on the shore and slammed themselves against the rocks, the waves glowed, sparkling and beautiful. The moon was nothing compared to the glowing ocean. The stories never said you glowed. Why did none of the stories tell me that you glowed?!

She didn’t know how long they stayed there in the end. The waves kept crashing and glowing, all alight. But it was getting cold, too, and it seemed that none of the three of them were eager to spend the night on the chilly beach. So in the end, with the moon hanging high in the sky, Chizoba started to stir. “I don’t know why I wanted you to see this,” she said, her voice soft, almost lost in the stirring of the waves. “But for some reason, it felt important to bring you out here. You can only see waves like this this time of year. Not every night, but every so often. That’s why we call it Glow Season.”

“And it’s always strongest on this beach.” Oko yawned. “Hence…Glow Beach.”

“Yeah.” Chizoba sighed. “I…hope you liked it.”

By the glow of the waves and the moon, Kat nodded. And smiled. For some reason, the way Chizoba was talking, how humble she sounded…it just hit her right. In a way soquili voices, especially walkers, usually didn’t. Chizoba had brought her out here to see something special to Chizoba, and it had turned out to be special to Kat too.

It was…so odd to feel good about the presence of another soquili. And yet, here she was. Maybe Chizoba isn’t so bad. I mean, she brought me here to see the waves full of stars, something that she really likes. She didn’t know if I was going to like it or not. But she brought me here anyway, to see her special thing.

Maybe the Wishing Star knew what it was doing. Maybe it’ll all be okay, in the end. And as they all piled back into the river and Kat hauled her injured body onto the raft, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to watch most, the waves or the Usdia in front of her.