|
Hurry, she urged herself, working the skiff towards the island as quickly as she dared. Luckily, she didn’t crash right into the rock that uncle J always tied the skiff to, and got out the rope to lasso it. She missed on the first attempt, but the second time she got it perfectly, and tied off. She put up the sail and tied it tightly, then hopped out and instantly regretted it. She could swim, sure enough, but the waves were so strong that she went under and came up spluttering and coughing up water more than a few times on her way to the beach.
As Aislin reached shore she stopped, staring at something in the water. She scooped it up tenderly, careful not to damage it’s delicate wings, but it was too late. The dragon fly was dead. She saw another in the water, and more on the beach, and began to cry. She was too late.
Still, she had to hope. Aise scrambled on shore, tears mixing with rain on her cheeks, and over the sand dune, which was wet from the rain, looking around frantically for a place where they could’ve hidden to escape the storm. She remembered a large stone at the edge of the meadow and made a mad dash for it. Sure enough, several dragon flies were huddled on the side away from the wind. They all squeaked distressedly when she approached, but she shushed them and moved slowly, and they calmed down.
The poor things were traumatized by the storm, the first one they’d ever experienced. They looked safe enough here though, for the moment, so Aislin moved on into the woods. She found a few more hidden here and there, and even managed to snag three that were clinging to branches, about to be blown out to sea any moment.
She let those ones take shelter inside her shirt, since it was big enough so that they wouldn’t be smooshed.
It began to rain harder, and the rain felt like stones hitting her, rather than drops of water. She needed to get out of this, before she caught cold. Mother would kill her if she got sick. Not that she wasn’t already in trouble. Oops.
She remembered that there were caves in the cliffs, and headed for them, glad to be walking with the wind at her back. She could feel the three little ‘flys in her shirt squirm uncomfortably as she picked her way around the rocks and tide pools at the base of the cliffs, looking for a cave high enough above the waterline and big enough for her to hide in.
There! No, she wouldn’t be able to reach that one. Wait, there was a boulder beneath it. If she stood on that she could just reach the cave.
Which she did. Just. The dragon flies shifted around as she pulled herself into the cave, hoping that she was the only other inhabitant, and then climbed out once they sensed that they were out of the driving rain.
Aislin let them perch on her shoulders and use their long tongues to bathe their wings, which had gotten somewhat mangled in the wind and trek to the cave. She silently apologized as she looked around the cave she’d found. It was deep, and got larger the further back she went. It also went uphill, which was good for a cave, she’d been told.
When it got too dark to see anything she turned back and looked around the mouth of the cave. Sure enough, there was some driftwood from the last time a storm had raged, and she gathered all she could carry and went further back inside again.
Father had taught her how to make a fire once, but he’d used his special flint and metal thing. She hoped normal rocks would work just as well.
Luckily they did, and soon she had a merry fire burning at the very back of the cave, which was flat and dry, and big enough to sleep in. She lay down and shivered, thinking about all the poor little ‘flys out there still, sheltering from the raging wind and rain, wishing she’d been able to bring more with her. In fact, she got up again and went back to the mouth of the cave, fully intending to go back out and rescue more, but she could see the waves crash against the side of the cliff, higher now than when she’d climbed up here. She’d have to swim. And that wouldn’t be good at all with all those sharp rocks out there, just under the surface of the water, and the strong waves.
Aise returned to her fire and added another twig. The little ‘flys curled up on her still-wet shoes and she couldn’t help but smile weakly. She scooped them up carefully and sat down, taking off her wet outer clothing and spreading it out across the floor. She was still at the age that she didn’t really mind going in just her undershirt and shorts. And it was warmer this way.
She curled up on the floor of the cave, facing her little fire, and listened to the storm raging outside for a long, long time.
~*~
Aislin didn’t remember falling asleep, or turning over, but she woke up the next morning to a dead silence. Her fire had gone out, leaving the cave open to the chill from outside, but at least it wasn’t windy anymore. She tried to move, but a chorus of sleepy squeaks made her stop and giggle. All three dragon flys were nestled against her. Two at her back, one under her chin, snuggling close to her for warmth. After a moment they were all awake and hopping onto her shoulders as she sat up.
“Well,” she said, smiling at them “At least you three are alright. Shall we go see if your siblings are too?” the three squeaked at her curiously, eyes wide, wings fluttering. Aise giggled again and stood up. After she got dressed Aislin went to the mouth of the cave once more and peered outside. The water was so still it looked like a mirror. Now she knew why uncle J’s people called it ‘shining glass.’ It was also very foggy, which she thought was strange. But at least the water level was back to normal, and it wasn’t raining anymore.
On her way down from her shelter, and back to the stand of trees and meadow, two of the dragon flies, a green and a blue, took to the air and scouted ahead and behind, while the third, a shy little black one, clung to her shoulder with both claws and tail.
For a moment, she thought there were no dragon flys left on the island but her three, but soon she saw through the fog to where they all hovered about what flowers had survived the storm. Relieved, she moved out to the shore. The dune was gone, and the beach was a bit wider, so she could see the little skiff still safely moored where she had left it.
Wait. That wasn’t the Ssouna'Ouna. She remembered fastening the sails when she left it. When the fog parted for a moment, she could see that this ship had it’s sails fully furled. And it was further out than the mooring stone, and much larger than the skiff. And it was a wreck.
Aislin had never seen a wreck before. So she stood there and stared at it for a while. It looked scary. The mast was tilted and broken, she could tell now that the fog was thinning a bit, and it was half sunk. She hoped there were no people hurt, but the way the storm had raged…
Aise suddenly busied herself looking for the skiff. It had to be around here somewhere.. the mooring rock was just out there. She finally found it, beached, a little ways down the beach, and was relieved that it wasn’t wrecked too. She’d be in even more trouble if it had been.
|
