Chapter Text
PART I: THE HUNTRESS
I was a child, and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea
-Edgar Allen Poe, "Annabel Lee"
13th June, 2144
Awa'atlu, Pandora
The sea gives and the sea takes. I cannot decide whether the boy on the beach is a mercy or a cruelty.
The first time I see him, he is kneeling by aquamarine waters, his sea-green knees encrusted with golden diamond-like grains of sand. He murmurs gently to himself, the sand cupped in his palm slipping through his webbed fingers as if through an hourglass.
I approach him quietly, my flippered feet pattering softly. He only glances up when my shadow falls over him. His broad-boned face is decorated with intricate black tattoos, the whorls and spirals arching around his eyes like currents; the pattern is almost familiar. His eyes are sapphire blue. So vibrant I feel as if I'm drowning. It reminds me of the waves lapping hungrily at the shore
My thick tail whips back and forth as I wait for the boy to speak. He doesn't so I drop to my knees beside him. My lungs fill with the briny tang of the wind that blows in from the sea. "What are you doing?"
He holds up one of his hands. "I was just thinking...we often refer to time as sand. Because it often seems infinite"-he gestures at the sprawling beach-"but it slips away from us easily. Soon, there will be none left and we will lament what we have lost."
I frown. He sounds so philosophical, as if he isn't a child, just as I am. "But we are young. This isn't your concern, at least not yet."
The boy shakes his head, as if clearing his thoughts. "You are right. I shouldn't worry about this today." He lets the last of the grains fall. "You are very wise...?"
"Ronal," I supply. "What's your name?"
"You don't need to know it," he answers and then stands gracefully. Leaving me kneeling in the sand, he dusts off his hands and strides towards the Metkayina village.
"Wait!" I scramble to my feet and run after him, my steps clumsy as the sand shifts underneath me. I am not a creature of the land. "Don't you know today is the iknimaya?" My stomach churns at the thought-whether from excitement or anxiety, I cannot tell.
"Oh, I am well aware." The boy doesn't glance back as he strides closer to the cluster of marui, the laughter of other children dashing among the fishing boats ringing in the salt-tinged air.
"Don't you care? It's our first chance to bond with the ilu." When he continues to ignore me, I grab his forearm, tugging at him forcefully. He finally grinds his heels to a halt and turns his gaze to mine. I swallow, craning my neck to meet his gaze. "Why won't you talk to me? I won't beg for your attention."
"I'm just not used to interacting with others my age." Something like sadness flickers in his eyes. "I don't really know how."
"Well then, you need a friend," I declare. I pluck one of the ornate white seashells I wear as part of my bracelet and press it into his palm. It was a gift from my mother. The boy's eyes widen. "I'll be yours, if you wish."
Silence. Filled only by the hissing of the dying waves.
Then a small smile tugs at his lips-hesitant but real. "All right, Ronal. But what is this seashell for?"
"A token of our friendship," I answer with all the earnestness of a child. I trust him to keep it safe. "But only if you tell me your name first."
His webbed fingers close around the seashell. For a moment, I think he’ll walk away again, leaving me alone. Then he exhales and tells me, almost reluctantly: "My name is Tonowari."