Spirits, Fairies, and Merpeople by C.J. Taylor

Author:C.J. Taylor [Taylor, CJ]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-77049-176-2
Publisher: Tundra
Published: 2009-09-08T04:00:00+00:00

WATER LILY FINDS HER LOVE

COOS

American West Oregon Coast

Water Lily and her five older brothers lived in a village where the western sea met the land. Her brothers worried about her. Other maidens her age had husbands and children to care for. “Why do you not choose one of the fine young men from our village?” they often asked.

But Water Lily showed no interest in the young men of the village. “My love is in the ocean,” she would say. Her brothers could only shake their heads and wonder. Water Lily preferred to spend all her time alone, walking beside the ever-changing ocean and swimming in the coves along the shore.

Water Lily was often gone for long periods of time, making her brothers worry even more. Once, Water Lily did not return for a very long time, indeed. For three seasons her five brothers and many other villagers searched for her. She was not to be found anywhere. People said “How sad it is that the ocean has taken her.”

But one day Water Lily did return, and she was not alone. She had with her a small baby. Her brothers and all the villagers rejoiced that she was home, but they wondered about the child.

“Where did this tiny baby come from?” they asked. “Where is his father?”

“He is my son,” was her only reply.

As the days passed, the baby cried day and night. Everyone in the lodge complained. “We have no peace from this constant crying.” Water Lily took the baby and a willow basket and went into the woods to gather roots and berries. The baby wailed loudly all the way.

A great patch of blackberry bushes grew near the shore. The berries were juicy and sweet. Water Lily placed the crying infant at the foot of a tall tree. She began filling her basket with the berries and suddenly realized that the crying had stopped. Water Lily returned to the tall tree where she’d left the baby. She was astonished to find him contentedly gnawing on a piece of fish.

“Where did the fish come from?” She looked around. A tall, handsome young man emerged from the trees. His skin was as green as the ocean and his head was covered in flowing white sea foam. Strings of pink and coral shells hung around his neck.

“My son was hungry so I gave him food,” he said.

“Who are you and where do you come from?” asked Water Lily.

“I am your husband, your love from the ocean. I have come for my family.”

Water Lily picked up the baby, now happily sucking on his piece of fish, and followed the strange young man to a small cove, hidden beyond the blackberry patch. He held out a webbed hand. “Water Lily, my love. I am taking you home.” She cradled the child and stepped into the dark water.

The three swam deep, deep to the bottom of the sea, where they came upon a great underwater village. And there they lived in peace and health. Water Lily never returned to her village, but she told her small son tales of his uncles’ great skills.

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