Mother
The smile on Daniel’s face caused one to form on the stranger’s in response, looking on as Daniel nodded. “Y-Yeah! My name is Daniel and I’m looking for my mom...I just found out about this whole thing, it’s all really sudden but..I was hoping I’d find her. She kinda looks like me, I think; long black hair. I know it’s not the most descriptive thing in the world, but-”
“I know exactly who she is, come with me, Daniel. I’ll take you to your mother.” Those words alone were enough to convince Daniel as the nameless stranger turned and swam off, gesturing for him to follow as she began to lead him deeper into the underwater city, the crowd of selkies chattering excitedly and wishing Daniel the best of luck as the two of them swam away. Daniel propelled herself forward with every swish of her tail, following the stranger as she led her past the large buildings of coral and rock, towering high above them even as they swam along. More selkies appeared here and there, minding their own business and running their own little underwater errands; whatever it is that selkies thousands of feet below the surface do to pass the time. Daniel glanced around as they swam, still amazed by it all now as he realized how much the underwater city bustled with activity, just like a human one - but ten times better, of course. “This place is just...wow.” Daniel murmured, hearing a chuckle from the friendly stranger, who nodded. “Isn’t it? You’ll get used to it, I’m sure.” She replied in evident amusement at Daniel’s childish wonder, before she refocused on the task at hand - before long, she had led Daniel to a much smaller building, which looked to be made of coral, since pieces of it grew from the tops and along the side as natural, colorful decor.
It was nice to see the natural world being used for such things, without destroying it; that was something Daniel could already learn to appreciate about this selkie society. The nameless selkie approached the open door of the makeshift building, though paused then smiled at Daniel, gesturing for her to go in front of her. “Go on. She lives here. My work is done.” With that, the selkie backed up, watching as Daniel approached the doorway. “Thanks.” The stranger nodded, then turned away and swam off - only then did Daniel realize she never got the selkie’s name.
But...she had a feeling she’d see her again, if Daniel was going to stick around this place. It was still strange how the selkie hadn’t ever introduced herself, though; but regardless, Daniel pushed the odd thought away, focusing on more important matters - her other. Straightening up, Daniel entered the little home, glancing around nervously for a moment as she studied the interior, which was decorated in a multitude of strange things that definitely didn’t belong here - human trinkets, like broken clocks, rusty utensils, and human jewlery - foreign objects to selkies, that had been likely consumed by ocean waters years ago thanks to shipwrecks. It was unlike the natural beauty this little home offered from the outside, along with the rest of this underwater city - only here had she seen a sign of the existence of humans. And honestly, Daniel had a gut feeling as to why. She hesitated for just a moment, then spoke up as she raised her head and quirked a brow, her gaze drifting ahead. “H-Hello?”
It didn’t take long for Daniel to take notice of the strikingly beautiful selkie in front of her; almost a mirror image of her, but clearly an adult rather than a young teenager. The selkie had flowing, long black hair just like Daniel, fair skin, and a matching seal tail that swished back and forth slowly in the water. When the selkie turned, Daniel felt...whole. Complete. Happy. The moment she locked eyes with this woman, it seemed that every emotion was rushing to Daniel all at once in this very moment. This was her. The woman from her flashbacks, from her long-forgotten memories - this was her mother. Every instinct in her brand new body told her that this familiar woman was the motherly figure she’d been missing in her life all along.
Written by monochromecheshire on 25 August 2017