Angie crouched down behind the rock and grimaced when the her paw touched a slimy pile of sea weed. "Oh god, get it off me!" she said before jumping to her feet and shaking her paw around her like a maniac.
Gigi Laughed at her friend, "You would think that after four years of living in the sea you would be immune to, how do you put it?" she grinned and tapped her chin while thinking, "Ah yes, Icky slimy gross things." she said before shaking her head, "Calm down Ang, it's just sea weed, it isn't going to kill you."
"You can't prove that." Angie said before sitting back down in a huff. She glared at her friend from behind the rock, "Run away screaming one time from an attack of seaweed and be mocked for it for the next two years." she said under her breath.
A bit of movement off in the distance caused her to put her paw to her mouth as a signal for Gigi to shut up. Angie pointed off towards where the motion had come from, "Do you see it?" she whispered to her friend who had now made her way behind the rock to join Angie. "Who is cowering in fear now, huh?" Angie said jokingly before turning her attention back to the majestic sight in front of them.
About 100 feet away there was a pod of Tutanis swimming in various groups almost as if they were dancing. They were a good ways away, far out from the comfort zone of Angie, out where the bottom of the sea dropped off and her parents had forbidden her to go. With a dreamy sigh Angie rested her head in her paws, the offending Algae forgotten as she watched the group dance through the water, occasionally being bathed in sunlight that had managed to steal through the surface of the ocean and dance along with the current.
"Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?" Angie asked smiling. "I wish I could go out there." she added with a frown, "Just once I want to go out to dance in the waves and just enjoy myself." She glanced at her companion and gave a smile, the kind that her mother called "her trouble maker" smile. "We could." she said, "no," she added after a pause," "no, we should go out there! " She whirled towards Gigi who had somehow managed to lose all of the color in her face. "Come on Gigi, you know we're good swimmers! Just five minutes! That's all I'm asking for!" she begged. Gigi looked out at the dancing pod, they were rather enticing. "Ang, you and I both know there are dangers that lurk out there." she said thinking of sharks, whales and other things that like to chomp little girls like them, "Things that neither of us could really imagine." she looked at her friend nervously. "Please Angie, don't do it."
Angie glanced towards the tutanis and then back towards the direction of their home. "I am old enough and strong enough to take care of myself." she said defiantly before sticking her tongue out at her friend. "If you aren't coming with me then you're going to miss out on something that you might not get the chance to do again!" she told her as she swam out from behind the rock. She stopped one last time to look at Gigi, "Last chance, are you coming or not?" she asked the fist.
Gigi looked at Angie as if she had grown another head, "no, no I'm not." She said as she crossed her fins over her chest. "I refuse to join you on your fools mission." as Angie gasped Gigi repeated, "Yes, fool. That is what you are." she added before shrinking back behind the rock not sure what to do.
"Fine, I don't need you." Angie said as she turned and headed towards the open waters. Gigi watched her go and glanced behind her, she could probably swim home before Angie got too far out and let her parents know what was going on. But what if something happened to Angie while she was gone? She made up her mind and quickly, as fast as her fins would allow her, headed to Angie's parent's house.
When Angie was a few yards away from the rock she gulped nervously before turning to take one last look at Gigi, who was quickly swimming away in the opposite direction. "Coward." Angie thought to herself before looking towards the tutanis again and yelling with disappointment. "What...Where....how?" she said to no one as she gazed out into the empty space that the dancing creatures had occupied just moments before. There was nothing there save for the rays of sunlight and a few bubbles.
"Drat...double drat! She said and tried to stop her foot only to tumble backwards when there was nothing there for it to make contact with, other than water. She glanced down and noticed she was much further out than she had thought. The rock she had hid behind before was nothing but a blurry grey mass in the distance. "Oh no, oh no oh no..." she fretted as her excitement and bravery vanished almost as fast as it had appeared. "Oh my mother is going to kill me." She said as she struggled to right herself in the water before heading back to safe land. She swam furiously but the drop off seemed to stay just out of her reach. She was about to give up when she felt a gentle nudge on her hind leg, looking down she managed a smile for Gigi had come back and was now giving Angie the push she needed.
Once they both got back to solid ground Angie crumpled onto the sea bed and started to cry, "Oh Gigi," she wailed, "They were gone. I got out there and they had vanished." Gigi opened her mouth to reply but before she could get the words out she craned her neck upwards as a shadow fell over the pair.
"And what do you think you're doing Missy, going out where you were to not to go?" Angie's Mother asked with a frown on her face.
"I...I..." Angie stammered. She looked at Gigi wondering if her faithful friend would come to her rescue. After a few moments it became appallingly clear that Angie was going to have to get herself out of this mess. "It's all my fault." She said as her eyes filled with tears. "I wanted to join them, they were just so beautiful and I wanted to join in."
Her lower lip began to quiver and her mother asked, "Who?" just as Angie burst into tears. Angie's Mother looked at Gigi who looked stricken, while she comforted her daughter. "Who on earth is she talking about?" she asked.
"The Tutanis, Ma'am." Gigi said, "Once a month they come out into the open and play and feed, and it always looks like so much fun..." Gigi trailed off when she realized she was rambling.
"So you wanted to go and play with them?" Angie's mother asked her as she pushed the girls hair away from her face. All Angie could do was hic-up and nod in response. "Anguineous..." he mother said, "You are not old enough to go out that far." she scolded, "You feel how tired you are? You are a strong swimmer, yes, but you don't have the energy to make the journey. What do you think would have happened if gigi hadn't been here to help you ?" She asked the girl. "Angie, we put these rules in place because we love you and don't want anything to happen to you."
Angie looked up at her mother and wiped her nose with the back of her paw. "Mama?" Angie said softly, "Can you come with me next month?" she asked.
Her mother looked down at her daughter and smiled, "I suppose we could arrange that." she told her.
"And Gigi too?" Angie asked hopeful.
"Only if her parents give her permission." her mother said.
Angie looked over at her friend, "Gigi, Gigi! We have to go ask your mother, right now!" She exclaimed as she grabbed her friend's fin and started dragging her in the direction of her home.
"Whoa, whoa there little lady." her mother said reaching out and grabbing hold of one of Angie's fast moving legs. "Not so fast, you didn't think you weren't going to get punished did you?" she asked her daughter all the while pulling her leg closer to her. "You're grounded for a week and Gigi, don't think I won't be telling your mother about this as well.
"But we can still go next month, right Mama?" Angie asked her eyes wide with a mix of fear and uncertainty. "You said we can, and I won't be grounded then, so we can still go right?"
Her mother sighed, "Child, what am I going to do with you? She asked with a smile, "Of course we can still go next month. And I'll talk to Gigi's mother when I stop by to tell her about your little escapade this afternoon."
Angie launched herself at her mother and threw her arms around her neck, "I'm sorry Mama, I won't do anything like that again, I Promise."
"You better not." her mother warned.
"I love you mama."
Hydrus Kora
Xiocite
