Post by Elyssia Whiterose (SWT) on Nov 13, 2018 5:45:53 GMT
They had been sailing for weeks, with no land in sight. Their supplies were well-stocked and by all accounts, they knew where they were going. All the same, it was a long and arduous journey. Not one for the faint of heart, nor for the old or infirm. Even on the warmest nights, the sea and wind could chill to the bone and the heavy clothing most wore to protect themselves against the elements did little to protect them against the water, if they fell in.
For the men on these ships, such journeys were commonplace. With it came a variety of habits. Even with plentiful supplies, the sailors would fish and hunt what they could, that they might have some variety in their sustenance. It was a commonly accepted practice, with unwritten rules about what could and could not be hunted.
A young sailor on his second voyage was about to break one of those rules, as he lifted his harpoon - a hunting spear with a sturdy rope tied to it - and took aim at a curious seal. Elyssia intervened, placing a hand on the spear, “Steady now, sailor,” she spoke softly, “No need for that.”
“But ma’am, Admiral, we haven’t had a good meal in days.” the sailor argued.
An older sailor overhearing guffawed, “Ever had seal boy? You’d stink up for the boat for months, and probably spit it out too. Eat your rations will you?”
Elyssia shot the older sailor a glare and he went back to work. To the younger sailor, she explained, “Yeah, it does smell, but that’s not the point. If you haven’t a clue what seal you’re aiming for, best not to risk it. The fae don’t take kindly to their kin being slain and we don’t need their ire.”
“The fae, Admiral?” he asked.
Elyssia nodded, “Aye. The fae.” There was a lull in the work that had to be done on the vessel, so she decided to tell the story. “You see, the seal you see out there might not just be any old seal. Beyond being majestic creatures in their own right - a seal will show you the way to where the fish are, and guide you inland if you’re lost at sea - some of them are very much tied to the fae. And so much more.”
“Aeons ago, back before man sailed upon the seas, there was a lady who yearned to wander out into the waters and be upon the seas. But the waters would not have her, and every year, her village would find her by the shore, washed up after her futile attempt had failed again. Her family pled with her not to try again, lest one day she might not wash upon the shores. She wouldn’t listen. Even the words of her husband could not persuade her.”
“The next year, as she prepared to walk into the ocean, a fairy stopped her and asked her why. For you see, the fairy had been observing her for a long time, and had grown curious. It wondered why a human would want to walk into the frigid waters and risk her life doing so. The woman would not answer, but the fairy knew she would wouldn’t survive the peril this time.”
Elyssia began playing her harp to accompany her tale, “As the woman went waist deep into the waters, the fairy offered her a deal. ‘I’ll help you swim in these waters for as long as you like, if you but tell me your story.’ Intrigued, the woman agreed. She leaned over to the fairy, and whispered her tale and all of her reasons.”
The young sailor interrupted, “But what were they? What were her reasons?”
“Never you mind that,” Elyssia said, “For that is a reason lost to time, and not one that we will ever be privy to know. For this tale is aeon’s old and the lady and fairy likely both long dead. Not all fairies live forever.” In truth, Elyssia knew the reason, but that was another tale in itself, and not one she was keen to tell just yet.
Continuing from her interruption, “The fairy honored its deal. As she wandered out into the ocean, she dove in and she became what she yearned to be. For the rest of the day and the whole night, she swam in the waters in the skin of a seal. The following day she returned to the village, and they were overjoyed, for this year they did not find her at the shore, but instead she had crept in at dawn and none had noticed her absence.”
The younger sailor interrupted again, “Right, but… what’s that have to do with this seal? You said it was aeon’s ago.”
“She had a husband,” Elyssia said jokingly, “In the years that passed, she had many children. And because fairies, even the kindest, are a mischievous lot, all of her children were born with her gift and her curse, for it was one and the same. As a seal, she yearned to be back again on land. As a woman, she yearned to dive into the sea. The fairy had made her kin to seals, a seal-kin you might say. In Hibernia, they call them selkies.”
“From these seal-kin,” Elyssia explained, as she finished her song, “Was born the child that would one day grow up and make the first boat, that he might be both on land and in the water at the same time, forever fulfilling the longing he had for both. He sailed far and wide, to Albion and beyond, and that is how we came to know the secrets of boats and ships here. But as I said, it was a long time ago, and there are few of them left - most seals you see will be seals indeed. Nevertheless, the seal-kin are holy and precious to all who sail the seas, for they will aid you in ways even a seal cannot, and the gift they have given us is the reason we sail upon these waters.”
“So lay down that spear, sailor, and pray instead to be fortunate enough that this seal you spared turns out to be a seal-kin who may one day save your life.” Elyssia finished, "They are, in ways, like the Sidhe of the sea." The older sailor muttered something about Elyssia taking quite a few liberties with the tale, but Elyssia ignored him. It was folklore, after all, and the full truth would always be hard to know. She just needed the sailor to understand why spearing the seal might not be the greatest idea.
For the men on these ships, such journeys were commonplace. With it came a variety of habits. Even with plentiful supplies, the sailors would fish and hunt what they could, that they might have some variety in their sustenance. It was a commonly accepted practice, with unwritten rules about what could and could not be hunted.
A young sailor on his second voyage was about to break one of those rules, as he lifted his harpoon - a hunting spear with a sturdy rope tied to it - and took aim at a curious seal. Elyssia intervened, placing a hand on the spear, “Steady now, sailor,” she spoke softly, “No need for that.”
“But ma’am, Admiral, we haven’t had a good meal in days.” the sailor argued.
An older sailor overhearing guffawed, “Ever had seal boy? You’d stink up for the boat for months, and probably spit it out too. Eat your rations will you?”
Elyssia shot the older sailor a glare and he went back to work. To the younger sailor, she explained, “Yeah, it does smell, but that’s not the point. If you haven’t a clue what seal you’re aiming for, best not to risk it. The fae don’t take kindly to their kin being slain and we don’t need their ire.”
“The fae, Admiral?” he asked.
Elyssia nodded, “Aye. The fae.” There was a lull in the work that had to be done on the vessel, so she decided to tell the story. “You see, the seal you see out there might not just be any old seal. Beyond being majestic creatures in their own right - a seal will show you the way to where the fish are, and guide you inland if you’re lost at sea - some of them are very much tied to the fae. And so much more.”
“Aeons ago, back before man sailed upon the seas, there was a lady who yearned to wander out into the waters and be upon the seas. But the waters would not have her, and every year, her village would find her by the shore, washed up after her futile attempt had failed again. Her family pled with her not to try again, lest one day she might not wash upon the shores. She wouldn’t listen. Even the words of her husband could not persuade her.”
“The next year, as she prepared to walk into the ocean, a fairy stopped her and asked her why. For you see, the fairy had been observing her for a long time, and had grown curious. It wondered why a human would want to walk into the frigid waters and risk her life doing so. The woman would not answer, but the fairy knew she would wouldn’t survive the peril this time.”
Elyssia began playing her harp to accompany her tale, “As the woman went waist deep into the waters, the fairy offered her a deal. ‘I’ll help you swim in these waters for as long as you like, if you but tell me your story.’ Intrigued, the woman agreed. She leaned over to the fairy, and whispered her tale and all of her reasons.”
The young sailor interrupted, “But what were they? What were her reasons?”
“Never you mind that,” Elyssia said, “For that is a reason lost to time, and not one that we will ever be privy to know. For this tale is aeon’s old and the lady and fairy likely both long dead. Not all fairies live forever.” In truth, Elyssia knew the reason, but that was another tale in itself, and not one she was keen to tell just yet.
Continuing from her interruption, “The fairy honored its deal. As she wandered out into the ocean, she dove in and she became what she yearned to be. For the rest of the day and the whole night, she swam in the waters in the skin of a seal. The following day she returned to the village, and they were overjoyed, for this year they did not find her at the shore, but instead she had crept in at dawn and none had noticed her absence.”
The younger sailor interrupted again, “Right, but… what’s that have to do with this seal? You said it was aeon’s ago.”
“She had a husband,” Elyssia said jokingly, “In the years that passed, she had many children. And because fairies, even the kindest, are a mischievous lot, all of her children were born with her gift and her curse, for it was one and the same. As a seal, she yearned to be back again on land. As a woman, she yearned to dive into the sea. The fairy had made her kin to seals, a seal-kin you might say. In Hibernia, they call them selkies.”
“From these seal-kin,” Elyssia explained, as she finished her song, “Was born the child that would one day grow up and make the first boat, that he might be both on land and in the water at the same time, forever fulfilling the longing he had for both. He sailed far and wide, to Albion and beyond, and that is how we came to know the secrets of boats and ships here. But as I said, it was a long time ago, and there are few of them left - most seals you see will be seals indeed. Nevertheless, the seal-kin are holy and precious to all who sail the seas, for they will aid you in ways even a seal cannot, and the gift they have given us is the reason we sail upon these waters.”
“So lay down that spear, sailor, and pray instead to be fortunate enough that this seal you spared turns out to be a seal-kin who may one day save your life.” Elyssia finished, "They are, in ways, like the Sidhe of the sea." The older sailor muttered something about Elyssia taking quite a few liberties with the tale, but Elyssia ignored him. It was folklore, after all, and the full truth would always be hard to know. She just needed the sailor to understand why spearing the seal might not be the greatest idea.