Letty—or Leticia, as she was properly named—had been built in his grandfather’s time. As a boy, he had crewed on her and helped maintain her until the day he finally knew enough to captain her himself.
On this voyage, there had been no time to properly provision Letty before sailing. They’d fled for their lives with few supplies. Something had gone frightfully wrong, and his Maggie told him they must leave and do so quickly, or become the target of an unjust war they had played no hand in creating. Lord MacKenzie mourned the loss of his homeland, and vowed to himself that one day he would avenge this injustice.
While thinking of better times and younger days, the cold wind slipped under his scarf and down his neck once more. Silently he cursed the bitter freeze while praying to the heavens for some relief for himself, his crew, and his family below deck. The children had not been allowed up for days; they were cold and tired, and sick of eating dry, days’-old biscuits and tough meat. In weather like this, even lighting an oil lamp was dangerous.
To Lord MacKenzie’s relief, a sailor from Letty’s bow finally yelled, “Fair weather ahead, sire.”
Upon hearing those welcome words, Lord MacKenzie looked up beyond the wheel housing and thanked the Beginner for the forthcoming reprieve from the cold. Within the hour, the seas lessened their mighty swells, the wind her biting curse, and the sun shone down once more upon old Letty’s worn and smooth wooden decks.
A cheer came up from all hands as Robert’s wife Maggie poked her head out from the cabin door and smiled at him. “Robert, are we through the worst of it, then?” she asked with hope.
“Aye lass, I think we are. I can see our guides, the dolphins, up ahead. We couldn’t have crossed these waters without their help.”
Three heads bobbed up behind Maggie as their children smiled and asked if they could come up on deck as well. “Aye!” proclaimed their father as he turned the wheel over to his first mate and walked toward his family with loving arms extended, embracing them all. Huddled together, they rejoiced in each other’s company.
Anxious to reach their new home, Lord MacKenzie gave his crew orders for completing their journey and finally reaching the port town of Waters End.
Stowaways
While the crew and family above were rejoicing over their escape from the storm and return to calm waters, below deck and tucked well out of sight, an odd character with a pointed head and lavender skin was laughing silently to himself.
Under his thick, warm cape, his iridescent-green feather vest jiggled across his belly as his companion smirked with him, saying, “You’d think they didn’t trust us, then?”
To which the first replied, “Remember, only the Lady Margaret believes we exist. To the rest we are but another childhood faery tale.”
“Still,” persisted the second, “who do they think it was that called the dolphins? And didn’t Want-Not calm their fears while they slept?”
“Depends,” replied the first. “If Want-Not is on board, that means Waste-Not is here as well, and we all know he sends mixed messages from time to time. And who invited them on this crossing, anyway? I thought we were the only pointer pair on this trip?”
“Well,” said the second, “I’m only assuming that Want-Not is here, as each of us knows how to hide from the other as well as from humans. But I saw the look of fear disappear from the children’s faces yesterday morning, so I assumed that was Want-Not’s doing.”
“Maybe yes and maybe no,” replied the first. “The dolphins have been known to send messages as well, and they can communicate with the younger humans from time to time, as children’s hearts are more open to their song.”
“Perhaps,” replied the second, “perhaps. But if other pairs are coming, this could mean more trouble than I have already foreseen. Let’s hope we are the only pointer pair on board this ship. My vision included only us, and we’ve made a plan to fix the wrongs and mend the feud. If other pairs have joined us, we’ll need to change our plans, and quickly.”
“We’ve pledged our assistance in this matter. We must ensure the others don’t mess this up for us,” replied the first as he nodded off to sleep once more.
