fish. One by one, the small nets were cast, then tightened and dropped. The nets were weighted down with rocks from the bottom of the sea. As they were filled with fish, they were tightened and then dropped to drift to the seafloor.
The Delfins dove in and out of the mass of fish, filling their mouths with the abundance that was presented to them. They had their fill, and the water people had what they needed. They let the pouches of fish remain on the bottom as they continued to glide alongside of the migration even further out into the open waters, yet they kept a tight circle around the fish.
Willow was in awe of how the creatures of the sea and the water people worked together effortlessly to hunt. But why were they still traveling with this migration? It wasn't long before the two groups, the Delfins and the water people, pushed the migration closer to the surface of the waters. The fish began to twist and fight the natural flow of their journey. They struggled to change the course, yet the power of the circle prevented them from changing. Not a single fish broke from the migration; they held steadfast in a mass.
As Willow stayed with the rhythm of the entire venture, she suddenly noticed ahead the underside of a boat, then another and another. Her heart started to pound. Could these boats be the boats of my village? Could my father and Seth be among them? The boats appeared to draw nearer to the migration. Did anyone else see these boats? Am I the only one that sees them?
In moments, the entire migration was beneath the boats. The circle tightened even more, bringing the fish almost to a complete halt beneath the boats, yet no one in the circle broke the web around the fish. Then several of the Delfin Clan rushed to the surface of the waters, leaping in and out around the boats. Soon she noticed giant nets being cast from the boats into the migration. The nets were pulled tight, dragged from the weight of the fish, and finally lifted into the boats. One by one, the boats filled their nets. The boats lingered for a while above the Delfins, and then fish were tossed back into the waters. The Delfins leaped from the waters, grasping them with their teeth.
Oh my, Willow thought. She had heard stories of how these beautiful creatures swam alongside the boats during fishing times, but never had she heard that they helped them fish. Is this how my family and the villagers are so successful with fishing? she wondered. All this time, she just thought her father was a great fisherman. But now she saw that the Delfin Clan and the water people made him so.
The circle soon was broken, and the migration was free to continue on its quest. The Delfin Clan and the water people dove deep into the waters to return to gather their catch. They too would be returning to the forest beneath the endless waters. But Willow could not turn with the rest of them. She had to glide to the surface to see if her father and brother were among the fishermen.
No one noticed she was not with the pod. There were so many, and they always stayed together when venturing into open waters, so they did not think she would not be with them on the return.
Willow glided closer to the boats as they stayed still in the waters. She knew they were securing their catch and would soon travel back to the village. She could almost see her mother standing on the knoll, waiting for the boats to arrive and then walking down to the shore to greet her husband and son upon their return.
If I could see them just one more time, she thought. She eased her way to the surface and looked across the boats. She recognized many of the boats from her village. Then there they were, her father and Seth, filling the baskets on the boat with the abundant catch they had just hauled in. She wanted to call out to them, but a voice inside her warned against it. She wanted to tell her father how the fish had come to him so easily and how the creatures of the sea had been partly responsible for his good fortune.
Her father had mentioned to her and her family how it appeared the sea creatures, whom Willow now knew were the Delfins, brought the fish to their nets. He had said he felt they were partly responsible for the abundant catches he and the villagers often came home with. Willow wanted to tell him of the water people and her new home beneath the endless waters. She wanted to tell him she had met great-great-grandmother Morven and about Ellura. But she couldn't. She knew she shouldn't. It would destroy the balance that had been since the beginning of time.
She missed her family on land. She missed her sisters. She missed her mother and wanted so much to be able to sit with her as she rocked in the rocking chair on the knoll, where the two of them communicated in their own private language. As she stayed near the boats, she could feel the warmth of tears flow and then blend into the waters. If only I could see them all one more time, she thought. If only I could talk with mother and hear her gentle wisdom.
Willow was unaware that the boats once again were moving, as she was lost in her thoughts of home. She noticed that the waters became warmer and not as deep blue as the water in the coral forest. She felt fearful but yet excited at the same time, realizing she must be coming closer to the shore—the shore where she had spent so many nights dreaming of life beneath the endless waters and where she had first met Ellura, the woman of the water.
She decided she'd better not go to close to the shore, for fear someone might see her. Yet she so wanted to see her mother. She started to glide back out to the deep waters, but wanted to take one brief look above the surface at her land home. She cautiously glided to the surface and emerged into the sunlight. She glimpsed the shoreline in the distance with many villagers gathered to greet the boats. As the fishermen landed, the villagers drew near the water's edge to assist with bringing in the abundant catch. The catch would keep many families fed through the coldness of the season that would soon be approaching.
Oh, Mother, Willow thought. She turned and darted away from the shore.
"Daughter, is that you?"
Willow froze in place. "Mother?"
"Yes, my precious daughter, it is. I have missed you; my heart holds you close, and you are never out of my thoughts. Are you fine?"
"Oh, Mother, my heart aches for you too, but I am fine. Do not worry for me. All those dreams I had growing up were not dreams but visions of where I was meant to be."
Willow heard the sweet voice of her mother one last time that day. "Be well, my precious daughter, and know I am with you always. Just call to me, and I will hear you." Willow said her good-byes as she watched the crowd from the shore carry the baskets of fish up the knoll to the village to prepare them for storing. She slowly turned and headed out to the deep waters.
Willow glided through the waters further and further, deeper and deeper. There was a stillness she felt uncomfortable with, a feeling something wasn't right. Where were the Delfins and the water people? Had she gone off course and too far away from her pod? She did not know the ways of the sea yet. She found herself alone, without the comforts and safety of the ones she had grown to feel safe with. Where were they? Had they left her? Would she be able to find her way back to her new home in coral forest?
Fear came over her, and she began to panic. Maybe I should not have followed the boats. Maybe I should have stayed with Morven and Ellura, she thought. The waters became darker and stranger to her. Suddenly, a school of fish swam by her, brushing her skin with their roughness. Their bodies were tense and rigid, and Willow could feel the fear that emanated from them. They normally would stop and play in the waters alongside her, but this time, they seemed driven to escape. But escape from what? She had never known any harm from the waters, so what were they escaping from?
An uneasiness that came over her that she couldn't explain. It wasn't like when she had been entangled in the seaweed forest. Moments later, many more creatures rushed past her. She thought she heard one of them speak to her: "Hide!" Who was that, she thought, and hide from what?
Suddenly, she turned. There ahead of her was a creature she had never seen before. This cold, dark-gray creature sent fear rippling through her body. This was like nothing she had ever imagined, but she knew he was one to be feared. He slowly approached her, yet she could not move. She was tr
ansfixed by his magnitude and the fierce power that radiated from the very core of his being. This creature was not escaping, nor was he hiding. He was not afraid of anything.
"Hide," she heard again. That was meant for her. They were telling her to hide, but where was she to hide? She was out in the open waters and did not know how to return to the safety of the coral forest. As the giant creature approached with a steady determination, she realized he was coming directly toward her. He was not coming to greet her or welcome her to her new home.
Willow's fear mounted as he opened his powerful jaws, still headed straight for her. She turned and sped through the waters as fast as she could, not knowing where she was headed but knowing she needed to get far from him. She spotted some coral and seaweed not too far ahead and hoped she could make it there to hide. She turned, only to see the massive head coming nearer and nearer. She could not glide through the waters fast enough. She struggled to go faster only to find herself tiring. She became weaker and more fatigued but pressed on to find safety.
She was close to the coral and seaweed, yet he was gaining on her rapidly. She reached inside herself and struggled for all the strength she had left and darted into