Revelations of the Helpful Cookie Man (Chapter II)View OnlineHelpful Cookie Man / Things Never SaidRevelations of the Helpful Cookie Man (Chapter II)“Ya new around here, girl.” I turned around to the suave man sitting next to me. He was fairly handsome, with dark brown skin (and a smooth, buttery voice to match), thick black hair smoothed over, a part of it curled is a slant over his forehead. He was built very tall and thin, almost like an expert swimmer or master thief. He had on an overly long patchy red coat that literally went down to his knees, wearing it almost as some sort of trademark. He also had a white tank top underneath his jacket, tan shorts, and heavily worn brown boots. Basically, he is essentially where the term ‘tall, dark and handsome’ came from. I raised an eyebrow at the guy. “Why aren’t you a charmer?” He just smiled as he always did, giving that look that made you unsure of him, yet made you willing to go along with whatever he said at the same time. “I’ll take that as a compliment.” He took a sip of his drink as he eyed me. “Name’s Capper by the way.” I laughed at him. “That’s a goofy name.” Capper just smirked. “So is SkyStar.” I sipped my own drink “Touche.” Spada just rolled his eyes behind the counter. “Look, Capper are you going to order something or are you just going to flirt with my friend here all day.” “Oh yeah…” Capper pulled a couple bills out of his jacket. “I heard good things about your tuna sandwiches.” he handed Spada the bills, the latter giving an annoyed glance. Not really out of hate, but more out of the feeling of ‘your one of THOSE aren’t you?’ he promptly pulled out the bread, pulled tuna, salad dressing and other ingredients I failed to recognize. (Probably relish or something? I’m not much of a cook) “So, Capper…” I asked, “...what do you do for a living?” Capper clicked his tongue. “I’ve been around, I’ve done some lounge songs, I worked in a creepy factory that one time, I….” “DAPPERPAWS!” Capper shot up with a start and turned towards the voice, though still trying to maintain a suave demeanor. “Dapperpaws?” I asked, somewhat confused. “It’s his last name.” the voice said, I turned around and Immediately recognized him as helpful Cookie Man from yesterday. “Yeah, I know how dumb it sounds. Though not nearly as dumb as my name.” he then turned to Capper, fury in his eyes. “As for you, Dapperpaws. Stay away from that girl.” “Hey, I didn’t do anythin’ wrong.” “Well I’m not taking any chances with you.” he walked over to the cart and looked down upon Capper “I know your type, Capper, I’ve seen how you work. You’re the kind who takes advantage of a person’s trust, manipulates their emotions, and bring nothing but trouble into their lives. You’re a scam artist, willing to say or do anything to make a quick buck. Isn’t that right?” Capper just sat there, unsure of how to respond. “I...I think I’ll just make myself scarce.” he grabbed his tuna sandwich (which I didn’t notice he finished) and drink. “See you around, SkyStar?” Helpful Cookie Man was unimpressed “Just keep moving!” Capper just backed away from the Cookie Man before making a break for it. “At least he paid…” Spada looked at the bills Capper just handed him, his face going from snarky optimism to mild annoyance. “...never mind.” he put the ‘bills’ on the counter, showing they were just a stack of I.O.U.’s written on brightly colored paper with a cartoon cat drawn wearing a jacket similar to the one on the boy the Cookie Man scared away. Cookie man sat down next to me as I asked him, “So, do you have a history together or…” “No, he’s just some sweet-talking troublemaker who’s been conning all the beachgoers, there’s one like him everywhere.” “Do you think you should call the cops…” “Wouldn’t do me much good, with his attitude they’ll just let him off with a lollipop and a slap on the wrist. Besides, guys like him never stay in one place for long, he’ll be on the streets of another town in a few days.” Cookie Man looked at me, clearly recognizing me from yesterday. “Now, I don’t believe we actually got each other’s names.” “Oh, right.” This is my chance. I thought aloud. “My name’s SkyStar Novo. Sky and Star are one word, and both S’s are capitalized. Yours?” Cookie Man hesitated for a moment before speaking. “You will probably laugh at this, but...it’s Sea-Snail. Sea-Snail Osiris.” Of course, why was I so dumb. I mentally facepalmed. “So, what’s with you being so protective of complete strangers,” Spada asked, showing some surprising concern for me. Sea-Snail looked between me and Spada. “I just...I just don’t want that little street rat ruining your life.” I rolled my eyes “Oh don’t be so overdramatic, I can handle myself.” Sea-Snail gave a sigh “I hope you’re right, SkyStar. So nice to see you again.” “What was that?” I turned to Sea-Snail, confused, and slightly creeped out, at the last thing he said under his breath. There was an awkward pause as Sea-Snail looked between me and Spada. “What was what?” “That thing you said about seeing me again.” Sea-Snail sighed and looked at me with hesitation like he just said something he didn’t want me to hear. “It’s...complicated” he promptly pulled out a pack of cookies and a sticky note and started writing on it “I’m not sure it’s appropriate to discuss it here.” he handed me the pack of cookies “Personally, I wished to discuss this later.” I looked at the note on the cookies “Meet me at the shore tomorrow morning before the beach opens up, we have much to discuss.” Sea-Snail later made himself scarce, leaving just me and Spada. I showed Spada the note “Do you think I should…” “Honestly, I don’t know, Princess.” He paused “Sea-Snail sounds a nice guy and all, and I know that he was the guy who retrieved your egg when it was stolen. Look, I get it, there’s that weird feeling.But you don’t really know him all that well, he could turn out to be a creepy stalker who wants to...you know.” “I know.” I shuddered at the thought Spada put into my head before changing the subject back. “But come on, he used to be a striker guard. I doubt he’d be that horrible, Arissian guards are supposed to be noble. At least, I hope they are.” “Look, I’m just concerned is all.” Spada rested his arms on the counter and looked me in the eyes. “I don’t want this man, whoever he is, to hurt you. I like you, like a lot, SkyStar. Not romantically yet. And I just want you to be ok. I don’t want to turn into your mother, so I’m gonna let you decide this, but just...tell me you’re going to be alright.” “I’ll be fine, Spada,” I said, trying to hide my own uneasiness. “I pray to Ray and Naga you will be.” Spada said under his breath. The next morning I swam up to the shore as Sea-Snail had wanted, seeing he was already there with his back turned to me. When the water became shallow enough to swim, I looked around to make sure no one else was around. Then I closed my eyes and thought legs, that warm fuzzy feeling washing over me as my tail split apart and became rigid, followed by a stinging sensation in my neck and chest as I switched from gills to lungs, before the transformation ending with my surface clothing materializing on my now-human form (it’s magic, just go with it). “Ok, first things first…” I said, walking towards him “are you really the one who retrieved my egg?” Sea-snail turned around to me “Yes, yes I was.” “Ok, good. Just making sure you aren’t some guy who looks exactly like him and has the same name.” I sat down with him, still uneasy about this whole thing. “What did you want to discuss?” Sea-Snail looked hesitant like he was about to say something he might regret. “You know, when I first saw you a couple days ago, I thought you were some other girl that looked like the princess, it wasn’t until yesterday that I put two and two together. Naga and Ray I can be a bit of an idiot sometimes.“ “Where are you going with this?” I asked, confused. “Might as well get this over with.” Sea-Snail sighed, then looked at me, trying to hold back emotion. “There’s no easy way to tell you this, but here goes:” He took a deep breath and said it without hesitation, “Princess SkyStar Novo of Arissia, I’m your father.” Somewhere, Shelly is looking at me, saying ‘I told you so’.
Things Never Said (Chapter III)View OnlineHelpful Cookie Man / Things Never SaidThings Never Said (Chapter III)For a while, we just sat there on the beach, unsure of what to say. That was until I spoke up. “Prove it.” Sea-Snail looked at me, startled “What?” “Just to be safe, prove to me that you’re my father, what’s something about me or mom that only you would know.” Sea-Snail looked hesitant, understandably unsure of how to respond. “Your mother’s favorite color is blue, she says it’s because it’s the color of her home.” “Ok, that’s a start,” I said to myself. “She also liked seaweed wraps. She took the throne when her parents died in a fire when she was 20 and she hasn’t been to the surface since.” Now I was more inclined to believe him, the details of how my grandparents died was a very touchy subject, not even Pinkie knew about it. “And if it helps, when you mom and I got married, we were given these.” Sea-Snail rolled up his sleeve to reveal an amethyst bracelet with the royal crest and the Dolphin-swordfish symbol. The same one that was given to me on my 15th birthday, the day I was officially given the title of ‘Princess’ (and is currently on my dresser). “They are only given to members of the royal family, usually when you come of age or marry into it.” “Yeah, I knew that.” Once again, the beach went silent for a bit, both of us hesitant to speak. “This-this is all happening so fast.” Sea-Snail sighed “I know, I would’ve told you this much later if I hadn’t made that creepy slip-up.” “It’s ok, I would have made that same mistake. So…” my tone shifted to something more stern “...why did you leave our family?” Sea-Snail sighed, slightly misty-eyed “...It’s a bit of a long story.” “I’ve got time.” “Of course you do.” Sea-Snail sighed, not much hesitation left. “Your mother and I had a very rocky relationship by the time when you were born. At first we loved each other, but as our relationship went on and on we argued more and more and we started to realize our feelings aren't what we thought they were, I’ve never agreed with your mother’s Ideals of Isolationism, but when your egg was stolen Novo got more paranoid, she became more isolated, and more or less...shut everyone out of her life, by the time the egg was retrieved she had already divorced me and had full custody of you, I didn’t argue with her because I don't want to make things worse between us.” “So mom shut you out.” “It was partially my fault.” Sea-snail started to tear up “I probably should have done or said something before our divorce was finalized, I should have stood up for myself more or fought for your custody, but it all happened so fast back then. How they let me keep that band is anyone’s guess.” he covered his eyes “Please don’t think I’m making her look like the bad guy, I know a lot can change in nineteen years.” “Hey, I’m the one who lived with her for nineteen years, up until recently she’s always been a little isolated, but why did you leave the guard.” “Work became repetitive and tedious, wasn’t very fulfilling, and I became disillusioned with their ideals. You’d be surprised how extreme they were when you were a kid.” “What are you doing now, Sea-Snail?” I asked. “I’m more or less a swimming instructor right now.” “I see.” I smiled at him, hiding my heavy emotions. “So, what’s up with the name Sea-Snail?” “My name wasn’t very well thought out. My parents were kind of idiots.” I snorted “Clearly...so what do you want to do?” Sea smirked, “Follow me, kiddo, and you’ll see.” All of a sudden he started running towards the ocean, him gesturing for me to follow him to the ocean. We dove beneath the surface, us changing into our aquatic forms, Sea-Snail having a black tail and short blue fins, just like he had when I was in the egg. Once we were far enough from the surface, he turned to me and smiled. “So, Skies, do you think of yourself as a fast swimmer?” I shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so. I’ve always been fairly fast for my age.” “Well, let’s see about that!” he smirked, giving me the impression he wanted to show me something. “I guess I’ll give you a five-second head start.” “Really?” I looked at him confused. “Well, if you say so!” I giddily took off swimming at my full speed, quietly giggling at the rush of water around me, the sights of the beautiful ocean around me zooming past me with every pump of my tail. Before all of a sudden, Sea-Snail torpedoed past me, briefly stopping to wave at me as I raised my eyebrow, slightly annoyed. I pumped my tail harder to catch up with him, clearly seeing the irony in his name. I tried as hard as I could, but by the time I got close I became exhausted and collapsed on a ledge. Dad stopped and turned around to sit by me. “Whoa…” I told him, hyperventilating “That was...exhausting. Were you always that fast?” “Yep, was one of the fastest in Arissia back in the day, it’s what got me assigned to the striker guard. They were all about speed and agility.” he happily sighed. “Though honestly, I thought I’d be a little rusty, I don’t go this far underwater as often as I used to, especially not with a tail.” “Why not?” “Well, if you couldn’t already tell, I have...other obligations on the surface, I don't want to get into it right now, but let’s just say I’ve moved on from your mother.” “I see…” I said, still trying to catch my breath. “Naga, everyone likes to tell me I’m fast, by you’re a whole new level.” Dad chuckled. “Hey, you’re pretty fast yourself so you probably got that from me. And by the way, if you want my advice, try to keep your fins and arms straight, the webbed fingers create a lot of drag.” “Thanks,” I said, still panting a little, but not as exhausted. “But I don’t swim that often, I’m more into shells.” “Interesting.” I awkwardly defended myself “Hey, don’t judge me, I’m a child of the sea, and up until recently, I rarely left my room.” “Hey, I’m not judging.” he pointed to the seashell necklace I was wearing alongside the pearl one. “So..did you make that?” “Yeah, I make a lot of these, in fact, I’m thinking of making one for Spada, though I’m worried he’d find that creepy.” “Hey, go for it, that’s some nice handiwork and he’d love to have it.” “You really think so?” “Yeah…” Dad started to look misty-eyed again (even though we were underwater) before he held me in an embrace, unable to hold back his emotions.”I...it’s just...so nice to see my daughter after all this time.” Once again neither of us said anything, just holding each other in an embrace, barely able to contain the rush of complex emotions. Author's Note 'She also likes seaweed wraps', huh wonder where I got that from? Thanks for being patient, I promise more chapters of this, Gilded Sunburst and even some new stories soon enough. Anyway, that's my two cents, likes and comments are appreciated, MJP out
Things that Will Be Said (Chapter IV)View OnlineHelpful Cookie Man / Things Never SaidThings that Will Be Said (Chapter IV) All dialogue in this chapter is in Arissian Chapter is also from novo's perspective. “Why don’t you go out more, Novo?” I sighed to myself. “I prefer to stay here with my people where I’m needed, I thought we established that, Silver.” “Well, it’s just that...doesn’t living in this castle get lonely after a while, don't you have like, friends or someone like that. What about that surface girl you know, Solaris? And weren’t you married at one point?” “Celestia’s moved on since I last met her, and I prefer not to discuss my marriage, and I assume he has moved on, too. Why does it matter to you, anyway?” “Well, with Skystar going to the surface more and more, and hanging out with guys and stuff, I was wondering why you weren't doing the same.” Silverstream just sheepishly smiled at me. “Don’t hate me.” “Silver, your concern is...understandable, but like I said, I prefer to stay here. The ocean and this kingdom have always been my home, and the people here look up to me, SkyStar has...other interests, to say the least, and I believe she is at a point where she can make her own decisions” “Oh, I understand.” All of a sudden, Silverstream was hit in the back with a plastic suction cup harpoon. Her kid brother, a child around 7 years old with pale skin, curly green fins/hair and a light grey tail named Terramar floating behind her, giggling mischievously. “You’re it,” he said smugly, sticking his tongue out. “Why you…” Silversilver turned to him and playfully chased him out of the throne room, Terramar continually swimming ahead, teasing her. “These two…” I looked up at the ceiling, saying to myself. “May Naga and Ray bless them.” Just then, my daughter, SkyStar came into the throne room, her usual awkward and socially inept demeanor replaced with uncertainty and sense of suspicion. Something which definitely put me on edge, though I tried my best not to show it. “SkyStar! What brings you here? It better not be ANOTHER shell.” “Mom, I want to know something!” “Yes, what is it?” I said, hiding my dread, hoping she wasn’t going to ask what I thought she is going to ask about. “Did you really try to shove my dad out of my life?” I looked at her sternly. “What brought this on?” Sky looked down at herself. “I met my father, Sea-Snail, earlier today.” “You didn’t tell me you went out to the surface.” “I thought I was old enough to go up there.” “I also said you need to tell me whenever you are going anywhere,” I said sharply. “Sorry, I guess I...forgot.” my daughter looked at me, a touch of sternness still in her eyes. “Anyway, I met my father today, well, technically I met him two days ago, and I asked him why he left me alone, and he said you drove him away, I was just…” “That was from a chapter of my life I’d rather not look back on. And I prefer not not discuss it with you at this time. Where did you meet him, anyway?” “When I was hanging out with Spada the other day, he was helping me with a drink mishap, though I didn’t know who he was at the time.” “I see.” I closed my eyes and sighed. “That will be all.” “But you didn’t.” “I said, that will be all.” SkyStar just gave up and sadly swam out of the throne room. When she was out I grabbed a glossy pink sphere from beside my throne and flipped the switch on the back of it, it sprawling into a robotic jellyfish, called a ‘Stinger’, Stingers are usually used for retrieval, advisory and sometimes scouting purposes, though their use differs depending on how their programmed and who’s using it. I usually just use mine to help with scheduling and giving orders to Scouters and Advisors. “I need you to retrieve my sister, for me, there is something I wish to discuss with her, in private.” I looked at my sister and sighed. “When I removed Sea-Snail from my daughter’s life, I thought it was for the best. I believe that his open attitude towards surface dwellers would put us and my daughter in danger. Over time, I eventually learned what a mistake that philosophy was and that I should have handled my relationship with him a lot better.” “So you know you made a mistake. What are you so worried about?” “I’m worried he may hold a grudge after all these years. That he sees me as hypocritical and unfit to take care of SkyStar, and that he’ll take her away and raise her himself.” My sister rolled her eyes. “Paranoid as usual I see,” she said to herself. “Try to put yourself in this situation, your husband spends a lot of time on the surface, right.” “Yes.” “Well, what if he divorced you, took full custody of your children and refused to let you raise or even see them, all the while preventing you from doing anything, would you let him continue to raise your kids if he returned several years later, especially if his actions contradict things he said in the past.” She looked down on herself. “No, not really.” “And that’s what I’m worried about, I can’t lose her any more of my family, especially after the incident at the Canterlot Embassy all those years ago.” “So you’re just gonna hide from him?” “I SAID I DON’T WANT TO START ANYTHING!.” I snapped at her before resuming my composure. “Honestly, Ocean, I am scared to death about this, every time I think of Sea-snail I am reminded that I took Skystar away from him when he had done nothing wrong. For years I have prayed to Naga and Ray to forgive me and make me forget the whole thing happened.” “Novo, look…” Ocean put an arm over my shoulder. “You can’t just keep hiding away from your problems, and I highly doubt Naga and Ray are going to forgive you unless you confront this.” I sighed and looked at her, reluctant. “I know you’re right, Ocean, it’s just...I need to sleep on this.” “Ok,” Ocean made her way out. “See you later, and I hope it goes well.” Soon enough, she was out of the room leaving me to my thoughts. “Why do I have the feeling it won’t?” I said to myself, fearful. Author's Note Queen novo, while on the surface regal and composed, deep down she is fearful and anxious, at least that's how I see her Anyway, that's my two cents, Likes and comments are greatly appreciated, , MJP out.
Helpful Cookie Man (Chapter I)View OnlineHelpful Cookie Man / Things Never SaidHelpful Cookie Man (Chapter I) Text in teal is Skystar's internal thoughts “Are you sure you want to do this on the surface?” I said, slightly confused as I carried around a bucket and tackle box for my crush, who ran a fish cart on the boardwalk and needed to restock his inventory. “What? Are you worried that I’m gonna fillet your friend or something?” Spada said to me smirking. He was carrying his fishing pole in one hand and a folding beach chair in the other. He, as usual, was gorgeous on this day, the sun reflecting beautifully off his silvery skin and dark hair. He was wearing a grey t-shirt with the words “Apollo City” printed on it in bright yellow, black shorts, and yellow flip-flops. “Oh, hush!” I said, sticking out my tongue, half-annoyed. I’d already heard all the possible jokes about my kind from Pinkie. “What I meant was that it might be easier to get fish when you’re under the surface, closer to them?” He folded out the chair and sat down as I set down his things. the fishing spot Spada was using was a small wooden dock a few feet from the shore and a safe enough distance from the Arissian transport currents to keep the line from getting caught in them. “This is the way my mom taught me to fish. My dad tried to teach me how to catch fish underwater using harpoons and spears. Honestly, it wasn’t really my style,” he explained as he opened the tackle box and pulled out a jar of some bright, sticky, sparkly fluorescent bait that fish apparently love, l put it on the hook and then he cast out his line. (Now I may be part-fish but I’m repulsed by that stuff, but hey, what do I know?) “Well, you do what you're comfortable with doing, I guess,” I said, shrugging my shoulders as I sat down at the edge of the dock. I let my legs dangle off the edge, the water running back and forth through my bare feet. “Sooo...” I droned “How is your father?’’ Spada looked dejectedly out into the ocean. “Me and my father aren’t really close, so I don’t…” “Hey, it’s ok, I was just curious, I never had a father growing up, at least I don't think so. Did you think I went too personal?” Spada gave me a blank and somewhat confused look. “Do you want me to get a drink or something?” (Man, casual conversation is so much easier with Shelly and Sheldon.) “Sure…” he handed me a couple of colourful cloth/paper slips, something Pinkie says are called ‘Dollars’. “How about you go get us a couple of Guppees,” he suggested as he pointed to a booth containing a couple of machines a few yards away from us “I like the bubblegum flavor, I think they call it ‘Unicorn Barf’ for some reason. You can get whatever you want.” “Okay.” I walked down from the fishing spot and headed over to the drink booth, containing a large soda fountain. Right next to it was what I assumed to be the Guppee machine. It contained five flavors, each in a different color inside of a rotating barrel with a spout and a cheese plastic label above them telling what the flavor was called. there was a red one called ‘Red Sun’, a purple one called ‘Bad Hair Day Berry’, a yellow one called ‘Banana Cavana’, a brown ‘Poni-Cola’ flavor and a pink one, the aforementioned ‘Unicorn Barf’. I grabbed a couple of small fluorescent cups and placed the cup under the spout, pulling the lever on to the side to dispense the pink slush...only for it to overflow everywhere. “Ugh, Naga and Ray, why do I have to…” I placed the messy cup on the counter and hastily shook my hands to et the melting slush off them when a familiar-looking man came behind me and handed me a few napkins to wipe myself up. I thanked him as I took the napkins and wiped myself and Spada’s cup as best I could. When I looked back at him, I had the strangest feeling that I knew the man, or at least SHOULD know him. He had a light-yellow skin tone, royal blue hair cut short and flat, a blue shirt with various flower designs all over it (Pinkie says it’s called a Hawaiian shirt) and black shorts and sandals. He had a thin and lean build to him, almost like that of the striker guards down in Arissia (when they have legs). “Do I know you?” He chuckled. “You’d be surprised.” he then walked over to the side of the machine and pulled out a couple plastic lids that look like a bubble cut in half with a hole at the top “I think the idea is to use these.” he dumped out the half-melted slush from the cup and put the lid on it and put the bottom of the spout in the lid’s hole and pulled the lever sideways again, cleanly filling the cup all the way to the bubble lid before putting a straw in the drink. “Thanks.” “No problem.” he smiled at me as I filled my own cup with the Poni-cola flavor like he showed me. “So...who’s the second cup for?” “It’s for this boy I like, Spada, he likes fishing and...stuff.” I awkwardly replied and as I put a straw in my drink I turned around to face him only to find him gone, leaving behind a package of cookies with a sticky note on them saying ‘enjoy’ with a drawing of a smiley face and a cartoon clam. After I paid for the Guppees I ran back to Spada at the fishing spot, trying to keep the drinks from melting. “Hey, what took you?” Spada asked, turning to me. “I made a bit of a mess the first time, so a man came over to help me out.” I handed Spada the change and sat back down on the dock with my feet dangling and touching the water like before. “There was just something about him, Spada. It was like I should know him. I know he was just a stranger but…” I sipped my slushie and opened up the package of cookies he left for me, looking at the note. “...I don’t know, forget it. I’m probably just seeing something that isn’t there.” Being in the egg is an… odd experience. From what Pinkie told me, humans don’t have memories of their time in their mother’s womb. Merfolk, on the other hand, have full memories of what they did and what happened as they developed in the egg, which is apparently a weird quirk about our race. What was I talking about...oh right. As I was saying, when you’re in the egg, you can see and hear what’s going on outside of the egg wall as soon as your ears and eyes develop, but everything sounds a bit muffled and looks fuzzy and tinted by the egg wall. You also don't fully understand any language, so you can’t understand what anyone says to you, only able to read their expression and tone. The egg wall is also spherical and tight around you, leaving you floating in egg fluids, curled up around the wall completely unable to move around as you look out into a world you vaguely understand as your body changes in rapid and unexplainable ways. On one hand, it’s weirdly and uniquely relaxing, on the other hand, it often gets boring and you’re just waiting for those cracks to form in your glassy prison. For the record, nothing compares to the look on your mother's face as you leave the egg and enter the world around you, swimming through her hair and fins, full of pent-up energy. After being forced out of the mother’s egg sac, most eggs stay in the place they were laid until they hatch (usually it’s inside a cavern or something like that). The thing is, I have memories of...not being in the place I eventually hatched. Memories of being passed around before winding up in the hands of my mother. I never dwelled on it too much, and when I asked mom, she said it was because my egg was briefly stolen by castle raiders. (Which would actually explain a lot.) But after meeting the helpful cookie man, for lack of words, earlier today, it was a bit hard not to think about those memories, particularly one of the first things I saw in the egg. A tall, lean merman with short hair and fins and wearing what I eventually learned was traditional Arissian striker guard armor, handing me off to someone I didn’t recognize, looking a little sad and dejected for reasons I could never make out. His skin tone was a little hard to discern, the shell of my egg, in particular, making everything my immobile, still developing body could see look reddish-orange, but I could tell his skin tone was light, his tail was a considerably darker color, and his hair and fins were a shade in between. However, what really drew my attention was his face, my vision was a little fuzzy, but I could have sworn the Helpful Cookie Man I met earlier today had the EXACT same face as the merman that handed me off and had the exact same hairstyle. It’s probably nothing, just my developing eyes playing tricks on me or deja vu or something. I thought to myself, despite the nagging part of my mind telling me otherwise.I’ll ask mom if the guy is stationed on the surface now or something. Still, that doesn’t explain why he gave me cookies, but hey, I make shell art, so maybe he’s just eccentric like that. When Pinkie first met my mother, the first thing she said to me was “So...are you adopted or something?” I actually get that reaction a lot, and I understand why. Mom has a paler complexion than me, her tail a dark indigo compared to my lighter red-orange tail. While my hair and fins are light blue in color, hers was a darker reddish-purple, while my hair is very loose, thin and wavy, hers is thicker and tighter. Her voice had this surprisingly deep and husky tone to it, while my voice was higher and more chipper. (Pinkie says it almost sounds as if we came from two different parts of the world.) Mom’s face always had this wise and more experienced (yet still cold) look to it, while my face and expressions had a peppy, youthful and perpetually naive look. (though the perpetually naive thing is more in my mannerisms.) Our bodies were even built a little differently, with me being thinner and taller for my age compared to my mother. It never bothered me too much though, and Pinkie herself said she looks more like her aunts and uncles than her immediate family. So anyway, I was sitting down at the dinner table that evening with mom on the other end. Because of my mother’s cold isolationism and my social naivete, dinner was always awkwardly quiet between us, so we usually ate in silence. I sighed through my gills as I poked at my shrimp and seaweed rice. (Don’t ask how we cook this stuff underwater, it’s complicated.) Mom took the initiative to break the silence “So...your cousin, Silverstream tells me you have your ‘eye on someone’.” her tone was her tone was curious yet slightly adversarial (as usual). “Yeah…” I stabbed a couple of pieces of shrimp with my fork and popped them in my mouth, swallowing them before I resumed talking “It’s a boy named Spada. He's a fish salesman. Don’t worry, he’s a nice boy and lives down here in Arissia.” “Hmmm, that’s nice.” she ate some of her own shrimp, unsure of how to respond. I wouldn’t blame her, she hadn’t been in a relationship in ages. “Sooo....” I scooped up some of the seaweed rice and looked at it before putting it in my mouth. “You know how my egg was stolen?” Mom gave me a bit of a blank look “Yes, honey?” “You know that striker guard who retrieved it?” “I...know...of him.” Mom gave me this nervous and unsure look as if there was something she wasn’t telling me. “Do you know his name, or where the guy is now?” There was a brief pause as she twisted the cap of her bottle of Kimmet (A traditional non-alcoholic Arissian drink) and sucked a bit of it out before twisting it closed and setting it back down (if you wonder how we drink things underwater now you know). “Look, if you really want to know, the guard's name is Sea-Snail, and he left the guard five years after you hatched.” “Did you know him personally?” “No!” mom briefly snapped at me before briefly calming back down. “Look, no, I don’t know him, I just know of him, his name and his retirement is all I know, so please stop asking.” The dining room fell quiet as we finished dinner in silence. The nagging feeling she was hiding something still lingering. __________________________________________________________________________ “So, any particular reason you invited us here, Princess?” Spada said coming into my room, with my cousin, Silverstream. She’s a few years younger than me, with very pale pink skin similar to my mother’s, a light purple tail, and flat light-blue hair and fins, her hair combed to one side of her head. (like a lot of Arissians, when I think about it.) “Well, there’s this man I’m wondering about. Thin guy, yellow skin, blue hair, Hawaiian shirt. He looks exactly like Sea-Snail, the guard who retrieved my egg when it was stolen. I tried asking my mom about it, but the way she answered me, I just couldn’t shake the feeling that she was hiding something about him.” Silverstream snorted with laughter. “You mean to tell me his name is ‘Sea-Snail’.” I rolled my eyes at my cousin. “Just go with it, that’s what my mom told me.” Silverstream continued to hold back snickers as Spada took the turn to speak. “So, what do you want us to do about it?” “I just want to you guys keep your eyes peeled for the guy. When I think about him, I get this feeling that I should know him. I know it’s probably nothing, but…” “...you can’t shake the feeling.” Spada and Silverstream swam over to me, the former putting his hand on me. “Look, neither of us can pretend to know what you’re going through, but as your friends, we’ll look out for him if it concerns you that much. Right, Silver?” Silverstream cleared her throat still stifling a chuckle. “Of course, Sky.” I smiled at the two. So this is what it’s like for Pinkie. I thought. “Look, Princess, it’s getting late. We should be going to bed. Promise to meet up at my cart tomorrow?” Note to self: stop inviting my friends to my room this late at night. “Ok, see you then, Spada.” Before leaving to her place, Silverstream turned to me. “Hey, speaking of friends, where’s Pinkie?” “Oh, she’s in a hospital all the way in Canterlot right now, she hurt herself during a party. Not sure she’s ever going to see him, but I’ll leave her an iris message just in case.” “Ok, see you later.” Silver waved at me and darted out of my room. I laid on my bed and turned towards the bedside table where Shelly and Sheldon were laid. “What?” Sheldon gave me a glare, his black googly eyes piercing through my skull. “Of course I want you to look out for the guy, too.” Sheldon’s look still persisted. “Hey, you don’t know if they are the same person, yellow and blue is a very common color scheme, besides vision fuzzy in the egg, they could look completely different for all I know.” Sheldon rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know there’s still a possibility, but I don’t want to make too many assumptions.” Sheldon now looked annoyed. “I said too many assumptions, I’m already making enough assumptions as it is.” Now it was Shelly’s turn to speak, or at least as close to speaking as a clamshell with googly eyes can. “Ok, Shelly, first of all, I know I haven’t been taking you up to the surface, and for that I’m sorry. Second of all, don’t be ridiculous, if this guy was my father, why did she wait until yesterday to talk with me?” Shelly gave me the ‘I think you just answered your own question’ face. “Fair point, Shelly, but I’ve been going up to the surface for a little over a month, why wait until now?” Shelly didn’t have an answer and just gave the clam equivalent of a shrug “Look, I’ll consider it, but I doubt he’s my father of all things. At my age, mom would have told me about my father by now.” It was Shelly’s turn to roll her eyes. “And they say mom worries too much. Anyway, I’m going to bed, we can talk more later.” Shelly and Sheldon nodded in agreement as I turned off the lights and wrapped myself up in my blanket. As much as I tried to deny it, I couldn’t help but think that Shelly might be right about Helpful Cookie Man. Author's Note I'd like to congratulate myself as (somehow) the first author to tackle the issue of Sky's father.