It was two years after her return to Macrae, and Elspeth knew her time was nearly up. She was having trouble reconciling this with how little she actually wanted to go. At least I will be able to say goodbye, she tried. It helped a little. Macrae knows the curse. She will wait. Elspeth was further comforted.
The one thing Elspeth still did to protect herself was making sure she never left the water in the same place. It provided her very little protection, but she felt it was enough.
After all, when she left the ocean, the shore was empty. It usually was, excepting those times Macrae was there to meet her. No one really knew she existed after all.
Elspeth waited until she was within the tree line to pull her cloak off her shoulders. The cold came to her immediately and strongly. She had pushed her body near to its breaking point. This would be her last day on the surface, one way or another.
For some cosmic reason Elspeth will never know, she covered the burrow's entrance with a rock that time. However, in her chill and sorrow, Elspeth stumbled far from the path to Macrae's house. Her senses were muddled by fatigue. She did not notice the footsteps behind her.
YOU ARE READING
The Maid and The Selkie
Short StoryMacrae finds a strange child on the sand. Elspeth finds her preconceptions are not as true as fact. They find friends in each other, and want to keep that love forever. Cover made with www.canva.com
