//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Ever Northward, Children // Story: Follow Her Lead // by Ice Star //------------------------------// Nata is special, or so I'm told. Everyone else has told me so. Well, everyone except Aunty told me that Nata was special and tried to make that word mean something with the way I was looked at as it was spoken. Not Aunty. She had to have known what 'special' really meant. She hated it when anyone said that, even though Nata kinda is special since there isn't anyone like her. Aunty always said there was something special about Nata, like she had a special talent or something only Aunty was aware of. Every time someone called Nata 'special' they were doing a poor job of hiding something to make Nata happy. Most other seaponies didn't think much on why Nata was Nata. Yet, Aunty still insisted that there was something very special about Nata but she would never say what, only she meant it different from everyone else. She never said much of where Nata came from but I do know that Aunty used to live farther away from everything until she needed a safer place for Nata and me to live. Two sea-fillies can't live far off in the ocean and be raised right. A village would have to do. My aunty was a city seamare, and she thought she knew this. She grew up with rocky coral houses, big markets, and the sight of the sea god in her eyes as a little filly and tales of mighty divine Alicorns in her ears. Of course she thought a village's outskirts would be safe. It isn't so safe anymore, then again I'm not sure if we're safe any more. We seem safe, after all I hear that ponies go on adventures all the time. Their type is the magical type and the adventuring type. But I've also heard that the Overworld is a pretty weird, but still very tame, place. I mean, they get to stand on something solid and they don't float, they're grounded. Here, I have to make sure nothing comes after Nata and I from all directions, even if some place seems safe it probably isn't. We're surrounded by all sorts of color and full-blooded sea creatures, but all I know about north is that it's cold, there's not as much color, and the general direction, but I'm sure that I can find Nata's father. He's got to be a unicorn like mine was, since Nata can't be a siren otherwise. Was her father a powerful wizard of some kind? He'd probably have to be if he met Aunty since seaponies aren't supposed to Surface often. I'm not sure about ponies though. They seem to go over the water more than under it and I'm not sure what happens to a pony once they're underwater. Can they swim? Outside of that, I know that we'll have to try and find him soon, since ponies don't live too long, Aunty was four hundred and was too young to go like she did. Ponies only live to be about two hundred. I don't understand how they can all die so young, like fish. It must be awful to be a pony, they don't even have scales to protect themselves with! Nata, who has been bobbing swims a bit faster to catch up with me. She's been doing pretty good so far. For an entire week she hasn't asked about Aunty or anything important, only if she earned a 'strike' or for me to answer silly questions. "Aria do you think there are whales up north? Where the game is?" "I dunno." "Whales can sing." "Yup." "We can sing too," she says. Her tone seems to be trying to get me to notice something. "Okay...?" Her muzzle scrunches up. "Why aren't whales sirens?" "Because they're whales...?" "Huh?" "Nevermind, Nata," I sigh. Nata scrunches up her muzzle even more. "But if we can sing, and whales can sing that means you and I are whales or they are sirens." "Sure, they must be sirens too." I don't know how to argue with her when she's like this. She just starts to connect random things and then act like all our problems are solved. Nata thinks that clams can sing but she's never called them sirens before. I used to think that everything was cool or weird when I was really, really little before Aunty explained everything to me so all the 'strange' and 'cool' things were just ordinary and made much more sense since I don't like it when things are confusing. It just makes me want to take my forehoof and smack something. "Hey Aria," Nata begins again, "What's cold like?" "Umm, I dunno Nata. I've never been anywhere cold. I think it's supposed to hurt a little bit?" Nata gulps. "H-h-hurts?" "Well, we have scales, Nata. We'll be fine." She nods absentmindedly. "Scales are good." "Uh-huh." We swim onward in silence and I try not to think about what scales can't protect us from, especially Nata. It's still so strange no having Aunty around to watch us. There's food all over if you know how to find it but I'm more worried about keeping track of Nata. I'm not Aunty, I can barely stand all of Nata's temper tantrums and questions. Her babbling is going to get to me too. I'm not patient like she was. There may be something special about Nata but I sure as Tartarus don't know what it is. Now I have to worry about Nata repeating everything I say. Or getting lost. Or eating urchins. Or Nata getting eaten. There's no one to watch her anymore but me. Me, Aria Blaze, orphan and local tough filly because I tell you the village colts had it coming. I'm left to take care of my cousin all by myself, until I can find where she belongs. I just wish I knew where to go other than 'north', since I doubt that the cold would be my only worry way up there. All I've gotta do is tackle everything head on, and it should be fine. Nata may not use her head much, so I guess that's what I'm for now that I'm the only left who can look after Nata. I'm just not sure if I know how. She's more of a hoof-full than a basket of angry crabs. Really angry crabs. "So Aria, do ya think we'll make any friends?" "Uh, sure. You're pretty nice so I think you'll make lots of friends." "Will the ponies be nice? We've never met a pony, what if they're mean?" "I dunno, but if they're mean, I'll kick 'em." Nata turns and looks at me, her face is oddly serious which isn't like her. I think that when Aunty was like this in her last few months is was called 'lucid'. "That's what you do for everything, Aria." "I know. Trust me, it'll work." "Okay."