CHAPTER ONE
under the sea foam spell

𖦹 ⋆｡˚⋆ฺ ⋆｡˚⋆ฺ˚⋆˚ 𖦹

  WATER STRIKES AGAINST THE SAND, edging up the beach and washing over the jagged rock pools that surround the distant caves. The marram grass flails about in a wild dance as the wind picks up, twisting to and fro as the dark storm clouds begin to collect on the horizon. Seashells sweep across the shore as the tide begins to ebb and flow. The cries of gulls carry in the air from the reefs to the cliff tops, hungry for companionship as the year draws on. Sometimes Cove wonders whether or not her life would've been easier as a seabird — an oyster catcher, a shearwater or a gannet, she doesn't mind — but even they're terrified of her. No matter how gentle her soul is, she's just another predator to them.

Cove stares at the ceiling blankly. She listens for the waves as they sing songs to her through the open window, the whistling wind carrying through on a cold breeze. The air tends to tell stories to those that are inclined to open their hearts and simply listen. It nips through her woollen jumper, raising goosebumps atop her freckles and sending a shiver down her spine. Her bones pop satisfyingly when she sits up to get a better look at the seashore.

  Hope bubbles in her chest. The tide is in.

  Cove scrambles to her feet, tripping over herself to get to her wardrobe and begin rummaging around for her sealskin. Without a moment to waste, she pads down the hallway in her fluffy socks, cradling it in the crook of her arm as if it's a newborn. She shoves her feet into her old pair of wellies that she doesn't mind ruining, doubling back to peer into the gaping aquamarine maw that is their little kitchen — messy enough to wind up Mairi but too clean to feel anything apart from surreal.

  Her mother is stood doing the washing up, elbow deep in soapy water. It's eerily quiet, apart from Mairi's shallow breathing and the occasional tick of the grandfather clock. Cove can hear her teeth grinding together, pearly rows of seal canines that sound like nails against a chalkboard whenever they collide. She's desperate to tell her to stop, but that would only make her more stressed.

  "Ma," she calls gently into the kitchen, so as not to startle her. "The tide's in. I'm going out to see Cordelia, but I'll be back for tea."

  Mairi keeps her vacant stare completely fixed on the window, watching from her prison as the waves roll in. A frown creases her stony expression, her eyes sullen. She looks as if she wants to say something, but she only hums in acknowledgment and begins to scrub at a plate with more force than necessary.

  "I'll tell Gran and Grandad that you were asking after them," Cove calls hopefully. It just makes Mairi stiffen as if she's been shot.

  Cove lingers for a minute too long. Just in case she has something more to say to her, like a 'goodbye' or an 'I love you'. Just in case.

She locks the front door behind her, wary of her mother's safety. Not that there are many burglars in the area — but, what would they really have to steal when her lifeline has already been stolen? The stepping stone path that leads to the house is slightly windswept, dusted by granules of sand that wriggle into Cove's tatty boots. Gorse bushes are still flowering, a vibrant yellow splash standing out in the foggy atmosphere.

  Cove spots Cordelia over by a rock pool, tentatively dipping a finger into the icy water to tickle an anemone, and laughing to herself when it wriggles away from her. Her blonde hair cascades down her bare back, still slightly damp from the swim to the shore. She wears her sealskin like a snowy dress, holding it up to her chest as the wind lashes at her exposed arms and shoulders. Her ears perk up comically when her friend draws closer.

  "Vee!" Cordelia says, her pointy grin infectious. She wraps her arms around her tightly to leech off the warmth she's radiating. "Triton, it's baltic up here. Even for our thick skin. I dunno how you do it."

  "Oh, I know," Cove agrees, inhaling the scent of sea salt that lingers in her hair. "It's been a rubbish summer."

  She nods knowingly. "We've been getting that out at sea. All rain and gales on the surface, so it is. It's been awfully hard to catch any cormorants in this weather."

  "That's a shame," Cove sympathises. "They're your favourite, as well."

  "Don't worry about it," she dismisses. "There's always next year. Anyways, we should try and swim out before it gets too late. Have you eaten? There's plenty of fish to go around."

  She shakes her head. "I'm alright, Cordy. I can have something when I resurface later."

Her expression screws up bitterly. Cove tries to avoid mentioning her human life to the selkie colony because they only prefer to transform when they have to or when they want something. Very few of them will do it for a place to live, or out of love. Selkie-human relationships are always fleeting unless the selkie is kept in place, like her mother.

She doesn't really like to dwell on it.

  Cove neatly folds up her clothes on a rock and drapes on her sealskin like a shawl, ignorant to the slimy strands of seaweed that stick to her bare feet. Anxiety creeps up on her when she thinks about how her wand and house keys are sat atop her pile of clothes, exposed to the elements. She rushes back to hide all of her belongings in her boots, just to be sure.

  "Come on, Cove!"

  She giggles at Cordelia's exasperation, half-jogging down the beach to catch up until the waves are crashing into her ankles. The feeling of the saltwater against her skin is rejuvenating, swirling around her legs as she's beckoned further and further into the depths. Cordelia races ahead of her, desperate to dive headfirst back to her home — but Cove decides to savour it for a few seconds longer, wading deeper in until the water is lapping at her collarbones. An inquisitive seal pokes its head out of the water at her, blinking slowly as if to say, "Hurry up, Vee! The colony won't wait forever!"

  Cove submerges herself completely.

When she reopens her eyes, the world seems more clear. Her senses are sharpened, a thousand new sounds to hear and a hundred new scents attuning to her nose. Two legs have become one tail, her arms a pair of flippers. She flounders about for an embarrassingly long time, trying to find her bearings before attempting to swim alongside Cordelia.

Bubbles surround her like a veil of twinkling crystals, tearing through the blue depths as the whistling and calls of her family resonate in the distance. A school of fish dance around the pair nervously, scuttling off in the other direction to avoid becoming their breakfast. She can spot a wide patch of cold-water coral many metres below her tail, and although seals should be colour blind she can make out cooler tones, such as the murky green of the water and the grey of her own sleek fur.

  "I can see them over there. I'll race you!" Cordelia whistles, flourishing her flippers before tearing off in the other direction.

  "Completely unfair!" Cove trills after her. She's still wobbly in her new form, flailing about wildly to try and catch up. It doesn't help that Cordelia's barking laughter carries on the currents back to her.

  She zips through the glacial waters, her newfound blubber keeping her nice and warm against what would give any human hypothermia. Everything passes by in a pavonated blur when she begins to pick up the pace, racing through the torrential saltwater and plunging deeper into the depths. Her nerves have all dissipated by the time she's skimming through the ocean, left back amongst the sand dunes on the beach. Cove eventually crashes gracelessly into Cordelia, who's shaking with laughter at the sight of her friend looking so frazzled. She swims out of the way and disappears off to see a small pup that Cove presumes is her little brother, who's only growing bigger and stronger by the day. A delicate smile pulls at her snout.

She begins to wade further into the ring of seals, but it's easy enough to tell her grandmother apart from the rest. Lenore stands out from the rest of the selkies, being the grandest one with the loveliest coat, a chain of seashells around her neck to display her status. She carries herself with a natural superiority that never steals from her elegance, her large brown eyes the kindest in the entire ocean (in Cove's opinion). The chief's beloved wife, she has an unmatched air of importance and isn't someone you'd dare to wrong.

  Lenore makes a fond noise at the back of her throat, coasting up to greet her granddaughter. She nudges Cove with her snout affectionately.

She looks around, puzzled. "Where's Grandad?"

  "He's gone diving with some of his friends for better fish. You know how he likes a challenge. But enough about him! How have you been keeping, leanabh?" she croons, circling her to get a better look.

  "I've been doing alright," Cove replies shyly. "It's as dull as ever on land." But even as she says that, her heart swells with longing to walk on two legs. The conflict kills her.

  A tragic expression glazes over her black hole eyes. "And what of your mother?"

  "Still searching for her sealskin," she admits, whiskers twitching. "Is there really nothing I can do to help her, seanmhair?" Her grasp on Gaelic is always a tad slippery in human speech, but the trilling way that the seals communicate manages to convey it more smoothly.

  Her flipper grazes Cove's, tugging her into motion as they begin to dive deeper, the colony following in suit. "I'm afraid not. This is her own burden to carry. Unless that dreadful man relinquishes it, she'll have to keep searching by herself."

  "Would she visit me, do you think? If she did find it and come home to you."

She clicks her teeth. "I'm sure she would. You're her daughter, after all. She loves you."

  "She has a funny way of showing it."

"It isn't easy for her," Lenore admonishes. "She's not free as you are, my dear. Be patient with Mairi. Every day is a painful struggle until she is reunited with her true family."

"I know."

Her eyes snap onto movement, immediately jolting into action and dragging Cove in a different direction. "Look, there's some salmon. Do you remember how to hunt, leanabh? Or have the humans brainwashed you completely?"

"Oh, please," she scoffs. Lenore chuckles to herself and swims ahead to guide everyone towards the prey she'd spotted.

Cordelia makes her presence known, shifting up next to Cove to nudge her playfully. "I reckon I can catch more fish than you."

"Is everything a competition with you, Cordy?" she wonders exasperatedly.

"It keeps life interesting."

There's a devilish glint in her eyes. "Oh, alright. You're on."

°•.•°•.•°•.•°

CORDELIA WON.

Surprise, surprise. She's been busy gloating about it for the past two hours, taking every begrudging smile from Cove as a little victory that spurrs her on to be more of nuisance. She  twists around her in circles, a thrumming bundle of energy that's showing no signs of calming down. Cove can bare her teeth in a smile and keep up with her antics, but it's clear that she'll have to leave them soon.

  The selkies are growing agitated the longer she stays, Cove can tell. Despite being the flesh and blood of the chief, she would always be an outsider to them. She's too humane. They liked her enough to stay civil for the most part, but her time with them is drawn taught and tension begins to unravel. She nudges Cordelia with her flipper to signal upwards, pulling her up closer to the surface.

  "Already?" she whistles forlornly.

  "You know I can't stay forever, Cordy."

They swim towards the light, their eyes adjusting from the darkness they'd been accustomed to for the last few hours. When they break the surface, grey skies a stark contrast to the blue depths, Cove can tell that they're only a few miles or so from the shore. Cordelia embraces her as well as a seal can, and slowly slinks back into the sea. She isn't ready to go back on land just yet.

  The beach is mostly unchanged, clouded over by a sheer mist and laden with seagulls that are searching for treasure. She has to shoo a few of the more confident ones away from her pile of clothes, shocked by their daring.

She feels a hand graze her own, and turns to face the woman behind her.

  Lenore is beautiful, with ringlets the colour of a raven's feather and a wise look in her deep brown eyes. A sleek grey sealskin is draped over her frame, the seashell necklace from before grazing against her collarbones. She cusps Cove's face in her hands, taking in her granddaughter's expression tenderly.

"Tìoraidh, leanabh," Lenore whispers. "Until we meet again." Hearing her proper voice as a human is jarring compared to the ways they communicate as seals. She leans into her palm, relishing in the warmth and frowning when it fades away.

Cove watches with a heavy heart as she saunters back towards the sea, swallowed up by the salt and sea foam. Even though it makes her feel childish, she lifts her hand and waves softly at the armada of seals that have their round heads breaking the surface.

She'll truly miss them when she goes off to school in a few days. She always does, really. A perpetual longing for a complete family lingers at the forefront of her mind, but she merely brushes it off and begins to wander back inside.

author's note!

this chapter wasn't so important to the plot but it was essentially just to introduce you to cove and her transformations!

i'm ngl when i imagine them all talking to each other in seal form they're basically just barking w subtitles 💀