Mallory meets a Kappa
Mallory was in a good mood as she wandered the area surrounding the village. She had no real destination in mind, but was simply taking in the scenery and enjoying the peaceful afternoon. After a morning of weeding the flowers she'd planted in Ryu's garden and doing a little light housework while Ryu was working with his students, she felt she'd earned the free time.
The day was at it warmest by this time, and while she was relatively cool in the kimono she wore, she thought it would be refreshing to dangle her feet in the pond that was fed by a trickling stream from somewhere higher on the mountain. She couldn't help but give a startled cry when she saw a strange face under the surface of the water, looking up at her just as she was beginning to peel off her tabi socks.
Kneeling at the edge of the pond, she carefully looked down, prepared to spring backward, should the need arise. She wasn't sure what it was she was looking at, but it seemed just as interested in her as she was in it. Its body was somewhat humanoid, but with something akin to reptilian skin...almost like a frog, but it seemed to have what looked like a turtle shell on its back. The head looked like it had a large, round dent in it, like someone hed dropped a small canon ball on it, and a ring of seaweed-like hair floating around it like a halo. It had a weird sort of beak that was a cross between what you'd expect to see on a snapping turtle, and a duck bill. Mallory cursed herself for not bringing her phone so she could take a picture of it.
"I've never seen one of you before." She said, more to herself than to the creature. "Are you some kind of mini water troll?"
She didn't want to mess with it, since it was almost certainly a faerie of some sort. Without taking her eyes from it, she reached for her sandals and put them on. She would go and tell Ryu about it, and perhaps it would still be here when they came back together. She didn't know if he would be able to see it, and an invisible faerie in a commonly visited place in the village could mean Big Trouble.
As she got to her feet and began to back away, the thing surfaced and spit a stream of water at her that made her leap backward and let out an involuntary scream of surprise. She felt foolish for being so jumpy, but she had no idea how fast that thing could move, or if it could walk on land.
As she hurried away, she was almost sure she could hear it laughing.
The day was at it warmest by this time, and while she was relatively cool in the kimono she wore, she thought it would be refreshing to dangle her feet in the pond that was fed by a trickling stream from somewhere higher on the mountain. She couldn't help but give a startled cry when she saw a strange face under the surface of the water, looking up at her just as she was beginning to peel off her tabi socks.
Kneeling at the edge of the pond, she carefully looked down, prepared to spring backward, should the need arise. She wasn't sure what it was she was looking at, but it seemed just as interested in her as she was in it. Its body was somewhat humanoid, but with something akin to reptilian skin...almost like a frog, but it seemed to have what looked like a turtle shell on its back. The head looked like it had a large, round dent in it, like someone hed dropped a small canon ball on it, and a ring of seaweed-like hair floating around it like a halo. It had a weird sort of beak that was a cross between what you'd expect to see on a snapping turtle, and a duck bill. Mallory cursed herself for not bringing her phone so she could take a picture of it.
"I've never seen one of you before." She said, more to herself than to the creature. "Are you some kind of mini water troll?"
She didn't want to mess with it, since it was almost certainly a faerie of some sort. Without taking her eyes from it, she reached for her sandals and put them on. She would go and tell Ryu about it, and perhaps it would still be here when they came back together. She didn't know if he would be able to see it, and an invisible faerie in a commonly visited place in the village could mean Big Trouble.
As she got to her feet and began to back away, the thing surfaced and spit a stream of water at her that made her leap backward and let out an involuntary scream of surprise. She felt foolish for being so jumpy, but she had no idea how fast that thing could move, or if it could walk on land.
As she hurried away, she was almost sure she could hear it laughing.