a/n: These two short fics are edited versions of stories I wrote about 3 years ago after I first read what is now one of my favorite books. This November I reread this lovely book, losing myself once more in Thisby. I then decided to finally publish these pieces of my heart, so please enjoy :)

I own nothing! All credit to Maggie Steifvater, the one and only queen of Skarmouth :))

Wishes

Puck

corresponds with chapter 56 of actual book

When I arrive at the cliffs, the sun is sitting just on the horizon. It will be dark soon, and my brothers will be expecting me home, but I just need a few moments to breathe. Part of me wishes I could see Sean, but I content myself with my current company of only the ocean breeze.

I sit near the edge of the cliffs and pull my knees up close, hugging them to my chest. I allow the cool Thisby air to wash over me, and the smell of the sea soothes me. My eyes search the water, looking at its complexity, its beauty, its danger. It is enchanting, with its calm waves lapping against the shore, combined with the deep rises and dips of the far out sea. It reminds me of what's to come tomorrow, but I stop myself before I think about it to much. It won't do me any good, so I change my thoughts to the funeral.

For some reason, I can't turn my mind off of Sean when he released Tommy's mare. It is a strange and beautiful thing, to see him with the capaill uisce. He knows them better than anyone else. The respect he has for them, the lack of fear. He loves them, and the sea, the way I love Thisby.

I feel it again. That deep, unnameable, wanting. I felt it earlier, when Sean released Tommy's mare. He seemed to be a part of the ocean. Unwavering. Powerful. Wild. I know he must feel it too.

I felt it when I rode Corr. But the sea's call was dulled then, since I was noticing Corr's speed, the ground flying beneath me, and the feel of Sean Kendrick pressed against me.

But Sean normally rides bareback, with nothing to distract him from the lure of the capaill uisce. He is strong, to be able to ignore it.

Or maybe he doesn't.

Maybe he lets it flow through him, listening to the shhhhh, shhhhh, of the ocean. It must help him connect with the capaill uisce, feeling the same tug that they do.

I search the waters again, hoping that somehow, it will tell me how I can make things right. For me, and Finn, and Gabe. For our house. For the race tomorrow. For Sean, and for Corr.

By the time Sean finds me, the sun has set, and only a few rays of light remain in the sky. Sean sits beside me, and I can feel his eyes on me. I must look different from what he is used to. My expression is calmer, not in a trademark scowl.

Here, with Thisby at my back and the sea ahead, I am at peace. I realize just then how relaxed I have become around him, and him around me.

And I don't mind one bit.

Even now, I can tell he is looking at me, studying me, making no attempt to hide it. We sit in silence for a while, until he asks, "Are you afraid?"

At first I think it is a silly thing to ask, since everyone and their mums should be afraid, but then I think harder about the question.

Am I afraid? By all rights I should be, with me on Dove, against all of the capaill uisce. But with the sea near me, and the fact that Sean will be by my side the entire time, I am at ease. At least a little. But I don't know if that counts as being unafraid, and I'm unsure of how to answer. So instead, I say, "Tell me what it's like. The race," because I want to know more.

He is silent for a moment. I assume he is thinking about past races, of times gone by. Things I have never experienced. Then he speaks up.

"There's no one braver than you on that beach."

I notice that he didn't really explain the race, but I didn't answer his question earlier, so I guess we're even. And his words warm my heart so I almost believe that I have a chance. Almost.

"That doesn't matter," I say.

"It does," he says, and my heart stops for a second, soaking up his words. Then it starts again and I am back to normal.

"I meant what I said at the festival. This island cares nothing for love but favors the brave."

I turn towards him then. I recall how he stood up for me at the Scorpio Festival, how that must have taken a fair amount of bravery. I wonder if he's scared now, about losing Corr. Or if he's being brave, like he's telling me to be.

"Are you afraid?" I ask. He looks so unsure of himself right now.

"I don't know what I feel, Puck."

But suddenly, I do. Right here, right now, I know what I feel. It's simply one emotion, and it is towards the person seated next to me.

My body seems to move on its own, and before I know it, I am uncrossing my arms and leaning towards Sean. I close my eyes at the last second before we kiss, and feel only his lips on mine. My heart stops beating again. Then I pull back, and look at his face.

We are barely apart, and I can see that the uncertainty has left his eyes. I don't know where I got the confidence to kiss a boy, but it isn't a bad feeling. Sean doesn't seem to mind either.

"Tell me what to wish for," he says. "Tell me what to ask the sea for."

I think of what he said before, about why he stays on Thisby. The sky and the sand and the sea and Corr. I think about why he loves those things, and then wonder if I've been added to that list.

"To be happy. Happiness."

He closes his eyes, a faint smile showing on to his face. I can tell he is thinking of Corr, and perhaps replaying our kiss, as I am.

"I don't think such a thing is had on Thisby. And if it is, I don't know how you would keep it."

The disappointment is back in his voice, and I want to lift his mood somehow. I feel another burst of confidence, and lean forward again.

"You whisper to it," I say softly into his ear. "What it needs to hear. Isn't that what you said?"

He turns his head slightly, so that my lips are on his skin. A warmth spreads through me, despite the cold.

He opens his eyes. I turn and see the uncertainty back in them.

"That's what I said. What do I need to hear?"

I think for a moment, and then the words come tumbling out of my mouth.

"That tomorrow we'll rule the Scorpio Races as King and queen of Skarmouth," I say, whispering once more.

"And I'll save the house and you'll have your stallion. Dove will eat golden oats for the rest of her days and you will terrorize the races each year and people will come from every island in the world to find out how it is you get horses to listen to you."

There is a sudden urgency to my voice, and I realize that I wish these things terribly. I wish these for me, I wish these for Sean.

"The piebald will carry Mutt Malvern into the sea and Gabriel will decide to stay on the island. I will have a farm and you will bring me bread for dinner."

I end with a finality, thinking that if I speak with confidence, maybe it will come true.

Sean sighs, and I am glad to have chased away the doubt, however briefly.

"That is what I needed to hear," he says, and I let a small smile fall on my face. We both look out to the sea, to beyond, thinking of tomorrow.

"Do you know what to wish for now?" I ask.

His response is short and simple.

"To get what I need."

I think of the mare goddess, of wishes to the sea, of happiness. If anything has the power to grant our wishes, it is the ancient, timeless sea. It tells us we are so, so alive.

We can only wish that it will be enough.