This is a little oneshot that was inspired mostly by a random movie that my bio teacher left with the sub for us to watch on Friday. Why we were watching a movie on the Loch Ness Monster in bio class is beyond me, but, coupled with some of the info found in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander (erm, that would be JK Rowling, rather), it proved to be quite an inspiration. This story ties in a bit with a longer fic that I am in the process of writing, and will begin to post when I finally think up a title for it.
Obviously, all rights belong to JK Rowling. Which I figure you already know, but, nonetheless, caution never hurts.
The Kelpie
A soft breeze streamed over the surface of the loch, rippling the waters so that the sunlight glinted off in bright flecks. It was a glorious summer day, with only a few puffy clouds drifting lazily through the sky. The wildflowers were in full bloom, spotting the hills with dashes of colour.
Down the side of a hill traipsed a little girl, no more than five or six. She hummed to herself as she went, her jet-black hair streaming behind her, stumbling on the hem of her black robes every once in a while. Whenever she saw a red flower, she stopped and frowned at it, her brow furrowed in concentration, until it finally turned a shade of light lavender. It was a little game she had decided to play with herself, for whatever unknown childish reason.
The young witch stopped at the edge of the water and stood looking out over the glassy surface. Her parents always told her not to go too near the water, for there were dangerous creatures that lived beneath its surface. The very thought sent excited shivers up the girl's spine. Looking furtively about her, she sat down and pulled off her shoes, tossing them behind her. Then she waded out into the waves lapping about her feet.
It was rather fun to be breaking the rules for once, she decided. The water was icy, but the witch, savouring her rebellious move, ignored the cold. She knew how to swim, she had nothing to fear, and so she threw herself forward into the water and kicked her legs, laughing as she propelled herself through the water towards the centre of the lake.
Suddenly, she gulped down more water than she intended to, and began to splutter and cough. In an instant, a cramp erupted in her side, and she flailed her arms wildly above the surface, gasping for breath. The water was too cold, freezing, and she realized that her limbs felt as though they had been turned to ice, and she would never be able to keep herself afloat, never be able to reach shore in time…
With a resigned sigh, the girl's head sank slowly below the water, leaving only ripples to show where it had been before.
The wind seemed to stop, and for an instant, a cloud obscured the sun. For a second, the entire loch was eerily still. And then an immense creature burst from the depths of the waters, gripping the back of the young witch's robes in its strong jaws. It sped towards the shore of the loch, its powerful body weaving through the waves, and gently dropped the small form of the witch onto the pebbled shore of the lake.
The little girl gave a sudden gasp and coughed out of a mouthful of water. Panting, she rolled over and pushed herself to her knees, wondering blearily how she had managed to make it back to shore. A rumbling snorting noise above her made her glance up, and she shrieked in fright.
The monster was arching its long neck so that it could peer down at her. Its long, muscular body looked something between that of a snake and an eel, but it was easily fifty feet long and as wide around as a tree trunk. Its head was long and dragon-like, and it was displaying two rows of sharp, pointy teeth. The witch began to back away in fright, certain that the creature would strike suddenly and devour her… but, to her surprise, it blinked confusedly at her retreat, as if it realised it was frightening her. The next instant, to the witch's astonishment, the beast had become a horse with bulrushes for a mane. Stepping delicately out of the water, it whinnied softly and nudged the witch's shoulder with its nose as if to confirm that she really was all right.
'Hey there,' whispered the girl, hesitantly reaching out a hand and touching the horse's neck. The creature's flesh was as cold to the touch as the icy water dripping from its reedy mane, but when it put its face up close to the girl's, its dark eyes were warm and strangely human. The young girl clambered to her feet and stared in awe at the animal before her. Then, to her amazement, the horse lowered its upper body to the ground, as if offering to let her climb on. Grinning with excitement, the witch put a tentative hand onto the horse's neck, and swung herself onto its back.
In one fluid motion, the horse leapt out over the loch and landed with a splash, its hindquarters instantly transforming into a long silver fin. The girl shrieked in delight and gripped the merhorse's neck tightly as it swam in dizzying circles about the loch, at times spinning into the air and landing with a loud splash, seemingly encouraged to attempt some new feat with every excited giggle that escaped from its rider. Had the wind not been blowing from the direction of the girl's home, she probably would never have heard her mother shouting her name.
'I need to go back,' she whispered into the merhorse's ear. The merhorse stopped frolicking and gave what could only be described as a regretful sigh before reluctantly turning and swimming back towards the shore.
A tall witch with dirty-blonde hair pulled into a loose bun and an angular face was standing on the shore, her arms crossed strictly over her chest and her mouth pressed into a thin line. She seemed torn between worry and anger, and as she approached the shore, the young witch bit her lip at the thought of the scolding that was coming. Upon reaching the shore, the merhorse turned once again into the sea serpent it had originally resembled, and the girl slid off of its neck onto the shore.
'Hi Mum,' she said brightly. Her mother was busy staring dumbfounded at the sea serpent, her mouth slightly open, but the next moment she pressed her lips angrily together again and glared down at her daughter, her eyes flashing.
'Minerva McGonagall! What on earth were you thinking?! How many times have your father and I told you not to go near the edge of the loch? You could have fallen in, you could have drowned, you could have…'
'Mum, it's all right!' said the girl quickly, wringing out the hem of her drenched robes. 'I was close to drowning, but he saved me!' She gestured with one arm towards the sea serpent, who was floating awkwardly by the shore, trying not to attract the wrath of the older witch.
'And that!' shouted the girl's mother, breathing hard. 'Minerva, how could you be so senseless! He's a kelpie! And you know that kelpies turn into horses and wait for people to climb onto them and then drag them beneath the surface of the lake and eat them alive, how many times has your father told you?!'
'But Mum, he saved my life!' The girl glanced apologetically at the sea serpent, who was making a sad little whimpering noise and looked quite crestfallen at this description. 'Wouldn't he have eaten me when I was drowning the first time, rather than save me first and then try to drown me again?'
Her mother opened her mouth to continue her lecture, frowned slightly as she processed this new thought, closed her mouth, and looked from her daughter to the forlorn sea serpent.
'Well, I still don't want you going near him,' she said finally. 'Who knows what might happen next time, and besides, you don't want to disrupt kelpies too often. It's not respectful.' Her expression softened as she looked at her daughter, who was still dripping icy water. 'Are you sure you're all right?' she asked concernedly, brushing a strand of wet hair off of the girl's face.
'Yes, Mum, I'm fine, honestly,' sighed the little girl in exasperation. A sudden gust of wind made her shiver slightly.
'Come on,' said her mother, putting a hand on the little girl's shoulder. 'We'd better get you back home, you'll catch cold if you stay out here in the wind all wet.'
'Wait!' cried the girl, and she ran back to the edge of the water to where the kelpie floated. The kelpie bent its long neck so that its face was level with the little witch.
'Thank you,' she whispered, patting its nose. 'I'll try to come back and visit, if it'd make you happy.' The sea serpent whistled slightly in agreement, the tip of its long tail splashing the water like a dog's. It watched happily as the little girl smiled faintly at it, picked up her shoes, and began to walk back up the hill, chatting animatedly while her mother shook her head in amused exasperation. The kelpie waited until the pair of witches was out of sight, and then it dove back down into the depths of the loch, leaving barely a ripple behind on the surface of the water.
Well, that was random, but fun. Please review, if you feel like it!