Stavanger Bay ex's & oh's

As she had done with her own daughters, Doe did not begrudge the daughter of Skellige her first taste of the sea. The piper had slipped away unnoticed, but her absence had soon been discovered. It was Doe who had first found her scent, being attuned to the whims of the charges she nursed, and it was Doe who watched over her now, standing by to ensure that she would not be carried off by the tide, or by the erne that circled hungrily above them.

But she did not stop the girl from heading toward the waves. These waters were her birthright, and as much as they belonged to her, she also belonged to them.

"It is the sea, little Piper," said Doe, padding into the waters herself. "Do not be afraid."

She should be, of course. And Doe herself feared the ocean blue, the creatures that writhed within, the darkness and deepness of the waters. But she did not show it, and if the piper was also afraid, neither should she.