Ankyra Sound we ain’t spoken for weeks and so much has changed

Sapphique needed neither fish nor shells, though Meerkat didn’t tell him that. Instead, she smiled and nodded at his offer. Whatever they caught or collected, she was sure her kids might enjoy it.

Rodyn offered a listening ear and she bit the inside of her cheek. She hadn’t meant to be so obvious, though maybe he was only intuitive. Despite being a counselor herself, she didn’t like the idea of bending a stranger’s ear. If she needed to talk, she would speak with one of her loved ones.

Before she could even decline or respond in any other way, Rodyn fired off a bunch of questions about hunting on the beach. Meerkat smiled, once more thinking of her eldest’s son very first reaction to sand.

You get used to it with some practice, she said, though I recommend sticking close to the water’s edge to look for shells. They’ll be easier to dig out of the wet sand, plus that’s where they tend to collect. Come on.

Motioning for him to follow, she padded back toward the ebb and flow of the surf. The incoming wave hit her heels with a shock of cold, though she quickly adjusted to the temperature. She stood still, waiting for it to pull back out toward the ocean, then pointed out the line of treasures washed up at the waterline.