Northstar Vale moss, mourne

At this point in their journey, Swordfish was already tired. He looked weary on his legs, half asleep with a heavy-lidded stare at the distant stone. He’d fixated on a mossy portion of it that looked like the shadow of a seagull if the seagull had a giant head. That little mossy bit was all that had carried him to where they stopped.

So, when Meerkat asked for one of them to stay behind with Mercy, Swordfish did not hesitate.

Me.

The boy shifted until he had found a comfortable spot and then dropped to his belly. His eyes shifted between his sister and his mom. He imagined Stingray would probably enjoy accompanying their mother to wherever it was she was going. Swordfish was hoping that he could convince his sister to take a nice long nap. His hopes were high.

I’ll stay. Take Ray with you. Ray was the best sidekick anyway.