They came. Perhaps because they were curious about me, perhaps because they wanted to brag about what they had done: it didn’t matter to me, so long as they came.
I could see their little mouths opening and closing, and the way they flipped their fins and shimmied their bodies, and I had to assume they were saying something to Ofrse’s son. Before I could grow impatient, he turned to me and started speaking once more.
“I was right; they set her free because they didn’t think she should have to marry me. They’re extremely proud of their own cleverness. It’s quite annoying.”
“Did they push it to shore?” I asked. Ofrse’s son croaked at the fish again, which started them up into much agitated darting and leaping.”
“No,” he said, reluctantly. “They say they started to push her to shore, but she asked them to push her into the current, instead. They say she said that she’d stand a better chance of truly escaping us that way.”
“Of course she did,” I said, my heart swelling with pride. Elisa could handle herself on the open water, and the current was surely strong enough to sweep her far from the toads, whereas if she’d tried to go overland they’d have caught her in no time. My brave, clever daughter. If only it didn’t complicate my own task!
One of the fish shot a small stream of water at the toad, and I could swear I hear laughing. He ignored them, and continued, “They say that once the current caught her she waved goodbye, and that was that. They didn’t follow her, not even to the current. They’re stupidity is due in no small part to their short attention spans.”
I gazed downstream, but could not make out any distant specks floating on the water. “Ask them how long ago that was.”
Ofrse’s son shook his head. “They don’t know time like we do. I could give you my best approximation, tho’. Mother had me haul the bed into the state chamber- that’s when I heard the fish talking about how ugly I am, and started to realizing what Mother had in mind- and that was a little after sunrise- fish are very active that time of day, you know-”
“Yes but when did she disappear,” I asked through gritted teeth.
“I’m getting to that,” he shifted nervously from one set of feet to the other. “I was going to say… I stayed in the state room after that and Mother accused me of sulking and maybe I was but really I was trying to think how I could get out of it, and then not too much later I heard her shrieking ‘she’s gone!’ which of course she meant your daughter… so maybe two hours ago?”
Two hours! I felt dizzy. My daughter had a two-hour head start, in a swift current no less. Would I ever be able to find her?
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