The 5 Seablings AU

Ch. 1- Out of the Egg

Taptaptap... CRACK!

She blinked slowly, taking in the world around her. She had just come out of her egg. She was in a nest, with four other eggs- my siblings!, she realized. The nest was on a small island, practically just a lump of sand in the middle of the ocean. The ocean? She had to get there! She had to get her siblings there! Now!

She used her webbed fingers to roll an egg towards her. It was almost as big as she was, and very heavy. She would have to be careful not to break it. She rolled the egg to the very edge of the island, and ducked underwater. There was so MUCH down there. Multicolored fish darted between intricate coral structures, sunlight filtered through the surface, making everything sparkle. She found that the three pairs of gills on the sides of her head could breathe the salty water. She brought her sibling's egg to a hollow in the coral. This would be her home. She quickly found some seaweed to cushion the egg, then she returned to the island for the rest.

She brought the eggs, one by one, to the safe haven. Finally, there was just the last left on the island. She saw a bird circling overhead, screeching. She paid it no mind, intent on her task, until the bird dove at the egg! She fended it off, smacking its beak until it fled. She dove beneath the waves, clutching her sibling.

One, two, three, four. That's how many eggs she saw when she hatched, that's how many she saw before her now. The coral cave was beautiful, light pink with plenty of natural light filtering through the walls. She found some cushiony seaweed that her siblings' eggs now rested on. She sat and appreciated how beautiful they were. Shiny and iridescent, one green, one blue, one red, and one a deep, deep purple. She wondered when they would hatch, what they would be like. She knew she would find out in time.

For a few days, she watched over the eggs. Occasionally, one would twitch or turn over, and she thought it would hatch, but it always settled back into the seaweed. Eventually, her thoughts turned to what was outside the cave.

She swam out. The reef was beautiful. She saw something shiny flash. She picked it up and brought it back to her cave. The object was flat, on one side was an intricate pattern of golden leaves, and the other was reflective. She saw her reflection for the first time.

She had pale blue skin, pink hair, feathery gills, and bright blue eyes. It occurred to her that she was a sentient creature, and that sentient creatures should have names. She decided to call herself... Lizzie.

💮

Lizzie only had to wait one more day. She had just gotten back from gathering food, and put it away. Then she noticed that one of her siblings' eggs had a crack on it! Lizzie didn't know what to do, other than watch as the purple egg split open, and her sister climbed out. She had pale skin, red-orange hair, and green eyes. She also had dark, dark purple tentacles with glowing patches.

"Hello, sister!" Lizzie said, overjoyed.

"Hello... sister?" The hatchling replied.

"What's your name?" Lizzie brought her the reflective thing.

She looked at her reflection for a few moments, then said, "I think I'll call myself Cleo."

"Nice to meet you, Cleo." Lizzie smiled. "Are you hungry?"

The sisters ate together, then Lizzie told Cleo what little she had figured out about the world around them. She talked about the days and nights, the attacking bird, the three siblings yet to hatch, and the reef. She described the dolphin she chatted with once. Cleo found this very interesting.

"Can we go talk to the dolphin?"

"Sure, if we can find them again."

Lizzie and Cleo went to the spot Lizzie met the dolphin, an elevated chunk of coral near the island. After an hour or two, (Cleo was willing to wait) the dolphin happened by again.