To be a nymph was to be mostly passive. They were not the force-markers of the world, or the earth shakers. They were the gentle stewards who took all of the open endings of nature in their hands and made beauty from it. They wove the chaos into something meaningful and useful.

So when Dyname went missing after the great battle and did not reappear after some weeks, Ampoule tried her hardest to let the forces at will settle. She braided her sweetgrass, and she danced amongst the waters. She powdered her medicines, and she waited, and she waited, and she waited…

Ampoule looked where she could, but had not made it farther than the lands that just surrounded her stretch of beach. It was then that the nymph realized that, no, she never left Dreamsend Shores anymore, did she?

She used to leave to visit the howling river and its beautiful, treacherous flame – but that had been some time ago.

When Ampoule did not know where to begin to search more profoundly for her young sister, she sat alone and thought of that strange building amongst the woods, where all those mortal souls had come together. Yes, if anyone knew where a striking spotted young seagirl would be, it was them!

First, the tides had delivered Dyname to her. Now, Ampoule’s own rushing tide would deliver her to Dyname.

She looked upon the very building from the treeline, obscuring her image behind that of a rather large and burly trunk. The Nymph attempted to sniff, but found it hard to scry one scent from another when they were all pushed together like that, and of course, veritable strangers to her.

Ampoule shifted her weight, feeling uncharacteristically nervous, and trying to steal one more moment of silence before she knew she must call out and give an enigmatic entrance.

The nymph hauled in a deep breath. It was now or never, she supposed – she had already passed too many moments waiting for the decision to be made for her, either by being noticed or having a random event occur that would evict her from hiding. When neither occurred, she nodded towards herself, certain the greater gods were having a bit of fun with her.

It wasn’t like her to feel so nervous.

Without the help of the many fermented berries, Ampoule felt rather exposed out here, so far away from her clandestine shores. There was so little she could control! Suddenly, she wished to have Poseidon beside her, to do all the talking and spectacle-creation for her.

After all, he cared for the small, spotty girls, too. She was his nymph, too.

But instead, Ampoule sucked in breath, gaze trained on the wooden front door, ready to push forth and enter the realm of another, in daylight, unhidden, unintoxicated, unmagical – it was all so raw. She was nothing more than a forlorn sister, seeking to be reunited with a loved one.

It was so real, that the nymph almost believed it.

There! That was when the Swan saw movement out of the corner of her eyes. She could now see a woman digging around in the soil. The nature around her had been organized into rows, not unlike her own garden full of healing and ceremonial plants.

Ampoule easily remembered the broad from the party, as she had been dancing on tables, and immediately decided this was preferable to facing off with a large door.

Showtime, she thought sharply and quite seriously, as Ampoule lifted her head and walked forth, having all the energy of the sun (when moments before, she had all the energy of creeping ivy). Ahoy! the simple woman chimed, tipping her head towards the woman and then swinging her nose to gaze at the thatched building. This cannot be the same Howff that I visited all those months ago, she mused, setting a frame of reference for an introduction.

It looks so different, during the day.

Her eyes, momentarily, bounced downwards to glance at the germinations the banded woman had been working with. Then, those eyes took on an almost apologetic tone, with eyebrows pointing in towards one another, knowing that mortals did not often like to be distracted from their special tasks.

It was then that a young boy tumbled onto the scene, seeking to distract the woman with the most strange accent.

Better make haste.

I am Ampoule – and I am looking for someone. She said, her voice edging on loud to bring the attention back to her own query. Suddenly, Ampoule regretted not having acted sooner. Even another figure entered the scene, at first out of view of even her own peripheral vision, but she turned her head expecting to see any other youth, but instead it was –

Dyname? Dyname!