A Valentine Surprise

     Rising from her chair, she swam slowly around the house, looking for anything that might spark inspiration. Thanks to her influence, the abode was almost preternaturally neat - Caylis was a rather more scattered personality and tended to leave things lying around. Isca found one of Caylis's necklaces on the dining room table and decided to put it in her sister's room. Normally, she stayed out of Caylis's personal space, but since her sister was out, she felt it would be okay just this once. She picked up the necklace and swam into Caylis's room. Placing the necklace on the dresser, she turned and scanned the space. She noted approvingly that it was only mildly dishevelled - the bed was unmade, and the sand on the floor hadn't been raked, but other than that it was reasonably neat. Suddenly, she noticed something on the floor at the foot of the bed; her curiosity got the better of her, and she floated over to take a look. Without touching the item, she realised it was a slightly crumpled laminated poster of the band The Twisted Roses. Isca smiled - The Twisted Roses had been Caylis's favourite band since they were in school, and she had spent many an afternoon shrieking along to their latest recording. It drove Isca crazy, but she tolerated it. She herself was a big fan of Nat King Coral, especially in her youth, and she still listened to his songs whenever she could.

     As she stared at the poster, reminiscing her eyes suddenly widened, and she gasped. A stroke of genius had suddenly struck - she knew exactly what to give to Caylis! She would need a little bit of help getting it done, but fortunately, she knew just who to ask for help.

     Isca left Caylis's room, and just in time. As she reached the dining room, Caylis came swimming through the front door, a basket laden with shells hanging over her arm. Isca exclaimed over her sister's finds - there were several unique items that would really enhance her shell collection. Consequently, Caylis did not seem too disappointed when Isca told her she needed to end her visit early. Caylis waved distractedly as Isca made her goodbyes, and the basket contents were spread out all over the dining table before Isca even closed the front door. Isca was not at all offended - with Caylis otherwise occupied, she would be able to set her plan in motion that much sooner.

     As soon as she was out of sight of Caylis's house, Isca summoned Goregas. She didn't have to wait long; the Gulper was upon her in a matter of seconds. Before she could say anything to him, she was obliged to give him chin scritches, which he accepted blissfully. Convention satisfied, she climbed upon his back and told him to take her to the Black Pawkeet. She didn't have to know where it was; Goregas would take her there unerringly. Without hesitation, Goregas swam off into the inky depths, Isca perched comfortably upon his broad back. Soon enough, Goregas began to surface - and as they breached the surface, Isca could see they were directly alongside the Black Pawkeet. She looked up at the main deck and gave a loud whistle, which was immediately answered; a familiar face popped up over the rail. When Garin saw Isca below, he waved cheerfully. Without hesitation, he sprang up onto the railing and leapt off, performing a graceful swan dive into the water below. When he resurfaced, he clambered up onto Goregas's back and plopped down next to Isca. After a brief hug to say hello, they spent a couple of minutes catching up, as they hadn't seen each other in some months. At last, though, Isca detailed the reason for her visit.

     "Caylis is a huge fan of the Twisted Roses," she explained. "They are having a concert on the 1st. I want to surprise her with tickets to see the show. Obviously, I can't go to Tyrannia myself to buy them, so I wanted to ask if you could possibly get them for me. I can pay," she said, pulling a large, gleaming diamond from the bag she wore around her waist. Garin's mouth dropped open, and his eyes grew wide - the diamond was the size of a golf ball! Isca dropped the gem into his hand, and he hurriedly stuffed it into his pocket for safekeeping.

     "Have no fear, Isca," he replied grandly, chest puffed out. "I will take care of everything. This will be an experience Caylis will never forget!" Standing up, he sketched a quick salute towards Isca, then jumped off Goregas's back into the water. There was a cargo net draped over the side of the ship, and Garin used it to quickly climb back up to the bridge. Once he was back aboard, he waved again, then disappeared from view. Isca smiled and tapped Goregas on the back to let him know it was time to head for home. As he dove back into the depths, Isca thought to herself,"Caylis is going to be thrilled!"

     The next few days were an agony of suspense for Isca. Garin had sent word that the concert was all set - although he had said it was on the 31st, which couldn't be right. Twisted Roses always played on the first. After thinking about it for a minute, she shrugged. Maybe this month was going to be an exception for them? Whatever the reason, she trusted Garin. In the meantime, it took all her willpower to keep her secret from Caylis. Garin had said he would send someone to pick them up; they were going to go in style! She had concocted a phoney story for Caylis in order to lure her out of the house that night. Isca told her that a friend of King Kelpbeard had requested a couple of reliable babysitters to watch a group of children for the evening, and King Kelpbeard had recommended them personally. Caylis had grumbled a little, but ultimately agreed to the job. With that, everything was set.

     At long last, the 31st arrived. Isca made sure to arrive at Caylis's house extra early. As she fussed over Caylis's hair, Caylis looked at her in irritation.

     "You are awfully concerned about a babysitting job," she carped. "I don't think toddlers are going to be too worried about the state of my hair."

     Isca smiled widely. "You're right, you're right, sis," she said brightly. "You know me, though, I always have to be well presented." Caylis muttered under her breath and gave her sister a bit of side eye. Before she could say anything in reply, there was a knock on the front door. Their ride had arrived.

     Caylis opened the door. She and Isca were confronted by a member of Garin's crew, neatly attired in a scuba suit and wearing a bowtie and a bright red sash. Caylis was flummoxed, but Isca explained that their client was very well-to-do and wanted only the best for their babysitters. Consequently, they acquiesced to the chauffeur's directions and found themselves climbing into a closed carriage, which was being pulled by a matching pair of small Gulpers. As soon as the door was closed, they were off. The curtains were closed so they couldn't look at the scenery, but Isca was more than content to exclaim over the velvet seats and plush curtains. Caylis sat silent, chin resting on her hand. Thanks to the Gulpers, the ride didn't take too long, and soon the carriage stopped. The chauffeur had dismounted and was holding the door open for them, and as they exited, he

     pointed up. Isca led the way, and as she broke through the water's surface, she was confused. This wasn't the concert hall! Instead, she found herself facing a huge floating raft. It was anchored in place astern of the Black Pawkeet. Mystified, she stared at the structure - and when Garin poked his head over the side, she couldn't help herself.

     "What's going on, Garin?" she demanded. "This isn't what I asked for." As Caylis surfaced next to Isca, Garin smiled.

     "Au contraire, mes ami." He gestured behind him, and when she looked past, Isca understood. She was stunned. She poked Caylis and pointed behind Garin - and when Caylis saw what was there, she let out an ear-piercing scream. "The TWISTED ROSES!!"

     Garin nodded. "You two are special guests this evening, to a private live performance by the Twisted Roses. Enjoy the show!"

     As the Twisted Roses launched into their opening number and Caylis was transfixed by the music, Isca took a moment to pull Garin aside.

     "How did you pull this off?" she asked. Garin shrugged.

     The diamond you gave me was worth far more than a couple of concert tickets," he replied. "All I had to do was talk to the band's manager, and he was more than happy to strike a deal. There was even enough left over to pay for a couple of fancy dinners at Kelp after the show."

     Isca laughed in delight. Caylis wasn't the only one to get a Valentine's surprise!

     The End.