Ayon’s birthday came toward the beginning of autumn. As it had been with her older sister N’Shal, the family made a big fuss over decorating Ayon with seashells of various sizes, species, and colors.
When Ayon reached the surface of the sea, the sun was just beginning to set. From her grandmother’s stories, she knew it as the hot ball of light and not the cool one. But, at that time of day, it didn’t really seem hot or especially bright; and it wasn’t bright yellow, as Ayon had been led to expect it to be. The sun was as much orange as it was yellow.
Except for the area near the sun, the sky was a bright blue; it was a brighter and richer shade of blue than the ocean itself. In the area of the sun, now nearing the horizon, the sky was changing to deep shades of orange. The sun itself was changing from orange to red. As half the sun dipped below the horizon, the sky around it became a dazzling panorama of burning orange and flaming crimson.
She felt that the sun was slipping away from her. She had to see more! With all her strength, Ayon swam in the direction of the sun, hoping to catch up with it before it could escape from her sight. Either the sun was too fast or Ayon was too slow. The sun finally slipped completely beneath the horizon, leaving a pale, reddish glow.
At that moment, Ayon realized that the sky behind her was becoming dark. As the sun surrendered its claim to the sky, the darkness rushed in to fill the sky. In a few minutes, even the pale, reddish glow had faded from the horizon.
With the coming of twilight, a single star appeared somewhere to the north of Ayon. Then two others appeared: one in the eastern sky, the other in the west.
The twilight of evening, in its turn, surrendered to the dark of night, other stars appeared a few at a time, until the whole sky was garnished with thousands of twinkling pinpoints of light.
With the coming of twilight, a single star appeared somewhere to the north of Ayon. Then two others appeared: one in the eastern sky, the other in the west.
The twilight of evening, in its turn, surrendered to the dark of night, other stars appeared a few at a time, until the whole sky was garnished with thousands of twinkling pinpoints of light.
Ayon noticed the moon. At least, she thought it was the moon. It wasn’t round, as N’Shal had described it. It looked more like a glowing cockle shell as viewed from the side.
For the next few hours, she dreamily gazed upon the stars and the moon and watched the play of moonlight on the ocean waves. At length, she flipped her tail and turned toward home.
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