Chapter 133: Back to the MoonFin Stall

The moonfin stall appeared ahead of them, almost glowing in the dim. The wide, shallow bowls shimmered faintly under the lanterns, and within them, tiny streaks of silver darted and vanished. The whole stall seemed alive with movement, ribbons of blue and white silk hung from above, swaying like waves. Each bowl reflected the soft glow of the lanterns, and the water rippled like liquid glass.

A small crowd had already gathered, murmuring excitedly as a young boy tried to scoop one of the slippery fish with a reed net, missing again and again. Each miss drew good-natured laughter. The vendor, Jerek, stood behind the long table, sleeves rolled, voice hoarse from cheering.

"Come on now!" he called to the boy. "You nearly had that one! Don’t let it mock you!"

The boy tried again and failed. The crowd chuckled, and even Jerek laughed, shaking his head.

Sophia grinned as she approached. "Having a good festival, Jerek?"

The man’s head snapped up at her voice, then broke into a surprised smile. "Ah, Sophia, my first customer from this morning, you came back."

"Told you I would," she said, straightening proudly. "And I brought company."

Jerek’s gaze flickered toward Orion, and he dipped his head respectfully. "Alpha Orion...it’s..."

"Jerek," Orion said in greeting, a faint curve to his lips. "I know it’s quite shocking to see me here."

Jerek laughed good naturedly. "That is true."

"I can get the moonfins now right?" Sophia asked him.

"Well," Jerek said, gesturing grandly to the bowls. "You came just in time. The moonfins are restless tonight. The king and queen are both awake and whoever gets them gets a crown."

"The king and queen?" Sophia asked, her eyes darting to the water. Beneath the shimmer, two slightly larger shapes flickered, faster and brighter than the others, weaving between the smaller fish like phantoms.

"They are the fastest ones," Jerek reminded her, grinning. "Catch either and like I said, you win the crown."

"A crown will suit me." Sophia said to Orion.

Orion fought a smile. "Debatable."

Sophia glared at him but focused on Jerek instead. "I want to try!"

"Of course," Jerek said, handing her a small reed net. "You’ve got a gentle look...maybe they’ll come to you."

Orion gave a small laugh at that. "You clearly don’t know her very well."

She shot him a glare. "I can be gentle."

"Yeah? That why you claimed the tree like it was a bane on your existence?" He asked her.

"It was my first time."

"You weren’t gentle."

"It was my first time." She repeated to Orion who just chuckled instead.

Jerek cleared his throat, amused. "Easy, easy. The fish can feel tension, you know. They’ll vanish if they sense you mean harm."

Sophia huffed, crouching in front of one of the bowls. "All right," she whispered softly to the darting lights beneath the surface. "Just one of you. Come here, please?"

The crowd around them quieted a little, as some people...those who’ve failed but lingered around to see if anyone could succeed in the game...stood watching.

Sophia dipped the net in the water and held her breath. Immediately she did it, the moonfins scattered in every direction. The water rippled, her reflection breaking apart.

She tried again. And once more the fishes swam towrds a different direction not coming close to her net. She tried again and still nothing, it was like her presence was sending the fish swimming farther away. Her brow furrowed in confusion.

"What’s happening?" She asked.

"Maybe you’re scaring them," Orion teased.

"I’m not!" she said defensively. "They’re just... really fast...and avoiding me."

"Maybe they sense chaos."

"You know what, how about you do it instead?" She asked him.

He leaned against the table, arms crossed. "And why would I do that?"

"Because you are here and you seem like you can do better than me," she said with mock sweetness. "Also because there’s a child crying."

He blinked. "What?"

Sophia gestured toward a small girl standing at the next bowl. Her eyes were glossy with unshed tears, lip trembling as she clutched her own tiny net. Her father crouched beside her, trying to help, but his own attempts were no better.

Sophia’s heart softened. "See?" she whispered.

The child’s father looked up as Orion and Sophia left their bowls and approached them instead, suddenly flustered. "Alpha..." He said in shock. "...forgive me, I..."

"There’s no need to ask for forgiveness when you did nothing." Orion told him then crouched down to speak to the little girl.

"What’s wrong, little one?"

She sniffled. "They won’t let me catch any," she said, voice tiny and wobbly. "Even the small ones don’t like me."

Sophia crouched too, smiling gently. "Maybe they’re just shy. And besides, you don’t need to cry. You just need to show them you are having fun."

The girl blinked as she tried to wipe her tears. "Papa tried to buy he didn’t get anyone. I wanted to give it to Mama to give to grandpa. Mama said he liked moonfwins."

Sophia smiled at the girl as she spoke.

"We lost her grandfather during the attack." Her father supplied. "She’s never insisted on moonfins before but her mother told her a story about how her grandfather would have liked them if he was here. It was just a joke but she took it seriously and she only wants either me or her to get it."

The man looked sad that he couldn’t get what is daughter wanted and it softened Sophia. She wondered if her father had been like this too.

She turned to the girl. "How about I try?" She asked the girl.

"Can you catch it?" The girl asked.

"Not really but if I can’t then we will tell the alpha go to help us. He’s the strongest in the pack and you will take a gift from him right?" Sophia asked her.

The girl giggled. "I know he’s stronger than papa."

The man chuckled.

Sophia took her net and once more tried to catch the fish but nothing. Like before, they swam past her net.