Trinket frowned at the mershark. It appeared they didn't have more answers. They thought she was supposed to ask a god for answers, but really, it was the reverse of that.
But still, she considered their words for a long moment. Finally, she said, "If you stop asking 'why,' you lose the game."
She scooped her doll up into her arms, holding it against her side. The doll's head turned completely around the back to continue staring at the mershark with its glassy eyes.
She looked the mershark up and down. "You're fun to play with, but you're bad at the game. You think you know things you don't, and you don't try to find answers to the things you don't know. You're never going to get good at the game like that."
She paused for a long moment, thinking through her next words, never taking her eyes from the mershark's.
Eventually, she spoke again, her voice soft. "You said you need to win every day by killing the things that try to kill you. But you can't kill something you don't understand. The fish didn't understand you." She pointed at the dead fish on the sand at her feet. "The fish didn't understand how to survive. If you don't understand, you won't know how to survive either."
She turned and started walking away. The doll's head turned completely around again, watching the mershark for every step Trinket took. For a moment, just a moment, it seemed there was the sound of a child's laughter. But the mershark couldn't tell who it came from...the girl, or the doll.
But still, she considered their words for a long moment. Finally, she said, "If you stop asking 'why,' you lose the game."
She scooped her doll up into her arms, holding it against her side. The doll's head turned completely around the back to continue staring at the mershark with its glassy eyes.
She looked the mershark up and down. "You're fun to play with, but you're bad at the game. You think you know things you don't, and you don't try to find answers to the things you don't know. You're never going to get good at the game like that."
She paused for a long moment, thinking through her next words, never taking her eyes from the mershark's.
Eventually, she spoke again, her voice soft. "You said you need to win every day by killing the things that try to kill you. But you can't kill something you don't understand. The fish didn't understand you." She pointed at the dead fish on the sand at her feet. "The fish didn't understand how to survive. If you don't understand, you won't know how to survive either."
She turned and started walking away. The doll's head turned completely around again, watching the mershark for every step Trinket took. For a moment, just a moment, it seemed there was the sound of a child's laughter. But the mershark couldn't tell who it came from...the girl, or the doll.
