Babysitting Sucks, Especially When You Die From It

Prologue

The chattering woke her from her slumber. She tries to wake herself up by rubbing her eyes against the cool touch of the snow.

“Soru!” One of her siblings called out. “Wake up, you dunce!”

Soru grumbled to herself, “I’m going to take you all out for clubbing one of these days.”

“What was that?”

“Nothing important.” she waved them off with her flipper.

Her siblings, Emi and Maru, were looking at her with a mischievous glitter in their eyes. She knew that they were up to no good. What are they trying to drag me into this time, she thought with unease.

They slapped their stomachs in excitement. “Let’s go check out that fishing hole we found the other day!”

“Fine. I’ll bite for once. Just give me a few minutes.” She slid across the ice and checked her reflection in the water. “Looking slick, my dude!” The reflection showed her finger-gunning at the fantastic seal. She has satisfied her narcissistic needs. She was ready.

She followed (it was more like being dragged) her siblings until they reached the fishing hole. Her parents found multiple hotspots to hunt for fish. “I heard from Marinda that they saw a rainbow fish in this place and if you eat it, all your wishes will come true!”

Soru sighed, “And you guys really believe that story? This is why you guys are still called kids.” While it did pique her interest, it was obviously a myth made up by their eccentric aunt, Marinda, who was obsessed with the supernatural.
Since her siblings hadn't completely shed their baby fur, she realized that she would have to be the one to search for these allegedly existing fish. She cursed being the firstborn. It meant babysitting. Taking in a deep breath and shooting a glare at the brats, she dove into the uninviting water.

Within the water, she saw an abundance of life bustling about. The overwhelming amount of king crabs made her mouth water but she focused on her current objective. As she swam about, she noticed nothing out of the ordinary. She contemplated whether to have a taste of that delicious crustacean, but before she could give in to her urges she saw a flash of light dart in front of her. What was that? A glint of the eye? She questioned if she had eaten anything spoiled. It couldn't be...

She decided to swim towards the direction where the light source dashed to. There was a splash in the water...

“Sowu!” Emi blurbed. She was flailing in the water with her baby fur weighing her down.

“You couldn’t stay up there for just one minute?!” Soru snapped, but she swam back towards the surface regardless, not wanting to be branded a murderer by her family.

She was pushing Emi up with her head when she heard a chilling shriek behind her. Soru glanced behind her. A large shadow was charging directly towards her. An orca. The horror of the situation dawned on her. Her parents sacrificed themselves to protect her, shouting for her to escape. She trembled, the emotions all flooding back. She had to take Emi along as quickly as possible.

Emi climbed through the hole to safety. Thank God.

A heavy impact crashed into her side. She let out a pained gasp. Desperately trying to shake off the pain, she dove deeper, hoping to lose the killer whale. But the wound bled into the water. The giant monster could smell her. The killer whale cut the distance between them, rows of sharp teeth engulfing her entire vision. She winced.

It was then that the legendary fish appeared. Its iridescent scales sparkled from the light seeping into the ocean from above. It’s all or nothing and you know what, I can’t die hungry. She dashed and bit into the fish.

God, if I was reborn I wish I could be born into a wealthy family and live my life carefree instead of having to worry about the threats in the wild.

Before she got to review the dish properly, the shadow was already upon her. She clenched her eyes shut. Her last thought was Emi and Maru. Who would protect them from now on without her?