Gift From The Sea

A wish is born from the sea. 283 words.

Gift From The Sea

Petra struggled with her large wicker basket. Inside lay a single giant oyster. It was the surprise result of an offering to the sea that accompanied a wish.
The local sea-witch had told her where to go and how make the wish. Petra had repeated over and over as she hunted for it:

"I want a twin sister named Precious, great Poisidon!"

When she found and dug up the oyster, she was overjoyed.Getting it home was proving to be exhausting. But at last she managed it. It took even longer to shuck the gigantic thing with a normal shucking knife. But after much effort, she did so.

Inside was a pearl, shaped like a young woman.
Laying the beautiful miniature in bed beside her, Pretra fell fast asleep.
The next morning, Petra heard a soft voice singing. When she opened her eyes she found a nearly exact replica of herself sitting up in bed smiling at her.

"Precious, my dearest twin sister! You don't know how I've longed for you!" she told her.
"And for you!" her twin said.

The two women spent many long years together happily. Finally, they grew old and feeble.

"My dearest sister, I fear our time together is getting shorter," lamented Precious.
"I feel the same," Petra replied nodding sadly.

The two sisters climbed into their shared bed, held hands and fell asleep.Neighbors found them the next morning, peacefully dead. They held a funeral and buried them both in one grave. For many years after the villagers swore the sea mourned them both with sounds of wailing winds and crashing waves.
Many claim to see a ghostly pair walking by the ocean holding hands.