Martyn Green
Coordinator,
Baywater Anglers
Not that life was completely safe; it wasn’t. Not with the crabs ready to pounce on any creature that was injured, but that was just the way that things had always been. If you were unlucky enough to be hurt you simply found the best possible place to hide and hoped for the best. You might be lucky or then again…
Prunella stopped that train of thought abruptly, aware of a sudden silence in the pool; a kind of hushed, expectant silence simply throbbing with menace. Instinctively she ducked beneath the nearest rock and poked out a wary eye. Something was terribly wrong, but what was it?
Straining to her utmost she could just see, right at the edge of her vision, a streamlined silhouette which darted quickly from sight. At the same instant a slight parting in the clouds briefly illuminated the bottom, so that she could see the rippling distortion as a black shadow passed briefly over her hiding place and then disappeared in the distance. The coast was clear.
Or was it? A feeling of unease gave her pause, kept her in the shadow for a moment longer, just in case, just… in time to put a claw to her mouth as her friend Deidre darted from cover, then abruptly turned to flee back to its welcome embrace. Prunella froze against the rock, then shoved herself back as far as she could as a current in the water announced a creature racing past her cover at speed. For a moment she almost shrieked a warning, but the words died in her throat as she realised that she was already too late.
Deidre, however, had time for one shriek, an awful sound which was abruptly cut off. Prunella covered her eyes with her claws, shaking in terror, then removed them to see a terrible sight; Deidre’s tail, all that was left of her friend, drifting slowly down to the rockpool floor.
For a moment, just a moment, Prunella considered flight, but then shook herself, realising that this was not really an option. A predator had entered the pool, that much was clear, and from now on there would be little chance for a leisurely stroll during the lull between the tides. If she wanted to survive, then she would have to wait for the cover of darkness, then dart her way back to Lenny’s hideaway, travelling light and pausing often to hide.
As chance would have it, however, she did not have to wait for darkness. After only an hour she could have cried with relief when she heard Lenny’s familiar voice calling her name softly. “Prunella!” he hissed, trying to keep his voice as low as possible.
“Oi’m here, Lenny!” She waved, urgently, from beneath the cover of the rock.
“Thank goodness, for that!” He stopped in front of her hiding place, “Get under my shell, quickly. That’s right! Now just stay hidden underneath. We’ll talk when we get back to my place.” He looked around once again, just to make sure that the coast was clear before moving off. “Careful now, I’m heading back. Whatever you do, make sure that you stay out of sight. You’ll be safe under there.”
A slight vibration in the waters made the two creatures jump, Lenny raising his claws in self defence, but it was only Bert, the blenny from across the way, scurrying back to his hole. Normally he would stop
