An escort into the deep

Fleur felt something bump against her and, with a jolt, she opened her eyes. She was gazing right into the eyes of the biggest green turtle imaginable—they were wise and intelligent eyes. She blinked and looked down at his mouth, which resembled a parrot’s beak, as it opened.

‘Well, don’t just sit there. Hop on my back,’ he said with great authority, giving her a nudge with one of his massive flippers.

‘Y-you, you can talk ...’ stammered Fleur in total amazement.

‘Of course I can talk. Everything can talk. The question is whether you can understand or not,’ he replied calmly. ‘Now, be a good girl and hop on my back,’ he repeated patiently.

Without another word, Fleur kicked her legs and swam over to the huge reptile, sinking gratefully and obediently onto his massive shell. His wizened head twisted around and one round eye, like a shiny orange marble, swivelled in its bed of wrinkled skin. With a grunt of satisfaction, he started beating the water with his massive flippers. Immediately, they were sailing through the water, being washed from side to side by the surge of the current.

Fleur sat on the turtle’s back, hanging on tightly to the ridge of his shell. Strangely, she did not feel frightened for one minute. She looked around in amazement as they went further out to sea and into deeper water, then she looked down and studied the incredible creature who had rescued her. The back of his head was like the rest of his skin, a dark green grey colour and patterned a bit like a jigsaw which had not quite been joined together. His patchwork skin was rough and leathery, yet soft and warm to touch. The massive shell she was clinging to had a similar pattern t