Kira's Secret by Orysia Dawydiak

Kira was hurt but not surprised.
    Her mother’s reaction at hearing the news was one of concern. “But, Kira,” she said, “you’ve always loved to swim. And it’s such great exercise. What made you change your mind?”
    Kira was prepared to defend her decision, though she didn’t completely understand her new feelings. “I read that chlorine is bad for your lungs and your skin. And it wrecks swimsuits. Look at how many I go through, and they’re so expensive.”
    â€œOh, honey, don’t worry about the suits, we can manage that.”
    â€œWell, it’s just not healthy. My eyes sting, and my skin itches. And, anyway, I’m not that competitive. I just like to swim, not to race. Maybe I’ll join the track and field club, do some long distance running. That’s good exercise, too. I don’t have to compete if I don’t want to.”
    â€œNo, Kira,” her mother agreed, “you don’t have to compete. But we’d like you to stay active. You’re such a bookworm.” Her mother patted her on the head and returned to chopping vegetables for supper.
    Kira smiled behind her back. She was getting plenty of exercise that her mother didn’t know about.
    That Sunday she and Cody hoped to take a short field trip if the weather was fine. He had his watercraft license and they would take his father’s motorboat out of the village harbour, around the rocky southern spit, and into the next cove. When they had asked Babbling Bill, he’d told them that was the best local spot to find seals. The two of them wondered if that was where Bill had seen the selkies many years before. Their objective for the weekend was to locate seals and learn if they could communicate with them. At least that was Kira’s role in the plan, once she was underwater.
    Kira’s parents were glad to see their daughter had a friend to spend the day with. They were off to a nearby town to visit old friends, so they would not be around to see Kira boarding a boat. That was also part of the plan.
    Babbling Bill was happily playing his fiddle, surrounded by a small audience on the wharf as Cody and Kira pushed off into the harbour. The day was warm and bright, barely a breeze over the calm water as they rounded the spit. Once on the other side, the waves were stronger, rocking the boat as they chugged farther from shore. Kira scanned the surface with her spyglass, looking for any signs of activity on the surface.
    â€œThere!” she pointed toward the far south shore of the cove, where rocky outcrops shattered incoming waves into sheets of spray. “Seagulls flying low. And I think, maybe, I saw a seal.”
    â€œI don’t want to get too close to the rocks,” Cody said. “One hard wave and we’re splinters.”
    â€œYeah, I know. How about anchoring out a bit farther, clear of the rocks?”
    â€œAye, aye, captain Kira!” Cody saluted her and pulled out the throttle. When they reached the spot, Kira set down the glass, pulled off her jacket and glasses, and stood up. She was already barefoot and ready to jump in.
    â€œHey, don’t rock the boat with a fancy dive,” Cody warned her as he grabbed the gunwales to steady himself.
    Kira grinned at him, then slipped overboard with barely a ripple on the surface. She shivered at the thrill of once again gliding through the green water and hearing the booms of crashing waves on shore. Below her the dark fronds of seaweed swung back and forth with the current as if greeting her. Looking up she saw the dark arrow-shaped boat above her, and the bright blue sky beyond. Now this was swimming, she thought, kicking her tail and moving toward the breakers.
    The booms grew more thunderous as she approached the shoreline. But in spite of all the noise, she could make out squeaks and barks, very like the sounds of seals on land. Then she saw their dark shapes zipping up and down, three, four,