20 Comments

I love this so much! I love selkie stories but I didn't know about the Kushtaka - now I kind of want to find one 😉

Expand full comment

Lovely. My first thought was she was a selkie... interesting how cultures as widely divergent as the Celts and Tlingits independently conceived nearly identical "mythical" beings.

Expand full comment

Reminiscent of Celtic/Norse Selkie stories. Didn't Anne McCaffrey write a couple of books based on them?

Expand full comment

This was so beautiful. Thank you for the cultural note as well, I've heard tales about selkies but it's wonderful to learn new indigenous folklore. Instant fan!

Expand full comment

Such a beautiful story, and beautiful writing.

Expand full comment

What a sweet love story! :) I enjoyed learning about the lore behind the Kushtaka.

Expand full comment

I really enjoyed this contemplative story about feeling trapped, and the incorporation of the Kushtaka was really cool!

Expand full comment

Oh, this was nice. I've always liked otters, and I'm a softie anyway, and this, this was perfect.

Expand full comment

This is a beautiful love story. The first thing I thought was that she was a selkie, like everyone else.

I can see where a Kushtaka would be considered a trickster, as otters love to play tricks on people. Nothing evil, just a peculiar sense of humor.

Thank you for this story, and I understand why it wanted to be written. It's almost as if a Kushtaka was whispering in your ear, or haunting you with a bone flute.

Expand full comment

I loved this! And I love the idea of being able to slip between the two skins as an otter. I wonder if i can make that happen...

Expand full comment

A beautiful little story - I loved it. Thanks.

Expand full comment

This was just lovely. It reminded me of one of those uplifting and endearing standalone episodes in the X-Files. Like When the ghosts stole Christmas.

Expand full comment

What's a fishmaid?

Expand full comment

Oh, okay. I thought it was going to be like an alewife or something but then I couldn’t find it via search 😄

Expand full comment

I love this sweet story and the peek into some unfamiliar (to me) folklore!

Expand full comment

I read the first few lines and knew this was really good, so I saved it until my day started to wind down. Then I found how extraordinary it is. So precious!

Expand full comment

this is perfect. captivating!

its reminded me of a nearly finished story i got stuck with.... thank you!

Expand full comment