The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea Read Online Free PDF Page B

up a wondrous sound, unexpected in this desolate hall—a bird’s cheerful warbling.
    Cradled in the center of Shin’s palm, its wings folded snugly against its sides, is a beautiful magpie with red wing tips.

 
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    The magpie coos in the palm of Shin’s hand. Unlike the black-and-white magpies that flit about my village, this magpie’s wing tips shimmer a vibrant shade of red—the exact color of the Red String of Fate.
    Th e magpie flutters its wings, and I feel a strange ache in my chest.
    Kirin approaches, his long strides eating up the short distance. He lifts the wooden birdcage, and Shin gently places the magpie inside. Th e bird doesn’t seem to mind its imprisonment, content to hop up and down the cylinder perch that spans the width of the small cage. As Kirin ties closed the door with a piece of bamboo string, Shin turns away, sliding his sword back into its scabbard.
    I point to the birdcage. “Where did that magpie come from?”
    No sound comes from my mouth.
    â€œWhere did that—”
    Nothing. No sound. No voice .
    I press my fingers to my throat; my pulse beats strong. “What’s going on?” I can feel the words, the familiar vibrations. “Why can’t I hear myself?”
    â€œYour soul is a magpie.”
    I look to where Namgi grins at me on the bottommost step, having pulled the mask down from his face.
    â€œWhat do you mean?”
    He doesn’t have to hear my words to read my expression. Sauntering over to Kirin, he bends down to peer into the cage. “When Shin severed the Red String of Fate, it took your soul. For you, your soul is tied to your voice. It’s not unexpected with singers and storytellers.”
    My … soul?
    He raps a knuckle against the wooden bars, causing the magpie inside to ruffle its red-tipped wings. “A temporary state of being. Nothing too serious. Imagine it like missing every third heartbeat.”
    I blanch, that in fact sounding very serious.
    Kirin tugs the cage out of Namgi’s grasp. “At the end of the month, come to the south gate of Lotus House.” His voice is dull, as if he’s said these same words many times before. “A servant will deliver your soul to you. We will not be responsible for what might happen should you fail to appear.”
    I struggle to understand. How different it is to believe in myths than it is to live inside one. If I am to trust their words, my soul is a magpie and somehow outside my body. Yet I feel no different than when I first woke to this world. Perhaps a bit saltstained and bone weary, but nothing compared to what I’d imagine losing a soul might feel like—one less heartbeat a minute, a chasm as wide as the world inside you.
    â€œLord Shin,” Kirin calls out, “with your permission, Namgi and I will return to Lotus House.”
    Shin straightens from where he’s been leaning to pick something up off the floor. “You have my thanks, Kirin. I’ll join you shortly.”
    Kirin bows, followed closely by Namgi. Th ey turn to leave. Th e magpie shrills a warning.
    â€œWait!” I shout, but as before, I make no sound.
    Th ey sprint from the hall, taking with them the magpie, my soul . Soon, they’re gone.
    â€œTell them to come back!” I rush up the steps and grab on to Shin’s arm. Th rough the thin fabric of his shirt, I can feel the warmth of his body, the jump of his muscle flexing in response. He turns, the glint of a blade in his right hand. I stumble back and lift my arm. When no attack follows, I look up. He watches me with one brow raised, proffering my knife out to me, handle first.
    â€œAfter the trouble I went through to take your soul,” he says mockingly, “you think I’d kill you now?”
    His sardonic tone makes me bristle with anger. “I didn’t think it would matter. To someone like you, what is a body without a soul?”
    His eyes immediately move