textfiles/sex/EROTICA/S/susie2.txt

Susie
=====

"Arg!"

Dan McGregor tossed the sunday edition paper across the living room, where
it fluttered mockingly in the air before finally settling onto the clean,
dark carpet. "MIDDLE EAST ON BRINK OF WAR" proclaimed the headline, next
to the articles about increases in violent crime being attributed to
television and video games, and election debates in which the candidates
had reduced the campaigns to slander wars.

He stood up, running his hand idly through his short, neatly combed blonde
hair. At 6'1, and 170 lbs of muscle, he looked like the perfect college
'jock'. Yet he was a man of intelligence, and compassion. He'd graduated
university with several degrees, and was working a comfortable,
well-paying job with a legal firm. Yet he was not content.

"It seems to me that the whole world has just lost what little grasp of
reality it may ever have had. All everyone wants is a piece of the other
guy's life, or money, or whatever. Why can't anyone just be happy with
what they have, and love people for what they are? This world doesn't
work."

He wandered over to the window, where his eleventh story apartment
overlooked a crowded, dirty city, not yet beginning to stir under the warm
red glow of the rising sun. A faint hint of smog hovered in the air,
tinting the light even more as it reached the sidewalk, illuminating the
litter and dirt with filtered rays of light. Dan looked upwards, where, in
the distance, the sun was throwing the first rays of light onto the bay,
where it was reflected and refracted across the top of the city in all the
colours of the rainbow. The bay was several miles away, and from his
apartment Dan could see only a thin sliver of it, but he knew exactly
where his twenty foot 'relaxation boat', as he called it, was docked and
waiting for him. The "Pretty Lady", he knew, would be sitting peacefully
in her spot, rocking gently in the morning breeze, and waiting for him.

A smile tugged faintly at his lips, and without even consciously forming
the thought he decided to spend the day in his boat, listening to the
relaxing lap of the waves against her hull.

He removed his shirt and walked into the bathroom, where he began to run a
shower for himself. Stripping naked, he stepped into the warm water, and
washed himself, enjoying the splashing of the warm spray. The water felt
natural to him, and washed away some of the bad feelings he'd absorbed
from the newspaper.

"Maybe everyone just needs a nice warm shower," he told himself, jokingly.

Once done, he stepped out and turned off the water. Wrapping a thick brown
towel around his waist, he stepped in front of the mirror. He wiped the
steam from the shower off the mirror with a corner of the towel, and
picked up a can of shaving cream.

He sprayed the cream into his hand, and smothered his face, then picked up
a razor and began long, deliberate strokes with it. He was almost finished
one side of his face when the phone rang.

"Damn!" he uttered, half-smirking at the position he was caught in. He put
down the razor and left the bathroom, going into the kitchen. He picked up
the phone and, holding it away from the shaving cream, put it up against
the side of his head.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Dan? It's Kathy." Kathy was Dan's old girlfriend. They'd lived together
for six months, before mutually deciding that it wasn't for either of
them. They parted on good terms, and still spent time together.

"Do you want to meet me for lunch today?" she continued.

"Today?" asked Dan. "What's the occasion?"

"Oh, nothing, really. I just thought you might want to."

Dan smiled slightly. "No, sorry, Kathy. I already planned to go spend the
day on my boat. Can I get a raincheck?"

"Oh, sure, Dan! No problem." Kathy still sounded cheerful, and not the
least put-off. She understood Dan's love of the sea, although she had at
times felt it was stronger than his love of her. That was before, though.

"So, another time, then!" she finished.

"Another time," replied Dan.

"Bye!"

"Talk to you later!" He made an exaggerated kissing noise, as he usually
did, and they both chuckled as he hung up.

He shook his head, smiling to himself. Kathy was a real nice girl, but she
had a bad habit of not showing up for planned meetings unless they were
absolutely essential to her. Dan had been stood up more than once, and
although she always had a good reason, the reasons really wore a little
thin after a while. Dan had decided to himself that he wouldn't put off
his plans for her offers of 'nothing special' any longer. But, of course,
he wouldn't tell her that. He didn't want to hurt her.

He headed back towards the bathroom to finish shaving.

An hour later he drove his jeep into the parking lot of the marina, and
turned off the ignition. He got out, locked the door, and starting walking
out towards the dock.

"Hey, Dan," waved Jack, the marina's owner. He waved. He was a large,
honest, and friendly man, and very familiar with Dan's days on the bay.

"Hi Jack," replied Dan. "How's it going?"

"Not bad," replied Jack, "business has been good." His face went serious
for a moment. "You won't want to spend more than a few hours out there
today, Dan. Bad storm coming in from offshore."

"Really? When's it due to hit?"

"Maybe four, or five this afternoon, but the coast guard is putting out
the warnings now to be out of the water by two at the absolute latest. So
you be careful to get back early."

"Ok, Jack. Thanks for the warning."

Jack waved off the thanks, and his good-natured smile returned. "And if
you find your mermaid today, ask her if she has a sister for me."

Dan laughed. Jack always pretended Dan spent all his time out on the
sealooking for mermaids. He'd once joked that Dan would be the man to
attract them, if he'd only stay on the fishing line long enough.

"See you, Jack," called Dan, stepping onto the dock and walking down it.

"Bye, Dan," called Jack back.

Dan soon reached his boat and climbed aboard. The engine started on the
first try, and the hum of the well-tuned inboard engine echoed throughout
the hull. Dan checked his watch before backing out. It was 11:00... he'd
only have three hours.

He sighed. For what it was worth, he might have well gone out with Kathy.
But then, if she was late, he doubted that he'd be very relaxed by the end
of the day.

Ten minutes later, free of the marina and out in the bay, he opened up the
engine and raced ahead at top speed. The water was as smooth as glass, and
he found it hard to imagine that a storm was on it's way. Everyone else
seemed to believe it, though. The bay, usually busy, was pretty empty.

He slowed the boat at the mouth of the bay and looked out into the open
ocean. Only a few small whitecaps were visible, and he wondered whether it
would be a good idea to go out into the sea.

He shrugged. "What the hell?" he thought. He turned the boat out of the
bay and gunned the motor again. The powerful craft lept forward, leaving
behind a foamy wake.

After a few minutes he felt far enough from the bay, and shut off the
engine. Taking careful note of the approximate distance to the shore, he
dropped anchor, then sat back under the canopy and put his feet up on the
rail at the side of the boat.

"Ahhh," he thought. "This is the life. No people. No civilization. Just me
and the peaceful sea."

He paused. "Well, and that storm. Oh well, maybe it'll be late."

He relaxed, casually looking at the sky, still too blue and pretty to be
threatening, and watched some light fluffy clouds drifting slowly across
the sun. They didn't look at all dangerous. He turned his gaze to the
water, which was lightly salted with small whitecaps as far as he
could see. His eyes began to grow heavy, and he relaxed and welcomed sleep
under the warm sun.

Time passed.

He woke up abruptly, as someone was rocking the boat. As he opened his
eyes, he realized it was darker than he expected it to be. The waves had
grown alarmingly large, several feet, and the boat was rocking and
bouncing. The fluffy light clouds had grown menacingly dark and covered
the entire sky.

Dan's eyes snapped fully open. "Damn," he muttered, glancing at his watch.
It was four-thirty, and it looked like the storm had actually hit. Dan
looked around himself, but couldn't see the mainland.

"Damn, damn, damn," he continued. He grabbed the anchor rope, and was
surprised to see how easily it pulled up. He realized why it was so easy
when he pulled up the frayed end of the broken rope.

"Oh, DAMN," he uttered, looking around himself. "Where the hell am I now?"

He ran to start the engine, noticing for the first time the amount of
water that had splashed into the boat and was sloshing around in the
bottom.

It seemed no amount of turning the key or cursing would start the engine,
and Dan ran to the back to lift the engine cover. The waves appeared to be
growing in size, and several times he was thrown off balance as water
tipped the boat over and splashed inside.

"SHIT," he uttered, as he saw the depth of the water in the engine
compartment. "That thing will NEVER start!"

Nevertheless, he had to try. He grabbed a bucket and began to bail from the
engine compartment. The boat rocked violently as a very large wave struck
the side, and he was thrown off balance and fell against the wall, striking
his head. Dazed, he tried to stand up, as a second wave struck the boat and
knocked him right over the side.

There was water all around, but somehow he made his way to the surface,
only to be pushed down by another wave. He gasped for breath, but couldn't
get his bearings. He thought he saw his boat, impossibly far, then it went
behind another wall of water, and was lost to sight.

There were no thoughts, his mind was too confused to register what was
going on. He repeatedly blanked out as he continuously tried to keep his
head above the increasingly hostile sea. Finally, exhausted, he accepted
that he was about to die. There were no lights in sight, no boat, and he
couldn't keep his head above water. He began to sink.

He felt someone scoop him up, lift him out of the water. He had the
sensation of being carried, and pushed, for a long distance. Then finally,
he was deposited onto something soft and wet. His mind registered nothing
more.

Minutes, maybe hours later, his eyes opened, and his mind slowly registered
that all was quiet, save the gentle lapping of waves on the shore. He was
laying on a sandy strip of beach, about five feet above the water line.
There was evidence scattered around that the water had been much higher,
and had only recently settled back to it's current position.

It was night, and the air was fresh and cool, with the scent of departing
rain. A few stars were showing through a thick cloud cover which was
beginning to break up, and a bright moon, nearly full, peeked through the
clouds to provide an erie pale light. Dan looked around himself, trying to
figure out where he was. His first thought was that he was too cold and
hungry to be dead. He next realized that it was night, that the storm must
have passed, and that he had no idea where he was or how he got there.
Thankfully, though drenched, he seemed unhurt.

About thirty feet in front of him the sand ended, and he dimly saw brush
and tall palm trees.

"I must be at a resort or something. I'll look around and see if I can find
some help."

Several hours later, he returned to the beach and sat down, dejected. He
didn't seem to be at a resort, he seemed to be on a small island, no more
than a half mile across by a quarter mile wide. It was well populated with
palm trees and grass, but little else. He'd climbed a small rocky hill, and
looked, but as far as he could see there was nothing but the dark ocean.

He sighed. "Maybe going with Kathy wouldn't have been such a bad idea after
all," he reflected whimsically, looking out into the water. "If I only knew
where I was."

After staring out at the ocean for some time, looking for ship lights, and
straining his ears to listen for the sounds of civilization, he began to
feel a little discouraged. He decided that there was not very much he could
find out at night - he needed the light of the sun. He went back into the
trees, and gathered up several of the large palm leaves which had fallen to
the ground. He then spread them out on the dry sand of the beach, to make a
mat he could lay on. Next he went back and got some very dry leaves and
small sticks, and carried them back. Carefully he arranged the leaves and
sticks into a small pyramid near the mat. Finally ready to light a fire, he
realized that he didn't have any matches or a lighter.

"Oh, damn," he said, again. "What was that trick with the two sticks?" He
went back into the trees, and managed to locate two fairly good sized
sticks, and brought them back. Holding one stick in each hand, he sat down
beside his intended fire, and began vigourously rubbing the sticks
together.

Nothing seemed to be happening, so after several minutes he stopped, and
felt the sticks with his fingers. They were warm, so he figured that he
must have been doing SOMETHING right. He started rubbing them again.

Many hours later he lay on his back, looking up at the stars. The sticks
lay idle and cold beside the pyramid of sticks, uncharred. Dan nursed a
nasty blister on his hands as he pondered the ridiculous notion of starting
a fire by rubbing sticks together.

Drowsy, a part of his mind wondered if, despite all else, this might be the
start of just the isolation from the real world that he wanted.

Then he slept.

He woke up to the sun blazing down on the sand, already high in the sky.
The water was lapping quietly against the shore, and he'd covered his body
and face awkwardly with the leaves as he slept, to protect himself from the
light and heat.

But something else had awakened him, some strange sound. He sat up abruptly
to look around. There was a splash from a few feet out in the water, and
Dan looked to see the ripples circling out from where something large had
landed in the water.

"Must've been some big fish," thought Dan. The thought made him rather
hungry, and he realized it had been some time since he'd eaten. At the same
time he suddenly found himself quite thirsty, and he wondered about where
he would find water. For the moment, however, food seemed easier to find,
so he approached the water to see if he could see the fish, and maybe,
somehow, catch it.

A glint in the wet sand caught his attention, and he looked down. Something
fairly new and shiny was glinting on the surface of the sand, and after a
brief moment he recognized it as a small lighter. Being beige, the case had
blended in with the sand, but the metal around the top had reflected the
light at him. He picked it up and looked at it with wonder.

"Just what I needed!" he thought. "But does it work?"

He carefully brushed all the sand he could off of it, and used his shirt to
dry off as much of the water as he could. In retrospect, he decided he
didn't really need to wear his shirt in the fine weather, and took it off,
dropping it on his mat of leaves.

He looked at the lighter, afraid to try it for fear it would not work.
Finally he flicked it. The flint, still wet, did nothing, but he heard the
slight hiss of escaping gas as he pressed the button. Encouraged, he tried
a few more times.

Finally, the flint dried enough to produce a spark, and he quickly had a
stable flame coming from the lighter. He held it down by the edges of some
of the smaller leaves on his pile of leaves and wood, and it quickly began
to burn. Blowing gently to encourage the flames, Dan finally breathed a
sigh of relief when the small sticks began to burn.

He ran to the edge of the trees again, and found some larger wood, and more
leaves. He made several trips, and made a small pile of spare fuel near the
fire, and added some of the larger pieces to the fire. It seemed he would
now have a decent fire after all.

He shook the lighter, and decided it was about half full. He reflected that
it was pretty amazing that it had washed up before being destroyed by the
water, and offered a silent thanks to whoever had dropped it overboard. He
placed it down on his shirt, so that it would not be lost. Then he picked
up one of the longer sticks, and a rock. He needed a spear to catch fish
with, and he began using the rock to sharpen an end of the stick.

It was a lot harder than he had expected it to be, and it took a very long
time. He wasn't really satisfied with the point on the stick, but he was
hungry, and he decided it would have to do. He dropped the rock, tossed
some more fuel onto the fire, and stood up. He removed his shoes and socks,
which were still soggy anyway, and rolled up his pant legs. He then walked
down to the water with the stick and waded in.

The water was warm, and not at all uncomfortable, and Dan waded in just
past his knees, and stopped. He stood as still as he could, hoping to see a
fish nearby. The large one which had jumped had not been much deeper than
where he stood now.

After fifteen minutes or so, he saw a small movement a foot or so away. He
turned and leapt towards it, driving his makeshift spear into the water. He
lifted the spear out, and found nothing on the end of it. He realized he
needed to be more patient, and wait till the shot was a little more
definite.

After several more minutes, he saw another small movement, and a glint of
scales. This time he stood very still, and waited. Soon the fish swam more
closely, and was fully in his field of view. It was a decent sized perch,
which he felt would make good eating. Dan licked his lips, but still did
not move. He turned the stick slightly above the water, preparing to make
his move.

The perch hovered in place, studying the two legs poking down into it's
world, apparently wondering whether they were dangerous or not. Eventually,
it seemed to decide they posed no threat, and moved more closely,
completely ignoring them.

Dan jabbed the spear again, and this time lifted up the perch skewered on
the end of it. Uttering a whoop of success and cheer, Dan splashed out of
the water towards his fire. He stuck the end of the spear in the sand, so
that the fish was over the fire, and let it cook that way. He was careful
to ensure that he cooked the whole fish, both sides, before he was ready to
eat it.

He decided that it was a good fish as he ate it, but forced himself to eat
only a little of it, as it made him thirstier. It was somewhat salty, and
Dan was concerned. Finally, in an effort to quench his thirst, he chewed
the juices out of some of the smaller plants. More or less satisfied for
the moment, he let the fire run a little low. He had decided to re-explore
the island in the daylight, and get a clear perspective on exactly where he
was, and it seemed like a good time to do that.

He found little that he had not seen in the night. The island appeared
completely devoid of human habitation, and seemed to have been so for a
long time, as far as he could tell. The underbrush was thick, the trees
tall, and the plants undamaged by human or animal life. There were a few
coconuts high up on the palms, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to try his
hand at climbing way up there just yet.

He decided to end his exploration with a circle around the island. He
walked quietly, feet in the water, considering his position. He found
himself stuck on an island somewhere in the ocean. Presumably not too far
from the mainland, but he had no idea what direction to go. For now, it
seemed he would be all right for food. He wasn't sure about water yet, he
didn't know how long chewing on plants would sustain him. He couldn't drink
the seawater, even he knew that was the way to dehydration and death. He
wondered about boiling the salt out of the water, but wasn't sure what he
could boil water in.

He suddenly stubbed his toe on a sharp rock under the water, and stumbled,
cursing the pain. He looked at the shore and realized that he had absently
walked right beside the cliff, and there was very little beach before the
rock rose almost straight up, jagged and ugly. He was about to turn back to
the beach when he noticed an opening in the rock.

He cautiously approached it, trying to ignore the small jagged rocks, that
had replaced the soft sand around the rest of the island, digging into his
feet, and the way that the water deepened near the mouth till it passed his
waist. He looked inside, and saw that it was a large cavern, going about
100 feet back. The water pooled inside in a large pool, and he heard the
trickle of water splashing. Curious, he entered the cave. At the entrance,
the water deepened still more, and he broke into a long swimming stroke to
proceed. He swam to about the center of the pool, and began to tread water.
He turned back to the entrance, to verify that it was still open, then
turned back around and waited for his eyes to adjust to the dim light.

Finally he could see reasonably well, and noticed that the cave was
actually better lit than he'd expected it to be. There was a sandy beach on
one side of the pool, off to the right, and he swam towards it. Standing on
the beach, he attempted to locate the sound of the trickling water. He
quickly he found it, a small stream was coming out of the rock wall, and
trickling into the pool itself. He sniffed the water, then dipped his
finger into it and tasted it.

It was fresh water! However it got here, he'd found his source of drinking
water. Using his hands as a cup, he gathered handfuls of the water, and
drank quickly. He drank as much as he could, and suddenly felt a lot
stronger. He hadn't realized how dehydrated he had actually been getting.

He wandered around the beach some more. It was about fifty feet wide and
one hundred feet long. Dan figured from the sand colouration that the water
probably went about twenty feet more up the beach at high tide, so there
was about thirty feet of sand that was usable.

He nodded. This would, he felt, be a good place to set up his home and
firepit. The air was fresh, suggesting good ventilation, the sand was soft,
and the cave well sheltered against any storm.

Dan smiled to himself. He felt no desire to return to a hectic life filled
with worry and fear. Now he could make his best effort to leave peacefully
and freely on his own little retreat from the world. All he had to do now
was build a new firepit.

Dan waded back into the water, and swam out of the cave. He thought he saw
something under the water dart out ahead of him as he neared the mouth, but
he dismissed it as his imagination. He returned to the beach where he had
been set up, and began to prepare to move.

It took a while to move everything, because of Dan's efforts to keep his
leaf bed, lighter, and fire fuel dry, but eventually he was set up in the
cave.

"Just as nice as home," he thought, smiling. "Now to get some more food."

Over the next few days Dan found catching fish to be much more difficult
than his original attempt had been. Repeatedly he stabbed his spear into
the water, only to have the fish dart out of the way. He couldn't
understand why his first try had worked so well. Over the three days he'd
been trying he'd only caught two more fish.

Extremely hungry, he had tried eating the palm leaves and several other
plants, but found none of them very edible. He'd managed to get up a tree,
and collected several coconuts, but the coconut meat did not taste as good
as he'd hoped. He didn't really want to have to live on it, nor was he sure
he could.

Over the entire period he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being
watched. Yet whenever he turned to look, there was nothing but the gentle
waves, or, occasionally, a few ripples where a fish had jumped to mock him.
His dreams became unusual and disjointed, and he once dreamt of a giant
squid wrapping it's tentacles around him.

He sat up abruptly, suddenly awake. A loud splash sounded from the pool,
and he whipped his head over to look. Laying on the beach, at the edge of
the waterline, was a large perch, apparently dead.

Dan approached it, cautiously, expecting huge tentacles to leap out of the
water for him at any second. But he was hungry, and he wanted to see why
there was a fish on his beach.

He began to reach for the fish, muscles tensed, eyes on the cave's dark,
smooth pool. Suddenly something surfaced twenty feet or so out.

Dan leapt back, and rolled away from the water, before leaping to his feet
to face the monster. But there was no monster, only a few ripples where
whatever it was had surfaced. The perch was still on the beach. Dan looked
at it longingly, then carefully approached it again. This time he grabbed a
stick from the fire, bright embers still glowing on the end of it, and
approached it again.

He got right up to it again, and froze, waiting for movement from the
water. After a few moments, he decided to make his move. He grabbed the
fish with one hand, and simultaneously swung the stick with the other. Then
he leapt and rolled back again, and looked back at the water.

It remained still, so Dan examined his prize. It was about two pounds of
large perch, and seemed very fresh. There appeared to be nothing wrong with
it, and Dan decided that he was too hungry to pass up on it. He stirred up
the fire and added a few dry leaves to get the flames going, then placed
the fish on a stick over it.

He could only wait a few minutes as the smell of the fish filled his
nostrils, and he soon grabbed it from the stick. With the flesh tenderized,
he quickly removed the fish's entrails, and began to eat the flesh.

Halfway through the meal, he got the feeling that he was being watched
again. He slowly turned to face the pool again.

Head up in the middle of the pool, facing him, was a dolphin. He stared at
it, mouth open, and their eyes met.

The dolphin paused a moment, then dove under the water and was gone from
sight. Dan stared at the spot it had vanished for several minutes, unsure
as to what had just happened.

The dolphin was watching him, he was sure of this. But why? Did the dolphin
leave the fish for him? He'd heard of dolphins doing things like this, but
only on TV shows like 'Flipper'. Could it happen in real life?

He soon decided that whatever the dolphin's reason for watching him, it
wasn't coming back right away. He was still hungry, so he continued eating
the fish. All the while, he couldn't shake the feeling that the dolphin had
met his gaze with some kind of intelligence, an awareness of what was going
on. Maybe even a bit of concern.

He supposed that he would find out as time went on. Meanwhile, the food was
very good.

Over the next few days he saw the dolphin more often, always watching him
from a distance, and disappearing a few moments after being noticed. He'd
had more luck with catching fish, and he wondered if the dolphin was
helping him. At the same time he improved his bed a bit by weaving bits of
the leaves into a more solid mat, and managed to weave together a
reasonable pitcher to hold fresh water to drink. He'd also perfected his
technique for cooking the many types of fish that he had found suitable for
eating.

One day, as he finished cooking his day's catch, he looked into the pool to
see the dolphin looking at him again. This time it did not leave as soon as
he looked at it.

"My friend," he called to the dolphin. "We are meeting far too often to be
strangers. My name is Dan."

The dolphin remained unmoving, only bobbing slightly in the waves. Dan
admired the smooth lines of the dolphin's head and face, and the gentle,
intelligent look in the eyes.

"Your name," thought Dan aloud, "must be Susie. You look like a Susie to
me. What do you think?"

"Errreeee-oooo?" asked the dolphin.

"Yes, that's right. You are Susie, and I am Dan. Want some of my special
fish, Susie?"

Dan held out a large piece of the hot, freshly cooked fish towards Susie.
She remained in place, about fifteen feet away.

"Come on, it's really good!" encouraged Dan.

"Errrreeee?" asked Susie.

Dan smiled. "Here," he called, tossing the piece of fish into the water
towards Susie. As the fish piece flew towards her, she quickly dove and
swam out of the way. The fish splashed into the water and floated as Susie
surfaced a few feet away from it.

"Try it," called Dan. "It won't hurt!"

Susie slowly faced the fish. Dan heard her making creaking noises, and she
circled it a few times. Finally she took it in her mouth, and appeared to
swallow it.

Dan was elated. "Did you like that?" he asked.

Susie just studied him for a moment. Then she flipped up a foot or so into
the air and then landed on her side. There was a large splash, which arced
to the beach and soaked Dan. He stood there for a moment, startled and
dripping. Then Susie surfaced near the mouth of the cave.

"Eh-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh!" she laughed. Then she dove and was lost to sight.

Dan paused, confused. Then he yelled after her. "FINE! See if I ever give
you my fish again!" Then he returned near his fire, which was far enough
from the water to avoid the spray, and removed his clothes to dry them. He
grumbled slightly as he finished his meal.

He realized that he had been looking forward to making friends with the
dolphin. As he thought about it, he realized that maybe Susie had only been
trying to make friends in her own way, too. He supposed his reaction to the
water might have looked pretty funny to a water animal, after all. He also
considered that maybe she wasn't really laughing, but dismissed that
thought. Laughter, he thought, is pretty universal.

With a good-humoured grin, he resolved to continue trying to make friends
with his neighbor, Susie the dolphin.

He awoke from a sound sleep that night, unsure as to why he woke up. Then
he heard a splash from the pool, and looked over.

"Su-SIE!" he yelled. "You woke me up again."

To his surprise, Susie surfaced again, about ten feet from the shore. He
couldn't clearly see her in the dark, but he could make out where she had
surfaced and was watching him, her head just out of the water.

"Just what do you find so interesting about me?" asked Dan, curious. Susie
didn't respond, but continued to watch him.

Dan stood up, slowly, and approached the water. Susie turned to keep
watching him, but remained in place. Dan hesitated at the shore, then
started to wade into the water.

"Want to meet me half-way?" he asked, stopping when the water was just past
his waist. Susie remained still, now only about five feet away. Dan could
now clearly see her face, and her bright, aware eyes. Faintly, through the
water, he could make out where her tail was slowly swishing back and forth,
holding her in place. He looked back up at her.

"Come on," he called. He reached towards her, and she backed off, quickly.
But she kept her head above the water, and her eyes on him. Dan sighed,
frustrated.

"Please," he pleaded, looking her in the eye. He suddenly realized an
incredible lonliness, and he desperately wanted to make contact.

He took a few steps towards her, and she remained in place. He lifted his
feet off the bottom and started to tread water. As soon as he started to
swim towards her, she flipped over and jumped into the water. He caught a
glimpse of her tail re-entering the water, and she swam off towards the
exit.

"Ohh," he sighed, disappointed. As he was about to turn back to the beach,
he saw her resurface at the exit of the cave.

"Eeee-ooooo," she whistled. Then she was gone.

Dan went back to the beach and laid down, very discouraged. The loneliness
of his situation had hit him with a sudden force that he was wholly
unprepared for, and he badly wanted someone to hold. But despite how he
felt, he soon managed to sleep.

She came back again the next day, as Dan was sharpening a new stick into a
fishing spear. Dan heard her surface, and looked to see her toss a large
fish onto the shore from several feet out. She chattered rapidly, and
nodded her head towards him. He walked over and picked up the fish. It was
another perch, and weighed close to four pounds, far more than he had ever
caught.

"Thanks, Susie," he called. "How are you today?"

"Oooo-eeooo!" replied Susie. She nodded her head rapidly, and backed off a
few feet. Then she chattered some more.

"You're pretty excited today, Susie. What's up? You want to meet up close
today?"

Susie swam straight up out of the water, and stood in place for a few
seconds with powerful strokes of her tail, chattering at Dan. Dan was able
to admire almost her entire body. He could see her smooth, flowing lines,
and the powerful muscles running three-quarters of the length of her body,
flexing as she used her tail to balance. Then she turned to the side, and
gracefully fell back into the water. Almost instantly she surfaced again,
and continued to face him and chatter.

Dan smiled, and a warm feeling ran through his body. He entered the water
and began to wade towards Susie. Suddenly Susie became very quiet, and
backed away from him a bit.

Dan stopped, the water around his waist. "Please, Susie, don't do this
again." He took a few slow steps towards her, and the water rapidly
deepened to his chest. He didn't start to swim, not wanting to scare her
away again.

Susie stayed where she was, looking at him. She was trembling slightly, and
Dan suddenly realized how nervous she was.

"Oh, Susie, it's ok. I won't hurt you."

She suddenly submerged, but Dan could see she was still in the same place,
just under the surface. He heard the odd creaking sound he'd heard her make
when he threw the fish in, and felt a weird sensation covering his body, as
if he were standing in a mild sandstorm. He stood absolutely still, unsure
what to make of it.

Suddenly, it stopped, and Susie surfaced again.

"K-k-k-kree," sounded Susie, almost stuttering. She began to swim slowly
towards him.

Dan smiled broadly, and held his arms out to receive her. She stopped, and
looked him over again. Then, still shaking, she continued swimming
forward.

She stopped in front of him, and looked him in the eye. Dan sensed that she
was asking him not to hurt her, not to betray to trust she was placing in
his good-nature. He saw what he felt must be the same hope that he expected
was in his own eyes.

Dan slowly moved his hand forward, and, hesitating, reached to stroke her
beak. She swam back a few inches, then, seemed to change her mind. She very
slowly swam forward again, until Dan was able to run his fingers lightly
over her beak. Her skin was incredibly soft, and he gently stroked her
mouth, and ran his hand up onto her rounded melon.

After a few moments she seemed a lot more at ease, and Dan was thrilled.
She swam small, slow circles around him, allowing him to run his hand down
her entire body. She moved closer and closer until her body was rubbing
against his as she circled him. On impulse, Dan wrapped his arms around
her, and hugged her.

She wrapped her flippers around his sides, and rubbed his skin lightly. He
rubbed her back as he held her.

"Oh, Susie! You were just as lonely as I was! It's okay now, we're both
okay now."

He ran his hand down her back a bit, feeling her firm dorsal fin. Then he
ran his hand a little lower, and the soft smooth skin gave way to a
rougher, tough area.

"What's this?" asked Dan, releasing Susie. She stayed close to him, and he
walked a few steps to get a look at her back. An evil-looking oval of teeth
marks several inches across marred her otherwise near-perfect skin. It
appeared to be a fairly old scar, now healed, but Dan could see it would
mark her for life.

"Ohh, you poor thing," cooed Dan. "Nasty shark bite."

"Ooooreee!" agreed Susie, turning to face him again. Dan resumed stroking
her face and back.

"Where are all your friends?" he pondered aloud. "Why are you here giving
comfort to a silly creature like myself, anyway?"

"Aaaeee-ooo," replied Susie, rubbing close to Dan.

"You're right," answered Dan. "What does it matter? As long as we are both
happy."

Over the next few days Susie stayed with Dan almost continuously, and
proved to be very demanding of his time. Dan often found sleeping
difficult, as Susie didn't ever seem to do more than nap occasionally. But
after much insistance on his part, Susie seemed to accept that Dan required
more continuous sleep than she did. She still revealed an almost child-like
impatience, never letting him sleep more than a few hours before waking him
with a loud, continuous chatter.

Susie more than made up for the inconvenience by helping Dan immensely with
his fishing. At first she provided the fish for Dan complete, and Dan had a
hard time understanding how she got the fish without any kind of obvious
damage, like tooth marks. But after a while she showed him. She found the
fish, and pointed her beak at one. Dan would hear a sudden loud sound, sort
of a crack, from the water, and the fish would suddenly flex, and then
remain stunned for Dan to spear it. Susie would then catch and eat one for
herself. Dan had found that she didn't really like his cooked fish as much
as the fresh ones she caught for herself. Dan was very happy with her, and
she seemed happy with him. He'd forgotten all about his old life in the
city, and was always looking forward to the time he would spend with Susie
the next day.

Dan admired Susie for her good points. She had an offbeat sense of humour,
and yet, she seemed to be very honest. She never judged him, she never
seemed to be moody. She kept inventing new games to try with Dan, and also
ways to catch him off-guard, like stealing his fishing spear from his hand
as he was about to spear a fish, or leaping into the air and knocking him
into the water. She only did that once, as the impact of her four hundred
fifty pound body knocked the wind out of Dan, and he spent a few minutes
getting his breath back while she circled him nervously, crying out.

She also had a quiet side which Dan appreciated. She would lie next to Dan
in the shallow water, and cuddle up against him while he stroked her body,
and lay content, occasionally uttering what sounded like a sigh of
satisfaction.

All in all, Dan loved Susie, and he felt that she was coming to love him.
Dan wondered what she might think of him. Next to her grace and beauty he
felt awkward, and sometimes ugly. Yet if Susie thought this, she never let
on. She always seemed happy to be with him.

About a week or so later, as Dan and Susie were laying in the shallows,
enjoying each other's company, Susie seemed a little restless. She kept
moving, pressing her entire body against Dan, and wriggling around. She
nibbled lightly on his fingers when he rubbed them by her mouth.

"What is it, Susie?" asked Dan. "Why are you so restless."

"ooo-OO!" replied Susie. She wriggled around, pressing her body against him
so they were belly-to-belly. Dan looked at her curiously.

Susie began gently flexing herself against his body, and shifting her
position against him, slowly working her way down his body.

"What are you..oh!" Dan stopped in mid-sentence, as Susie flexed against
his groin. She seemed to realize what she had found, and began to press
more urgently, and gently rub against the area.

"SUSIE!" called Dan. "This.. isn't right." Yet something, deep inside of
him, wouldn't provide the energy to make her stop.

Susie turned her head to look directly at him, a seductive spark in her
eyes. Dan could see a pinkish flush all along Susie's underside, and felt
himself beginning to respond to her caress. Having been alone for so long,
he found himself getting very aroused.

"Susie?" he asked again, but there was no longer any conflict in his voice,
he was too aroused to want to fight the feeling. Susie appeared to sense
this, and she wriggled back a bit till her face was beside Dan's.
Overcome with lust, Dan kissed her on the end of her beak. Her soft skin
against his lips excited him, and he placed his tongue in her mouth. She
responded, apparently knowing what to do, as her own tongue met his, and
wrapped around it. Dan could feel her teeth around the tip of his tongue,
and taste the salt water in her mouth, and he loved it. He reached down and
removed his weather-worn jeans, leaving him naked in the shallow water with
her. He threw them onto the beach.

She pressed against his body again, and the silken feel of her warm skin
against his own thrilled him, and he rubbed himself against her skin. Susie
made a sound that sounded very much like a moan, and she rolled her body to
allow him access to her.

Dan reached down with his hand, and felt her vaginal opening. It was very
slick, lubricated with Susie's own juices, and he moved his fingers to
enter her. Her powerful muscles quickly seized them, squeezing and pulling
and Dan moved his fingers back and forth to stimulate her. Dan reached up
with his thumb, and found her clitoris, a small, firm lump at the top of
her slit. He began to rub it lightly, and Susie responded by pressing her
body more firmly against him, and his fingers.

Very excited at this point, Dan removed his fingers, and slowly inserted
his penis into her. Instantly her muscles clamped down on him, and began to
massage and stimulate him. Susie pressed hard against him, forcing him all
the way in quickly, and he moaned in pleasure.

He had felt nothing like this anywhere else, the powerful and automatic
massage was better than anything else he had ever felt. He began to move
back and forth, slowly and rhythmically, and Susie moved slightly in rhythm
with him. She rubbed the sides of his body with her flippers, and he
wrapped his legs around her tail, and could even better feel her smooth
muscles through her silky-soft skin.

Dan soon realized that he could only hold back for a few more seconds, and
suddenly Susie stiffened her body, and the contractions in her vagina
increased in intensity. Dan came at the same time, and then relaxed,
letting himself lay on her body. After a few seconds he pulled out and
rolled off her, allowing her to roll herself upright again. Dan wrapped his
arms around her and soon fell asleep.

He awoke in the morning on the beach, with his legs dangling in the warm
water. He sat up and looked around. Susie was nowhere to be seen. Dan saw
his pants laying a few feet away on the sand, where he had thrown them, and
the details of what he had done the night before suddenly hit him. He felt
a confused mixture of disgust and anger at himself. He felt very dirty, and
waded into the water. He began to scrub his entire body, trying to wash the
memory away. But he felt no better when he was finished.

What had he done? He'd had intercourse with an animal! That was disgusting!
Dan couldn't understand his own motives. Nothing could make him that
desperate, so why had he done it? What bothered him the most what that he
had actually enjoyed it. But she was just a dumb animal, she probably
didn't even realize that he was a different species. Acting purely on
instinct, and he'd reacted. Anger rose up inside of him.

Suddenly he heard a splash, and the familiar chirping of Susie popping up
to greet him. She began swimming straight for him, but he couldn't handle
the thought of touching her. He quickly waded out of the water, and stood
on the beach, facing her. She surfaced at the point where he had been
standing, and looked at him.

"Get away!" he shouted. Susie half rose from the water, and chattered
teasingly, apparently trying to understand the rules of this new game.

"I said 'LEAVE!'," Dan yelled, making shooing noises, and pointing towards
the mouth of the cave. Dan allowed his confusion-driven anger to funnel out
at Susie, and he felt it growing. Susie glanced towards the mouth of the
cave, and apparently seeing nothing of interest, turned back to Dan. After
a moment's thought, she dove under the water and splashed a large quantity
of water at him with her tail flukes. He dodged it angrily as she surfaced
again.

"Eh-eh-eh-eh-eh-eh!" she laughed.

Normally Susie's laugh would bring a smile to Dan's face, but today it
ground against his anger and guilt. He was annoyed and insulted, and fumed
at her. Susie looked at him again, measuring him up. Then, with a seductive
gleam in her eye, she rolled over to expose her underside to him, flexing
her tail in a teasing manner.

Dan's guilty feelings multiplied and exploded, and he snapped. He quickly
bent down and picked up a fist-sized rock.

"I said 'Go away', you whore!" Dan screamed. He threw the rock at her with
all his force.

The rock struck her on the side as she was rolling upright again, and she
recoiled away from it. A small stream of blood began to flow into the water
as she righted herself, and swam away from him a few feet before rising up
to face him. Her eyes were large and hurt, and Dan felt new guilt added on
to what he already felt.

"Brr-eeee?" asked Susie, looking Dan in the eye. Dan couldn't handle the
feelings anymore, and he turned away from her, silent.

"Brr-EEEE?" she asked again, more insistantly. Dan ignored her as best he
could.

After a few moments he heard her splash back into the water. Out of the
corner of his eye he saw her surface near the mouth of the cave, quietly,
and look at him again. He did not acknowledge her, and she soon turned away
and was gone.

Dan was alone with his feelings, and the anger faded quickly, leaving only
the true feelings of guilt he was experiencing. He fell to his knees, and
fought back the tears that were trying to take over his body. He finally
succumbed to them, and he fell into the sand.

Eventually the tears stopped, and Dan sat up, away from the pool. The guilt
was still there, but the pain had been dried out by the tears. He tried to
sort out his feelings, what he had done, and why.

He'd met a dolphin.. just an animal. In his loneliness he'd made friends
with her. He thought he loved her, and he'd thought she loved him. But that
was just silly, animals work on instincts, not love. He'd used her to
satisfy his lust, and that was where the problem was.

An animal! Not a loving woman, but a dumb animal! And yet, she had
responded just as intelligently as any woman he'd ever been with. She'd
been undemanding and honest with him. Was she really a dumb animal? In his
heart, he knew she was as intelligent as he was. She was creative,
friendly, and always cheerful. So why was what he had done so wrong?

The only reason he could come up with was that she was an animal. But was
that really wrong? It was not as if he'd forced her, and they'd both been
happy, or so he thought. Why had it bothered him so much?

Because it was wrong, his mind answered.

Why was it wrong?

He didn't know why. Somewhere, somehow, that's what he had been taught. But
wasn't it all about love? Sex was just about two people who loved each
other, and wanted to share each other. Susie was closer to human than some
people Dan knew. She was intelligent, and what's more, Dan knew he really
DID love her. He was sure, too, that in her own way, she loved him too.

He'd chased her off. He'd hurt her physically with a rock, and mentally
with his actions. He'd seen that in her eyes before he turned away. She
didn't understand why he had chased her off, after she'd extended so much
trust to get close to him. Truth was, Dan wasn't really sure either. He
felt a lot of shame from his actions, and wondered if being human really
meant the shutting out of all love. Was that not the problem he'd been
complaining about only a short time ago? That people didn't just accept and
love each other for what they were? He was doing it himself, rejecting
Susie's unconditional love simply because she was not human.

To some, he reflected, that might be reason enough. But where should the
line be drawn? Love is love, whatever it's source.

Dan began to feel a lot of pain for his actions, for throwing a rock at
Susie. The flow of blood he'd caused brought anguish when he thought about
it, and he began to believe that he was no better than any other human he'd
previously de-cried.

He stood up, and approached the pool. The water was still, and he put his
hand in it and splashed a bit.

"Susie?" he called. "Susie, come back! I'm sorry."

The pool remained still, and Dan continued for twenty minutes before
finally deciding that she wasn't coming back. He went to the spring, and
used the fresh water to wash off his face.

The next few days were quiet and lonely for Dan, and he realized just how
big a difference Susie had made in his life. Fishing was not only more
difficult, he just didn't feel like trying. It just didn't feel right
anymore, since Susie had actually made getting his daily meal enjoyable.
Dan spent a lot of his time moping around, wondering why he had been so
cruel to her, or splashing the water, calling for her. He even tried
sticking his face under the water and calling her name, but it all seemed
to be for nothing. Susie never answered. More than once Dan awoke from a
sound sleep, sure that he heard her, but he never saw her, nor even a
ripple in the pond to indicate that she had been there. He felt she was
gone forever.

An odd rising, then falling, wailing sound woke Dan up one night, and he
looked around in the dark for the source. His eyes, quickly adjusted to the
dim light of the night, quickly picked up a shape on the beach, and he
recognized it as a dolphin.

"Susie?" he whispered, getting up to run over to it. The wail sounded
again, coming right from the dolphin.

As he approached her, he saw a shaft, roughly a foot long with a ragged
end, sticking out of her back. Dan carefully ran his hand down her back,
around the shaft. He soon felt the roughness of the healed shark bite, and
knew it was indeed Susie.

"Oh, Susie! What happened to you? Just a moment, I've got to stoke the
fire. I need light!"

He splashed some water onto her back, and rubbed her lightly. Then he ran
to the dying fire and threw a few dry leaves on it. Blowing gently on it,
he quickly had a flame going, and added to it with more dry leaves, and
then some sticks. Quickly, he ran back to Susie, and examined the shaft in
the flickering light.

It had been a hand-thrown wooden-shafted spear, and the shaft had broken
off. The point penetrated into her skin, he wasn't sure how far. The blood
around the wound had already largely dried, and yet, a small flow
continued. Susie moved in discomfort as he felt the shaft.

"It's ok, Susie. I'm going to help you. I don't know how, but God knows,
I'm going to help you."

Susie's voice was weak, and yet, somehow urgent as she vocalized a question
in reply.

"brr-e-ee?" she asked.

Dan recognized the question that she'd asked before, and it seemed so long
ago. All his anguish and guilt came out, and he wrapped his arms around
her, tears forming at the corners of his eyes.

"Yes, Susie, yes! I love you, and I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you! I'm
so sorry! Please, you have to get better, I couldn't forgive myself if you
died!"

"ee-eooo," replied Susie, weakly. Her eyes closed, briefly, and then opened
again, and she tried to move, but she was obviously very weak.

"Don't try to move," Dan told her, standing up. He wiped his eyes dry, and
took another look at the spear.

"We have to get that out," he said. "I don't know how deep it is.." He
turned to look Susie in the eye. "It's going to hurt, and it's going to
bleed. Please know that I'm trying to help you. I don't want to hurt you,
but I have to."

Susie replied with a weakly rising whistle. Dan hoped that it was a sign of
understanding. He walked over to the fire and took a stick, about the same
size as the spear, which was burning well on one end. He walked back to
Susie. She didn't move.

"I'm going to try to use this to cauterize the wound, Susie. I'm hoping it
will stop the bleeding, okay?"

Susie only blinked. Her eyes were cloudy with pain, and Dan realized that
he had to act quickly.

"Okay." He went over to the side where the spear was, and wiggled it
slightly to try to determine it's depth and how securely it was lodged.
Susie whistled her rising-falling tone again, weakly.

"Susie, I'm sorry, I'm not trying to hurt you. Please, I'm doing the best I
can."

The spear wasn't as deep as he'd previously feared, just over an inch into
her flesh. He saw that the point was metal, and had short barbs on it. He
also saw that his movement had started the blood flowing more freely. Dan
ran back to his bed and grabbed the remains of his shirt, which he had been
using as a pillow. He soaked the shirt quickly in the spring, and ran back
to Susie.

"I'm trying, Susie, I really am. Please hang on."

Susie uttered a weak moan. Dan rubbed her back lightly.

"I'm going to try to remove the spear now."

He turned to her, and began to tilt the spear to free one of the barbs,
hoping not to make the wound much worse than it was. Susie flinched, and
Dan let go quickly, trying not to drive the spear in.

"Susie, please try to stay still!"

He continued working on the spear, trying not to cause Susie much pain.
Sweat began to bead on his forehead with his concentration, and his heart
pounded as he saw the increased flow of blood.

Finally, he had to spear ready to remove. He glanced at the stick, which
had burned out. It was too late to get another now, he'd have to make do
with a bandage.

"Here goes," he whispered. He pulled the spear free from Susie's side. She
flinched again, and he quickly slammed the shirt against the wound and
folded it into a pad.

The flow of blood was not as much as he'd expected, but he was somewhat
concerned by it anyway. He held the pad firmly against the wound, hoping to
slow or stop the bleeding quickly. He rubbed her side and spoke quietly to
her, and she remained quiet. He thought that she seemed to be in less pain,
though.

After a few minutes, he cautiously removed the shirt. The blood flow had
slowed to a small trickle. Dan washed the shirt in the spring, and lightly
rubbed the cool water all over Susie's body. He almost thought she smiled
at him as he rubbed down her face, and he felt that everything would be all
right. After he rubbed her down so she was sufficiently damp, he returned
his pressure to the wound.

He kept up this pattern for about an hour, until he felt the wound had
stopped bleeding enough to be safe. It was much smaller a wound than he had
thought it would be, but still, he realized that if he hadn't removed the
spear that Susie would likely have died from it.

"Why would anyone try to hurt someone as beautiful as you?" asked Dan.

Susie moved her head up towards him, looking for more personal attention,
and Dan obliged by rubbing her beak and melon. "Susie, I'm sorry I chased
you away, please don't leave me again. I really thought about it, and I
couldn't think of any sensible reason why we can't be friends...and lovers.
I really need you in my life."

Susie replied with a light whistle, and Dan was content. "Let's get you
back into the water, you can't stay on the beach with me."

Susie was soon enough back in the water, and resting in the shallows. The
water and the movement had opened the wound up a bit, but there was very
little new blood, and Dan felt that she would actually be all right now. He
was glad, and he hugged her.

Dan slept in the shallows, as near to Susie as he could, for a short while.
He woke up, and looked over at Susie, still resting. She was sitting on the
bottom, though there was enough water for her to move.

"Susie?" asked Dan. "Are you all right?"

Susie replied with a weak whistle. Dan realized that she would need a few
days to get her strength back, if she moved too much now she might rip the
wound wide open again. He'd have to get food for her.

He gathered up his spear. He considered using the spear that he had pulled
out of Susie, but he couldn't bring himself to touch it. The thought of
using it himself disgusted him. He made a mental note to bury it somewhere
later.

"Susie, stay here and rest. I have to get some food for both of us."

She looked up at him. He saw a depth in her eyes that he hadn't realized
before, and something that implied love and trust, and most of all,
understanding. He shook his head, unsure as to whether what he saw was real
or not. He gave Susie another hug, and a kiss on the melon.

"I'll be back soon," he promised. Then he waded into the water and swam out
of the cave.

He began his fishing with a renewed vigour and purpose that he hadn't
experienced in anything he'd ever really done before. Someone was counting
on him, and he couldn't let her down. He wouldn't let her down.

He reached the best fishing spot, off a point of the island. Susie had
brought him to this spot before, but now he would have to catch the fish
himself. He moved slowly, and smoothly, so as to not alert the fish that
were in the area.

Then he saw one, a big one. It was moving slowly nearby, almost ignoring
him. Dan stopped, watching it. He'd let fish like this escape him in the
past, but not this one. It was a start.

The fish paused, testing the waters. Dan tensed up, readying himself for a
lunge if the fish should take off.

The fish seemed to decide that all was well, and continued meandering
around, looking for food.

Dan struck, jabbing his spear smoothly and skillfully into the water. He
raised it up, hoping beyond hope.

He had it!

Things went well for Dan. He caught three fish in total, then decided he
had better get back and check on Susie.

She was roughly where he had left her, but she had turned around to watch
the mouth of the cave. He felt the sandstorm effect on his body when he
swam in, then heard a slightly weak whistle of greeting.

"Hi Susie," he called, "I have dinner!"

She whistled back, and started to wriggle out of the shallows to swim
towards him.

"Stay there," called Dan, stopping. "Don't hurt yourself, I'll bring it to
you."

She seemed to understand, and stopped moving. Dan swam up to her, and laid
out the fish on the beach. Susie was trying to turn around again, and Dan
picked up the biggest fish and waded into the water in front of her, so she
could see him.

"This one is for you, Susie. It's my turn to give you a present."

He offered it to her, and she opened her mouth. He carefully placed the
fish in her mouth, and she seemed to taste it for a moment before closing
her mouth and swallowing it.

"Good.. good. You're eating! Wait! I'll get you another one."

Dan waded back to the shore and grabbed the other two fish. He brought them
back in front of Susie, and offered her another. She hesitated, then took
it.

"You must really be hungry, Susie. How long since you ate? Do you want the
last one?"

Susie did not open her mouth for the third fish, turning her head away from
it.

"What's wrong, Susie? Are you full?"

Susie replied by lifting her head towards him, a movement Dan had come to
realize meant that she wanted him to pet her, and he happily obliged.

"Susie, I'm so glad you'll be all right."

The wound healed quickly over the next few days, and a week later only a
small scar showed where the spear had penetrated. Dan had also noticed a
small scar where he had struck her with the rock, and it served as a
constant reminder to him. He apologized to Susie for it countless times,
and she always responded by lifting her head, asking him to pet her. She
seemed to forgive him, but Dan was unsure if he'd ever fully forgive
himself.

Most times with her were very happy, however. They quickly got back into
their old routine - him trying to sleep, and her waking him after a few
hours. When awake, they spent most of their time together. Susie
occasionally went off on her own, but she never seemed to be gone for more
than an hour or so. Dan did wonder what she did when he was sleeping, but
he suspected that she tried to amuse herself, and woke him up when she ran
out of ideas.

One day, while they were in the shallows, Susie began trying to arouse him
again. Dan pulled back, and stopped rubbing her body. She looked at him,
curiously, and wriggled towards him again, and again Dan pulled back.

"Beeeeeeee?" asked Susie. She didn't seem to understand.

Dan thought hard, and was silent for several minutes. He wasn't sure if he
was ready for this again. Even though he'd convinced himself that it was
merely an act of love, somehow it still didn't seem right.

"Susie, I don't know if you can understand this, but I'm not ready yet."

She looked at him, and the question in her eyes dissolved. She moved her
flipper lightly up the side of his chest, and then drew it away from his
body. She then moved back so that she was laying nearly face-to-face with
him again, and looked him close up in the eye. From a slight distance she
could look straight at him, but close up she had to use only one eye to
look at him, and she did so now. Dan had realized that whether she used one
eye or two, she was still looking with the same intensity, still trying to
convey to him what she was feeling in her mind and in her heart.

Somehow, looking into her eye, he realized that she understood, and
accepted him. He thought that she was telling him that she would wait as
long as it took for him to be ready. Dan laughed and hugged her, rolling
her over in the shallow water.

She squealed with happy surprise, and started to rub herself against him,
but he drew away.

"No, Susie, I'm not ready."

She stopped, and uttered a lower falling tone whistle, and a few clicks.
She sounded very disappointed.

"I'm sorry, Susie. I have to be ready for this. I wasn't ready last time."

He got off her, and helped her roll upright again. Then he did not touch
her.

"Brr-eee?" asked Susie, quietly.

Dan turned to her, wishing he knew exactly how to tell her why he wasn't
ready, wishing he knew himself. The language Susie understood best was the
language of his touch, and his caresses. Body contact was important to her,
and he could understand how such a custom might lead to frequent sexual
acts. But he'd only really accepted the touching for now, he felt that he
couldn't go further yet... and accept it.

"Susie, yes, you know I love you." He ran his fingers lightly down her
back, away from the rough tissue of the shark bite, down to her flukes,
then back up to the top of her melon again. Then, on impulse, he started to
massage the muscles of her back and tail.

She seemed to love it, and she arched her back into his hands, as he rubbed
and massaged her. Her skin was soft, and her muscles were firm as he
stretched and squeezed them. Susie uttered a few warbling tones of
pleasure, and Dan smiled. He continued massaging her, slowly working his
way down towards her flukes, and across her entire body. When he reached
her flukes, he reached underneath and began to massage her underside. She
rolled over a bit to make it easier for him.

Dan hesitated a moment when she rolled over, then continued massaging,
avoiding her vagina. He looked up at her face, and thought for a moment
there was a playful gleam in her eye, one that said "Next time I'll get
you!"

Dan chuckled. "Maybe next time you will," he replied.

The next few weeks were pretty routine. Susie didn't try to push herself on
him anymore, she just lay next to him in the shallows and cuddled with him,
like she usually did. Dan appreciated that she was so patient, and vowed
silently to himself that he would make her happy one day soon.

Dan gradually felt his acceptance of Susie, and his love for her, growing
stronger and more certain. Her gentle and unconditional acceptance of him
fed the flames of his love. Not once was she ever angry with him, and she
was never away from him for more than a few hours. At the same time Dan
began to subconsciously recognize more and more of Susie's gestures and
movements, and he could almost always tell what was on her mind, or what
she wanted to tell him. He still spoke to her, but he knew that she
understood by his tone, his gestures, and his touch, far more than by the
words he spoke. In much the same way, this was how he understood her.

One night, Dan had a dream. He'd been on the island with Susie for five or
six months, and it caught him off-guard, because he dreamt of Kathy. In the
dream she was married to him, and they were cuddling on the couch in his
living room. They began kissing heavily, and he removed her top. She was
not wearing a bra, and her large breasts fell out, and he kissed and
massaged them. He removed her pants, and kissed her while she removed his
shirt and pants. Then he drew close to her, and wrapped his arms around
her, holding her tight against his body as he kissed her. He lightly ran
his hand down her back, and suddenly felt the rough tissue of Susie's
healed shark bite. It didn't bother him in the dream, that Kathy had
suddenly become Susie, and he continued kissing and rubbing her as he had
been.

Suddenly they were on the beach, and he was making love to her. Susie was
uttering her half-squeal and half-moan of pleasure, and Dan could almost
feel her skin against his.

He felt that he'd finally crossed the boundary in his mind that had held
him back for so long. Finally he felt he could accept her love in all it's
forms... that it didn't matter if Susie was human or dolphin, because they
loved each other.

He woke up, erect and sweating. He knew now that he was ready to be a
complete partner with Susie. But he would wait until later to show her, he
didn't want lust to be his drive as much as his love. He closed his eyes
again, ignoring the throbbing in his loins, and was soon asleep again.

Naturally, he didn't sleep much longer before Susie's impatient chatter
woke him up. He rubbed his eyes and sat up wearily.

"I don't believe it, Susie. You let me sleep in today by what, ten, fifteen
minutes?"

"REEEE-oo!" replied Susie happily. Dan chuckled and went into the water.

She swam up to him, and he hugged her tightly against his body. He gave her
a quick kiss on the end of her beak. Susie backed off, and keeping her head
above the water, spun around a few times, then fell into the water in a
mock swoon. Instantly she was poking her head up again, looking at him for
approval.

"Eh-eh-eh-eh-eh!" she laughed.

Dan chuckled, too. "Where did you learn that one?" he asked. Susie merely
swam back up to him, and wrapped her flippers around his body in another
embrace. Dan hugged her back.

"So, Susie," he began. "You ready for breakfast now?"

Later that night, Dan and Susie lay cuddling in the shallows again. Dan
never tired of her soft, smooth skin against his, and it seemed that she
never tired of his company, either. Dan remembered his dream, and the
memory aroused him slightly. He began massaging Susie's body again. Susie
sighed, happily, and relaxed, and Dan looked up at her face. She looked
content and happy, and Dan wondered how best to communicate his intent.

Slowly, he worked his hands down to her underside, and began massaging her
stomach area. Susie rolled onto her side a bit to give him better access,
and as he rubbed he looked down at her vaginal slit. He watched as the lips
parted slightly, then closed while she waved her tail slowly in the warm
water, and he felt himself becoming more aroused.

He began to work his hands down towards it, slowly, massaging fully along
the way. When he reached it, he began to massage the area around the slit,
staying a few inches back at first, and gradually moving his fingers
closer. Making small circles on her skin, he began to allow himself to
brush past the lips, and slowly, to close in on them. Susie made a small,
happy sounding squeak, and rolled over a little more. In the shallow water,
her vagina was almost fully out of the water, and Dan slowly inserted a
finger, and used his thumb to rub against her clitoris.

Susie closed her eyes and opened her mouth in a silent sigh as Dan felt her
vaginal muscles begin to pull and massage his finger, and he moved it
around inside her, feeling her become more and more lubricated. The area
around her slit took on a bright pinkish color, which spread slowly up her
belly.

He bent down towards her, and began kissing her skin above the slit,
kissing his way down towards it. Lightly at first, he licked the outside of
her pussy lips, tasting the salt from the water and the slight tang of her
juices. He removed his finger and allowed his tongue to probe more deeply
for a few moments, before finding her clitoris with it, and licking and
sucking on it.

Susie was writhing and squealing in pleasure at the treatment, and Dan
placed his finger back inside her pussy, while continuing to tease her
clitoris with his tongue. Suddenly Susie's body stiffened slightly, and Dan
felt her orgasm, a long, powerful contraction of her vaginal muscles
pulling hard at his finger.

He backed off, and slowly removed his finger. Susie was looking at him with
a combination of love and lust in her eyes, and he stood up and removed his
well-worn jeans. He laid down again next to Susie, and looked her in the
eye a moment before kissing her again. Again their tongues met, and Dan
felt more aroused and in love than he could ever remember being. He reached
down, and slowly guided himself into her.

They both reacted with a gasp and a sigh as he entered her, and she began
to work on him. The sensations were even more powerful and felt even better
than before, as her pussy stroked, squeezed and sucked on his penis. He
thrust, slowly, letting her muscles do most of the work.

He wrapped his arms around her body, feeling the love flow between them as
their souls themselves merged into one being. Susie turned a bit, and
wrapped her flippers around him as best she could. She then moved her tail
up between his legs, and wrapped her flukes around one of his feet.

Dan felt enveloped in love and warmth, and he let himself go, coming deep
inside of her. Before he was done he felt her stiffen and contract more
forcefully again, and they rested together. Dan left his penis inside of
her as long as he could, but, finally, he lost his erection and rolled
back, allowing Susie to pull herself upright again. She made her way over
to him, before he had time to sit up and face her, and he stroked her face
in his hands, gazing deeply into her eyes.

"I love you, Susie. I'm going to stay with you forever."

For once, Susie was quiet, apparently content to be held and pet.

Days passed, and Dan and Susie were closer than they had ever been. Dan had
found perfect happiness and all the love he had ever wanted with Susie, and
he felt that she loved him just as much as he loved her. They spent all
their time together, playing games, sharing quiet moments, and making love.
Making love didn't bother Dan anymore, though Susie could be a demanding
partner on occasion. But Dan didn't mind, he loved her so much he was
willing to show her any way he could.

Occasionally Susie would bring him things she had found, too. She seemed to
recognize that they had come from the human world. Over time, Dan collected
a large number of items, including a portable radio (not working, Dan
didn't know if it was just the battery or if the water had destroyed it),
several sets of swim fins, a snorkle, three masks, two watches, a couple
more lighters, a jacknife, and even a few pieces of jewelery. He often used
the fins while playing with Susie, but was uncomfortable with the snorkle
and found the masks awkward. The knife proved very useful for cleaning fish
and cutting spears.

Over time, Dan also got better at making things out of the plants that
populated the island, and spent many evenings building a net out of twisted
vines, to help him catch fish more easily. He also diverted the flow of the
fresh water, and dug a small pit high on the beach to hold the fresh water
before it ran into the sea. Life was good. Simple, fun, and full of love.

One day he and Susie had abandonded their fishing to play tag. Dan found
that Susie was far more maneuverable and quick in the water than he was,
and as such, he was almost always 'it'. But she stayed in a fairly small
area to make it easier for him. It no longer amazed him how quickly she
could pick up on new games. He was used to it, and expected it.

Suddenly, she stopped, and faced away from the beach.

"Susie, what is it?" ased Dan. She swam out a few feet, where the water
dropped deeper, and Dan saw her drop her tail and point her flukes out in
the direction she was facing. She was making the creaking noise, that Dan
knew meant she was examining something.

He looked, but saw nothing above or below the surface. He swam out to her.

Susie turned quickly towards him, and uttered a single high-pitched
whistle. She began pushing him, butting lightly against his chest.

"What is it?" he asked again, urgently. Susie stopped, suddenly, and
chattered at him, even more quickly than usual. Dan saw a look of fear in
her eyes, and a plead that he hurry.

Slightly shaken, Dan turned for the beach and began to swim. Susie came up
behind him and started pushing on his rear. It was only a short distance to
the shore, and with Susie's help he was on it in seconds.

"Susie? ..." Dan stopped when he stood up and looked at the water. Susie
turned too. In the distance Dan saw three triangular dorsal fins slashing
through the surface of the water, heading roughly towards them.

"Sharks!" cried Dan in recognition. Panicked, he ran back to Susie and
leapt on her.

"Come on," he cried, tugging at her. "We have to get you out of the
water!"

Susie struggled against him, whistling and chattering. She was too heavy
for Dan to lift, and he grabbed her flukes and tried dragging her. All he
could think was to get her onto the beach where she would be safe.

The sharks had apparently detected the struggle, and had turned slightly to
be bearing directly towards them. They were fairly close when Susie
suddenly took action. She flicked her tail, causing Dan to lose his grip
and fall backwards into the water. With a quick turn, she charged hard at
Dan, and struck him. He was knocked back several feet, and landed at the
edge of the water. The wind knocked out of him, he lay there trying
desperately to catch his breath, as he watched.

Susie then tried to flee into the ocean, but the sharks were already upon
her, and were circling. Susie turned this way and that, but was unable to
find an opening. Every so often the sharks darted in towards her, and she
snapped at them, driving them back.

Suddenly she charged at one, and struck it in the gills with her beak.
Blood flowed, and the shark swam wobbily off a bit. Susie charged and
struck again, and the shark began to sink, leaving two. The two remaining
sharks quickened their motions, and, excited by the blood, grew more daring
in their attacks.

Susie's movements also became quicker, and more agitated, as the sharks
still blocked her every escape attempt. She charged again, and a second
shark sank, oozing blood from it's broken gills.

The last shark took advantage of Susie's turning away from him, and
attacked as Susie backed off from her charge. It bit down solidly on her
flukes, and Susie screamed a loud, rising whistle. The shark shook
violently, tearing the fins, but released her, finding no meat there.

She tried to manuever for another charge, but the pain and the physical
damage to her tail was making it difficult. Dan saw that he had to help.
Panting, still trying to get his breath back, he grabbed his fishing spear
off the beach, where he had tossed it to play, and leapt into the water.

The shark, sensing a victory, charged again, and latched onto Susie's lower
flank with it's huge jaws. Susie screamed again, with a loud rising then
falling whistle of pain. The shark held on tightly as Susie shook hard,
trying to free herself from it's grip.

Dan reached them quickly, and threw his entire body into driving the spear
into the shark's body. He struck, and the shark released it's hold, and
began thrashing violently. It's teeth slashed Dan's chest and arms, and he
began to bleed, but he held on. Soon the shark's thrashing slowed, then
ceased. Dan sighed, panting, and looked around. The water was cloudy with
blood, and he couldn't see Susie.

"Susie?" he called, splashing the water. She surfaced, weakly, near him,
then almost immediately began to sink again. Dan ran over and grabbed her,
trying to hold her up. She whistled her pain cry again, and Dan looked at
her side. A large chunk of her flesh had been torn off, and she was
bleeding badly. Through the water it was hard to tell, but Dan feared it
was even worse than first glance.

"Susie! Susie!" he cried, hugging her. "I'm so sorry! This is my fault.. I
should have left the water when you told me to! I should have trusted you!"

Susie whistled weakly. Dan moved back, and tried to get a better position
to hold her at the surface.

"Come on," he said. "We have to get back to the cave. We'll be safe
there."

They finally got back into the cave. Dan found all the way that he had to
help Susie stay near the surface, and she seemed to be in a great deal of
pain. He felt extremely guilty, feeling that it was his fault she was hurt.
He was also very afraid that she was going to die.

He led her over to the shallow water, and then faced her. Her eyes were
cloudy with pain, and yet, he saw a spark of love in them, too. He smiled
for a moment, then he ran his eyes down her body and saw the blood.

"Rest for a moment, Susie. I have to block the entrance, so that more
sharks can't get in here."

He took the net he had made, and strung it as best he could across the
mouth of the cave, catching it on rocks on either side. When he was
satisfied that it would stay, he swam quickly back to Susie, laying half in
and half out of the water. She was laying very still.

"Susie!" he yelled, frightened.

She moved slightly, and opened her eyes to look at him. He saw pain, and a
plead for help. The water around her was already red with her blood, and
Dan felt very sick with fear. The wound was very bad, and quite large, and
Susie was having a hard time keeping her eyes open.

Dan looked wildly around the beach, and spied the remains of his shirt,
still slightly stained from the spear, despite his efforts to clean it. He
ran for it, and washed it off in the spring. He then grabbed a few extra
vines, and ran back to Susie.

She whistled weakly in pain as he spread the shirt over her wound, and
began tying it on tightly with the vines.

"Susie, Susie," he kept repeating. "Please be all right. PLEASE! I need
you! I'm sorry!"

She moaned slightly, and opened her eyes. She raised her head, giving him
the 'I need attention' pose, only much more slowly and weakly than usual.

"I have to finish tying this, Susie! Please!"

"err--oo," she replied, very quietly. Again she raised her head, pleading
with him with her eyes.

Dan shook his head, fighting the tears and the anger.

"No," he cried, "no! Susie, no! You're going to be all right!"

She looked at him again, and her eyes were very sad. The cloudiness of her
pain was in the background, and Dan could see right into her soul.

"Brr-eee," she sounded, weakly. 'You love me,' read Dan. A statement, this
time, and not a question.

"Err...err-ooo," she finished. 'I love you.'

In his heart, Dan knew she was dying. He could see that she knew as well.
She was telling him goodbye. His pain surfaced with surprising force, and
he wrapped his arms around her, laying over her. Tears poured from his
eyes, and he called her name over and over.

"Susie, no!" he sobbed. "Please don't leave me! Susie!"

Susie watched him, sadness in her eyes. He felt closer to her than he ever
had, and he heard her thoughts as if they were his own.

'I'm sorry, my time is done. Thank you for being here. Thank you for being
my mate. I loved you, always remember that. I will always be with you, in
your heart.'

Susie closed her eyes one last time. She shuddered slightly, and then
exhaled one final sigh. Her flukes stopped moving, and she was gone.

Dan's sobbing began again, with new force, and he lay with her for a long
time, holding her, and sobbing at his loss.

Dan buried Susie on the opposite beach from the attack, far from the
sharks. In another way it felt like the best place, because Dan and Susie
had spent evenings here, watching the sun set. Dan hadn't been sure, at the
time, if Susie appreciated the sunsets the way he had. Now, however, he was
sure that she had, if only because it was important to him.

It took him a long time, and he cried a lot. But he was eventually
finished. No more would he hear her happy chirp, nor feel the soft warmth
of her caress. He looked up into the sky, tears streaming down his face,
and prayed that she was in a good place.

He looked a long time for a suitable marker, and finally found a large,
flat rock. He struggled to drag it over to the grave, but finally got it
there. Using the knife, he chipped an inscription.

"Susie - My love, I will remember."

He stood by the grave, head down, and cried some more.

He spent the next few days sitting on the top of the cliff, over his cave,
staring out at the sea. Several times, well off in the distance, he noticed
boats speeding around. But he did not care.

Once, he saw a pod of dolphins swimming past the island, a mile or two out.
He watched them, but they did not come towards the island, and he was
saddened.

During this time, Dan did not eat, and he drank very little. His health was
getting poor, but he did not notice, or care to notice. All he cared was
that Susie was gone.

One day he heard an odd chopping noise above the island, and he looked up,
weakly. He watched with amazement as a helicopter approached the island,
and stopped over the beach, lowering itself behind the trees so that Dan
could not see what was happening.

He realized with a start that it was the beach where he had buried Susie,
and he got up, and began a weak, stumbling run towards it, to see what was
happening.

He reached the beach to see the helicopter floating on the quiet sea, on
pontoons, and two men standing in the sand. One was just standing up in
front of the marker when the other noticed Dan, and pointed at him. They
were both wearing t-shirts and new blue-jeans, and the first one was
wearing a cap. The second wore no hat, but had neatly trimmed dark hair.

The man with the cap looked over, and saw Dan as he stepped out onto the
beach. He was long unshaven, and wearing only his badly worn and faded
jeans. He was also rather thin and pale from lack of eating over the last
few days.

"Good lord!" called the man. He ran up to Dan. "Are you alright?"

Dan blinked in confusion. "Wh.. what are you doing here?" he asked. His
voice was dry from lack of food and water.

"We were flying around, out by the mainland there," the man pointed out
over the water, "and my partner was looking around with his binoculars."
The man with the dark hair held up a pair of binoculars. "He saw a couple
of flashes of light from here, and we came to check it out."

He handed a knife to Dan. It was the one he had used to carve the grave
marker. "Found this in the sand. Lucky for you we came, I guess!"

He grew serious for a moment. "But, I'm... sorry about your wife."

"My wife?" asked Dan, absently taking the knife.

"'Susie'," replied the man, pointing at the marker.

"Susie," repeated Dan slowly, turning his head downward and squeezing his
eyes to shut off the tears that were starting to flow already.

"Poor guy," muttered the man with the dark hair. "Least we can do is take
him back to the mainland."

"Yup," replied the man in the cap. "Hey, buddy," he said to Dan. "Come on,
it'll be all right. Get in the helicopter, and we'll take you home."

Dan obediantly waded into the water, and the man with the dark hair helped
him into the helicopter, seating him in the back. The other two men climbed
into the front seats, and closed the door.

They began to warm up the engine, and the machine began to make it's
chopping sounds. The man with the cap turned back.

"What's your name, buddy?" he asked.

Dan paused, thinking slowly, weakly. His thoughts were still muddled with
the pain of his loss.

"My.. name," he replied. It came to him, slowly. "Dan," he stated.

The helicopter lifted off the water, and began to fly across it.

"Well, Dan," said the man with the cap, "my name is Doug, and that there is
Steve."

"How long were you on that island?" asked Steve.

"I.. don't know," replied Dan.

"Well, don't you worry," Doug told him. "We're going to have you back in
civilization in no time!"

Civilization. The word struck a chord in Dan's mind. It echoed in his head,
looking for a place to seat itself, where it's meaning would finally be
recognized.

Finally, it found a place. Civilization. War. Suffering. Violence. Crime.
Civilization. Guilt. Blame. Threats. Punishment. Civilization. Hatred.
Greed. Loneliness.

Dan looked up, suddenly. "NO!" he yelled. Doug and Steve looked back at
him, startled, as he jumped up and grabbed the door handle. Dan could not
go back to a life without love. He would not go back to a world more
interested in making money than having love. He would take his chances in
the ocean, where, when love happens, it's not crushed in pursuit of the
perfect ideal or greatest profit. He opened the door, and jumped.