Nature Red And Profligate

On board the Georgette, Baby Pierre is looking up at the sky.

Mary-Emily doesn't like to see anyone idle.

Why don't you write in the notebook? she says. You saw that Cape Barren goose, didn't you?

I'm too sad, says Baby Pierre. And we didn't bring a pencil.

One of those is easily fixed, says Ed Dempster. Here's a pencil.

Thank you, says Baby Pierre.

But why are you sad? asks Mary-Emily. Is your eye hurting?

No, says Baby Pierre. If I tell you, you'll think badly of my daddy.

We already do, says Mary-Margaret. Sometimes it's better to tell good friends your troubles.

Good friends. Baby Pierre likes that. He decides to tell them the Bad Thing.

Ageless ate the ruby sea dragon, says Baby Pierre. Even its tummy.

You mean its brood pouch, says Mary-Emily, shocked.

It must have been a male then, says Andrew Dempster.

Andrew! says Mary-Emily. That's not the point. Baby Pierre is sad because Ageless ate all the babies.

Baby Pierre did not know that.

Yes, says Baby Pierre, pretending he knew it. All the babies. Ageless ruined our mission.

It can't be helped now, says Mary-Margaret. Think of it as a lesson.

What is it? asks Baby Pierre.

Nature is profligate, says Mary-Margaret, who has read it somewhere and at last found occasion to say it.

Profligate, says Baby Pierre. What does that mean?

It means wasteful, says Ed Dempster. Nature makes too much of everything.

You only have to look around you, says Mary-Emily.

Baby Pierre looks around him. One blue cloudless sky. One glittering ocean. One Woody Island. One Cape Barren goose. One white breasted sea eagle. One green pencil. (But a pencil's not nature).

Two pairs of Dempsters.

I get it, says Baby Pierre. But he doesn't really. Why make too much of everything?

........

Meanwhile Sweezus is experiencing a similar natural conundrum.

He has reached the sea grass at the bottom. Lots of sea grass. Nature is profligate.

But there is only one ribbony red thing, lodged in amongst it.

He is running out of breath now.

His head is nearly exploding.

But this is something he has to do.

He grabs at the ribbony red thing, which comes away easily. It's soft and slimy and falling apart, except for something hard in the middle.

Sweezus rises, bearing the red thing, as thousands of tiny red particles sink slowly back down to the sea grass.