TrickShuita

Once there was only golden Ocean. Golden because nursed by the Sun’s rays that would also dissolve in rain, feeding Ocean with drops of liquid gold. When Ocean kissed Land for the first time, they fell in love immediately. One kiss was not enough so Ocean came back for another and another. This is why there are tides. Sometimes,the kisses were light and calm; other times, passionate and stormy. Tidal lust led to agony heartache, causing earthquakes that opened up Land so it could swallow Ocean beyond the lips of its shore. This is why there are rivers, streams and lakes.

Ocean desired to explore Land through every sense- to caress curvy valleys and stroke bushy trees- so Ocean’s soul became embodied as a golden Shuita that could take four forms: a crow that could fly and see all of Land’s beauty; a snake that could rub and wrap itself all over Land’s body; a fox that could smell and hear Land as flowers danced in the breeze; and a rat that could lovingly bite and burrow into Land. 

But this, too, was not enough. The Shuita wanted to embrace Land all at once. This thought was so pleasurable that the Shuita split into two- a male and female- so that its four forms could reproduce amongst themselves, giving birth to all the world’s animals. However, the animals were unable to shape shift so they became envious and hunted the Shuita. Afraid, the Shuita returned to the safety of water and hid in the river amongst tree roots. Unable to find the Shuita, the animals turned their envy on each other. This is how animals became predators and prey.

Land yearned for the Shuita; eternal summer turned autumnal. To return, the Shuita needed to disguise its golden essence so it re-emerged at one point by the river where a particular animal had settled- a family of fury humans. The Shuita turned into a smiling fox. The man asked: ‘fox, why do you smile?’ The fox barked: ‘I can run but not walk, I have a mouth but never talk. I have a head but never weep, I have a bed but never sleep. What am I?’ The man shook his hairy head. ‘A river!’. He started smiling. The fox turned into a giggling crow. The woman asked: ‘crow, why do you giggle?’ The crow cawed: ‘if you have me, you want to share me. But if you share me, you haven’t got me. What am I?’ The woman shook her hairy head. ‘A secret!’. Her giggling was so contagious that the entire family giggled, too. The crow turned into a laughing snake. The children asked: ‘snake, why do you laugh? The snake hissed: ‘you've heard me before, yet you still hear me; then I die until you call me again. What am I?’ The children shook their hairy heads. ‘An echo!’. They laughed but begged: ‘no more, this hurts too much!’. The snake turned into a crying rat. The family asked: ‘rat, why do you cry? The rat squeaked: ‘I have a beginning but no end; I end all things that begin. What am I?’ The family shook their hairy heads. ‘Death!’. They all cried: ‘Stop! stop! What will it take before we die of laughter?’. The Shuita replied: ‘your fur’. Doubled over with aching bodies, the Shuita took their fur. 

Shuita explored Land once more. Spring sprung. But the animals became suspicious of golden glitter trails so the Shuita fled back to the river. The animals forgot their suspicions as the cold returned. Eventually, the Shuita re-emerged. The cycle repeated; this is why there are seasons. 

Nearly all the humans died that winter. When their laughter finally stopped, the last man and woman looked at their bare bodies. Furless, they became furious. Fury turned into fire, protecting them and making them more powerful than any other animal. Families turned into societies then cities, trapping the river. Now subterranean, the river became polluted and poisoned Ocean. Gold turned sickly brown, weakening the Shuita’s shapeshifting until its four forms melded into a river otter. 

This explains why otters make noises like crows; why they move like snakes; why they smell and hear like foxes; and why they have rat-like whiskers and ears, and live in burrows. Instead of moving from water to land between seasons, otters move back and forth each day while ensuring their fur remains in perfect condition. The Shuita’s mischief was never lost; this is why otters are so playful.