Nautica (a character sketch)

 Nautica Seafallon was her name. She was a tall girl, tall and lean as the mast of one of the fishing boats in the harbor. She had lost her mother as a toddler, but time had soothed any deep hurt, and her face honestly reflected the cheery spirit of her island people. Her eyes were dark, but bright with life, and her lips curled in a wide and garish grin, accentuated by high cheekbones. Her hair, long, dark brown, and wavy like seaweed, bounced free around wide, square shoulders. She wore a dark grey wool peacoat, threadbare and evidently made before she had reached her full height. From the sleeves of the old coat, her hands stretched long and muscular. Her skirt and apron were dark blue and brown, ending in red stockings and leather shoes. Nautica walked with a firm step, stretching long legs out before her like a sea creature sending forth its tentacles. When you met her, the first thing you saw was a sort of sea-elf: tall, invariably wet, and mischevious.