Ish Comic: “What Is Slowkee?”
Turtle Island Tales
Jessica was cleaning out her closet when she found an old pair of shoes.
They were bright yellow sneakers with little lightning bolts on the sides.
Jessica: “Slowkee! I found something you might like!”
Slowkee walked over.
Slowkee: “What is it?”
Jessica held up the shoes proudly.
Jessica: “Shoes! I don’t wear them anymore, so you can have them.”
Slowkee stared at the shoes.
Then she stared at Jessica.
Then she stared back at the shoes.
Slowkee: “Jessica...”
Jessica: “Yeah?”
Slowkee: “Where exactly would these go?”
Jessica looked down.
Slowkee looked down.
There was a long silence.
Jessica: “...You don’t have feet.”
Slowkee: “I have been trying to tell people that for years.”
Jessica picked up the shoes.
Jessica: “Wait a second.”
She looked at Slowkee.
Really looked.
Jessica: “What are you?”
Slowkee tilted her head.
Slowkee: “I’m Slowkee.”
Jessica: “No, I mean... what are you?”
Jessica started counting possibilities on her fingers.
Jessica: “Are you a ghost?”
Slowkee blinked.
Slowkee: “I don’t think so.”
Jessica: “But you don’t have feet. You float. You look like you came out of a weird dream. That’s ghost behavior.”
Slowkee looked offended.
Slowkee: “I don't haunt anybody.”
Jessica: “Okay, but if you were a ghost... what kind of life did you have before?”
Slowkee shrugged.
Slowkee: “I don’t know.”
Jessica gasped.
Jessica: “You don’t know?”
She grabbed a notebook.
Jessica: “A mystery!”
---
Jessica spent the entire week investigating Slowkee.
She searched Turtle Island records.
Nothing.
She asked historians.
Nothing.
She checked old legends.
Nothing.
She even interviewed old island creatures.
Jessica: “Have you ever seen a person like Slowkee before?”
Old Turtle: “Nope.”
Jessica: “Do you know where she came from?”
Old Turtle: “Nope.”
Jessica: “Any theories?”
The turtle thought.
Old Turtle: “Maybe she’s just Slowkee.”
Jessica wrote that down.
Jessica: “That is annoyingly unhelpful.”
---
Jessica eventually made a giant board filled with notes.
THE SLOWKEE FILE
Ghost? ❌
Spirit? ❌
Lost creature? ❌
Ancient being? ❌
Weird little island person? ✅
Slowkee walked in and looked at the board.
Slowkee: “You made a whole investigation about me?”
Jessica looked embarrassed.
Jessica: “I was curious.”
Slowkee: “You thought I was secretly a dead person?”
Jessica: “When you say it like that, it sounds worse.”
Slowkee sat down.
Jessica finally asked the question she had been wondering the whole time.
Jessica: “Slowkee... seriously. What are you?”
Slowkee thought for a moment.
Then she smiled.
Slowkee: “I’m Slowkee.”
Jessica waited.
Jessica: “That’s it?”
Slowkee: “Yep.”
Jessica: “No secret origin? No tragic backstory? No ancient curse?”
Slowkee: “Nope.”
Jessica: “You’re not a ghost?”
Slowkee: “Nope.”
Jessica: “You weren’t transformed?”
Slowkee: “Nope.”
Jessica: “You weren’t created in a science lab?”
Slowkee: “Nope.”
Jessica stared.
Jessica: “That’s a really simple answer.”
Slowkee shrugged.
Slowkee: “Sometimes simple answers are the real ones.”
Jessica looked at her mystery board.
Then looked at Slowkee.
Then slowly ripped it down.
Jessica: “I spent seven days investigating someone whose answer was literally her name.”
Slowkee: “Sounds like a you problem.”
Jessica laughed.
Jessica: “You know what? Fair.”
She handed Slowkee the shoes.
Slowkee: “What am I supposed to do with these?”
Jessica smiled.
Jessica: “Decorate your room.”
Slowkee looked at the shoes.
Slowkee: “Finally. Shoes I can actually use.”
Jessica blinked.
Jessica: “How?”
Slowkee floated away wearing the shoes on her hands.
Slowkee: “Fashion.”
Jessica shook her head.
Jessica: “I still have no idea what you are.”
Slowkee smiled.
Slowkee: “Neither do I.”
THE END 🟡👟🌴
