The Atlantic Ocean.
September 9th, XXXX.
6:27 pm.
Their attempts to come after me once I'm finished with my hysterical performance did nothing to calm me down after I saw Kanto's true side. He viciously ate that fish, without any mercy whatsoever. I couldn't handle watching him devour the innocent creature without any warning or chase, so cruel and unusual to a tiny being. I could barely stand hurting a dog or a cat, let along a fish! I've won so many of them at the fair; they became my tiny underwater buddies. I knew I couldn't handle becoming a mer, and because of the way I feel, I'll more than likely be exiled. I swam far away from the estranged mers as soon as my tail picks up the current. I'm too focused to not watch where I'm going, but luckily I managed to glide safely through the water. I try to erase the memory of what happened, yet my eyes keep seeing it over and over and over again. I felt my throat constrict, then I could barely breathe.
Tallese suddenly touches me, sending me reeling back and I begin to panic. "Hey, Pandora, hey!" She shakes me by the shoulders and nabs my attention. Tallese finally manages to calm me down. She stops shaking me and holds me at arm's length. "Are you alright? Can you breathe?" Tallese inspects me head to tail, checking all my fins and scales.
"Tallese..." My breath came out wispy. Breathing deeply, I brush my hair away from floating in my face as the others come swimming towards us. Tallese stops next to me, settling a hand on my overexposed shoulder. Her hand was soft and warm, like flower petals in the sun; she seemed genuinely curious about me.
"What didn't you like? The feeding..?" Tallese tilts her head, bugging her eyes at my facial expressions. I connect eyes with her, and I noticed her smile turn upwards as if already knowing the answer. She gently floats closer to me and smiles reassuringly, petting at my hair.
I couldn't speak, only nod at her question. I continued to breathe deeply, feeling my heart rate decreasing when she mumbles a few words under her breath. A bright glow flows through my veins as I watch her press those dainty fingers against my skin.
When Larose slips her fingers away and spots Tallese touching me, she gasps, demanding, "Tallese! What are you doing—? Don't touch her!"
But Tallese continues her words and phrases, bringing heat to my body and a sense of peace to my mind. My veins begin to ignite in silver, softly warming my insides. The glow finally subsides as my heart comes to a normal rate. I finally felt normal and not anxious, and for that I looked to Tallese to gift her a grateful smile. She only nods softly with a knowing gleam in her eyes. Larose pushes both of us back, shielding me with her body as she bares her teeth at Tallese. Tallese has no worried look on her face like I do mine, and it causes me to stop my mind from racing.
Tallese floats calmly and only holds a smile on her face as Larose speaks in a low voice, "Stay away from her, Tallese. I will rip you apart if you lay another hand on her again. Pandora is mine until she knows our ways, and I will not let another heal her without me, or my knowledge, marive." Her voice was cold and domineering as Larose swished her blonde and azure locks to threaten the other three nearby. "And the threat is for everyone," she spits through gritted teeth.
I had never heard such a cold threat, to give me chills. Goosebumps littered my arms and rocks shape into my stomach. Larose was already tense as both hands formed into sharp claws. I never glanced at her face, but I knew it must have been lethal if the others turned ghostly blue at the reaction of her previous statement.
Tallese kept her head up, seeming to lack the fear the others omit. Kamara and Odeum bow their heads in agreement, not wanting to anger her, or maybe it was out of fear? They agreed rather quickly. The look on their faces was more than just fear, but I couldn't place what it was. A mixture of fear, respect, and surprise.
Instead of trying to understand what the situation came to, I look to Kanto, meeting his eyes without a choice at first. My eyes widen when I notice Kanto's darken in emotion as he turns away, avoiding my gaze. I was suddenly saddened at his abrupt disapproval of me, and when I looked down from him, I felt eyes on me. Under the haze, I bite my lip, taking in another breath.
Larose quickly grabs a hold of my hand and we soon take off, leaving the four behind us. I can tell Larose is beyond pissed because she swims at a speed where I can't physically keep up. I'm literally being dragged back to the cove. My mind is torn between leaving her alone or letting her realize what she's doing. I notice her teeth are sharp and the look in her eyes tell me to stay away, so I only keep quiet and let her guide me through the baby blue waters.
Sun rays cut through the ocean like the holes in Swiss cheese, adorning only one spot per ray. I looked around the vast blue ocean and saw the sun within the water. A few glitters of rainbows caught my eyes as Larose tugs me along, away from the beautiful underwater paradise. Languidly, I separate myself from her, wanting to stay out in the open ocean to watch the water move.
Just as I move to the right, Larose stops me and scolds, "We need to go, Pandora. Sharks invade these waters and I won't let you die on my fins, so let's go. Now."
I felt like a child as she spoke to me in such a manner, but instead of running my mouth off and being defiant, I only look up to the surface, longingly, wishing I could see the sun again and feel how it blisters my face, but tans my body. Then I think about all the scales and fins I have and how if anyone saw me, I'd be dead meat.
Larose must have seen my desolate expression because she stops me as we start to swim, and hugs me sideways. "You'll go to the surface again... When you're ready."
I cast another glance towards the sun before nodding in agreement with the mermaid beside me. She rubs my shoulder, leading me left as we venture into the blue abyss until we find some coral and seaweed near. Passing by three boulders, we come around a bend and there's the cove I woke up in. Quickly, Larose speeds up and hides us away in the deep cave. Finally catching a good look around, I find miscellaneous items littered around the sand beds and floor, but they were all human items. Many of them are silverware or commonly used things that I used in my everyday life. I grab a red hairbrush lying on a rock. The silver pattern shines brightly in the water, reflecting a few nearby creatures that glow, making me drop the brush at the sight.
A small gasp leaves my mouth, and I find many of the tiny creatures scattering across my scales. I try to shake them off harmlessly, but it seemed useless; they were attached to me. They created patterns on my scales and they brightened with each movement I made. I found the little lights endearing, and very whimsical.
A smile brightens my lips as a laugh exerts from my throat. Enchanted by their magical colors, I begin to swim, moving my tail. The result is brightening their lights. I twirl as they change their lighting, and just as I was having so much fun with them, something made me glance up, and I found another unknown merman watching me with an amused expression.
If he had two legs, he would probably be around six foot, maybe a little near seven, but that was also with his tail. The male had unnaturally bright green eyes with messy blonde hair that sways on his head. I noticed a silver crown with specks of gold and jewels fitted atop his head, just at his hairline, keeping his hair out of his face. The look of it made me want one also, just for the purpose of pushing my hair back.
His face had soft markings, one by his right eye and a few others towards his hairline, going back into his hair. His face was very angelic, almost too beautiful to look at, and his mouth was a beautiful crescent moon as it gazes back at me. His thick neck led to his broad shoulders and a muscular torso. I blink twice, noticing the scales leading to his tail. I couldn't help but marvel at the fading blues that hid in his fins and scales. It was as if each one was a completely different shade of blue. It was truly amazing, but I forced myself to glance away after three seconds.
Larose smirks quietly to herself next to the attractive merman. When she notices me watching her, she nudged the man beside her. Immediately, I saw the male admiring my very own tail, just as I had been doing with his. After the nudge, he jerks his head to meet Larose's gaze. Both then turned to me after few words between the two, and I stare back at them in curiosity.
Larose only smiles brightly, almost victoriously. "Cyraen, I would like you to meet my freshling, Pandora." Her voice was silk, so alluring and almost hypnotizing. I felt the need to accommodate this man, but I brushed it aside, bracing the male a smile.