When Life Gives You Fins, Elaina H [good e books to read txt] 📗

my waist and move to my wrist, the person turns and looks me in the eyes.

            “Never thought I’d see you again,” I say.

Hello, Again?

 

            “What, huh?” he laughs at me and his laugh is contagious.

            I start to laugh, but then stop myself, “Why are you taking me?”

            “I am taking you because I have to,” he says with a roll of his eyes.

            “Doesn’t that make me feel special,” I retort in a dry, monotone voice,

            He grabs my hair in his hand again, “More special then you may think, CJ.” He looks at me, “You know your hair shimmers when you’re underwater? It makes you even more gorgeous.”

            “Thank you?” I ask.

            “Good enough, now will you please stop hitting me when I’m trying to take you to your place?” he says it seriously, but there is a smile playing on his lips.

            “And stop hitting you? Never,” I say, I try to bring my hand to my mouth in a gasp position, but couldn’t because my wrist was still attached to his hand. I scowl at it and roll my eyes.

            “Let’s go,” he shoots our back into the open water.

            I notice every couple of minutes other sea-life swimming around. While I’m being dragged to “my place” I get time to look at my new attachment. I start at my fins, they start at a deep purple, so dark it’s almost back, then it gradually lightens.

            Then I move up and I notice I am not wearing my conservative, sports swimsuit top. I mean I’m wearing a top, just not mine. It’s beautiful, though, green seaweed is braided in with shining white pearls and shells. It looks delicate, but fortunately, it’s strong and keeps everything right where I want it.

            Moving on, my hair, it is strung with white pearl, black pearl, and shell beads. My hair is even redder when I’m underwater.

            I look at Haden and yell, “How much further!”

            “You sure are patient,” he says with a roll of his eyes.

            I turn back around and I see the forms of a city forming underneath me. I see cliffs with caves, and merfolk swimming along. I see children playing, and I smile.

            As we move forward, I see a palace. The towers reach so high I would think boats would hit them. The towers are stone and gold, and on closer inspection I see the stone is inlaid with shells and pearls.

            The front gate had mer-guards. They march with spears. I stare at the young boy, no older than twelve, who marches.

            We have slowed down immensely, and Haden has let go of my wrist and put his hand in mine instead.

            I don’t remove it, only because I am too obsessed with everything else that is going on around me. I “breath” it the salty smell of the ocean. And almost forget the reason I came down here.

            Almost.

            “So, what do you think?” Haden asks.

            “I think this is nice, but…”

            “Oh great we’re talking with buts!”

            I snort, “Oops, I mean, why am I here? What do I have to learn from this place.”

            “Well,” he moves his lips from side to side, thinking about the answer, “I actually wasn’t here when your father came down. So, I really don’t know anything about what you learn here. I just know about the deal, but only because I’m the delivery boy,” he finishes.

            “The delivery boy?”

            “Yeah, sounds stupid, right?” Oh great, I said that out loud.

            “Oh, I am so sorry! I didn’t mean it like that,” I cringe at how bad that sounds.

            He quiets for a minute, then shakes his head and continues swimming. In notice that we have swum lower and are now closer to the ocean floor.

            I see children playing, men and women working, and businesses selling. I look at Haden and search his expression, nothing. He catches me looking at him and turns his frown up-side down.

            I raise my eyebrows at his sudden change in mood, but he ignores me instead.

            “Come on,” and he releases my hand. I follow Haden through the streets, at first he starts slow because I am still new to the whole swimming with a fin thing.

            The longer we swim though the more natural it becomes, and I take off. Haden is surprised when he sees that I have caught up to him. He swims in place and looks at me.

            I fidget under his intense gaze. He turns away and mumbles something, “What?” I ask.

            “Nothing, come on we have to hurry up.”

            He grabs my hand again and starts pulling me toward the castle in the distance.

            After only a few short minutes, we are only a short distance from the palace. Haden drops my hand and stands upright.

            I, following his example, stand upright also.

            He swims up toward the large, stone gates. I see the marching mermen again, and I look at the boy. Now I realize he’s probably younger than twelve.

            I give the boy a shy smile, but he turns forward and continues to march. When Haden addresses the soldiers, the head merman tells his men to stand.

            My eye is still on the young boy as he turns; his heavy spear catches the end of the merman’s red tail next to him.

            The merman falls forward and knocks the spear out of that man’s hand. As these events fall into place because the boy has dropped his spear, and already seems to be tearing up.

            Seeing Haden is still shocked by the current events, I swim up to the boy. I reach my hand out to his shoulder and he cringes away.

            “It’s alright, buddy,” I coddle him with a sweet voice, “here.” I hand the boy his mighty spear, and realize how heavy it really is. It weighs at least thirteen pounds, the staff is inlaid with indicate gold writing. It’s in some sort of language I have never seen.

            The boy looks at me with his large sea-green eyes and mumbles a thank you. Just as I start to reply the head soldier grabs the boy by the scruff of his neck.

            I lurch forward and grab the boy’s hand; I pull him toward me, and put him behind me as if I am going to protect him.

            When I look up all of the soldiers and Haden are staring at me as if I am some sort of mad-women.

            “Do you know this boy Ms. Kendal? Or should we send him back to his mother and tell him he is a failure at being a mercenary?” my mouth is gaping open at him and he just stares back.

            “You a…………!?” Haden comes up behind me.

            “She’s sorry,” Haden says before I have the chance. I assume he knows exactly what I’m going to say next because he throws his hand over my mouth.

            The boy comes out from behind me and gives me a smile. “Sir,” he says in a small voice, “forgive me, but I am obviously not a mercenary.”

            He bows and gives a small badge, I hadn’t noticed before, to the general. Then he swims away.

            Haden addresses the general again, “May we please enter the castle? I am bringing the girl to the king.”

            He nods and opens the gate to us.

            Haden leads me in, when we are a good distance away from the soldiers, I whisper to Haden, “What was that? Are there any child labor laws here what-so-ever?”

            He looks at me then glances away, “Welcome to Brunswick, CJ.”

           

 

 

 

A New Buddy

 

            As Haden leads the way down the long palace corridor I study the walls. Each wall is covered with images of mermaids and mermen swimming.

            Some images are casual, there are merfolk living, going to the market, and children running about.

            Others are catastrophic, men being wounded in a battle along with women and children being enslaved.

            I slow my pace, and take more time to study the images.

            “Pretty, aren’t they?” says a deep, non-Haden voice in my ear.

            “Uhhh, ya, I guess?” I turn around to uncover the person behind the voice. Standing there is a man; his tail is deep sapphire blue, as well as his eyes. He has a mop of floppy, brown hair and a dazzling smile.

            “I guess? That is the most wonderful answer I’ve heard in a long while,” then I notice the crown. It’s gold with red rubies and green emeralds.

            “Come again?” I ask.

            He laughs a hearty laugh, “You don’t know how nice it feels to be treated like that.”             “Like what?”

            Then Haden swims up, and upon seeing the man drops to the floor and bows reciting words of praise for his…Prince?

            “Like that,” the Prince replies.

            Oh.

            The Prince gives Haden permission to come to a stand, and I wonder if I was supposed to bow as well. In order to be safe I curtsy because he already made it clear he doesn’t like being treated like a god.

            At least that’s what I think he said.

            When I look up he has a slight scowl on his face.

            “Where are the two of you headed of to?” he directs the question more toward Haden then me.

            “We wish to go speak to the King, your father.”

            “I am very well aware that the King is my father,” he says quick and exasperated.

            Haden’s eyes shift down to the floor. The Prince continues, “Anyways,” he dismisses what has only happened seconds ago, “why do you wish to see my father?”

            Haden responds, “Celia Jane Kendal.” He gestures toward me, “is the new and only,” he mumbles, “half-mer of the generation.”

            The Prince nods, “Why is her hair red?”             “What?” I sputter.

            The Prince looks at me as if he had no idea the question would be offensive, “What do you mean, What?”             “I mean,” I begin, “that my hair is red because my ancestor’s hair is red, it’s of no importance.”

            “You’re right it’s not. It’s just that no other half-mer has had red hair, and despite what you may think, red is not a very popular hair color for merpeople,” he replies.

            “Sorry Prince Zak. We didn’t mean to disrupt whatever you were dealing with,” with that Haden bowed ,low, and swam off again toward the King’s Royal Throne Room.

            Me, on the other hand, glared at Prince Zak, and curtsied as low as I could go, “Your Highness,” with that I left him, still standing, his mouth still forming a perfect O.

           

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Highness, and All the Other Things I’m Supposed to Say

 

            “CJ you need to be more,” he twists his lips from side to side again as he thinks, “lady like.”

            I crinkle my nose at his proposal, “Do I have to come here? Can I just start my training with you?”             “Be quieter, CJ, someone might hear you.”

            A few things have changed about Haden since I met him in “Land Brunswick” and “Water Brunswick.”

            The main thing is this, in “Land Brunswick” Haden has unbelievable confidence and charm. Here he is no more charming and confident than a sack of potatoes.

            Since there are social classes here I have no choice, but to assume Haden is at the bottom of the totem pole.

            But I would also have no assumption of what class I am in.

            Haden leads me back toward the Royal Throne Room and stops in front of the guards. They are not the same guards that were at the front of the castle.

            “May we please enter and speak with the King,” Haden states, “we have a scheduled appointment for two days from now, but,” he glances at me, “she came early.”

            The guard nods and opens the doors. Inside the first think you notice is the King of course.

            He is at least six foot six inches tall, and maybe weighs around