Damarian (A Merman's Kiss Novel) (11 page)

“The law requires…you know, I’ll strap you in.”

She leans over me and reaches for something that is attached to the wall next to me. Her smell…it is so captivating. I am bathed in the heat that only grows more profound at every passing second. And her face is so close, our eyes gazing into each other’s. I wish to know her, I wish to learn everything about her.

She jumps and whips her head to the side, where she can see out of this transportation device. There are fry running and talking quite loudly. She stretches an object across my body and fastens it into another object that locks it in place. I notice her hands and body tremble.

She stretches an identical object across her body and then rests her hands on a circular object in front of her. She sits very still, her breathing heavy. Mine is just as heavy.

I am not certain how long we remain seated in this manner, but it feels like a lot of time has passed. Then Cassie announces that we are to travel to a location where we shall acquire clothing for me to wear.

I am slightly upset, for Cassie did not allow me to “pay” for the clothing. I do not completely understand how methods of payment are established amongst the humans, but I am aware that Cassie has taken the burden upon herself, and that it was quite a burden to bear.

But I am more joyous than upset, for the time Cassie and I shared together was exhilarating. The mall, as she referred to it, held so many options that I grew bewildered. I do not understand how humans can choose what item to acquire when there are so many to choose from. Cassie was so kind and patient with me. I am content with what I have purchased. Not the rough garments her friend lent me, but a softer kind. I think they are referred to as khakis. It is pleasant to wear. I am not accustomed to the items on my feet—I believe they are called shoes. But I understand it can be painful for one to walk on land without them, for I have slightly injured myself twice or thrice.

Now we are to enter a location to obtain the salt for my seawater pool.

As soon as we exit the car, I smell something wonderful. My eyes search for the object, and then I realize it comes from the trees. I have always wondered what they smell like. I have seen them many times when I swam close to the shore. I head over.

“Damarian?” Cassie asks as she follows me.

The tree is quite a distance above me. I raise my head and inhale. It smells even more wonderful, like the way I imagined land would smell.

“Damarian?” Cassie stands by my side. Her eyes are curious as they study me and then lift to the tree.

“I have never smelled a tree before,” I tell her. “Or those objects that grow out of the land.”

She appears confused, and then nods. “You mean flowers?”

“I suppose. I do not know what they are called.”

She takes my hand. “Follow me.”

She leads me into another store with a divine scent. The area is packed with flowers. Many flowers, of all different shapes and colors and smells.

“How wonderful,” I say.

“I’ll buy you some.” She gestures around. “Just tell me which you want.”

I take her hand in mine. “Please, Cassie. Do not spend—what is that word? Ah, money—on my account. It is enough that I have inhaled this wonderful scent. We need not purchase it.”

She stares down at the violet-colored flowers before her, then brings her gaze to mine. “Are you sure? I really don’t mind buying you some.” She laughs slightly. “Well, usually it’s the guy who buys the girl flowers…” She shakes her head. “Never mind. Anyway, I really don’t mind.”

I tighten my hold on hers. “I appreciate your kindness, but I do not wish for you to purchase me this flowers.”

The frown vanishes from her face and is replaced with a sweet smile. “You’re so cute. It’s ‘these flowers’ because flowers is plural.”

I nod. “Forgive me. These flowers.”

She smiles wider. “Come. Let’s go buy some sea salt.”

She opens the door of another store and we walk in. Immediately, I catch sight of fish. Many fish, perhaps hundreds, swimming in rectangular objects. Betrayal rises in me as I look at Cassie. “They are captured.”

“No, they’re not.”

“They are imprisoned.”

“They’re here on display so people can buy them as pets. We treat them well, Damarian. Humans give their pets a lot of love and attention.”

Not only do I feel betrayed, but now I am outraged. How could Cassie claim they treat my brethren well when they are captured in this manner? They do not even have the required space to swim! Humans purchase them as pets? What is the meaning of a pet? Syd and Syndin discovered a young seahorse many moons ago who could not find his parents. They wished to have him as a pet. Father did not allow it for he does not believe any creature should be treated in that manner. The twins did not obey Father and did not take the proper care of their charge. He died. Father and Mother were furious and forbade us to have any pets. Do humans treat their pets in the same manner? Will these goldfish be dead in a few days? Not only do these humans steal our fish, but now they mistreat them?

Cassie folds her arms across her chest. “Hey, it’s not like they can actually understand what’s going on or feel anything.”

I stare at her. “To what are you referring?”

“Their brains are not advanced like ours and they don’t feel emotion.”

She does not fathom how mistaken she is. I touch the side of this prison and call out to the confined fish.
Have no fear. I am here to liberate you
.

They do not respond but merely swim away as if they do not notice my presence. What has happened to them? Have they been injured by the humans? I close my eyes and attempt once again.

“Damarian?” Cassie’s hand is on my arm.

They once again do not respond. Why do they not sense my presence? I open my eyes and see they swim in a healthy manner, and it seems they are communicating with one another. But why do they not—?

The answer appears before me. “I cannot communicate with them in this human form,” I say.

Her jaw nearly plummets to the floor. “Communicate? You…you speak to fish?”

I feel moisture on my hands and other parts of my body, which is one of the most peculiar things I have ever experienced. Emitting water from my body? But I cannot dwell too much on this phenomenon because of the apprehension I feel. Was it wise to have divulged such information to Cassie? I am quite intrigued by her and wish to learn all about her and her world, but I did not consider that if I wish to learn about her life, she would wish to learn about my life. That would require me to inform her of all our secrets.

Can I trust Cassie Price wholeheartedly?

Yes, I know I can.

An elderly male has joined us. “Can I help you?” he asks.

From his authoritative tone and stance, I am quite certain this is the man who is responsible for holding my brethren captive. “Please release the fish,” I demand.

“Excuse me?”

Cassie raises her hands. “I’m sorry, he’s just....” She glances at me and then at the male. “Do you have synthetic seat salt for marine fish?”

I cannot trust this human who has the heart and audacity to sail to the sea in his human vessel and use his human nets to capture these innocent fish so that he can sell them to humans for pay. I will not allow Cassie to purchase a single item from him. Not for me.

But she and the male have already walked away to the far end of the store. I focus my attention on the captured fish, then at the other creatures imprisoned here. Turtles and frogs and crabs, and even octopi and squids. There are many other creatures here that I have never laid eyes upon. Human creatures. They do not appear to be in danger or in peril. Perhaps I am mistaken and the humans treat their pets favorably.

I catch sight of another rectangular object that holds more fish and head over. These are fish I pass every time I swim to the surface. My stomach feels tight. Home. Zarya, Syd, and Syndin. Kiander, Doria, Mother, and Father. How I miss them.

Cassie taps my shoulder and tells me she has purchased the salt. They reside in two large white circular objects. From the expression and red color on her face, I realize they are quite heavy. I take both of them from her and carry them to the car.

Then we sit in silence.

“I apologize for my behavior,” I say.

“It’s okay. I get why you were upset.”

I attempt to explain how difficult it was for me to see my brethren captured in such a manner and that I now understand they are not in danger and will not be harmed. I also tell her she was correct when she stated that fish do not hold the same emotional capacity as the children of the sea, nor are they highly intelligent.

“But you can communicate with them,” she says.

I can trust her. I am quite certain I can. My human Cassie will not divulge all my secrets to other humans. No, I see the joy she carries in her eyes when she and I are together. She is very much intrigued with me, just as I am with her. And she is such a kind being.

“Yes,” I respond.

She wishes to know more about them and I tell her how they care for their young just as we do and how they hunt for food. Then she proceeds to transport us to her house. We do not exchange words on the journey. I stare out the car and study the activity outside, how the humans interact with each other and their world. Though they look different from children of the sea and though land is not the sea, it does not look like they differ greatly from us.

We reach her house and enter it, with me carrying the salt. Cassie suggests I swim in the pool. Before we head for there, we ascend the platforms—which Cassie informs me are called stairs—to put away my clothing. She tells me I am to sleep in the guest room and places my clothing in wooden objects that I suppose is what is used to store the clothing when not in use. In the middle of the room, there is a large bed, much larger than my shell in the sea.

Cassie looks at me in a questioning manner.

“The bed,” I say. “It is larger than the one in the other room.”

She tells me the bed in the room on the first level is called a couch and that this bed is for a king.

A king. Moisture once again gathers all over my body. Why does she present me with a bed for a king? Does she know I am the true heir to the throne? No, I must not fret, for Cassie could not know what occurs in the sea. I say, “I was not aware that humans have a king.”

She tells me that some human clans have kings and some do not. I suppose the human clans are not united, just as the children of the sea aren’t.

My eyes return to the king’s bed. “I do not understand why you have a king’s bed.” Is she a princess? Is she promised to another male? The thought causes me to feel a burning pain in my chest.

Cassie lies down on the bed and stretches her arms upward. Her shirt slightly lifts and reveals a small portion of her stomach. Another one of those profound, strange sensations passes through me, causing moisture to gather in my mouth.

“It’s just called a king-sized bed because it’s big,” Cassie tells me. “When my parents first got married, I guess they thought they’d have many guests. This is my favorite bed in the entire house. As a kid, I used to sneak in here in the middle of the night and crawl in. My mom got so mad.”

I walk over to the bed and sit down. It is so soft that it nearly swallows my body. I have never felt something like this. “How it differs from my bed,” I say.

Cassie’s eyes light up. She raises herself and folds her legs beneath her. She asks me what the beds are like in the sea. When I inform her we sleep in large oyster shells, she appears somewhat surprised. Then she smiles.

Suddenly, I feel a little ill. I stand and ask Cassie if I can swim in the pool. She is more than willing to comply. We descend the stairs and enter the pool room. Though I am ill and my body is in desperate need of seawater, unease fills me.

“What’s wrong?” Cassie asks.

“The transformation…it is quite painful.”

She takes hold of my hand and slides her fingers through mine. “I’m sorry.”

No. I do not wish for her to feel any guilt. I am more than overjoyed to be here with her. I cannot remember the last time I felt this happiness.

But the pain is starting to grow. I raise my arms to dive into the pool.

“Wait.”

I glance at Cassie. She tells me I should shed my clothing, and covers her face. Though I do not fully understand the shame humans feel when they are bare, I appreciate that Cassie is considerate of my feelings. Since the pain is intensifying, I hurry to remove my clothes and leap into the pool. A second later, I am engulfed in searing pain. My body writhes as my legs shift into my tail. After what seems like thirty seconds, the pain vanishes.

I open my eyes and look down. My sapphire tail has returned.

Cassie stares at the lower half of my body as though she is mesmerized. When her eyes move upward and meet mine, she smiles. It causes my chest to feel warm, though not as warm as it does when I am in my human form. It is as though my emotions are more profound when I am human.

Twisting my body, I dive into the water, to where it is deep. I miss the depths of the sea terribly. But unlike in the sea, here in Cassie’s home I am safe from the probing eyes of humans. I leap into the air as high as I can, enjoying how free I feel. I am momentarily blinded by a sharp, warm light, and it takes a second to realize it is once again the sun peeking through the clear panes on the wall.

When I return to Cassie, I no longer feel any unease or worry.

“You can’t do that in the ocean, can you?” she asks. “Leap in the air like that.”

I shake my head. “My grandfather has told me tales of when he was a fry and had the freedom to soar in the air. But humans can detect us if we were to swim past the surface of the sea. Therefore, leaping is considered highly dangerous and has been banned.”

Her eyes scan me as though she has heard something quite absurd. “Fry?” she asks. “What’s that?”

I do not understand. She is not aware of what fry is? Perhaps humans do not have…no, I have seen quite many human fry on the beach and when I journeyed to Cassie’s home. “Young,” I say.