Tangled Seaweed

Damien didn’t come back for the next couple days, all the while Fin allowed me to slash around in his bathtub and attempt to help me walk in his spare time. For the time I was given I thought I had done fairly well. I had began bonding with him and I honestly didn’t think it was possible. He was like a friend I haven’t seen in a long time which in reality he was I guess. But he never had to tell me about his feelings, I always seemed to know. Actually I was to the point were I could tell what he was going to ask me before it reached his lips. My brain told me that this was a good thing, but my heart just ached for Damien to come here. I was to the point that it didn’t matter to me if he came to collect me once more, I just wanted to hug him close and feel the bond come alive again. I was to the point where I was getting depressed from not seeing him, Fin was sensing that and just tried to keep me as busy as possible.

I was told this night was a Saturday which meant that Fin didn’t have to go to work at the market in the morning. It was rainy and I sensed something hostile in the air. Maybe I just didn’t like thunder storms, or maybe the sound echoing through the house just bothered me. I found that I had stumbled onto the roof covered deck and was sitting in one of the lawn chairs. My emerald eyes were fixed on the raging sea and the waves slammed against the sand covered beach.

“It’s cold out here, Ren.” I jumped madly and whipped around to find Fin leaning in the doorway. In his had he held a couple cups of steaming tea which was now my favorite drink. There was a soft brown blanket tossed over his shoulder and a pair of bunny slipper’s on his feet. I smiled at the sighted and watched him walk to the chair next to mine. “You’re not use to this weather, does it fascinate you?”

While he wrapped the blanket around my shoulders I nodded quickly, not only was mother nature putting on a show but the sea was reacting with such grace and malice. I loved the sight, for some reason if made me think of swimming. He chuckled then pushed the steaming cup into my hand the slipped his blond hair out of his eyes.

“Careful, the tea is hot and you’ll burn your tongue.” He warned. “I tried something different, I used salt water which doesn’t sound very appetizing but I think you’ll like it cause you’re so use to it.” I took a quick sip just to please him, to my surprise it tasted ten times better and made me feel like I was more awake.

While we watched the ocean together a old beater car pulled up-that’s what Fin calls them- that had a word that had the letters h-u-n-t-e-r written on the side. My nose scrunched and I looked at Fin with confusion in my eyes.

“Don’t speak to them, Ren. Not a word.” He warned, setting down his cup and kicking off his slippers. After that he stood be and walked to the door way of the deck. His stance shouted protective and I was frightened about what these human’s where here for. I looked back at the car and watched them walk up. One was skinny and nerdy, completely with tinning hair and big black glasses. The other was tall tan and lean with some muscles to boot. They didn’t look all to threatening until I looked back at the car for a moment, hanging from the mirror inside was a necklace made up completely of scales. I swear I was almost sick to my stomach. .

“My my, she’s pretty.” The tall one smirked as he approached Fin.

Fin crossed his arms and growled slightly. “She’s my friend and you’ll not be messing with her you crazy coot.” I heard a sound inside the house, the sound of the floor boards popping up. I swear my heart almost stopped, I didn’t know whether or not to run to Damien or stay here. Fin shot me a warning look.

“Ren, go check on the cat. She’s spilling stuff again.” Fin demanded, giving me a look that said to keep Damien quiet. I set down my tea and rushed inside, shutting the sliding door behind me.
I was still wobbly on my feet, but I managed to make it to Damien who was waiting for me on the side of the hole. His tail was soaking the floor and splashing excitedly when he saw me. My smile grown and I ran to hug him, feeling tears weld up in my eyes.

My native tongue rolled out without thinking it through. “We have to be quiet, there’s creepy guys outside.”

He lowered into the hole and kept his hand on mine. His touch sent shivers down my spin and kept me sky high. “Come down here, I’ll protect you.” With a small tug I was helped into the barely big enough water filled tunnel where he pulled the floor boards back over and we were left in darkness. The cold water made me shiver for a moment and I felt scared that I was suddenly unable to swim, but Damin kept one arm around my waist as my boay. His other hair held my face gently as he pressed his lips to mine. It was nice that he held me again, at least for this moment and time.

“I found the antidote, Ren. But there’s a catch and I don’t like it. Unless you are in the sea you will have legs and you will have to stay with Fin. Not to mention the new moon will turn you human again for about three days and I cannot change that. I’m sorry.”

I frowned. “Do I get to go back with you?”

“Of course, we’ll just have to remember what day it is so I can get you back up here in time.” He promised. I felt his tail flick next to my bare foot, I loved that feeling and it made me want my tail back extremely bad. I rested my head against his shoulder and nuzzled close. I was so tired of being away from him. He tightened his arm around me and kissed the top of my head. “I missed you, Ren. I can’t do this again, can I tell you a secret?” I nodded and clung a bit closer to him. “I feel like I can feel your heat beat when I’m away from you, like if I’m gone any longer I’ll swim as fast as I can to find you. I don’t like being away from you, I love you so much.”

Floor boards creaked over head and loud angry voices, the ones of the hunters. I froze but Damin hissed at me to take a breath then tugged me under water with him. I swear at the exact moment he did the floor board was ripped up and light began shining through the water. We both sat motionless, slowing sinking deeper in hopes that they couldn’t see up.

“What’s this Fin?” It was the nerdy boy, his shrill voice was annoying. My lungs began to ache and I looked to Damien with desperation. I need to breath, he doesn’t. He seen this and pushed at my stomach until I let out my air, then he pressed his lips greedily to mine and blew fresh air into my lungs. Then he did the unexpected, he turned us upside down and began swimming as fast as he could through the tunnel where it became so tight that I felt like his body was going to crush mine, half way through he stopped to grant my more air, then kept going at top speed. When we were finally out of the tunnel he shot to the surface and allowed me to breath the air that I truly needed. We both turned to the house and watched this time as the men stormed out with a screaming Fin chasing them.

A huge wave suddenly crashed over us, yanking my limp body away from Damien’s. The next thing I knew I was under the freezing water once more and being tossed quickly to the sharp reef where my body slammed a couple times and I clawed at the water trying to get loose. The more I struggled I more I seemed to slam, I was caught in a rip tide and I wasn’t getting out. It was to the point where I couldn’t hold my breath in my fire filled lungs any longer that Damien’s face finally showed up, grabbing me quickly then shooting towards the surface once more. This time I was lightheaded and tired, my chest hurt and my head the most.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Oh you’re bleeding.” He seemed concerned, but I wasn’t exactly looking for the blood so when he said that I was surprised, I still focused on sucking air into my lungs. He looked up to search for the car that must have been gone because he then pushed towards the shore to lay me gently down on the packed sand. By then I was shaking because I was so cold and coughing up sea water. Fin was already rushing up with a towel and a worried face. Damien on the other hand was laying in the sand on his belly next to me, his hand pressing against the side of my head. “She hit the reef really hard.”

Fin rushed up then scooped me into his lap where he wrapped me tightly in the towel and rubbed his hands up and down my arms. “More then once?”

“I don’t know, I couldn’t find her, there was so much debris and mud.” Damien forced himself closer and balanced himself on what would’ve been his knees. His gorgeous green tail was now covered in mud and seaweed. “I didn’t mean to loose her but that wave was so big that it knocked me out of it’s way and she slipped.”

Fin growled slightly and snapped at Damien. “Why did you have her in the water, it’s freaken storming out and the water is freezing. She could get hypothermia, go back through the tunnel and get yourself in the house, I’ll meet you in the bathroom.” Damien nodded then dove back into the sea, leaving me in Fin’s arms.

“How many times did you hit, sweetheart?” He whispered, picking me up quickly and walking as fast as he could back to the cottage.

“Hm,” I whimpered a little and shook some more. “lot.” I couldn’t remembered all my words right now, my head hurt to much. Not to mention I was being lost in his warm skin, I’ve never felt the water that cold. Was it a human thing?

He burst through the now open door and didn’t stop for nothing. The beach decorated house flew by aa he slipped through it. On our way to the bathroom we met Damien who was hauling himself onto the wooden floor where he did something that I found kind of odd, he began drying his tail with a towel. Fin noticed my confusion but didn’t really say anything on the subject matter. Within another second he was sitting me on the toilet of the bathroom and swapped the wet towel with a new dry one.

“How’s your head.” He whispered grabbing some toilet paper and pressing it tightly to the cut. That hurt and I tried to pull away at first until he snapped at me. “Stop, let me take care of it.”

Suddenly a man walked in with a towel wrapped around his waist. This man was my Damien, and he was wearing human legs. I swear I almost had a heart attack but I kept my shock mostly contained. He didn’t seem to notice, he was to busy showing a little purple vial to Fin.

“It’s the antidote, how do we use it?” Damien hummed looking over at me then raising his hand to pull my stringy hair away from the cut. “It’s not as deep as I thought.” Fin just nodded and dabbed it a little more until he felt like it was okay to leave alone I assume. Then he took the vial from Damien and popped open the cork sniffing it then cringing. “Fin, there’s enough for you to. Do you want to go back to the sea with us?”

Fin frowned and shook his head. “No, I wouldn’t be able to work at the marina anymore. I’ve got to keep this house so you guys have a place to go on the full moon. Plus you guys can come visit me, look you changed into your human form so fast this time Damien I didn’t even have to help you.” I was completely confused and would defiantly be demanding answers as soon as I could. He tipped the violet vial and allowed an equally purple liquid-just a drop-to land on my bare thigh-I only wear swimsuit cause I don’t know how to wear the other stuff. In a slit second and a loud thump my tail was back and it just about kicked Fin out of the way. Thankfully Damien caught him. “Whoa.” He chuckled. I marveled at my tail, smiling a bit inside. Thank god it’s back again. “It’s as pretty as it was when we were kids.” He ran his fingers over it and caught a few dead scales in his fingers.

Damien’s hand found mine and he smile down at me. “Keep those scales, Fin. They are useless to us but are magic for you. I’ll take her back here once a week, maybe more.” Fin nodded happily and watched as Damien picked me up.

It wasn’t long until he covered the towel back over my tail and then snuck outside, doing it the easy way instead of that damned tunnel. The light was bright outside again and I felt happy and excited. Soon I will back able to get back to our little cavern and swim again. When Damin was sure the coast was clear he literally sprinted to the shoreline, then ditching my towel and helping me into the water. Now that I was a mermaid again I didn’t feel the cold of the water in the same way, I liked that. My tail splashed a bit with excitement while I waited for him to shed his towel. While I waited I waved to Fin who was leaning on the railing of the deck watching us leave. He waved back and I turned my attention to Damien who kneeled down in the water which made his gorgeous tail slowly appear, after that he laid the towel on the beach and dove in, dragging me along with him.

Under the water he spun around with me for a moment then pressed his lips to mine, testing the antidote before we got to far away from Fin’s home. Nothing changed and he was happy about that. I smiled hugely at him and followed him as he swam deeper into the sea. It was great to feel home again, though I am going to long to see Fin again. He is one of my best friends and always will be.

“Aw man, I missed swimming with you.” He chuckled a little and gripped my hand softly. “I love you, Ren. But we’ve got a lot a head of us, remember the way back to Fin’s just in case you need to go there again.” I just nodded and allowed my mind to wander.