UNDER THE SEA
"Listen to me carefully my dear," a younger version of Lia stood watching her father hold a few scrolls in his hands.
The younger version Lia had her pink hair — that looked even lighter in color — pulled in two buns. She had on a joyful expression and a curious twinkle in her eyes as she browsed her father's office and waited for the moment he turned his back to her to touch the solid books and other materials that had a jelly-like texture.
Her father's long white hair followed him as he swam slowly toward his desk and pulled himself to sit on his chair. He touched a book and started flipping through the pages. She could see a small smile on his face. "Never deny our history and the blood that was spilled while fighting the humans, or any other species," he said as he passed the book to her.
The book itself had pictures drawn of monsters and other creatures that looked like mermaids but were definitely not. Each page had an illustration of a monster and a description written about their weakness and strengths. Lia never saw them but wondered where they all lived.
Then on a single page, a creature had four limbs - two legs and two arms. They had a head with well-designed features. Both sides of their bodies were oddly symmetrical and their description talked about how nimble these species were, and how fast-learners they could be.
Yet, any other information about weakness and strengths were left blank.
"You are Ster's heir. You will carry our name and spread it around," he said. She let those words reach her ears, but her eyes were still trained on the naked human body, and how marvelous it was.
Her father seemed to notice her curiosity and that caused him to smile brightly. "This is the human body, very similar to our anatomy, yet so different at the same time." He then flipped another page. "They have amazing lands and great technology." There were many scattered pictures, one of them had a glass-like bulb that would produce light by a switch. Another picture showed tall pieces of stacked rocks with square holes in them and each one represented a living space for a human.
Then there was clothes and complicated designs of stuff Lia couldn't figure out, the colors that were missing from the pictures were imagined vividly by Lia. She took the scattered hues of the sea and imagined how each thing would look like with those colors.
"We, mermaids, are far more intelligent than humans," her father added, pulling her out of her trace. "Yet our deadliest fault is that we are too proud, too arrogant and we don't seek knowledge, even if we needed it." He squinted his eyes in thought, "and though vicious, they are a splendid species,"
She ignored the fact that her father was deep in thoughts that even a frown started to form in his face. She also didn't notice how the lines between his brows seemed more prominent these days and only said, "I want to meet them!"
She saw her father suck in a deep breath and shake his head, "Never, it is too dangerous,"
"No, it isn't!" She puffed her cheeks, and she held the book tighter and raised it to his face, showing the human body to him. "We can become like this too,"
He sighed, "Yes, we are able to transform, but if something-"
"Then you take me!" She interrupted, totally immersed in her fantasy, "let's go there and have fun together!" Seeing his cute daughters eyes and how it was sparkling made him realize how precious she was.
He gave her a smile. A smile that she always carried with her in her memory. It was almost a sad one. "Sure, one day I will take you out there. But promise me something…" his eyes dimmed, and he let his fingers play with his daughter's beautiful hair. "Never go out there alone."
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
"I would like to do it," raising her hand and saying out loud those six words made a weird feeling sink inside of her. An odd pressure falling into the pits of her stomach, pulling her down with its tremendous dark thoughts.
It was as if gravity had grown to be ten times stronger and all her being was pulled to realize the situation she had put herself in.
The adrenaline in her blood had spread to every part in her body, to the point she thought she was trembling with energy, and the sounds around her had turned into white noise.
Moreover, The whole crowd turned around, looking at her and assessing her from head to toe. To say they were only surprised, would've put it very lightly.
Their widened and unblinking eyes, and their shared gasps that had traveled between them. She could see that the young merman raised his eyebrows almost to the sky, surprised that anyone had actually volunteered.
In the far distance, her eyes had accidentally met red ones. The bloody red that they were drowning her in made her remember the presence of the prince of the sea. Maybe she had been too into her head or because she was focused on what the king was saying, but she had totally forgotten about Cas.
On his face appeared a stern expression. His scowl surprised Lia as she didn't know why he looked so disapproving. The narrow of his eyes made the bloody red appear almost crimson, and there was a hint of worry lost into those scarlets.
Lia saw how tense his jaw was, and how he was clenching his hands tightly into fists, holding himself back for some reason. And at that moment, Lia noticed the huge changes that happened to him through the years.
Other than the obvious changes of him growing bigger and taller, his eyes were sharper now. The serious gaze he was sending her, made them appear harsher. His hair was flowing down to his shoulders, and all his appearance did was remind her how he would be the future king of their kingdom.
A melodious voice, burning with fiery said, "You are crazy if you think I will stay still!" Her mother said. Two hands grabbed Lia's shoulders and pulled her around, making her face her more-than-angry mother.
