Trinket (Reverse Harem)

Murder-Fish

We didn't have anything to take, but somehow on the docks were several tightly-wrapped bundles, along with twenty hippocamps, both male and female, and all muscled and fit, and looking like they were ready for a fight. I eyed them all sideways, but Asund didn't seem at all perturbed by how many people there were. He seemed more concerned with how many loitering Hippocamp there were giving a respectful ring around the docks where we'd first been brought in.

Apparently, the Lord-Regent and Lady-Consort leaving the bubble was a big deal, and nobody liked it. Nobody liked me either, so I couldn't win either way. "They'd like my corpse."

Asund leaned over my shoulder. "You will win them eventually. They are wary of you now."

"They don't look wary."

"They are. I can smell it. You survived being stung by a squid."

"The kid also survived."

"Hmm. And you saved the child too. They want to hate you, but you aren't giving them much to work with."

I hid a grimace. "Are you sure?"

"Theia, my entire life has been devoted to learning how to keep someone safe. I am very skilled at reading crowds and measuring their intent. They aren't going to harm you."

"Even after the scene with Ethat."

"Especially after that. Don't confuse their lack of love with hostility. And they aren't as grateful to see you leave as you think they are. They want you to stay."

"What? Why?"

"Because they don't want the mystery to walk away."

I looked at him. "That doesn't make sense."

He smiled. "People don't abandon mysteries easily. I wanted to forget my dream of you, but it was such a strange dream I couldn't put it out of my mind. Do you think I tell my brother every dream I have? He does not care, and I do not care, but something about that dream made me care and want to have answers. These Hippocamp want answers. Just like you want answers."

Did I want answers? "You didn't want the answer. Otherwise, I think you would have set out to find me."

"I considered it, but I had duties to my enclave and family. I couldn't go chasing strange dreams. You've never had a vivid dream that you woke thinking it was real, and even years later, you can still remember it?"

"No," I said.

"Really. You don't remember any dream you've ever had?"

"I mean, I know I've had dreams, but I can't recall any off the top of my head. They were just dreams."

He frowned slightly.

"You think that's strange?" I asked.

"Maybe. You should perhaps mention it to the Priestess of Dreams."

I hid a frown. I hated being such an oddball. "Maybe we should just go back to Haven and accept my magical spine's been broken. I don't even know what we're chasing. No one's going to be able to fix me. There's no magic that heals a broken spine. I didn't even know you could break a magical spine."

"Neither did I," he admitted. "There's a way to force a shifter to not shift, and take their ability to shift away, but I've never heard of just... breaking the ability completely."

"Can we not think about it?" I asked. I didn't want to be a curiosity or anyone's mystery. Tynne hadn't been real, or maybe he had be, but the pain he'd left behind had been real, so if my entire life up until this point had been one bad dream, part of me just didn't want to know it hadn't been real.