mer and her

six. mer.

I rubbed my eyes, wondering why no one had awakened me sooner. Where was Lorcan?

Father was home. I could feel his energy coursing through the water. My twin brother and I would be expected to greet him.

A pain in the back of my head brought me to my senses. I frowned at the piles of rocks and shells around and beneath me. This was not my bed of sea moss and cattail fluff.

Father's diadem dangled off the side of my head. I set it back in place and sat up.

"I must have fallen asleep during watch," I murmured.

Why was there such an invigorating presence? The lake felt like it had during my childhood—when Father ruled and hordes of L'even pearls remained in my family's possession.

Stretching, I lifted myself off the lake bed. With a kick of my tail fins, I soared upward.

The energy was stronger. I rotated three hundred and sixty degrees, absorbing the energy, letting it flow across me, as I tried to determine the direction in which it came.

Above, I concluded.

My eyes widened. Had the human returned?

I followed the energy of the L'even pearls onto dry land. I noticed the human at the same time I saw the silver object. She was the same young female as before—the one with the red chestnut hair.

My heart leapt at the sight of the wrist cuff, which I recognized immediately. It was part of a matching set. Father had given one to me and the other to my brother.

I'd ordered Lorcan to give my wrist cuff to our weakest member. The pair would remain separated, but at least I could recover this one.

My smile faded when I realized I wouldn't be able to take the item as easily as the diadem. The human's tiny finger was caught in one of the wrist cuff's braided loops.

I clenched a fist. This was her territory, but I'd made it this far. I wasn't leaving without the wrist cuff.

I tapped the braided silver with the tip of my finger. When the human didn't move, I pinched the band with two fingers. Keeping my touch light, I pulled at it, trying to free the human's finger as I twisted the cuff back and forth.

It slid away, little by little.

Just as her finger was about to break free, her eyelids snapped opened. Heavy lashes framed eyes that were green and gold, and glaring at me.

I froze.

She snatched the cuff away and shoved it in a nearby parcel.

"My necklace!" she said, reaching for the diadem. "Give it back."

I shook my head as I navigated out of her range. How could I explain that both items belonged to me?

She knelt toward me. "Who are you?"

When I backed away, she raised herself until she stood at her full height—something I could not do. I was taller than her from head to tail fins, but I did not have legs. The human's face contorted as she witnessed the parts of me that were not human.

I expected her to scream, to recoil, to run. But she did none of those things. She only stared, seemingly as unsure as I was of what to do next.

I'd never encountered a human this close before. Based on her reaction, I was certain she'd likewise never seen anything like me.

She swallowed, and then held out her hand. "Give me my necklace back, please."

The human and I were at an impasse. She wanted the diadem, and I wanted the wrist cuff.

Neither of us moved.