Beast Bride

The Wrong Approach Part 2

In the end, I decided to go swimming with everyone else. Together with Andrian, I got undressed and jumped in. The lake water, warmed by the afternoon sun, was cool and refreshing. I was very aware of my nakedness at first, but once I was in the water, I couldn't help but feel that it didn't matter. No one else cared, so why should I?

I swam around, splashing and playing with Andrian, until Estra made his way over to us. He had a look on his face that said he was very pleased with himself.

"I didn't think you would join us," he commented, "what with humans being so rigid about such things."

I didn't answer right away, assuming he had more to say than just a single comment.

Proving me right, Estra continued, "I would like to hear more about what you and Andrian were talking about on the shore. It seemed to be a rather serious conversation. I can't help but wonder what you were discussing so intently right after we all got in the water."

His raised eyebrow told me he already had a pretty good idea what we were talking about.

"I was concerned that we might have offended your human sensibilities, or perhaps made you feel uncomfortable," he added. He spoke in a gentle tone, but there was an edge to his casual words. I suddenly had the feeling he was testing me.

I cleared my throat and replied, "No. Not offended... Surprised. Very, different– from Vrayna."

"I'm glad to see that my concerns were unfounded," he said with a knowing smile, "and I hope you had a healthy conversation with Andrian about it. There's more to getting healthy than talking to a shaman, you know. It's good to open up to the people around you as well."

At that moment, I began to suspect that Estra had somehow orchestrated this whole swimming situation as some sort of bizarre therapy to push me out of my comfort zone. I felt my guard go up at the thought of him manipulating me to suit his whims. Even if he was trying to help me, this was the wrong approach. It was far too invasive for my tastes and I didn't like being blindsided. My displeasure must have shown on my face, because Estra was quick to apologize.

"I'm sorry if I interfered too much," Estra offered, looking suitably abashed, "it wasn't my intention to upset you, really."

He hadn't meant to, but he had. He had violated my trust just to get a reaction out of me. I wondered if he'd planned this with the other two. More importantly, if he had, did that mean Shidah and Luxania were privy to the things I had told Estra?

"Estra, I think it would be better if you went back to the others," Andrian told him in a stiff voice. "I understand what you were trying to do, but you should have known better. For your information, yes, your little scheme worked, but why did you think this was a good idea? If Falyn wants to talk to me, he'll do it without you forcing it."

I didn't want this to escalate any further, so I put my hand on Andrian's arm to distract him. Before he could continue, I simply said, "It's okay. No– ...no harm done."

Andrian nodded but continued to glare at Estra until he swam away.

I was conflicted. Estra had created a situation that made me very uncomfortable. I didn't know if he was sharing my secrets with other people, and I didn't like that he was manipulating me into talking about things I didn't feel ready to talk about. Even if the results were ultimately good, he had crossed a line, and I wasn't sure what to do with that knowledge.

"He means well, but he's stubborn and thinks he knows best," Andrian commented to me once Estra was out of earshot, "He's an ends-justifies-the-means kind of person, from what little I know of him. But no matter what, he's a shaman before anything else. His calling in life is to help and heal, and that's what he's trying to do. He just made a poor choice."