UnMasked Nomad

21

"Oh! It likes me!" She giggled, petting the cat gently.

"That's Minnow, my Familiar. She's a Cat, a Land Creature, but she's able to survive down here. These are Sofia and Erin, my friends and lovers. Erin saved me from the Traitor Prince Orm, when he used one of the Shackles of Heracles on me." He explained swiftly, and retrieved the cat, placing her in his pocket.

His mother hummed, blinking slowly as she worked through all that at once. "Huh... Well, the ceremony is going to start, soon, so I'll let your father know you've arrived. Your women are welcome to stay with us, to watch the ceremony?" She glanced up at us.

"Us women'd like that. Wouldn't we, little one?" I spanked him saucily, and he squeaked, blushing.

She grinned. "Ahh, Yes. I'll take them now, before you turn entirely red. Go, the elders are waiting."

He nodded and kissed Sofia, apparently for courage, before swimming determinedly off towards the central 'building', an odd-looking pit, only about four feet deep, but 100 feet across, in a perfect circle.

She nodded to us, and began swimming towards a piece of coral shaped like a mushroom, overlooking the circle, and yet still far below the 'ceiling', a net of corral that released various colors of dappled light downwards. Coupled with the various glowing jellyfish and the Atlantean version of street lamps, (crystalline bulbs full of bioluminescent plankton,) there was a decent amount of light, clearly visible even to me, as I didn't have the Atlantean/Merfolk Enhanced Dark-Vision.

Atop the mushroom-shaped coral was a man about the same visual age as 'Aileen', (whom she immediately swam up to and kissed sweetly,) and four other people, of varying ages; one that looked about 9, one that seemed about 6, and two that were fully grown. All six people were wearing the same fish-leather clothing as most of the people we'd seen, briefs covering just their waists or just their waists and chests, and all were of the same basic skin tone and physical features as her and the man, apparently her 'husband'. (I remembered Terran saying that Moray didn't have a precedent for Marriage.)

She spoke quietly, and they all turned slightly towards her, listening carefully. "These women are your brother's mates, Sofia and Erin. One of them is Moray, probably from the North Atlantic, from the looks of her, and the other is Greek, perhaps an Atlantean. Treat them well."

I immediately made a note to not call the Moray Atlanteans, again, as they clearly liked to distinguish themselves apart, then let Sofia translate in my head before I spoke, making it effectively seem like I was fluent in the language. "Actually, I'm an Amazon, not Atlantean. Dr. Ειρήνη Φύλακας, at your service." I smiled and sat on the edge of the coral, looking at the pit as they digested that information.

'Should I allow them to believe I am a Siren?' Sofia asked slowly.

'You should, and you should also examine the anatomy of the women around us, and replicate it, if you'd like to have Terran's Babies.' I smirked.

She blushed and sat down with me, kicking her feet slowly over the edge. 'Was it that obvious?'

'He introduced you first, to his mother. Then he kissed you for courage. She noticed it, as well... and you forget that our connection is a two-way street. I feel that budding pulse of infatuation, slowly turning to something more, that you have for him.' I nodded.

She sighed and laid her head on my shoulder. 'Yeah... He is kinda perfect in every way, madame... but you give me something he can't; you don't have to worry about us 'leaving the Kitchen Table', so to speak. Also, it's only been one night. He may feel differently after a while. Emotions are difficult to quantify.'