TW in the description
Thank you to rare.candykale.arts for this image!
Luca POV
Luca could feel astonishment running through both of them. He looked over to see Alberto's face had gone completely still, processing. Giulia put her hands to her mouth in a gasp and stared at them silently.
"My... sister?" Alberto parroted.
"Yes. I am your biological sister Alberto." Eshe said. She looked nervous like she feared he might reject her.
"How?" He stammered.
"It's a very long story." She said, looking sadly at him. "But I have been searching for you for almost fifteen years."
"That's almost as long as we've been alive," Luca said, feeling her pain through her words.
"I can confirm the lab results. When I tested Eshe's blood, I noticed it right away." Mattias said.
"And, of course, you kept it to yourself," Alberto said, glaring.
"No. I confronted Eshe immediately. She asked me not to reveal anything until it was necessary."
"Why?" Alberto asked, turning to Eshe. "Why not just tell me?"
"Because... I feared you wouldn't accept me. You have built yourself a new life. With new family."
Luca could feel the turmoil inside Alberto.
"Alberto... try to be calm." He said, rubbing his back in soothing motions. He felt Alberto relax right away, his shoulders falling.
"Thank you, Luca," Alberto said, but...
He also didn't say it. His mouth didn't move. Luca's eyes widened.
"Alberto... you spoke to my mind." Luca thought hard, and he knew his words connected when Alberto blinked hard.
"You can hear me?" He said.
"Yes, I can," Luca said, surprised. He nearly broke into a smile before he refocused. "But we can talk about this later. Right now, you need to focus on your sister."
Alberto nodded in response.
"I have time." He said to Eshe. "Tell me your story."
~.~.~.~.~.~
Eshe POV
Everything was darker in the Rusalki village. They lived in deeper water where the sun didn't penetrate as far. The blue scales of the people blended in, making them appear more like whirs of motion rather than living creatures. Only a trained eye could make out their shape in the gloom.
Eshe offered small strips of swordfish meat to her mother. A Rusal that lived nearby offered them a portion of his catch. Ever since Eshe's mother became sick, they had lived on whatever she and Alberto could scavenge. Because their father....
Eshe's nose wrinkled at the thought of him.
He was weak.
Their mother, Oksana, was sick with White Fever. A disease that had spread to their village, killing off all the coral and crustaceans that lived on the seafloor. It was rare for a Rusalki to contract the disease yet....
Oksana lay on her bed of soft seaweed, her breath coming out in great rasps. The fever had carved its way into her body, making it look like she had white veins all over the surface of her skin. Her eyes were milky - the fever had blinded her piercing eyes. Her once beautiful sapphire scales were now white-tipped and shedding from her body. They littered the floor of their home.
"Mama, please eat," Eshe begged as she coaxed a strip of meat to her mother's mouth. She was only eleven years old, her small hands trembling. The food fell from her mother's mouth and onto the bed.
"You have to eat. You have to fight this." She begged. Their mother was a warrior. One of the most revered warriors in their tribe. She was always so strong...yet now she lie broken. Eshe's lip quivered.
"Eshe?" A small high pitched voice called into the room.
"Don't come any closer, Alberto!" Eshe said, throwing her arms out to stop him. "You could get sick."
"But I want to see mama...." His voice was so small and delicate. His purple scales stood out in the blue water.
He got that color from their father. A Sireno - NOT a Rusal. Eshe had screamed out in anger when she realized she was only half Rusalki. Her other half was of a tribe far away. A weak people that didn't even hunt but chose to farm and gather. But luckily, she inherited the blue scales and the large stature of her mother, so by appearance alone, nobody would ever know she was a half-breed. But Alberto...
There was no hiding the flush of lapis in his scales, the way they caught the light in the water. He was the spitting image of their father. But Eshe was determined to NEVER let him turn out that way. Even though Alberto was only four years old and Eshe eleven, she trained with him. She wrestled with him in the seagrass, teaching him how to fight. How to be fierce.
But despite his training, he had a naturally soft heart. When their mother became sick, he cried for hours, wishing to see her. And despite Eshe reminding him every day, he still asked to visit. So there he was again, peeking his head inside their mother's sick room, asking to see her.
"I want to see mama!" His voice cried out, tears building in his eyes. He swam closer.
"Alberto, don't!" A pair of large purple hands grabbed him before he could enter the room.
Their father, Ciro, floated in the entryway, pulling Alberto into his arms. Alberto began crying louder than ever.
"You were supposed to be watching him!" Eshe yelled at their father. He had only recently come back after disappearing for nearly six months. His only excuse for leaving was that he "needed some alone time," leaving Oksana to shoulder the responsibilities of a warrior, hunter, and mother by herself. The only reason he was back now was when their mother had sent a messenger to find him and beg him to return. She knew she wouldn't be able to care for her children much longer.
"Yeah, well, I got distracted," Ciro said in a much too casual tone. He hadn't shown a shred of remorse when he arrived home—shown no inclination that he cared. He wasn't even sad when Oksana became too ill to even stand.
"Go find us food if you're going to be worthless." Eshe spat at him.
"Isn't that food you're holding?" He said, pointing at the small bowl of swordfish meat.
"This is for mom!"
"Fine." He said, then turned to the wailing Alberto in his arms. "Hey, big guy, want to go help me catch some sea slugs?"
Alberto wiped his eyes, then giving one last sad look at Eshe, he nodded his little head.
"Great! It'll be fun." Ciro said, bouncing Alberto on his hip. Alberto looked a little happier as they disappeared from the house.
Eshe sighed.
She would have killed for a tuna—even a mackerel at this point. But Ciro was no hunter. He could barely catch a clam.
"He is worthless." She said to herself. Even though she was just a child herself, tending for a sick mother and compensating for an absent father made her grow up fast.
"Come on, mom. Let's try again." She said, guiding the bits of meat to her mother's mouth once more.
~.~.~.~.~.~
That night Eshe, Alberto, and Ciro ate a sad meal of sea slugs. Eshe was so disgusted by her father's lack of effort she didn't eat. She offered her portion to Alberto, who was ravenous as he was going through a growth spurt.
Eshe took him outside to burn off some energy after dinner. She watched him with tired eyes as he chased around a few goatfish, oblivious to the gloom hanging over them. But that was good. Eshe wanted it that way. Alberto was only four years old. He shouldn't have to bear the burden of knowing. Of understanding. Right now - he should only need to focus on chasing goatfish and enjoying life.
"Alberto." Eshe called after her younger brother when the water became almost too dark to see.
Her baby brother swam up to her face bright with exertion.
"I almost got one!" He said excitedly.
"I saw. Good job." She patted him on the head.
She loved him. Loved her younger brother more than anyone else in her life. Ever since Oksana fell ill, she took the role of mother as well as sister. And with Ciro's absence, father as well. She was all Alberto had in this world. And she would never let him down.
"It's time to go in."
"Awww but why?" Alberto whined, crossing his arms and pouting.
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"If we go to bed right now, tomorrow you and I can chase the goatfish together."
His eyes brightened.
"Really?"
"I promise." She said smiling sweetly at him.
With the promise of a fun day ahead, little Alberto went inside for the night without further complaint.
Eshe tucked Alberto into his little bed, wrapping him in a thick woven mat of seaweed.
"Eshe," Alberto said.
"Yeah?"
"Is mom going to die?"
His innocent question made her heart fall to her stomach.
"No, Alberto. She isn't going to die. Our mama is strong."
"Oh, good." He said like his young mind had been worried about it for a while.
Eshe did her best to hold back tears. As she was about to swim away, he said,
"I want to be strong like mama someday."
Eshe smiled at him.
"Me too."
After Alberto was sound asleep, Eshe snuck out of her bed and left their home. If she didn't hunt for food now, there would be no breakfast for them in the morning. And she knew her father sure as hell wouldn't do it.
As she fastened her woven bag to her shoulders, someone cleared their throat behind her.
"Where are you going so late young lady?" Her father said as he casually leaned against the side of their stone home.
"Getting food for tomorrow. Something you should be doing." She said, not hiding her dislike of him.
He had betrayed them, left their mother alone. And Oksana had loved him so completely. And he somehow managed to convince her that he felt the same way. Their love was forbidden. He wasn't from the tribe. But Oksana had begged their village leaders to accept her choice. If not for her prowess as a warrior and her reputation of strength, they would never have approved the match. Not only because Ciro was an outsider, but because their love was Unbonded.
And now she was paying the price.
"That doesn't sound like much fun." He said twirling a piece of kelp between his fingers.
At that moment, Eshe snapped. All the rage building in her small body spilled over. She dove at him, claws out, teeth bared.
He jumped in surprise, but her petite frame clung to him. He tried pulling her off, but her dagger-like claws sunk deeper into his leg. Then she bit him. She bit down using the full strength of her jaws just like her mother taught her. She tore away a chunk of his calf.
He yelled and finally managed to rip her off him. He held her out, protecting himself.
"I hate you! I hate you!" Her little girl voice screamed out. Screaming in a way a child should never have to scream. Carrying pain a child should never have to carry.
"I know you do," Ciro said. Eshe froze.
"What?"
"I know you hate me. And I don't blame you. And you can hate me for the rest of your life."
At that moment, her strength left her.
"I... hate you. I'll always hate you." She said in a quiet voice. Despite the prickling in her eyes, she refused to cry. Not in front of him. Never in front of him.
"You can hate me, Eshe. It's ok." Ciro said and leaned close, kissing his daughter on the forehead.
Eshe returned to her bed, too exhausted to hunt for breakfast anymore. A small tear fell from her eye and into the ocean water as she fell asleep.
The next morning... Alberto was gone from his bed.
Taken by their father.
And her mother, Oksana, was dead.
~.~.~.~.~.~
Alberto POV
Alberto listened, too stunned to speak. He internalized every word coming from Eshe's mouth. Nobody dared interrupt her.
"I've been searching for you ever since." She said, finishing her story, her green eyes glassy.
Silence fell. Alberto had to swallow several times before he could get any words out.
"My mother... her name was Oksana," Alberto said her name out loud. It was beautiful. He wished he could have told her that.
"She loved you so much, Alberto," Eshe said, her voice breaking for the first time. "She begged me to keep you away when she got sick. She protected you until the very end."
A tear spilled onto Alberto's cheek as he nodded. She had Saphire scales. He had mistaken his fleeting memory of his mother for Eshe when they first met. But... it wasn't Eshe. Alberto remembered his mother. Her color. Her warmth.
"I know. I remember." He said.
"What hurts me the most...." Eshe was shaking, holding back her emotions, "Is that bastard left you. He took you from me - then abandoned you when he got tired of playing the father role. And this whole time, you've been alone."
Her fists were clenched, and her jaw muscles flexed.
"I will never forgive him." She said, but Alberto looked up.
"I wasn't alone. I found a family, or rather, they found me." He said and pulled Luca into him.
He could feel that Luca was on the verge of tears. But also Luca's resolve to hold it together. Luca wrapped his arms around Alberto.
"We are your family, Alberto." He said. "And so is Giulia and Massimo. We love you so much."
"It's true." Giulia said walking up to her brother, putting an arm around him.
Alberto hugged them both.
"I know."
He looked up at Eshe and extended his other arm.
"But I have also found a missing piece of my old family."
Eshe hesitated before taking Alberto's hand. He quickly pulled her into a hug, holding onto her, Giulia and Luca.
He held onto them. These important people in his life. He would never let them go.
"You're all my family." He whispered.
~.~.~.~.~.~
The next several hours were spent playing catch up. Eshe told Alberto of her fifteen years of searching for him. Going from coast to coast, asking about a purple Sireno. She joined the hunting party of her tribe for the chance to travel and continue searching. Alberto told her of his days alone on the island. He also told her of how Luca found him, and quickly after that; he found his family.
They talked late into the night before Mattias cut them off, insisting that the two inflicted ones get some sleep. When everyone had left, and only the lamp on their nightstand was on, Alberto took a deep breath, trying to organize his thoughts.
"Alberto?" A voice spoke in his head. He turned to see Luca's eyes screwed tight with concentration making his nose scrunch up.
He couldn't help it. He broke into fits of laughter that unfortunately led to a fit of coughing.
"What?" Luca said out loud this time.
"You're focused face was too funny," Alberto said, trying to balance coughing and laughing.
"It's hard! I've been doing it for five minutes already, and you only heard me once!"
"Ok, ok, try again. I'll focus too." Alberto said, resting his head on the pillow and closing his eyes. He focused on the tether connecting him and Luca, opening his mind to him completely.
"Can you hear me?" A voice called.
"Yes. I hear you, Luca."
"Oh wow, it was easier that time."
"Eshe said it'll get easier with practice."
"Then let's practice a lot. I want to send you memories soon." Alberto could feel the excitement in Luca's thoughts.
"What are you so eager to show me?" He asked.
"I want to show you show you - you."
"You're gonna show me a memory of myself?" Alberto said, skeptical.
"I want to show you my memory of the day we met. I want you to know how I saw the boy that became my best friend."
Alberto's heart warmed at this.
"I'd love that." He said, letting his feeling of warmth transfer through the tether.
The feeling of fondness helped to lull them both into a deep sleep.
~.~.~.~.~.~.
Unfortunately, Alberto woke the following day to Luca leaning over their bed, coughing so hard he was sick. He threw up onto the floor, his shoulders shaking.
"Mattias!" Alberto yelled, trying to help Luca.
The doctor came in, blurry-eyed but ready to jump into action. Right away, he got a warm cloth to put over the back of Luca's neck as he wretched. Slowly Luca stopped, regaining control. As soon as he wasn't puking, Mattias put an oxygen mask over him.
"At this point, your infections are so bad you'd be hospitalized," Mattias said, wiping sweat from his brow. "But since that isn't an option - I'll have to do."
He disappeared for a couple of hours after he was sure Luca was stable. Eshe and Giulia watched over them until he got back. The two women had come to terms with sharing Alberto as a brother. In fact, Alberto caught them mid conversation where both were actually smiling rather than glaring at one another. It made his heart warm. Both his sisters watched him with worried expressions. Alberto wasn't puking, but he still felt terrible. Every part of his body ached, and his coughing was worse than ever.
Mattias returned with a few workers trailing behind him. They carried large boxes and immediately went to work setting up the new equipment.
"What is that?" Eshe asked.
"Two of them are Nebulizers. That is going to kick the infection out of their lungs once and for all. The other one is a blood transfusion machine." He said, resting his hand on the biggest of the three machines. "But there is no point in doing anything with it until these two invalids are better. I can't do a blood transfusion on a sick person."
Once the two identical machines were set up, Mattias placed a different mask over both their faces. The mask was similar to the oxygen mask, but with two tubes attached to it rather than one. The two looked like they had long whiskers going down either side of their mouths.
"Now, take very deep breaths, boys, as deep as you can without coughing." He flipped the switch, and white smoke began filling the tubes and entering their masks.
Alberto instantly sputtered. It smelled awful. Like melted plastic.
"You sure I'm supposed to breathe this stuff?" He said, holding the mask away.
"Yes, now put that back on!" Mattias ordered.
Alberto obeyed and took a deep breath. It smelled terrible, but as soon as he inhaled the white smoke, relief spread through his chest. All the pressure he had been feeling inside suddenly relaxed.
"Breath that in until the white smoke stops coming out. You'll do this four times a day until the infection is finally gone."
"Whatever you say, doc," Alberto said, relaxing into his pillow. Luca was also was feeling the pleasant relief of the white smoke, his eyes closed as he took deep breaths.
It was another five days before Alberto and Luca were well enough to move back into their room. They had nearly stopped coughing and only had to do a round of the white smoke once a day. Mattias set up the Nebulizers by their bed and threatened them that if they didn't do a vial before bed, he would kill them.
"I don't think he is joking," Luca said, shuddering at Mattias's intense expression.
"He makes it sound like we get hurt or sick on purpose," Alberto complained.
At that time, another letter had arrived from Massimo. He told them the food they sent had been successfully handed to those in need in Portorosso. He thanked Mattias profusely. He also said that the man looking for Alberto was still lingering in the town. He was knocking on doors now asking about him.
"He is going to get caught if he keeps at it much longer," Eshe said unconcerned.
"I don't really care," Alberto said, equally uninterested. Only Luca seemed to care about the man's intentions.
"What if it's someone hunting Alberto for Ercole? Like a private investigator?" He asked worriedly.
"Wouldn't he just assume he died in the explosion?" Eshe asked.
They went back and forth on this for a while until Eshe grew bored and returned to her book.
"I'll send another round of provisions when my men get back," Mattias said, also not worried about the strange man. "Now that you two are on your feet again, I have a surprise for you," Mattias said.
"It's not another smoke vial we have to breathe, is it?" Alberto asked.
"No. But don't tempt me." He warned. "It's something else. Follow me." He said and led them to the pool house. The last time Alberto was in this part of the house, the pool had been drained.
"Tada," Mattias said rather unenthusiastically.
The pool had been restored to its original state. Water flowed calmly in it. The connection from the indoor portion to the outdoor balcony section had been blocked off since it was too cold to swim outside. A waterfall poured gently over one side, and there were.... Waves.
"Why is it moving like that?" Alberto asked, looking to the pulses coming from one end of the pool.
"I installed a wavemaker to simulate an ocean current."
"But we can't get in that anyway. It's full of chlorine." Eshe said, looking at the clear water.
"That is why I had it drained. It is one hundred percent saltwater."
"Really?" Luca gasped excitedly.
Now that Alberto looked closer, he could see free-floating clumps of seaweed in the water. There were lichen-covered rocks at the bottom too. And...
"Are those fish?" Alberto asked, surprised to see small silverfish darting in the water.
"I thought they added a nice touch," Mattias said.
"It's amazing!" Luca said, already taking a few steps closer. He looked at the doctor. "Can I go in?"
"Be my guest," Mattias said. "It's ready for you."
Alberto watched as Luca took a small step onto the tiled stairs.
"It's warm!" He cheered and took another. Soon he was diving under the artificial waves. Alberto could see his jade scales rippling under the water. He swam to the deep end, where he disappeared under a floating patch of seaweed.
Then he burst out of the water, jumping through the air and landing with a giant SPLASH!
"Let's keep the water in the pool!" Mattias called, nearly getting hit by the splash Luca sent spilling over the edge.
"Sorry!" Luca laughed as he poked his head from the water. Then he looked at Alberto. "Oh..." His face fell in shame. "Sorry, Alberto."
"It's fine, Luca. I'm glad you're happy." Alberto said but felt his heart long for the water. For the change.
"I don't want to get your hopes up... but touching saltwater might trigger a reaction from your body," Mattias said tentatively.
Alberto shrugged his shoulders.
"I'll try it. Might as well."
He walked until he was right on the pools edge. He took a deep breath and let his foot fall until he was shin-deep.
Nothing happened.
Alberto heard a collective sigh from everyone in the pool house.
"It's ok, guys. It was worth a shot." He said solemnly.
After forcing them to promise they wouldn't endanger themselves, Mattias left to write a letter back to Massimo. Eshe said she would try it out later and left them alone.
The pool house was made up of the pool, several tables and chairs, a swim up bar (that was currently empty), and a giant wall made up entirely of glass. They could see out over the estate through it. The outdoor portion of the pool that had been blocked off hung like a balcony. But it was filled to the brim with snow.
Alberto lowered himself in the water completely, his feet walking on the tiled floor of the pool. It was so strange. Walking in the water. Alberto had to resist the urge to wiggle his hips in the hopes a tail was there to help him swim. He walked until he was to his neck in water, then stopped. He was ashamed to admit it but in his human form....
Alberto didn't know how to swim.
He remembered when he and Luca would joke about how humans swam, laughing at their awkwardness. Never did he imagine himself in that situation.
Luca felt Alberto's thoughts and swam up to him.
"Do you want me to help?" He asked, offering his hands. Alberto shook his head.
"No, it's ok; I'll stay on this side of the pool."
The deeper part of the pool reached a depth of fifteen feet. Alberto remembered the sensation of drowning and quickly receded until he was near a wall. He gripped onto it for support.
"We can go do something else," Luca said, swimming up to him.
"No, no. I need to get used to this." Alberto said determinedly. "This might be the rest of my life."
Luca swam, so he was only inches from him. He looked into Luca's serpentine eyes. The scales, the fins, the tail swishing lazily behind him. It all looked natural. So normal.
Alberto shook his head. He wouldn't let himself become envious. That wasn't who he was. He would fight through this like he did with every other aspect of his life.
"It's ok to be sad," Luca said.
"I'm not sad. I'm mortified." Alberto confessed.
They didn't say anything else further. There simply wasn't anything left to say...
Maybe it was time for Alberto to accept.... He was no longer a Sireno.