Just for Fins

by Tera Lynn Childs

  “Ooof!”

  “Ow,” I say, grabbing my head. Something hard—like an elbow, maybe—has connected with my skull, and for a few seconds my vision is blocked by bright spots.

  Then I hear it.

  “Lily?”

  Quince’s voice is weak.

  I squeeze my eyes shut a few times to clear the spots, and when I open them again I see Quince floating right in front of me.

  “Quince!” I shout, diving against him and wrapping him in the tightest hug I think I’ve ever given. “Holy bananafish, I was so worried about you.”

  His arms hug me back, but not as tight as usual. “I was a bit worried about me, too.”

  He says it in his usual joking manner, but there is a tension in his tone that I’ve never heard before. I lean away, then—seeing the dark circles under his bloodshot eyes—I float back far enough to take all of him in.

  Besides his tired-looking face, his whole body looks wrung out. His arms hang limp at his sides, his legs drooping below. His shoulders, usually broad and straight and strong enough to carry a blue whale on his back for a few miles, sag with a weariness I’ve never seen in Quince.

  I swim forward and smack him in the shoulder. Hard.

  “You promised!” I smack him again. “You said you would call for help if you were in trouble.”

  When I go to smack him again, he grabs my wrist and pulls it to his chest. “Wasn’t in trouble. Just . . . slow.”

  “It’s been two days,” I say, trying to keep the screeching panic out of my voice. “Two days.”

  “Has it?” His dark-blond brows pinch into a scowl. “Kinda lost track.”

  I shake my head at him. Then, turning to the two guards I sent to protect him—cowering a few feet away, next to a giant sea fan—I say, “I told you to protect him. To help him.”

  Phyllos raises his hands in surrender. “We tried, Princess. When we realized he had only made it halfway in a day, we revealed ourselves and offered to help.”

  “He refused,” Triakis adds. “Said he had to do this on his own or it didn’t count.”

  “We’re going to have a conversation about you sending babysitters after me,” Quince says. “Later, when I can feel my legs again.”

  I scowl at him and then the guards, but I can’t exactly blame them. Mostly because Quince is right. He has to do this test alone, without help, or he’ll fail. And then we’ll both suffer.

  “Just tell me I’m close,” Quince says to me. “That’ll give me the second wind to cross the finish line.”

  “You are,” I answer quickly. “Not far at all.”

  “Ah, I see you’ve found him,” Daddy says as he arrives on the scene.

  “He’s exhausted,” I tell Daddy, “but he’s determined to finish.”

  Daddy nods. “Then the least we can do is escort the lad the rest of the way.”

  “Are you sure that won’t break the rules?” I ask. “I don’t want him to have gone to all this effort just to throw it away.”

  “It’s fine,” Daddy insists. “So long as no one pulls him home.”

  I give Daddy a grateful smile before turning to Quince.

  “Okay, let’s finish this thing,” I say. “We’ll swim at your pace and I’ll be by your side the rest of the way.”

  He smiles. Not quite the cocky, mischievous smile I’ve grown to know and love, but that guy is in there, under the exhaustion.

  Quince tilts forward and reaches out, scooping his hands back in a wide arc to propel himself forward. I notice that his legs are barely moving, like he doesn’t have the energy to add a kick to the stroke.

  “How can I help?” I ask, desperate to do something more than just watch him scoop his way to Thalassinia.

  “Tell me a story,” he says, his eyes drifting half shut. “Tell me about your weekend.”

  Okay, I can do that.

  “Let’s see,” I say, trying to figure out the most interesting way to tell him about my very boring travels. For a human who hasn’t visited those kingdoms, though, I suppose they’re not so boring. I decide to skip the diplomatic mission parts and focus on the adventure.

  “First we went to the kingdom of Trigonum. It’s north of Thalassinia, and the Bermuda Triangle is in the eastern part of the kingdom.”

  “Cool,” he says, his pace picking up a little bit. “Do wakemakers and other mer things go missing there too? Or is it just human planes and ships?”

  “A bit of both,” I admit. “The vortex has been known to whip up some pretty dangerous whirlpools. I guess it’s like the mer-world equivalent of tornado alley, only with whirlpools instead of twisters.”

  Quince smiles, and that’s all the encouragement I need to keep going.

  “Because of the triangle, there are lots and lots of shipwrecks in Trigonum,” I tell him, and I feel like I’m telling a bedtime story. “Human-object salvage is one of their biggest industries. They export things like deck chairs and fine china and even trinkets like pocket watches and jewelry.”

  “Pirate treasure?”

  “Not as much as you’d think,” I reply. “But some, definitely. There’s a rumor that they found a huge collection of Spanish gold coins last year, but a human salvage operation found it at almost the same time, so they can’t recover the treasure.”

  Quince nods, and we swim in silence for a few strokes. I’m glad that my guards and Daddy and his guards are keeping a fair distance. That makes it feel like Quince and I are swimming home alone.

  “Tell me more,” he says. “Where else did you go?”

  “Next I went to Antillenes, the Caribbean kingdom south of Acropora.” I close my eyes and picture the beautiful blue seas, the vibrant sea life, and the friendly people who make up one of the Western Atlantic’s most southern kingdoms. “That kingdom is very laid-back, even by mer standards. They are extremely rich in rare sea flowers and they have a big mer tourism trade, so they are a wealthy kingdom.”

  Quince doesn’t respond, but he keeps swimming. So I keep talking.

  “Their queen, Cypraea, is one of the most beautiful mermaids I have ever seen.” Every mermaid in all the seven seas is jealous of her beauty, and I’m no exception. “She has long golden-blond hair that flows almost to the tip of her tailfin. And her scales are gold and ivory.”

  “Doesn’t hold a candle to you,” Quince whispers.

  “You haven’t seen her yet,” I argue.

  “Lily, don’t—”

  “Oh, look,” I shout when he starts to tell me not to put myself down—which I don’t need a bond to tell me he was about to do. “We’re almost to the city’s edge.”

  Quince’s eyes open wide, and he smiles at the sight of Thalassinia’s suburbs.

  “Now you just have to make it to the palace in the center,” I say, cheering him on. I think back to three years of watching Coach Hill motivate the swim team. Sometimes he just cheers for them, sometimes he tells them they’re losers who couldn’t beat a Chihuahua doing a dog paddle—I never really understood that one—and sometimes he tries to motivate them with rewards. I’ve had more pizza dinners than I can count because the boys kicked it up a notch to best their times for the promise of free food. Maybe that technique will work on Quince.

  “Let’s race,” I say. “If you win, we can have seaghetti for dinner instead of sushi.”

  “And if you win?” he asks.

  I give him a wicked grin. “You have to eat hoya.”

  “What’s hoya?”

  “Sea pineapple,” I answer innocently.

  He frowns. “That doesn’t sound like a punishment. I like pineapple.”

  “This isn’t pineapple,” I say as I kick my tailfin a little harder, pushing myself into the lead. “In fact, it isn’t even a plant.”

  The disgusted look on his face is quickly followed by faster arm strokes and even some kicking. I smile as he catches up to me, and even though I keep pace evenly with him as we cross the city—and even though I know I could beat him with one full-strength k
ick—I also know that when we get to the palace, he’s going to just beat me by a blade of seagrass.

  A few minutes later my prediction proves true. It’s uncanny how I know these things.

  Chapter 13

  After watching Quince gorge himself on pretty much everything the palace kitchen has to offer—even the sushi—I ask Margarite to escort him to the starfish room. He needs a good night’s sleep after his two-day swim. He might need a good week’s sleep to recover from that.

  But knowing that he’s catching up on his rest relaxes me as I swim toward Daddy’s office. I never knew I could care about someone so much without the benefit of a bond to magnify our emotions. I can only imagine how strong our connection would be if we hadn’t severed.

  “Knock, knock,” I call out as I swim past the guards stationed at Daddy’s door. It’s late, but I knew he would still be working. Still waiting to hear my report about my royal visits this weekend.

  He’s not going to like what he hears.

  “Lily,” he says, his handsome face spreading into a warm smile. “I had a feeling you would be by again.”

  “Hello, Princess Waterlily.”

  I cringe at the sound of Calliope’s voice. It’s nothing personal—her voice isn’t high-pitched or anything—but her presence usually comes with bad news of some sort. Hopefully this visit is just about checking in on Quince’s first test.

  “Calliope,” I say, forcing a smile. “How are you tonight?”

  “Wonderful,” she replies. “King Whelk was just filling me in on the details of Quince’s adventure. Sounds like it was a bit of a challenge.”

  “You could say that.” I throw Daddy an irritated look. “You could also say he almost didn’t make it.”

  Calliope’s face falls. “I know it was difficult, but he did pull through in the end.”

  “I know,” I say by way of apology. “I’m just really exhausted. Is there anything you need from me right now?”

  “No, I don’t think so.” Calliope glances at Daddy, who shakes his head. She turns back to me with a sunny smile. “I think I have everything.”

  She gathers up her stuff and swims for the door.

  “Thanks, Calliope,” I say.

  “Anytime,” she says cheerfully.

  When she’s gone, I float into one of the chairs facing his desk.

  “You look exhausted, daughter,” he says, his voice soft with concern.

  “I am,” I admit, allowing my eyes to drift shut for a moment. “It’s been a long weekend in a lot of ways.”

  “Yes,” Daddy says, setting aside the papers on his desk, “and I want to hear all about your travels, but first, how is Quince?”

  “Recovering,” I answer, forcing my eyes open. I need to be alert and awake for this discussion. “He’ll be fine. But I can’t believe he had to do that, Daddy. How could you ask him to do something so dangerous?”

  His face falls serious. “If I could have found a way around the test, I would have,” he insists. “The law is very specific.”

  “He could have died,” I say. “Maybe he wouldn’t have drowned, not since you restored his aqua respire, but any number of things might have happened to him between here and Seaview.”

  “I know.” His gentle eyes soften in what looks like genuine hurt. “And I know the pain that would have caused you, but there was no other way.”

  I shake my head. I’ve lived in the mer world all my life—even when I’m on land, I’m still part of this world—but I’m starting to realize there are things I will never understand. The ancient laws are among them.

  I don’t want to dwell on my anger over something that is done. Quince is safe. I can argue about ancient laws in modern times on another day. Tonight we have bigger problems to address. “We need to talk about my weekend.”

  “Yes,” Daddy says. “Tell me about your visits. Were they successful?”

  I give him a brief recap of my visits to Trigonum and Antillenes, about the results of my surveys and the agreement each ruler made to be part of a cooperative commission.

  “But I learned something important in Desfleurelle,” I say. “As I left the kingdom, I was stopped by Princess Aurita, who told me something terrible.”

  Daddy frowns. “What?”

  “She said King Zostero is planning to sabotage offshore oil drilling rigs in his kingdom.” I close my eyes at the thought of the potential consequences, the potential losses. “Those rigs are dangerous. If they’re sabotaged—”

  “Lily . . .” Daddy trails off, his voice sounding almost sympathetic. “Princess Aurita has a developed a reputation for dramatic stunts. She has become the mergirl who cried shark, I’m afraid.”

  “What do you mean?” I ask. “You think she’s lying?”

  “Last year, she called a council of kings and queens and falsely claimed an infestation of mer-hungry sharks was devouring her kingdom.” Daddy shakes his head. “King Zostero revoked many of her royal privileges after that.”

  I picture the scared girl who stopped me on my way out of the kingdom. I may not always be the best judge of character—I thought I hated Quince for a long time—but nothing about Aurita’s demeanor said she was lying or making things up.

  “You didn’t see the look in her eyes, Daddy,” I say, trying to convince him. “She looked truly frightened for her brother.”

  “Brother?” Daddy puffs out a sad laugh. “King Zostero has only daughters.”

  I clench my jaw. “Her half-brother,” I explain. “He’s human and he works on one of the oil rigs and—”

  “She manipulated you, Lily,” he says. The pity in his tone sends a shot of lead down my spine. “She obviously knows of your love for Quince and exploited that to make you believe her.”

  “But—”

  “She cannot call dramatic council meetings anymore,” he continues, “so she is using you to bring her attention.”

  I fall silent, trying to process Daddy’s words. He’s basically accusing Aurita of lying and me of falling for it. I can’t believe that. I mean, I can’t believe he doesn’t trust me. And I refuse to believe she was lying.

  The sparkling tears in her eyes are proof enough for me.

  “You’re wrong,” I say. I don’t usually argue with Daddy—and by usually, I mean never—but I can’t just sit aside and let bad things happen to innocent humans. “I believe her, and if you won’t do something about it, then I will. I don’t want the consequences of King Zostero’s actions on my conscience.”

  I kick up from the chair, ready to storm out of the office in a show of rebellious certainty. But before I can swim away, Daddy says, “Lily, wait.”

  I stop moving, but I don’t turn back around. Growing up, I never thought I would have to use Doe’s tactics to get Daddy to do something. I used to roll my eyes at her pouting and storming away. But today, when the cause is so important, I can see the benefits of her methods.

  Not that I will ever tell her that.

  “If you believe so strongly,” Daddy says, his tone more serious than pitying, “then I will investigate the situation.”

  “Investigate?” I whip back around. “We have to do more than just investigate.”

  “Investigation is the first step,” he replies. “I cannot go in accusing the king of plotting against humans. It would put him on the defensive, whether he is guilty or not.”

  I take a deep breath and try to see the reason in his argument. He’s right. Just rolling into a royal palace and lobbing accusations at the king is the surest way to be tossed either out the front door or into the palace jail.

  “Okay,” I say, forcing myself to be reasonable. “I’ll go with you.”

  He shakes his head. “It will be better if I go alone. Besides, you have obligations on land. You have graduation in just a few weeks’ time.”

  “That’s true,” I say reluctantly. “But I can miss a day of class. This is more important than my attendance record. I don’t want to sit around waiting and wondering.”
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br />   “That is unnecessary. I will visit Desfleurelle and then send you a messenger gull with the results of my inquiry as soon as it’s done.”

  I consider his suggestion. To be honest, the idea of turning around and swimming all the way back to Desfleurelle after my weekend of travel is a little depressing. And it’s not like I don’t trust Daddy to do what he says he’s going to do. I know he will.

  I relent. “Okay,” I say, not really happy but willing to accept the situation. “But you send me that message as soon as you’re done.”

  “I promise,” he says with a smile. “Now I think you need to go catch up on your rest as well. You look nearly as exhausted as Quince did earlier.”

  A yawn I didn’t know was coming pushes out, and I try to cover it with my hand.

  Daddy chuckles.

  “I guess you’re right,” I say around a second yawn that I don’t try to stifle. “I could use a good night’s sleep too.”

  I push off and start to swim out the way I almost stormed out a minute ago.

  “Lily,” Daddy says again, and I turn back to face him. “I am very proud of you, daughter. Whatever the results of my inquiry, your compassion and concern are wondrous traits in a princess.”

  “Thanks, Daddy,” I say, a proud smile breaking across my face. “I’ll stop in and say good-bye before we head out in the morning.”

  He grins, and as I swim out the door and head for my room, I know he’s going to spend half the night working. Maybe someday he’ll let me take over enough duties that he can take some time off.

  Another yawn washes through my body, and I swim faster for my room and my bed. I don’t even have the energy to change into a sleep top before my head hits the pillow.

  Chapter 14

  “Pardon me, Princess.”

  A soft voice pulls me out of a nightmare about Quince drowning in an oil slick. I woke up about a dozen times in the night, shaking with fear for what might have happened to him in his first test. Needless to say, I’m happy to return to reality.

  I blink my eyes open and spot the source of the voice, a timid palace maid floating a few feet away from my bed.