Oceanborn

by Amalie Howard

  “Is it that obvious?” Jenna jokes back, twirling an invisible mustache.

  “You are hopeless.”

  “Yeah, well, good thing you love me, even with my steroid stash,” she says, and leans a shoulder against the nearby locker. “So, was it really that bad? The date?”

  I close my locker, books in hand. “Worse than bad. Catty Cara showed up and basically fake-choked on a French fry. Guess who had to drive her to the emergency room?”

  Jenna’s eyes widen. “That sneaky little b—”

  “Pretty much,” I agree, walking toward Advanced Math, which thankfully Cara is not in. “So yes, Lo took her because she was ‘terrified’—her word, not mine—and that was that. End of date. Nerissa two, Cara one.”

  “We are going to have to take her down,” Jenna says, shaking her head.

  “It’s not worth it.”

  “Hold the phone. What did you just say?”

  I laugh at her expression. “It’s not worth getting into a petty high-school war over. I have way worse things to worry about, including my people and what’s going to happen with Lo. Plus, I don’t want Lo to resent me because I’ve hurt his friend,” I say.

  Jenna grins, shakes her head in mock surprise. “Whoa. Queendom changed you.”

  “Thanks,” I say drily. “Guess I grew up.”

  Jenna directs me to sit in the back of class. Today is obviously going to be a passing-notes kind of day, not a pay-attention kind of day. I’d honestly prefer to lose myself in some advanced precalculus, but I roll with the flow.

  Jenna writes in her notebook, sliding it with an elbow toward me. So, what’d you wear? Did you at least look hot?

  I roll my eyes and shrug. Hot for me means jeans and a T-shirt. That’s about as dressed up as I like to get, but I’d switched it up, opting for a filmy sundress and sandals. Dress, I write back.

  Jenna shoots me an appraising, impressed look. Nice. And Lo?

  Black jeans, vintage Dead T-shirt. Hot. I can’t resist writing the last word. He had looked entirely too hot, almost like the old Lo. I say almost, because he wore actual shoes instead of flip-flops or going barefoot as old Lo had done on more than one occasion. He’d told me that he liked the feel of the earth beneath his toes.

  “So, chemistry?” Jenna whispers, and then taps at the notebook. I glance down. She’d written DEETS!!!!!! in big, bold letters.

  I pause, studying the tip of my pencil. How can I explain such explosive chemistry that I felt every single drop of water surging to the forefront of my human skin, frantic to connect with his? And I felt it from him, too. If I learned one thing during our quasi date, it was that his body sure remembered mine. Just thinking about that makes a hot rush flood my cheeks.

  Jenna pokes me in the arm, her mouth open and eyes, wicked. “That good?”

  “Better.”

  We both jump at Mr. Devane’s deep voice. “Ms. Marin and Ms. Pearce, if we could have your attention as well, please.”

  “Sorry,” we both mutter, and obediently turn our stares to the front of the class.

  Thank God Lo isn’t in this class, because I would probably ignite the two of us if he were. I take a few quiet breaths to calm my racing heart and the water rushing around inside my body like a hurricane tide. Function derivatives and tangents take the edge off, but I’m barely a slow simmer by the time class is over.

  There’s only one thing that can clear my head in short order. I drag Jenna to a deserted corner of the building, casting out a quick glimmer to make sure no one is within hearing distance. I keep it there and hold it steady. Last thing I need is for anyone to inadvertently hear this conversation.

  “What’s wrong?” Jenna says. “We’re going to be late for English and you know how Donovan is about tardiness.”

  “I have something to tell you. It’s important.”

  “What?” she says.

  In a few short sentences, I briefly explain the poisoning scenario with Lo, watching as her eyes widen to giant blue orbs with the information. Sure enough, the simmer in my body reduces to nothing but a cold kind of calm. Nothing like imminent death to take your mind off making out.

  “But who?” she whispers after I’m done.

  “We don’t know. Soren says there’re still spies in the school. Watching our every move.”

  Jenna’s eyes dart down the empty hallway. “Now?”

  “I did a glimmer. We’re alone.”

  “But you would know, right?” Jenna says slowly as if she’s deep in thought. “I mean, any Aquarathi have to reveal themselves to you. You’re the only queen, now that Ehmora’s gone.”

  I shake my head. “Not if they’re hybrids. Lo, as Ehmora’s direct descendant, could sense them, but...” I trail off.

  “He doesn’t know what he is,” Jenna says. “Which means that even if he did sense something, he wouldn’t know what it meant. So they basically knew exactly what they were doing by setting this all in motion.”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Wow, that’s Machiavellian. So what do we do?”

  “We keep our eyes and ears open. We check everyone out—new people, old people. The works. And we keep our guard up.”

  “What about Lo and the poison? Is it going to get worse?” Jenna asks, leaning in, her voice nearly inaudible, as a group of girls approach us from the far end of the hallway. I shake my head—the girls are already on the edge of my glimmer. But Jenna presses her hand on my arm, her fingers cold against my warm human skin. Her thoughts are as clear as a bell in my head. What aren’t you telling me?

  We communicated like this before once when I was in Aquarathi form. The oncoming horde of girls stops at a row of nearby lockers. Twisting slightly to move my arm out of sight, I press Jenna’s hand between my skin and the wall behind us. Then I shift, just the part of me where her fingers are touching. At the hardened sensation of my scales beneath her fingertips, alarm flashes in her eyes, but she doesn’t pull away. Instead she splays her fingers against my Aquarathi hide.

  I manipulate the waters in my body to translate the sounds of my words to the waters in hers, like a vibration conduit of sorts. I’m careful, controlling the frequency of the sound waves as best as I can because the last time I did this, I pretty much exploded her eardrums.

  I swallow, hauling a breath into my lungs. I pulse lightly to Jenna, If we don’t find a way to reverse the effects, he’s going to die.

  What do you mean he’s going to die? she says, shocked. They wouldn’t kill him, would they? He’s one of theirs.

  They would. To get to me.

  So, what’s the plan? We have nothing, Jenna says, her breath erratic. We don’t even know where your mother and Cano are.

  Calm down, I pulse gently. I’m tempted to use Sanctum on Jenna—a form of emotional control used by the royals of my people. Speio once told me that it worked on humans. But Jenna would kill me if I did anything like that without her consent. I opt for words instead. I can find my mother.

  How?

  As queen, I can summon her to me.

  Jenna’s eyes are bugging out of her head. And why would you do something like that? The last time you saw her, she tried to kill you. Remember? Plus, you kind of killed her girlfriend. Not like she’ll be in a forgiving mood. That’s suicide.

  I shrug. I have no other option. I can’t let Lo die. I’ll trade. Me for him.

  But she wants you dead!

  I don’t think she does. I think she wants to punish me.

  I can feel every emotion from Jenna, including her absolute rejection of the idea of me contacting my mother. She’s terrified for me. What does Echlios say?

  But before I can respond, a loud, scornful voice interrupts us. “Seriously, get a room and save the entire school the barf-fest of watching you two make out.”
<
br />   Jenna’s palm peels away from my skin and I shimmer back into full human, slightly disoriented at the sudden shift.

  “Eyes,” Jenna hisses at me, and I realize I must have let go of the thin film that covers my Aquarathi eyes. I blink and slide them into place.

  “You would think that, Cara,” Jenna says in just as scathing a tone. “Because your mind is in the gutter.”

  “Hey, if the shoe fits.” She stares at us, her mouth twitching. Her expression makes me uneasy.

  “What do you want?”

  “Not what I want,” she drawls, “what Principal Andrews wants.”

  “Principal who?” Jenna says.

  Cara grins. “Didn’t you hear the news? My father’s been transferred back here. Looks like they want to keep it in the family. He was appointed acting headmaster this morning.”

  “What about Mrs. Clarke? I thought she was acting headmaster,” I say, frowning. I’d forgotten that Cara even had a dad, considering that she lived with Cano, her mother’s brother, all of last year. According to the gossip mill, her father was always on the road and only saw his daughter once a year.

  “Guess she wasn’t the right fit for the job, so while they’re looking for a permanent candidate, you’re going to have to deal with Principal Andrews,” Cara says in an annoying musical tone. “Anyway, chop-chop. Wouldn’t want to be late for detention.”

  I glance at the clock on the opposite wall and gasp. We missed almost half of the class, and neither of us heard the bell.

  “Donovan sent me to get you. I, of course, felt no desire to save either of your loser selves, so I told him I couldn’t find you. And, well, now you’re kind of wanted in the office for ditching class,” she says gleefully.

  “You are evil, Cara, you know that?” Jenna says, tugging on my arm. “Come on, let’s go before she gets another taste of me.”

  “You wouldn’t,” Cara says, but she backs up a couple steps all the same.

  Jenna folds her arms across her chest. “You think you can hide because your dad is now the school principal? Didn’t work with Cano, won’t work now. Don’t push me, Cara, because you won’t like what you get. I’m sure you wouldn’t want Lo seeing that pretty face all banged up from a rogue hockey ball during practice.”

  “You’ll be expelled in a second,” Cara breathes.

  Jenna shrugs. “Hey, accidents happen. And it’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

  The fuzziness in my head finally clears and I follow Jenna’s lead, walking toward the office and leaving a gaping, irate Cara behind us.

  “You okay?” Jenna asks me. “You seem out of it.”

  “Fine.” I rub my arm where we’d been touching. “I didn’t want to hurt you like the last time, so it took a lot of energy to make sure I didn’t. It’s nothing, don’t worry.”

  We wait in silence in the office before we are ushered in together by the frazzled receptionist. Jenna and I sit in the empty seats across from the large desk and the man on the other side of it. Principal Andrews looks like a male version of Cara with thick chestnut-colored curls and icy blue eyes. I wonder if he’s as competitive and calculating as she is. If he got this job, he probably is. It’s really kind of ironic, actually, that Cara is now living with her biological father. It’s even more ironic that he, of all people, is the new principal of Dover. Control issues must run in the family.

  Principal Andrews’s voice is as icy as his eyes. “Ms. Marin and Ms. Pearce, you’ve both been marked absent from English. As you know, we take skipping classes very seriously at Dover.” He leans back in his chair, steepling his fingers on the edge of the desk. “As the new headmaster, I have to make sure that students attend class, and to punish those who think it’s appropriate to flaunt the rules.”

  “Sir—” Jenna begins, and is cut off by a frosty glare.

  “You will speak when addressed, Ms. Pearce.” He studies us in turn, his pale gaze lingering on me. “I’ve read your files. Seems you’ve both caused this administration enough trouble—cutting class, harassing other students. I’ll be putting an end to that. Do you have anything to say for yourselves?”

  Jenna opens and closes her mouth. I lean forward. “Did you get that information in our written files or from another, less reliable source?” I ask coolly. “Because I wouldn’t put any faith in your daughter’s word, especially on your first day in office.” Jenna turns to stare at me, eyes popping, and Principal Andrews looks like he’s about to choke, his face turning a dark shade of purple.

  “How dare you?” he sputters. “I’ll have you expelled.”

  “For what?” I ask. “For speaking the truth? Mr. Andrews, my family has been on this school board for centuries, longer than you have. What makes you think you can have me expelled? I’ve done nothing wrong. I was late for class because of a family emergency, and was being consoled by my friend, who is now sitting here through no fault of her own.” I lean back in my chair and steeple my own fingers. “I suggest you take a look at those files again. You will see that we both have A averages and are exemplary students. However, if you want to take this up with the school board...”

  “Are you threatening me?”

  “Merely suggesting, Mr. Andrews.”

  His face turns violently purple now. “Why, you impertinent—”

  I cut him off with a wave of my hand as iridescent lights shimmer along my palms. Time slows and stops entirely. I can sense the whirring of a fly’s wings on the far wall...hear the silent, liquid exhale of Jenna’s breath. Every inch of me is alive, connected to the water in the air. I glimmer forward without a second thought and slip into the principal’s brain.

  What I’m doing isn’t exactly mind control, more like mind suggestion. The weaker the mind, the easier it is to suggest. Very few humans can withstand the power of suggestion from an Aquarathi—far less an Aquarathi queen—which is why any kind of human manipulation is against our laws.

  Then again, I am the law, and laws sometimes need to be bent.

  I do know that the laws are in place for a reason. I can make any Aquarathi forget his entire life or make him do things in half a breath, and as I’ve seen before, my glimmers can crush a human mind into nothing simply by manipulating the pain sensors. Until Ehmora, my father’s law has always been to share the planet and defend it, if we must. But day-to-day influence over humans is strictly forbidden...unless we are in danger.

  This isn’t one of those times, but I can’t stand to see Cara get her way, or drag Jenna into this. I’m not making Mr. Andrews do anything untoward. I’m just helping him to see past his daughter’s petty childishness. I release the glimmer—the entire process has taken less than ten seconds.

  Mr. Andrews slouches back into his chair, a glazed look coming over his eyes before he sits up and examines the files on his desk. “Sorry. Where was I?” he says, tapping the edges of the manila folders.

  “I was explaining that I have a family emergency, which is why we were late,” I say helpfully. Jenna’s mouth is open and she’s staring at me with such an incredulous look I have to bite my lip from snorting out loud.

  “Ah yes,” he agrees in an affable voice. “Well, considering that you both have such stellar records, I’ll give you a pass on this one. Next time, please come to the office first, Ms. Marin.”

  “Yes, of course, sir,” I say.

  He glances at the expensive watch on his wrist. “There are about five more minutes left of class. I’ll let Mr. Donovan know that you were both excused. Thank you, ladies.”

  Jenna keeps it together until we are out of the office and outside on the deserted quad before turning on me, hands on her hips, and demanding an explanation. “What the hell did you just do, Nerissa Marin?”

  “What?” I say with a guilty look.

  “No one goes from complete detonation to have-a-nice-day mell
ow in less than a minute,” she says, her eyebrows snapping together. “Seriously, I blinked, expecting the worst, and then he let us go. What’d you do? Spill it.”

  “I didn’t do anything,” I say. “Much.”

  Her eyes widen. “You totally mind-melded him, didn’t you?”

  “Seriously, Jenna, you need to get your mind out of Star Trek. I did not mind-meld the principal. I simply suggested that he reconsider his choices. There’s a big difference.”

  “Reconsider his choices—” Jenna splutters and shakes her head, her eyes wide and accusing, as if I’ve somehow exploited my otherworldly abilities to nefarious ends. “I thought Speio said you don’t do mind control.” Her forehead furrows as she tries to remember the conversation from so many months ago. “Wait a second...he said that you could.”

  I take a frustrated breath. “Look, I’m not about to let Cara take her vicious lies to her father and affect your future at Dover. I couldn’t care less about me, because it doesn’t matter, but you are an entirely different story. You’ve already put everything on the line for me...your future, your life. I’m not about to let some immature drama queen get her daddy to put black marks on your perfect high-school record. So I helped him change his mind.” I mimic her position, slamming my hands on my hips. “And if you have a problem with that, then too bad.”

  “Jeez, don’t freak out,” Jenna says, throwing her hands into the air. “It just took me by surprise. Thanks, I think.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  We sit on the grass in the empty courtyard and enjoy the remaining minutes of privacy before the bell rings for break. I take an apple out of my backpack and bite into it, letting the sun warm my face. Jenna lies back beside me, her head on her bag.

  “Can I ask you a question?” she says, hesitant, propping herself up on one elbow.

  “Can I stop you?” I say with an eye roll.

  “No,” she says mildly. “Have you ever done that to me? The mind suggestion thing?”

  I meet her eyes and hold her gaze. “No.”

  “Will you?”

  “Not if you don’t want me to,” I say quietly.