The Call Of Thalassa

“The sea always filled her with longing,

though for what she was never sure.”

- Cornelia Funke

The rain had fallen the previous night, soaking the land and watering the small gray flowers that were scattered around it. It had left behind the smell of wet grass combined with the saltiness of the sea -a scent that burned Aileen’s nose. The stone stairs that were carved into the edge of the cliff were slippery, causing her to be extra careful. One misstep could send her fast to the bottom and her doomed death.

She didn’t know when exactly she had made her decisions, but the last days were too stressful for her. She couldn’t get a certain merman out of her mind, no matter how much she wished to do so. She couldn’t sleep properly nor could she focus entirely on her daily tasks. Every thought of hers was somehow including his majestic glowing orbs and his breathtaking smile.

She wanted to forget about him and move on with her life like he never existed. She wanted to persuade herself that he was a dangerous beast from which she had to stay away if she valued her life. And yet, she couldn’t bring herself to do so.

The mysterious man had captured her attention like a magnet, making her unable to forget a single detail about him. After her talk with nana, she realized that this world is more than the eye can see. She decided to trust her wise words since she was speaking from experience, but she did not dare pry even further into her painful memories.

She followed her instincts and felt the undeniable pull towards the blue infinity of the sea –the ocean was truly calling out to her. So, here she was today -walking down the slippery steps of the high staircase and heading towards the lonely beach they had first met at.

Was she going to regret her decision of wanting to meet him for a second time? She didn’t really know. However, she was sure that it was better to regret something you have done rather than something you haven’t. Plus, what she was certain of was the fact that he wouldn’t harm her.

She had made her research in the library, looking more into the merfolk stories that the myths and legends described. Most of them didn’t really help her since they only described merpeople as murderous predators. What did help her though, was nana’s certainty and unarguable fact that a mate would never hurt his beloved. She didn’t completely understand what this meant, but she had decided to just go with the flow.

Reaching the final step of the staircase, she looked around the familiar beach. The waves were crashing on the rocky shore turning into white foam as soon as they reached the sharp surface. The familiar sound was relaxing her more than she had expected it or wanted to admit.

She had missed the quiet peaceful place and the tranquility it gave to her. Taking off her shoes and leaving them carelessly to the side, she sighed as she felt her bare toes sinking into the wet sand. After all, it is the simplest of things that always give us a piece of happiness.

Walking slowly around the familiar beach, she carefully passed by the dangerous rocks and found herself a step away from the salty water. She sighed as the crystal clear liquid made contact with her little toes and closed her eyes to enjoy the familiar sensation. The coldness of it didn’t bother her at all. It soothed her and made her mind clearer as it awakened all of her senses.

Moving one step in front of the other -uncaring of getting her long dress wet, she let her feet guide her deeper into the ocean’s blue. The water surrounded her whole body like a protective shield until only her shoulders and face were above its surface.

She let her head fall back, her red locks flowing in the water like bright flames. Her emeralds eyes took in the clear sky that stretched above her with not a hint of clouds, unlike the storm it had to unleash the day before.

Taking a deep breath, she dived underwater. Moving her hands and legs elegantly, she swam in the deep waters, feeling herself relax and having a moment of peace. She had forgotten how good it felt to be surrounded by the salty waters. They gave her a sense of freedom she could find nowhere else.

Seeing the way the bright rays of the sun penetrate the ocean’s surface and illuminate its waters, was giving her a completely different idea of this world’s beauty. Feeling weightless and flowing around the unruffled essence while watching its rocky bottom beneath, made her admire the sea’s magnificence. She rushed to the surface quickly taking another big breath before plunging in the water once more.

Opening her emerald eyes underwater, she saw something glistering on her left side. Turning towards it in wonder of what it was, she only saw a couple of bubbles in its place. Feeling movement on her right, she furrowed her eyebrows turning towards the said direction.

A familiar pair of glowing blue orbs surrounded by a veil of black silky strands greeted her, making her heart beat a little faster. The silver and dark blue scales of his huge tail were glistering under the sun’s rays as he moved it around effortlessly. He seemed startled by her unexpected appearance as if he was making sure if he was hallucinating or not.

She blushed slightly at the thought of him lurking around waiting to see her again. She began to move her limps to reach the surface, only able to remain a couple of moments under the sea. She felt two strong arms gripping her waist carefully and a strange substance touching her tights and legs. Looking down, she watched as a breathtaking merman helped her faster towards the surface. His gaze never leaving her petite form and his tail slightly touching her legs.

Emerging from the salty waters, she let herself gulp the fresh air greedily. The pair of arms never let her waist go, supporting her body and keeping it above the sea. Her hands instinctually touched his broad shoulders for support as he bought his body closer to hers, his tail touching her legs. His blue eyes gazed into her emerald ones in disbelief as his hand caressed her rosy cheek gently, making her shiver in delight at the small touch.

“You came back.”

It was a statement, not a question. And it was filled with curiosity and confusion as well as hope and excitement.

“I came back.”

She whispered in a small voice, blushing as she realized how close to each other they were.

“Aren’t you...“, he took a deep breath, the words not coming out of his mouth, “... aren’t you afraid of me?”

He wasn’t sure if he’d like to hear the answer to his question. He was glad that she had returned back to him since a couple of days prior he wasn’t sure even for this. As the days passed by without a sign of her, he became all the more worried that he’d never see her again.

And now here she was, in his arms. He couldn’t be happier. But the thought of her being scared of him was like a knife plunged deeply in his heart. No one wanted his destined half to be terrified of them.

“I am not sure anymore”, she mumbled quietly, blushing as his blue eyes filled with numerous emotions.

He tucked a wet strand of flaming hair behind her ear, giving her a small smile.

“You have nothing to fear from me, meum Arcanum. I would never harm you”, he promised to her with honesty shining into his glowing eyes.

He began to move his powerful tail slowly, moving them towards the shallow waters where she could touch the bottom of the sea. She tucked her head into the crook of his neck as her arms hugged his shoulders. She was blushing slightly at their close proximity but did not want to move away from the comfort he was giving to her.

“What does it mean?“, she asked him curiously.

He looked down at her raising a dark eyebrow in question.

“The thing you’ve been calling me. You said it to me before.”

A smile decorated his handsome face as he understood what she meant.

“Meum Arcanum means my treasure”, he explained to her, enjoying how her cheeks seemed to burn after his elaboration.

To be truthful, she hadn’t expected this at all. She had heard the foreign words roll so beautifully from the tongue of this ethereal man and she couldn’t help but be curious about what they meant. Her heart had begun to race at an abnormal rhythm as she discovered he had been calling her his treasure the whole time.

“A-And...w-w”, she cleared her closed throat, “what does it have to do with me?”

He brushed her flaming locks with his webbed fingers, enjoying their silky feel. Although they had reached the shallow waters, he wasn’t ready to let her go and she didn’t seem to be bothered.

“You are my soulmate, Aileen. I know you don’t know a lot about my kind and I really don’t want to freak you out, but...the moment I met you, you became the most precious being to me. My treasure. Meum Arcanum.”

He kissed her forehead lovingly, enjoying her blush deepening.

She felt her heart skip a beat at his words. Could this man make her feel more appreciated and beautiful than he did now? Why was she afraid of him in the first place again?

“Havelock...“, he shivered as his name fell from her lips, “I-I’m new to all of these...I don’t really know what to do or what to say, but...I understand that a mate is really important for merpeople and I really want to give you a chance...”

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves down as he watched her struggling with her words.

“...I just feel like everything is happening so quickly, you know? The previous week I wasn’t even aware that merfolk was real and now I have a merman standing in front of me and telling me I am his mate. I understand that your people feel an instant connection?”

He nodded in agreement.

“Yes, we feel an instant connection with our mates. We feel the need to be constantly around them and make sure they are loved and protected”, he answered her.

“So, you begin a relationship with them straight away...“, she sighed, “Humans are different though. We need more time in order to process things and feel safe enough to take the next step in our relationships. You could say we make baby steps and we build a relationship slowly, taking it one step at a time.”

Understanding where all of this was going, he pulled her closer to his body and gave her a comforting hug, which she returned.

“My love, I would never pressure you into anything. We will take this as slow as you’d like. Like humans do.”

She looked at him in bewilderment, not expecting of him to be so understanding.

“You don’t mind waiting? Your people do everything so quickly...”

He shook his head negatively, giving her a bright smile.

“I have waited for you for almost one hundred and fifty years. Now that I’ve finally found you, do you really believe that I’ll mind a couple of months or years? Being in your presence and knowing you are well and happy is enough for me”, he answered honestly.

She sighed in relief, feeling all the panic and stress leaving her body immediately.

“Thank you”, she murmured shyly, hiding her red cheeks away from him.

“Anything for you, meum Arcanum”, he kissed her forehead.

Sitting next to one another in the shallow waters, they enjoyed the small waves of the sea. Aileen couldn’t help but take quick glances at the man beside her, her cheeks flaming every time she caught him staring at her intently.

“So...”

He looked at her, splashing his tail around slightly.

“Tell me about yourself.”

And they spend the rest of the day getting to know one another in the shallow waters of the lonely beach.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

End of chapter 18!!

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Until next time!!