Chapter 4: Where the Present Meets the Future
Three hours. For three hours I sat in that tank blowing bubbles to keep myself entertained. I would have gotten out, if there was any way for me to actually climb out of the tank. I swam to the top of the tank and hung my arms over the edge, keeping my gills under the water so I didn’t accidentally drown myself. “You know, you could’ve gotten out at any time. You aren’t a prisoner.” I scoff, “Then, if I could’ve gotten out on my own, don’t you think that I would’ve? It’s like ten feet to the floor, and if I don’t hurt myself slipping out and falling, it would definitely be a painful transformation back to legs. No thank you, not right now.” Thendril laughed at this. “Glad to see you haven’t lost your humor while you’ve been here. My father told me you needed some assistance?”
“Yeah, I’ve got some scales that need to be removed on my back that I can’t really reach in this form. I was trying to tell him that he didn’t need to get you. Anyone would do, for this.”
“Well, if anybody will do, you’ll have to deal with me. My father, to put it lightly, won’t let anyone else near you. So I’ve been tasked with your care from here on out. Close your mouth, there are other fish in there, wouldn’t want a random fish in there do we?” My mouth snapped closed, “What do you mean your father doesn’t want anyone else near me? Does he think I’m dangerous or something?” Thendril sat on the sofa nearest to the glass, I swam to meet him so we were next to each other. “It’s quite the opposite actually. He wants to ensure your safety. After what happened to your mother, I think he just wanted to make sure you’re okay. Give him time, he will relax after a while.” With that, we sat in comfortable silence. Only the sound of the water recirculating was heard, as we enjoyed each other's company after goddess knows how long I was out. “Well, shall we get this over with? I can’t imagine it’s all that comfortable there. What exactly am I supposed to be doing?” I start to blush, “So, this is embarrassing, the scales are mostly on my back and lower. I’m not quite flexible enough to really get all of them.” Thendril stared at me, “So I need to get in there with you?” He looked uncomfortable for a minute. “I mean, that would be easiest I think. It’s not like I’m naked in here or anything. Why? Can’t swim?” I joked at him as I let myself sink to the bottom of the tank. Thendril mumbled something I couldn’t quite hear through the glass. “What was that Then? I couldn’t hear you.” I push my ear to the glass to try to hear him better. “I can’t swim, okay?” He yelled, startling me away from the glass that separated us. “Oh, well that’s nothing to be ashamed of.” I shrugged, brushing off his obvious discomfort at the idea of having to get in the water. “If it’s that big of a deal, we can figure out another way to do this, it’ll just be a lot harder. I don’t know how much water I have to be in to actually turn. It’s different for everybody.” I swam back up to the top of the tank to try to figure out how I was going to get out of the tank, when suddenly I felt the water ripple. Spinning around I see Thendril slowly climbing into the tank, using the not so hidden ladder on the other side of the room I had yet to venture to. “That ladder was there the whole time?” I crossed my arms pouting before quickly swimming over to him. “Well of course it’s been here. This was your mother’s room before she left so she needed a way to get in and out without help.” I ignored his attitude, holding him up a little bit so he could be at ease. “Are you sure you want to do this? I won’t let you drown if you want to continue, but I also won’t make you do this if you don’t want to.” Thendril grit his teeth, and took a deep breath. “No, it’s okay. I can deal with this. Have you been anywhere else in this tank besides this room? There should be a viewing area in the next room with a sitting area.” I gaped at him. “You’re just now telling me this? Why didn’t we just go there first?”
“It’s only accessible through the tank. To keep nosey people out of my fathers business. Also your mother had the waters enchanted to wash away any spells, and if they had ill intent, wipe their memories of what they wanted to do. It was the ultimate safety measure.” I helped him over to the side of the tank where he could hold on and scoot his way around the tank on his own. “Well that’s pretty smart. I bet they weren’t planning on having someone other than my mother and your father in here.” I paused for a moment watching him struggle to keep his hold. “Do you want me to help you?” I asked innocently, not wanting him to feel even more embarrassed about the situation than he already was. “I don’t know if you know this, few actually do, but I can lend you my breath for a small amount of time. It’s a little invasive, but considering where your hand is going to be in a minute, it’ll be more comfortable than that.” The offer lingered in the air, the implication clear even to a blind man. His head snapped to me, a look of anxiety and curiosity mixed on his tanned face. “I’ll only do it with your express permission Then, you can’t just stare at me. What is it? You’ve never been kissed or something? It’s basically the same thing, but we have to go underwater first.” He once again is left speechless, just staring at me like I grew a second head. I start fumbling my words, thinking that I somehow over stepped. “It’s okay if you don’t want my help Thendril, I was just asking. You look so anxious, I just wanted to offer you my help so you could be more comfortable. That’s all.”
The next minute, we were both pushed underwater. I don’t know if he jumped and pulled me with him, or if he was pushed, but now watching as panic filled his eyes I was quicker to react than he. I pulled him to myself, molding our bodies together perfectly. Holding his face in my hands, I beg his forgiveness with my eyes as I connect our lips. He panics for a moment before melting into the embrace, relaxing so completely that I was worried that he was unconscious until his arms snaked up to pull us closer once more as I tried to push away. Knowing it was most likely an unconscious movement, I allow him to hold us together for a moment more before breaking away, content that he won’t drown in that moment. I keep one hand on his chest as he opens his eyes slowly. “That, was...wow.” He doesn’t seem to realise that we are in the water yet, but I made no attempt to tell him this. “That’s all you have to say about that whole situation?” I cross my arms, angrily. “The least you could’ve done was warn me that you were going to latch onto me before you jumped on me. I almost had a heart attack.” The emotions that crossed his face in that moment were more tumultuous than the seas during a thunderstorm. “I didn’t jump. I thought you pulled me in.” I stared at him, open mouthed. “You think I would just pull you into the water, after explicitly stating I wouldn’t do anything without your express permission? You’re crazy. Do you know how bad I feel that I had to save you the way I did without your consent? You’re fine to swim or walk by the way.” With that I started to swim towards the sitting room Thendril had told me about. “Wait,” his voice stopped me. “You called me by my name.” “Yeah, and? You kissed me back. We are both just full of surprises today.” Sarcasm laced my words as I continued my path to the sitting room, pulling myself up onto one of the benches that were conveniently under the water. I could feel him moving around the water under me, including when he was trying to swim up to where I was. “Here,” I popped back under the water to grab his hand and pull him up to where I was. “Let’s just get this over with. The faster we get this done, the faster we can forget this whole thing happened.” As I started moving to turn around, I was stopped by Thendril grabbing my arm. “What if I don’t want to forget. What if I want to remember every moment that just happened, even though I was terrified?” He let go of my arm to instead hold my wrist, and slowly brought it up to his lips. “What has gotten into you? Just moments ago we were poking fun at each other, just months ago we were at each other’s throats, and now you’re acting like a love sick fool. What happened?” I have all but demanded an answer from him, and he has yet to hold anything back from me now. “As untrue as it sounds, I have felt a pull to you. I’ve felt this ever since I was born, and once I finally found you I knew what it meant. Take it however you want; fate, destiny, or hoax, but I belong to you, entirely. You do not have to feel the same way, even I was skeptical until I spoke with my father about it. He seemed to know even more than I would have expected.” Thendril paused, unsure of how to continue after dropping such a heavy conversation onto my shoulders. “I understand that it’s not what you want to hear, let alone what you would want to experience . I just didn’t feel comfortable continuing without telling you the truth behind my actions. I won’t press you any further than I have already, let’s get your scales cleaned up so you may be free of this tank once again.”













