Song of Seas Read online

  "Come in."

  The door creaks, reminding me of how much I love being able to have the privacy it provides.

  "So it's true, you're back," Gerda says as she steps inside with a tray of tea balanced precariously on one hand.

  "If you didn't think I was back, why did you bring tea?"

  She sets it down on my desk and shrugs. "I would have taken it to Kai if you hadn't been in."

  "Hmm." I'm not sure I believe her. Especially as her sweetheart lives in the other dorm tower. Technically, she's not supposed to go to his room, but no one seems to listen to those rules.

  I carefully lay my fiddle in its case, knowing there's not going to be any more practice for a while. I don't plan to put my instrument at risk even if the conversation is a short one. It took me months to save up enough money to buy it from my allowance. My parents would never finance a land instrument.

  Gerda hands me a cup of tea as soon as my hands are free and sets a plate of brandy snaps between us.

  I raise an eyebrow. "Do I need to be worried?"

  She chuckles. "Whyever would you?"

  "You've brought my favourite." I pick one up and bite into it, enjoying the caramel taste of the treat. They're at the perfect age where they haven't lost their crunch, but also have a little bit of chew already.

  "Am I not allowed to do that?" She takes a seat next to me on my bed. I'm not lucky enough to have one of the bigger rooms with its own seating.

  "Of course you are."

  "But you're right, I do have an ulterior motive."

  "Oh?"

  "The officers-in-training are back."

  The words hang between us as I let the meaning sink in and memories of the unknown man in the lake take over. I still recall the way his dark hair stuck to his face and the relieved expression beneath it as if it was still yesterday that I saved him, rather than several months ago.

  "How long?"

  "I don't know. They arrived the day before yesterday, so I suspect there's still plenty of time to meet them. There's a winter fayre in the gardens tomorrow, I thought we might go in case he's there," Gerda suggests.

  Affection towards my friend floods through me. I'm glad I told her about what happened at the lake, and the way I want to see the officer I saved again. I know it's silly to think that way about someone I haven't even met yet, but there's something about what happened that keeps drawing me to it and wanting to learn more about the person I saved. Maybe it's part of what being a mer entails. Apparently, we used to save a lot of sailors from drowning until one of our predecessors made it law that mer aren't to interfere in human affairs. I've never understood that part.

  "I'd like that," I say, realising I haven't answered my friend even though I should have.

  "I'm glad. I will tell Kai to entertain himself so we can have the afternoon to ourselves."

  "Can you do that?" As far as I know, Gerda is the only friend Kai has.

  She nods. "He's joined the archery team. He's a terrible shot, but they don't seem to mind. I think they're all just doing it for fun. Or they expect him to get better soon." An affectionate smile crosses her face.

  "Things are still going well between the two of you, then?" I ask.

  She takes a sip of her tea. "I think so. But I'm worried still."

  "That Caryn will regain control of him?" I ask, thinking of the supposed Princess who tried to make my friends' prophecy come true with a broken mirror. I hope she hasn't returned, I saw what it did to both of them and I have no wish to see them go through it again.

  "Oh, no. She's gone for good. That's how these things work. I'm sure you'll find out soon enough."

  I sigh. "Is it bad that a part of me hopes I never do?"

  "You know that's not how prophecies work," Gerda points out.

  I do. And that's one of the many reasons I should put the officer whose life I saved out of my head for good. I can't let myself fall in love, especially not if it's unrequited. That's the fastest way for my prophecy to come true.

  Not that I'm in love with someone I met once and didn't even talk to. I need to banish the mere notion of it for fear of what else it will bring.

  "Mati? Are you all right?" Gerda asks after a moment.

  "Sorry, I was lost in thought."

  "Your prophecy?"

  I nod.

  "You can tell me what it is if you want to," she says softly. "You helped me with mine, I can help you with yours."

  Indecision wars within me. Every part of me has been told over and over again about how I need to keep my prophecy secret for fear of someone using it against me. But Gerda is my friend, she wouldn't do that. And she trusted me with hers when the time was right.

  "I'm not ready," I admit.

  "You don't have to be. But when you are, I'm here to listen."

  "Thank you. I appreciate it." More than she can ever know. Or maybe not. She has been in my position and I should remember that.

  She flashes me a warm smile and then turns back to the brandy snaps to give me a moment to compose myself.

  We need to make a plan for the fayre tomorrow. If there's a chance I might see my officer-in-training again, then I need to wear the right thing. Especially with the cold snap of weather we're still having. I wouldn't be surprised if it snows again overnight.

  As much as I don't want to admit it out loud yet, I'm excited at the prospect of going. Even if I don't see the boy who haunts my dreams, it'll be fun to be back out among the other students and to see what the academy has in store. They always pull out all the stops with events.

  Chapter Three

  There isn't any snow, which is a good thing for an outdoor fayre, but there is a cold snap in the air that makes me glad that I have a warm cloak on for the day. Gerda is similarly wrapped up with a fur trim to hers. I may need to look at getting some to add to mine for next winter.

  "Shall we go find the mead stall?" Gerda asks.

  I chuckle. "Are you that cold?" Most of the times I've heard people say that before it's because they want a drink to warm them up.

  "Or maybe I just like mead. Have you ever had it?"

  "I don't think so." In reality, I know I haven't. Until Gerda, I haven't had a human friend to go to things like this, so there's a lot of things I've never had the ability to try as a result.

  I'm looking forward to changing that.

  "Come on." She takes hold of my hand and pulls me towards one of the stalls with lots of bottles lined up along the front of it.

  My eyes widen. Are they all the same thing? Or are there this many different flavours of mead?

  "Would you like a sample?" the girl manning the stand asks.

  "Yes. Two please," Gerda replies.

  "Original or one of our other flavours?"

  "Original is good," she assures the girl. "Mati has never tried it before."

  "Oh. In that case, you have to try this one. It's our best." The girl picks up a bottle and pours two small cups of the stuff, handing the first to Gerda and the second to me.

  I sniff it, surprised by how sweet it smells. It almost reminds me of the fruit wines the academy serves at balls.

  "To our good health," Gerda says, holding it up.

  I tap my cup against hers then take a sip.

  It's nothing like I expect it to be. It's sweet with a tang to it that I expect.

  "That's delicious."

  "Isn't it?" Gerda says with a grin. "Can I reserve a bottle to pick up later?" she asks the girl.

  "Of course."

  Gerda digs a few coins out of her pocket and hands them to the girl.

  "I'll take some too," I say, getting my own money out. While Mother isn't too happy about me being at the academy, my parents are still sending me an allowance and paying my tuition. Thankfully. I don't know what I'll do if that changes. I suppose I can do without the allowance money if I have to. I have enough clothes and the academy provides all the meals and housing for us while we're studying, so it's only the fun things like this that I'l
l have to miss out on.

  I hand the coins over.

  "We can have the bottles delivered to your rooms for you, if you'd like?" the girl asks as she slides our money into the pouch she's wearing.

  "That's even better than reserving them. Thank you," Gerda says.

  "Just write your information down here and I'll get it sorted." She pushes a sheet of parchment towards my friend, who picks up the quill and starts to write it down for both of us.

  I turn my attention away from the stall in front of us and scan the others for where we should head next. There's everything from lace to sweetmeats and even a stall selling small daggers and other basic weaponry. I imagine they're more on the decorative side than the functional one. Even I know to go to a blacksmith if I want something sturdy and it's not something we have under the sea. Most of our weapons are made from rock and bond, otherwise, they'd rust too quickly. My whalebone knife is one of my prized possessions.

  A flutter of ribbons catches my eye as they dance in the wind. I'm not sure if that's what the stall is selling, but it's where I want to go next.

  "Ready?" Gerda asks me.

  I nod. "Do I need to..."

  "No. I wrote down your room too."

  "Thank you."

  She hooks her arm through mine. "No need to thank me. You'd do the same."

  That's true. I'm glad to have a friend on land who isn't mer. A sentiment I'm sure she shares. Well, kind of. As far as I know, Gerda is nothing more than a human unlucky enough to have had a prophecy about her. But she kept herself from making friends so it wouldn't come true. I'd like to think she's glad that the two of us have bonded since that.

  "I thought we'd head over to the ribbons," I say, pointing at the stall in question.

  "Oh, good choice."

  "Do you know what they're selling?" I ask as the two of us start to walk over.

  She shrugs. "No idea. But isn't that the fun of a fayre like this? And the samples. I do like trying things."

  I laugh softly. "You're not wrong there." I still feel the fuzzy warmth inside from the mead the two of us drunk, and it wasn't even very much of it.

  "I hope there are lots more..." Her words fade to background noise as a group of young men turn the corner.

  I stall and come to a stop, dragging Gerda along with me.

  "Mati, what..." She trails off as she sees the people I'm staring at. "Is he there?"

  I bite my bottom lip as I scan the various faces of the officers-in-training, looking for the one I recognise. None of them spend enough time at the academy for me to know them through classes, and I've never danced with any of them at the balls which happen frequently.

  The only one I'm going to be able to recognise is the officer I saved from drowning.

  "Mati?" Concern comes through her voice.

  Two of the officers-in-training move off to the side revealing the one face I'm looking for.

  Unsurprisingly, he looks much better without nearly having drowned, with curly dark hair cropped close to his head and his uniform the normal navy blue of the officers-in-training. It's a dashing uniform, even if I don't understand what the training program is for. There hasn't been a war in the kingdoms for a long time, and even if there was, sending all of the trainee army leaders to the same place to train seems like it would be counterproductive.

  Perhaps it's a deterrent from the possibility of a future war.

  I push the thoughts of that aside. It doesn't matter what the reasons for the program are. It exists, and the participants go from academy to academy, never spending too long in one place, meaning we never get much of a chance to get to know them properly.

  "Is that him?" Gerda asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

  I nod, unable to say the words out loud.

  "He's handsome. Why don't you go over and talk to him?"

  "And say what? Hi, I'm Matilda, you may remember me from the time you nearly drowned..."

  "There are worse things you could say," she points out. "I'd be glad to meet someone who saved my life."

  "Hmm. He probably thinks I'm a figment of his imagination."

  A knowing look crosses Gerda's face. "That's all right. We can save that for another day." She turns us around and starts to pull me towards the other side of the fayre.

  I'm not sure if I'm more disappointed or relieved that I don't have to go and talk to the person I saved. Maybe I'll be able to pluck up the courage to do so the next time I see him instead.

  Chapter Four

  I strip off the simple dress I save for when I need to come down to the lake. When I'm around the academy for classes or other activities, I'm expected to wear something fancier to befit my station, but fancier also means difficult to get on and off, which isn't very practical for being by the side of the lake.

  The cold air kisses my skin, sending a shiver down my spine and a smattering of scales along my belly. It's not a surprise. My mer form is a lot more impervious to cold than this one is.

  I don't waste another moment and dive into the water, letting the transformation take over as I do. Scales travel along my entire lower body and across part of my torso. If only my shoulders are out of the water, I can pass as human, but any more than that and my true form is revealed with deep blue glistening scales tapering down into the flippers at the end of my tail.

  This form is so natural to me that I don't have to think about the different ways I need to move in it compared to my human one. The reverse is just as true now I've been spending a lot of time on land too. It's hard to pick which of my two forms I prefer the most when both of them have their advantages and their drawbacks.

  I swim close to the surface, reaching my hand out so I can drag it through and create a ripple effect above me. I love watching how the water dances in front of my eyes. Maybe it's because of how connected I feel to both the water and the surface.

  "Hello?"

  I stop swimming as the garbled word from above catches my attention. I keep myself afloat with a few tiny flicks of my tail. It's one of the first tricks we're taught as young mer as it allows us to stay in one place for whatever reason we want.

  "Hello?" the voice calls again.

  Are they looking for me? I find it unlikely, but what other explanation would there be for someone coming down to the lake at this time? Especially when the weather was so bad. If I hadn't needed to take a swim to stop my skin from drying out, then I wouldn't be out myself.

  I propel myself closer to the edge of the lake before breaking the surface and looking around while making sure I keep my scales hidden underwater. While I'm sure most of the students at Grimm already know what I am, I don't want to take a chance in showing them when I don't have to. While many of them don't go out of their way to talk to me, they also don't do anything that would put me at risk. But that doesn't mean I want to show myself off to them.

  "Ah, so you are here," a male voice says the moment my head is out of the water.

  I turn around slowly, my heart skipping a beat as my gaze latches onto the person standing at the edge of the lake in a familiar navy blue uniform. The chill wind ruffles up his dark hair, blowing it to and fro despite the short length.

  "Me?" I ask despite my nerves.

  He chuckles and comes forward to sit on a rock. "Yes. Who did you think I was talking to?"

  I shrug, being careful not to let it expose my scales as I do. My tail flicks back and forth beneath the surface, keeping me in one spot. I have no idea what he thinks I'm doing in the lake, but I'm not about to make it obvious.

  "You might have brought a friend with you," I point out when he doesn't say anything.

  "To a lake in the middle of the night?"

  "It's only nine." There's plenty of evening left. If there was a ball going on, it wouldn't end for another few hours.

  "True. But all of the people I know have a strict training regime that involves them getting up early in the morning."

  "Don't you have that too?"

  A small smile li
fts at the corner of his lips, illuminated by the lantern he has with him. Little does he realise I don't need it in order to make him out, even in this light. The same part of me that allows me to see clearly underwater also works in the dark.

  Except that he probably hasn't brought it for my benefit, but for his own.

  "I do. But I also had someone I wanted to meet."

  "Oh." My heart sinks despite knowing I should be fine with all of this. I don't know him, I shouldn't care that he's come to see someone else. "Would you like me to leave? I can give you some privacy."

  He cocks his head to the side and studies me intently.

  I sink a little to make sure none of my scales are on show. Though I doubt he can see much of them in the dim light. It's a good thing he isn't one of the normal boys who study here. I wouldn't have any chance of hiding who I am if he was.

  Maybe he already knows.

  "I came here to find you."

  "Oh." I blink a few times, trying to come to terms with what he's saying.

  "Are you going to ask why?" A hint of amusement comes through his voice.

  "Would you tell me if I did?"

  "Of course. You're the one who saved my life. Aren't you?"

  A flush spreads across my cheeks. "Yes," I admit softly.

  He nods. "I thought as much. I've been looking for you ever since we arrived back at the academy for training, but I didn't see you anywhere. Then I finally realised that I should come here considering this is the last place I saw you."

  Smart. But that means he can't have asked around about me much if he has no idea where to find me. Then again, trying to find a dark-haired girl he saw in the dark when close to death probably won't help him much when it comes to describing me to other people.

  "Thank you. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't pulled me out of the water."

  His gratitude startles me for a moment, it's not what I expect from anyone, especially not from an officer-in-training.

  "You'd have managed to swim your way out." It's a lie, and we both know it, but I want to give him a chance to avoid admitting it.

  "I can't swim. I've always wanted to learn but I've never had a chance."