Fates: Chapter Forty-Five

Seirra

"I love you too."

It was just a whisper but I heard it as if she had shouted it out to the world.

Her words engulfed my heart and made me so giddy that I hugged her tighter and lifted her off the ground, twirling her as I laughed with glee.

Soon enough, she was laughing with me.

That moment was something I would always treasure so when I slowly stopped whirling around, staring at her eyes, I knew that there was no way I would ever let her lose her happiness again.

We were both still smiling when large, dark clouds began to gather. A strike of lightning sliced through the skies, immediately followed by a loud boom of thunder. Suddenly, waves began to angrily hit the shore while heavy droplets of rain fell to the ground.

Marge shrieked as the rain soaked us without warning. She tried to pull me away to look for cover but as I looked around, I realized that this was not an ordinary thunderstorm.

Using powers inherent to every merfolk, I calmed the storm with a wave of my hand.

Marge gawked at me in surprise but before she could say anything, we heard my friend's greeting.

"Hi, Seirra."

"Erwann," I acknowledged.

Turning his head slowly, he finally got his first glimpse of the woman I love-and the woman that saved us all.

He gazed at the red-haired beauty beside me, reflecting surprise as well as gratitude. I felt a hint of jealousy, believing that I would not be the only Aquanian who would find Marge beautiful, but I stamped it down as I realized what she really meant for our kingdom. Knowing that she would be revered in Aquania, that even a royal would be in awe of her, I could not be prouder.

"Seirra, who is he?" Marge asked in obvious curiosity.

I smiled at her, happy that she seemed more open-minded about seeing another merman.

"His name is Erwann. He's one of the very few remaining royals of Aquania. And he's my best friend," I told her, excited to finally let her meet the friend who might as well have been my brother.

"He's also a merman," she stated, more to convince herself than for anything else.

"Yes. Just like Seirra," Erwann replied. And with a smile, he continued, "I am honored to meet you, Margaret. Seirra told me so much about you. Pardon me for not being able to shake your hand, at the very least."

He motioned towards his tail which was left unseen underwater to emphasize what he meant by his last comment.

"Oh! Nice to meet you too, uhm, Your Highness," Marge said with a blush, followed by a bow.

"You don't have to be shy or overly reverent. You can treat him like a friend as well," I whispered.

"He's royalty. I honestly don't think I should be acting like a close friend to a prince!" Marge whispered back.

"If you keep treating him like that, he'll be embarrassed. He's really not the type of royal that compels people to bow to him all the time. And he may be a prince but he is not the prince. We almost get the same treatment, somehow like army generals," I explained. "Besides, Marina is our princess but you never treated her like royalty when you met her," I added for emphasis.

"What?" she exclaimed. "You mean I disrespected your princess?"

"I told you the story about Marina, remember?"

"Oh. Yeah. Right. Well, actually, I thought you were kidding."

"Margaret," Erwann finally interrupted our whispered conversation. "If I may please request that you treat me like a normal friend. Seirra is more like a brother to me and if you will marry him, then I shall treat you like a sister. I hope you don't mind."

Because my best friend could be quite charming if he put his mind to it, he finally won her over and Marge subsequently smiled back.

"If it's alright with you, then, I'll be happy to be your friend," Marge declared.

"Good!" And turning to Erwann, I said, "How is Aquania and what brings you here?"

Erwann's face turned solemn and my instincts came on full alert.

"I had just decided to tell you that Marina was slowly disappearing into bubbles when everyone suddenly felt a burst of strong magic all over Aquania. We immediately recognized that the veil was being restored and the next thing I saw, Marina's face and body was gradually going back to normal."

I thought it was something we should celebrate but the look on Erwann's face told me it was not all good.

"I was relieved. I remembered the spell she did and hoped that she was about to wake up but she remained unconscious. I would have waited but then small bubbles started to form from her skin and I knew that she is still dying-slowly but dying nonetheless."

It was easy to hear the frustration in his voice.

"I could only be thankful that when the King decided to check on her, she looked as if she was only sleeping. And that was when I decided to use magic to go here as fast as I could. I figured you might have an idea as to why she hasn't woken up. My instincts tell me it was because you have not returned to being a merman yet but who knows? The Princess is so different from all of us that it really is difficult to figure her out," he concluded.

I had no idea what to make of Marina's continued stupor. If previous stories were any indication, she should be awake by the time the veil was restored.

Seriously, I could not be facing a new problem after just solving one.

"Have you tried waking her up? Is she not moving at all? She could just be sick or something," I asked, trying to make light of the note of desperation I heard in my voice.

"She was breathing but no matter what I did-no matter how much I shook her-she remained unconscious. And the bubbles continued to form," Erwann replied.

I took a deep breath.

We may not have started on the best terms but the princess had become more than just the Aquanian princess to me. In all truth, I had come to regard her as a friend. And if I was going to be any more specific, I would say that she was practically the first person who had made me realize the truth about my Fate.

And I could not just let anything bad happen to her.

"Marge," I said. "The princess needs our help. I-"

"It's okay," Marge interrupted, raising one hand to emphasize that I need not say more. "I understand. We have to go to Aquania now, right?"

I did not have to look too closely at her to know that this had become overwhelming for her. She was bravely diving into the unknown and it was all because of me.

Looking at her forlorn expression, I made my decision.

"We don't have to go now."

Marge's eyes widened in surprise. "But shouldn't we go see Marina? She could be in danger!"

"Seirra, surely you realize that we cannot waste time!" came Erwann's outburst.

I knew I surprised both of them-Erwann especially-and I had to clarify my decision.

"Erwann, you have to understand that I simply can't take Marge away from everything she values. I fear the consequences she has to face by becoming a mermaid and if there's anything I can do to stop or lessen her suffering, I would do it," I argued.

I saw the struggle in my best friend's face and I knew I had to push harder.

"Besides, one more day on land will only be just a few hours in Aquania."

"But Seirra, Marina can die any time! Surely-"

"Surely, Marina is stubborn enough to hold on to her life," I insisted. "She won't die. I'm sure she won't let herself die."

I had doubts but I remained firm because my faith in Marina's will was the only thing I could trust at the moment. And that was when Erwann realized my point. He also knew Marina well enough. The Princess' powers remain a mystery but if there was one thing we were sure of, it was that she would not let anything get in her way.

Definitely not even death.

"Seirra, it's okay," Marge interjected. "I-Well, I have enough memories of Grasveld Aisles and my friends, anyway. We can go now if we have to. I mean, maybe the veil protecting Aquania won't be fully effective if we weren't there and maybe that's why Princess Marina hasn't woken up." She grasped my arm and shook. "Really, we can go."

Her voice broke at the end of her sentence and I knew she was just trying to be strong.

She swallowed and began to speak again.

"It will be alright, I'm sure."

I saw no reason not to show any sort of affection to the woman I loved and so I found myself reaching out to hold her face in my hands.

"Marge. Thank you," I said, feeling more grateful than I had ever been in my life. "But the veil has been restored. I'm sure it has nothing to do with Marina."

I could be wrong but I could not let myself lose hope. Marina is alright.

"Seirra," Erwann finally said. "Tomorrow morning. I cannot wait any further than that. Do you understand?"

Erwann sounded every bit like the royal he was and I was more than willing to follow that order.

"Understood. We'll be there," I confirmed.

Nodding his acceptance, he turned to Marge.

"Thank you for helping us. I look forward to seeing you in Aquania."

Marge gave him a smile in return. "We will leave tomorrow morning. Promise."

"I'll see you both soon," Erwann said before he dived back under the sea.

About a minute after, Marge turned to me, a look of worry coloring her face.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied. "Everything will be fine."

She took a calming breath as she finally accepted my answer.

I was about to ask her where she wanted to go next but before I could even open my mouth to speak, she finally let her curiosity take over.

"You and Erwann said that the veil protecting Aquania has been restored," she began. "I remember you saying that it's what you basically needed me for. And that happened because of the kiss, right?"

I found her blush lovely despite the gravity of the new problem that just arose.

"Yes. The veil was restored because of the kiss.Remember that burst of red light? That was the proof. The ceremony I told you about was just a formality. Something to write in our scrolls," I told her with a smile. In truth, my head was reeling with the sudden realization that I can now freely kiss Margaret without worrying about whether or not it would save my kingdom.

"Really? To be honest I thought that after all that we've been through, there'd be magic and thunder and lightning and fireworks just to let everyone know we've accomplished the impossible." She grinned, a little embarrassed. "That sounded like a really bad fairy tale, huh?"

"Well, no. I think something like that is what's actually happening in Aquania right now," I told her as her eyes widened. "I would suggest you prepare yourself for some sort of a hero's welcome when we reach Aquania tomorrow."

"No way."

"It's true. Everyone is going to want to know the human who bravely became a mermaid to help Aquania."

Her blush went from pink to red as she said, "Whatever, Seirra. I'm sure I didn't do that much."

She seemed ready to end the conversation when something must have struck in her mind which bothered her.

"Marge?"

"So...If Princess Marina woke up as planned, you really don't need me in Aquania...right?"

She looked ready to burst into tears and her question figuratively tore my heart so I hastened to pull her towards me in a fierce hug.

"If Marina woke up as planned, I would still need you, Margaret. Not for any sort of ceremony. The Fates have to be in Aquania to serve as protectors but that was not the only reason I needed you."

Just as I did earlier, I held her face in my hands. "I need you in Aquania because I love you. Because you're my Fate. And I need to always be with you."

She did not do anything for a moment so it was a complete surprise when she suddenly pulled me lower as she kissed me again.

"I'll go with you to Aquania," she whispered after she broke the kiss. "Because I need to be with my Fate too."

I grinned at her declaration and I kissed her again.

"We will be happy in Aquania. I promise you that."

She gave me a sweet smile in response.

"I really will be alright, won't I?" she asked, her confidence building up.

"Yes," I assured her. "You're a very strong and courageous person. And I will always be here for you."

"Thank you, Seirra."

I knew that she was aware and scared of the consequences of her choice to go with me and I wanted her to have the chance to say goodbye to the people she loved.

"Come on. We're leaving tomorrow." I took her hand again. "But we still have to say goodbye to everybody."

She was surprised that I knew exactly what she wanted and she nodded as she held on to my hand.