Fifteen - Part Two

Ever since she came to the caves, she had been so aware of the changes she was going through. She was faster and more sensitive. She apparently

possessed magical abilities that she never even knew about, she felt stronger than she ever felt, but she didn’t think it was enough.

What if she failed to morph at the full moon? Would Ari let go of her family if she died? Would Lord Bruce ever forgive himself if she died? He would continue to blame himself for letting her wander into strange territory. Would Alegra ever heal? She had already lost her brother and took Fauna as her family.

How about Lyle? She couldn’t die. She just couldn’t. She had a lot of people that loved her and she couldn’t bear to leave them behind.

“Come on, let’s go have breakfast, then we continue training.” Doka left them and headed in the direction of the clearing, Espen behind him. The

tigers and Fauna share a look and after grinning widely at them, they followed the bears.

As expected, the clearing was arranged for breakfast. The others were already seated and eating. Fauna hadn’t learnt much how the dynamic of the cave worked, but she figured it was almost the same as their clan. They probably had Hunters that went above to get meat and fruits for them, the merfolks also provided them with fresh fish and other sea food.

She found Lyle standing in front of the table she mostly shared with her friends and when he saw her, he walked over to them and stared at her studiously.

“You were afraid. What happened?” He turned to Saber. “What happened to you both?”

“We almost became meat for leopards,” Saber explained as he walked past the merman and took his usual spot at the table. There was oysters and octopuses and some fruits. Fauna loved fish, but she didn’t think she wanted to eat an octopus.

“That’s impossible.” Lyle followed them. Fauna sat, making room for the merman to stay beside her.

Upon seeing food, Zara completely abandoned them and took her place, grabbing a full octopus by the head. She examined it closely for a while

before she shrugged and shoved it whole into her mouth.

“Werefolks have a pact. We don’t eat each other,” Lyle continued.

“These ones didn’t seem to care,” Fauna added as she reached for a plate of strawberries. “They were juvenile and they were angry… And hungry.”

“Very hungry,” Saber expanded as he reached for an oyster. He stared at it, then shook his head and dropped it.

“We have lobsters on my table if you want?” Lyle offered and Saber smiled at him in gratitude.

The merman nodded and left their table. Zara leaned in; her cheeks stuffed with meat. “Yo, you furballs should try the octopus. It’s actually delicious.”

“You once thought a poisoned mushroom was delicious. I don’t trust your judgement,” Fauna reminded her and she shrugged.

Just then, Lyle returned with a plate of lobsters which he placed in the centre of the table.

“They were delicious. It’s not my fault I turned green for a day.”

“What was delicious?” Lyle showed interest in the conversation as he sat beside Fauna. He reached for one of the strawberries she took for herself

and smiled at her before he turned his attention to Zara.

Zara greedily grabbed a lobster, then grinned widely at Lyle before she started telling the tale of the time she was looking for something other than meat to eat, then she found some pretty mushrooms.

While Zara talked, Lyle leaned closer to Fauna. So close that she could feel his breath against her earlobe.

“Hope you’re okay.” He whispered to her and she hummed quietly. “We got away,” she told him before she threw a strawberry into her mouth.

She looked up at him with squinted eyes and in confusion, he moved backwards as he watched her. Fauna hummed and while chewing her fruit, leaned closer to him and grabbed his chin which she used to turn his head to the left. She inspected his cheek and neck closely, then she turned his head to the right and did the same thing.

“You healed nicely. That’s good.” She grinned at him, then she let go of his face and he smiled at her. “I was worried about you, to be honest. Please, don’t ever do that again.”

Lyle hummed, though he didn’t regret what he did. He knew that he would gladly put himself at risk if it meant spending more time with his mate.

He however understood her plight, and that of his mother. The woman had given him an earful when he returned to the water in that state. He knew they meant well and cared about him, but he just couldn’t help himself. All he wanted was to be with his mate.

“You and Saber are good again?” He discreetly gestured towards Saber and Fauna let out a low sigh as she picked up another strawberry and idly

toyed with it.

“He says he needs space to figure everything out… I just wish everything could go back to the way it was, you know? I’m under a lot of pressure right now and I’m terrified.”

“I know.” Lyle smiled at her as he took her palm in his and rested them under the table. Fauna felt herself relax a little. “Titles can be tough, especially when we don’t even ask for them.”

Fauna nodded as she realized he knew what she was going through. He also had to lead his people and that was a lot of pressure to put on a young man. Was it comparable to hers though? Everyone believed she was the most powerful thing to walk in the land, but all she felt was helpless.

She didn’t think she wanted all that power. She didn’t think she wanted anything other than to save her family from the clutches of the lion.

“I’ve been getting a feeling lately,” she whispered to Lyle. “It’s like a… How do I say this in a way that makes sense? I feel like something is about to happen. Something bad, but I just don’t know what.”

She sighed as she stared at Lyle. For the fraction of a second, his eyes widened and Fauna could sense the alarm he was feeling. As soon as it came though, it was gone. His features relaxed and he graciously reached for a strawberry.

“Perhaps you’re anxious. The full moon is so close now.”

He was withholding information from her, that much she was sure of. It also didn’t help that she could feel his unease. Something about what she

said was troubling him. Did he know something about why she was feeling the way she did? If he knew, why would he hold back?

It just didn’t make sense and she wondered for a moment if she should push him for answers or if she should trust him. He was usually so painfully transparent, so whatever he was hiding, it had to be bad.

Just as she decided to confront him, someone rushed towards Lyle. She had seen them talking to each other before and she believed his name was Fuego. His eyes were wide and he was panting. Fauna could sense his fear and hear the wild racing of his heart.

He stopped right before Lyle and started to mumble incoherent words to the merman who just stared at him with concern in his eyes.

“Deep breaths, Ego. Deep breaths,” Lyle encouraged his friend and the other merman obliged. “Now, tell me what the matter is.”

Fauna could tell that Lyle was concerned and slightly panicked. She marvelled that he could maintain a cool composure despite his obvious emotions.

“The girl’s mother… She’s – she’s gone!”

By now, even Doka was paying attention to the exchange. Something was very wrong. Fauna could feel everyone’s distress. She wondered if that was the tragedy she seemed to know was coming?

“Gone where?” Doka spoke up and Fuego turned to him as he fiddled with his fingers.

“Allie was telling me that she heard rumours from a cheetah that there was a dead mermaid on the land, and she seemed to have been eavesdropping because she took off. I tried to race after her, but she’s a lot faster.”

Fauna could feel the tension and the trepidation in the air. Lyle and Doka shared a look that made her feel uneasy. Was a mermaid really dead? Was it a good idea for her mother to go into the wild in search for her, seeing as the merfolks were in hiding? Were they safe there? If the rumour was true, who killed the girl?

Despite everything she felt, despite all the questions she didn’t have answers to, one thought stood out, stabbing at her heart and filling her with

guilt.

She didn’t know how or why, but somehow, Fauna felt it was all her fault.