Aeralie

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Aeralie folded her arms on a length of driftwood that bobbed on the surface of the ocean, a castoff of a shipwreck from the days before. The storm that had brought down the ship had long passed on and the surface was now calm and quiet, skies above a dazzling blue, barely even a cloud to be seen and only a few birds breaking the azure. It was one of the last nice days she'd see for a while now. Storm season was on its way, probably not even a week left and grey stormy skies would dominate the world for months. One top of that, the La Luna waves would begin.

She settled her cheek on her folded arms, looking towards the horizon, enjoying the rock of the gentle sea.

Beyond that horizon was a land.

On that land was a palace.

And in that palace... she wondered what he was doing that day.

Her streaming hair shone gold in the light, the streaks of violet through it tangling in the gentle swells that passed her by, not paying her any mind – the sea had long since given up reminding her that she should not have broken the surface.

She glanced towards the sun, which had risen some hours before and willed it to hurry so she might see the moon again.

She had waited all night to watch the moon set, followed by the sunrise and she wanted to see the cycle again.

Though, on that note, hadn't she promised Todal she'd come back once she'd seen the moon?

Well... she hadn't said which moon, it would be the true full moon tonight, how could she miss that? The sea rippled along her arms, the sun shimmering off her pale skin, tinted the faintest of faint violets like her hair, brushing over her lavender tattoos and touching her amethyst Heart of The Sea.

The sea mentioned that something was coming but she already knew a pod of dolphins would be passing.

It wasn't until something wrapped around the base of her mauve tail and wrenched her down with a scream that she realised it had meant something all together more important then a dolphin.

She opened her eyes, startled, fingers curling like a claw, water starting to whirl in her palm, ready to smack the shark that had dared bite her, when she spied billowing while hair drifting out of the way of multi-coloured eyes set into an unimpressed, irritated face and she winced.

That was certainly not a shark.

But it might have been better to face the shark.

"Do you know what time it is?!" her dearest friend, favourite cousin and most prolific nagger of all the seas snapped, glaring at her, hand still locked around her long tail and giving it a sharp shake.

"Hello there, Kaz, how nice to see you this fine morning! What are you doing all the way up here? How's your morning been?" Aeralie said with a forced laugh, trying to free her tail, her fin, like flowing, sheer silk, flicking rapidly.

"My morning? How's my morning been?" Kazimir asked, turning and starting to swim back downwards, taking Aeralie with him, driftwood and all. "Oh let's see. First I had to clear up the bodies of that storm the other night since two got stuck in the towers of the palace, which was wonderful! Then I had to join the Old Crab for breakfast so he could rattle on about the good old days. Then I had to look into the wilting of the flowers in one of the gardens and then I was supposed to get a break but you know what?"

"Must I guess?" Aeralie asked, arms folded, allowing herself to be dragged downwards through the water, hair billowing out around her head.

"I was asked to go find my wayward cousin because a certain princess can't be where she's needed when she's supposed to! And apparently I'm the only one who she listens to. Funny! I've never noticed you listen to a word I've ever said."

"I listened when you told me it was an awful idea to stick my fingers in the mouth of an electric eel," Aeralie said.

"After you scared it so much it smacked my tail and I was electrocuted!" Kazimir snarled.

"Entirely accidently."

"Entirely on purpose."

Aeralie flicked her eyes down to look at him and Kazimir glanced back. There was a stoic glare between them, then smirks and Kazimir released her tail.

Aeralie flipped and glided forwards to swim along side him.

They swam in silence for a few minutes, until Kazimir voiced a question that had been on his mind for some days.

"Did you bring down that ship?"

Aeralie looked at him. "Hmm?"

"The ship that sailed over some days ago, the one that was sunk against the Fade Reef," Kazimir expanded. He pointed to the long hunk of wood she was swimming with.

On it, faded and scarred but still cleared, the words The Blue Dragon shone gold, the name of a once proud ship that hadn't stood a chance.

"This one?" Aeralie said, looking at the plank, "No, no, it wasn't me this time."

"Are you sure? Because they weren't on a course for the reefs originally, no one drew them towards it?"

"Someone might have, but not me," Aeralie insisted. She was quiet, Kazimir saw her fidgeting, she wanted to say something.

He rolled his eyes.

"Alright, what is it?"

"You won't believe what was aboard the ship!" she exploded at him, smiling like a child, "I'm so glad it sank! It's the most amazing thing!"

Without even asking if he wanted to see or not, Aeralie veered off and started swimming in the opposite direction, still heading downwards.

Kazimir rolled his eyes again but followed nonetheless – he always followed.

He knew where she was going of course, towards the Maypal Reefs but – more specifically – The Graveyard.

It wasn't too far a swim but Kazimir was aware of Todal and his poor heart. He could see the old merman in his mind's eyes, all but climbing the walls as he waited for the pair to return. This was why he should send guards after the wayward princess instead of Kazimir; there was always something along the way to distract them.

Soon enough, The Graveyard came into sight.

The towering masts were the first to come into view; they poked up above the seabed that the pair sped over and, as they grew closer and closer to the drop off, more came into view.

Masts, rigging, torn flags and sails.

Then the decks, the cannon openings, the portholes.

They stopped at the edge of The Graveyard, looking down towards the dozens upon dozens of shipwrecks that had been torn from the surface by storms, drawn away and dropped into the gigantic crater below by the racing currents human creations couldn't compete with.

They peered into the crater, eyeing the graveyard for movement.

The wrecks were too low for most wildlife, the sunlight didn't come down far enough to create reefs and it was too far out and not useful to the merfolk for them to bother creating a reef.

But it wasn't too deep or too useless for a shark or two – or four-dozen.

As it were though, there wasn't anything down there.

So, after barely a second's pause to survey the area, Aeralie shot over the edge of the crater and dove down towards the ships.

As she passed over the ships, they began to light up, soft yellow glows issuing from the windows as if they were still occupied.

Music began to ripple through the water, like there were parties happening aboard, one could almost hear the laughter and voices

But of course it wasn't there.

These were still nothing more than ghosts of the ships they had once been.

The reefs that were built up on some of the ships were crafted by Aeralie and Aeralie alone since no one else would touch the place.

But this was her place and she did so love a pretty reef, even if fish didn't really care for the area. She knew at the very least there was an octopus around somewhere – even if it was anti-social and didn't like her.

She went for one of her oldest, favourite ships called The Daisy Bell and Kazimir, close behind her, stopped the second he saw what was on the deck.

He stared for a moment, then his jaw dropped.

Realising he hadn't followed, Aeralie spun and came back to him, smiling widely, delighted at his stunned expression.

"Amazing, isn't it?" she said, stopping beside him, gripping his bicep and shaking his arm.

"Wha... h... how...?" he stuttered and that delighted Aeralie even more because Kazimir never, ever, stuttered.

"It was on The Blue Dragon, it must have been sent as a gift but came down right here, sat perfectly on The Daisy Bell, like it was meant to be."

Kazimir continued to gape until she said that, then his kaleidoscope eyes flicked towards her, his mouth snapping shut, his stammer gone.

"And... you're sure you didn't sink that ship," he said again, his voice careful.

"Of course not," Aeralie said, barely even listening as she started to drag him towards the ship.

She didn't care if Kazimir believed her or not, all she cared about was seeing her prize up close once again.

And Kazimir still stared between her and her 'prize'.

It was a statue.

A life sized carving of a man.

That didn't concern him; he had seen such things before, both fully clothed and... less so.

This one was clothed in a detailed carving of trousers, boots and dramatic waistcoat over a shirt with large sleeves and topped with a billowing coat, his left hand his scabbard, his right hand on the hilt of the sword, the blade half drawn.

An impressive creation made from white marble.

Beautiful.

A brilliant piece of craftsmanship.

Almost certainly a tragic loss to the one who had commissioned it and the one who would receive it.

It shouldn't have bothered him.

But it did.

Because the face that looked at him from the carved marble wasn't just any stranger, of just any human.

It was that prince.

The one Aeralie had obsessed over for so many years.

The one she had saved from a storm years before.

The one that had started the whole fascination with humans.

Dalton.

That was his name, wasn't it?

Strapping, handsome.

Kazimir could see his own sharp features in the masterfully carved face and yet those shared features were the target of sheer resentment.

This stupid boy, this one who was so like those of his kind and yet so different, this was the one he blamed for the corruption of his closest friend and favourite cousin.

And here he was.

Pride of place in Aeralie's favourite haunt.


~~~~

Next Up: Thursday

Art by:  Pinterest Image

Don't ask me how you say her name. I think - i THINK - it's Air-ah-lie

That's how I say it but honestly, I have nooooo idea, I just liked the way it looked - it's the name taken from the lady I associate with the character's singing voice lol

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