Seven.
Jim was sure a knock at the door at this hour would have raised the brows of the Royals if it had been any other day, more so the Queen than the King. A quick, confused glance probably shared between the two – Ariel biting her nails at the table, her eyes focused and unblinking while Eric gazed out the window – before she took off, rushing to answer the call, Eric close behind her.
It's impossible to know exactly who or what they were expecting to find when they opened the door, if anything at all. Maybe they had an idea, maybe they had no clue – to guess would be a failure in itself. Regardless, when Ariel swung the door open with such urgency, her expression full of confusion and concern, she found her sister Andrina, dripping wet beneath Jim's jacket and shirt, leaving him…well, a bit bare.
With her eyes growing impossibly wide, the tiny hands of the red-headed woman flew to her gaping mouth as she gasped, nearly falling back if not for Eric. She just stared at the sight before her, as did her King. Jim and Andrina both just smiled nervously, awaiting a scolding or explosion, anything.
"Andrina," she said softly through her fingertips. A hand barely reached out to touch her sister, to see if she was real, but hesitated at a point, almost afraid to come too close, to touch her, for it not to be a dream.
"It's okay, Ariel," she smiled, still shaking under Jim's arm. "It's r-r-really m-m-m-me."
Noticing the increasing chattering of her sibling, despite it being a summer night, Ariel moved past the others to sweep her into the parlor, the men following. This was where they had brought Jim – the blood red room. Ariel ordered Carlotta to bring Andrina a night gown to change into, a blanket and a towel to wrap her hair into. Andrina kept insisting she was fine but Ariel wasn't going to have it.
"My house, my rules," the Queen told her sister as she was dried and changed, returning to the boys in the parlor, taking a seat.
They sat as couples, the obvious Royals on the floor, where they always preferred to sit so their guests would be in comfort, and Andrina and Jim on the couch, who sat very awkwardly to the farthest right the couch allowed him to go. Even though he just had his arm around her, after trying to not look at her while she was naked, he felt a little weird around her. He kept looking at her out of the corner of his eye, seeing her blonde hair, which was darker now, finally let down from that shell which sat in her lap, her in the white silk gown, radiating. God, she's beautiful…
Ariel came back with a cup of hot chocolate for Andrina, the first thing from the human world she had ever ingested. Jim watched her as she curiously studied the liquid inside, the steam coming off it, something she had never seen before. Her mouth spread into a smile as she inhaled the warm, sweet aroma.
"Sip it," Ariel said, laughing a little at her reaction. She probably saw herself in her, how she was once in her spot, seeing everything anew, so curious, everything so amazing and foreign. It must have brought back memories.
Andrina slowly put the cup to her lips, her face changing for a moment at the feel of the hot glass against her lips. Tilting it up, she sucked it in, taking too much, burning her tongue. From the shock and pain, she almost spilled it.
"I said sip," the Queen said as if she were repeating the rules to a child. That was what Andrina was right now, an oblivious child. Learning everything for the first time. "So…how…why…?"
Trying to find a safe place to put her cup in her lap, Andrina knew what her sister meant, though she could not find the right words to compose her question. "I asked Daddy if I could come visit you."
"And he let you? He didn't make Attina come with you or anything?"
"Don't seem so shocked."
"How can I not? Daddy's never done that before! If he would have done that when I was still in Atlantica…" she seemed angry, maybe even a little bit jealous of the privilege her sister had gotten that she had not, one that caused her a great scare and large deal of problems.
"Relax, Ariel."
"I'm…I'm trying, Andrina, but jeez. I mean…ugh!" It was easy to tell she wanted to use foul language as Jim did, but it would be severely out of character for a Queen.
"Well, it's different now. I'm visiting my sister, not falling in love with a human." Out of the corner of her eye, she looked to Jim for a slither of a second before returning her gave to her fuming sister.
Ariel rolled her crystal blue eyes. "Now, I know he didn't not give you curfew."
"He said I have until the next full moon."
"Tonight is the Waxing Crescent," Jim said, remembering how he noted the slim moon wasn't as bright as usual.
"The what?"
"The phases of the moon. Tonight is the Waxing Crescent. Tomorrow will be the First Quarter, then Waxing Gibbous, and then the Full Moon will come." Jim had noticed that from past history of Earth, the phases of the moon used to be about monthly or so, when now they were daily. This fascinated him, and also confused him.
She put it all together in her head, trying to make sense of it. "Two days, not counting tonight and the day I leave. Two full days is enough, right?"
The question was directed at Jim, what caught him off guard, for he had now sunken back into the couch after saying his bit about the phases. "Yeah, it's plenty of time. It won't take very long to go for a ride, so that leaves way more time than we need."
"You can show me around," she smiled, slapping his thigh with her hand.
Maybe she thought nothing of the gesture, but her hand being so close to him made his body flash in heat, waking him up from his bored stupor. "Dah, um…I mean I could…if-if Ariel doesn't have a problem with it?"
She scoffed. "She's not the baby here, Jim. Andrina's an adult and can make her own choices. I'm not her keeper."
Jim rubbed the bridge of his nose, which he pinched between his index finger and thumb, closing his eyes tight. "You're gonna regret saying that one day."
"What makes you say that?"
"Giving a teenage girl freedom while she's on…on some sort of vacation? You must be outta your damn mind," he didn't even stop to think of the language he was using in the presence of Royalty because, quite frankly, he really didn't give a fuck. They were people, just like him. And she didn't care anyway.
Rolling her eyes, she glanced between her sister and Jim. "I'm sure she can behave. Besides, you'll be babysitting her the whole time, so I've nothing to worry about, right?"
Simultaneously, Jim and Andrina's eyes went wide, a single brow raising and said in unison, "What?"
"I don't need babysitting! You just said I was an adult!"
"Yeah, and I'm…I'm-I'm not a babysitter. What do I look like to you? I'm supposed to be all ill and shit, remember."
"I don't see you acting so ill, Mr. Hawkins," Ariel challenged.
He faked a cough. "Dammit, that hurt. Wouldn't want your sister getting sick on her first trip to the human world, would you? I bet your dad would hold you responsible."
Eric laughed, causing Ariel to glare at him before turning back around. "She came up here for you, despite her lie to our father, which I have no idea how she got him to buy it, and she's not your responsibility."
"But she's your sister!"
"But she's your problem now."
He lay awake in his bed, arms under his head, rotating between staring up at the ceiling and daydreaming with his eyes closed. Morph snoozed on the pillow beside him, already nodding off. This time, when Jim had left, Morph had stayed and waited for him to return, not even giving him away as he did before.
They had all said goodnight, even Morph, after a bit of chatting in the parlor. Near the end of the conversation, Jim had loosened up, but still ran hot when their hands or knees happen to touch for a moment or bump into one another. She kept making him stutter and blush like a foolish schoolboy with a silly little crush. He doubted she had any idea of the effect she was having on him.
Ariel showed her to another guest room, much like Jim's in certain ways, although every room in the castle was unique, and it was close by too. At first, Andrina just kind of sniffed around the room, checking everything new out, like a cat in a new place. She said it was similar to Atlantica, and yet not at all.
Images of her coming out of the water, fully nude, flashed into his mind without warning. There was no deny it – he saw. He didn't meant to look – he had avoided it, catching him off guard – but he had gotten enough glimpses to satisfy himself. Putting them together in his head, like a puzzle, he could basically make out every fine detail of her body. He could see it, even after the point where he had looked away; it was clear now. The way she moved…like her body was calling out to him. It made his body crave hers…
No, don't think like that. It's wrong – you'll start acting weird around her. Don't do anything to fuck it up. He began to ponder his own words, Fuck what up? There's nothing to fuck up…is there? No, no. Of course not. Well…maybe the potential…if there even was any.
In the silence of the night, Jim was at war with himself, questioning his feelings for her. He didn't need to, they were certainly there, but unlabeled. Was it love? A crush? Attraction? Fascination? He paid no mind to the time, none at all. So when, at some point during the night, when he was in a deep argument with himself, he heard approaching footsteps and his first thought was: Isn't it too early to be robbed?
His door creaked open creepily. Turning his head to face it, he glanced down – nope, wasn't Morph doing it. Jim's eyes went to the doorway, seeing a sweet face peeking in ever-so-cautiously.
"Andrina," he sat up a little. "What is it?"
"Did I wake you?" She was whispering as light as the wind that blew in from the balcony, barely audible to Jim.
He shook his head. "No, not at all. Come in – is something wrong?"
She maneuvered her body around the door, shutting it softly, and this time it did to creak as it moved. Her face looked like she hadn't been asleep at all as she tip-toed forward a few steps. "Can I sleep with you?"
This caught him by surprise. "Dah-bah-ah-what?" He made strange sounds trying to speak before he could finally find the right word.
"In here? Can I sleep in here with you? I…I'm sorry but I can't seem to sleep alone. I never have before. In Atlantica, all my sisters and I share a room together. I'm so used to having other people in the room with me that I need a familiar presence in order to sleep.…"
Jim was a bit taken aback by her claim. He never needed anyone with him when he slept – sexual or otherwise. But this was purely innocent, right? Like when he was younger and needed a nightlight to help him feel safer. Maybe that's part of it – someone being there made her feel safer. There would be no problem in that. Even so, he was nervous, even as he agreed with a shaking voice, rubbing his neck. "Yeah, sure."
Andrina moved silently over to the empty side of the bed. Morph scooted over, still in sleep, to give her enough head room on the pillow. Although she was moving rather quickly, she had the slightest hint of hesitation in her movements before she pulled the covers down and climbed into bed next to Jim.
After they were settled, Jim felt stiff as a board, afraid to move for he might touch her or brush up against her and go flying off onto the floor. He wanted to move to the very edge of the bed, but he knew she'd probably be offended by the gesture. He lay, stuck as he was, listening to the dropping of rain as it began to pour.
After a moment, she noticed it as well and flinched. "What's that?"
"Hmm?"
"That noise. It sounds…like rocks are falling or something. Is someone on the roof?"
"No. It's rain."
She was on her side, facing away from him. At his words, she rolled over a bit to her back, looking right at him like he'd just spoken in another language. "What?"
"The rain? Oh, that's right. You've probably never heard it before, right? It's water that falls from the sky."
"The sky?" She sat up, turning her head to the balcony windows, looking past the dripping glass windows to see a crying sky to confirm this. "How…?"
"It's a cycle," he yawns. "Water evaporates into the air and up to the clouds where it stays and once they get too heavy and full of water, it rains back down to the Earth to help pants and stuff live and repeats forever. It's like…recycling for water."
"Does the water come from the ocean?"
He shrugged under the blankets. "Some of it."
"So…I've swam in water that's been in the sky?"
He smiled at her childish curiosity. "You've swam in water that's been all over the world."
He could barely make out the bright smile that spread across her face. "How can that be?"
"Water never dies. I just told you, it goes through that cycle. From the first day, until the last. That's the life of every drop of water."
"Amazing…" her whisper barely fought the sound of the splashing raindrops. He watched her for a few moments as the rain got harder, her eyes focused, taking it in. He couldn't imagine what she must be thinking; it was nothing for him, something he'd grown accustom to throughout his life. But this was new to her, and it might have meant something to know that the waters she's lived in goes through something like that, been everywhere at least twice and seen more things than she could ever dream.
A loud noise from outside, a flash of a single light caused her to let out a yelp and throw herself back against the headboard. It startled Jim as much as her, nearly making him wide awake. She was breathing heavy, hands clutching the covers as if her life was being guarded by them. "Andrina?"
"What…?" She wasn't responding to him, but rather asking what the hell had just scared her.
"It's just a little thunder and lightning. It happens when it rains."
"All the time?"
"Well, no…?"
Another bang and a flash. Her eyes pressed closed, her hands flying to cover her ears. Andrina's body curled into an almost upright fetal position. "I don't like it!"
Jim moved close to her, feeling a sudden chill as his bare chest was exposed to the air, no longer concealed in the warmth of the bed. His arms went around her. "It's okay, Andrina, shh. It's just thunder and lightning. It can't do anything to you."
She whimpered. "I'm sorry…"
"For what?" He laughed a little.
She, however, did not. Removing her hands and peeling her eyes open, she looked up at him sheepishly like a frightened child. "For making you comfort me over something so…silly."
"Don't be. I don't mind. As long as you feel safe, I don't care what I do." He gave her a warm smile, which seemed to help her a little. "Just try and get some sleep."
The both of them resumed their positions, her facing away from him, him facing her. The sounds and lights continued, and she reacted every time. He watched her, how she winced each time it happened, and slowly watched her uncoil and relax, and almost just as she did, it happened again. He could see how tense she was from the muscles in her neck. Feeling bad, he could do nothing for her.
She asked him to, taking him up on his word. "Jim?"
"Hmm?" He was getting sleepy. The thunder and lightning didn't bother him at all.
A silence ensued. For a moment, he figured she had nodded off, but she spoke up again, keeping her voice at an embarrassed whisper. "Will you hold me?"
The eyelids that once felt impossibly heavy now snapped open. A heat wave spread over him, making it feel like a wall of sweat at just escaped his body. Heart flying, stomach sunken, he croaked out a "Uh…" before automatically moving closer to her. How the hell do I do this?
Somehow, she could tell what he was thinking. She reached behind herself and grabbed one of his hands and wrapped it around her waist, causing him to be right up against her body, contorting his to match how hers was laying. She kept her arm and hand atop his, entwining their fingers. Jim wanted to explode. He could feel every movement from her – ever muscle retracting, every breath which caused her to sink into him a little more. But once she sighed contently, he seemed to feel the same, smiling, glad she couldn't see it.
For a while, every time a bash of thunder and lightning came, he could feel her every flinch, disturbing him from falling asleep. He squeezed their hands to let him know he was there, that everything was okay. After a while, her flinching softened and finally came to an end as she drifted off into sleep. She returned the squeeze and fell off the edge into a dream.
This entire thing was like a dream to him. This simple act was as intimate as he had ever been with another person, and yet it was so innocent he felt ridiculous. She was so warm, so comforting, so soft, he snuggled into her a little more, hoping not to wake her. Success – she only sighed and moved back into him. Unbelieving of this moment, he began to count each of her slowing breaths as he, himself, crossed over into a deeper dreamworld than he was in now.
