Harbors of Our Own
A/N: First of all, thank you all for reading/following/ reviewing! This chapter took longer to post than it should have. Sorry. I haven't really been in a writing mood lately. Also, if you read my profile (I update like every week at least once), then you know the announcement I am about to make. The announcement is: Updates are slowing down to twice a week now. This is because I'm finally starting to get homework from my classes. And usually I'm very tired during the week. So yeah. Sorry for the inconvenience, but hey, these updates are still pretty decent, timing wise. Anyway, onwards~
Chapter XXXVI
Ivan reached the beach, practically ripped his clothes off, and dove off the rock. He held onto the rock until he felt his legs fuse into a tail again. Then, he dove beneath the surface and swam rapidly on towards the cave, growing more and more winded the farther he got from Yao.
The water was very cold, and for once, Ivan could feel the icy temperature. Winter was thick in the air.
His mind was swarming with muffled thoughts. What had happened to the pod? Had something attacked them? Were they okay? Was someone hurt...or worse..dead? That thought was too terrible to imagine. He tried to prepare himself for what he would come across. Would he get there and someone would be dead? Would they be carrying a body with their heads hung in grief? Would they be clinging to each other in tears? Would he find them barely conscious? Wounded? Would someone...or even all of them be okay? Would he get to the cave only to discover that everyone was gone? That everyone was dead?
He swam sluggishly on, fatigue taking over his body, he needed to stop to catch his breath. But he did not stop until he reached the cave. He could already feel the thick tension and haunting sense of chaos the moment he started to swim through the entrance.
The pod was gathered on the rocks in the middle of the cave, talking in panicked voices. To his relief, no one was hurt. However, everyone was very thin, the outlines of their ribs were visible on their torsos. The food pile was also very tiny.
He saw Milen curled up in a small, rounded out corner, with the seaweed curtain that covered it pulled back, an occasional cough wracking his body. He knew it was the medicine chamber. And he could sense he was sick, and it was not good.
-xXx-
"Do not crowd him! Back up!" Winter growled, "Back up!" The pod members dispersed immediately, leaving only Emma and Karina trying to calm a panicked Toris.
"What happened!?" Ivan made himself known. This caught the attention of every single pod member.
"What are you doing back here?" Winter's voice was ice.
"I sensed something was wrong, I had to come back."
"You are not welcome here!" Vladimir hissed with a cough, pushing his brother behind him in a protective nature.
"I-I know...I know you all...hate me now..." He was short of breath, "but you...Are still family. I still love you. And family helps each other. Is that so wrong? I only want to help."
"Your humans took Felicija!" Emma snipped.
"What!?"
"Exactly."
"W-we w-went f-for sw-swim...And t-then humans c-came and g-grabbed her...I t-tried to s-save her b-but..." Toris was hyperventilating.
"Toris, breathe!" Emma exclaimed.
Shock and grief enveloped Ivan's heart.
"C-can you help him...?" Karina squeaked.
"I cannot...but...I know someone who can."
"Why would we trust you after you betrayed us!?" Winter growled.
"Because my family means world to me. I will bring her back if I have to die trying."
"I am coming." Toris said.
"No you are not. It is too dangerous." Winter said. Then she turned to Ivan and said bitterly, "If you fail, I will kill you."
"Da. I know. But I will not fail." And with that, he turned tail and left the cave, heading towards the beach. He had in his mind to seek help from Yao right-wait...
His heart sunk. Would Yao really be willing to help him? After their fight before he left? He thought not. He had hurt him. He remembered the poisonous words he had uttered before leaving. There was no way Yao would help him now. He was on his own. He had to look himself. He would only seek Yao's help as a last resort. He took of swimming. He would search the entire territory and beyond to find her, even if he died doing so.
-xXx-
He covered every inch of their territory, and even farther than that, looking for signs, any signs...any evidence...even something as tiny as a lock of her blonde hair would suffice. He called out her name, hoping that by some slim chance...by some miracle...she escaped the grasp of humans that meant to harm her. He tried to sense vibrations in the water, he tried to pick up her flowery, salty scent. But he found nothing. Hope began to fade, worry started to become panic. He felt himself getting winded. His chest was burning. He was weakening. He knew he would have to go back soon. He knew that if he didn't he would soon die. But he still had strength. Even if it was only a little bit. He pushed himself, forcing himself on, willing himself to keep looking...to keep trying.
-xXx-
He found his way into the territory of the other pod, and some hope fluttered in his chest. Maybe they could help. He anxiously looked for a patrol of them. He used his sharp senses to try and pick them up. There was a group of them up ahead. He wanted to swim and meet them, but he was too winded. So he had to sink to the sand and rest there as they came into view. He recognized Elizaveta immediately, as well as her pod-mates, Laura and her younger brother, Louis. They too were very thinned a pale.
"Elizaveta!" he called out weakly to her, "Elizaveta! I need your help!"
The brown-haired woman's ears picked up the sound.
He got off the rock and painstakingly tried to swim towards her.
"Ivan!" she exclaimed. She greeted her old friend with a warm hug. Well, more like he just fell into her arms because of how winded he was.
"What happened to you?" Laura asked. Her tone wasn't as friendly and perky as usual.
"Never mind me..." Ivan replied. Exhuastion was prominent in his voice, "I need...I need...help..."
"What's wrong?" Elizaveta asked.
"Felicija...she...humans..."
"Don't over exert yourself, Ivan." Laura said gently.
"Are you trying to tell us that Felicija was taken by humans?" Louis finished.
He nodded.
"Oh no! That's terrible!" Elizaveta yelped, "Laura, go back to the cave and alert the rest of the pod about this immediately. I want patrols sent out sooner than later. Louis, help me get Ivan back so he can rest. We'll help you find her." she said to the Russian.
"Thank you."
Laura nodded and with a flick of her green tail she was gone.
Elizaveta turned back to Ivan. "Why did you let yourself get like this?"
"I...I.." Ivan was still trying to catch his breath.
"Never mind that, I think we should just get him back home." Louis pointed out.
Elizaveta nodded, but gave Ivan a look over. She saw the shell necklace glinting around his neck. She felt the indents of scars on his back. She pieced it together immediately, and then she and the merman supported Ivan on their short swim back.
The environment was very tense, and many icy glares from Elizaveta's other pod members were cast Ivan's way. He tried not to take it personal, as he knew these were tense, dangerous, bitter times for all the merfolk in this area. However, it took one warning look from the green-eyed mermaid and none of the puzzled pod members asked any questions.
.She and Louis guided him into the cave, and helped prop him up against the rock wall on the sea grass bed. The smell of sickness reeked in the small cave. Looking across to the opposite side of the cave he was on, in a divy that was their medicine chamber. The seaweed curtain was closed, but he could hear coughing, and tiny sounds of discomfort on the other side of it.
An albino mermaid swiftly approached Elizaveta and half-demanded, in a gutteral German accent, "Vhat zhe h**l, Liz!? Vhy vould you bring anozher mouth to feed!? We're alveady scarce food as it iz! Zhe last thing ve need is MORE mouths to feed! Especially from zhose losers in zee othzher pod!"
Ivan would have punched the albino in the face if he had the strength to. How dare he talk about his pod like that!
Eliza's eyes narrowed into a glare, "That is no way to talk to your ring-leader," she said icily, "My motives are my own and to my own purpose. In case you don't realize it, he is in very bad shape! I wasn't about to leave him out there to die by himself. Now unless you are here to help, your prescence is not needed at the moment. In fact, you can go tend to Lilli, Vasch, and Bianca. Leave us now, Gilbert."
Begrudgingly, the albino turned flicked his tail to tend the duties he had just been assigned. That was when a familiar merman with brown hair and a cowlick, along with violet eyes and an aristocratic demeanor swam up to the brunette mermaid.
"What is he doing here, what is going on?" he asked, tone unfriendly.
"Roderich, he's in terrible shape, so I'm helping him, and Felicijia has been kidnapped by humans."
"Is that why Laura told me I needed to send out a search party?"
"Yes, dear." Elizaveta replied.
"Alvight, fine," Roderich dipped his head, and turned to swim off, "I'll send out Abel, Gilbert, and Louis." He started towards the mouth of the cave.
"Wait a moment." he turned back around.
"Tell Leo to bring me the plant concoctions and grab me a small fish."
He nodded. He swam off.
She waited until he was gone, before she turned back to Ivan. Then she smacked him across the face.
"Ow!" he cried.
"I'm sorry...I'm sorry...but you..." SMACK! "You idiot! You bound yourself to a human!?"
"How did-"
"I have known you for a long time, and something like that can't get passed me. It was obvious, with how winded you are, and the whip scars on your back. You're going to die if we don't get you back to your mate. I'm going to take you back to him, but you need to rest first."
"But I need to find Felicija!" Ivan protested weakly.
"Go back to your mate first so you can regain your strength so you don't die. Tell him what's going on, and then keep looking. Don't worry. We're going to help you find Felicija."
"Thank you..."
A merboy with long white hair in braids and violet eyes came up to Elizaveta and handed her a bowl with something in it, along with a small fish. Ivan recognized her son, Leopold.
"Thank you Leo," she said, ruffling her son's hair.
He nodded and went back into the water.
"Here." she got some of the gross-looking substance on the spoon, "This will help you regain some strength. You also need to eat something."
"I ate earlier..." he said softly. He wasn't hungry, and he didn't want to take their food. He would feel awful doing so, especially since winter made it so scarce.
"You're still eating the fish." she replied.
"But...your sick ones need it more than me." he protested lamely.
"They ate earlier. Now, hush, dear, and please eat."
He knew better than to argue with her. So begrudgingly, he started to eat the tiny thing. It was cold and their wasn't a lot of meat on it.
-xXx-
Once he had rested up for a while, she left to take him back to the beach. She supported him so he wouldn't over-exert himself, and then dropped him off on the familiar rocky shoreline.
"We will do everything we can. I will let you know if we find anything. I'll also make a personal trip to your pod to check on them for you."
"Thank you, Elizaveta."
She nodded, and then leapt back into the water, flicking her tail before vanishing below the surface.