See first chapter for disclaimers/warnings/summaries. Don't forget to check out The Dragel Handbook, a companion fic/encyclopedia of sorts with information and ficlets for TBDH.

RECAP: . Bahn Deveraine and his Circle spend the day at the beach outside of the guesthouse, with Harry, Charlie and Theo. Everyone has fun, in spite of the recent drama. Harry gets to spend more time with Wikhn, Dahlia and the others. He also meets another fellow Submissive, a high-ranking society Submissive, Air Dragel Shayla Imaldis, who helps him along with Ilsa, after his Resting cycle catches up to him. Theo and Charlie's Alpha-Beta bond is suffering from the lack of proper completion until Ilsa banishes them to the guesthouse to sort it out. In the meantime, Harry decides to spend his evening playing and running along the beach after Bahn and the others have left. Harry is surprised to see a strange, glowing person being eaten by an equally strange water-snake creature and he rushes to the rescue only to become trapped himself!

NEVARAH : ILSA'S GUEST HOUSE : DEVERAINE PROPERTY : BEACHSIDE

Cold. Ice. Freezing. Cold. So cold.

Harry shivered violently as something smooth and warm settled over him. He felt sharp fingernails digging into his throat and the sides of his jaw, prying his mouth open before jerking his head to the side. He felt slow and soggy, water-logged, if he had to be honest, which at present, his body was not yet inclined to be so. Liquid ice—nearly frozen water—was forcibly expelled through his numb lips.

Magic, foreign magic, swirled around him in strong, powerful threads. It slithered through his veins and coaxed his body to continue the routine, necessary functions that kept him alive. He felt a heavy presence on his chest, pumping in short, measured motions. More water spilled out of him and he was aware that somehow, the water was coming from inside. He didn't even recall swallowing it.

He could only remember diving into the dark water, hoping to reach that glowing figure in time, realizing too late the absence of a properly formulated backup plan.

An angry voice ranted above, a pleasing, musical voice in tone, even if the words spewing from the speaker's lips were anything but flattering. In fact, if Harry willed himself to concentrate he could begin to make out the words at last.

"…you clueless, idiotic, simple-minded landwalker! How thick are you? You could have died! Your brains have apparently leaked out through your ears, seeing as you threw yourself into the kind of waters in which no sane creature ought to be floundering about." The voice sounded faintly worried and definitely anxious.

Another painful press of his chest brought more liquid heaving out of his chest, through his mouth before leaking out onto the sandy beach. Harry rasped a cough and shuddered, as the night wind whispered over him. He was now violently aware of the fact that it was much colder now than before, the warm weight situated on his thighs and chest suddenly retreated.

"You're awake. Good." The voice snapped, relief seeming to quickly give way to anger. "You'd best not just lie there or I might be tempted to hex you, merely because I feel like it!"

Weary emerald eyes struggled to open wider than a mere slit. After another achy moment, they reluctantly slid open and stayed that way. Harry mentally congratulated himself on the achievement as he began to run through the usual inventory of limbs and necessary bits. It had almost become a habit with the amount of danger he often found himself in. He was relieved to find that nearly everything seemed to be as it ought to, with the exception of more aches and pains as such adventures often left him.

Theo would have something to say, he was sure. Harry bit back a sigh. His gums and jaw ached with the sudden need to feed, the memory of the taste of Theo's blood firmly planting itself in the center of his mind. He was roughly yanked back to the present situation when the scolding voice from before continued on.

"Well?" The voice demanded irritably. "What did you think you were doing? Fancy a death wish, did you? A pretty one? Thought it would be terribly romantic to die at the hands of a Merrow? Are you daft?"

Harry blinked, once, then twice, waiting for his vision to adjust. He was fairly certain he was seeing things, as the ranting being before him, couldn't possibly have been real in any way shape or form.

A head of shiny, silken, perfectly straight hair framed an elfin face with a strong, pointed chin. The bowl-shaped haircut wasn't anything out of the ordinary, thick, blunt bangs aside, unless one took into account the fact that the unnaturally immaculate hair was an equally unnatural shade of bright teal-blue. Delicately fluted, webbed ears flared out from the sides like a butterfly's wing, shimmering in a soft blue-purple beneath the moonlight to complete the look. They flicked back, flat against the speaker's head as rich blue eyes studied Harry with something akin to complete, utter disdain.

For a second, Harry felt what little air inside of him, freeze along with all rational thought as he could have sworn he'd seen a pale golden glow flicker around the shimmery outline, before fading away. He'd certainly never seen a dragel like this before nor any merfolk with that level of near human-esque likeness, most looked more animal than human.

Merrow. It's a Merrow… the thought floated through his head and Harry found himself staring as he recalled Calida's words from the Snape's sitting room. The Spanish beauty certainly had know what she'd been talking about, because the young man standing at his feet, towering over him, was every inch pure liquid seduction—including the scowl painted across said handsome features—and Harry wondered what he looked like when he smiled.

"Hi." Harry croaked once the speechlessness had lifted. He didn't know what else to say, but the silence was growing between them and he felt as if he ought to say something.

The Merrow stared at him a moment longer. "Hi?" The greeting was repeated. "Hi, he says. Almost died, he did. But hi, he says, calm as you please." There was an audible snort and the Merrow turned, allowing the moonlight to glance off another angle of the handsome face. "And they wonder why we can't stand landwalkers. Why does it always happen to me? Couldn't the realms find someone else to plague between nightmares?"

High cheekbones, a pert nose, thick, full lips and perfectly manicured eyebrows made up the symphony of features that completed the ethereal creature that now stood a few feet away, in plain view of Harry's bedraggled form. The Merrow had stepped back from leaning over Harry. He was clad in what seemed like a skin-tight muggle diving suit of pure black, with stripes of bright, shimmering blue along the sides and limbs. It was short-sleeved, showing off a well-toned physique and muscle structure, with bared forearms showing rows of visible tiny scales in every shade of blue possible from the sheen of moonlight bathing him from head to toe. A slender golden necklace with a trident pendant dangled mid-chest level and his feet were bare. A respectable bulge in the lower half below the waist and the absence of a bosom denoted the figure as male.

Those lovely features were easily androgynous, Harry mused, finally understanding Hermione's fascination with the phenomenon. If he hadn't seen it himself, he wasn't likely to believe it at all. Harry ran through his mental inventory once more, feeling well enough to try moving. He was relieved and happy to know that this lovely Merrow-creature was quite alive and unharmed from the weird serpent creature from before. It was too pretty to die and he found himself feeling even happier at the thought that it had rescued him in turn.

"You're alright?" He found that it didn't hurt too much to smile, even as his face protested the movements. He couldn't help it and Ilsa's words from a little while before filtered through his head. Harry swallowed. No, no, no, no! He would not think of that now. Surely this creature couldn't be his Intended.

The lovely fellow surely wasn't worthy of someone like him. Harry hesitated, no, even if he was, he didn't know anything about Merrows, Water Dragels or why on earth they had so many bloody terms for them! He couldn't fall for someone he knew nothing about and a sudden resolve flared to life in his chest. If for some strange reason this Merrow should be attracted to him, Harry promised himself that it would not be anything serious until he knew enough about them, should things even think of progressing in that direction.

He was reasonably sure that wouldn't happen, after all he was Harry freaking Potter and sometimes that realization alone made the fates conspire against him. As it was, he'd taken time to know Theo before that fateful day when he'd run out of Madam Pomfrey's hospital wing. He'd known Charlie through the Weasley's for a few years and he'd chosen Charlie, not Bill—though Bill had Fleur—and not the twins or—Merlin forbid!—Ron and Percy. He'd chosen Charlie.

A slight movement threw off his tangled thoughts and Harry bit back a painful groan. He felt as if he'd been run over by a herd of Hippogriffs and dearly wished he had a pain-relieving potion on or near his person. He couldn't think of any charms that would help at the moment and didn't really feel up to casting them either.

For one ridiculously pitiful moment, he felt cross and whiny at the thought that Theo and Charlie were not nearby to help. He mentally reached out to them, frowning when he encountered the same barrier that had been present for the past few hours.

Ridiculous stubborn prats! He thought irritably. Perhaps he would knock their heads together if only because he felt like it. Then again, it would serve them right to be busy settling Alpha and Beta things while he had the chance to meet a Merrow. A nice, good-looking Merrow.

And said Merrow was talking. Harry blinked, tearing his gaze away from the lovely form to focus on the words streaming out of those lovely lips.

"…of course, I'm alright! Why wouldn't I be? I was in the water. A Merrow. In the water. How could I be anything else but alright?" The fellow seemed quite offended at the thought that he could possibly be anything else other than perfectly fine. The delicately fluted ears twitched and flared, darkening in the moonlight. "I am not the topic of conversation, however, you are! Are you even listening to me? The only unanswered question is as to what you thought you were doing by throwing yourself straight in the-"

"Thank, Merlin." Harry felt his leg cramp with the familiar feeling of pins and needles, before settling into a faint numbness. He winced. The fading adrenaline left nothing else numbed and the effort to sit up had not helped him in anyway. He gritted his teeth and with a sudden surge of strength sat upwards enough to cough and shudder. Spasms rippled through him and Harry gasped for breath. A sudden bereft feeling registered and his right hand clenched instinctively but helplessly. "My wand-!" The words came out, hoarsely.

"I take it back. All landwalkers arebloody insufferable idiots. You are not listening to me. Do you think I'm talking because I like the sound of my voice? Oh by Kesmar, it's beside your head, you blockheaded twit! Can you focus now? You almost died, you know. If you die in these waters your decomposing body would ruin the ecosystem!"

Harry turned as much as he could and spied the familiar length of wood just out of reach beside him. For a moment, pure relief made all his aches and pains fade.

Then the Merrow's words registered.

"Excuse me?" He turned, feeling his temper beginning to shift somewhere beneath the surface. He'd only been trying to help. This was not the kind of reaction he'd been expecting. The final words registered and Harry scowled. "Ecosystem?" He heard himself repeat. Of all the thoughtless, insensitive and rude things to say, he hadn't expected that.

The Merrow rolled his eyes. "Naturally." His voice dripped pure ice. "Surely you wouldn't expect one of us to fish you out to bury you on land. That would be a waste of energy." There was a snort. "Next time, stay out of the water. There's a reason you're a landwalker. You and your kind don't belong in the waves."

Harry bristled. "Excuse me for caring!" He shot back, feeling the relief twisting itself into energy to fuel his rising temper. For the moment, he wished his wand was close enough so he could use it to cast a few charms. A drying charm and a heating charm for starters. And then so he could hex the rude bastard.

Silence lasted for a mere minute before the sky-blue skinned figure glowered at him once more. "I didn't ask you to care! I don't even know you and that's entirely beside the point. Did you have a death wish? You nearly drowned and I can hardly be bothered to save every wretched landwalker that decides to throw themselves off the ends of random piers."

"I didn't ask you to save me!" Harry threw back. "What are you so upset about?"

"Me? I'm upset? You're mad! Absolutely mad! You know, I would expect some dregs of panic to be surfacing soon if only to prove that you're perfectly sane and within your right mind." Blue eyes narrowed. "You were in the way with that little stunt of yours. Diving off a pier and cursing my trainee. If you hadn't almost died, I'd kill you myself. Your luck is extraordinary. You should have died, if only to save me the trouble of dragging your sorry carcass to shore and having this perfectly pointless conversation." The figure shuddered and skipped back a few steps to stand in the surf.

At that movement, Harry realized that he had been brought to land, but only pulled up as far as necessary to keep his feet out of reach of the rolling surf. The rest of his temper sparked to life as the haughty words fully caught up to his exhausted brain. "Excuse me? You were the one drowning and I was only trying to-"

"I wasn't drowning! How by the Royals did you come to that ridiculous conclusion? I was perfectly fine until you came along and ruined everything with your happy little wand hand and flashy little-"

"The snake." Harry squinted out over the dark waves, a feeling of unease washing over him at the reminder of the creature. His curse had harmlessly bounced off of it. "It swallowed you and-"

"Well, of course it did. I told it to." The Merrow huffed, arms crossed over his chest. "If it hadn't, I would have had something to say about it."

"You have a lot to say without it." Harry growled back. "And you're acting like a stuck-up prat! Next time you want to be swallowed, do it when I'm not around."

The blue figure stared at him for one moment, jaw dropped in shock. "I-you-!" He sputtered for a moment, then those deep blue eyes narrowed to mere slits, anger easily overtaking the smooth, scaled features. "Are you strong enough for a memory charm, now? I have other things that require my attention tonight and you're not one of them. I couldn't cast it before because it likely would have killed you and I didn't feel like upping my kill count tonight."

Harry's hand scrabbled in the sand, calling his wand to him as the sentence registered. This Merrow might be easy on the eyes, but the loveliness was most certainly skin deep. The earlier sense of foreboding settled over him again. His wand thwapped into his hand with a solid smack. He felt the sting of the force of blow, but ignored it in favor of checking his magical reserved. Physically, he felt exhausted, but magically, he'd been practically brimming over after waking up beside Bahn and the others.

The Merrow snorted at the pointed wand. "Don't be ridiculous. Merrow magic is one of the oldest and purest forms of magic, it overrides all else." He sniffed, delicately. "You're a landwalker, even if you are dragel and that won't help you, I'm afraid." He inspected his fingernails, the anger melting into iron control.

"I didn't ask for your help." Harry snapped. "And I'm so sorry you didn't want mine. If I'd known I'd insult you by trying to be a decent and-"

"Oh, I'm insulted?" The Merrow interrupted. "Kesmar, you are thick. Believe what you like. You're simply an annoyance right now and you're not helping."

"I was trying to help you." Harry repeated. His fingers tightened around his wand. His magic flared and simmered. "Guess I somehow mixed things up." A bitter edge lined his voice. "And since it seems like we won't be able to agree on this. I think you should leave. I'd thank you for pulling me out, but I don't think it matters. If you think I'll sit still for a memory charm, you're the one that's a few knuts short of a sickle!"

There was another huff. "Wonderful. You're a wizarding landwalker. Now we really can't avoid it. I couldn't possibly allow you to run around with-"

"You don't have a choice." Harry sucked in a strengthening breath. "I'm not giving you one."

"Excuse me?" The blue eyes flickered, angrily. "How dare you presume to have the authority to speak to me like that?" The Merrow took a step further back into the water. "Then again, you wretched landwalkers have always been the same."

The anger that exploded inside of Harry gave him the burst of adrenaline that helped to override the pain and give him strength to find his feet. "That's your opinion and you can keep it." He snapped. "I don't even know you and I already don't like you." Harry mentally flipped through the list of jinxes and hexes at his disposal. He would not throw the first spell, but he would be ready for whatever came his way. Luck was occasionally on his side—the last time someone had dared cast a memory charm—well, Gilderoy Lockhart was still in the St. Mungo's ward for mysterious maladies.

"Consider it mutual." The Merrow eyed his wand, the first flicker of unease shimmering in those blue eyes.

He shifted uneasily, backing another few feet into the water, Harry noted with grim satisfaction. That was good. He didn't really feel like having a duel out on the beach at this time of night. That was good.

"Goonter?" He called over his shoulder, eyes never leaving Harry's poised form.

The great, roaring head broke the water several lengths away. Gleaming scales, the color of midnight blue shone in the moonlight and wicked, white fangs glittered ominously in that cavernous mouth. It was the mystery serpent from before, except for this time there was nothing translucent about it.

For a second, Harry nearly faltered, before he backed up one step and kept his wand trained on them both. Maybe it was another one of his weird magic moments. He could think about it later, for now, he simply had to make sure that he wasn't in danger.

The creature tossed its head side to side agitatedly, an odd crooning noise bubbling out of its long throat. Giant drops of water pelted the dry beachside.

Harry stared them both down, determinedly. He'd faced more when younger. This was nothing new. A spell was on his lips when the creatures sneezed, spraying him from head to toe with slimy water. The brunet grimaced and cast a cleaning charm almost at once.

The creature groaned loudly, the equivalent of an animalistic whine.

The Merrow turned around at once, concern overtaking anger in a heartbeat. "Goonter? What's the matter?" It moaned in answer. "You silly, stupid serpent!" Toned arms waved about in the air before the hands attached to said arms came to rest on those slender hips. "I told you not to eat him! It's your own fault you're feeling so miserable. I've told you to never eat landwalkers because you don't know what they're carrying!" He huffed. "Suppose it's contagious?"

The serpent—sea dragon—moaned, pathetically in answer.

"Well, how should I know? Landwalkers can contract all kinds of things, they aren't anywhere near as resistant as our kind. Now, stop doing that and come down here so I can see you properly, you wretched thing!"

Harry felt his jaw dropped. He stared as the ferocious serpent quailed beneath the masterful glare of the temperamental Merrow.

With great reluctance, the mighty head lowered, shying back a few hands when the Merrow started forward. He placed a hand at the center of the giant, pointed snout and timed something with the pulse at the base of his neck. "You'll live." He informed it. "But no more daredevil stunts for you or I'll see to it that you're back on a diet of watercress and krill."

Goonter cringed.

"Don't give me that. You damn well deserve it and you know it! You deserve worse, in fact, but I'm in a brilliant mood tonight, so I won't tie your whiskers up for it."

Goonter whuffled a soft breath in answer. This time the groan seemed almost more of a croon as it tilted that great head just enough to lean into the Merrow.

"Good boy." The Merrow soothed. "That's a good boy. You'll be fine by morning, I'm sure. It's nothing a good night's rest can't cure, don't you think? Maybe some moon bathing? I could let you try that, see if it helps." He patted the thick, dark scales and began to slog through the water, moving away from the snout and towards the head. Goonter growled lowly and the Merrow turned back. Anger, frustration and then exasperation now showed clearly on his moonlit face. "What are you doing?" He scowled adorably at Harry. "Are you still pointing that at me?" He asked, incredulously. "Put it down before you hurt yourself!"

"This is a private beach." Harry returned, speaking far more calmly than he felt he could safely manage. He took note of the fact that the water had now begun to shift restlessly in short, choppy waves. He was suddenly reminded that a Merrow was a Water Dragel and that it couldn't possibly be a good thing in their given situation. He'd seen Theo with his Earth element and Charlie with his Fire one. Yes. Most definitely not good.

Perhaps he should have retreated while they were occupied with each other. There wasn't anything wrong in running if you didn't have to fight or rather, saving the fight for another day. He certainly didn't feel up to a full-fledged duel. "You shouldn't be here." Harry silently reached out through the familiar bonds for his Alpha and Beta, stifling another wave of frustration when he felt them still closed off. He definitely would have something to say to them.

"You dare suggest I am trespassing? I'm Merrow, we are Aqua-kin'e." The Merrow tossed his head. "All water belongs to us. We need neither permissions nor allowances to go where we please, when we please, however we please." He reached a hand out to steady himself as the water swirled furiously around him. "This private beach, as you say, is on loan to you landwalkers during the day. We have full use of it during the night." He pointed up to the bright, clear sky. "A simpleton could tell the time of day or rather, in this case, the hour of night? Honestly. You are terribly annoying. I have more important things to do than stand here and debate useless things with an idiot."

Harry bristled once more. He dearly wished he could hex the smart-mouthed idiot for having such a smart mouth. A whisper of wind wafted through again and Harry grimaced. Drying and heating charms, right. He'd forgotten those when he'd cast the cleaning charm. His magic churned restlessly through him. Harry lower his wand, cautiously. He certainly didn't trust the Merrow or the serpent, even if the strange water-creatures were not inclined to actively seek his demise at the present, given moment. But his pride stung from the repeated insults and he'd never liked bullies or supercilious idiots. "Only an insecure prat would continually lord status and common information in a normal conversation to make themselves look better." He snapped.

There was another snort and something that sounded suspiciously like a laugh. "That's funny." The Merrow informed him, blue eyes now showing the faintest spark of interest as he began to wade a few steps back towards the shore. "I've been called many things but never insecure, which I am not. I have no reason to be. Try again. An encore maybe?"

"Of what, your sparkling wit? I'll live without it."

The Merrow laughed again. "Oh that is funny. Suit yourself. I thought we were managing rather wonderfully, considering."

"Thought? You actually considered what you said? Ha. I didn't think you were capable of it."

"What's the matter, never seen a Merrow before?"

"As a matter of fact, I haven't!" Harry tapped his wand to his clothes and muttered the spells for dryness and warmth. "Glad to see I didn't miss anything."

The third laugh was aa deliciously melodical sound that warmed the air and eased the tension all at once. "Poeira's torrid veins—you are a funny one." He laughed again, leaning against Goonter for support. "You're so innocent and prickly, it's adorable."

Harry opened and shut his mouth, feeling a blush already beginning to rise. He tried and failed to see how things had suddenly flip-flopped so horribly wrong. This was not familiar ground at all. Anger, he could do, nice, he could not. He was not innocent—definitely hadn't been since Theo had come along and since before that, even, if his miserable childhood was supposed to have been a time of wonder and curiosity. Prickly—most certainly not, annoyed, for sure. "Whatever you're trying to trick me into-"

"No trick." The Merrow said cheerfully. "If I wanted to trick you, I would have done so already. Don't you agree, Goonter?" The sea serpent rumbled in reply. "He agrees. Now then, if you want to hex me and simply get it out of your system, I'm not going to complain. It really won't register at all."

Harry glared at him for a moment, and then the temptation won over his patience. He was itching to hex the smirk off of the bastard's face.

He would later blame his temper for the mostly harmless burst of magic, but the Merrow was right in saying that the magic would have no effect. It simply bounced harmlessly off of Goonter's thick, scaled hide, when the creature dodged in front of his caregiver.

"Feel better?" The Merrow grinned, a row of sharp, white sparkly teeth gleaming in the dark.

"Hardly!" Harry threw out another hex before he could stop himself. He didn't care that Goonter absorbed it again. He was feeling frustrated, tired and neglected.

"Perhaps you'd better have a sit-down." The Merrow wrinkled his nose. The earlier smidgen of concern seemed to be surfacing again. "I didn't rescue you to die, you know. You really would ruin the ecosystem if you decided to drown here. You look rather grey though. As if you're about to keel over. I think you really should sit down."

"No thanks to you," Harry said, faintly. His eyes rolled up in the back of his head and he face-planted into the sand. He was vaguely aware of a string of possible curses in a mishmash of languages he'd never heard before. Then surprisingly gentle hands rolled him over and brushed the sand from his face. He was settled into a comfortable position and then, a jolt of magic stabbed through his chest, forcing him to breathe.

He coughed, wetly and struggled in the unfamiliar hold. This was not Theo. It was not Charlie. Definitely wasn't Ilsa. He didn't like that. It wasn't safe, couldn't be safe. Instinctively, he fought again. Suddenly aware that he was out, alone, in the night, with creatures he knew nothing about, while no one knew where he was and what he was up to. It registered like a diver's stone about his neck, pulling him to his fated death.

A moan turned into a whimper and Harry shivered again, hating the fact that he was showing any weakness to this cruel rescuer who seemed bent on torturing him in some ridiculous-

"Oi, don't you dare die on me now. You're not all that bad off." The Merrow's scolding tone had taken on a measure of worry once more. "In fact, you're mostly rather fine, if we overlook the water and eating sand-"

Harry felt his body convulse and jerk, flailing about wildly. His fist connected with something silky smooth and unbearably warm and soft, before he was twitching into the sand again.

"Magic sensitive." The voice above him pronounced. "Lovely. Don't tell me you're an empath or something. Merlin, Arielle and the Reefs of Kesmar! Could my life possibly become any more complicated?"

"Hello? Hello in there, you empty-headed oh—you're awake. Finally." Bright blue eyes peered curiously down into emerald orbs. "What is your name, anyway? Not that it matters, but I'd rather not dream up specific insults for you as it's rather troublesome to waste my brilliance on such pointless drivel."

Harry felt a trickle of wetness prickling at the corner of his eyes and he was suddenly aware that he was drenched from head to toe once more. He shivered, violently.

"What now? Oh bloody-!" The rest of the sentence trailed off in the mixture of foreign babble once more.

Harry coughed and choked when a wall of warm water slammed into him from overhead. He gasped and gurgled, fighting weakly against the firm hands that pulled his head to the side and supported him as he expelled the unexpected mouthful.

"Better, ne?" The Merrow braced him against his side and rubbed a soothing line along his bared back.

Harry flinched before he could help himself.

The gentle hand froze at once and Harry found himself unceremoniously dumped back on the sand. "Well, it seems my good deed for the night is complete. Do keep out of the water during the nights, yes? Once the Hunting Season is over, we won't surface until the next one and I haven't the patience to deal with reckless idiots such as yourself."

Powerful magic shimmered in the air and an audible crackle echoed down the beachside.

A loud, slurping sound came from beneath him and Harry felt a frisson of fear before he realized that every drop of moisture was being forcibly retracted from his body as an overwhelming thirst struck him. He clawed at dry, cracked lips in time to feel his strength return to him even as his skin grew dry and itchy. The young wizard rolled over in horror to stare at the impassive, blue-skinned Merrow standing an arm's length away, one elegantly fingered hand held up as if in a plea. Harry stared as he watched the liquid scramble to retreat to the water's edge at the Merrow's call. He tried to speak, but his tongue was thick, swollen and dry. The fear registered on the second round. No human being could survive without water for longer than—Harry gagged.

"Too much?" The Merrow asked, casually. Apparently he'd flip-flopped from polite and amused to high-handed and angry once more. "Sorry. I do tend to forget those sorts of things. Most of the time it's easier to kill a landwalker than to save them." He clicked his fingers and this time, Harry saw it coming.

A thin, shimmering wall of water that simply rose up, out of the waves and floated forward until it was right in front of him. It draped itself over his parched figure and then collapsed in its natural form. Relief literally flooded him as his body sucked in the life-giving moisture at his magic's urging.

Harry was left drenched and gasping on the wet sand.

By the time he'd recovered, Harry turned in time to see the Merrow strolling down the dock and standing at the edge where he'd been before the trouble had started. He stared as a whistle was issued and Goonter rose up, following the gestures and signals like a well-trained pet. Harry could only stare, dumbstruck, when the Merrow cast some form of magic and three glowing, swirling, gorgeous rings of pale purple light burned into existence, hovering above the night-black water in a horizontal line.

He understood the reason for it a second later when Goonter rose up from the water and in fluid, graceful motion, effortlessly lunged through the hoops in a series of twists, leaps and arcs, ending with a splashless flourish of his tapered tale. They were training, Harry realized as the hoops were eventually set aside and the Merrow seemed to be patiently working with the sea dragon to explain the next trick.

Harry didn't interrupt. He couldn't think of anything he could say that would make a difference anyway and suddenly, all he wanted was to be home and in bed, sandwiched between Theo and Charlie. They'd have to settle their differences in a hurry and if they hadn't settled their ranks by now, he'd hex them both and then crawl into bed. The dull ache in his chest throbbed, as if his headache had migrated. He shivered, remembering his earlier reason for casting charms. He fumbled for his wand that had been thoughtfully replaced in the holster beneath his untransfigured trousers that had returned to their original form as a pair of swimming trunks.

A touch of wandless magic before he'd hit the water, he figured. He had just slid the wand free, about to cast another warming charm, when the voice reached his ears once more.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you. Not with an episode like you had a bit ago. It'd be stupid. Not that you landwalkers are known for your intelligence, but I would assume you were in possession of a functioning brain and therefore able to discern the fact that when you've survived a magically sensitive experience, you wouldn't use magic until the following day, a full twenty-four hour period is best, twelve hours, if you couldn't stand to stomach a full day." There was a pause. "Especially if you're an empath, telepath or anything else with vaguely psychic connotations."

Harry felt himself beginning to bristle once more, before a sudden realization shot through him. It was pointless, draining and tiring to be defending himself against whatever the water dragel held against him. As far as he could tell, he'd really done nothing wrong, so there was no reason to defend himself.

Prejudice against land-dwelling creatures was not something Calida had thought to mention when she'd spoken of Merrow in the Snape's sitting room. He could easily see what she'd meant about a single look being a heartstopper, because the creature was beautiful, even if it was rather blue-grey under the nighttime sky. Insults and culturally confusing phrases aside, the blue-skinned fellow hadn't really been that terrible. For all of his posturing and sharp tongue, he'd taken great pains to be sure that Harry was alive and in relatively decent health, before he'd returned to his earlier task. Even the last barb held a snippet of information that he'd never known.

It left him feeling mildly irritated that everyone seemed to know about empaths and what a rare and important thing it was, yet, he, himself, had absolutely no idea nor concept of it. Harry huffed. He'd have to ask Theo that in addition to the entire deluge of questions brimming over in his mind. He would have to find a teacher of some sort, mentor or not. This was ridiculous to be stuck in a place he didn't know, with powers he could barely control around people that seemed bent on holding him responsible for things he didn't know.

A neatly folded bundle off to the Merrow's right caught Harry's eye and he started forward to the docks. He'd almost reached there, halfway, before the Merrow shifted, to keep him in a line of sight.

Harry stopped. The movement, while subtle, immediately reminded him of Moody's 'Constant Vigilance!' mantra and reminded him that this Merrow, temperamental as it was, was certainly quite dangerous. He backed up a few steps, even as his gaze flickered longingly towards the jumper. He didn't know a thing about being magically sensitive, he'd figured that it meant his empathic gift was running wild once more. He was cold. He wanted it. But he didn't want to start yet another ridiculous episode with his antagonistic rescuer either.

A faint surge of warmth rippled through him and Harry breathed an audible sigh of relief as he felt Theo and Charlie's links turn on and click into place. He sent a full dose of his present irritation and annoyance their way, a long-distance scolding for taking so long to do something so necessary.

"If you want that, you can't have it." The Merrow sniffed, seemingly reading his train of thought and intent. "You didn't really expect me to heal you for free, did you? A Merrow healing is expensive and a rare privilege you know. You're lucky twice in the same night."

Surprise showed plainly on his face and Harry shook his head. He wondered what the Merrow would do with it, as it seemed beneath the creature to have anything to do with something from a landwalker. "Oh. I see. Thanks, then."

The Merrow snorted. "There is nothing to be thankful about. Go annoy something else."

"…Harry." The young wizard said, quietly. He didn't even know why he was offering his name now. It certainly wouldn't make any difference. He hugged his arms to himself. "My name is Harry. Thank you…for whatever you did."

"I didn't ask your name." The Merrow turned his back, deliberately. He clicked his fingers and whistled again, directing the giant sea serpent through another routine. "I asked you to leave, lest you are deaf and dumb to add to things."

"You did, earlier. I couldn't answer." Harry ignored the insult. Perhaps Merrow couldn't speak to landwalkers without being required to insult them in some way or form. He made a mental note to ask Calida, in case Theo didn't know.

"Go away."

"I really did think you'd been eaten." He continued, lightly. "I didn't mean to interrupt your—thing. I thought you needed help. What else was I supposed to think?" He frowned, one particular detail coming to the forefront of his mind. "I thought your Goonter was transparent. What'd you do to him?"

The Merrow froze. He turned and stared at Harry for a good, long moment, dark eyes sweeping over the shivering frame from head to toe. Something indescribable glittered in his dark blue eyes. For a moment, he didn't speak, then he turned away, stiffly. "Harry is a terribly boring name. You should ask your parents to change it. It's too ordinary. You should rest. You need it. Good night."

Harry stared at the rigid back for a long, silent moment. Then he sighed and turned away, his eyes scanning the shoreline for the shadowed guesthouse. Theo and Charlie would be up. He could scold them if he wished and then demand to be spoiled and cuddled afterwards. He was entitled to it. The day had been long and exhausting. He doubted his Bonded would refuse him either. Theo had been attentive for the entire day and Charlie had showed interest in his own ways. He was almost off the dock when he heard the Merrow speak very quietly.

"I answer to Alec."

Harry didn't stop. Stupid boy. Stupid Merrow. Stupid almost drowning. Theo would probably scold until his ears fell off.

If he found out. Harry mused. Ilsa too…stupid dock.

Alec… He thought, tiredly, feet already carrying him across the cool sand. That was an equally boring name in its own way. This had to be the most ridiculous conversation and experience he'd had yet.

A/N: YAY! It's a normal sized chapter! LOL. I figured y'all had spent enough time with the cliffhanger-naw, just kidding. I'm on Spring Break for this coming week, now that midterms are over and I have just barely survived, I thought I'd see how many updates I could get out, so expect a few more chapters, but probably of a more reasonable length, instead of 20,000 word monsters sometime this week. Whew.

Anyhow I don't expect anyone to like Alec, he's a bit of annoying jerk, isn't he? But he is near and dear to my heart, so don't judge him yet, there's plenty more of him to come in the future. There's no Character snippet for this chapter, maybe in the next one. I think y'all will live without it for the time being. :D Also, Thank you all for the kind reviews, suggestions and also the well wishes for my Aunty. She passed her swallow test as I mentioned earlier in the forums and is being moved back to rehab/physical therapy with her recent improvements. This is WONDERFUL news. :D

The Term "Merrow" is kind of like the word "sheep" there is no plural form for/of it, one sheep is a sheep, two sheep are sheep. One Merrow is a Merrow, two Merrow are Merrow. Water Dragels, identified as Merrow refer to themselves as Aqua-Kin'e, pronounced phonetically as "Ah-kwa-Kin-Nee".

REVIEW RESPONSES are in the FORUM. Copy and paste to get there, click on the appropriate chapter number and scroll down to find your review and my reply. Replace the (heresadot) with actual dots as FF eats all urls. I am still finishing up reviews for chapter 72, they'll probably be finished by tomorrow afternoon, but I wanted to post the new chapter tonight. I didn't forget anyone. :)

forum(heresadot)fanfiction(heresadot)net/forum/There_Be_Dragons_Harry_Forum/108964/

~Scion