Mermaid
I hear the occasional whimpers from Annie and Madge, the stinging we all feel is never ending. The blood has mostly dried but the cool air still bites at the open wounds.
A heavy sequence of thumps sounds again. My body tenses, preparing for another round of torture at the hands of men.
A head of curly blonde hair appears around the corner. Annie and Madge breathe sighs of relief at this stranger's appearance. He is not one of the men from before. He lifts his eyes and scans the room. Taking in Annie, Madge and Johanna who are more directly in his line of sight. Visibly his body slumps. The ocean blue of his eyes hits me like a tidal wave. He is man from before...from the deck. And who released me from beneath that boulder.
"I'm sorry." His gentle voice whispers. The tenor of his voice invades my memory.
"You're beautiful."
"I'm sorry."
That is all he had said to me, yet I knew his voice. And now seeing his face I knew it was he who helped me.
He turns his eyes to me; they widen slightly when he sees that I am staring back.
His eyes grow wide with despair and they plead forgiveness for the actions he did not commit.
"I'm sorry. I wish I'd known. I wish I could have protected you." He says sadly.
I wish to be angry. To hate him as I hate his cruel kinfolk. Yet I know I cannot hate him simply because of their actions, no matter how cruel they were, of others.
He approaches cautiously until he is standing before me.
He reaches out gently touching the wounds inflicted by his kin.
"I'm so sorry. All I wished was to see you better and yet here you are nearly as bad as before." His face is broken; he would make for a truly terrible liar allowing his emotions to express themselves so freely on his face.
His touch is not unpleasant. Rather it brings me a strange warmth and comfort. He has a strange effect on me.
"I promise you I won't let this happen again. I will free you tonight. I swear." His gaze is intense and earnest. It traps me.
"I won't let them to harm you again."
I nod, still caught in the intensity of his stare.
A fair bit more thumping sounds rapidly, announcing the arrival of three more men.
A rather tall bronzed haired man with eyes as green as seaweed is the first to round the corner. Second a man who looks oddly like myself with grey eyes and olive skin, and who towers over the other men. The next man is shorter and stockier, much like the blonde haired man before me, with black hair and deep brown eyes. The man before me doesn't flinch at their arrival so I assume these were the friends I remember hearing him speak of.
The first man gazes around, eyes lingering on our damaged bodies. A few curses pass from his lips. "I hope the black spot finds them quickly. Those cursed sea dogs deserve to hang for such crimes." He growls and spits the words through his teeth. He quickly approaches Annie and tenderly tucks a few stray hands of hair behind her ear. His touch glides across the cut on her face. She winces slightly and he murmurs his apology.
"Someone as beautiful as you should never know such pain." He says in a low, velvet voice. He appraises her wounds, the cuts on her skin, the chunks missing from her tail, the bruises. His gentle concern is heartwarming. He is different; these men are different from the men I've encountered before. None have ever been so kind.
"Finnick is quite taken with your friend Annie." The blonde hair man in front of me whispers for only my ears to hear.
He clears his throat and turns to the others.
"These are the friends I had mentioned. Those who wish to help free you. That joker over there is Finnick." He gestures at the bronze haired man. "Thom and Gale." He points at the other two. "And I am Peeta."
"Boys, meet Annie, Johanna, Madge and…" He points to each of us in turn, stopping at me with a confused expression. "I'm sorry. I'm afraid I've never learned your name."
He trains his blue eyes on me again. "Katniss." I force my voice to remain steady and strong, not allowing it to hint at the shiver his stare sends down my spine.
"Katniss." He whispers with a smile then turns to address the others.
"We must wait until the dead of night to free you. We've only brought a salve that will hopefully sooth your pain." He pulls a tin from his pants pocket. Taking a generous portion of the salve on his fingers before passing it to the others who do the same.
"May I?" He gently questions. I nod; amazed that he cares enough to ask my permission.
His warm and light touches smooth the salve across the many cuts.
"How do you know so much about healing?" I ask. He reminds me of my sister, she can heal anything, even if it is moments from death. She has a gift.
"I learned the basics from an old healer in town once. We don't make port for cuts and scrapes but they can get infected out here. I've seen men die from simple things. So I learned. I figured it would be a useful skill."
He looks deep into my eyes as he says, "It has proved most helpful. Helping you has made it entirely worthwhile." He smiles warmly and then finishes with the salve.
"We must take our leave now. But I promise we will return very soon."
The men gather and leave, but only after Finnick gives Annie a lingering kiss on the cheek.
"That feels infinitely better." Madge sighs. I must admit I release a sigh of my own at the relief.
…:::…
Man
We wait in our bunks, feigning sleep, until we hear the snores of every sailor filling the air. My eyes are closed and I dream; yet I do not sleep. I dream of Katniss.
Katniss.
Her name feels so precious on my lips. The silver pools of her eyes linger in my mind. The way they had searched my own and how ours locked together in a trance. The way her long, wavy tresses swayed slightly with the rocking of the ship. She is beautiful, undoubtedly. Not just because she is a mermaid. No her beauty is entirely separate. She is simply radiant, and would be no matter if she were mermaid or human.
Human….
Which she is not. She is a mermaid. I scold myself, for it is foolish to think such thoughts. We could never be together. I am human; land is where I must make my home. She is a mermaid. Can she even survive on land? I sigh at the utter hopelessness of the situation. We can never be together. I can never have her as my own because we are from completely different worlds.
I hear Finnick rise beside me. Thom and Gale too. I reach into my trunk and grab my knife. Silently we step out of the forecastle and cross to the brig. The four are sleeping, fitfully it seems. I quietly rouse Katniss. I bring my knife to her bindings and cut them free. I hear the others slicing through the other ropes as well. When I am almost through I slip one arm around her waist, tightly pressing her to my body. I hear a faint gasp and feel her breath quicken. I force myself to ignore her reaction to me. In a few moments she will be free and I will most likely never see her again. And if Captain Snow finds out of our involvement in their escape I will most likely be dead.
The rope finally snaps and her full weight drops free. I never figured that she could be so heavy. Her body seems so petite. My guess is that all the muscle in her tail makes up for the miscalculated weight. She drops only slightly before I catch her, and she leans heavily onto me. Water splashes over the sides of the barrel and around my feet. Her arms drop limply to her sides, her face pressed firmly against my cheek. I can feel her soft fluttering breath against my ear and it sends shivers of pleasure down my spine.
"Are you alright?" I question.
"Yes. I cannot feel my arms though. They have not yet regained feeling." She chuckles lightly.
"Peeta." Gale hisses. "We need to hurry." I turn my head to see him, with Johanna already held tightly in his arms. Her arms wound around his neck and her tail falling over his one arm.
Thom has Madge in a similar hold. But Finnick…Finnick has Annie cradled far closer to himself. His lips are murmuring against her temple. She smiles softly. My heart aches at the sight, I wish for similar moments with Katniss…however I have already come to know the truth. She will be gone soon. My heart clenches painfully at the thought. I turn away from them. I carefully lift Katniss' tail from the barrel, and desperately try to keep a firm hold on her slippery scales. She reaches her arms up and wraps them tightly around my neck, the feeling obviously returning to her limbs. Her head rests against my neck, her breath warming my shoulder. I nod at Gale and he makes his way above deck. We all follow.
The deck creaks beneath our steps and I flinch every time it does. I send silent prayers to the heavens that no one would be woken by the sounds. Gale has already reached the rails and is slowly maneuvering Johanna in order to lower her to the waiting sea. Thom does the same with Madge. Finnick and Annie are to caught up in themselves to let go just yet. And I find myself reluctant to lose the feeling of Katniss in my arms.
Gale releases Johanna and her body splashes into the water, loudly. We all stand frozen and silent. Waiting.
Long, tense moments of silence pass and nothing has changed. So Thom releases Madge after placing a soft kiss her to hand. She smiles sweetly, and blushes. Another loud splash announces her freedom.
Finnick is about to lower Annie over the side when it happens.
Clang! The old rusty bell rings clearly in the night air.
"The prisoners are escaping!" Cato's cruel sneer can undoubtedly be heard by every man aboard this ship.
A few moments later the ship is alive with movement as the men rush to the deck. Captain Snow barges from his cabin and howls in anger at the sight on the deck below where he stands. His eyes scan us. Four men, only two mermaids, one clearly hung over the edge, almost free.
"Stop them!" He bellows.
My stomach drops. Even if we manage to free them Captain Snow will have us executed for treason.
I look around; the others have come to the same realization. Annie turns quickly to Finnick, "Come with me?" she begs.
I turn back as the sound of footsteps barrels towards me. Cato's face is masked with wickedness.
I turn to rush Katniss to the deck but Cato has already reached me. He rams into me and Katniss falls from my grip. Her body skims along the wooden deck coming to a stop still to far from the edge. She won't make it on her own.
I struggle free from Cato's grasp and turn towards Katniss. She's watching me with worried eyes. Finnick is behind her still holding Annie's arms. Thom and Gale stand on guard as Marvel, Brutus and Thread close in around them. Finnick looks to me questioningly.
"Go!" I yell. Thom and Gale catch my meaning as well and begin to head for the rails. I turn to face Cato again but I still hear the splash as Finnick and Annie land in the water. We are not to far from land; they could still swim to safety whereas they will surely die here.
Cato lands a punch square on my jaw; my body spins slightly from the contact. I regain my bearings and return the action. So our dance continues, he and I wrestle, landing blows upon each other. With one particularly strong strike I send Cato sprawling onto the deck.
I turn back and rush towards Katniss; Captain Snow is descending upon her. She looks to me in alarm.
"Peeta!" She shouts, reaching out to me. "Behind you!"
I barely have time to register her words. I turn to find Cato with a blade drawn and rushing towards me.
Quickly the blade drags deeply through my skin. I cry out into the salty air, pain ripping through my body.
…:::…