Hi there guys! Here is another chapter, just them getting to know a little. Hope you like it, Read and Review :D
- What was that creature that fell off with you? – the sweet voice travelled to his ears, making the boy wake up from the quiet daze he was into, mind wandering vaguely about the events of the last couple of days.
Neither one had said a word to each other. There was no previous arrangement, nor a defined place and hour. They only knew that in the afternoon that followed that quieter encounter, their gazes crossed each other, lilac and blue, as one emerged from the refreshing waters and the other climbed down the wall of the cliff.
Timid smiles immediately graced their lips. And that unspoken confirmation to the doubt that prevented them from sleeping properly in the past night, eased their hearts, for which they knew that they weren't the only ones to desire the other's presence.
It had started with a certain climate of awkwardness lingering in the air, both not really knowing what to say. The mere coincidence – not such a coincidence after all - of them meeting again, in that hidden bay, made a heavy tension fall upon them.
However, the shepherd knew there was no time for uncomfortable silences, or, he was sure, the stealthy mermaid would simply swim away.
For Jack, in the beginning, it was like being around a wild animal. One sudden movement and it might flee and never return. And Jack was so curious about this shy creature that he couldn't afford such thing as to frighten her.
Well, giving it a second thought, their first encounter was definitely what we call traumatizing. And still, she came back.
With that last thought, the boy was suddenly awakened, blinking the fogy look out of his eyes.
- Sorry what? – and his irises focused on the girls face below him, body submerged in the cool water, her bright eyes set on him.
She giggled softly, and Jack couldn't avoid a small apologetic smile to stretch his lips.
- I ask – and the stern look the boy gave her, warned her about her mistake. She immediately repeated, thanking the boy with a smile for helping her out with this 'inglish' language.
- I asked, what was the creature you held in your arms. – she repeated, recalling the second time they met and that white-headed beast that made an horrible noise.
- Oh, Socks! – the boy exclaimed, finally getting what was she referring to.
- S-socks? – the mermaid tried to copy, wrenching her nose at the name. – What is a socks?
- No, Socks is his name. He is a lamb. – he tried to clarify, and then remembered a way for her to understand it better, giving an example.
- Like, ugh, my name is Jack, but I am a human. And you a mermaid, but you are called Tooth!
He smirked at that last part, making the girl shake her head slightly.
Her name wasn't Tooth! Only the boy called her that! But, actually, it didn't seem bother her... In fact, it felt nice just to have her name being said in his singular voice. As a mermaid, she was more accustomed to sweeter intonations, like the ones of her sisters. It was nice to discover such husky tones.
But she quickly shook her head dismissively. Her curious violet gaze, full of wonder for all this new things she was learning about, turned to the boy sitting on the rocks ahead of her.
- What is lamb? – she continued inquiring, resting her head on her own smooth palms, elbows set on the rocks under her.
And the shepherd spoke all he knew, happy to share those kind of facts that were, indeed, is field of knowledge.
- Lamb is a baby sheep, and a sheep is... - but he couldn't finish whatever he was going to say, as Tooth swiftly peeped in again.
- What is a baby?
And the boy simply stared at her for a second, caught out of guard by the quick change of subject.
- Would you care to stop interrupting? I have to keep a train of thought, you know? – he stated, pretending to be annoyed.
The mermaid's eyes widened, and her head-fins instinctively clung to her skull, as she lowered her look to the peaceful waters.
But suddenly a splash of water soaked her already wet skin, as the boy teasingly kicked a wave, attempting to call her attention.
- I'm just kidding, okay? – he said softly, showing her that cocky smile of his. Toothiana head-fins shot up right away, as the mermaid displayed a confuse frown.
These humans and their strange ways of showing emotions...
But her mind quickly drifted back to the main subject.
- Baby. – she voiced, and her irises kept staring at the puzzled expression that changed Jack's features, before a look of understanding illuminated his eyes.
- Oh, yeah, babies... – and he coughed awkwardly, drifting his eyes for a moment, in the intent of finding the best way to explain it to her.
- Well, baby, - he continued in a knowledgeable tone. – is the state in which a lot of creatures are born. When us humans, and all the other animals and birds, are born, we first appear to be like a miniature of what we will became at an adult age. – he paused just to see if she understood. Her focused expression showed that she seemed to be following his train of thought. So he decided to proceed, starting to emphasize his lecture with hand-movements.
- We are born babies, then grow up to be juveniles, and then we became mature. – At the slight frown the mermaid showed at the last word, Jack quickly added. – Mature is when you are able of producing your own babies.
- Oh... – Toothiana said slowly, coming to know more things about this upper world.
But the confused look that suddenly settled itself in the boy's face, anticipated the next question.
- Why, isn't this how it works in your world? – his husky voice asked curiously, slightly leaning forward. And the girl's emerged head softly shook "no".
- Then where do you all come from? – he continued inquiring, his tone with increasing softness.
Toothiana stared at her own reflection in the water below, mouth slightly open, trying to find the fitting words to describe the process.
- We are all daughters of Atlantis, our great-mother. – the mermaid started to clarify. Her voice proceeded with great tenderness and respect, as she told the human boy the story of her people.
- And there are times, when the moon shines the brightest, and all grown mermaids go singing to the surface. – she continued, her mouth keeping up with the images that played before her eyes.
- It rarely happens, but sometimes, the group brings back a gift from the moon, and offers it to the Mother-of-All. – her violet orbs suddenly turn up again, staring directly at Jack's own pair of oceans. – And from the sacred union of the moon and the sea, a young mermaid is born...
The mermaid ceased her narration, sheepishly looking up at the boy. Jack, on the other hand, looked like he was under some sort of spell, lulled by Tooth's melodic voice, as if he too witnessed this beautiful event.
But then the mermaid quickly added:
- It is a great honor to be part of such occurrence! Soon enough, I'll also be given the permission to participate! – her voice carried an exited happiness, as if she had longed for it for a long time.
She then remembered how Escutah had tried to give her a rightful occupation in their community. It was a sign, a sign that she would no longer be "Young Toothiana"!
- Yeah, it seems truly magical... – the boy absently whispered, with a delighted smile on his face, thinking about this unknown way of reproduction.
But the girl, yet again, interrupted his divagations.
- Why? Where do babies come from in your world? – she asked, innocently, being quite surprised at the sudden splash of red – she knew now that the warm color was called – which spread itself over the boy's face, coloring also the tips of his ears with in a strong crimson.
- We'll leave that explanation to some other time, okay... – he simply muttered, diverting his eyes to the now-surprisingly-much-more-interesting wall of rock.
That left a perplexed mermaid, crocking one eyebrow, at the human boy's strange reaction.
Oh, these humans..., she found herself thinking again, huffing a frustrated breath.
- So... – she broke the silence, making the boy turn to look at her again. – The creature is Socks, and socks is a thing, but not in this case, as Socks is a lamb. – she continued, summing up their conversation.
In that little pause, Jack quickly explained that socks were things that one puts in his feet, to keep them warm. Unfortunately, thanks to the boy's apparent manner of walking around barefoot, he couldn't show it to her.
The mermaid swiftly asked why would a lamb be called socks, and the young shepherd said it was because of the black marks that covered both his front legs, making it look like he was wearing that specific piece of clothing.
Once again, this earned the boy a strange look from pretty Tooth, as she huffed one more time about humans and their strange nomenclatures.
Jack laughed whole-heartily at her reaction, making only a pout come to the girl's lips, as she didn't know what she had said that was so funny.
As is laughter morphed into irregular chuckles, Toothiana hurried to change the subject.
- And, as you were saying, lambs are baby sheep, and sheep is...?
The boy's delighted burst out slowly faded, but no one could take that pleased smile out of his face.
It felt really nice, to laugh like this again, not a single worry weighing in his joyful heart. In that hidden spot, at that rare moment, Jack was the carefree boy he had once been, free to laugh as long as he liked, and, when deciding to stop, having such nice company before him.
Suddenly, Toothiana saw a warm flicker pass in his clear eyes, as they became soft for a second. She couldn't help but to feel her face warm up under such tender look. No one has ever looked at her like that. The mermaid shifted faintly in the calm waters, as her thorax and neck gills sort of gasped.
But as fast as it appeared, it vanished, and Tooth had to think for a while if it had been truly real or if it was her imagination playing tricks.
She instantly woke up from such wonderings, as the boy's low voice reached her ears.
- Well, sheep is an animal we humans have domesticated, kind of tamed, and we use its fur, that is called wool, to make all sorts of cloths. – he explained thoroughly. Then his tone shifted into one of proud and Jack continued. – I am a shepherd, so it is my job to...
And he continued narrating things about his life up here, on the open air, with Tooth listening mindfully, her eyes sparkling with wonder for this unknown world.
They stayed there, until the distant church bells remembered Jack of the life that awaited for him outside this rocky walls.
And it proceeded like this for many weeks, as the days got longer and the waters warmer, each day Jack leaving his herd in a fenced field nearby, jumping towards the beach, bright red scarf fluttering madly, tied up to the staff he brought in his closed fist.
And each day, the illusive mermaid would appear, and they would chat about everything there was to chat about, always keeping the unspoken promise that every afternoon, they would meet up in their hidden bay.