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The search party ran into Draco as he came to the edge of the town. Dawn had come and gone, and it seemed that his parents had sent out search parties almost as soon as the sun had set. The searchers that spotted him trying to sneak in after them were tired, irritable, and threatened to skewer him with their spears at least three times each. Despite eyeing the cruel weapons warily, their threats were nothing compared to how angry his parents were when he reached his home. Their yells were still ringing in his ears when he eventually got to his bedroom, sinking onto the bed in exhaustion. He knew that they were only trying to keep him safe, but he really needed sleep after his long night.
Almost as soon as he shut his eyes, her face shot to the fore of his mind, making his heart clench again. He had held her in his arms, and she wouldn't remember, nor would she be happy about it if she did. If she did remember anything about him, she would probably think he was a big fish or some other animal rather than a merman. He was nothing to her, and she should be nothing to him. But. . . he had saved her. A Landwoman who would probably kill him if she ever actually saw him. He could almost imagine her beautiful face twisting in disgust at the sight of him, and using her wand against him. It was an unpleasant thought, especially as all he could think of her were positive thoughts; she was beautiful, extraordinary.
It took him hours to drift off to sleep, and when he finally did, his dreams were of fire on water, of heated arguments, passionate encounters that meant nothing and of women with fire in their hair and amber in their eyes. He woke up at least four times before giving up on sleep, feeling faintly sick. He sat up, peering out the empty window. Pre-dawn light coloured everything in varying shades of grey, and everything was quiet. He went to the door, listening hard for the sounds of his parents waking up, and when he heard nothing, he went back to the window and slipped through it, thinking only of getting as far away from the town as he possibly could.
Draco swam for what felt like hours, staying away from the places he had been warned about, and steering clear of the places he had been the day before. Where the Landfolk were. He couldn't go to that place again. Not where she was. He couldn't handle that, he just knew he couldn't. Instead, he swam towards a place he had never been before, the other Lakepeople had avoided it on the hunts and had never mentioned it, despite the younger merpeople asking about it. The place just wasn't spoken of, and Draco decided that exploring would help to clear his mind. And if his exploring proved fatal, at least he wouldn't be able think of her anymore. Morbid thoughts like those floated around in his head, though he focused on the exploration.
Pushing through the dense weeds that marked the end of the Lakepeople's hunting territory, his eyes flickered in the direction of every little sound he heard, ready for anything that might come at him. There didn't seem to be any wild Grindylows around here. Nor any other kind of creature. Not even the Squid was around, and he roamed wherever he wished. He could sense eyes on him, but he didn't know whose. As he pushed further and further into the shadowy depths, he thought he could hear singing. A sweet, lilting, plaintive tune, that sent shivers up and down his spine. He couldn't remember if he knew it or not. His wandering eventually brought him to a cavern, deep and shadowy, but furnished as well as any of the squat houses that his friends and family live in. Lying back on a worn couch was the fattest mermaid he had ever seen. She had a round face, as worn as she couch she lay on, and her hair was tangled in a way that no comb could fix. She stared at him through green eyes that may once have been wide and huge in her face, but now were lost in wrinkles and fat. When she grinned humourlessly at him, most of her teeth were missing, and the ones left were the colour of algae.
It suddenly struck him why nothing wandered around this place, and why the Lakepeople never spoke of it. This was the lair of the Lake-witch. He had heard a story of her when he was little, but had never really believed she existed. It was said that she knew how to make potions, and lay curses on anyone she disliked. She had been cast out of the town a long time ago, and no-one had heard from her since. She was a story to frighten little children with, and the younger residents of the town thought she was just a story. He was suddenly frightened, like a child seeing the monster under his bed. Seeing his fear made her grin wider, like she was enjoying seeing his sudden realisation.
"There aren't many who come looking for me anymore". He almost started when he heard her voice, which was a strong contrast to her ugliness. It was soft, lyrical, like song turned to speech. It was a reminder that she might have been beautiful once. Instead, she wallowed in her own fat, barely able to swim any more. His skin crawled when she looked him up and down appraisingly, taking in his pale skin, yellow-green scales and blond hair.
He was slight compared to the other mermen his age, only a slight hint at muscles underneath the skin. He wanted to back away, to swim out of the cavern and as far away from it as he possibly could, but he wasn't able to make himself move. Instead, he waited for her to speak again. "People used to come to me all the time, you know. For favours. They wanted me to work miracles for them. Make him love me, make her stay away from me, curse my cousin, she's trying to steal my family's fortune, kill my father so I can have the house!" His revulsion grew as she listed off the complaints that people came to her with, her overly-sweet laughter filling the pauses between each plea. She was mocking his townspeople, he should take his spear and. . . And what? Even if he had a spear with him, it probably wouldn't pierce the blubber. The need to get away grew bigger, but a sneaky little thought drifted to the fore of his mind, making him crush the need to flee.
"Could you make me Human? Could you give me legs?" The question left his mouth before he could stop it, and the witch stopped laughing to stare at him. The laughter filled his ears, making him blush hotly for having asked such a question, and he lowered his head in shame, waiting for the laughter to stop. "What do you need legs for? Is your lovely shimmering tail not good enough for you? The girls back home won't want you if you have legs like the Landfolk!" She could barely speak with laughter, and he felt his face heat up again at the thought of the girls back home. None of them were appealing to him any more. Not even the girl he had been flirting with the last few months tempted him. His mind was filled with Human girls with fiery hair. He looked back up again when he realised that she had stopped laughing abruptly. There was understanding in her eyes. He could also see pity there, which angered him. He didn't want her to feel sorry for him.
He barely noticed her lift herself off her couch, swimming towards him slowly, until she was right in front of him. He looked away, hating the pity in her eyes.
"Of course I can."