Sakura
"I need to convince the King?" I asked.
"Yes, of course I will try to convince him, but I need you to advise me and to explain everything to the King considering your power," Gilbert answered with a straight face. I nodded, understanding his point. Some would say that he would use me as leverage to blackmail the King to free his new made friends, but I understood the situation. "Yes," I bowed. We were having this conversation in the woods, afar from the rest of the people who tried to build a ship or something to transport us. I of course would grant protection, being able to control the streams of the water.
Two days had passed since the Prince had announced his plan to us. Yesterday, he had tried to talk privately to me but was interrupted by several people, questioning the plan and their future safety. Only today, he had been able to approach me.
"If I convince him on going into war with the Edelsteins, I must know how to break the seal of the necklace."
My expression changed; there was a reason why the dragons were sealed away. He saw my hesitation. "Please, I beg of you. I know that the dragons are dangerous, but it could be our strongest weapon," he pleaded.
"For the ritual of breaking the seal, I need some time," I whispered, not risking speaking too loud. One never knew if anyone was near us to eardrop. "I do not know if it is fate, but we are on the ancient island of the water dragon. It is perfect, because I need to channel the old magic which lies in the ground of this land."
I looked around, inspecting the environment. "I need objects from the island; sand, plants, rocks and water from the ocean."
He looked at me with gentle smile, "that could be arranged. Is it all you need?" I shook my head.
"My blood and yours are the most important part of the ritual. You, being the owner of the amulet and me, being your protector need give blood," I informed him and saw his questioning look.
"Wow, that all sounds a bit creepy." His mouth formed itself into a bid grin. "But I never thought that there would be any magic in this world."
I agreed.
"Are all the unsealing rituals of the dragons performed in that way?" he asked curiously.
"One needs the element of the dragons, in your case, water. In addition to that, the old home of the dragon holds the perfect magical stability to break the seal."
He looked at me with a baffled expression, "it seems that someone wanted us to be here."
Standing up, he watched my bandaged leg. "When is it fully healed?"
"It will need one day, this magic here on the land speeds the healing process and I can use magic again. Do not worry, I can walk," I answered him.
"I understand," he said, but I could feel that there was something that lingered on his mind. "What will happen to you, when the dragon is free?"
I smiled, "Nothing. We use our blood to free and control him, so I will still be useful. Due to the long history of the sealed amulet, the dragons know who they have to obey to."
He sighed, relieved to hear that. "Thank God. I honestly thought you would die, which I could not risk." Although I had only spent some days with those people, I knew that they considered me as their ally. Never before had I met anyone outside the ocean that would treat me kindly. "Not to mention what Kirkland would do to me if you would die by my hand," Gilbert muttered quietly, not thinking that I would hear him.
"W-what?"
I could not control my voice from stuttering. Upon hearing Captain Kirkland's name, my face flushed on its own. Normally my talking was in control, just as my expressions. Due the awkward occurrence a few days ago, I tried to avoid the blonde Captain. "I-I do not think that he would do anything to you," I commented quietly, making the prince smirk knowingly. "Elizabeta will stop him to protect you," I added.
Now it was his turn to blush.
"Pha, I would be able to defend myself," he laughed, changing his previous facial expression.
He was denying it; the way he looked at Elizabeta and acted told me that he was worried about her. I felt his uncertainty; since I had met him, I was able to read him and his caring manner was something I admired. His laughter ceased as he reminded himself of something.
"You said that my blood controls the dragon, but what if my father uses that power? We are blood related," the prince concluded with a frown. Even though his theory was not illogical, I shook my head, disagreeing with his idea. "The part of your blood that controls the dragon is from the bloodline of your mother's. You inherited her blood, which makes it possible for you to have the power over the dragon. Your father is not capable of it, only you," I told him, reassuring him. "Your mother was the owner of the amulet before she gave it to you, making you the guardian of the sea."
"Guardian of the sea?"
"With this amulet, you guard the sea, due to your powers over the dragon that in turn guards and the controls the ocean."
"So that's my official name. The creatures of the ocean call me by that title?" He asked, grinning from ear to ear. "Sounds awesome."
After clarifying that, he wanted to return to the rest of the crew. Before he could leave, I told him of my task of searching for the items I would need to perform the unsealing. He agreed, but said that he would send someone to look out for me. At first I thought that he would send Captain Kirkland to watch over me, making my heart race. Thankfully, he ordered two young boys to accompany me.
Raivis and Noah approached me. Whereas the former was blushing and shy, the latter could not stop from uttering his excitement for this little journey. Both were adorable humans. "M-Miss Mermaid," Raivis whispered timidly. I was touched by his behaviour. "Yes?" I asked, kneeling down to him with a gentle smile. "I-I… Are we going to see your magic again?" he inquired, looking at me with big curious eyes. "W-well, I do not know," I answered him, pleasantly surprised by his interests in my magic. "Let's see what I can do," I added, before standing up again. Both of the boys walked side by side with me, their faces graced with a happy smile while asking a lot of questions about me and my kind. I was not annoyed by them, but glad to answer and to show them that mermaids were not as dangerous as we were often displayed.
For some hours we ventured some parts of the woods and the beach, before returning with sand, plants, rocks and water. I had shown them some tiny spells, making things glow of water float. The boys were ecstatic. We put the needed items in little bottles, which the two had brought along.
I suggested returning back to the camp; I wanted to be prepared for tomorrow's ritual. We arrived safely. My eyes focussed on my hands, noticing that the boys had taken my hands.
Noah's brother watched me with a light smile, probably happy to see Noah with a grin. He had told me the story of him and his big brother being excluded from society due to their status as bastards. When it came to such things, I had to admit that humans had weird rules. Society excluded my folk too, so it was only natural that I felt connected with them. After spending some days with these humans changed my view.
Raivis stayed by my side, as Noah ran towards his brother. "Is everything alright?" I asked the shy boy.
"I- I am afraid… of the war," he whispered, strengthening his hold on my hand. It was his scared look and his eyes that almost broke my heart. He was frightened and all alone without anyone to soothe him. It was at that moment that I kneeled down and touched his shoulders, "Don't worry, I will protect you."
His next move was unpredictable for me. He practically jumped on me and hugged my form tightly. I was not used to be embraced in a fond manner and I felt my cheeks grew red as some of the crew observed this scene. It was a new feeling that I never witnessed before. While many hated, killed and feared my kind, these people – especially this child – were accepting me. Raivis let go of me and smiled; a smile which I returned. "T-Thank you," he said, before he joined Noah who was telling his older brother about their short adventure. They had left the bottles – with the needed ingredients for tomorrow's ritual – next to me.
I grabbed the items and searched for the Prince. As I came closer to the centre of the camp, I saw Captain Kirkland pacing up and down. He played nervously with his hat in his hands and talked to himself. The Captain was probably waiting for the Prince, who came shortly afterwards. "Oh, Kirkland," he said.
The blonde pirate stopped abruptly, putting his hat back on his head. "Beilschmidt, where did you send her? I've been looking for her for hours and could not find her." The man sounded a little distressed and my eyes widened reluctantly. Was he looking for me?
"You mean Sakura?" the Prince asked with a smirk. I was not sure if I should approach them or not, but the Prince made it easy for me as he discovered my figure near them. "Sakura insisted on searching for some items for tomorrow's ritual," he clarified and the blonde Captain huffed. "And you let her without any protection? What about her wound?" Kirkland inquired irritated. Gilbert shot me a look and upon seeing the bottles in my hands, he made another comment, "Noah and Raivis were with her and as I can see she succeeded in her task."
Kirkland wore a confused expression before he turned around and saw me standing nearby. His eyes changed from angry to a soft look as he rushed to me. "Are you alright? How is your leg?" While he touched both of my shoulders, he worryingly gazed into my eyes.
"Can't you see she is alright, Kirkland?" Gilbert muttered, laying his hand on his shoulder. He winked at me. "I-I am, indeed," I stuttered, not looking in Captain Kirkland's eyes. He let go of me, noticing that I felt a little uncomfortable. For days he had cared for me and I was still not used to so much attention. Although I was making progress because I grew accustomed to people approaching me. In comparison with other members of the crews, he was the one that made me nervous.
"What was with that ritual?" He pressed, interrupting my thoughts.
The Prince explained everything to him within minutes, leaving the blonde Captain a little flabbergasted. "So you only need to go the shore, channel the magic of the island, the ocean and those objects?" he repeated, pointing to the bottles in my hands. I nodded and he concluded the rest of it, "and you need the Prince's blood and yours?"
"Yes," I said quietly.
"I will come with the two of you." Before Prince Gilbert or I could object, the Captain justified his decision. "What if something happens? While she is performing magic, which is exhausting," he turned to Gilbert, "and you, being part of the magical ritual, cannot protect yourself or her."
It was true what he was saying and I agreed with a short answer, "alright."
Vibrant green eyes were observing me as we stood by the shore.
"It will take some moments."
Gilbert settled next to me, while the Kirkland stood behind me. Within minutes, I succeeded in connecting with the island's magic. Gilbert felt it too; as I chanted the spell. The necklace glowed in the colours of blue and red before the lightning ceased. The magic in the necklace was gone, I could feel it.
"It's unsealed," I said, waiting for a reaction.
"And why is nothing happening?" Gilbert asked, staring dumbfounded at me, before turning around, looking for any evidence of a dragon. "I don't know."
It was then that I felt a strange pain in my arm where the mark of the amulet was engraved. "My a-arm," I hissed. Gilbert felt the same; he cringed and looked at his forearm. He received the same mark as I had. "The magic that held back the dragon ceased," I whispered, "It must have gone into the mark on our arms."
Kirkland, having witnessed everything, held my arm softly. "That means you both now have the control over the dragon."
"Yes… The amulet was only an object to safe the magic that would hold the dragon back and seal him. It will be released when we fight."
"That means I have magical power now? Awesome!" Gilbert shouted while laughing at the open ocean. "Wait for me Edelstein, I will show you," he added.
"Beilschmidt, don't underestimate yourself, you are not used to have such magical powers, controlling the dragon is different from wielding a sword," Kirkland muttered, not letting go of my arm.
"That's why I divided the magic. I have most of the magic and have channelled with the powers of the ocean, while the Prince has the ability to order them and the dragon around."
"Well then that means that I have an army of ocean creatures and a dragon! This is still awesome," Gilbert bragged. "Don't forget us," Kirkland murmured annoyingly, steading me with his arms. I sighed, feeling a little worn out.
Averting my gaze towards the horizon, I watched as a blurry figure of a grand ship neared the island. "What?"
"Is this…the – "
"Marine," Gilbert spoke, "they have arrived."
Our expression changed immediately. "This is not good," Kirkland grumbled, holding my body tighter. Gilbert thought about any solution. "It may be a chance to get to my father."
[A/N: Sorry for posting today, I was not at home this weekend :'D. And yes it has begun ~ show down ~. I wanted to show that Sakura is getting attached to humans, (Raivis and Noah; I can imagine her as a perfect mother, all caring and protective ~) and sorry for all the Iggyx Sakura moments (although I live for those) the other pairings will get their staging in the next chapters :D ]