Chapter Six: Thank You

Spinel and Steven had settled in the tent that was set up for them. Their supplies had been brought from the lake and Spinel was sitting in this small inflatable pool that they had given them. It must have been how the other mermaids handled being on land like this.

"These are pretty convenient," Spinel commented as she laid herself back in the shallow water.

Though Spinel seemed content, Steven couldn't quite calm down. These people didn't seem bad at all, but he had a sinking feeling about these Gems they spoke of. Pacing the floor of the tent, he tried to think of some way to talk Spinel out of it.

"You don't have to worry so much. If this is something Peridot came up with, I'm sure it's not as bad as they described it."

"They said it's like a big target," Steven replied. "If that Gem happens to break, you'll die. Doesn't that scare you?"

Spinel sat up, her tail swishing lightly against the water.
"I guess…it's a little worrisome, but what's the alternative? You can't just carry me all over the place. It will make travel so much easier if I can walk too. I think it's worth the risk."

"…if you say so," Steven replied with a long sigh. His main concern had been Spinel's safety all this time. He just wanted to make sure she remained unharmed during this journey, but Lars was right, he hadn't thought this completely through. He didn't think about all the security they had near the shores or the ships they had out in the water to watch for Mermaids. In his small little beach village, they didn't get much mainstream news. Spinel coming to town was the biggest thing to happen there in a long time and the only reason they used that harbor was because the ship couldn't travel further in with the supplies they had.
"…Well, they said it might take Peridot a little while to get here. …were you two close?"

Spinel flinched lightly, she only just now thought about it, but what if Peridot wasn't happy to see her?
"…Not too close. She was a part of a different tribe, but when everyone joined together for the war, that's when I met her and Lapis."

"If you two weren't that close…how do you know this Gem thing of hers is really a good idea?"

"Why are you so against this?" asked Spinel. "I'm the one taking all the risk here."

Steven's cheeks burned lightly, "I'm just worried about you. They said the transformation into a human is pretty painful as well."

Spinel stared up at Steven with a blank expression before she found herself stifling a laugh.

"It's not funny," Steven insisted, more embarrassed now than before, "I just don't want you-"

"—No, no. I'm not laughing at you," Spinel corrected with a smile and a wave of her hand, "it's just, you're the first one, human or mermaid that has shown so much loyalty so fast. I laughed because I was surprised at myself and because you're still surprising me." She finished with a giggle.

"…what do you mean," asked Steven, rubbing the back of his neck as he glanced away from her. Her cheerful expression only making the blush at his cheeks burn brighter.

"I believe I said it many times before, but you're a strange one. You gave up your entire way of living for a complete stranger. You became a criminal…ensuring that you'll never lead a normal life again…and you're still just thinking about my safety. You're a complete idiot…" Spinel muttered at the end.

Steven sighed and sat down beside the small pool she sat in, "You know…" he began, as if they were about to argue.

"...and I never thanked you for any of it," continued Spinel quietly.

Surprised, Steven glanced at Spinel, who seemed rather embarrassed, hugging her tail close to her chest and averting her eyes from Steven, hoping he wouldn't see her reddened cheeks.

"…So…even though I still think you made a stupid choice. ...I…want to thank you for making it." Spinel finished, daring to turn her gaze towards Steven. He appeared dumbfounded by her words and said nothing in return.
"I mean—it's not much," Spinel went on, feeling like a fool, "but I can't offer you anything else. So—so my gratitude will have to do."

Steven was honestly stunned to silence. He never expected Spinel to thank him so sincerely. At least, not this soon. He couldn't help but smile, watching Spinel trying to hide her blushing face. She reminded him of a stray cat he once found. At first it would scratch and hiss at him, but it was so cute that he just couldn't leave it alone.
"Your gratitude is more than enough," he replied finally, leaning over and wrapping his arms around Spinel's shoulders as she continued to hug her tail. It seemed that they were finally becoming friends and Steven was overjoyed by the prospect.

Spinel was only able to make a small squeak as Steven hugged her, frozen in place over the shock of it. How long had it been since anyone hugged her so happily?

"Am I interrupting something?" asked Lars with a smirk as he stood at the entrance to their tent.

"Yes," Steven joked while Spinel panicked and shook her head rapidly.

"Can we talk for a sec? I'd like to show you something," continued Lars as he waved Steven over.

Though Steven let go of Spinel, he stayed in place sitting next to her. "You can't talk to me here?" It wasn't that he thought Lars was going to hurt Spinel. They'd done nothing but help them so far, he just didn't really like leaving her alone.

"Go on," Spinel insisted, eager for a chance to calm down on her own. "I'll be fine as long as I'm in the water."

Steven sighed a bit and got to his feet. He was still hesitant, but he didn't want to be too overprotective. Lars smiled and led Steven from the tent, leaving a Spinel alone to watch their backs as they walked away. When she was sure they had gone, the mermaid brought both her hands to her cheeks, panicking internally as she held back the urge to scream. That was so embarrassing she didn't know how to react properly. This human was honest, kind, and seemed completely unabashed when it came to showing affection. How was she supposed to deal with a human like that?

"You and that human seem rather close…" one of the Rutile twins commented as they stepped inside the tent, "…we wanted to ask you a few questions about him if you don't mind…"

While Rutile was attempting to have a conversation with Spinel, Steven had followed Lars back to his tent, but while Lars said he wanted a word, he hadn't said anything on the walk there.
"So, what is that you wanted to talk about?" asked Steven finally, becoming a little impatient.

"You were pretty cut up by all those thorns in the woods before," began Lars, "but the scratches I saw when you first got here are gone now."

"…yeah? I've always been a pretty fast healer."

"And carrying a mermaid? That's an easy task for you? I was told you carried her all the way to the lake and I even watched you carry her to camp. A Mermaids tail is pure muscle you know. It makes them pretty heavy."

"Did you ask me here to just state facts about me?"

"Do you know what they do at the Capital," asked Lars, disregarding Stevens question. "They don't capture Mermaids just to put them in a Zoo. They experiment on them."

Steven tensed up. People were experimenting on the Mermaids?
"…how…"

"You saw one of the members of my crew, right? The Rutile twins. You may have noticed that they're sort of joined at the hip. Well they weren't always that way. They were just a pair of twin Mermaids that got caught before they were brought to the capital. I don't know what the humans were trying to do, but the end result…was having the twins stuck together like that. That little Mermaid you saw? Padparadscha. She was also used as a learning tool for the humans. Her specific type of Mermaid are adapt at predicting the future. The humans were probably trying to extract that skill from her, but the experiments damaged her beyond repair. Now, the visions she sees are things that have already happened. As if she's a few steps behind everyone in time."

"…that's…horrible…" Steven breathed out, unable to imagine going through something so awful. Who knows how long they were tortured at the hands of human beings.

"It is," agreed Lars, "which is why I promised my crew they would never be caught or used by humans again."

Steven suddenly realized where Lars was going with this and he deflated.
"…I'm not gonna—"

"So here's the thing," Lars continued without allowing Steven to finish. "You should go back to your home. Tell the authorities that the Mermaid enchanted you or something. You'll be questioned for a few days, but eventually they will let you go and everything will go back to normal for you. You won't be a criminal anymore and we'll even give you money for your trouble."

"You guys may not trust me because I'm human, but I'm not going to leave Spinel alone," insisted Steven.

"She won't be alone. She'll stay with us and her own kind. You won't need to worry about her anymore."

Steven thought for a moment. Would Spinel be happier that way? She did seem a lot more comfortable now that they found other Mermaids and an old friend was even on her way.
"If Spinel doesn't want me around, she can tell me that herself. Until then, I'm going to stick with her."

Lars didn't seem surprised by Steven's reply; instead, he shrugged his shoulders with a sigh.
"Fine, but it's like you said, you're a human. You've already seen a lot and if you keep traveling with Spinel, you'll learn even more about the Mermaids that might potentially harm others if you suddenly decide it's too much trouble. I don't think you're a bad kid, but there's a lot at stake here. So, if you really want to keep going…I'm going to have to insist that you prove yourself."

"Prove myself, how?"

"It's going to sound a little extreme, but we don't have any other way to make sure you won't betray us," began Lars, "it's a spell, something like a contract. If you agree to it, there really won't be a chance to turn back."

Steven wasn't sure what kind of spell this was going to be, but he was certain if he didn't agree to it, Lars and his crew would most likely force him to leave Spinel somehow. "Fine, tell me what I have to do."