I actually met a personally set deadline for once! Hope you enjoy this chapter!
Summary: Nixie continues her investigation into the salve and another plan is formed.
In the nine years since she last saw Veridia she'd thought about her everyday.
It was hard not to. Veridia had been one of the most important things in her life for so long; leaving her was the hardest thing she'd done. She couldn't have stayed. It wouldn't have just been her the Council took their anger out on. They would have punished Veridia as well. Just as Rita had always wanted to become a teacher, Veridia had always wanted to follow in her mother's footsteps and earn a place on the Council. They would never have let Veridia have her place if Rita had stayed.
It had worked though. All the pain had been worth it. She became a teacher on land instead and Veridia had surpassed her mother to become head of the Council and leader of the Pod. She just wished she'd been there to see that.
Whenever she'd thought about seeing Veridia again, nothing she'd thought of had come close to the reality. She couldn't even remember what had actually happened. It wasn't fair. Nine years and she couldn't remember seeing her. There were just little flashes but nothing solid - it may well have never happened. She missed her. Unreliable memories weren't enough. All she had were memories of people she missed - Veridia, Harry, everyone in the Pod.
The water in the pool rippled as she moved her fin to the side. The one movement she was capable of that wasn't stiff or accompanied with pain. What good was a Mermaid who couldn't swim? Rita flicked the edges of her fin, letting the water roll over her fluke.
The water shifted below her fin as another Mermaid swam in. She was expecting Lyla to surface, it was usually her who swam in alone. Sirena rarely came in the underwater entrance alone and Nixie was upstairs.
The Mermaid surfaced and turned to face her. It was Veridia.
"Veridia." Rita crossed the narrow distance to hug her. Veridia returned the gesture wrapping her arms around her. She never wanted to let go.
"You came back." She honestly thought she would never see her again.
"I had to make sure you were okay."
If it was possible she would have pulled Veridia closer. It was a Full Moon. Veridia should be with the Pod, not here with her.
"What about the Pod?" Rita asked.
Sure the majority of the Pod may not even notice her absence, the young ones for instance, but the Council certainly would. It was tradition for the Pod leader to be there, leading the 'important' Mermaids in celebration of the Full Moon. They would not be impressed with Veridia. Especially since she was here of all places.
Veridia pulled back slightly and Rita begrudgingly loosened her arms from around the Mermaid.
"They can cope without me for one ceremony."
"Bet they were delighted with that." She couldn't stop herself from smiling. Traditions were everything in the Pod. She knew that. Veridia knew that. Everyone knew that. Yet here Veridia was.
"I told Misako what was happening and she permitted a longer stay."
"The head of the council needs permission to do something?"
"That's what I said too," Veridia said. "Vanora enforced it when I returned, despite no longer having a place on the Council, at any level. The others agreed with her"
"Of course she did. She has a legacy to uphold."
When she first met Ms Trumble she was reminded of Vanora. They had the same attitude of entitlement. Vanora doing anything to stay involved in the Council to maintain relevancy and Ms Trumble doing anything to take the job of principal.
"None of the other ex-council members do that."
"None of the other ex-council members have a daughter on the council," Rita reminded her.
I went to see Kelpie though," Veridia said. "She gave me one of her healing balms. Put it on once a day and it will help the scars heal."
"Kelpie gave you that?"
She'd left the Pod so long ago, she didn't think any of them would care what happened to her. She was a 'traitor' to the Pod's values.
"Some of the Pod still care about you," Veridia said softly. "Una was asking about you."
Una had been the first of them to get legs and go on land. They'd 'dated' - as land people called it - but it didn't take long to realise they worked better as friends. That and the feelings she had for Veridia. It took seeing Rita with Una to make Veridia finally admit she felt the same.
"How is she?"
"She's good. She teaches the hatchlings how to hunt now."
"Never would have thought she'd be a teacher." Una was … wild. She flaunted every rule she could and was a force of chaos no matter what she did. She was the last Mermaid Rita would trust to be a teacher.
"Teacher is a bit of a stretch, it's more of a supervisor of chaos, but she's calmed down a lot in the last few years. She's with Naia now."
She'd never had much interaction with Naia, the Mermaid was a few years younger than they were but came across as quiet and reserved - Una's opposite in every way.
"How are you feeling now?" Veridia asked.
"Tired and sore," Rita answered truthfully. While the water had marginally helped - it wasn't enough.
"Kelpie told me something that could help - the Moon Pool at the height of the Full Moon. We can go to the Moon Pool tonight."
Except the Moon Pool was at Mako, she hadn't swum in a week and she was drained. She'd over done it and she certainly couldn't make it that far.
"I don't think I can manage the swim. I'm exhausted just walking down here."
"I'll help you." Veridia took her hand. It felt nice. "We'll take our time and the Moon will be out; moonlight always helps and the Sea too."
On the other hand, a swim to Mako with Veridia would be nice, and if it got rid of the mucky feeling in her head and the pain across her shoulder and the stiffness in her tail… She wanted to feel normal again. She wanted to get back to her life
Rita nodded, "okay."
"We'll leave as soon as it gets dark. That will give us enough time to get to Mako before the Moon's peak."
At first glance Veridia thought the grotto was empty. Then she heard it. Nixie cursing and something thudding heavily. She made her way across the upper level and found Nixie back in the same alcove as the last time.
Nixie looked around and barely took a second before turning back to the small chest she held in her hands. Around five similar looking chests were set out on the table.
"You came back." Nixie's voice was hard, and cold, a far cry from the welcome Rita gave her.
"I said I would," Veridia said. She was always going to come back.
"I didn't hold out any hope," Nixie opened the chest and shoved it aside.
"I went to get help from the Pod's healer."
"Did you get it?" Nixie dragged another chest over and opened it.
"I did. What are you doing?"
"Seeing which of these is locked," Nixie shrugged and tried another chest.
"Why?" The writhing in her stomach told her she really didn't want to know the answer.
"Rita said she keeps everything dangerous locked away," Nixie said. "So how did that Irukandji end up in the Moon Jelly?"
Her blood ran cold.
"You told her what happened?" Veridia demanded. Rita hadn't given any indication that she knew -
"Of course not, I'm not stupid. She doesn't remember anything from last night" Nixie slammed the chest down on the table. "None of these are locked,"
"You'll break it."
"Where would she keep it?" Nixie snapped.
Veridia passed Nixie and took down a silver box from one of the sandstone shelves. She'd seen it when she was down here making that salve in the first place. She recognised it instantly - it had been her who gave it to Rita back in the Pod.
"How did you know it was there?"
"We were always taught to store any venoms and toxins away from other supplies. She kept her's in here," Veridia set the box down on the table and tried the lid. The flood of relief when it remained stubbornly locked made her head swim. "It's still locked."
"Can you unlock it?" Nixie asked.
Veridia brushed her finger over the lock, the silver glowed a soft purple under her touch. "The lock's been enchanted. It needs a key."
"You can enchant locks?"
"You can, but it's more difficult than you think."
It was a fairly complicated procedure; but effective. Only the key with the same enchantment would unlock it. Even the most powerful Mermaid couldn't use her powers to open it.
"Where would she keep the key?" Nixie asked.
"I have no idea." It would be hidden somewhere. With three young Mermaids around the main house was a good bet.
"Can you break the enchantment?"
"I don't know."
"It's either that or ask Rita."
"We can't ask her." She wasn't doing that. She'd sooner search every cave in ever ocean before putting that stress onto Rita right now.
"So break it. Unless you can't." Nixie's voice was hard and pointed and Veridia did not miss the challenge in her words.
Sealing enchantments came in a few different types, the most common being either defensive or protective. Each type had a different method of breaking. Then there was the strength of it.
Rita was powerful. For something like this, sealing away dangerous, verging on deadly, substances - it would be a powerful enchantment.
Veridia pressed two fingers against the lock and kept them there. The purple glow pulsed outwards from her fingertips. The lack of violent lightning bursts around the lock meant, thankfully for her, it was a protective seal rather than defensive.
She removed her hand and the glow stopped.
"Well?"
"I should be able to." As long as Rita had the supplies. Which she probably did. The Mermaid had an extensive collection that rivalled even the best healers of the Pod.
"What's in all these?" Veridia motioned to the chests Nixie had gathered up.
"Dried stuff, potion mixes, jars of stuff, jars of stuff, nice stones," Nixie pointed to each chest in turn.
Veridia opened the one with dried ingredients. She took out a vial filled with fine purple powder, three quarters filled, and set it beside the silver chest. In the 'potion mixes' chest she found a vial in the bottom corner with a clear but shimmery liquid inside.
"Are there any fabric sheets on the shelf behind you?" Veridia asked.
Nixie shrugged but turned to look without complaint. She handed over a small sheet of white silk without a word.
Veridia thanked her and set the sheet beside her gathered supplies. Veridia tipped a small amount of the purple powder out onto the sheet. She summoned a single drop of water from the air and mixed into the powder with her power. She added four drops of the shimmery clear liquid from the vial and the powder mix sizzled.
Capping the vial and setting it aside, Veridia picked up the sheet, curling the sides in as she did so. She tipped the mixture into the lock and discarded the sheet aside. Veridia used her Moon Ring on the lock, directing the energy to dispersing the enchantment. Her ring's light faded.
She held her breath until there was a small pop and the purple glow ripped across the chest for a final time and disappeared.
Nixie took another step forward and came to Veridia's side. Veridia opened the lid of the chest. It was more filled than she'd expected with two rows of vials and a row of small jars. She ran her fingers over the tops of the vials, stopping on one with a tiny silver jellyfish painted onto the lid. Irukandji. Veridia took it out and held it up. The vial was empty.
No. No. No.
"It's empty," Nixie said.
Veridia set the vial down back in its place and closed the lid. She didn't trust her voice.
"Maybe she used it for something?" Nixie asked.
Veridia shook her head and swallowed, "there's very little you can make with this, and if it was low she would have re-filled it. She hates having empty vials mixed with used ones."
At the time she'd been too worried about the dangers of the jellyfish to think too much into it, but now...
"So someone came in here, found this chest, unlocked the enchanted lock with the very specific key and deliberately mixed Irukandji with the Moon Jelly?" Nixie questioned. "It doesn't make any sense. It would have to have been someone who knew about this place, knew everything that was going on and knew where the key was."
What Nixie said, it was right.
Veridia put the chest back on the shelf and turned to go. She had to be with Rita.
"Where are you going?" Nixie demanded.
"To see Rita."
"What about this?" Nixie gestured, "doesn't this need dealt with?"
"There's nothing we can do. I'm not asking Rita anything about this until she's recovered and you're not either."
"And when will that be?"
"Hopefully after tonight she'll start making a proper recovery."
"Tonight?"
"The Moon Pool on a Full Moon should help."
"'Should' help? Like the salve 'should help'."
"That was never meant to happen. Whatever you may think of me, I never intended to hurt her."
"But you did. By leaving without saying anything. You hurt her. It doesn't matter that you came back. You'll be leaving again anyway," Nixie stormed past her and vanished out of the doorway, heading down towards the pool.
"Are you okay?" Rita asked as Nixie all but stormed into the cavern with the pool. She'd tried to calm herself down on the walk down but it was too short a walk for too strong an anger.
"Fine," Nixie sat on the edge of the pool, "I'm fine. I'm going out a swim, see if I can find Sirena."
"Okay."
Nixie slipped forward into the water and let herself shift instantly. It felt nice changing in the water, instead of the feeling of two legs kicking uselessly while her clothes twisted and constricted against her.
Nixie stretched her arms out in front of her and swam forward, her tail curling under her. Taking care not to break the surface, she flicked her fin and propelled forward out into the tunnel and into the open sea.
She swam to Mako without even thinking about it and broke the surface in the Moon Pool before she realised where she was.
"Nixie!"
The moment Nixie surfaced she was tackled by Sirena wrapping her arms around her.
"You didn't show up for food, Sirena was worried," Lyla explained while looking entirely unbothered about Nixie's absence.
"Glad to see you care so much about me Lyla," Nixie untangled herself from Sirena, "I was with Rita."
"How is she?" Lyla asked.
"Do you want the long version or the short version?"
"What does that mean?"
"Hmm, let's see after you left I had to help her walk through to her room because she could hardly stand, then a little while later I found her unconscious on the floor."
"What?" Sirena's eyes went wide, her face showing her concern unrestricted. Unlike Lyla. The other Mermaid hardly seemed to move.
"Those cuts got infected," Nixie said. "She ended up with a fever and then to top it all off Veridia decided to leave."
"Veridia's gone?" Lyla asked. That glimmer of hope in Lyla's voice was almost enough to make Nixie loose it again. Least nothing could get broken this time.
"She came back. She's with Rita now because although she is awake and better than was, she can still hardly walk and is on the verge of complete exhaustion."
"Is she going to be okay?" Sirena asked softly. Nixie wrapped her arm around Sirena and the other Mermaid nestled in closer.
"Veridia seems to think so, she's going to take her here tonight. " She would never admit it to Veridia but it was a good plan. They'd thought of it in the beginning but back then the Moon had been too far away.
"Is she fit to go that far?" Lyla asked.
"No. But it's all we've got left."
The cafe was mostly empty when Lyla entered. David was behind the counter, Evie was at her shop with another land person, and three people sat across two tables. Then Zac. He was at a table by himself but the two glasses in front of him suggested Evie had been with him; and would be joining him again.
Lyla needed to talk to him before that happened.
Tonight was a Full Moon and Zac's last two had not ended well, the last one in particular. The night that had thrown them at odds with each other when Zac discovered that they were in fact Mermaids. They were at a truce now though, or least she and Zac were, after what had happened.
"Hey Zac."
Zac looked up and smiled uneasily, "Lyla." His eyes darted over to Evie's shop. Lyla glanced over but Evie remained busy helping the land girl look at tops.
"Full Moon tonight," Lyla said. "How are you feeling?"
Zac looked over at Evie again, then turned back to Lyla, "I'm scared. What if I go straight for the Trident again?"
Lyla took an empty seat at the table beside him.
"You won't. I'll stay with you. We can block up the windows and stop the Moonlight from getting in."
"That hasn't worked before Lyla."
The last Full Moon had been Nixie's fault. She was the one who pulled the covering down and let Zac become overwhelmed with the Moon.
"Then I'll teach you to fight it. All Mermaids are taught to fight it as hatchlings, no reason why Mermen can't fight it either."
"I'll do it," Zac agreed instantly. "I want to control this. I don't want to hurt anyone."
"You won't." Zac could never hurt anyone.
"I already have," Zac whispered, "and that was without the Trident."
Oh.
"What happened wasn't your fault Zac," Lyla put her hand over his. She tucked her other hand, the one with the Moon Ring, under the table. It felt so natural against her skin, she never wanted to take it off. What happened was an accident. As long as she kept the ring safe on her, nothing like that could happen again.
Zac refused to meet her eyes and said nothing. What happened was just an accident and Rita was okay. ish. She was awake again at least, and if Nixie was to be believed- recovering but exhausted.
"How is she?" Zac asked, his voice coming out hardly more than a whisper, his eyes still on the table.
Lyla hesitated. Okay-ish sounded so stupid. Zac was twisting himself up over this. She had to do better. For him.
Zac looked up, "what? Did something happen?"
"She's better now but ... "
"What?" Zac asked. "Lyla?"
"Those burns - they opened and got infected. She was really bad last night but she's okay now and Veridia's taking her to the Moon Pool tonight."
"And that will help?" Zac whispered. The hurt in his voice made her insides knot.
Lyla nodded. Veridia thought it would. Sirena did too. Nixie ... Nixie hadn't voiced any strong opinion, which was unusual. Nixie had an opinion on everything. Usually the opposite of whatever Lyla herself thought.
Lyla took her hand back as Cam walked past, eyeing her and shaking his head.
"Hey, did any of you guys lose a necklace?" Zac asked, getting his voice back.
"Don't think so," Lyla thought for a second. "None of us wear any." They annoyed her. Some Mermaids in the Pod wore them, those who created potions and the like were given pendants to signify their skill. Very few made it beyond the dolphin pendant.
"I found one under my table, a silver seahorse."
One of them wore a necklace. Rita had a silver seahorse pendant that she wore everyday. She was the only Mermaid she'd seen with a seahorse.
"That could be Rita's. Do you have it?" She didn't know it had been lost. Nixie hadn't said anything and Lyla had avoided Veridia.
"Not on me. The chain was broken so my mum's fixing it. She said it would be fixed tomorrow. I can give it back then."
"I'll give it to her," Lyla said. Maybe it would get Nixie off her back and it was important to Rita.
"I'll get it to you tomorrow."
"Thank you Zac."
"Thank you for what?" Evie came up behind Zac. Always with the best timing.
"His mum's fixing a necklace for me," Lyla said. It was the truth. Not that Evie ever seemed to believe her when she told the truth.
"A necklace?" Evie raised an eyebrow.
"It's Rita's. It broke and we wanted to get it fixed for her."
Evie softened immediately and took the seat between Lyla and Zac.
"How's she doing?" Evie asked. She seemed so genuine. But then so did turles until they try to take a bite from your tail.
"Better," Lyla answered. Evie didn't need to know the specifics.
"We all miss her at school."
"I'll tell her that," Lyla smiled, and stood up ready to go. "Might help her feel better. Thank you again Zac."
"No problem Lyla. I'll have it for you tomorrow."
If all went well tonight, tomorrow was looking to be a good day.
The first part of this, from the start until the cafe scene was going to be in the last chapter but all of that was going to be waayy too long and cutting it meant I could get the last chapter posted up faster. Fun fact the cafe scene was initially written to be in chapter 12...
Also faceclaim for Vanora is Leslie Hope. I binge watched Slasher on Netflix in four days, Leslie Hope was in season 2 and she reminded me of Veridia as soon as I saw her.
Chapter 16 is sitting at 1,200 words and is not very developed so it will probably a few weeks before it's up. I'm finally getting back to work next week which may slow down work, depending how many shifts I get. Or if I get any, there was talk of rotating staff on a three week basis.
Anyways, hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I'll be back with chapter 16 as soon as I can.
Until next time!