quivered, but she bit it before it showed. Ice flowed through her veins. Her most trusted friends had been treating her as a weak child, just as Sierra did.
Mina darted over, her glow dimming and fluctuating wildly. “No! No, it wasn’t like that! It didn’t involve humans, and your sister told us―”
Her words cut off suddenly, her eyes widening.
“
Sierra
said something to you? As in, Sierra, my big sister?” Phoebe gritted her teeth so hard she was surprised sparks didn’t fly even under the water.
“Well, she was worried about you,” Mina said, twisting her hands together. “And then she was so angry when we took you deeper into the sea, like we might break you. When she learned that we were having problems with sea dragons and so on, she asked us to sort-of-not-mention-it-to-you.” The words came out in a rush.
“She
asked
you to not tell me? What, did she ask you nicely?”
“Maybe more like told us.” Mina dipped her head. “She said if we told you, you’d worry more and make yourself sick, and she’d forbid you coming to us at all.”
Yes, that was more like Sierra. She didn’t ask. She told. She pushed. She
demanded.
Mina
should
be ashamed. Mina should have told Phoebe anyway. And Sierra should be ashamed, too, though she wouldn’t be. This was even worse than not telling Phoebe she had some unknown kind of magic.
She scowled, spinning a bit in her haste to rise. She had always said she would do anything for her mer-friends, and here they’d been suffering, and she’d not known. Because her
big sister
didn’t think she could handle it.
Fury swept through her, colder than the cave waters. Her spine stiffened. Something shifted inside her, something deep down without a name. It stirred, like a wave growing, crashing powerfully against her heart. She was done with being treated like a child.
“Well. Sierra’s not here, and I am. Tell me now.” Her voice vibrated with a new strength. The trembling thing in Phoebe’s chest solidified, settling there like a firebird sinking into its nest, ready to scorch anyone who offended.
Mina’s face crumpled, and Phoebe’s anger softened a little. She took her friend’s hands. “Please. Mina. I need to know what’s happening. I love you.”
Mina sniffed. “Tristan will kill me.”
“I’ll kill him, and we’ll be even.” Phoebe’s voice was grim.
“The sea dragons are staying in the deeper waters for now, but they are interfering with our gathering and fishing. We’re afraid they’ll start invading our village. The elders really did say that the merfolk you found must have died by accident a long time ago, but now they’re reconsidering. And more merfolk have gone missing. Just gone out to collect food or supplies and never come back. We don’t think it’s humans taking them, either.”
Phoebe blinked at the flood of information. “How many are missing?”
“Enough that the little ones have been forbidden to leave the village as of this morning. The rest of us can’t venture into the twilight realm at all. The midnight realm is completely forbidden, and has been for years beyond counting. As you know, humans have been intruding in our waters, stealing from our dwindling supplies of deep sea fish. And now you’ve said you’ve seen a water wraith, and with that skeleton found, with those marks on it, like the stories of Baleros―Phoebe, they might make us all migrate to the other side of the sea. I imagine that’s what they’re discussing right now.”
The bottom dropped out of Phoebe’s stomach.
“No,” she whispered.
Lose her best friends? Tristan?
Mina shook her head miserably. “I wanted to tell you. I know Tristan did, too. He’d never hurt you on purpose; you don’t know how much he risked to help you in the first place. In our culture, you simply don’t make decisions without the elders. And you certainly don’t risk war with the humans by helping one of their prisoners escape. Bentwood had some of our
Mina darted over, her glow dimming and fluctuating wildly. “No! No, it wasn’t like that! It didn’t involve humans, and your sister told us―”
Her words cut off suddenly, her eyes widening.
“
Sierra
said something to you? As in, Sierra, my big sister?” Phoebe gritted her teeth so hard she was surprised sparks didn’t fly even under the water.
“Well, she was worried about you,” Mina said, twisting her hands together. “And then she was so angry when we took you deeper into the sea, like we might break you. When she learned that we were having problems with sea dragons and so on, she asked us to sort-of-not-mention-it-to-you.” The words came out in a rush.
“She
asked
you to not tell me? What, did she ask you nicely?”
“Maybe more like told us.” Mina dipped her head. “She said if we told you, you’d worry more and make yourself sick, and she’d forbid you coming to us at all.”
Yes, that was more like Sierra. She didn’t ask. She told. She pushed. She
demanded.
Mina
should
be ashamed. Mina should have told Phoebe anyway. And Sierra should be ashamed, too, though she wouldn’t be. This was even worse than not telling Phoebe she had some unknown kind of magic.
She scowled, spinning a bit in her haste to rise. She had always said she would do anything for her mer-friends, and here they’d been suffering, and she’d not known. Because her
big sister
didn’t think she could handle it.
Fury swept through her, colder than the cave waters. Her spine stiffened. Something shifted inside her, something deep down without a name. It stirred, like a wave growing, crashing powerfully against her heart. She was done with being treated like a child.
“Well. Sierra’s not here, and I am. Tell me now.” Her voice vibrated with a new strength. The trembling thing in Phoebe’s chest solidified, settling there like a firebird sinking into its nest, ready to scorch anyone who offended.
Mina’s face crumpled, and Phoebe’s anger softened a little. She took her friend’s hands. “Please. Mina. I need to know what’s happening. I love you.”
Mina sniffed. “Tristan will kill me.”
“I’ll kill him, and we’ll be even.” Phoebe’s voice was grim.
“The sea dragons are staying in the deeper waters for now, but they are interfering with our gathering and fishing. We’re afraid they’ll start invading our village. The elders really did say that the merfolk you found must have died by accident a long time ago, but now they’re reconsidering. And more merfolk have gone missing. Just gone out to collect food or supplies and never come back. We don’t think it’s humans taking them, either.”
Phoebe blinked at the flood of information. “How many are missing?”
“Enough that the little ones have been forbidden to leave the village as of this morning. The rest of us can’t venture into the twilight realm at all. The midnight realm is completely forbidden, and has been for years beyond counting. As you know, humans have been intruding in our waters, stealing from our dwindling supplies of deep sea fish. And now you’ve said you’ve seen a water wraith, and with that skeleton found, with those marks on it, like the stories of Baleros―Phoebe, they might make us all migrate to the other side of the sea. I imagine that’s what they’re discussing right now.”
The bottom dropped out of Phoebe’s stomach.
“No,” she whispered.
Lose her best friends? Tristan?
Mina shook her head miserably. “I wanted to tell you. I know Tristan did, too. He’d never hurt you on purpose; you don’t know how much he risked to help you in the first place. In our culture, you simply don’t make decisions without the elders. And you certainly don’t risk war with the humans by helping one of their prisoners escape. Bentwood had some of our
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