It's been four weeks, exactly a month, since Scarlett Solaris took to the throne and has been leading her nation, Goldaria. She and her friends still hurt from the traumatic mental wounds inflicted on them during their captivity weeks prior, but the...
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✰✦✰ Chapter Ten ✰✦✰ " Luna "
"WHO WERE THEY?" I asked Sarinne, rubbing her back comfortingly as we sat on the bed.
We were inside of her room and she'd been crying ever since those old people had left the castle. As soon as they had, Sarinne had rushed away in tears and I'd thought better to leave her alone and give her space than chase after her and bombard her with questions. Now that a few hours had passed, I couldn't stop myself from going to help her in any way I could.
"If you want to talk about it, of course," I said to her, standing to close her light the candles.
Rinne wiped her tears and sucked in a sharp gasp. "Um. . ." Her voice shook. "We don't need to get into all that."
"That's okay," I quickly assured her. "We can talk about something else."
She nodded but it was so sad that I almost grabbed her and embraced her in a tight hug, begging for her to tell me all about her issues so that I stomp them into nothingness. That wasn't exactly in my ability to do but I would try my best to make her hurt and pain stop.
"You know," I began telling her as I sat down, "when I was twelve, my sisters played a joke on me and told me that a very handsome man was waiting in the arena of our school for me," I scoffed at the memory. "Of course they turned out to be lying, that was just the way they were. Constantly teasing me for being the youngest even though I couldn't help it. That never stopped them from reminding me where I belonged," I sighed. "I get that a few pranks are just sibling rivalry and whatnot, but after a while I just started to feel excluded and unwelcome in my own family. I may not completely understand the depth of whatever you're going through but I want you to know you can always tell me," I said to her softly. "And that you belong right here, with us. No matter what those nasty people said."
Sarinne shook her head with glassy eyes and at first I thought she'd argue with me, but the words that she spoke next surprised me, "You're too kind for your own good, Luna."
I blinked a few times, unsure of what to say next. I knew it was a compliment. . .I think. . .and didn't intentionally want to make the situation uncomfortable but here we were.
So I said, "Thanks."
Sarinne's smile was gentle.
"So," I stood again and made my way over to the curtains. "You want to do anything tonight? Maybe we can convince the Guards to let us go for a swim in the Blue Sea until Scarlett and Darius get back tomorrow."
"A swim?" repeated Sarinne, her voice laced with disbelief. "Not in this weather, surely."
"Sweetheart," I called her with a chuckle, "I'm a mermaid—weather doesn't affect me unless it's thunder."
