You Drifted To Me

Chapter 3

     After staring cautiously at the shore for nearly two hours straight, Rivulet finally accepted that he was safe for the moment being and pulled himself back out of the water and onto the flat surface of the warm rock. The heated stone pressed comfortably against his back and he let out a deep purr of satisfaction at the sensation. He was used to the cold depths of the ocean, but his favorite times during hunting would be when his group would rise to the surface and enjoy small moments of sun heating their scales. Too much of the generous warmth would leave their skin pink and itchy, but to him it was always worth it.

     As the sound of the gentle waves breaking against the rocky shore lulled him into a sense of calmness, he shut his eyes and allowed his left hand to dip below the surface and tease at the sand with his claws. Each time they'd hit a small rough object he'd pull it above the water and squint at it before either tossing it back or placing it protectively by his side. Soon a small pile of shimmering shells was built up on the rock, and Rivulet slipped over on his stomach to admire them. Fingering aside the large and broken ones, he settled on studying a small spiraled cone made up of dull browns and tans. Its pointed top wasn't sharp enough to break skin, so he absentmindedly rolled the treasure between his palms and shoved the remaining shells into the water with the end of his tail.

     They sunk below the calm clear surface and floated gently back to the bottom where the sand could reclaim them. With the small cone still between his possessive claws, he used his tail to push himself forwards and lean his top half over the edge of the rock. Submerging himself in the cold crystalline water, he rested his elbow in the sand and leaned his chin against his closed fists. The refreshing liquid entered his gills as he switched his breathing cycle and allowed his fins to flatten against his body. The heat from above had began to cause his skin to feel sticky and uncomfortable, so he only left his curled tail to the warm air above. His scales were beginning to become dry, but the occasional wave that broke against the rock would give them a generous spray of water. Despite all the trouble he was technically in, he was finally calm enough in the moment to close his eyes and his thoughts drift freely.

     He first imagined the small beach and its rocky environment were in fact the reef he had always wanted to make it to. The sand and stones transformed into the branches of yellow and pale pink corals that protected the smallest crustaceans and neon fish. The swaying sponges and sea grass that surrounded the border of the reef tickled at his stomach as he swam across them and into the view of hundreds of merfolk all chattering away through the combined mental link. While Thanial and Terre flexed their rounded fins and displayed their shining yellow glows to impress the females, Jeriko had five brilliant merfolk already spiraling around him and studying his black and red tail.

      Rivulet let out a small laugh at the picture dancing in his head as he imagined himself moving further into the crowd and using his sharp eyes to seek out the perfect mate. Blue and orange fins streaked past him and he continued swimming slowly to avoid crashing into anyone. He wasn't quite sure what he was looking for, even though it was his own imagination he was in. He always found himself quite fond of the indigo and lavender fins certain females displayed, but now that he could freely think them up, he wasn't so sure that's what he wanted. Moving on to let his mind introduce him to a batch of fiery red and blue merfolk, he only became less interested. It didn't seem to matter the length of their hair, shape of their fins, or the level of light they gave off; he just didn't want any of them.

     He had never thought this deeply about the mating grounds, and it was surprising to realize just how unenthusiastic he was about them. Sure, he wanted a mate, and he had always wanted to travel away from home and see the rest of the ocean, but maybe not as much as he thought he did.

      From the back of the fictional crowd a blur of green caught his eye and tore him from his mental argument. Green was one of the most common colors for merfolk, so he and many others never found themselves seeking out a green mate. That is why so many of the green tails would pick each other. This new tail caught his full attention though and he struggled to budge between the swell of young merfolk in order to see the newcomer clearly. Before he could get a glimpse of their upper half though, a loud bird's call in the real world dragged him out of his fantasy and above the waves.