Page 19 of Dry as a Fish
"I actually do want to spend time with you, Delphon," I said.
The smile that broke across his face was so brilliant it stole my breath for a moment.
"Can I show you something?" he asked.
"Yes," I replied.
Chapter
Nine
DELPHON
The human water suit covered much more of her body than I preferred, specifically all of it. I appreciated how it hugged her curves, but at the same time, the memory of how her body moved against mine when I first dragged her through the water was... not something I needed to be thinking about while standing next to the entry pool to the kelpie stables.
"So this thing will let me breathe underwater," she said, eying the small mouthpiece in her hand. It was a suction mask that would fit over her face, providing filtered air like my gills and allowing her to see well under the water.
"As long as the runes are powered," I said.
She turned the mask to the side, eying the spell runes carved along the edge. "Okay," she said in a small voice. Then she took a deep breath as she stared at the runes. It was clear to me from the tightness in her voice and the way she was staringat them like her eyes could burn holes through them that something was wrong. I hadn't asked how long she had been at the school. If she were still in her first year, powering runes might still be difficult or exhausting. From what I recalled, they didn't even teach them how to intentionally do it for quite some time. Instead, they focused on teaching them how to be more receptive to being drained.
"Can I do it for you?" I asked.
The relief that washed over her face was palpable. "Yes, that would be great."
I filled the runes with a stream of magic, and they lit up, glowing with a white light. She slipped the mask over her face. I sat down on the edge of the pool and dipped my legs in. I felt the familiar prickle in my skin as my body reacted to the water, changing as my legs pulled together and my tail formed. I slide further into the water along the slope, finding the edge of the sudden drop with my tail. I felt the strong pull of the current and moved my fin to counteract it as I waited.
Sloane stepped forward into the water, her motions exaggerated because of the long fins attached to her feet. Then she took another step toward me.
"It is deep once..." I started to tell her a moment too late.
She plunged downward into the water with a shriek that was muted as the water closed in around her head. I lunged for her, but I felt her slip under, pulled by the current. Her fingers scratched down my tail as she tried to grip it. I curled the end around her, catching her as her arms wrapped around the end of my tail. The current snatched me as I let go of the slope to reach for her, twisting and diving under the water, my fingers wrapping around her forearms. I hauled her up towards me as we twisted in the water, carried by it. Her breathing mask had little lights in it that illuminated her face, making it easy to seeher frightened expression as I pulled her up into my arms. I used my tail to steady us. Where I wanted to take her was downstream anyway, so I didn't fight the pull.
"I've got you," I sang to her, using the melody of my voice to cut through the distortion of the water.
The fear faded from her face, and a smile broke through, sunlight peeking through dark clouds.
"The current is strong," she said, her voice muffled by the mask and the surrounding water.
"Yes," I said. "But the fins on your suit will help you swim against it. Try them and see."
I relaxed my arms, sliding my hands down her biceps and back down to her hands as I pushed her away from me, still holding onto her hands. She moved her legs, using the fins on her feet to resist the water. Then she let out a laugh and surged forward, her legs kicking to send her upstream towards the bright patch where we had entered the underground river. I swam beside her. I couldn't let go of her hand if I wanted to; she was gripping onto me so tightly.
"We are going the other way," I sang out to her.
She stopped her motion, and the current began to carry us back down the wide, dark tunnel.
"It's so dark," she said.
I sent a pulse through my tail, and my bioluminescent spots lit up, lighting the walls of the tunnel around us as we were carried down. She looked at me, her eyes widening, and I ran my lights in patterns, letting the glow run up and down my tail. Delight spread across her face, and I couldn't help but smile back.
"I will teach you to cast a light orb spell," I sang out. "But for now, allow me to be your light."
"You're so beautiful," she whispered.
I ran my colors up and down my tail again. She had no knowledge of my people. She had no idea that we had brilliant, iridescent lights hidden along the black and white surfaces of our tails. The fact that mine were the first she had ever seen was deeply satisfying to me.
She pulled on my hands, dragging herself closer to me in the water before releasing one to run her palm down the side of my tail. The touch was intimate and exquisite, sending shivers of desire racing along my tail. I held still as her hand moved upwards, her palm running over my abs as she touched me with her unrestrained innocence. I responded, putting my free hand on the small of her back and pulling her close to me, pressing her body against mine. I released her other hand to help hold her there. As the center of her hips pressed against mine, she looked up at my face, her cheeks blushing red as her mouth parted, her lips glistening, her hands on my chest.
