Paradise

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

"Right now?" I asked, starting to feel a little uneasy. I couldn't help it. The words ursler-fish would probably always conjure up the image of me getting my head knocked against the edge of a sharp rock. I had Ms. Albert to thank for that. "A-Are there any around?"

"There are," he said, rising to his feet. He reached for my hand. "Please, let me show you."

I started to reach for his hand, but hesitated. I looked at Robert, who was still sleeping soundly. I couldn't just leave him here. What if he woke up while we were gone? He had no idea where we were-- what was even going on! To leave him all alone while I went off gallivanting seemed very irresponsible and rude.

As if hearing my thoughts, Soren said, "You needn't worry. He won't be waking up."

My eyes widened. "What?" I choked.

Soren withdrew his hand with a sheepish smile. "My apologies. I may have phrased it badly. What I meant to say is ... your friend is foreign to this place. He has no dimensional abilities associated here, either...."

"What does that have to do with anything?" I interrupted.

"Everything, actually. As a precaution, this dimension closes itself off to foreign invaders unassociated with it."

"By putting them to sleep?"

"Basically," he said.

Why?" I asked.

"The great dragon fears a battle within dimensions. We have magical abilities on our side, but other dimensions have more."

I completely understood the great dragon's reasoning behind this. As awesome as they were, a siren or mer's abilities probably stood little chance against something like a sub-machine gun or a grenade. He was only protecting his people. I found that admirable. It showed great leadership.

"But he'll be okay, right?" I asked, looking at Robert anxiously.

"Yes, he's perfectly fine. The sleep won't affect him in any negative way."

"And he'll wake up the instant he comes through the portal?"

"He should, yes, although it may be several minutes later, but I promise you, he is safe. You needn't wory."

I gave into a sigh, my shoulders heaving. "That's good," I said. "And, hey, I won't have to explain any of this stuff to him!"

I laughed even though I felt a small jab of disappointment. I guess I had wanted to explain everything to him. Just to feel like we were close-- that we had bonded over something bigger than mundane schoolwork. Daphne's voice was still in the back of my mind, telling me nothing would ever become of Robert and me. That he'd never learn to love me, at least not in the way I wanted.

Soren reached for me again. "Come on, Penny. I think you will really enjoy this."

"Fine," I submitted, forcing myself to grab his hand. His skin was soft and cool, his hold firm as he yanked me to my feet. When I put weight on my right foot, however, my ankle snapped to the side, and I stumbled forward.

Soren caught me by my forearm; his other arm went around my back to steady me.

"Are you hurt?" he asked me.

I placed my foot down firmly, slower this time, to test if there was any pain. There wasn't. I shook my head, breathing hard. "I'm fine. I just stepped wrong. I'm not used to wearing shoes like these."

"Why don't you take them off?" he suggested. "I assure you, nothing will swoop down and carry them off."

"I guess I could," I said, kicking out of my shoes clumsily, nearly causing myself to fall again. His grasp tightened on my forearm.

"Is that better?" he asked when I was standing flatly on my bare feet.

"Yeah," I said, moving away from him. He let go of me slowly, as if he expected me to pitch forward again. "it's fine, thanks."

"See?" he said, a smile teasing the corners of his mouth. "Why would I rescue you—twice if I meant to harm you? It makes no sense to me."

I gave into a small smile. "It makes no sense to me, either," I admitted.

"So you'll relax around me now?"

I really had no choice with Robert being out cold and all. I had no idea when Ms. Albert and Yvette would finally reach me, and Soren had saved Robert and me from the sirens. If they decided to come back, it'd be good to have him close by. I definitely couldn't fend them off on my own.

"Sure," I said. "Why not?"

"Wonderful!" he exclaimed, grabbing my hand and snatching me toward the lake. I had to break into a soft run to match his stride. "Over here," he said, pulling me to the left. We were skimming the water's edge now, our feet making wet, slapping sounds. He took me to a sloping area that rose above a deeper part of the lake. I could see the glistening edges of rocks just below the surface.

My eyes caught movement, and the breath stilled in my lungs.

"Did you see it?" he asked me, letting go of my hand so he could lean over the water and point at something beneath the surface. "Look closer. Right ... there."

I focused intently on the spot he pointed to. For a moment I couldn't see anything but the edge of a rock. Then it swam into view, and the breath came pouring out of me in an excited gasp. It was a strange-looking creature with its flat, billowing body and long, finned tail. Two beady eyes sat wide-spaced on its rounded head, in-between a band of thick stripes which ran the length of its body.

"Look," Soren said, his voice breathy with excitement. "See what it does?"

Constant ribbons of color swam through its body, darkening and lightening each time it brushed against the rocks, each time it bobbed beneath the surface. It went from a cold gray to a vibrant blue in the span of seconds.

I thought of the last time we had met, when he had compared my blushing-- something I truly detested, something that made me feel so ugly and awkward-- to this incredible creature and I couldn't help but smile. Actually, I felt close to tears again, but I fought them off.

My voice emerged weak, cracking in places. "It's magical," I said, smiling at him. "Thank you for showing this to me."

He rubbed a hand up the back of his neck and into his hair. "I thought you would like it," he said with a soft laugh. "I'm just glad you trusted me enough to show you."

"Me too," I said, lowering my eyes back to the water, where the ursler-fish was now swimming close to the surface. "I'm sorry I was so hesitant..."

"Don't," he said. "You are a stranger ... in a strange land. It's only natural to be a little suspicious of other's intentions."

"Thank you," I said. "I-It's nice to be understood." I brushed a strand of my hair behind my ear. "But ... it's even nicer that you tried to understand me. Not many people care enough to put in the effort."

"It took very little effort," he said. "I would have easily put forth more."