The Mer Prince

Chapter 17

XY POV

Charley Charley Charley. He said XY with hesitation and didn't inquire as to my real name, and he was so.... I don't have a word for it. He was more respectful then many, and he was certainly not like his father. He acted if he was raised without much privilege, hesitating here, speaking quietly there.

Charley was far from a spoiled prince- he was king material without even having to have been raised a royal. His father had given him up for the color of his tail, for the disgrace he felt for his son to have to be with a man if he ever wanted a heir.

It wasn't just bad for a male breeder down here. It was legal to hurt them, and they were looked down upon as slaves and less than the women. While the females got their rights, after six whole generations of monarchs, the males remained too few to gather and rally for themselves and too many for them to be seen as exotic pets. They were a mutation, the scientists claimed. The female tail was never supposed to mix with a male allele. 'Nature's mistake' they claimed. I had once believed that. Up until.... AB.

My swimming slowed momentarily at the memory of the name. The only reason I knew so much about the orange-tail males. The reason I lost my name. AB was it. The reason.

The prince reminded me a bit of AB. Charley's senses of freedom and trust were better than Ab's, but then, who's weren't? I took a long breath of air. It wasn't time to get all dreary or let anything show through. It wasn't time to let anyone close.

I led Charley to the ridge- the one I brought him from open water by. It was fairly dangerous this close, but then again, it was fairly dangerous swimming through the city as well. Which was better? The chance of rouges ambushing us or random people attacking us? At least the rogues were few and easy to dispatch without mercy.

"It's cold out here." Charley softly mumbled, and I noticed he was right- the ocean current was pretty cold and he was standing right directly in it. The city would at least have been warmer, having been on a magma pocket that provided everyone with heat.

I moved him to a ridge wall and blocked the current for him, leaning against the wall and quietly studying him as he rubbed his arms and looked at me. I met his eyes and he smiled slightly in a thanks. "Why are we out here?" He asked.

"I wanted you to be able to see the city. Also, I wanted to talk to you without having to glance over my shoulder to make sure no one was staring at you." I said.

Charley smiled. "Alright." He said plainly. "It is a nice view.... what would you like to talk to me about?"

I was surprised at how easily he had opened up to me. He was definitely not what I was use to, but I definitely didn't want to cross any line. So I took a breath and asked. "So, what happened to you that you remember after you were kidnapped as a guppy?" I asked calmly.