Fins, Fangs and Feathers (Lesbian Stories)

Chapter 29

Hecate didn't even bother heading towards her own dorm after her classes. Instead she made her way towards the pool, knowing Calypso had practice after her own classes. 

Not wanting to embarrass Calypso by heading inside or waiting just outside the door, she sent Calypso a text that she was waiting for her and stayed off to the side, in the courtyard. There she laid down on one of the benches, put her headphones in and pulled out a handheld gaming console to play games while she waited for Calypso to be done.

After an hour or so, she got this horrid feeling in the pit of her stomach and sat up to look towards the pool building where the doors were opened. As she watched however, she didn't see anyone enter or leave. Instead she noticed as a few people were standing in front of the door looking in with worried expressions.

She stuffed her console into her bag and started making her way towards the doors as she took her headphones out. As she got closer she could hear the argument.

"Your practice ended twenty minutes ago, which means the pool is free game for anyone else." A woman shouted.

"There's a sign there, you're not supposed to just barge in like that! You could have seen something you're not supposed to!" A man retorted.

"So you guys can claim the pool for more than your scheduled hours just because of your tradition? That's not fair!" Another woman growled.

"We're happy to pack up and leave, you just need to give us a warning!"

"How!? We're not allowed inside because of your tradition!"

"HEY!" Hecate growled as she made her way into the pool area, her eyes scanning over the group of people gathered just inside. She was clearly looking for Calypso and eventually spotted her as she finished drying off her hair only to glare towards the people who had entered.

Hecate recognized several of the swimmers on Calypso's team with most of them wearing towels around their shoulders as they faced the smaller group of people who had come in. Hecate couldn't tell what all of them were just by appearance or smell, but she recognized a werewolf in the offending group.

"What the hell is going on here? There's absolutely no need for an argument like this." Hecate explained.

"This never had to be an argument if they just left when they were supposed to!" One of the kids shouted as she pointed to the sign. "The Swim team's practice is over, and the mermaid's usage is also over. Which means the pool is now opened to anyone, so why should we have to wait to be given permission to enter?"

"Because it's mermaid tradition to not have people see them in their true forms! It's like a physical violation for our kind!" One of the swimmers explained. "You can't just barge in here whenever you want!"

"It's our turn!" Retorted the other kid.

"Then just knock, or even open it and shout inside! Don't just charge in here!" One of the swimmers answered.

"Enough!" Hecate yelled, stepping between the two groups and motioning for them to back away. "Both sides are right and both sides are wrong." She pointed towards the students. "I understand it's no longer their allotted time, but you can't just barge in unannounced. Just because you're not used to the culture doesn't give you the right to ignore it's existence. And you-" She turned towards the swimmers. "You can't expect people to always be perfect and respect boundaries they don't understand. It's something that will get better with time, but right now it's incredibly early, and people aren't used to it yet. Yes, they should have announced themselves, but if it's really that much of a concern to be seen - and I know it is - you shouldn't be swimming in your true forms so close to the change in times. It won't go well for anyone involved."