The Neptune Revenge

Chapter 7

My telepathic connection is back to normal in an hour, but I find myself wishing it was still blocked. My friends are bombarding me with questions and all I want to do is go to bed.

Surprisingly, I find myself capable of tuning out all the distractions and getting a good seven hours of sleep, which is more than usual. When I wake up in the morning, I'm one of the last people in the cave. I wish someone had woken me up, but I'm mostly glad I got to sleep.

:Nere, can you help me?: The sweet voice of Bria enters my mind.

:Sure, sweetling. What's the matter?: I ask, finding her floating by her hammock and fiddling with one of her many braids.

:They got caught in my hammock when I slept last night, and now they're all messed up. Could you fix 'em?: Bria holds up the disheveled braid to show me, and then puts her hands on her hips. Her bottom lip is curled into a pout, and her eyebrows are furrowed in annoyance. I almost find myself laughing aloud. This is the same girl who fought sharks and Marine Guards by my side and got kidnapped by Wasp and gave me the mermaid necklace and learned how to communicate with the dolphins. It's funny that she's complaining about a few little braids being slightly messed up.

It hits me right in that moment: this little girl is basically my little sister. If anything happened to her because of something I did, I would die.

:Ree would really be better at this, but I know how to braid. Come here, I'll help you.: She swims over to my hammock and I begin working on her hair.

:How old are you again, Bria?: I ask the younger girl as she watches a small orange fish dart back and forth around the hammocks. These little fish are like the bugs of the sea- they're pesky and everywhere you don't want them to be.

:Almost ten,: She replies, still sounding slightly discouraged about not being able to fix her hair herself. The few remaining girls in the cave file out and we are left in the cave alone together.

:Wow. I cannot believe that. After all we've been through, you seem so much older than nine. This whole thing has been rough for me, and I'm fourteen. I can't imagine going through all of this at only nine years old.: I smile almost apathetically for her as my fingers move on to fix another braid. She watches my fingers as they move slowly and clumsily through her hair. The braids aren't as good as they would be if Ree had done them, but they're at least acceptable.

:When did you learn to braid, Nere?: Bria asks, and I smile as I recall a memory as clear as daylight.

:It was back in grade five. I was over at Lena's house. She was wearing a purple t-shirt with blue dolphins on it, and we were playing this game we called "The Floor Is Lava." We put pillows on the ground and jumped from one to the other, but we couldn't touch the floor because it was "lava." Well, Lena got her shirt caught on something and it ripped. At first she was upset, but then we started pulling the strings out of it, and she taught me how to braid them. We made friendship bracelets out of the strings from her shirt. We wore them every day until I lost mine in the ocean. I was so upset and felt so guilty. To make me feel better, Lena threw hers in the ocean so the bracelets could be together.:

:That's so sweet!: Bria smiles as I finish my story, and I smile too, just because her joy is so contagious. And then, in the blink of an eye, her smile is gone and replaced with a frown.

:Is there something wrong, little fish?: I ask, pausing from the braid and pressing my palm against her cheek.

She sighs. :Back on land, I had a best friend named Julian, but she just went by Jules. Her older sister, Livi, would babysit me sometimes, especially after Mom died and Tobin was really busy trying to make some money so he could support us. One day I went over to Jules' house while Tobin was doing some work, and Livi taught us how to braid. We practiced on each other's hair. I always thought Jules had the prettiest hair in the world, and I was so jealous. It was dark, like a raven, and very long and straight. She had pale skin, so her hair stood out and looked even prettier. She was like a perfect little china doll. I wanted to be her so badly. I wanted a sister who would play with me and parents who had time for me and weren't always working. For a little while I hated Tobin because he was so the opposite of what I wanted. But I realized that he was trying to help me. He worked hard so I didn't have to. He let me enjoy my childhood. And I was ungrateful.: Her voice breaks and she stops for a second, trying to keep in the tears and stay in control of her emotions.

My heart cracks.

Little girls shouldn't feel like they have to hide their tears. They shouldn't have to act older than they really are. I truly can't believe Bria is only nine years old. She seems so much older, just like Robry does.

:Anyways...: Bria sniffles. :Livi found some red ribbon and gave it to us, and we made braided friendship bracelets. We promised we'd wear them forever, but I had to take it off when I went through my transformation. Red was our favorite color. It always looked better on her, of course, because of her pale skin and dark hair, but-:

:Bria,: I stop her, just as I finish her last braid. I pull the younger girl into my arms and hug her tightly, protectively, the way a big sister might. I hope I'm doing it the right way. :You are so, so beautiful, Bria. I'm jealous of you. Your hair is beautiful, your tan skin is perfect, your eyes are beautiful... And you want to know the most beautiful part about you? Your personality. I wish I was more like you, Bria. You are sweet and amazing and gorgeous and awesome. The world would be a much better place if there was more people like you in it.:

At this point she's sobbing, so I just hug her tightly and rub her back. Eventually, her crying slows and she presses her head against my chest.

:I love you, Nere.: She whispers, and those four words are like a bullet going straight through my heart. She looks up to me. She sees me as a sibling. I haven't failed her. She loves me. I've never had a small child look up to me before. A whole new weight settles on my shoulders.

:I love you too, Bria.:
•••••

Breakfast is pretty much finished once we get down there. Bria says she isn't hungry, but when Robry offers her the rest of his fish slices, she scarfs them down eagerly. My stomach growls, but I'll be fine. The dolphins can catch me something later.

I'm kind of glad that I wasn't at breakfast, because I got to miss out on all Dai's attempts to make me uncomfortable and Rad's cheesy flirting with Ree (even though it can be kind of cute at times) and everyone's constant complaining about the food.

I leave Bria with Robry and swim out to Dolphin Cove to get ready for lessons today. Hopefully my students aren't already there, waiting for me. It should be an easy class to teach. Conor has already figured out how to communicate telepathically with Densil, Raima's hand signals are starting to rival my own, and Sasha has been working very well with Sokya, because they both have bold, rambunctious personalities. I find my training area empty when I get there, which is good. I didn't want them to have to wait for me.

:Hey Nere, what happened during breakfast? Are you and Bria ok?: Tobin asks me. His telepathic range has been improving, but his mental voice still sounds staticky, and it goes from being loud to soft and then loud again.

:Yeah, we're fine. She just needed some help with something and we talked for a while.: I try to make my telepathic voice strong and steady, so he can pick it up easily.

:And you guys are both ok?: He asks, and I can imagine that his voice would be full of caution if he were closer and he didn't have to focus so hard on broadcasting his thoughts out so far.

:Yes, we are fine, Tobin. I'm sorry. I should have told you where we were.:

:No, it's ok. As long as everyone is safe. I'm sorry I'm being so overprotective. It's just that with the Marine Guard all around, and Wasp still out there somewhere...:

It takes everything in me to keep from wincing. I can't let him know about Wasp's threat. He's been so close to losing Bria so many times... I can't let him know she might be in danger again.

:We're here, Nere!: Conor, a cute blonde boy about my age announces as he appears in Dolphin Cove with Sasha and Raima. I smile and nod as I reach out to call the dolphins. A lot of the other girls are obsessed with him. I'll admit, he is attractive. He's got a very nice smile.

:My students are here. I'll see you later,: I tell Tobin, and end the connection.

A/N
Ahhhh I finally finished!!! This chapter took me all day to write but I really like it. 😊 There aren't nearly enough Bria and Nere scenes and I thought this would be sweet. I don't know when the next chapter will be up, but hopefully soon. IM SOOOOO SORRY I HAVENT POSTED IN A WHILE!!!!! Please don't forget to comment what you thought of this chapter, vote for this story, and message me ideas! Love you guys! 😘