Discovering Ḧoendir

Chapter one - Wings

"Do you have your pupils gathered, son?" my father, the chief of the Elfboy tribe, asks.

"Yes, father." I answer, trying to hide the uncertainty in my voice.

I look around me, searching for the blue and purple haired boys that should have been here ten minutes ago. I tighten my fist as I fail to locate them. They probably lost the track of time again while doing shenanigans. If they continue to disgrace this generation I might lose my chances of taking over the tribe when my father expires.

"Well?" my father asks after a moment of silence. "Where are they?"

"Well, I-" I don't know how to finish my sentence because I don't have the slightest clue where they might possibly be. I sigh loudly.

My father glares at me impatiently. I look down in shame. The last thing I want to do is disappoint him, but Tails and Tictac aren't exactly helping. When I find them I will make sure to make them feel twice as ashamed as I am right now.

Just as I am about to speak again I hear a twig snap behind me, followed by a hushing noise and someone giggling. I turn to the direction the noise came from and begin to locate the source.

"Shit, do you think he saw us?" a voice says as I get closer to the third tree to the right. "Tails, stop pushing!"

"I know you're there Tictac, there is no need to hide." I harden my voice to let them know they're in trouble. "You can come out now, and take Tails with you."

"Man, I told you to be quiet!" Tictac says to Tails as he pushes him from behind the tree.

"Ow, why do you push so hard?" Tails whines, rubbing his right arm.

I sigh once more and roll my eyes at their childish behavior. My father, on the contrary, is chuckling at the two boys. I shake my head. This is unbelievable.

"Come on, now, we need to get going." I tell them with a hint of impatience, but thankfully they obey and begin to follow my lead.

          *                   *                  *

"So, what are we learning today, Wings?" Tictac asks me as we approach the black sea.

"Today," I say, running a hand through the cool, dark waters, "we are learning how to summon a mermaid when in need of their assistance."

"Tails, did you hear that? Mermaids!" Tictac exclaims excitedly. Tails giggles at Tictac that's bouncing of curiosity.

"Calm down Tictac, this skill requires patience." I tell him. "Now, the first thing you need to do is take a deep breath."

We all breathe in deeply, our chests rising. Then slowly we let the air out, feeling our lungs being emptied.

"Then you sing the verse of the mermaids in the key of C." I continue. "Do you both know the verse?"

I give them a questioning look. They nod in unison.

"Good. Does anyone want to give it a try?" I ask.

"Oh, oh, me! I do!" Tictac immediately exclaims.

"Alright, Tictac, show me what you've got." 

He steps forward, takes a deep breath and clears his throat. For a slight moment he just stands there in silence but eventually he opens his mouth and sings the words.

I call out to thee,
Oh, beauty of the sea,
Come to me, come to me.

Another moment of silence passes and nothing changes. Tictac gives me a let-down look, his pointy ears sulking in disappointment.

"Hey, it's alright Tictac. Not many succeed on their first try." Tails says trying to comfort his friend.

Tails puts his hand on the younger boy's shoulder just when the water starts moving. Our crystal clear reflections in the water distort due to the sudden waves and the two boys gasp in fascination.

Slowly she ascends from the blackness, her hair as dark, as the water, that frames her face like curtains. Bright green eyes and plump pink lips. Despite her old age she looks as if she's still 20. She gives us a friendly smile.

"Hello, boys. What can I do for you?" she asks politely.

Tails and Tictac stare in awe at her. I face the lovely lady and I am about to apologize for their disrespectful behavior when she cuts me off with a laugh.

"Is it their first time seeing a mermaid?" she asks.

"Yes, I apologize for their lack of respect-"

"Oh, don't worry. They're not the first ones to react like this." she cuts me off again. "How come I haven't seen you in so long, Wings?"

"I've been so busy with these two." I say pointing to the two boys whispering fascinated to each other.

Zorena and I go way back. She's been like a mother to me since mine died in the process of birthing me. She was my biggest source of comfort after the tragedy. The demise that left a darkness clinging to my back. One that refuses to let go no matter how hard i try, no matter if I yell myself hoarse, no matter-

"Wings!" Zorena interrupts my train of thoughts before it falls off track and kills all passengers. "You're getting lost again, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine." I say automatically and rub my temples. I know she doesn't believe me, I can see it in her eyes but she doesn't push the subject.

"Anyway, the little ladies are celebrating their first day out of water tomorrow night." she continues as if I hadn't just zoned out completely. Just the way I want it to be. "I would like you to come. And don't forget to bring your sweet little boys."

She dives under the black surface just before I can protest. I'm not very much of a party person and I turn down any invitation as if it's my default setting. But since Zorena has done so much for me I believe it's time to give something back. Besides, it's is a big day for the young mermaids.

When a mermaid is born she, just like any offspring, is taught how to survive. She is trained and crammed with information until the day she turns 20. Once a year the mermaids are allowed to walk on land. That means that when they dry their fins turn into legs and if they stay on land for more than 30 nights they can't get their fishtails back. That's when she for the first time is allowed to see what lies beyond the surface to be further taught of all the other creatures that live here. Us land walkers throw a big party with music and dancing and food. We prepare very early in the morning and the celebration continues into very late at night.

Tails and Tictac have somehow managed to never attend a single celebration and have never, until now, seen a mermaid. When we were younger we never really had the chance to go. After everything they've been through they felt they had to keep their distance from our society. Even later when they matured and the people began to accept them as their own, like it should have been from the beginning, I was the reason they never got to celebrate with everybody else. Since they've been my responsibility for as long as I can remember I couldn't let them out of my sight. And as I said earlier I'm not much a party person after the death of-

"Come on Wings, we got to get back!" Tictac says, pulling my arm. "I don't want to miss lunch, me and Tails are starving."

I nod and we start heading back, Tails and Tictac leading this time. They playfully annoy each other like they always do when they're in a good mood. I shake my head at how immature they are despite that the age gaps between us aren't that big after all, but at least they're happy. I turn around for a moment, looking at the black waters. They're as still as they were before we got here. Tails and Tictac yell at me to hurry up and so I turn forward and catch up with them.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------