Between Land and Sea - Chapter 3

 

Chapter 3

Swimming lesson

 

Ahura’s mind was set to stick to the promise he made of teaching Neri how to swim. The next few days he used to gain new strength and to Neanna’s surprise his injuries healed well. When she heard of his plans with her little girl she was worried, but the young boy convinced her soon enough. Who would be better to teach Neri how to swim than a merboy? Neanna could say nothing to that and eventually gave her permission, if she was allowed to watch from her herb garden to keep eye on things.

 

Norgalis was worried about the situation with Ahura. He was fairly certain the Decoda or even some of the Faraveners would try to take the merboy again so he didn’t set out to fish again and guarded his family and guest instead with the help of Jozan.

 

The day of the swimming lesson finally arrived. Ahura was back to full health and ready to set a foot outside of the house on his own without having to lean on someone else. He wore a pair of breeches which was a strange thing to him. Usually when he was out of the water he just wore a piece of cloth draped around his hips. These breeches felt too restrictive, he couldn’t help but pull at them from time to time.

 

It was good to be outside again he decided as he stepped outside of the house. A cool breeze ran through his hair as he enjoyed the fresh air.

 

“Goodmorning, Ahura.”

 

The boy smiled and waved at Neanna, who was busy gathering herbs and tending to her garden. He threw a few glances about himself and finally smiled wholeheartedly when he saw Neri sitting at the water’s edge. She was already waiting for him. He walked up to her and curiously looked at what pieces of string and a small amount of beautiful seashells at her feet.

 

“What are you doing?”

 

He could already tell, but during the last few days he got to know Neri he found out she was quite shy and he wanted her to tell him things. It took a while before the girl answered. She held up her hands eventually and showed a necklace with three seashells, two small ones and a big one in between. “I’m making necklaces.”

 

“Can I have one?”

 

Neri blushed and lowered her eyelids. “Sure.” She handed the necklace over, still too shy to look at her new friend. No one ever asked to have one, let alone wear one. That Ahura asked for one completely left her shocked and speechless.

 

He looked at it before smiling at the girl in front of him and tying the necklace around his neck. “Thank you. I’ll always wear it from now on.”

 

Neri’s eyes widened. She dropped everything she held in her hands, opened her mouth to say something in return though no sounds emerged from her throat and she nervously ran a hand through her bangs. Since she couldn’t find any words she just reached for the other necklace and tied it around her own neck.

 

“Are you ready for your swimming lesson?” Ahura grinned widely and immediately started to undo his breeches, very eager to step out of them and head for the water. He also dropped his under garments and jumped into the water of the ocean. It didn’t take long before his legs had turned into his fishtail again. It was great to be in the water once more.

 

He noticed Neri was still standing on shore, wearing only her under garments. The merboy swam closer to shore and reached out his hand to her. “Come on, you don’t have to be scared. I’m with you and I will never let you drown.”

 

Neri reached out to him, his bright eyes and genuine smile more than enough to convince her. The water was cold as she dipped her feet into it, but that didn’t stop her from walking further until she was shoulder deep in. Ahura still held her hands and led her further. She gained confidence as she looked into Ahura’s bright sparkling eyes. It was his faith and smile that made her willing to follow him deeper into the sea. When she could no longer feel any soil underneath her feet she panicked and increased her grasp on Ahura’s arms. Her legs kicked wildly around her to keep herself from drowning.

 

“Ahura!”

 

He wrapped an arm around her to support her. “Don’t worry; you’re doing great, Neri.” The merboy showed her how to float on the water and she discovered she could do so on both her tummy and her back. Both the youngsters spent several moments just floating around on their backs in the water, laughing and enjoying themselves. Sometimes Ahura would swim around and underneath Neri, only to rocket himself out of the water and into the air, leaping across his landwalking friend.

 

After that the swimming lesson continued. He placed his hands on Neri’s legs, teaching her how to move them in the water as he used his tail, using examples like the seals and sealions.

 

~*****~

 

Norgalis and Neanna watched the two children as they swam, occasionally waving at them. Neri’s mother left her herb garden to stand at her husband’s side. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

 

The tall sailor smiled and wrapped an arm around his wife’s shoulders. “Don’t worry. Who better to teach Neri how to swim than Ahura?”

 

“That’s not what I mean.” She looked up, her entire face showing her concern.

 

“Then what do you mean, Nanna?”

 

The herbalist averted her gaze and stared into the distance. “The longer that boy stays here the more chance there is the Decoda will capture him, or his people think we are the ones holding him and a war will follow.”

 

Norgalis nodded, fully understanding his wife’s concerns. He embraces her and held her tightly against his body.

 

“And what about our little girl?” Neanna continued. “Ahura is her first real friend. Yet they come from two different worlds that might keep them apart. There is such a great gap between them.”

 

“Somehow I don’t think Ahura and Neri care much about that, sweetheart.”

 

Another voice suddenly interrupted their conversation. “Good day to you, neighbours.”

 

Both Norgalis and Neanna looked up in surprise, at first scared that the Decoda had come for their guest. Their expressions soon changed as they discovered it was Jozan and he had brought his family along. “Jozan!”

 

It was a joyful meeting between the two families, everyone inquiring after each other’s health, especially after the event with the Decoda when they discovered Ahura in the harbour. Neanna took Jozan’s young wife and their infant son into the house for a cup of tea.

 

Norgalis and Jozan walked around the grounds. Norgalis placed his hand on his protégé’s shoulder. “I doubt you’ve come here just to inquire after my health. What’s going on?”

 

The first mate looked down at his feet. “I came to warn you. The news has spread around quickly in town that we caught a merboy in our nets. More people than just the Decoda are looking for the boy now. You need to be careful. I’ve seen them lurking in the woods surrounding our houses. It’s only a matter of time before they decide to make their move.” Both their gazes drifted to the water where Ahura and Neri were swimming.

 

~*****~

 

It wasn’t long before Neri noticed Jozan had arrived. She tapped Ahura on the shoulder and pointed towards the shore. If she was shy around other people then she certainly wasn’t where concerned Jozan. She’d known her father’s first mate ever since she was a baby. He was someone she trusted completely and felt completely at ease with. Neri started waving at her father and Jozan like crazy. “Jozan!! Jozan!!! Look!! I can swim!!”

 

The two children started swimming towards the shore again, where Jozan smiled and waved back with enthusiasm while gathering the towels the children would need. It was great to see the merboy in complete health again. He’d recovered quickly from his injuries and for that Jozan was grateful. He’d felt incredibly guilty for catching the boy in the nets.

 

As soon as Neri’s feet touched the beach she felt more mobile and ran towards Jozan. The young man smiled and caught Neri in a sweet and warm embrace. “That’s great, Neri. Did the merboy teach you how to swim?”

 

“Yes. His name is Ahura.” She turned around and looked at her new friend, who was stuck on shore until his fishtail turned into his legs again.

 

Jozan grabbed another towel and allowed Neri to guide him towards the merboy. Ahura gratefully accepted the towel, immediately using it dry his tail. It was a bit frustrating to have to wait until his legs reappeared before he could be as mobile again as Neri on land.

Neri sat down on her knees next to Ahura and introduced him. “Ahura, this is my friend Jozan. Jozan, this is my new friend Ahura.”

 

They both shook hands.

 

Jozan held onto Ahura’s hands and looked straight into the boy’s marine eyes. He really wanted to apologise for bringing the boy into danger. “Ahura, I’m really sorry your life got into danger because you got caught in our nets. Please forgive me.”

 

The admission surprised the boy immensely. He slowly pulled his hand back, averting his gaze at the same time. It wasn’t that he rejected the older man, but he needed time to think to voice his words. He was focussed on the sea. “It’s alright,” the boy said slowly. A small smile appeared on his face and he grabbed both Jozan’s and Neri’s hand. “I just keep thinking about all the animals that keep getting stuck in the nets. The animals you are not trying to catch. They are not so lucky as I am.”

 

Neri softly squeezed his hand and looked at Jozan. “Isn’t there some way father and you can change your fishing methods?”

 

Jozan sighed as he thought about the matter. “There might be, but it won’t make any difference if it is just us who change our ways. Every fisherman would need to do that in order to save all marine life.”

 

That statement rendered all three speechless.

 

~******~

 

Between the trees dark shadows flashed from one side to another, quickly approaching the house and the grounds that surrounded it. If there was ever a moment to attack the people outside then now was exactly the right moment to do so.

 

When Norgalis discovered the threat it was already too late. The attackers were already upon him. Although the sailor was a tall and muscular man with an equal amount of weight on him they still managed to get him onto the ground easily. Whoever they were, they must have planned this attack carefully and Jozan had been right.

 

“Neanna, stay in the house and grab a weapon!!!! Keep Alani and the baby with you!!!”

 

Just as he finished screaming he could feel he was at the receiving end of numerous beatings. They kept him firmly onto the ground, making it difficult for him to retaliate. His face was pressed into the mud, filling his mouth with dirt. He still struggled like hell and tried to get Jozan and the children in his sight.

 

“Jozan!!! Get the children inside the house!!! Now!!!”

 

The first mate could curse himself that he didn’t bring a weapon along when he knew they could be attacked at any moment. His wife and child were inside and the boy behind him was the one the attackers were after. It was the old fashioned fist fight he would have to engage him then. Luckily Norgalis had taught him well when he was still a teenager. He faced the attackers head on, although he was outnumbered.

 

Behind him Neri was screaming. She stood nailed to the ground and her face was as pale as it never had been before. Ahura crawled onto his feet. Although he didn’t know who the attackers were he was fairly determined to defend the people who had taken care of him so well in the last couple of days. He wrapped the towel around his waist as that was quicker to do than getting into his trousers. The boy positioned himself in front of Neri.

 

“We must get the boy at all costs! Take the sailors out and get the boy!!!”

 

Jozan didn’t recognize the men who assaulted him. They weren’t Decoda. That was something he was fairly certain of. Maybe they were the lackeys belonging to one of the slavers in town. He threw a glance across his shoulder, only to see Ahura and Neri still standing there.

 

“Get out of here,” he yelled. “Get to the house!!”

 

Ahura exchanged a glance with the older man and grabbed Neri’s hand. His legs got into motion as if they never did anything else. “Come on, Neri.” She nodded, not able to say anything and followed him, running as fast as her legs could carry her.

 

Their escape didn’t go unnoticed and it didn’t take long before the attackers went into pursuit. Considering they were taller and could run a lot faster than the two young children it didn’t take long before Ahura and Neri found themselves surrounded.

 

Jozan and Norgalis could do nothing else but watch as they were occupied themselves.

 

“Stay behind me, Neri.” Ahura pulled her behind him and made fists out of his hands. He threw menacing glances at the men in front of him, who were getting closer and closer. It looked like they wouldn’t be able to get into the house. If only he could lead them to the water, they wouldn’t stand a chance against him there and he could ask for the help of his marine friends.

 

He threw a glance at the water, and motioned Neri to follow his lead. With slow small steps he made his way towards the water.

 

Things weren’t really going his way. They weren’t getting there as quick as he wanted and the attackers were closing on him. Neri wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing herself as close against him as she could and squeezing her eyes shut as she rested her head against his back.

 

It didn’t look good at all…

 

~******~

 

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long. Here's the next chapter. I know there's not a lot going on in this chapter, but I really wanted to write about the swimming lesson and Neri and Ahura bonding more, as well as adressing the matter of the fishnets.

In the next chapter a new character and race will be introduced, so keep your eyes out!