Chapter 22

Rose

I held off on shifting until they were under the waves with me. Aira caught up to me first and wrapped her arms around my waist, laughing. "If you think you're going to get out of showing us your siren form, you're wrong."

"I wouldn't dream of denying you guys that," I replied, poking at the ticklish spot on her ribs so she'd let go of me. Once Ava caught up, her pelt gripped in her hands, I took a deep breath and focused on shifting.

The change came over me slowly, deliberately, starting from my belly button and radiating outwards. My legs fused into a long, lithe tail with scales that glinted like moonstone and opals beneath the sun's loving rays. From my tail grew several wispy fins at my hips, butt, and at the base, each flowing like silk in the gentle current. My hands grew claws and webbing, and my teeth sharpened in my mouth.

"Holy shit! The Goddess must have put a lot of thought in to how best to design you. You're gorgeous!" exclaimed Aira, awe in her eyes. "Even your butt frills are pretty!"

I couldn't help but snort at "butt frills."

"Ooooh. Look at the way her scales change color in the sunlight! Do a spin!" Ava demanded.

With a laugh, I spun around, making sure I moved my tail in such a way that they'd glint more. Pride had a little more of the ever-present weight lifting from my shoulders and that ever-present fear of rejection lessening its spikes in my belly. I felt like I could fully breathe again.

"Alright, since you were dramatic about your reveal, now I get to be dramatic," said Aira when I was facing them again, moving away from me before circling her finger in the water. "Turn around."

I mock-pouted but did as she asked. "Fiiiiiiine. I guess." Yet, I couldn't hide my smirk.

A wash of power enveloped me, goosebumps marching up my arms. Even without seeing anything, I could sense how massive she was with how displaced the water felt against the sensitive receptors in my skin. Ava stayed looking forward, her eyes full of longing and admiration for whatever creature was at my back, which made me want to turn around that much more. I'd had a year of her teasing what she was without so much as a hint, no matter how many times I tried to pry it out of her or guess.

Just as I was about to huff a snarky reply about her taking forever—in jest, of course—something large nudged my back. Spinning around, my heart pounded in my chest I was so excited… only to see nothing there. I pouted again and crossed my arms as Ava laughed at me.

Aira was close by; I could sense it. Reaching out, I came in to contact with something firm yet strangely soft at the same time. I traced the contours of the creature in front of me with one hand, trying to guess what she could be by touch alone, but came up with nothing. Whatever she was, she was big. Very, very big. But that was all I could glean. Pouting once more, I poked her with my finger.

She exhaled in what I inferred was a laugh, a flurry of bubbles tickling my skin, as she revealed herself to me.

Her scales shifted in color to match the water around her, and she was far larger than any creature I'd ever seen. Her long, lithe body had four legs and a mane of seaweed starting between her long, conical ears, going along the center of her back, all the way down to the tip of her tail, which was shaped similarly to my own, though without all the extra frills. There were four horns on her head; two shorter ones by her eyes, pointing forward; and two long ones by her ears that arced backward over her skull before curving up. She nudged her snout against me to get my attention, and when I moved, her long ears angled toward me to hear me better.

Dragon.

Aira was a motherfucking dragon .

"Holy shit," I whispered.

"Isn't she awesome?" Ava's voice held such reverence. "I have the best wife." Dragon Aira preened as Ava closed the gap between them to stroke her fiancée's snout. "You can pet her, too, if you want. She likes being scratched behind the ears."

Aira harrumphed indignantly, yet the moment Ava reached back to do just that, her eyes practically rolled to the back of her head. I laughed and copied Ava.

"Okay, well, now that I know what you are, you have to know that I'm about to get on your back and demand a damn ride," I said, shifting to my half-merperson form and hopping on. "I will not have it said that I didn't take the opportunity to ride on a motherfucking dragon while I had the chance. So, giddy up, partner."

Ava got on Aira's back right behind me, lovingly sliding her hand along her fiancée's flank. I smirked over my shoulder at her, silently teasing her, but Ava just scoffed.

"You don't get to judge me when I know you pet Milo's pelt all the time," she retorted, poking me in the side. Then she tilted her head, that mischievous glint in her eye. "What's the merman equivalent of a pelt? The cock pocket? I bet you stroke that ."

"Oh, Gods! Ava!" I exclaimed, my cheeks instantly red.

"You should know better than to go toe to toe with me, sugar pop." She grinned before leaning forward to blow a raspberry on my cheek.

Aira turned her head towards us, her neck twisting such that it looked boneless, and gave us a look that said, Are you done bickering back there? I gave her a pat, ignoring the snickering selkie woman at my back.

"Would it hurt you if I held on to your seaweed?" I asked, then almost regretted it when she playfully nipped my leg. I yelped, jerking away from her pointy-ass teeth. "What? What else would you call it?"

Ava snorted. "She's sensitive about it. You can just call it her hair."

"Alright, considering you could eat me in like one bite, I'll call it whatever you want, but that doesn't answer my question." I looked her in the eyes. "I don't want to hurt you."

This seemed to pacify her. She shook her head, and I gave her a pat in return before gripping her… hair… like one might a bridle-less horse. Ava wrapped her arms around my waist, pressing close to me, then said, "Ready when you are, love!"

I didn't have time to analyze how I felt about having my bestie—naked as the day she was born—flush against my back, because we were off. Aira zipped up through the water, picking up speed with each minute as she made her way north towards the drop-off. Her lithe body snaked its way through patches of seaweed, over coral reefs, and around local wildlife. At one point, a frolic of sea sprites zoomed alongside us, all of them giggling with glee, until they fell back again.

Adrenaline coursed through my veins. I was riding on the back of a sea dragon.

An.

Honest to Gods.

Sea.

DRAGON.

How was this real life? How was this reality?

I reached over and pinched myself, just to make sure I wasn't dreaming. This was the stuff of fantasy, and I was living it! Smaller me—the person I was before my mother wrung out every bit of uniqueness and crushed my budding personality—had imagined this, of fantastical worlds. And to think, it had been under my nose the whole time!

Tears of joy sprang to my eyes. My chest felt full to bursting with it. A bubble of laughter escaped me, then another, until I was screaming with it.

I reached for Ava's hands and repositioned them so she was holding on to Aira's hair, and even though she was very close to my nether parts, she didn't say anything. Drawing on all my bravery—and squeezing my thighs as tight as I dared—I let go of Aira's seaweed to extend my arms out on either side of me while squeezing my thighs a little tighter.

"‘I'm the queen of the world!'" I screamed before letting out a whooping howl just like in Jack in the movie Titanic .

Ava snorted behind me, her own laughter turning into a wheeze after a few seconds of me hollering. "You're such a loon!"

"And you like me for that reason!" I replied, before tipping my head back to let the water rush past me.

I'm not sure how long it took us to get to the drop-off, but when we did, Aira abruptly dove toward the bottom. I lurched forward, grabbing on to her hair to keep from falling off. Just when I thought I'd gotten the hang of keeping myself seated, she pivoted upward again, jetting toward the surface faster than I could comprehend. We breached the water, fresh air filling my lungs. Then Aira launched Ava and myself into the air, and I gasped, my body no longer holding on to anything at all. An evil chortle came from the dragon.

Ava, apparently an old hand at this, spread her arms wide, her pelt flying behind her like a superhero cape as she sang, " I believe I can —" before being cut off when she belly-flopped onto the water's surface. Meanwhile, I felt suspended in the air, like time had stopped for a moment—before it caught up with me.

Air rushed around me as I fell, the most pathetic mewling noises slipping from me. The water grew closer and closer until I hit it, feet first. My momentum had me shooting down, down past Ava, past Aira, into the darkness below. Yet, even as the deep enveloped me, I couldn't help but laugh.

I would've kept sinking were it not for the pair of arms that grabbed me around the waist, stopping my descent. It took a solid moment to realize it was Tisa who'd caught me. A smile lit up my face.

"Hello, Rose," she said, moving back just a smidge. "It pleases me to no end to feel your joy."

"Tisa!" I cried out, my heart bursting with happiness at the sight of her.

Her mer form was indescribably beautiful. Like Aira's sea dragon form, her scales shifted to blend in with the water around her in shades of blue, green, and turquoise. She was frilly like I was, wispy fins at her hips, butt, and the end of her tail. She wore nothing to cover her breasts, but she did wear her usual necklaces and bangles.

I couldn't help but close the gap between us and wrap my arms around her. Tisa laughed, the warm sound like waves crashing upon the shore, and embraced me in return. She petted my hair and gave me a squeeze.

"I'm happy to see you, too, sweet Rose," she said, the smile in her voice adding kindling to the joy in my heart.

I pulled away, but not too far. "I didn't realize you could show up in the real world!"

She chuckled. "Of course I can, silly! I'm a goddess. I can go wherever I please!"

"Well, yes," I said, scrambling to find a way to describe why it felt so surreal to have her in person before me, "but now, I guess, it feels so much more real. I mean, unless, of course, you're projecting yourself into my mind and my friends are looking at me like I've lost my marbles."

"I assure you, I'm very real." Tisa gestured toward where my friends—Aira now in human form—were treading water nearby, their eyes wide as they started to comprehend who'd joined us. "Could you introduce me to your friends?"

"Of course!" I beckoned them over, then pointed at Aira. "This is my incredible freaking sea dragon friend, Aira Shioji. And this mischievous creature"—I clapped Ava on the shoulder—"is her mate and fiancée, Ava King. Ava, Aira, this is Atargatis, or Tisa."

"I'm very pleased to meet you both," said Tisa, her eyes twinkling.

"Likewise," said Aira, while Ava just waved.

Abject awe was written across both their faces as they took in the fact that a literal Goddess was so casually among us. They couldn't seem to make themselves say anything more, an unusual feat for my selkie friend especially.

"Would either of you mind terribly if I borrowed Rose for just a moment?" the Goddess asked. "I wish to speak with her."

Ava grinned. "Of course not. Go on ahead."

Tisa grabbed my hand and led me further away from the drop-off, where we could have relative privacy. I wasn't sure whether I should be excited or nervous for the conversation to come.

"How have you been holding up?" she asked when we were far enough away to not be overheard. "Have you been well?"

I blew out a breath, a line of bubbles floating from my mouth up to the surface, before trying to summarize. "It's been… a lot. Apparently, I have not one but two mates. My family has a super-secret legacy I never knew about, and I'm no closer to figuring out how to defeat Joseph than I was before. Oh, and the leaders of the other Otherkind won't let me meet the Hearts of their islands to protect them from Joseph."

"Hmmm." She tapped her chin with a slender finger "I can see why that would be very… emotionally fraught."

"It has been, and I'm sorry that I'm failing at ending Joseph's life." I looked away from her, ashamed. "It's just that, with the auras of the merfolk tied to him, there's no way to defeat him like other merfolk might. Until I can learn how to sever those ties, I can't kill him. I'm not that merciless."

"You've been given an impossible task to deal with on your own. And for that, I'm sorry. I wish there was more I could do to help." The solemnity of her features only made me feel worse. Before I could respond with a rush of apologies for my failures, however, she leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to my cheek, pushing a piece of my hair away from my face. "I'm not supposed to interfere, but I find myself wanting to buck the rules a little when it comes to you, darling girl. I hope a bit of clarity will enlighten your situation, when it comes to all your woes."

I took the covert meaning of those words for what they were: a gift. Though, what exactly she meant by "clarity," I wasn't sure. I nodded and, my voice so quiet it was nearly inaudible, replied, "Thank you."

"I will leave you to enjoy your ‘boy-free time' with your friends." Tisa moved a little bit away from me. "Come visit me anytime you'd like. Maybe we can have another ‘therapy' session together."

I snorted. "Thank you, Tisa. For everything," I said with as much sincerity as I could muster.

After Tisa took her leave, Ava, Aira, and I spent hours exploring the drop-off. Aira made us fly a few more times before we had to hide from a boat topside. After, they took me to see a shipwreck at the bottom of the drop-off, where the sunlight couldn't touch. Of course, there was the copious amount of petting Ava's seal, required as tribute for being allowed in her presence, confirming my opinion that all selkies were dramatic and demanding by nature.

Day turned into night too soon, however, and we were forced to make our way back for my safety's sake. Not even Aira could stave off Joseph's magic if he decided to try to call me to him again.

After our return to their house—and after copious amounts of alcohol, pizza, and other junk food had been consumed—I felt much better about my mate situation. I still wasn't sure how it was going to work. For that, I'd need to talk with Will and Milo. Extensively. Not that I knew where to even start, but I felt well enough to try.

It was about ten-thirty when I, drunk off my ass, decided this was the time to go talk to my mates, to tell them everything in my head and heart. Without announcing my intentions, and despite the yawns I'd been stifling for the last hour, I hobbled off the couch and headed for the door. This was important.

"Where do you think you're going?" Aira asked. She was sprawled out on the couch, her head in Ava's lap.

"I've got to go talk to them. They need to know what I have to say," I replied.

"Yeah, and it will mean less if you are drunk as a skunk, chiquita." Aira waved a hand in my direction. "You should wait until morning when you're sober and can do more than word vomit in their direction."

"But—"

"Besides, you look like you're about to fall asleep, toddler-style." Aira smirked and got out her phone, to message Milo and let him know I'd be staying with them for the night, I assumed.

My shoulders drooped. She was right. Dammit. I trudged back over and flopped onto the couch. "I just worry I'll chicken out if I don't have liquid courage in me," I admitted. "I'm so bad at feelings."

"I have no doubt that you'll figure everything out just fine," she replied.

Ava added, "Milo especially is invested in making this work. As a selkie—and the oldest of the three of you by a landslide—he's been preparing for this his whole life. Hell, he's been fussing around with his den since he discovered you were his mate last year, and now that I know Will is his mate, too, it makes sense why he started remodeling his house a few months ago and bought that orgy-sized bed. We thought he was going overboard, but it seems like he was just trying to make everything perfect."

Aira cupped her hand to the side of her mouth like she was telling a secret. "Selkies go into full nesting mode when they find their mates. Everything has to be just right, or they get cranky."

"We do not!" Ava poked Aira in the ribs, indignant.

"You do, too! How many times did you repaint our bedroom before you broke down and asked me what colors I liked because you were afraid I'd get scared off if you told me you were planning for me?" The softness on Aira's face made my heart melt.

"You know I love both of you, right?" I blurted out. The two of them laughed, and I doubled down. "No, really. I love you, and I'm happy I could have you as my best friends… even if you're weirdos."

I cracked a yawn, my eyelids getting heavy, despite my declaration.

"Well, now I know for certain you need to go to bed, you lush," said Aira, getting up from her spot on the couch.

"Oi! You drank more than me!" I pouted even as I let her tug me to my feet.

"I did, which is why I'm going to bed, too."

Aira bundled me off toward the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face before tossing me a sleep shirt. Before I knew it, she'd guided me to the bedroom I usually borrowed when I stayed over. I got under the covers and didn't even bat an eyelash when Ava shoved a stuffed seal plushie into my arms. I smiled, my eyes slipping closed.

"Sleep well, Rose," said Aira. "You've got a big day tomorrow."

I'm not sure if I said anything in return as I slipped out of consciousness.