Sea Dweller (Birthstone Series) (8 page)

“I meant about being okay.
Was there anything else that happened tonight?” He was fishing for something
but I didn’t know what. They couldn’t suspect that I’d found a stone.

“If you’re talking about the
Vairdan legends, I only heard one and it was ridiculous. How could anyone
believe in magical stones and people who live underwater?” I laughed weakly,
feeling as though I was betraying my new religion.

“It’s not
all
stupid,
Aylen. Some parts of their beliefs are true. Legends come from somewhere.” Mom
touched my cheek tenderly, the way she used to all through my younger years.

“I never thought I would hear
you defend any Vairdan traditions. What parts do you believe in, Mom?” I
glanced at her quickly, betting she wouldn’t be willing to continue the
conversation after such a question. I’d guessed right.

“We should probably talk
about that later.” She gave me a knowing smile. “It’s very late and you need to
get to bed. You can sleep in if you want.” After she and my father kissed me on
the forehead, I rose and made my way into my partitioned section of the hut. My
storage chest sat in the corner and I rummaged through it, looking for fresh
clothing to sleep in. When I’d found what I was looking for, I peeled off the
wet gown Haji had loaned me and pulled my night garments over my head.
Afterwards, I combed the wet tangles from my hair.

When I was ready for bed, I
untied the gem from the dress to make sure it was safe. It glowed as brightly
indoors as it had on the beach and I clapped my hands over it to keep its light
from spreading. Reaching into my clothing trunk, I retrieved the small scrap of
fabric I’d saved from a favorite dress I’d outgrown years ago. Usually, I used
such things as rags but I’d always thought this particular piece of fabric too
pretty. I wrapped it around the gem until I was sure it was properly contained.
Satisfied, I concealed the bundle at the bottom of my chest. With my mind
racing in spite of my spent body, I fell back on my mat, wondering if I would
ever sleep again.

I woke to the sound of
chattering birds and vibrant noon sunlight filtering through the walls.
Stretching, I groaned silently as my sore muscles pulled and protested. I’d
been strong with the gem while in the water, but now, without its power I felt
as though I’d emerged from a typhoon.

Outside the hut, my parents
spoke too softly for me to hear what they were saying, but I had no doubt it
was about me. Pushing myself to a sitting position, I blinked once and my eyes
fell on the rumpled clothing I’d borrowed from Haji the night before. I would
have to wash and return them I realized. It was a good excuse to make a trip to
the river.

 I quickly dressed myself in
a pair of woven shorts and a blue dyed wrap for the top half of my body.
Grabbing the borrowed clothing, I walked swiftly out of the hut. My parents
were seated outside, their face anxious as they watched me.

“Sleep well?” my mother
asked.

“Yes, but not nearly enough.”
I stifled a yawn. “I need to wash Haji’s clothes. Is it okay if I run to the
river?”

“Of course.” Dad smiled at
me. Hesitating, he said, “Sai stopped by this morning.”

My facial muscles froze in
place. “What did he say?”

“He told us that he’s ready
to talk anytime you’re ready.” Mom cast a sympathetic look in my direction.

I shrugged, a careless
gesture, as though it would dismiss my feelings for him. “I’ll be back soon.
Save me some breakfast.” I waved behind me as I left, hoping my parents
wouldn’t see through my indifference.

The stream wasn’t as full of
bathers as it had been the day before, but there were still a large number of
women washing clothing and lingering plant dyes from their skin. I eyed
everyone warily, wondering if somebody would mention my presence the night
before. It didn’t take long. While immersed in scrubbing Haji’s clothing, a
Lailien woman approached me.

“Good to see you at the
festival, Aylen. You didn’t stay long, but still, it was nice to see you
there.”

“It was nice to be there,” I
lied.

“It seemed to mean a lot to
Faema to be supported by her friend. She must have really been touched to
announce your attendance.”

“Oh, she was definitely
touched,” I muttered.

“Sai seems to enjoy her
company, although he took off not long after you did.”

“Really?” I couldn’t help
smiling a little. “I can’t imagine where he went.”

“I think their parents are
really pushing for a marriage between them soon.”

I didn’t answer so the woman
continued, apparently enjoying hearing herself talk more than I was.

“It’s a good match. Both are
strong members of the village. Faema is the chief’s daughter and Sai comes from
a notable family. What do you think?”

I thought I felt sick. “I
don’t really have any opinion about what Faema and Sai do.” I wrung out Haji’s
clothing, stood, and cast the woman an apologetic smile as I turned to leave. I
kept my eyes locked on my feet as I walked, hoping to avoid any more unwanted
conversations. I didn’t get far before I sensed someone nearby. Glancing up, I
halted when I saw Faema standing a few feet in front of me, blocking my path.

“Did you have fun last night,
Aylen?” she asked, her arms folded across her chest. Purple paint was still
smudged around her eyelids, creating the illusion of someone who hadn’t slept
in weeks. In spite of this, Faema looked beautiful, her hair cascading around
her shoulders in creamy waves. I almost twitched with annoyance. No wonder Sai
had kissed her.

“It was amazing,” I answered,
thinking of my gem. To be polite, I added, “I hope yours was just as fun.” I
worked at keeping my face smooth, impassive. A shadow passed over Faema’s
features for a moment but evaporated quickly.

“Of course. Sai and I had a
wonderful time. You might have had more fun with an escort but I think it would
have been difficult to find you one at such short notice. After all, your
attendance surprised many of us.”

“I almost didn’t go, but I’m
glad I did. It was a very eye opening night.” I continued to stare at Faema,
hoping to appear unruffled.

“I’m sure it was a difficult
realization to come to when you saw that Sai was in love with me. It must have
been hard, but the truth is always better, isn’t it?”

“Actually,” I said, as I
sidestepped around her, “I wasn’t referring to that.” I continued through the
forest, feeling Faema’s eyes bore into my back but I kept my gait light,
knowing the last thing I needed was Faema thinking I was bothered by anything
she’d said.

Back at home, I hung Haji’s
clothes on a tree limb to dry, ate a quick meal, and packed a small bag of
supplies for the day, my gem being the most important item. As a precaution, I
grabbed one of the spears my father used for fishing and decided to bring it
along. I’d need an alibi and spear fishing was the best I could think of.

When I approached my parents
for permission to leave, they weren’t as comfortable with the idea as I’d hoped.

“You had a long night, last
night. Can’t you stay with us today?” my mother asked.

“I need more responsibility.
I’d like to start helping with meals. You trusted me enough to go to the
festival last night and I followed your rules. Don’t you think you could trust
me enough to do a little fishing?”

“Aylen,” my father began,
“you’re asking a lot. It wouldn’t be so bad if you had Sai with you but since
you’re upset with him, you’ll be alone. It’s not a good idea to go off in the
ocean by yourself. Who knows what could happen?”

“Vairdan kids do it all the
time, Dad. You should be thrilled I’m asking to take on extra chores.”

“We just want to keep you
safe,” Mom said, trying not to wring her hands.

“From what? Sea monsters? I
don’t believe in any of that stuff.”

They ignored that particular
comment. “Why don’t you ask Haji to go?” my father suggested. “If she’s willing
to accompany you, I think it might be alright.”

I looked from face to face.
Really, they were ridiculously overprotective. Did they actually think I needed
Haji to babysit sit me just for a little spear fishing?

“Fine. I’ll ask Haji to come
with me. Will that ease some of your concern?” I hated lying to my parents but
in the last few days, it seemed to be a fast growing habit. I couldn’t think of
a time when being dishonest with my parents had ever been an option, but with
the discovery of the gem and my growing desire to figure out what my parents
were hiding, it was becoming dangerously easy. I didn’t like it and I squirmed
as the words left my mouth.

“If she says no, you come
back, alright?” My mother looked into my eyes, searching them for sincerity. I
looked away.

“Sure, I’ll be back later
with some food.” I kissed both parents on the cheek and wasted no time in
leaving before they could change their minds.

When I reached Lailie,
several villagers still straggled on the streets, unwilling to end the
celebration from the night before. Most were intoxicated or too sleep deprived
to notice that much of the town was being cleaned up and the party was over. I
made it to Haji’s hut before anyone spotted me or tried to strike up a
conversation.

Haji answered her door after
only a couple quiet taps. A fleeting look of surprise passed over her face when
she saw me. “I didn’t think you’d be back in town so quickly after last night.”

I waved her concern away. “I
needed to return your clothing so I thought I would drop them off before I
headed out to the beach.”

“You’re going swimming?” Haji
looked me up and down for a moment, her eyes resting on my attire.

“I’m going to help my parents
with food gathering.”

She tried to conceal another
look of surprise. I couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, good luck. Thanks for
bringing the clothes back. You really didn’t have to get them back so fast.”

“I washed them this morning.
Sorry they’re a little damp.”

Haji gathered them in her
arms and smiled gratefully.

I swallowed hard, hesitating
before I said, “I hope I didn’t ruin things with you and Faema. I’ve been
worried that because of me, they won’t want you around them anymore.”

This time, Haji laughed.
“They never wanted me around too much anyway. My parents have always been at
odds with Chief Frin over how he runs things so it’s not easy to bond with
Faema while our parents are always disagreeing. Besides, I think she’s more
upset by Sai’s reaction to what happened last night.”

“Sai’s reaction?” I asked.

“Didn’t he find you?”

“Yes, but we didn’t speak
much. I wasn’t ready to talk to him so I just went home.”

Haji’s eyes grew wide at
this. “Well, he was really upset with Faema and after verbally mashing her to
papaya pulp he took off to find you. She’s still convinced he’s going to ask
her to marry him once he gets you out of his life.”

I smiled at this but quickly
hid it behind a dismissive shake of my head. “I don’t care what Sai does or
what Faema thinks. After last night, I don’t know who to believe.”

“I understand,” Haji
sympathized, “but Sai really did seem sorry.”

“Yeah, but did you see his
performance of the king last night? He’s an amazing actor.” I did an imitation
of Sai growling at the audience. Haji cracked up.

 “‘Amazing’ wasn’t quite the
word to describe it. I think your impression of him is better than his acting
job.” She giggled and I couldn’t help but join in.

“Okay,” I admitted. “Maybe
‘amazing’ wasn’t the right word. How about eager? Or overzealous?” Haji laughed
louder and I grinned.

Haji’s giggles died down and
I glanced up at the sky, frowning at the palpable haziness. “I should get
going. I’m not sure how long the weather is going to hold,” I said, feeling a
creepy prickle on the back of my neck. A strange current electrified the air
and somewhere in the back of my mind, I felt as if there was a reason I should
be on edge.

“Do you want me to come?”
Haji asked.

“No,” I shook my head. “I
wanted to practice alone. I always feel so self-conscious when you Vairdan
master swimmers are around.”

Haji laughed good naturedly.
“Fine, but if you change your mind, come get me.” Gripping her clothing, she
waved and shut her door. I sighed in relief, turning to leave. The day was
mine.

There were several locations
I hoped to swim that day but wanted to start off near Sai’s cove. Immense and
filled with colorful fish and thriving reefs, it was a place I’d always felt
incapable of diving. With all the time Sai had spent diving it, he knew it
better than he knew his way home but I had always felt inexperienced when I
attempted to explore such a vast area.

Concerned Sai might be
nearby, I kept to a concealed area of the beach where palms and sea grass hid
me from view. I figured I could enter the cove once I was underwater and was
sure no one was watching.

A few minutes later, under
the cover of trees, I plucked my gem from my satchel. I peered out of the
foliage for a while, watching the beach to be sure no one was near. Confident I
was alone, I edged closer to the waterline, feeling conspicuous in the glaring
light of day.