“Our thanks, Peasant Lady Permelia of No Apparent Consequence.” Segrid took a deep bow, his head dipping. Our eyes met as I glanced down at him and he tossed me a wink. It eased some of the tension riding me. I was beyond nervous.
Straightening, his hand was at my back, guiding me, leaving my hands free, should I feel I needed them. He knew me so well, particularly how defensive I felt sometimes. My heart—hearts in my shifted form, he’d told me, listening to the double thumps in my chest when he’d taken me for a surprise swim in the pond on his property—filled with warmth.
Buzzed in through the first set of doors, Segrid held them open for me, waiting for me to pass him to follow. I could do this, I kept telling myself, even as my nerves threatened to send me into orbit.
Permelia popped through a door to our right at the very end of a long hall. I knew as I nodded and moved to pass her and it hit me, she was… different, something like me but not quite. Strong magicks, they clung to her, thick, heavy, but there was something… not right about them.
My mate’s presence was a balm, right there, always right there. I could do this. It wasn’t just about me anymore. This was for me, Segrid, for the little one growing inside of me. Glancing at my beloved from over my shoulder, I smiled. He was tense, too, I realized as he smiled back but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. The big door Permelia had led us through slammed shut behind us. My hand slapped to my chest and I paused. I’m cool. I’m fine. Deep breath. God, I was so nervous!
What ifs kept playing out. What if I was untrainable in the Elemental Water arts? What if I just sucked? What if they refused to help me? What if I got out of control? What if-
I had to stop doing his to myself.
Humming lightly as she went, Permelia led us through a series of thick doors and hallways, before, finally, down a set of stairs that led us into an underground section.
Stealing peeks at my mate, my Troll stiffened as we stopped in front of a thick, heavy metal door that looked like it was better suited to a submarine. Lifting a card on the lanyard around her neck, Permelia swiped the access card over the key pad. It lit green after a moment and I heard the door’s locks sliding open. With an odd noise the door popped open. It was all very fancy, hightech, and brand new and shiny looking.
The door swung open of its own accord and Permelia stepped through.
“Almost there,” she assured us, but I hesitated when I was meant to step through and follow.
When Seg too hesitated, I was on the verge of hastily backtracking, feet shuffling backwards, when he cleared his throat, allowing me to scuttle back until I was pressed against him, and wrapped an arm around my waist. “No harm shall come to you, my heart,” he murmured in my ear, so quietly I wasn’t certain anyone could overhear. His hand smoothed over my belly, my hands settling over his. Nodding, I took a deep breath and took one step after the other, until I was all the way in the hall, Segrid stepping up right behind me.
Holy crap, we were doing this. This was happening. We-The heavy door slammed shut noisily behind me and I did what I was loath to do but seemed to come naturally to me when I was in one of my high strung episodes, I burst. With a disappointed gurgle at myself, I sat there, all liquid but in one neat little puddle.
A large man with dark green hair, a bruiser of a fella, popped out of a hall door down the left side of the long hall lined with doors. Spotting Permelia, then her shirt, his smile widened into an enormous, goofy grin. “Hello, my luscious- Oh, whoa.” Glancing between Segrid and Per questioningly as my Troll crouched and held his hands out, palms up for me, should I wish him to pick me up. “Hey, man. No need for that,” he told my Troll mate, “we got mops and stuff. Be back in two fans of a Mer-dwyn’s tail.”
Troll let out a vicious growl that, if I was able, I’d be smiling at.
“Brushe, babe, bad time and commentary.” Lifting a hand, waving it at him to shut it, she shook her head and gestured at me with her free hand. “That’s not a mess. That's his… erm. That’s...” Per blurted with a wide eyed look and a short, worried laugh. “Does she- Does this happen a lot?” she bent to whisper to Segrid.
“Uhm…” Brushe threw his hands up. “No harm, no foul, Troll dude. You wanna play in your own wetness, be my guest, I mean, hey, it happens to the best of us. Who hasn’t pissed themsel-”
Permelia, pinching the bridge of her nose, straightening to stand there poking, tapping, prodding, and was now backhanding the enormous male with her other hand. She’d been calling his name, softly at first, then louder, for quite some time, until finally hissing, “Would you shut up and listen to me for one minute, you coral headed oaf?!”
“Huh? What was that, little buddy?” The large male tossed an arm around what I assumed to be considered, at least by him, his female, and he jerked her into his side. Bending his tall frame, he placed a smacking kiss atop her head that had the scowl she was pegging him with softening.
“That,” she pointed at me as my Troll crouched over me protectively, “is his Queen.” Her hands lifted, flailing in tight little circles of confusion. “She just kinda… bam, sploosh, splash, into liquid. She… puddled?”
Brushe blinked and glanced down at me. “She bam-sploosh-splashed, huh?”
“You mock my Queen, little fish man?” A deadly tone entered my King’s voice. He was usually so sweet and silly, fun. I hadn’t taken into account how stressful this all might be for him as well. We were both going into this blindly. A worried burble left me.
Brushe glanced from me to my beloved. Quickly diverting his gaze, as if sensing the direct threat glaring at him, he whispered through the side of his mouth at Permelia, “Like, I saw a definiteshecoming, you know, like a solid form, not… Should that be happening?” His finger flicked out, briefly encompassing me.
A low growl built in my male’s throat and his lips pulled back. Well, shit! The green haired guy was obviously too stupid to live. How had this gone so badly so fast?!
Scared this was all going straight to the crapper, I struggled to pull myself together. The harder I tried as my anxiety over all of this built, the harder it was. Typical.
At Segrid’s growl, a strange noise erupted down the hall.
“Damn.” Brushe cursed under his breath.
“Damn? What do you mean damn?” Permelia’s eyes widened, her gaze darting about.
Brushe glanced back down the hall from over his shoulder and bit his lip. “Cavalry’s here. He’s not supposed to be here yet,” he whispered.
And then something came charging through the double doors at the end of the hall.Someone, I corrected, a tall, gangly male who had very fishy like features that continued to morph as he moved. They grew more webbed and fishlike as he approached. No, not approached—as hestalkedcloser. A soft, trilling sound followed from the doors he’d just burst through, the odd shriek he let loose in answer, calling to her to stay put, and how I knew that I had no idea, had me calming fractionally. He wasn’t going to hurt us. He was protecting his family, his female and young.
