The Price of Memories

        Deep in the wild, tangled woods that bordered the castle, there was a clearing. In and of itself, this clearing was nothing special; just one of many in the large forest. What made this one in particular stand out was the pool nestled at its center. Almost perfectly round, the pool was ringed by stones that just barely stopped the water from spilling out across the forest floor.

Few people knew about this clearing, and fewer still visited, considering the reputation the clearing and its pool had. But there were still some that would risk the rumored danger to visit the pool. Some were brave. Some were foolish.

Some were desperate.

Tonight, it was desperate footsteps that made their way through the forest, disturbing the night silence with the sounds of snapping branches and crackling leaves. Desperate footsteps that stopped abruptly as their owner stumbled into the clearing and tripped over an exposed root. They managed to regain their balance just before tumbling into the pool, and quickly scurried back a few paces.

Once their breathing had steadied, they carefully crept back to the edge of the pool. They pulled down their hood, revealing long auburn hair that disappeared into the neck of the cloak and dark eyes that carefully searched their surroundings. As they moved, the moonlight glinted off of the ruby and gold circlet they wore that declared to anybody watching that this was the crown princess of the realm.

The princess stared down into the pool for a few long moments, then she carefully unclasped her cloak with shaking fingers and swept it off her shoulders. She took a moment to fold it neatly and set it down far away from the pool, as if to prevent it from getting wet, then she pulled the circlet from her head and tucked it into one of the folds of the cloak.

With her preparations complete, the princess turned back to the pool. She took a deep breath, then, before she could lose her nerve, she closed her eyes and jumped into the pool.

She sank quickly, her skirts billowing in the water, until her feet sunk into the soft sand at the bottom of the pool. The princess hazarded opening her eyes, but the bottom of the pool was dark, the weak moonlight unable to pierce this deep.

There was a chuckle from behind her, and the princess barely managed to suppress a gasp before she inhaled water. She whirled around as fast as she could in the water, but she still couldn’t make anything out in the darkness that surrounded her.

The next moment, something slashed at her neck, and this time the princess couldn’t hold back her instinctive cry of pain.

“Calm down little one, it’s a small price to pay in order to breathe.”

The princess blinked as the magic took hold and the water around her began to lighten, like the sky before the dawn. Slowly, her “attacker” came into view.

She was lounging on an outcropping of rock that seemed shaped for this very purpose, her tail flicking lazily as she watched the princess. Her upper half almost resembled a human, except for the gills and the dorsal fin and the scales that covered her arms and back. Around her waist though, her body changed from human to fish; sleek, scaley, and with spines that looked like they would hurt if touched.

The waterkind grinned, and the princess noticed just how sharp her teeth were. “Fish got your tongue, girl?”

The first step is always the hardest, the princess told herself, and she forced herself to breathe in despite every instinct screaming at her not to. But the magic was working, and she didn’t choke on water like she half-expected to.

“I’m here to ask for help.” The princess’s voice was small and timid compared to the bored tone of the waterkind. Volume obviously didn’t matter though, as the waterkind tilted her head, still with that sharp smile.

“It will cost you.”

“I know.”

The waterkind pushed herself off of her rocky ledge and closed the distance between them. The princess unconsciously held her breath, afraid of doing something wrong and angering the waterkind.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had a visitor,” the waterkind mused, drifting in lazy circled around the princess. “Longer still since I’ve had a visit from royalty.”

The princess couldn’t help a small gasp of surprise. “How did you know?”

The waterkind laughed at that. “My magic is strongest in these waters, true, but I am still able to exert some influence on the dry land. And I would be a fool not to keep an eye out for anybody wishing to visit me. Especially when they are as intriguing and desperate as you are.”

“I’m not desperate,” the princess bluffed with bravado she didn’t feel.

With a hiss, the waterkind was suddenly in the princess’s face. The princess yelped, staggering back a few paces, but the waterkind easily kept pace with her clumsy movements.

“Let’s get one thing clear here, princess,” the waterkind said in a low, sweet voice that didn’t cover the menacing tone one bit. “You came here for my help. If you want it, you do not lie to me. Understood?”

The princess nodded, her heart in her throat.

“Understood?”

“I understand.”

“Good.” The waterkind smirked, then drifted away again, resuming her indifferent act. “Now then, what drives a lovely young princess such as yourself to such dangerous waters so late at night?”

The princess took a deep breath to try and steady herself before she spoke. “I want an escape.”

“An escape from what?”

“This. Everything.” The princess was ashamed of how tears stung her eyes. She knew she wasn’t supposed to ever show any weakness, but she’d always been so quick to cry.

The waterkind hummed thoughtfully. “That is a very broad request,” she mused. “With many possible solutions. Which are you searching for?”

Be decisive, whispered a voice that sounded like her mother’s, but it had been hard enough to even decide that she wanted to try to run, so the princess looked down at her feet and whispered, “I don’t know.”

The waterkind tsked, and the princess flinched, expecting a harsh reprimand. “You may not consciously know,” the waterkind said, “but surely some part of you has an answer for me.”

“And your kind is skilled at blood magic,” the princess finished softly.

“Precisely. Is that a path you are willing to tread, little one?”

This, at least, the princess could answer easily. “Yes,” she said, raising her eyes to meet the waterkind’s pitch-black gaze. “It is.”

“Very well.” The waterkind swam close again, slowly circling the princess like a shark. “It won’t hurt for long,” she promised, then her teeth sank into the princess’s neck.

Despite anticipating it, the princess couldn’t help her cry of shock or the instinct to jerk away. The waterkind had apparently anticipated her reaction though, because the princess found herself held in place, unable to flee even if she consciously wanted to.

After what felt like an eternity, the waterkind released the princess. The princess only barely managed to stay on her feet, but the tears were flowing freely now and there was nothing she could do to stop them.

The waterkind drifted back into view and settled back on her ledge before speaking again. “An interesting dilemma you have, little one.”

“Can you help me?” the princess asked.

“Of course,” the waterkind replied dismissively. “The real question is, are you prepared to pay the price?”

“What is your price?”

The waterkind hummed thoughtfully, her tail flicking almost absentmindedly behind her. “A princess who no longer wants to be a princess, or even a girl.”

The princess gasped sharply as the waterkind put into words everything she’d been forcing herself to ignore.

“Blood doesn’t lie, little one.”

“I… I know.” The princess took a shaky breath to try and compose herself, and resisted the urge to scrub away the tears that had already disappeared into the water. “So name your price.”

There was a pause, but the princess couldn’t bring herself to look at the waterkind, couldn’t bear the judgement she might find in the other’s expression.

“Your memories.”

The princess blinked at how simple the request was. “What type of memory?”

“Oh no little princess, not a memory.” The waterkind bared bloody teeth in the facsimile of a smile. “All of your memories.”

For a moment, the price felt more like a blessing than a curse. Being able to escape and forget all the reasons why she’d wanted to run in the first place sounded practically perfect.

But then the princess remembered the first time she’d met her little brother, how his eyes had always been just as dark, just as curious as hers since the day he was born. All the golden afternoons she’d spent out on the castle lawn, or roaming the gardens with her childhood friends. The subtle and rare gleam of pride in her mother’s eye whenever she did something right. Not all of her memories were bad. Not all of them were so easy to throw away.

Giving up the bitter and the sweet together. That was the waterkind’s price.

The princess took a deep breath, then met the waterkind’s gaze steadily.

“Deal.”

~

Auburn eyelashes fluttered and slowly opened to reveal dark, unfocused eyes. A few blinks more, then the person they belonged to slowly sat up to take in their surroundings.

They were laying on a beach, the waves lapping at their ankles. The sun was low on the horizon, just brushing the water, and from somewhere far off the sea breeze carried the sound of a seagull cawing. That same sea breeze played with their hair, sending one short lock tumbling in front of their eyes.

“Hey!”

They gasped and spun around at the sudden voice. A girl had appeared over the dunes at the edge of the beach and was now racing towards them.

The girl fell to her knees in the sand, taking no heed of the water soaking into her skirts. “What are you doing here?” she asked, almost blurring the words together as she spoke quickly. “Are you alright? Were you shipwrecked?”

They blinked, not quite sure how to respond to the sudden barrage of questions. “I… I don’t remember.”

“Oh you poor thing.” The girl immediately began to fuss over them, combing through their hair with a surprising combination of haste and carefulness. “I can’t see any injuries, at least.”

“Katherine!” A boy appeared from the same dune the girl had, and when he caught sight of the pair, he hurried to join them. “I thought Da told you to stop running off,” he admonished.

“Yes, but I wasn’t about to leave a potential shipwreck victim to be washed out to see again Matthew,” Katherine retorted.

“Don’t see no sign of a shipwreck around here,” Matthew pointed out.

“Hush you,” Katherine reprimanded as she turned back to them. “Do you remember anything? Your name, where you came from?”

A wisp of a memory came to them then, of bright sun, laughing voices, a name called in a strangely familiar voice. The name wasn’t theirs, maybe, but the more they rolled it around their tongue, the heavier it sat, until they thought it might just fit.

So he took a deep breath, met Katherine’s curious blue eyes, and told her, “My name is Ronan.”

He hesitated, then added, “And I don’t remember anything else.”

“Well then, Ronan from Nowhere.” Katherine sat back on her heels. “I’m Katherine, this worrywart is my brother Matthew,” Matthew rolled his eyes, “and we’re currently sitting on the east coast of the Isle of Koui. Is any of this ringing a bell?”

Ronan shook his head.

“Well then,” Matthew spoke up before his sister could, which Ronan thought was an impressive feat. Matthew held out a hand, and Ronan stared up at him in confusion. “Come on,” Matthew prompted. “We’ll take you home with us, and Ma can make sure you’re not hurt, then we can figure out where you’ll go from there.”

“Oh, uh, alright.” Ronan took Matthew’s hand and let the other boy help him to his feet. “Thank you.”

Matthew shrugged easily. “Not like I’d leave a helpless kid like you out here on your own. Plus then Katherine can stop giving me those puppy eyes.”

“Am not!” Katherine protested as she scrambled to her feet, shoving away Matthew’s hand as he offered help. “We’re just over the dunes there, it’s not far,” she added, turning to Ronan. “You think you can make it on your own?”

“I think so,” Ronan said.

“Good. Come on!” With that, Katherine spun on her heel and dashed off across the beach and up the dunes. Matthew rolled his eyes and followed her, albeit much slower, and Ronan hurried to keep up with them.

As Ronan reached the top of the dunes though, something prompted him to look back towards the ocean. A few feet away from the shore, a head poked out of the water, watching Ronan with eyes that he knew were pitch-black even from this distance.

Another wisp of a memory drifted by; A dark clearing, sharp teeth flashing through the water, a glimmer of gold and red abandoned in the folds of a cloak. A deal struck, something lost, but so much more potentially gained.

Ronan raised a hand in farewell, and the waterkind disappeared beneath the waves with a flick of her tail.

“Ronan?” Katherine asked. She and Matthew had paused a few yards ahead to wait for him. “What are you looking at?”

“Nothing.” Ronan let his hand fall. “Thought I saw something, but it was nothing. I’m coming.”

And without another glance back, Ronan started down the other side of the dune, towards Katherine and Matthew, towards his future.