The End of Innocence: Book 3 of the Kinstone series
Chapter 31: Respite by the lake

The walk to the lake has always been nice and long. Well it is a little over a mile from the Manor, and generally takes me less than an hour to reach it. But it’s still not that bad of a walk. In fact sometimes it takes me even less.

Either way, I feel better than sitting in my room brooding. The path had been well-trodden, with my near-constant trips along it.

As we pass by the pastures, I hear distant bleating of sheep. Standing watch of them were their kobold shepherds. They’re too far away to make out who exactly is there, but I could tell that the pups aren’t with them. I thought about going over to help out at some point, possibly adding to a list of things to keep myself occupied while Rachel’s away.

The pastures further down bore less than a hundred beef and dairy cattle, all grazing upon the grass. Holtsaurs tended to the dairy cows, with a small contingent of Minotaurs handling the beef cattle. I have to giggle as the kobolds not only dealt with the sheep, but also help raise hundreds of chickens and pigs. A couple dozen yards from their homes stood a few large coops and pens where they fed and raised the animals.

When we drew upon the fields, tall stalks of corn, wheat, appearing to stretch into the sky. The orchards and groves lay just a couple hundred yards away. Even from this distance, I can make out the distinct shapes of fruit.

It would still be a few more months before they were ripe enough to be harvested. The crops this year could possibly bear a substantial yield, which would make everyone happy.

I loved how the Estate was largely, if not entirely, self-sufficient. We grew and raised nearly everything we needed, so there was little need to ship in food. There was also the greenhouse, which was a source of food. In a brief moment, my melancholy lifted, but soon returns once I move on.

When we arrive at the lake, I immediately head for the outcropping. I sit down onto the rocks, placing the bag beside me. Fenris lies beside me as I listen to the water as it slaps into the rock face. The sky is still bright and mostly clear, but shows the telltale signs of being mid-afternoon.

Shadows cast lightly from a few of the trees which line the shores. The tree behind me sways as the wind blows into it, watching the surface of the water moving faster towards me.

I draw my legs onto the rock, wrapping my arms under them. I gaze out onto the lake, seeing the distant hills that border it, and fully visible in the sunlight. My hair drapes over my back, feeling it baking in the sunlight.

I hear the sound of something coming out of the water, coming closer to me. “Princess?”

I look up to see Tariel swimming towards me. “Are you all right sweetie?”

I sigh into my knees, “Rachel and Silvi both left for England over an hour ago, and Velhemina has gone too.”

She floats up to the rock. I bury my face into my knees, “This feels so much like the day I came back from Georgia after dealing with my family. Only now it feels ten times worse. This whole ‘urgent need’ for a meeting makes zero sense and I have the case of ‘I have a bad feeling about this’.”

My arms wrap even tighter around my legs as my frustration grows. Something bad is coming, but I don’t want to believe or accept it. That or my paranoia really is starting to creep in on me.

A cold, wet hand rests on my leg. I pop my head up, seeing Tariel floating next to me. “Would you like to join me Aria? You don’t even have to transform.”

I lean back and slide off my sandals and pull off my jacket, placing both next to my bag.

She smiles, “You came prepared.”

I giggle, lowering onto the shore below, slipping into the water. The mermaid quickly wraps her arms around me, floating us some distance from the shore. It felt a little strange swimming in the water and not having transformed.

She gently spins me around to where my back rests against her chest, with her holding me from under my arms. I lay my head back, placing it onto her chest. She gently strokes my hair, pouring water over it with every pass.

“With everything that’s been going on, I’m so sorry that I haven’t been down to see any of you,” I sigh, feeling her tail kick us a little more into the water.

“Shhh, you’re fine sweetie. We understand completely. You’ve been playing with a new friend as the rumor has gone.”

My hands cling to her arms, still feeling her hand stroking the top of my hair, “She’s...different I’ll give her that and I want to think of her as a friend. But being with her only makes me miss Jenn and the others all the more, both Coven and yokai.” She nods gently as we float.

I let out a slight groan, “And here I was, hoping to go to Nerazon and spend the weekend there.”

She kisses the top of my head, “But as you know, if her Ladyship leaves, you must remain behind to watch over to Estate.”

I sigh, closing my eyes, “I know it’s just…just this entire thing make absolutely no sense.”

I felt like crumbling into her arms. This isn’t entirely what I was planning when I made the decision to come down the lake. I really wanted to have some place to think and melt away my depression.

“The Estate just feels empty without them here,” I whisper.

The last time I felt this way was when I returned from Georgia after my fallout with my family. I was already feeling down and dejected during the whole trip and knew seeing either of the three would instantly lift my spirits.

My mind was pretty much out it of during the entire trip from the airport to the Estate. But upon my arrival I learned all three had left. So that left me with no one to turn to.

Tariel smiles, squeezing my body gently, “They will return to you. Just have to be patient.”

Patient, a term and virtue I’m known to possess, but at times let slide. I spent a year and a half waiting to return to Japan, so what were a few days compared to that? I feel my hair drifting in the water, floating heavily.

The lake was quiet, with only the sounds of water gently tossing about being heard. Thoughts and worries still persist in my mind, swirling around like a torrential storm. It’s like standing on a boat in the middle of a raging hurricane, rain beating down upon you and the winds keep spinning you around, never letting you find the way through.

We float further from the shore, but more like we were following the ebbing tides. Her hand stroked my hair, feeling myself drifting deeper into peaceful serenity. Soft humming soon fills my ears, feeling the body I rested upon rumbling gently, as its arms holding me even tighter.

Hibp aeoh iaib, ga qhiwyeob wdyzm

Zip pdi cupih beepdi aeoh diuhp

Y qhua aeoh bziiq pe ki gyzm

Bcyg bcyjpza be aeoh mhiugb gua bpuhp

(Rest your eyes, my precious child

Let the water soothe your heart

I pray your sleep to be mild

Swim swiftly so your dreams may start)

A timid smile rose on my face, somehow feeling like a little mer-child in her arms. It was a mer-lullaby parents sang to their child right before bed. She had never done it before, at least not to my knowledge.

If I wasn’t able to transform into mermaid, it’d still be incredibly beautiful to listen to. But her words and song reverberated in my mind, more powerfully than a normal human could ever truly hope to comprehend.

My eyes slowly open, heart beating gently in my chest. “Thanks Tariel,” I whisper, feeling our bodies bobbing on the water.

She places a kiss onto the top of my head, “You are quite welcome, my sweet Aria.” She holds me tighter against her body, stroking my hair. “So, with your mother gone, do you still have things to keep you occupied?”

I gaze out onto the lake, eyes drifting about, “I still have a few models to build, a few yokai and fae tomes I need to go over.”

She smiles, “Good, having such activities will help pass the time until her return.”

Yeah…I still have my backlog from Asha, not to mention that Titania left me yet another little present on my balcony this morning. I really wasn’t kidding to Rachel about running into the fairy queen. I knew the two of them would have a lot to talk about, mostly me of course.

There were a few times I imagined her appearing beside me while resting in my glen. By this point, I'm no longer afraid of her, but had come to like her a great deal.

I peer back over toward the Manor, “Do you think I’ll have to do anything around the house since she’s gone? Like handle any pressing decisions related to her work?”

The mermaid chuckles softly, “No. Your mother’s businesses can manage in her absence, and Sebastian can handle the day-to-day operations of the Estate. So do not trouble yourself.”

I rest my head onto her chest, panning over the hillside. “Still sucks that I won’t get to go with you this weekend.”

She kicks her tail a little more, “I’ll have the girls tell Savero if they see him. It’ll sting for a moment, but he’ll get over it.”

I sigh, “I just don’t know why he hasn’t come to visit us here.”

Her arms tighten around my tiny frame, “He is a prince after all. So it’s probably very hard for him to slip away, given all of his duties. But I know for a fact he misses you.” I giggle, feeling my cheeks burning.

Savero, much like Titania, still sends me little messages from time to time, letting me know that he misses me and wishes for me to visit. He could also come and visit me here on the Estate, but as Tariel stated, he’s been really busy dealing with the city. We kept in touch, using the message stones or the merfolk equivalent on his end. Still, nothing really beats meeting in person.

We finally drift back to the shore, where Fenris has been resting the entire time I was out on the lake. Tariel rolls me around, swirling water around us, lifting us out of the water, and gently placing me back onto the outcropping. Sᴇaʀch Thᴇ ꜰindNʘvel.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

My body feels heavy while lying there on the hot stone. She leaned over and caressed my face, “Feeling better now?”

I bob my head, “Thanks Tariel.”

She smiles, kissing my cheek, “You are welcome Aria. The girls will be heading to Nerazon as planned, but Sayla and I will remain here. So do come by the grotto if you wish.”

I sigh, sitting up on the rock, hair clinging to my body. I needed this, just some time to get my head back on straight.

A light then pops in my head, “Oh yeah, with Marron back, I can give her a call to come over. That’s if she’s not busy of course.”

The mermaid grins, “I heard she had returned. So you see? You have yet another person to turn to.”

I giggle, stretching my body. I lean over to my bag and pull out my phone, 4:00. My eyes go wide, “Wow. I’ve been out here for a couple hours; did I fall asleep or something?”

She chuckles, “No, but time, much like the water we call home, flows without end or care to the world around it.”

I giggle, looking to her, “I should go. I asked Sebastian to have dinner ready by 6:00.”

She grins, ’You should better get going then,” leaning in and kissing my forehead.

I smile up to her, “I’ll see you later Tariel.”

She slowly recedes back into the water, floating there, “Until then Princess.” We wave to each other as she disappears into the water.

I pull out my towel and started to dry myself off. It felt nice and warm after sitting in my bag for a couple hours. I rose to my feet, slipping my feet back into my sandals, put back on my jacket.

Fenris stood up, yawning and stretching out his body. I smile over to him, “Have a nice sunbath Papa Wolf?”

His body shook off the fatigue, “That I did, little Aria. The sun is full of wonders.”

I hoist the bag over my shoulder, “Same can be said with the water.”

He peers to me, “Hungry, little one?”

I step over him, digging my fingers into his warm dark fur, “Yep, let’s get going before everyone starts to worry.” The wolf turns for the Manor, with me next to him.

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