Drawn to the Sea

Chapter 5: Dreams Aren't Easy

Douglass

Nate's lineage was a mystery to me, but I knew that he probably wasn't human. His senses, as well as his scent, weren't quite human. I'd never met any creatures from land before, except for when I was much, much younger. That whole ordeal hadn't gone well.

I forced myself to take my mind off that time of my life, having an anxiety attack would help no one.

I shook my head as I swam through the plants that covered the entrance to my cave. I looked around, smiling slightly when I spotted just what I needed for my potion— lava rock. I'd only had to make this particular potion— a healing potion for merfolk when oak entered their systems— when I was younger. I didn't think I'd ever have to use it again, but here I was.

The lava rock wasn't usually included in the mix, but I was a volcanic siren, so lava rock had healing properties for me. Elemental sea witches used things that their elements created to heal— earth used rare plants, air used captured wind, water used rainwater, and so on. A sea witch would be chosen by an element or a natural occurrence to power their magic, and their appearance would reflect it.  Most sea witch's used the elements that ran in their families. While being witches wasn't a species, it was a spiritual thing, most families with witches had a long line of them due to more powerful spiritual energy. I, on the other hand, didn't know who my family was, so being a sea witch was just something I discovered on my own.

I angled my pointed shell and drove it into the weak point in the lava rock. It took a couple blows, but a few pieces broke off and I was able to scoop them into my pouch. The pouch was hanging on a leather cord around my neck, so it was easy to break the rocks loose without worrying about it floating away. Once my pouch was full, I swam back through the roots covering the cave.

When I was back up the stairs, I noticed Nate passed out in the bed. I grumbled slightly, knowing I would have to find another place to sleep until he left. His aura was peaceful, so I let him sleep. He needed it.

I decided to finish my potion, so I put the lava rock into a bowl and started grinding them into dust. Once I was satisfied with how fine the dust was, I measured the right amount and poured it into the cauldron. As I stirred it, the smell of volcanic lava filtered through the room. I glared at the black liquid and grabbed my wand, casting a quick smell dispelling charm to clear the air.

I snuffed out the magic flame under the small cauldron and set it aside to let it cool. I may be a volcanic siren, but drinking burning potions with lava rock in them would go past my heat tolerance.

Deciding that I should get what was left of the awful smell out of my house, I quickly grabbed some sugarbush scent sticks and placed a few in a jar, then lit them on fire to release their scent. Sugarbush had always been a lovely scent to me, it having grown wild in my homeland.

Just thinking of the island where I was born, very much human, made my heart ache with fear and sadness. Even though I knew I wouldn't, couldn't, go back, I longed to see the mountains and the tropical plants and the cove where I'd lived. I rubbed my throat, feeling the scar ever-present, concealed my magic. I'd never be rid of the memories of that island, hidden within the most dangerous seas.

I forced myself out of that dream-like state I'd been trapped in and scooped some of my potion into a ladle. I drank two ladle fulls, then poured the rest into a jar so I'd be able to drink the rest in the next few days. I could already feel myself regaining strength.

I cleaned up my mess, returning ingredients and tools back to their respective places. I'd have to leave the network of caves soon. People, and bad ones at that, knew I was living near the island. I couldn't stay here. I could never stay anywhere, it seemed. Whenever I finally started feeling at home, something happened and I would have to leave. Whether it be days, months, or years, something would go wrong, and people usually ended up hurt. This time I was going to leave before anything else happened.