“It can be anything, really,” Prentis said. “A garland of flowers, a stick of incense, or even a small parcel of food. Ideally, you should bring an offering you’ve prepared yourself. But the priestess will understand that you haven’t had time, given the situation,” he added at the dismayed look on my face. “Simply picking something from the market is good enough, so long as you put some thought into it.”
“Great,” I muttered under my breath. “No pressure.”
We spent a good hour wandering the market, looking for something suitable. There were so many amazing things to choose from—bolts of silk, jars of tea and spices, crystals and charms and sweets galore. I would have been swept away by the dizzying array of choices if we’d just come to shop for ourselves. But the fact that I had to choose a temple gift, that first impressions were on the line, added a sense of urgency to what should have been a leisurely outing.
Eventually, I decided on a box of assorted candies. They were brilliantly colored and molded into a variety of shapes—stars, diamonds, hearts, marbles—and the watertight box was shaped like a little chest. It made me think of treasure chests full of jewels that an intrepid explorer might find in the belly of an undersea shipwreck, and I hoped the priestess would appreciate it.
“Finally!” Cascada exclaimed as we met her and Einar in the center of the bazaar. She had two bags clutched in her hands, and judging by the mountain of parcels Einar was carrying, it looked like that wasn’t all she’d bought. “Let’s get back to the carriage. My arms are going to fall off if I have to carry these packages for another minute.”
Einar rolled his eyes from behind her. “You’re a Greater Fae, Cascada. You’re strong enough to carry an entire kiosk worth of trinkets all by yourself.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cascada said with an airy toss of her hair. She marched off to the carriage, pointing her nose to the sky, and I had to stifle a laugh as I caught Einar’s disgruntled glare.
“Sorry about her,” Prentis said. To his credit, he did genuinely seem to be chagrined. “It seems Cascada's time at Kaipei has robbed her of her manners.”
“You mean she wasn’t always like this?” I asked as he fell into step next to me.
“Well, she’s always been a bit sassy,” Prentis admitted. “But never outright rude, the way she’s being to you now. Lady Axlya’s granted her some leeway given that she’s been a prisoner for nearly two decades… but I will speak to her about Cascada’s behavior. This can’t go on forever.”
I mulled that over as we climbed back into the carriage and set out for the shore. Two decades of imprisonment at Kaipei Castle while consistently being exposed to shadow magic… that would do a number on anyone. But while I’d only known Cascada for a few brief hours during her time at Kaipei, something seemed different about her. The fae I’d met back then had been sassy and a little bit suspicious, but she'd shown none of the acrimony she was throwing at me now. I didn’t know what to make of it.
I expected the carriage to lead us to the docks, but to my surprise, it pulled up to a private stretch of beach a few miles up the coast instead. “We’re not taking a ship?” I asked as we disembarked.
“There’s no need to,” Prentis said, eyes twinkling. “We’re going to ride the ocean current instead.”
“Excuse me,” Einar said, stepping up beside Prentis. He looked thoroughly discomfited as he glanced toward the ocean, and I knew he was remembering how just a few short days ago, he’d been dragged underwater and nearly devoured by a kraken. “But you haven’t gotten to the part about how I’m supposed to breathe during this underwater venture.”
“Ahh, yes.” Prentis reached into his pocket and withdrew a small box. Inside was a slimy flower with purple petals and a yellow, star-shaped center, about the size of an eyeball.
“Gillflower,” I said before Prentis could explain what it was. “It gives you the ability to breathe underwater.”
“Yes.” Prentis handed it to Einar. “Chew it thoroughly and swallow it all. It will give you the ability to breathe below water.”
“Aren’t you going to give me some, too?” I asked as Einar popped the flower into his mouth.
“I will if I have to,” Prentis said. “But considering you could produce gills on your own the last time we were at sea, I'm hopeful you can do so again.”
Nervous energy skittered across my skin from top to bottom as I looked out at the ocean. Yes, I had undergone a mini transformation when I dove into the water to save Einar, producing gills on the sides of my neck so I could give him air. But that had been under extreme duress. Would I really be able to do it again?
“Ugh.” Einar screwed up his face as he swallowed down the gillflower, then gave a full-body shudder. “That was disgusting.”
“Yes, I’ve heard the taste is most unpleasant,” Prentis said, in that placid tone one might use when discussing the weather. He turned his back on Einar and offered his arm to me. “Are you ready, Adara?”
I pulled in one last deep breath of ocean air, and then nodded. “I’m ready.”
We waded into the water together, the ocean lapping eagerly at my ankles as if it couldn't wait to drag me beneath its depths. Trepidation skittered up my spine as the water rose higher, sloshing against my calves, my hips, my stomach. Water never usually bothered me—I could hold my breath for far longer than the earth fae I’d grown up with, which was why I’d always sought refuge in the lake whenever Dune or the other children bullied me. But even I couldn’t hold my breath underwater for the better part of a day.
As the water caressed the underside of my chin, I considered asking Prentis to give me the gillflower now.
But I had a feeling the priestess and the other water dwellers would be able to tell if I’d used it. And I didn’t want to give them any reason to doubt my legitimacy as a water fae. Not when everything was riding on my completion of the ritual.
So instead of taking in a deep breath, like I usually would, I exhaled, then dove beneath the waves. Prentis’s arm slipped from mine as I sank into the ocean’s bluish-green depths, my eyes adjusting to the watery light. I spotted a large, colorful reef just a few yards ahead, teeming with a variety of ocean life, most of which I’d only seen in illustrations. I sucked in a delighted breath at the sight, but my joy was quickly drowned out as I inhaled a lungful of water.
“Adara!” Einar was beside me in an instant, clutching at my shoulder as I tried to cough the seawater from my lungs. Bubbles clouded the air between us as he shouted my name, and my vision began to swim from the lack of oxygen. There was nothing to inhale, nothing to feed my starved heart as it pumped weakly in my chest. Panic gripped me as I clawed at Einar’s arms, my terror-stricken expression reflected in his eyes as I begged for help.
“Here!” Prentis tried to shove himself between us, the gillyflower in his outstretched hand. I let go of Einar’s forearm to grab it, but to my surprise, Einar shoved Prentis out of the way, then yanked me against him and fused his mouth against mine.
Just as I had done for him when the kraken had pulled him overboard.