I strip off the simple dress I save for when I need to come down to the lake. When I'm around the academy for classes or other activities, I'm expected to wear something fancier to befit my station, but fancier also means difficult to get on and off, which isn't very practical for being by the side of the lake.
The cold air kisses my skin, sending a shiver down my spine and a smattering of scales along my belly. It's not a surprise. My mer form is a lot more impervious to cold than this one is.
I don't waste another moment and dive into the water, letting the transformation take over as I do. Scales travel along my entire lower body and across part of my torso. If only my shoulders are out of the water, I can pass as human, but any more than that and my true form is revealed with deep blue glistening scales tapering down into the flippers at the end of my tail.
This form is so natural to me that I don't have to think about the different ways I need to move in it compared to my human one. The reverse is just as true now I've been spending a lot of time on land too. It's hard to pick which of my two forms I prefer the most when both of them have their advantages and their drawbacks.
I swim close to the surface, reaching my hand out so I can drag it through and create a ripple effect above me. I love watching how the water dances in front of my eyes. Maybe it's because of how connected I feel to both the water and the surface.
"Hello?"
I stop swimming as the garbled word from above catches my attention. I keep myself afloat with a few tiny flicks of my tail. It's one of the first tricks we're taught as young mer as it allows us to stay in one place for whatever reason we want.
"Hello?" the voice calls again.
Are they looking for me? I find it unlikely, but what other explanation would there be for someone coming down to the lake at this time? Especially when the weather was so bad. If I hadn't needed to take a swim to stop my skin from drying out, then I wouldn't be out myself.
I propel myself closer to the edge of the lake before breaking the surface and looking around while making sure I keep my scales hidden underwater. While I'm sure most of the students at Grimm already know what I am, I don't want to take a chance in showing them when I don't have to. While many of them don't go out of their way to talk to me, they also don't do anything that would put me at risk. But that doesn't mean I want to show myself off to them.
"Ah, so you are here," a male voice says the moment my head is out of the water.
I turn around slowly, my heart skipping a beat as my gaze latches onto the person standing at the edge of the lake in a familiar navy blue uniform. The chill wind ruffles up his dark hair, blowing it to and fro despite the short length.
"Me?" I ask despite my nerves.
He chuckles and comes forward to sit on a rock. "Yes. Who did you think I was talking to?"
I shrug, being careful not to let it expose my scales as I do. My tail flicks back and forth beneath the surface, keeping me in one spot. I have no idea what he thinks I'm doing in the lake, but I'm not about to make it obvious.
"You might have brought a friend with you," I point out when he doesn't say anything.
"To a lake in the middle of the night?"
"It's only nine." There's plenty of evening left. If there was a ball going on, it wouldn't end for another few hours.
"True. But all of the people I know have a strict training regime that involves them getting up early in the morning."
"Don't you have that too?"
A small smile lifts at the corner of his lips, illuminated by the lantern he has with him. Little does he realise I don't need it in order to make him out, even in this light. The same part of me that allows me to see clearly underwater also works in the dark.
Except that he probably hasn't brought it for my benefit, but for his own.
"I do. But I also had someone I wanted to meet."
"Oh." My heart sinks despite knowing I should be fine with all of this. I don't know him, I shouldn't care that he's come to see someone else. "Would you like me to leave? I can give you some privacy."
He cocks his head to the side and studies me intently.
I sink a little to make sure none of my scales are on show. Though I doubt he can see much of them in the dim light. It's a good thing he isn't one of the normal boys who study here. I wouldn't have any chance of hiding who I am if he was.
Maybe he already knows.
"I came here to find you."
"Oh." I blink a few times, trying to come to terms with what he's saying.
"Are you going to ask why?" A hint of amusement comes through his voice.
"Would you tell me if I did?"
"Of course. You're the one who saved my life. Aren't you?"
A flush spreads across my cheeks. "Yes," I admit softly.
He nods. "I thought as much. I've been looking for you ever since we arrived back at the academy for training, but I didn't see you anywhere. Then I finally realised that I should come here considering this is the last place I saw you."
Smart. But that means he can't have asked around about me much if he has no idea where to find me. Then again, trying to find a dark-haired girl he saw in the dark when close to death probably won't help him much when it comes to describing me to other people.
"Thank you. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't pulled me out of the water."
His gratitude startles me for a moment, it's not what I expect from anyone, especially not from an officer-in-training.
"You'd have managed to swim your way out." It's a lie, and we both know it, but I want to give him a chance to avoid admitting it.
"I can't swim. I've always wanted to learn but I've never had a chance."
I resist the urge to offer to teach him. I can't do that and keep quiet about my true nature.
"I'm glad I was here, then."
"Me too." He pauses, seeming to be lost in thought but it's hard to tell when I don't know him. "I'm Lewis, by the way."
"Matilda. But my friends call me Mati." Well, my human friends do. My name sounds different in mer.
"Do I get to be included in that number?" Lewis asks.
"If you'd like." I try to keep my excitement in check. All he's really said is that he's grateful I didn't let him die. Which makes sense. Anyone would feel that way.
He leans back on his rock, seeming to relax a little now he knows my name. "I hear there's a ball at the end of the week," he says.
"There is." Gerda has been talking about it ever since I got back to the academy. She loves going to balls now she has someone to dance with the entire night.
I'm only a little bit jealous about it. Especially as both her and Kai are good friends and make sure they spend some of their evenings with me. And it's not like the boys at the academy ignore me when they need a dance partner, though I imagine most of them chose me because they want to dance with someone already on the floor and need me to get to them.
I don't mind too much. I love to dance and that gives me an opportunity to.
"Are you planning on going?" Lewis asks.
Is that a hint of nervousness in his voice?
"Yes..."
"Would you save me a dance?"
Is he really asking that? I feel like I'm in a dream. I pinch myself beneath the water, wincing in pain when I end up doing it harder than I meant to.
"I'd like that," I admit.
Even in the darkness, I can see the wide smile that spreads over his face and the relief floods over him through the relaxing of his shoulders. He must have expected me to say no for some reason.
"I look forward to it," he says. "But I have to go now. I need to be up early with the other recruits to do the drills before lessons start and it will be torture if I don't get enough sleep."
I chuckle. "You're not the only one. I should be getting back to the castle before it's too late too." Though I still need to finish my swim if I want to have enough of a refresh to make a difference.
"Good night, Mati, I look forward to seeing you at the ball."
"Me too."
I watch him leave, a small smile playing at my lips the entire time. I wonder if Gerda is still awake? I need to tell her about what's happened tonight, she'll be so excited about it. A small part of me thinks I should wait until the morning, but I need to talk to her about it so I know it's not just a dream.