Chapter Text
Lost Underwater
Chapter 1
Atlantis
Pitter patter, pitter patter, the rain kept falling within the nation of Fontaine. The moisture soaked the fields, the winds howled with sorrow, and sloshing footsteps fled.
The ones fleeing were a pair of fraternal twins, both disheveled and clothes stained with portions of crimson. “Lyney and Lynette” were their names… and Lyney had arrived too late to save his sister from the esteemed noble.
All the young boy saw when arriving at the manor was a sea of blood, The Knave standing almost gracefully over the corpses of those she slaughtered and his sister whom she saved and kept alive. He wanted to trust her when she offered a place in the House of the Hearth… Truly, he did. But there was something else behind those obsidian eyes, something he decided not to test, taking his sister’s wrist and fleeing in a heartbeat.
He wasn’t about to give up their newly found freedom.
Perhaps one day he’d thank The Knave, but for now, they’d run.
Lynette shook from the cold, whimpering as the downpour fell. It always rained after a trial in Fontaine… so perhaps the nobles were being tried. At least- that’s what he hoped.
The rain kept pouring, the young boy could feel his lungs aching for air, his legs becoming less precise, and his sense of direction becoming blind. He wasn’t sure where they were right now, the rain made things a blur.
“I-it’s gonna be a-alright Lynette.” The young boy rasped, looking back at his sister. “Your brother’s going to… going to make sure of that…” Lynette’s expression softened, it was all Lyney needed to know that she was begging him to stop for a moment. “Hey, Lyn. It’s okay! We’re going to find someplace safe!” Lyney kept running, his grip on Lynette strong while struggling for air. “I’m sure of it. They won’t ever find us there. We could even leave Fontaine if you want! That way they won’t ever find us! I promise!”
Lyney chortled to himself, unaware of Lynette’s current expression. The twins continued their neverending retreat, until… “Lyney.” Lynette rasped, lavender eyes wide. “Lyney!” She called out again, eyes dead set on the road ahead of them.
“LYNEY! LYNEY WATCH OUT! SLOW DOWN! YOU'RE GOING TO-!” Lynette screamed, finally catching her brother’s attention. Lynette never finished her warning, it had already been too late by the time her twin brother noticed…
Before either of them knew it, they had both gone under…
This was bad… REALLY bad. Neither of them could swim that well, and even worse this ditch had a current pulling them under even more.
Lynette screamed, air bubbles coming from the struggle as she reached for Lyney. He grabbed his sister’s hand without a second thought, attempting to swim towards the land above the water and rain.
This wasn’t how they would die, would it? Regaining their freedom only to lose it once more?
Lyney swam as best as he could, keeping Lynette’s hand in his. It was hard to breathe. The young boy tried to grab something, anything to hold onto and pull them on land. Thankfully, Lyney felt his hand grab a piece of seaweed, this was great! Wonderful even! Now they could escape and—
SNAP.
Lyney and Lynette’s lavender eyes widened as the one lifeline they had at escape snapped in two. Just like everything else, this too failed them. Their home life, the nobles, Fontaine itself? What else could this world take?
It didn’t take the twins very long to struggle against the current again, trying to outswim a current that wouldn’t let them breathe. The tide was too strong… and neither of them could swim against it.
Lynette struggled to hold onto Lyney’s hand, as did Lyney…
Was this how they’d die? Two young prodigy magicians lost to the ocean after reclaiming a freedom lost to them… forever?
It seemed to be that way.
Lyney took one look at Lynette, one he hoped wouldn’t be his last… Lynette did the same, a small smile on her usually deadpan face.
After that, Lyney’s vision slipped into darkness, never letting go of Lynette’s hand.. even in this moment. In the end, neither of them could hold onto the life that was doomed from the start.
This was the end for them.
ꕥꕥꕥ
It was a seemingly typical day at Merusea Village, for the critters that lived there. They were dubbed as the Melusine, small feminine faun-like creatures that could live on land and sea. Their home was on both land and sea, belonging solely to them.
Suddenly, the norm of today was flipped on its head.
“Help!! We need help!!” One of the two rushing Melusine screamed, running so fast they barely caught their breath. Puca and Glaisti were Melusine that lived more underwater than on land, so them being frightened had to mean something. “What’s the matter?” Another Melusine, Serene pondered, watching as other Melusine gathered. Even one of their younger members, Mamere, came to the scene.
“S-something’s wrong! We- we need help.” Puca explained breathlily, frightened by whatever she saw. “There- there’s children! Human children! They- I don’t know how they got here! They just washed up! Others saw it too! It was crazy!” Glaisti added on, still shaken by the scene that played out before them.
Serene sighed, looking to her fellow Melusine behind her. “Prepare the emergency supplies, we’re going to need them. Mamere, Puca, set a spot on land to lay the children on. Xana, grab the spare blankets, take Vidra with you.” All the Melusine afterwards dispersed, all of them working together as a community to help the lost children.
With collaborative effort, practically everyone from the village- from the in training for the Marechaussee Phantom, to the potionineers and a young painter- all worked together to care for the tiny children that had washed ashore in their humble abode. The children looked no older than seven, probably eight. Granna handled the wet rags handed to her by Sluasi. Verenata and Carabosse handled the healing potions to help heal the two children. Both looked like they were suffering the start of a fever, or exhaustion from nearly drowning.
“Poor things…” Cosanzeana gazed somberly, tucking the two in gently. “Who would do such a thing?” Cosanzeana concluded, still baffled by the whole situation. Glaisti shrugged, sighing. “I’m not sure… they were nearly drowned when we found them. Puca and I were able to save them thankfully.” On cue, one of them coughed, some leftover water staining their dampened faces. “They were like this after we pulled them out.” Flo added, explaining the situation in full.“We thought we wouldn’t be able to get them out with how our hands are, but thankfully we did. I stayed with them until everyone arrived.” Flo concludes.
“Well… even if we don’t know who they are, I hope they wake up soon.” Mamere smiled gleefully, gazing at the children.
“Let’s hope Mamere. They may be out for a while, so don’t expect something right away. Now, why don’t you help with some of the supplies? I’m sure we could use some more wet rags.” Serene suggests, earning a nod from Mamere. “Will do. Be back in a jiffy.”
ꕥꕥꕥ
Hours pass before one of the children becomes lucid enough to take in where they were. It was Lynette.
The young girl assessed her situation, her feline ears twitching at the slightest of sounds. The environment was bright and cold, colorful and dingy, it was the most unnatural thing she had ever seen. The air was frigid and warm, the water dripped from above and she could hear running water from below. Where were they…? This was certainly not Fontaine.
“Ah! Oh my, you’re awake!” A faun-like creature cheered, giddily rushing to the two of them. Lynette gave them no response, she needed to find Lyney. She needed to get out of here with Lyney. They had to find somewhere else to call home. “Where…” Lynette coughed, her voice unnaturally achey. “Where is he?” Lynette attempted again, scowling.
The faun creature perked her ears up in surprise, looking at something behind Lynette. “Oh! Are you looking for your friend? Or uh- is he your brother? Well…” The faun-like creature skipped playfully, sitting behind the young girl. “He’s over here. Safe and sound. Nothing to worry about.” Without a beat to lose, Lynette rushed over to her brother, discarding the blanket laid over her. “Lyney!” She cried, shaking her brother repeatedly, in turn, scaring the faun-like creature. “Lyney… wake up… please. I can’t- lose you. Not like this… I need you. I need you Lyney… I need you.” Lynette half sobs, trying to keep her composure from crumbling into fragments that couldn’t be put back together.
The faun-like creature watched from afar, witnessing as the young boy awakened from his slumber. “Lynette…?” Lyney lifts his head sluggishly, gazing at his sister. “Lyney!!” Lynette chuckled joyfully, instantly pulling her brother into an embrace. “Lyney! I’m so relieved you’re okay!” The young boy froze, hesitating to hold his sister back. Everything that had happened this evening had finally sunk in, at that point he didn’t care. They both let the damn break, sobbing in each other’s arms, glad to be alive.
“O-oh Lynette… I-I’m so, so sorry… I should’ve… I should’ve done something to stop him from doing that to you. I should’ve saved you sooner so that… I shouldn’t have let “father” take us in at all! It’s all my fault!” Lyney wept, yet Lynette held her brother closer. “Don’t say that Lyney. Do not apologize for something we couldn’t have known. It’s my fault… I was scared. I froze when I shouldn’t have. You are all I have left Lyney, and I don’t want to lose that…”
Lynette pulled away, wiping her brother’s tears and her own tears. “From now on, we shall stick together. We won’t trust anyone unless they prove they can be trusted. Mother and father would've wanted us to be happy and alive regardless of where we ended up, right?”
Lyney chuckled wetly, wiping away the remaining tears. “Yeah, you’re right…”
Gradually, the twins turned to the lone faun-like creature, who on further inspection was a Melusine. Just like the Melusine they’d see around the city, though she was more of a teal color than the usual colors Melusine have. “Who… who are you?” Lyney questioned, gazing around the same surroundings Lynette had taken in not too long ago.
“Oh uhm… I’m Mamere! Puca, Vidra and Flo found you in the underwater half of the village. Puca and Glaisti were the ones who informed Serene about you and we all worked together from there. We did our best to restore your health to its peak condition.” Mamere explained, scooting closer to the siblings. “You gave them quite the scare, but I’m just happy to see you two okay!”
The siblings sat in silence… yes they were physically okay. However… mentally and emotionally was a different story. Mamere seemed to pick this up, her faun ears flattening slightly. “Say, why did you wash up here? Were you running and caught in the tide?”
Silence. Lyney looked to his sister for permission, earning it with a gentle gaze. “I… well, you see…” Lyney stuttered, unsure of how to explain their situation without making it grimmer than it already was. “Yes. We were running. Lynette and I were hurt by some awful people… I tried to save Lynette only to find the people who hurt her dead and having to run in the rain with our lives. Later, we fell into a ditch and ended up here.” Lyney concluded, lavender eyes begging for this Melusine to not turn on them too. “Where is “here”, exactly?” Lynette questioned, watching as Mamere’s ears perk up.
“This is Merusea Village! It’s under the ocean of Fontaine but- we can live on land and sea! It’s wonderful! I’m sure the potionineers can make some potions that’ll help you breathe underwater and go from land to sea. Like us! Just as long as you don’t get spat up by the tide again.”
Lynette swishes her tail, her ears flattening. “Apologizes, Mamere… we’re terribly sorry for this disturbance.” Mamere shook her head childishly, smiling at the siblings with glee. “That’s okay. You may be human, yet we're willing to help anyone that comes across here! I’m sure I can show you around the part of the village that isn’t underwater! Everyone here is super friendly!” The Melusine grinned, holding out her paw-like hand for the twins to take.
Lyney and Lynette stared down the offer… would Mamere and the village not betray them? Would the people of this small collective community keep them safe?
With a glance towards the other, the twins silently took the chance.
“Alright… lead the way.” Lyney smiled, taking one of Mamere’s hands while Lynette took the other. The children slowly stood, leaving their resting area and emerging to the village that kindly took them in. Whatever happened after this would be a test of loyalty… all the twins hoped that this was a home that allowed them to stay as long as they wished to.