( e r i s )

@erisofthesea

she’d been sleeping alot lately, body drained from the birth and her almost death. when the cry reaches her ears the mermaid is still groggy and it takes her a moment to sit up. when she dies she reaches for the incubators to find only iris there. immediately thalassa panics, suddenly away as her gaze flies over the room looking for her baby. the mer’s breath catches as she spots a blonde cradling persephone, easing her crying quickly.

“ mom ? “

        the merqueen hums softly, smiling faintly at the quieting bundle in her arms. a gentle thumb brushes away the tears that had gathered on the infant’s cheek as she slowly makes her way back to her daughter’s bedside, still swaying ever-so-slightly as she came to a stop. “we didn’t mean to wake you, little love, someone simply wasn’t particularly happy when we stopped moving. i’ll put her down as soon as she’s asleep.”

“That and the fact I have three layers of wards up right now. You and your children are still welcome through those wards.” He paused for a moment to consider his next words. “Speaking of which I saw Grey the other day. He’s gotten tall. You need to tell me what you’ve been feeding him. Although looks like he hasn’t been sleeping well. Probably because he’s a worry wart. I did suggest he go on a vacation in Fuji and he did the same eye roll as you. It runs in the family.” He pointed to the glass pitcher of water in front of them. “Water, wine, or other?”

        “You may want to add one or two more, just in case. I’ve seen a few unsavory people in town of late, never know who they’ll ally themselves with.” Though she honestly doubted those she was suspicious of were really the sort to pick a side. “Why, are you looking to gain a bit of height yourself? I’m afraid his diet has little to do with it. You’ve seen his father - veritable giant of a man - it should come as no surprise that Grey would be tall. I’ve noticed the worrying, and while I’d bet a vacation would do him a world of good, I can hardly imagine him taking one. I don’t know what to do with him, Merlin. He’s steadfast, responsible, a good leader...but he’s still so...naive, caught up on this idea that there’s a better way.” She breathed a sigh, shaking her head. “Water is fine.”

Cas had been needing that hug for a while, so he was happy to have it finally. “No, no I can take care of myself, I’m 1600 years old. It’s my turn to give back, that’s what family is for you know. And I want you to know that I’m ready to defend you, ready to stand by your side when you need it.” He went out of the room for a moment and came back with a glass of water and a plate of kelp crackers. “What else do you need mum?”

     “ hey ! ” nora exclaimed as she spotted someone at the location she was given, unsure if that was the one she was looking for. in all honesty, if she were to bet, she’d guess it wasn’t eris - the shadowhunter didn’t think it’d be easy to find her. “ excuse me, could you help me maybe ? i’m looking for a mermaid. their… queen, actually. ”

Grey had so much to say to his mother. He had come to make his argument once again on the behalf of the shadowhunters. But something was off. It had been centuries since he had felt this certain emotion coming from her. Was it for his sister? No. It was for someone else. He pulled back a chair and sat down across from his mother. “What’s wrong?” he asked softy.

        She’s silent for a while, eyes anywhere but on her son’s face - she didn’t want to find concern, or pity, or any similar expression on his features, not now. She finally looks at him after drawing in a slow breath, on hand resting on the slight swell of her stomach. What did she say? How did she explain without revealing that her heart was broken? “Ares, the man I was seeing. Yet another death on the hands of the Nephilim.”

A soft smile lighting her features once she knew that she hadn’t upset the merqueen, Aamina knelt down to the shoreline and looked through the various shells. “I needed a certain shell, as well as some pearl extract.” She explains.

hestia sinks, shoulders drooping as eris begins to speak. she’d been hoping the queen would have some sort of recollection of her mother; the mother who lingered on the edges of her mind, nothing more than a washed out memory and a trinket with more worth than anyone can ever measure. her fingers run over each ridge and peak as eris hands it back, the mermaid’s smile sincere and grateful. she wasn’t anything like what that warlock said. 

“ my mother may have been a noble ? like … like a lady … oceans i had no idea . are you really willing to help me your grace ? i-i know you’re busy and i don’t want to take you away from your duties ! “

        “of course i’ll help, in any way that i can." she’s already flipping through a small address book, jotting down names and numbers for the warlocks she’d personally trust for such a job. whatever they find could likely be used against her family in some way, which limited their choices on who to go to. "one of these three should be able to preform a spell, and if they can’t i have a few others i can try to reach out to. if any of them asks you for payment, have them call me and i’ll take care of it, alright?”  

“I know you are.” It was the kind of fine like when Cas couldn’t stop thinking about the facility he’d been trapped in and it felt like he couldn’t breathe and he said he was fine. “Then come out on the deck and rest a little bit at least, please. I’m not talking about the war being what’s stressing you out mother,” he said softly. He sat her down, stealing cushions and pillows from the other chairs to make her comfortable and reached to give her a hug. “I’ll take care of you,” he murmured.

she takes a first tentative step before taking more. the queen is…nice. oddly so. she’d been expecting someone much more frightening. hestia stops by the blonde queen, for a moment distracted by how beautiful she is before she remembers her task and offers out her mother’s necklace, gold pooled in the palm of her hand. there’s a part of her terrified that the queen may take it and not give it back but hestia smothers the thought.

“ m-my mother’s name was artemis lavinia , your grace . i don’t remember much about her , but I know she sang beautifully and she had hair like yours — so blonde it was almost gold … i remember her tail too, it looked like sunset . “

        her touch is gentle as she lifts the necklace from the girl’s hand, running her thumb over the face and humming thoughtfully as she listens to what the other has to say. did she know of such a woman? she might’ve - vague flashes of a memory linger at the corners of her mind, but she can’t say she’d known her personally. still, the seal in her hand was proof enough for her, and a small smile softened her features further as she offered it back.

        “i’m sorry to say i don’t know of your mother, but i can tell you that this-” she carefully presses the necklace back into the girl’s hand- “likely marks you as a child of noble birth, or at the very least would mean that your mother meant a great deal to one of my children. a warlock may be able to track down which of them it was - if you’d like i can find one to help you?”

@erisofthesea

“Your Majesty. I apologise, I didn’t mean to intrude. I came by the water to draw some ingredients I needed for treatments. I hope you don’t mind” she bows her head.

        “There’s no need for an apology,” the words are soft, the mer quietly studying the other for a moment before speaking again. “What ingredients are you searching for, if I may ask?”

“Besides keeping your minions out of my hair?” he huffed walking over to the door and turning off the open sign. As soon as he flipped the switch the room changed from a tattoo parlor to a furnished living room. He walked back over grabbing a couple of glasses and an glass pitcher of water before sitting across from her. “If my shop gets damaged in the this little game of war I’m suing you.”

        “Have you heard the phrase ‘you can’t get blood from a stone’, my friend? There is no court in which you could sue me, even if you wanted to.” She doesn’t hide the roll of her eyes or the grin on her lips, simply shaking her head. “Still, your shop is in no danger from my people - they’ve been warned that certain places are off limits, and that they don’t wish to know what will happen if they forget that.” Not that she actually had any idea what she’d actually do should any not listen to her, but they didn’t need to know that.

@erisofthesea 

“Mama,” Cas was tugging insistently on Eris’s wrist. “Come on.” He had a feeling she didn’t even realize he was there until just now. “You need to rest, stress is bad for the baby. Do you want me to make up a kelp bed for you or do you want a land bed?” He’d had no idea she was pregnant until she let her glamour down, but if anyone could take things as they came it was Caspian. He knew pieces of what had happened, but all he really needed to know was that his mother needed someone now.