Neria’s jaw froze mid-bite at the question. She slowly turned her face away, refusing to let him see her expression as she muttered her partial lie, "Calypsos don’t have powers."
Beside her, Darian sighed. "You make this so hard for me, Neria."
Another dismissive wave of his hand was all it took.
The collar around her neck lit up again, its power flaring against her skin as pain tore through her body. The bread slipped from her fingers and landed on the floor while she desperately clawed at the band, her breath breaking into ragged gasps.
"Tell me," his voice had turned colder now. "What power was that? Siren magic?"
Neria didn’t answer.
The collar finally went quiet, but only because Darian seemed to believe she was ready to speak. Neria remained hunched over, trying to steady her breathing as one trembling hand slowly moved toward the shell hanging around her neck.
Her fingers curled around it in a quiet, almost reverent touch.
"What did I say about answers, Neria?"
She swallowed. "That I should answer when you ask."
"Then answer."
Neria lowered her head, her thumb brushing over the shell.
"It’s... a secret about our people," she started speaking, trying her best to ignore the sting of tears in her eyes. "Only a handful of Calypsos can sing it."
Darian’s brow raised slightly. "And how are you able to sing it? Have you done this before?"
Neria hesitated, her fingers still curled around the shell necklace. "I know because there’s a Trident mark behind my neck..." She paused, swallowing before continuing. "A few nights ago was the first time I tried it."
Darian didn’t say anything. His amber eyes narrowed as he studied the soaked girl sitting before him, clearly contemplating whether she was telling the truth.
When he stilled didn’t speak Neria did.
"I don’t remember much of what happened that night," Neria admitted quietly.
Darian’s brow lifted. He had seen what she had become that night. Those slit-like eyes had been embedded in his memory.
Yet here she was, claiming she barely remembered any of it. She didn’t remember the terrifying creature she had become?
He stared at her for a moment longer, trying to decide whether she was lying or whether there really were parts of that night she couldn’t remember.
Neria could feel his cold gaze on her even though she could barely make out his features.
"I don’t know much about this power," she continued. "Only that it kills its singer."
"Then why aren’t you dead?"
Neria’s lips curled slightly despite the exhaustion weighing down her body. "I am blind..." she muttered. "That’s close."
For a moment, Darian simply stared at her.
Then he turned his back and began walking toward the door. "I will have a physician examine your sight tomorrow," he informed her without looking back.
Neria didn’t respond.
She waited until she heard his footsteps disappear down the corridor, followed by the familiar sound of the door closing and the lock clicking into place.
Only then did she release the breath she had been holding.
Neria looked down at the food scattered across the floor, her stomach twisting painfully at the blurred sight.
She was starving.
With a quiet sigh, she reached for the food and began eating again.
.
.
.
By midmorning the next day, Neria heard her door open.
She had been sitting on the edge of the bed, her fingers idly tracing the shell necklace around her neck when the sound made her look up. A figure walked toward her, though with her blurred vision she could barely make out more than a dark shape moving through the room.
At first, Neria frowned at the unfamiliar figure, her body instinctively tensing.
Then she heard a familiar, overly cheerful voice.
"Nerry!"
A figure dressed in red hurried past the stranger and immediately sat beside her. Neria recognized Fiona’s flowery scent before the girl even took her hands.
"The Grand Duke brought in a doctor from Zanis," Fiona explained, giving her hands a small squeeze.
Neria glanced toward the other figure.
He had stopped in front of her and slowly crouched until they were closer to the same level. His voice was gentle when he spoke, nothing like the cold voice she had grown used to hearing these past few days.
"Hello there..."
Neria didn’t answer.
There was something about having a stranger crouching so close to her that made her uncomfortable, especially when she couldn’t properly see his face.
"I am here to help you," he added.
Neria’s eyes narrowed slightly.
"I don’t trust you.."
The physician paused, then, to her surprise, he gave a quiet chuckle.
"Fair enough."
Fiona looked between them. "Nerry, he’s really nice. He helped with your eyes."
Then she felt pain at her chest. Neria’s hand instinctively moved toward the source, the pain had finally dulled to a faint ache.
"The Grand Duke said you would examine my eyes."
"I will," the physician said, nodding. "But first, I would like to ask you a few questions."
Neria sighed.
Why was everyone in this kingdom so obsessed with questions.
"What kind of questions?"
"Simple ones."
She studied his blurred figure for a moment before reluctantly nodding. "Fine."
The physician reached into the leather bag beside him and pulled out several small instruments. Neria heard the faint clink of metal, followed by the rustle of paper.
"Tell me," he began, "what can you see right now?"
"Nothing much," she answered, her brows furrowing as she tried to focus. "Just blurred motions."
The physician hummed quietly. She saw his finger move a little closer to her face, though it was nothing more than a hazy shape against the room.
"Can you see your friend in front of you?"
Neria turned her head toward Fiona. She could make out the red of her dress and the vague outline of her body, but the girl’s face was nothing more than a blur.
"Not clearly..."
The physician nodded, and Neria watched the blurred shape of his head move forward. "Can you see my hand?"
She focused on the movement in front of her. "A little."
"Good."
He moved his hand from one side to the other, slowly at first and then slightly faster. Neria followed it as best as she could, though her eyes began to ache from the effort.
"Does that hurt?"
"My eyes?"
"Yes." She added "Only when I try to focus for too long."
Another quiet hum came from him. Neria heard the faint scratching of a pen against paper, and it made her slightly nervous.
"What are you writing?"
"Observations."
"About me?"
"About your eyes."
He closed the notebook and reached into the leather case beside him. Neria heard the faint clinking of glass and metal as he moved several things around.
"What is that?"
"Something that might help." She heard him pull something from the case before footsteps approached her.
"Keep your head still."
Neria frowned but obeyed. Something was placed carefully in front of her eyes.
At first, nothing changed. Then the physician adjusted it.
Neria blinked rapidly as the room shifted.
It was still blurry, but not as badly as before. The edges of the furniture seemed less distorted, and the light from the windows no longer looked like shapeless patches.
"Can you see anything?"
"A little."
"Good." He removed the lens and replaced it with another.
Neria blinked again. This time the room seemed to sharpen slightly more.
Her lips parted. "That one..."
The physician hummed. "Better?"
"Yes."
He made another adjustment, and suddenly the red blur sitting beside her became something she could recognize.
Neria stared.
She could see Fiona’s face.
Not perfectly. There were still soft edges around everything, but she could make out her eyes, her nose, the freckles scattered across her cheeks and the strands of brown hair that had escaped from her braid.
Neria went completely still.
"Fiona..."
"Yes?" Fiona answered eagerly.
"I can see you."
Fiona gasped. "You can?"
Neria nodded slowly, her eyes beginning to sting.
"I can see your face."
Fiona’s smile was enormous and goofy but Neria could actually see it, and that made her glad.
The physician quietly stepped back, watching them.
"Then I believe we may have found the one for you."