Katie was still draped against Riley. She sniffled softly and continued to loosely cling to her friend. She had exhausted herself again and mostly cried her heart out by this point, but she couldn’t bring herself to pull away. She felt like a dam had broken within her, and it felt too nice to be comforted without having to hold anything back for once that she was reluctant for that to end.

Riley’s shaking was getting worse though, and Katie was growing concerned about it. “Are you okay?” she whispered.

“Are you?” Riley countered.

Katie shook her head and untangled herself from Riley’s embrace. She poked the other girl on the collar bone and scowled. “Do not evade the question,” she scolded. “You’re shaking like a leaf, are you alright?”

“I am fine,” Riley replied with a roll of her eyes. She grinned, but the smile seemed forced. Katie wasn’t convinced.

“Don’t lie to me,” Katie pressed. “Not after you forced the truth out of me.”

“Katie, I really am alright,” Riley repeated. “I am sore, but not unbearably so. The shaking is just from the sedatives; I am fine.” Riley tilted her head and offered another grin. As she moved, her bangs fell in her face and her smile morphed into a scowl. She huffed and shook her head, but when it didn’t help, she raised a hand to swipe them back.

Her hand was shaking so badly that instead of brushing away her hair, Riley recoiled with a noise of surprise as she wound up poking herself in the eye instead.

Katie bit her lip to smother a chuckle. “Here.” She reached out and tucked the stray locks behind Riley’s ears for her. “Better?”

Riley mumbled a subdued ‘thank you’ and averted her gaze.

“I don’t think it’s good for you to be resisting the medication like this,” Katie admitted. “Why don’t you lie down and try to sleep it off? There’s no sense sitting here in pain when nothing’s going on right now.”

The technician had returned a little while ago while Katie was crying and replaced the IV bag. A fresh, bulging one was currently being gradually fed down the tube into her hand. She wasn’t sure what it was, but since she was awake and breathing easier, she wasn’t keen on ripping it out just yet.

Though she was only partially aware of the situation at the time, the man had seemed quite uncomfortable with her emotional display, because he had backed out of the room very quickly and pulled the door all the way shut behind him despite his previous decision to leave it slightly ajar. She appreciated the bit of extra privacy now.

“But-”

Katie shook her head and cut Riley off. “No one is sneaking up on us, and I am feeling okay; much better now that I’m not secured down. Go to sleep; you are pretty useless in keeping watch anyway when you can barely see straight and have no hand-eye coordination. Go to sleep.”

Riley sighed and winced as she slowly shifted herself into a reclined position on her back. There was a tight brace wrapped around her hips and Katie suspected that was a partial contributor to her difficulty moving. Though she knew the girl was also probably in a fair bit more pain than she was letting on.

“I am taking up your bed,” Riley murmured. Her jaws parted in a wide yawn and she already looked half asleep.

Katie shook her head. “Do not worry about it; I am not keen on lying down anytime soon anyway.”

Riley hummed. “Mmm-kay,” she mumbled. Her words slurred as she spoke. “Do not leth em gimme any more of that ssstuff.” She smacked her lips and fell limp immediately afterwards, and her breathing deepened and evened out.

Katie chuckled and shook her head. “I won’t,” she vowed. Riley didn’t so much as stir in response.

As silence settled over the small room, Katie sighed and flicked her fin. She shifted into a new position and rolled her shoulders again. Her back still hurt, but it was too tender to probe, so she resigned herself to just dealing with the lingering irritation.

She glanced down at her tail and hummed. It was still a mess of exposed, cracked skin and she had some dried blood in places, but quite a few of her scales had begun to grow back. She now had several rows and patches of the glistening amethyst scales lining her tail.

Katie drummed her fingers on the thin mattress of the cot and then reached out to hesitantly brush over her tail. She had the beginnings of several more scales starting to poke out from her skin. She was glad that it would soon be back to a properly armoured limb, but it itched fiercely now, especially after she touched it.

She crossed her arms over her chest and tucked her fingers up into the crooks of her arms to help resist the urge to scratch. It would only make the skin split and bleed if she did.

Katie glanced back over at Riley, who was completely limp and breathing deeply. Her spines were tucked back into her arms, and her gliders were only half folded, drooping over the cot along with the tip of her tail. She was sprawled at an awkward angle because of the brace over her tail and Katie suspected she was going to wake up sore. She considered trying to shift her but didn’t want to risk disturbing the blonde Mer or jarring her injuries any, so she simply winced and shook her head. Leave it to Riley to be gung-ho about protecting someone else, but failing to take the time to ensure her own wellbeing before passing back out.

Reaching out, Katie bundled up the thin sheet that had been draped over her while she was unconscious. She stretched it out over her slumbering friend. There wasn’t any real reason to need a blanket or keep warm, but Riley always seemed fascinated with the sheets of fabric – which Katie found hilarious since she couldn’t stand to wear clothing, but blankets were fine – and it was one small gesture that Katie could offer after earlier.

Riley’s nose scrunched as Katie lowered the sheet over her and her lips moved, but whatever she tried to say was so slurred and whispered that Katie wasn’t sure it was even a cohesive statement, and she couldn’t make it out either way.

She chuckled and shook her head. While Luna tended to be silent unless she was having a nightmare, Riley talked in her sleep a lot, and rarely in a language that Katie could understand. It was always only a couple of words, and Katie had caught one or two of them over time, but it made her wonder just how many languages Riley was fluent in.

Her tail caught on the fitted sheet and produced a rumbling noise as she shifted and stretched out. She flopped onto her belly and propped herself up on her forearms and sighed.

Now that she was awake and feeling a bit better, and no longer in as much pain, the silence was stifling. She drummed her fingers on the mattress and chewed her lip.

When the lock on the door clicked, Katie’s attention darted to it. She tensed as she watched the door swing open, and sinking despair blended with rage as she watched Dr. Auldon shuffle into the room. The man was dusting off his sleeves and not paying much attention.

When he looked up, his eyebrows rose above the rims of his glasses. “You are awake, then,” he commented idly.

Katie shifted her weight nervously and maintained eye contact. While she had already decided that she was no longer willing to play nice, it was hard to forget the obedience and habits ingrained by trauma, and at first, her voice failed her. “You thought the guard was lying?” she managed after a moment.

Dr. Auldon pursed his lips and shook his head. “No, not exactly. You have been awake a few times, but never for longer than a few minutes and you were far from coherent. I’m surprised to find you so alert. How is your breathing?”

Katie shuffled on the cot and ducked her head. Now more than ever, Dr. Auldon made her nervous. She didn’t know who to trust or what to believe anymore – and while in many situations Dr. Audlon tended to be tough but fair so long as they obeyed him – she had no idea what sort of response he was harbouring to their escape from Lemuria the first time.

“It’s been okay,” she answered finally. “I haven’t been coughing as much and it doesn’t hurt to breathe anymore.”

“Good,” Dr. Auldon hummed. “From the state you were in when I got here…I’ll admit that I didn’t expect you to survive.”

Katie shrugged. She didn’t know how to respond to that.

“Your physical state seems to be improving rapidly,” Dr. Auldon continued to fill the silence. “Your colour is better and your scales have been growing back, and of course, you’re lucid so that’s a positive sign. Have you been experiencing any symptoms?”

“No,” Katie lied. She knew if she told him about her back then he would insist on inspecting it, and it was far too tender for her to want him getting near her.

Dr. Auldon was silent for a moment as he made his way over the monitors hooked up near her cot. Katie wasn’t thrilled by the little nodes still stuck to her skin, but she knew better than to tear them off. “I spoke with Mr. Nolland before coming in here,” Dr. Auldon commented as he adjusted his glasses and squinted at the screen. “You know how I feel about dishonesty, any chance you want to correct that response?”

Katie’s shoulders slumped and she gritted her teeth. “I’m just sore,” she admitted finally. “It hurts to lay on my back or have it touched.”

“I appreciate your honesty,” Dr. Auldon replied dryly. “I was lead to believe you were in a fair bit of pain.”

Katie shrugged. “I was left strapped down on my back for too long. It made it worse.”

Dr. Auldon picked up a piece of severed leather that had previously been used to restrain her. He glanced at Riley, who was still sprawled limply on the cot. “The painkillers I gave her should have left her incapacitated for most of the day.”

“Yeah, I don’t have an answer for you on that one. She was still pretty out of it though.”

“I can see she’s going to be a handful,” the scientist sighed. He made a spinning motion with his finger. “Let me look at your spine.”

Katie winced and wanted to refuse, but the stoic expression on Dr. Auldon’s face made her hesitate. She no longer wanted to blindly obey simply out of the fear that the scientists would punish her or her loved ones; they were all already being punished. But it felt like a bad time to pick a fight with everything so precarious and with Riley incapacitated and injured right beside her.

Finally, she sighed and turned her back to the scientist. Her fin quivered with anxiety as she pulled the back of her shirt up and over her head so that the fabric pooled over her arms and against her chest. She shivered when his fingers brushed the short strands of her hair out of the way.

“It does appear to be irritated,” Dr. Auldon agreed. “You have a bit of a lump forming here.”

“Ouch!” Katie yelped involuntarily and jerked away as he poked her back. “Do you know what it is?”

“It could just be some swelling around a rash or bedsore. I’m going to put some cream on it and if there’s no improvement tomorrow, I’ll take a closer look. Now try not to move.”

Katie tensed as a cool goo was smeared over her back. It still stung, but the scientist was being careful and was finished after a few moments.

“So what happens now?” Katie inquired as the scientist stepped away from her and began rummaging around in the cabinets. She carefully lowered her shirt back down and stared at the back of his head.

He pulled a green glass jar out and stood back up. “Now, you’re going to sit up and hang your tail over the edge.”

Katie frowned. That wasn’t what she’d meant, but she swung her tail over the edge of the cot regardless. Right now, she wanted to squeeze a few answers out of him and angering him was a poor way to get what she wanted.

He pulled the wooden chair over from the corner of the room and perched himself on it before uncapping the jar. It was filled with a green salve and Katie’s nose wrinkled almost immediately.

She brought a hand up to cover her nose with the bridge of her hand. “What is that? It stinks,” she complained.

Dr. Auldon snorted and Katie pulled back at the noise. She wasn’t sure she’d ever heard the man laugh before. “It’s hardly that bad.”

“Maybe not to you,” she protested.

Heedless to her disgust, the man swiped two fingers into the gel and smeared it over a barren spot on her tail. Her face scrunched with distaste as he continued rubbing it into her skin.

“It’s just a moisturizer,” he stated. “It’ll keep your skin from cracking any further, but it’s medicated to prevent any infection from setting in until your scales grow back; that’s probably why you’re sensitive to it.”

Katie coughed and her grimace deepened as he applied more of the cream. She only hoped that the smell would subside over time or that she’d adjust to it because it was overwhelmingly powerful and her eyes were beginning to water.

The silence stretched over the room after he’d finished, but Katie was hesitant to break it. After a minute, he prodded some of the goop. It had solidified and he nodded with satisfaction. “Now the back,” he instructed.

Katie groaned, and then reluctantly turned over onto her belly. She was loathed to admit that the cream had soothed some of the irritation in the thin, flaky skin exposed by her scale loss.

She sat still while more was applied, but couldn’t help drumming her fingers on the mattress.

“You’re quiet,” Dr. Auldon commented after a moment.

“That’s usually what you want,” Katie growled back. She didn’t even try to mask the venom in her tone.

“Careful now,” Dr. Auldon warned. “There’s no reason to get aggressive, we’re having a civil conversation.”

“There’s nothing civil about this situation,” Katie bit back. “You’re threatening my family.”

“It’s not all bad,” Dr. Auldon replied as he dabbed more of the foul cream over her tail. “You’ll all be together this way.”

“Yeah,” Katie replied dryly. She flicked her fin and heard the scientist grunt with surprise. She made no move to apologize, but she did force her tail to fall still again. “One big happy family stripped of their freedom and used as science experiments and display pieces for Lemuria to toy with and abuse. You’re right, forgive me, let me just jump for joy.”

Dr. Auldon began to chuckle and Katie tensed as he patted her tail. “I can see your time away has given you a bit of spunk. You can sit up now.”

Katie braced her hands on the mattress and hauled her tail back up. She coiled it around herself and twisted to face him.

“I’m glad that this little escapade has been good for your psyche. Seems like it was good for both of you. You both were quite drained of life just before.”

Katie felt a fresh wave of rage swell within her gut. Of course, she and Luna had been low on will, and she hated that it could be a casually mentioned thing now in the eyes of the scientist. It was incredibly cruel. “That tends to happen when you lock us up like performing animals,” Katie hissed back. “We are actually people, remember. You put us in a cage and run us like circus performers for an oblivious audience with no reprieve and the threat of severe punishment if we fail to comply. What did you expect was going to happen over time?”

“Be careful, Katherine,” Dr. Auldon warned. “I’m glad you have some personality back, but you still have a fine line to tread.”

“Maybe I’m just not afraid of you anymore,” Katie growled back. Her lips pulled into a snarl and she bared her fangs at him.

“Only a fool acts without fear,” the scientist responded.

“Are you saying you’re afraid of me?” Katie countered with an irritated flick of her fin.

Dr. Auldon pursed his lips and shrugged. “Not entirely. I would be intimidated by your potential if I didn’t already know you’ll never utilize it.”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean?” Katie hissed.

Dr. Auldon adjusted his glasses. “You’re not a wild beast. I think the rest of the mermaids I’ve met so far exist in an in-between of feral and sophisticated, but you…you’re too afraid that giving in to your primal instincts will make you a monster. You can’t justify taking action for yourself, only if someone you care about is in immediate danger. I only have to fear you if I go after your loved ones.”

“Which you’ve already done,” Katie reminded through slitted eyes and gritted teeth. She didn’t like the implications of what he was saying, but she also hated that he was right. She didn’t see the Mer as animals or lesser as a people, but she did get hung up on some of the base instincts and behaviours her mind and body urged her towards at times. It did make her feel less human and more bestial.

Katie spooked from her thoughts and jerked her head back when the scientist reached out towards her. Her motion didn’t deter him, however, and she braced. It was unnecessary as he merely swiped away some of her hair off of her face. “I understand your anger, Katherine, but I’m afraid you’re going to have to remember how to behave. I cannot protect you this time.”

“Protect me?” Katie scoffed. She dug her fingers into the mattress and hissed. “You let him fillet me. I still have burn marks on my neck. I endured the agonizing restructuring of my body without the courtesy of painkillers or sedatives. I’ve starved and ached and cried myself to sleep with a terrified young girl clung to me like a lifeline. What did your protection ever offer us?”

She expected him to get angry – she hoped that he would so that she could justify defending herself and maybe release some of her pent up aggression – but he didn’t. Instead, he nodded in agreement. “There are reasons for everything you were put through, Katherine. You won’t accept any of them and I won’t feed them to you. I never truly wanted to hurt you,” he admitted. Then he shrugged and sighed. “Or maybe I did. I meant to – to an extent – at least. But there were some very hasty decisions made on how to handle you, and they weren’t always justifiable, but you should know that your experience on the operating table was selected because it was a temporary pain. I don’t make the decisions, Katherine, I merely influence them. Our board wanted to sever your vocal cords and cap your fangs – both of you – after your stunt during that first showing. It was realized that you needed to be brought under control and quickly,” he stated with a shake of his head. “I always hated having to mediate; it should have been my call. You were my project and you remain the most successful achievement I ever anticipate to accomplish, and things would have been very different if I’d had the control I wanted. But I have less now than I did before. Lemuria will not risk losing you again.”

“This is a lame attempt at an apology,” Katie grumbled.

Dr. Auldon shook his head. “That’s because it isn’t an apology. I’m not sorry and I would put you through all of it again if given the opportunity. I wouldn’t hesitate. This is who I am and what I’ve worked for, and you’ve nearly cost me all of it. This is not an apology, simply an explanation. You’re going to need to be far more conscientious of your decisions now.”

Katie drummed her fingers against the mattress and her fin began to twitch involuntarily as she stared him down. “Are you asking me not to fight? You have everyone I love at your mercy – which I don’t even think you have – and you expect my response to be to obey you blindly once more?”

Again, Dr. Auldon shook his head. He rose from the chair and set the jar of cream down in front of her, followed by a folded white and blue striped tee. “I’m saying that if you plan to fight, make sure it’s a viable assault because there will be no cushion this time to lessen the effects of the backlash, so don’t mess it up. I need to go down the hall; I’ll be back in a few minutes. Apply that to your torso and change your shirt – I thought you might appreciate a fresh one – and wait for me.”

He was up and out the door before she could say anything in response. Katie stared at the clean shirt folded in her lap. The one she was wearing was rumpled and felt a little gross – she assumed she’d been wearing it for a while now – and a fresh change of clothing did sound nice. It just surprised her that Dr. Auldon had bothered with such a simple courtesy.

She sighed heavily and grabbed the jar of medical cream and twisted the top off. The pungent odour was sharp and bitter, and she winced as she dipped her fingers in to dig up a glob of the slime. While she hated the smell, it was soothing on her skin, so she smeared it over her chest where scales were only just starting to grow back. Katie’s jaw was clenched as she worked, and she was relieved when she could finally set the jar aside once more. She wiped her fingers off on the old shirt and yanked it up over her head.

She was just smoothing down the fresh one when Dr. Auldon walked back in. He was carrying a small bag that Katie eyed curiously. It wasn’t likely to be anything good, but part of her hoped that maybe he had food on him. She hadn’t eaten anything in so long that she was desperate to fill her belly again.

He rummaged around in it for a moment, and then pulled out a collar. A violet leather collar with a circular tag hanging from it. She couldn’t make out the engraving, but she already knew what it would say. Her heart sunk.

“Are you going to put it on or does there need to be a struggle?”

Katie growled her displeasure at him and he merely quirked a brow. “Give it,” she finally caved. She didn’t feel like being held down and having the collar cinched too tight against her neck like the last time. It seemed like a simple dog collar, so it likely wouldn’t be hard to get off. She wondered why they’d changed it to something far less threatening.

He handed it to her and she pulled it around her neck. She fumbled with the clasp a little bit but finally got it situated properly. It felt foreign and she hissed her displeasure.

Dr. Auldon nodded his approval and then stepped up to Riley while pulling out another leather circlet. This one was a tanned colour that was close enough to Riley’s scales. “She’s not going to like that,” Katie warned.

The scientist shrugged as he carefully fed the leather around Riley’s neck without jostling her, and buckled it down into place. “What any of you like or not is irrelevant right now. You have to wear them and there will be consequences if you don’t that none of you will like, so I suggest you keep them on rather than find out what those will be,” he advised. Then he pulled out a long leather cuff. It looked almost like a bulky bracelet as long as her hand.

Katie frowned when she watched him begin to guide it over Riley’s wrist and up her forearm. “What are you doing?” she demanded.

“Taking care of the fins on her arms,” Dr. Auldon replied as he buckled the leather in place. Then he pulled out another bracelet of equal length, but this one was made of shiny gold metal and clamped around Riley’s arm with a sharp click.

“You can’t do that!” Katie snarled. “Leave her alone!”

Dr. Auldon shook his head as he began feeding a second leather band up Riley’s other arm. Katie growled a warning and bunched her tail. That was going to distress her friend and she hated that Riley wasn’t even conscious to defend herself. Katie would do it for her.

“Before you make any hasty decisions, Katherine, you should know that this was the compromise. Either she wears these, or they’re going to have Dr. Patron declaw her essentially. These fins are fused to her bone. If they’re ripped out, she’ll be in pain for life and could very well lose the use of her hands. Which do you think she’d prefer because there’s no alternative.”

Katie growled again and her tail lashed with helpless frustration. She wanted Riley to wake up, but the other Mer remained completely limp as Dr. Auldon finished locking her spines away in the pouches on her arms that she’d tucked them into. She was going to be furious when she woke up, and tears burned in Katie’s eyes. It was all moving far too fast, just like last time, and she didn’t know what to do.