Llyr's POV

We were enjoying the peace and tranquility along with the beautiful view. I haven't felt relaxed like this in a long time. The silence was ended when Elaina asked a strange question out of the blue.

"Do you want to build a sandcastle?" She asked as she gave me a cute grin. Who could say no to that face. The only problem was that I was unsure what it was.

"I would love to, but I'm unsure of what it is," I said.

"Oh, well it's just a small castle or palace like the ocean palace that you build out of sand," she said as she started to gather sand. I could see how much energy it took from her so I started to use my tail to drag the wet sand closer.

"Well that works to," she said with a giggle when she saw my innovated plan.

I knew I had to tell her that this would be the last month that I would be able to visit her, but when I saw the excited look on her face; I didn't want to ruin the mood.

We spent the whole day building sandcastles and laughing at our failed attempts.

"I haven't had this much fun since-" I said but I quickly stopped myself.

"Since when?" She asked.

"Since my mother was still alive," I said.

"I'm sorry," she said as she placed her hand over mine that sent my heart racing. I didn't know what this girl was doing to me.

"How did she die?" She asked. I took a few minutes before answering and Elaina must have mistaken my silence as a sign that I didn't want to talk about it.

"I'm sorry, it's so rude of me to ask," she quickly apologizes.

"No, I want to tell you," I said as I gave her a small smile.

She returned my smile and I started to tell her.

"My mother was killed by a human fishing tool, she was in the shell field busy picking up shells for my birthday and that's when it happened. She was hit by that thing and by the time we got there it was too late. She was gone," he said.

"That's awful! I can't imagine what you must have felt like," she said.

"My father hated human since, he instated the two laws," I said.

"What two laws?" I asked.

"Never to kill or save a human," I said. As I realised that I didn't only break the law once but multiple times since I've met Elaina.

"And what does it say about spending time with a human?" She asked as she teasingly nudged me with her shoulder.

"Mmm, I think it's illegal to," I said and we burst out in laughter. How could this little lady make me feel so much better.

"Well then, you are an outlaw by now with the amount of rules you've broken," she said as she stuck her tongue out at me.

"Is that so?" I asked.

"Yes," she said and I started to tickle her. She sqeauled before she started to laugh and beg me to stop.

"Not until you apologize," I teased.

"For...what...? She asked between laughs.

"For calling my an outlaw," I said.

"But...it's...the...truth..." She said and I could see she was getting tired. Oh no, I forgot about her problem.  I immediately stopped and she was breathing heavily. The thrashing around she did tired her muscles very quickly.

She looked up at me and only then I realised how close we actually were. I could see her eyes' four colours clearly and the small freckles spread across her small button nose. Then my eyes landed on her lips and I felt this overwhelming sense of kissing her.

I quickly cleared my throat to rid myself from my thoughts.

"We should probably head back," I said as I gave her a smile.

"You're right, before Rhixton sends out a search party," she said before a yawn escaped her lips.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"For what?" She asked.

"For tiring you out like this," I said. I forgot about her condition and I cursed myself for being so careless. She placed her hand on my cheek.

"Llyr, this was one of the best days of my life, so never apologize for it," she said with a bright smile. I couldn't help but return it.

***

The swim back to the dock went by fast and I gentle placed her on the dock. She gave me a bright smile and I saw Rhixton coming out way with a towel. He placed it around her and she clutched the towel closer to her.

"Someone is going to sleep like a baby tonight," Rhixton said.

"Yes, can I go inside now? I feel very tired," she said and I felt more guilt.

Rhixton nodded. Elaina leaned closer and placed a kiss on my cheek.

"Thank you for today," she said before Rhixton picked her up.

"You're welcome, princess," I said. She gave me a bright smile.

I gave Rhixton a look before I mouthed,"We need to talk."

He nodded before he carried Elaina away who was already asleep. She looked so sweet and innocent.

After a few minutes of waiting Rhixton finally returned.

"You wanted to talk?" He asked.

"Yes, it's about Elaina," I said.

"Thank you for today, she enjoyed it a lot. Thank you for coming into her life, I can see her smile has been brighter since you showed up," he said with a smile. His words only caused me to feel guilty about what I wanted to talk to him about.

"Llyr, what's wrong?" He asked. A pained look clear on my face.

"I found out that my coronation will be taking place at the end of the month," I said.

"Congratulations!" He said, but when he saw my face he asked," Isn't it a good thing?"

"Normally, but in my case it means never seeing Elaina again because I need to choose my future queen," I said.

"So this would be the last time you have to spend with her?" He clarified. And I nodded.

"Yes, I don't know what I should do," I said.

"Spend all the time you can with her and the day you have to leave tell her everything, there is no use in telling her now. It would only cause her sadness and she won't enjoy your final time together fully," He said.

"But she'll be heartbroken," I said.

"Yes, she will be, but at least she has all these memories she can look back to, and I'll be there to cheer her back up. Trust me with this, Llyr. I knew her since she was in diapers," He said and I nodded. I'll follow his advice and enjoy the last few days with her.

***

Elaina's POV

Once Rhixton placed on my bed my eyes opened up as the events of the day flashed through my head. A smile made it's way to my lips. But then I thought about our almost kiss and how much I wanted him to kiss me. I didn't know where that thought came from, but in that moment all I could think about was how his lips would feel on mine.

With that thought in mind I drifted off to sleep.

I saw a beautiful mermaid, or I thought she was, but she had a different looking tail. Her tail was a beautiful silver colour like Llyr's and she was busy picking up shells.

She was humming and a smile was on her face when all of a sudden another mer appeared behind her. I recognised him immediately as the man at my birthday ball.

She gave him an aprehensive look and they talked about something. The discussion got heated and he lifted a nearby fishing hook and plunged it into her. I screamed when I saw her falling to the ground and the life draining from her body...

"Elaina!" I heard a voice call as my eyes shot open. I felt wetness on my cheeks and only realised that it was tears.

I saw Rhixton sitting beside me.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"He killed her," was all I could say before I cried again and Rhixton pulled me in a hug as he rocked me back and forth. Was this Llyr's mother? And was this a dream or was this real? It didn't feel like a dream, but more like a memory I remembered.

Once I calmed down a bit and Rhixton made sure I was alright, he left me to sleep but sleep evaded me. I kept seeing the woman's face in my mind and I knew I had to ask Llyr how his mother looked like. I couldn't possible imagine someone I've never seen. I kept tossing and turning the whole night as I thought about that man. I was dragged to the middle of the ballroom by that murderer.

I knew I had to tell Llyr about this, something inside me told me he deserved to know.