Ryajha's Domain

“Wait!” The abrupt fear his voice was a screech against Amek’s senses, stopping them with their paw mid-step.

They whirled back. The waves sloshed on the beach behind them.

“What. What’s wrong?”

They padded towards him before he could get the words out, drawn in by those wide, yellow, scared eyes, like a flare against the overcast skies.

Even when Amek had returned to his side, he still eyed the sea. His tail was twitching against the ground. It curled to encircle Amek loosely, particles of gray-black sand caught between his ink-black fur.

The motion was awkward, considering Amek was a great deal larger than August. This made them frown, even if part of them warmed at August wanting to protect them, instead of the other way around. Few creatures considered Amek someone that needed protecting.

“What’s wrong?” They repeated, softer.

“Sorry – it’s just.” August seemed to realize his tail’s placement, and it wriggled like a stabbed worm, embarrassed, before pressing back to his side. “You can’t go there –  the sea –  Everyone who lives here knows that. But you’re – you haven’t been here for long I guess, so… I should’ve told you, I’m sorry. It’s Ryajha’s domain. He eats any creature who goes in the water.”

“Oh,” they breathed out,  “I see.”

(Amek had worried it was something worse, with the look in August’s eyes. That look, it was sickeningly similar to how September made him look. How he looked at Amek when they came back from training sometimes. On instinct, that look had made their stomach drop.)

“Well, I know now, no need for sorries,” they smiled.

“Um. Right, I should’ve not freaked out that bad though, really, sorr –“

Amek whistled a sharp, scolding note. Though it wasn’t loud enough to make August jolt, the times that that had happened had only made them feel worse. It was a mere gentle reminder.

With a fragile smile, he gave an affirmative click.

Which was progress Amek would take happily, it was much better than him bearing down and apologizing more, in that frantic way where he wasn’t truly hearing the words he was saying, they were just tumbling out. Or, sometimes worse, arguing that he should be apologizing when he absolutely shouldn’t.

Amek clicked back, matching him. Partly as a yes-good and partly because they slipped into the urge they’d been having lately to echo August’s words back at him.

Though, maybe that was because…

They turned back around. The sea was a chilling teal.

 It was stark, the color, against the black sands and murky clouds. But the breeze was warm and salty on their tongue. The taste dredged up memories they had tried to drown.

Despite that, they still itched to dip their toes into those steady, undulating waves.

But they couldn’t. Because of this stupid Ryajha guy. Their core rumbled in frustration, though not enough to hear over the waves and wind.

They both stared at the waves in a comfortable silence for a moment. It was pleasant out, August had taken them out around there a few times – rarely did they see other creatures in these parts.

“We’re okay from here though, I – I think.” August’s quiet voice broke the air. “The beach is fine, I’ve walked around here before and I’ve never seen Ryajha.”

Never, huh? “How close do you have to get before he comes out?”

“Uh, I don’t know? It’s not like I’ve tested it.”

“Then has anyone else seen Ryajha around lately? Anyone you know?”

They realized this was a mean question to ask August, but couldn’t backtrack in time, and so just wanted to punch themself. August hardly talked to others apart from them.

“I don’t – not anyone specific, but. I know it happens – “ I’m not making things up, believe me please, “– it’s in the books, and no one fishes here – no one’s ever here because of it.”

Amek held their paws up, smiling, “Okay, okay I’m convinced, you’ve convinced me.”

August’s tail twitched in the sand. “…Okay.”

Ah zeit. Amek wilted. They’d made him feel bad. Zeit, what should… oh wait.

“Wasn’t there something you wanted to show me, hmm? The reason we came all the way out here, only for,” Amek flopped dramatically on the ground infront of him, making August’s eyes bug out in surprise, “silly ole me to risk death at the salty jaws of Ryajha?” They let their tongue roll out and closed their eyes briefly for greater effect.

Then August’s gaze flicked away, and he dug a paw into the sand. “It’s fine. I don’t really want to anymore. let’s just go back.”

Now Amek really frowned, because new definition of zeitiness reached. They felt terrible.

“Aaww Auuuguuust~. Come on,” They whined. Then, new tactic; they laid completely limp on the ground. “You’ll have to drag me back to Valencia then, and I’m heavy.”

“What.” August sounded, at once, exasperated and nervous. As if part of him was actually considering the idiotic task, and worrying, with certainty, that he wouldn’t be able to do it.

“It’d be easier just to show me the thing you wanted to show me, I think. Especially since I still want to see it and I bet it’s really cool.”

August paused, thinking. The ocean breeze pulled his fur into his eyes, and his tail was coiled close to his slight frame, the tip of it fidgeting with his own fur.

Amek waited. They always waited for him.

(Sometimes it felt like, if Amek looked away, August would coil into himself, so small, and simply slip away.)

While they would be content to wait forever, the longer they did so, the more a genuine apology tried to leap out of their mouth.

But then.

“Okay.”

Which scored a grin from Amek.

“Yay!” They bounced off the ground, literally leaping into the air and staying there, hovering a bit above the ground. August gave a tiny huff of laughter at the gust of wind that tousled his fur from the action.

They brandished their forepaw ahead and bowed, just so, at him, “Then lead the way, Lord August.”

August showed him.

And it was lovely, the tidepools, but not as lovely as the tentative excitement brightening August’s face. Amek had never been more interested in the (apparently massive) species diversity of kelp and moss and every other scraggly water plant that clung to those rocks.

Although.

They made sure it didn’t show, but Amek’s jaw had slowly tightened as August continued to ramble.

They weren’t touching the water, They weren’t. Yet.

The clouds of their hair and tail quickened. Like how clouds ran across the sky, hurried, anticipating, before a storm. Because, in their gut, they knew.

Ryajha was watching.