Ashes

"Did the song help?" Neris asked gently as she placed a hand on Eve's shoulder.

The silver-haired vampire flinched and turned to face the princess's sapphire blue eyes.

"Yeah, a bit," she replied weakly, clutching her burning chest. "S-Sorry, I know you're helping me. It's just hard to trust you after the pink mermaid attacked us."

She paused for a second and took a deep breath, feeling the rhythmic beat of her heart.

"Do you think Big Brother will be okay?" she asked hesitantly. "What if there's danger in Atlantis? Or someone attacks him?"

The mermaid princess smiled and puffed out her chest.

"You really care for him, don't you?" Neris said. "Don't worry, Mother is with him, and she is the chosen successor of Poseidon's golden blade."

"B-But why are you helping me? Didn't you want to kill Jason and Karl?" the young girl blurted, unable to restrain herself from asking.