Chapter 50: THIRD POV.

If she stayed in the same house, she wouldn’t have to worry about Artria turning Jacob against her behind her back. Both sisters thought alike without even realising it themselves.

But eventually, she did speak. "Alright. I guess it’s ok."

"Yes!" Artria said in an excited manner. She didn’t give Persephone time to change her mind.

She swam over quickly and pulled her sister into a big, tight hug.

Persephone had her hands hovering at her sister’s side awkwardly.

She didn’t hug her back as if didn’t know what to do with her arms.

She felt stiff and uncomfortable, and she could feel the fake warmth coming from Artria. It was like hugging a statue that was pretending to be alive.

Jacob, who saw this, couldn’t help but smile and chuckle a bit.

He felt like a weight had been lifted off his chest seeing the two sisters hugging and thought he had done a great job of bringing them together.

Perhaps this life wasn’t so bad after all, if he could be of help to others like this. Though he still wanted nothing more than to fulfill his dream of a peaceful life in this world.

"I’ll have to go and break the news to Garin. The both of you can start to catch up now while I’m gone," Jacob said.

He looked proud of himself. He gave them both a wave and then started swimming off toward Garin’s part of the village to tell his friend that he wouldn’t be needing the spare room after all.

Persephone and Artria both smiled and watched him as he left.

They looked like two loving sisters waving goodbye to a friend.

But the moment he was out from sight and had turned the corner of a large coral reef, the atmosphere changed instantly.

The smiles dropped, and the water felt like it turned to ice.

Persephone’s expression turned cold. She swam back, breaking the hug and looking at Artria with narrow, sharp eyes.

The "soft" sister was gone, replaced by the dangerous woman from the cave.

"Just what are you plotting this time... sister," Persephone said in a distant, hard tone.

She didn’t believe the act for a second what she was seeing.

Artria let go of her and swam back a bit, her expression still as calm as ever.

"Whatever do you mean, sister?" she said, her voice sounding curious and innocent. She tilted her head to the side, as if she didn’t understand the question.

Seeing her acting so clueless only served to irritate Persephone even more. She felt her tail twitch with anger.

"Don’t play games with me...." Persephone said through gritted teeth. " I know you hate me. You’ve always hated me."

" And I know for a fact you didn’t invite me into your home because you missed me. So tell me, what is it you’re after?"

"Oh my... You’re not getting upset now, are you?" A light mocking smile emerged on Artria’s face.

"You sure that’s a good idea? We wouldn’t want those nasty sharks of yours coming back and wrecking the village again, now would we sister." she added, her smile growing even more.

" It’d be a shame to see you lose everyone’s trust just after you got it back." She said.

She wanted to remind Persephone that she was still a threat in the eyes of the village.

One wrong move, and Artria could make sure everyone turned against her again.

"Just what is it you want," Persephone said once more. She swam forward, her presence filling the space between them.

She wasn’t afraid of Artria, but she was frustrated by the guessing game.

Artria’s smile vanished instantly, replaced by a cold, hard gaze. The mask was completely gone now. She looked at her sister with pure dislike.

"For you to leave and never return to the village," she said. Her voice was flat and final.

She didn’t want a "second chance" or a "reunion." She wanted her life back to the way it was before Jacob went missing.

Hearing her, Persephone broke into a laughing fit. Her voice filled with mockery.

She laughed until she had to hold her side, looking at Artria like she was a funny little child.

"You’re delusional," Persephone said once she stopped laughing. "And why exactly would I do that?"

To think she’d finally have a true home again, and with time, perhaps some friends of her own, she wouldn’t have to be lonely again, so why would she agree to such terms.

Seeing her acting so fearless, Artria couldn’t help but frown.

She felt her control of the situation slipping away. She thought that threatening her sister would be enough to make her run away, but Persephone seemed more comfortable than ever.

"Oh? Look who’s upset now," Persephone said, her voice dropping to a whisper. She swam a slow circle around Artria, looking her up and down.

"To think you’d result to threatening me to leave. Are you that worried about me harming the village or..."

At this point, her voice trailed off. She stopped in front of Artria, a sly, mean smile blooming on her lips. She leaned in close, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Is someone worried I’d steal their new friend?"

Hearing her say this, Artria clenched her hands even tighter. Her heart felt like it was going to burst.

It was the one thing she didn’t want to admit out loud, and hearing Persephone say it so easily made her feel exposed.

She looked at her sister and realized that this wasn’t just about the village anymore. This was a war over Jacob, and Persephone had just fired the first real shot.

Artria wanted to scream, to tell her to shut up, but she knew she had to stay calm. If she lost her temper, Persephone would win.

But as she looked at her sister’s smug face, she knew that living together was going to be much harder than she ever thought.

She had brought a monster into her home, and this monster knew exactly where to bite.