17: Amber's Final Test With Mermaid

Inside room three, Amber and Mermaid were seated at the dining table with covered plates each in front of them. They opened their plates and Amber gasped at the sight of what was inside her plate. What she found was potato peels neatly diced. Looking from her plate to Mermaid’s she found potato meat in hers. Why would Mermaid eat the potato insides and feed her the peels she wondered, eyeing Mermaid who in turn was observing her closely.

“Eat,” Mermaid commanded and Amber shook her head in refusal.

“You must eat so that you can be strong. Your mother did not tell you that?”

“My mother never fed me potato peels,” Amber said simply. “I don’t know what you take me for but I eat potato meat just like you”

“I won’t tell you to eat again,” Mermaid said impatiently and for the first time, Amber lost her patience.

“I never asked to be here” she retorted, annoyed at the situation. “Will you punish me if I don’t? Would that be right?”

Mermaid sighed.

“I won’t punish you. And that’s becaus