CHAPTER SEVEN
“Wait a minute—Pirates?” I followed Colleen into the house. “What do you–”
“Girls! There you are.” A tall woman with broad hips, wide shoulders, large breasts, and long dark brown hair stepped into the hallway from the kitchen. “Dinner was ready fifteen minutes ago.”
“Sorry mom.” Colleen halted in the foyer to kick off her shoes. “This is Vanessa.”
“It's just Nessa,” I said. No one had called me Vanessa in years—unless they were angry—and I planned to keep it that way.
“I'm Joanna. It's nice to meet you.” She smiled and reached out her hand. “Shannon never mentioned how much you two look alike.”
I shook Joanna's hand and my head at the same time. “We don't look alike.”
Joanna laughed. “Sure you do. Though I suppose it's hard not to look alike when you're related. Come on; supper's ready.”
The house was much warmer now than it had been when I'd first arrived. I took off my wet and sandy shoes, slid out of my jacket, tossed it onto the stairwell when I could find nowhere else to put it, and then followed Colleen and Joanna down the hall.
The kitchen was the only room in the house that didn’t look like it was part of a hunting lodge. The dining area was nearest to me, and the first thing I noticed when I walked into the room. A long wooden kitchen table that looked like it could fit ten people, but was only set for five, was directly to my right, beside the doorway. To my surprise, there was a young boy sitting at the table. I watched as he poured salt from the restaurant style shaker onto his palm and licked it off. He smiled at me brashly, and then continued on while I scanned the rest of the room.
The ceiling and walls were all painted white—which gave the kitchen a fresh feeling. The floor was covered with shiny white tiles speckled with silver. The left hand wall of the room was bare, except for the stainless-steel fridge tucked into the back corner. Extending across the back of the room was a wall of white cupboards and grey granite counter tops, across from which was an island that provided more counter space and separated the cooking area from the dining area. The right hand side of the room held the stove. Joanna, who was busy helping Grandma prepare dinner, reached into the silver oven to pull out our meal. I could smell roasted meat, potatoes, and gravy—one of my favourites.
There were two things that made this room the best in the house: the sparkly chandelier-like overhead lighting, and the right hand wall, which was made entirely of long, rectangular windows, which gave me a great view of the backyard. Outside, the wet green trees swayed in the wind.
“Don't mind him, that's just my brother Jack,” Colleen whispered into my ear. She nodded at the dark haired boy who was still licking salt off of his palm. Looking over at her, I noticed she wasn’t as tall as I’d thought she was when I saw her on the beach, likely because of her lanky figure. Standing side by side, she was actually a few inches shorter than me. “He's ten and a complete pain.”
“Sit, sit.” Joanna was heading over to the table, carrying a hot casserole dish between two bright yellow potholders. I sat down at the end of the table beside Colleen and with my back to the windows.
“Nessa, this is Joanna York.” Grandma carried a wooden bowl filled with a dark green salad, garnished with red peppers and purple onions, placing it on the table. “She'll be your head teacher at school.”
“Right, school.” Joanna and Grandma sat down at the table and began passing around the food. My mouth was salivating; it had been a long time since I'd eaten. “You know, I think I'd rather just wait until I go back to Surrey to start school, I could just take a semester off or something, instead of attending your school for...Nepto...weird beings...or whatever.”
“If you're going to be rude, feel free to leave the table and go to bed without supper.” Grandma held the spoon poised over the casserole dish and stared me down. I pursed my lips. I couldn't afford to not eat; my stomach was so empty it was beginning to rumble like a freight train.
Joanna—my future teacher—tucked back a loose strand of dark hair and took the casserole dish from my grandma. “I assure you, Nessa, attending the school's a unique opportunity. It will be much more entertaining than hanging out alone in your bedroom day after day.”
I grimaced. Joanna had a point. I was already missing Marnie, and it was less than twenty-four hours since I’d seen her. What was I going to do without a best friend to gossip with? If I went to school I could at least talk to Colleen; she seemed okay.
“There's an individual learning component, but you'll also be taking part in classroom and group work. It's a wonderful way for you to learn about our world and the challenges we face today interacting and living with humans.”
“I am human,” I muttered.
“I thought you were a sea-witch,” Jack said, three times louder than he needed to say it. “You've got to be a sea-witch, you have red hair.” His black eyes fixed on me, puzzled.
“I'm human; the red hair's a mistake.” I felt my face flame, and wrenched the casserole dish from Joanna's hands. I spooned vegetables, potatoes and meat onto my plate with a loud thunk. “If the school's so wonderful, why haven't I ever heard of it before?”
“You've never heard of it because it's a secret,” Grandma said. “I started the school shortly after your grandfather died, and your mother had graduated from her boarding school. We'd been running out of sanctuaries for years. Our kind needed a place to go. A place to learn.”
“So this school is just for Jupiters, or Neptunes, or whatever?”
“We're called Neptunians, Dummy, get it right.” Jack rolled his eyes at me. I had to fight the urge to throw a much-hated red pepper at him.
“Jack! Don't be rude or you won't be eating dinner tonight.” Joanna dropped her fork so she could point a stern finger at her son. Her dark eyes flashed. Jack looked down at his plate and began picking the onions out of his casserole. “Sorry, Nessa.” Joanna gave me a small, apologetic smile. “The school's–”
“Mom, can I tell her?” Colleen swallowed a large mouthful of food, nearly choking on it in her excitement.
“Go ahead.” Joanna nodded, almost laughing at her daughter's enthusiasm.
“It's a school for us: people with extraordinary skills that can communicate with the sea, live in the sea, or have a magical bond with it. Isn't that cool?”
I shrugged, reaching for the oil and vinegar salad dressing. “I suppose.” I didn’t say what I was really thinking: that even if the school was cool, it was no match for all of my friends and my old life back in Surrey. “How big is the school?”
“This year it will be fairly small,” Joanna said. “Last year there were more students. This year there will be a little more than twenty.”
“Twenty classes?”
Joanna shook her head. “Twenty students.”
I sat back and crossed my arms. “No way. I’m not going to a small school.”
“Don't you understand?” Colleen leaned closer to me, turning her back to Jack who was now picking the carrots out of his casserole. “Size doesn’t matter—we go to a magic school. You're a sea-witch. My family are all selkie's. And then there are mermaids, sea nymphs, pirates, orcies, sirens, and even vodiani—you've probably never even heard of them. You're special, Nessa. We all are.”
I shook my head, noticing the disappointment in Colleen's eyes when I didn't show the smallest bit of eagerness to join the crazy-water-people club. “I'd rather be human,” I said, pouring my salad dressing in silence. I’d rather be just like my dad. Dad had never believed in magic; he hadn’t even let me believe in Santa Clause or the Easter Bunny. If he was alive, there was no way I’d be here. If he was alive…
I poured my dressing and set the bottle back down on the table, looking up; everyone was staring at me. “What? It's not like any of this is real. Well...other than Colleen being able to turn into a crazy seal thing and Grandma almost killing me with the ocean. I mean, seriously. Mermaids aren't real. No one's ever found one. A
nd anyone can be a pirate if they really want to be.”
Jack leaned forward, his dark black eyes bugged out of his face. “Boy, I'm glad I'm not as stupid as you are.”
“Jack,” Joanna scolded him again. “Nessa has a lot to learn but that doesn't mean she's stupid. I'm sure she's very intelligent.”
“Yes, Nessa does have a lot to learn, including the fact that mermaids are real—as are a lot of other creatures that humans believe to be purely mythical. But that will all be corrected soon; your studies will begin tonight.” Grandma looked at me with her perfectly tweezed and arched eyebrows. Was it weird that she rarely blinked?
“Tonight? I was kind of hoping Colleen would stay and hang out for a bit.” I looked at Colleen nervously. The thought of spending more time alone with Grandma was pure torture. I gave Colleen a pleading look.
“It would be nice to hang out with a girl my age for once.” Colleen nodded enthusiastically at my suggestion.
Grandma shook her head, ruining any potential plans. “Not tonight. There are some important things you must learn immediately. However, I have some things to take care of tomorrow, so you'll be free to do as you like then.”
Colleen's expression brightened. “We could go to town! I can pick you up in our boat and we can go to Tofino for lunch. I love sushi, especially the raw salmon stuff.”
I smiled at the thought of getting off the island. “I’d love it. Not the raw fish though, but maybe some California rolls.”
“It's all set then,” Joanna said. “I'll let you take the boat, Colleen, as long as you promise to be back on the island before dark.”
Colleen rolled her eyes. “Of course, Mom, since when do I not listen to you?”