He sat and waited, counting out the minutes in his head and feeling the retreating rays of the sun upon his skin. The minutes of Faye’s life were slipping away, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Just as he judged that time was nearly up, pain ripped through him. He screamed and fell backward, writhing on the sand.
Pearl dove farther down into the darkness, the light from her hair all she needed to see her way. Her people had defeated the Sea Witch, Kale had said, but they had been unable to kill hen They had locked her instead in a set of underwater caves from which she should not have been able to escape.
She had, though. She had harnessed the magic from an ancient strand of midnight pearls to enable her to come and go as she pleased. She had left the cave and kidnapped Pearl. Her father had warned her never to go near the caves where the Witch lived, not dreaming that it would make no difference where she was.
She swam swiftly, her tail working better than her legs ever had. She thought about Faye when she had led her through the castle to see Kale. Within a couple of days the young woman was moving with more grace on land than Pearl had managed to achieve in thirteen years. She shook her head, astounded.
The water rushed by her skin, cool and comforting, welcoming her home. She wondered if her parents had ever had another child; she had been their firstborn. She remembered her mother’s gentle touch, her father’s strong embrace. She longed to see them again, to be with them. First, though, she had business with the Sea Witch.
A dolphin came close to her, whistling a greeting. He approached so close that she was able to reach out and touch him. She thrilled at the contact, and at the memory of riding upon one as a child. Mer-kin could communicate with the creatures of the sea, she remembered. Together, they spiraled downward until he finally broke off to return to the surface. She continued onward.
At last she was close to the Witch’s lair. She could feel it in the water around her, in the way the cold suddenly began to seep into her bones. Her heart trembled for a moment, but she pressed on. She was no longer a child, helpless to defend herself against the Witch. She was a woman, and she, too, had magic.
At the entrance to the caves she stopped and hovered in the water, tail flipping slowly back and forth.
“Come in,” a voice called out to her. It washed over her, slippery as a serpent.
“Why don’t you come out?” Pearl taunted.
There was silence for a moment, and then the Witch appeared just inside the entrance to the cave. “Come in, my child, and I can help you with whatever you desire”
“Can’t you come out to me?” Pearl asked, all innocence. “I’m afraid of the dark”
“Unfortunately, my dear, I cannot leave these caves. They are my home”
“I can leave my home, why can’t you leave yours?”
“I was cursed, child, cursed to live my life in these caves never to step outside.”
“I thought I saw you outside the cave before”
“You must be mistaken. Now come inside and we can discuss you and what you came here to ask for,” the Witch said, sounding irritated.
“So, you are unable to ever leave?”
The Witch stroked her pearls, “Apparently Now, what is it you are here for? Are you looking for love, fame, or perhaps are you searching for something you have lost?”
“Actually, I’m here to discuss something you have lost,” Pearl said. She held out the necklace with the pearl on it.
“Give that to me!” the Witch shrieked, flinging herself forward. The pearls around her neck were glowing bright. At the very lip of the cave she slammed into some sort of invisible wall and was thrown backward.
“So, without the entire set of pearls, you really are powerless to leave here,” Pearl noted as the Witch gathered herself up, glowering.
“The only way you can harm mer-kin is to get them to come inside to you. Without this one tiny pearl, you can no longer come out to them” She slipped the necklace back on. “It’s ironic, don’t you think, that in kidnapping me, you doomed yourself? I was able to live a full life on the land, while you were trapped here in your caves. I guess you could say that you lost more than I did, especially since I had no memory of the life I left behind.”
Power surged through Pearl, and she drifted to within a half inch of the barrier, daring the Witch to try to snatch the pearl from around her neck The foul creature tried, flinging herself again against the barrier only to be repulsed once more.
“I had thought of killing you,” Pearl answered. “But death would be far too kind for you. Instead, I’m going to let you live out your days here, alone. And mark my words, I shall see to it that no mer-kin ever enters your lair again.”
“Who are you?” the Witch whispered, her face contorted in a snarl.
She laughed and floated backward in the water. “I am Adriana, princess of the mer-kin, kidnapped by you and sent to live among humans.” She smiled slyly. “But you can call me Pearl.”
She stroked the pearl around her neck, and a low rumble filled the water. “I renounce your magic. I restore those whom you have cursed. And you, you are nothing more than a bad dream.”
A slab of rock from higher up on the mountain slid down and covered the entrance to the caves, sealing the Witch in and keeping all others out. As the stone settled into place, even the scream of the Sea Witch was lost, sealed in for eternity.
Pearl turned and shot back toward the surface, swimming as fast as she could. The magic binding the Witch to the caves had been strong, and only the strength of all the pearls together could break it. Each individual pearl was powerful, but it needed all of them to overcome the other magic that had been used to banish the Witch, Without the one pearl that she had taken from the Witch, the Witch had been unable to overcome the magic binding her to the cave. There was a lot of power in that one little pearl, enough to allow Pearl to do what she needed.
His vision returned in a sudden, crippling blow. He saw the last ray of the setting sun disappear beneath the horizon. What was happening? He tried to sit up but could not. He glanced downward and saw his legs growing back into a tail. He began to gasp, the air searing his lungs. He flipped over on his stomach and dug his hands into the sand, propelling himself toward the water.
When the pain stopped and his head cleared, he realized that Pearl had done it. She had defeated the Sea Witch and in the process had reversed all of her spells. He turned to search the waves for Pearl, eager to see her. Suddenly, fear knifed through him, Faye! Faye would be transformed back into a mermaid, too, and she was still in the middle of the village.
Faye screamed as the transformation began. She recognized it for what it was and wailed in anguish. Not now! James had asked her to marry him. She couldn’t go back.
Robert clutched her tighter, “Stop struggling,” he hissed in her ear.
She couldn’t help it. As the pain overtook her, she writhed in agony. He cursed at her, but she was beyond caring about him and his schemes. No! her mind screamed even as her body changed. Fear ripped through her as she began to gasp for breath.
Robert screamed as her scales rose up from her back and pierced his body. Then he collapsed onto the ground and she fell atop him. He gasped once, and then lay still. She knew that he was dead.
Villagers came running and when they saw her tail and the dead marquis, they began to shout. Many hands grabbed at her, and she didn’t have the strength to fight them off.
“Witch!” someone yelled, and others took up the shout. Her head swam as she continued to gasp for breath. Suddenly she was lifted into the air. They placed her against a post and lashed her to it, the ropes cutting into her skin until her blood flowed freely.
She stared blankly from face to face; they all began to blur in her vision. At last her sight faded, and everything went black.
Mary was worried. She and Finneas had left the church in search of Pearl but had been unable to find her. They couldn’t even find Faye or the prince. Frustrated, they began walking t
hrough the village, looking for familiar faces.
“Do you think she would have gone to the ocean?”
“It seems to me that’s where she goes whenever she’s upset,” Finneas answered.
Together, they turned and began walking toward the water. Mary just hoped Pearl was all right. She sighed. The last few days had not been easy on anyone, but who could have anticipated all this?
Suddenly, she stopped, listening. “Do you hear that?” she asked.
Finneas stopped and listened too. “Sounds like someone shouting.”
“Sounds like several people.”
Then one word rang clear through the air. Someone cried, “Witch!”
Mary turned and began to run back the way they had come. Her blood turned to ice water in her veins. It was a word she had long prayed not to hear, and on today, of all days, it was not a good omen.
Shouts of anger spurred Mary on to run even faster. When they reached the square, her heart flew into her throat. There was a girl lashed to a wooden beam. Flames were licking at her feet. The fire reflected off her silver hair. Pearl!
“No!” Mary screamed as she raced forward. Beside her she heard Finneas shouting.
She picked up a bucket of water standing nearby and doused the flames as Finneas shouted at the angry crowd.
She glanced up at the face of the girl and felt herself sag in relief. It was Faye. Something was wrong with her, though, she was too still. It was then that Mary saw the tail where the girl’s legs had once been. She gasped aloud. A mermaid! Suddenly everything made sense. Tears swam in her eyes. This, then, was what her Pearl was as well.
Faye was so still, Mary thought she might already be dead. She couldn’t let herself think that way, though. If the girl was a mermaid, then she was like a fish. Fish didn’t do well outside of water, but some could certainly live longer than others.
She picked up another bucket of water and doused her with it, aiming at her face and torso. Faye gasped, and her chest heaved as the water entered her mouth.
Villagers jumped back with shouts of “Witchcraft” on their lips.
Finneas’s voice boomed out. “Aye, ’tis witchcraft, but not of this young one’s doing. She has been cursed by an evil Witch.”
Good thinking, Finneas, Mary thought.
The crowd quieted slightly, listening to what he had to say. “It is part of a plot to kill our beloved king. The king lives, though, and this girl helped save him. That’s why the Witch has tried to kill her.”
He pointed to the body of the fallen marquis. “Behold, the marquis was another victim of her evil”
There were murmurs of anxiety as everyone began crossing themselves. Suddenly there was a shout, and the crowd parted as though by magic.
Prince James strode up to them. “What is happening here?” he boomed.
He saw Faye, and his face turned ash white. For a moment Mary was afraid he would faint. He regained his composure, though, and turned to the crowd. “It is true, what this man says. An evil Witch has attacked the kingdom. We have, all of us, been saved, though, by this girl and by Pearl.”
Ragged cheering rose as Mary helped James cut the ropes binding Faye to the post. She slumped into his arms, and Mary splashed more water on her face.
“You must get her to the sea, and quickly, Your Highness,” she advised him.
He looked at her with tears streaming down his face. “Yes, of course, you are right”
He picked her up and called for a horse. One was at his side in a moment, and he mounted with Faye in his arms. He kicked the beast into action, and Mary and Finneas ran in its wake.
“How did you know the king was all rightr” Mary gasped as they ran.
“I didn’t, I was bluffing,” Finneas admitted.
They arrived at the ocean shortly after James did. The prince was crouching in the water, holding Faye and splashing water over her face. As they watched, the girl began to move and finally she looked up at him. He bent down and kissed her once. She then slipped from his arms and into the sea.
Mary rushed forward but hesitated when she reached the prince. He looked up at her. “Pearl too?” he asked.
“I think so,” she whispered as she crouched beside him. They knelt together in the water, mourning.
Pearl broke the surface of the water near the beach. She scanned it for a sign of Kale, but there was none. That was a good sign that what she had done had worked. She flipped her tail up and slapped it on the surface of the water.
Moments later, Kale’s head popped up. Delighted, she ducked back beneath the water and swam to him. He met her halfway and caught her in his arms. Their tails wrapped around each other as they kissed.
At last they broke apart. “Faye?” Pearl said.
A cloud passed across his face. “I don’t think she made it,” he said. “When you broke all the spells the Sea Witch had cast, it turned me back into a merman. I barely made it into the water. Faye was still in the village. I don’t know how she could have made it.”
“I am so sorry, Kale,” Pearl sobbed, wrapping her arms around him.
“It’s not your fault. There was nothing we could do,” he told her.
They drifted closer to the shore, holding each other, comforting each other. Slowly, a new sound intruded upon Pearl’s subconscious. It was a splashing sound. She lifted her head out of the water and stared toward the shore.
She saw Mary and Finneas on the shore. James was in the water and he was holding something. Faye!
Quickly, she and Kale headed for them. Before they made it there, a new sound emerged in the water, and suddenly Faye collided with them. She was wide-eyed with despair and threw herself into Kale’s arms. He held her close, trying to soothe her, and Pearl lifted her head out of the water again. She saw Mary and James huddled together in the water and she could feel their pain.
She ducked back down and looked at Faye. “Faye, do you love him?” she asked.
“Yes,” the girl cried, turning to look at her.
“Do you love him enough to live out there with him?”
“Of course. He had asked me to marry him and I would have stayed with him, gladly.”
“Come with me, then,” Pearl said, grabbing the other mermaid’s hand.
They swam toward the shore, Kale following them. When they were close to Mary and James, they stopped and broke the surface. “James,” Pearl called.
He looked up, startled. The joy that flooded his face made her heart sing. He had always been her dearest friend. He had given her so much, and now there was something that she could give him. The other two hung back as she moved toward James.
“How long have you known?” he asked wonderingly.
“Only a day,” she told him. “I was kidnapped as a child and turned into a human by the Sea Witch”
He laughed through his tears. “I always told you there was magic in the world.”
“And you were right,” she told him. “Do you love Faye?”
“Heaven help me, I do,” he told her.
“Would you marry her if she could live in your world?”
“Tonight, if she would have me”
Pearl turned to Mary and Finneas, who had come up beside her. “Would you both watch after Faye as though she were your own daughter?”
“As though she were you,” Mary said, touching her face.
Pearl nodded and then turned. “Faye,” she called.
The other mermaid floated up, fear and hope mixing in her eyes. Pearl took the necklace from her neck and placed it around Faye’s. “The pearl is magic, and I want you to keep it safe for me. It will help you be who you truly are. You just need to look in your own heart.”
Faye closed her eyes. “I want to be that which I truly am inside” she said, clutching the pearl.
Before her eyes, Faye’s tail split once more into legs, and her skin lost its scales. Slowly she stood in the water and James stood with her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her.
Mary
smiled up at them before turning back to Pearl. “I’m going to miss you, daughter.”
“And I, you, Mama,” Pearl told her, embracing her.
Mary nodded at Kale. “Make sure he takes good care of you.”
“I will, Mama”
“And make sure you come to visit from time to time,” Finneas added gruffly.
“Papa, look out for your nets,” Pearl laughed as she hugged him.
They parted, and Kale swam forward, taking her hand. Together they turned and dove into the ocean.
Pearl was sad to leave the others behind, but her heart lifted the deeper they went. I can always go back and visit, she told herself.
“Do you still want to marry me?” Kale asked as they swam.
She turned to him. “More than ever.”
A smile broke across his face, and they dove together, racing around each other.
After a while she could see a tiny pinprick of light ahead in the darkness. It grew brighter as they drew near. Home, she realized with a thrill.
“Are you nervous?” Kale asked.
She nodded. “A little bit”
He grinned as he grabbed her hand. “Don’t worry. You defeated the Sea Witch today. This will be easy.”
She smiled into his eyes and held his gaze as they sailed into the sphere of light. They stopped, and she looked around cautiously. Dozens of mer-kin surrounded them, with dozens more arriving by the second. An older merman came to the front. “Son!”
“Father!” Kale cried, embracing the other.
“Where’s your sister?”
“It’s a long story, Dad, but she’s safe and sound. Right now, I’d like to introduce you to someone. Her name is Pearl, but we all knew her as Adriana.”
“Adriana?” he gasped.
Kale nodded as the cry was taken up by the rest. Kale squeezed her hand, giving her strength. Suddenly the cry died down and a path cleared. An older couple swam toward them. They each wore a crown of seaweed strewn with white pearls.