The Mermaid's Revenge
Well for the first time in so long, I am back writing on Fanfiction!
I do apologise for my long negligence, but I have been really busy trying to sort myself out and this new story marks my return.
My new story is an alternative ending to The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, in which the Little Mermaid joins a group of dark creatures instead of the Daughters of the Air after she becomes foam on the sea.
I've always wondered what would've happened if the Prince somehow found out he married the wrong girl and I've always felt that he should've found out. This ending has also been inspired by one of my favourite ballets, Giselle.
I hope you'll all enjoy it and it's good to be back. :)
Chapter 1: A New Beginning
A hush came over the ship. Only the helmsman remained on deck as the Little Mermaid or Marina, as the Prince had named her because she came to him from the sea, leaned her white arms on the bulwarks and looked to the east to see the first red hint of daybreak, for she knew that the first flash of the sun would strike her dead. Then she saw her sisters rise up among the waves. They were as pale as she, and there was no sign of their lovely long hair that the breezes used to blow. It had all been cut off.
"We have given our hair to the witch," they said, "so that she would send you help, and save you from death tonight. She gave us a knife. Here it is. See the sharp blade! Before the sun rises, you must strike it into the Prince's heart and when his warm blood bathes your feet, they will grow together and become a fish tail. Then you will be a mermaid again, able to come back to us in the sea and live out your three hundred years before you die and turn into dead sea-foam. Make haste! He or you must die before sunrise. Our old grandmother is so grief-stricken that her white hair is falling fast, just as ours did under the witch's scissors. Kill the Prince and come back to us. Hurry! Hurry! See that red glow in the heavens! In a few minutes, the sun will rise and you must die."
So saying, they gave a strange deep sigh and sank beneath the waves.
Marina parted the purple curtains of the tent and saw the beautiful bride asleep with her head on the Prince's breast. Marina bent down and kissed his shapely forehead. She looked at the sky, fast reddening for the break of day. She looked at the sharp knife and again turned her eyes toward the Prince, who in his sleep murmured the name of his bride. His thoughts were all of her and the knife trembled in Marina's hand. But then she flung it from her, far out over the waves. Where it fell, the waves were red, as if bubbles of blood seethed the water. With eyes already glazing, she looked once more at the Prince, hurled herself over the bulwarks into the sea and felt her body dissolve in foam.
The sun rose up from the waters. Its beams fell, warm and kindly upon the chill sea-foam, but Marina felt a force as cold as death itself pulling her away from the warmth and brightness of the sun into the dark depths of the sea. On the seabed, she saw dozens of beautiful beings. They were so translucent that she could almost see right through them. They were as pale as she, if not paler, they all had long hair and there was a cold look in their eyes that looked colder than the waters of the sea. They were not mermaids for they had human legs and they wore dresses of greyish-blue with hair bands of blue flowers, but one wore a crown of blue flowers and the others parted to make room for her as she approached Marina.
"Welcome dear Marina, welcome to your new life," she said and her voice sounded as though it carried very sorrowful emotion in the world.
"And who are you?" Marina asked.
"I am the Queen of the Rusalki," she answered, "and these are my Rusalki daughters. We are all just like you, Marina. We too were once happy, alive and in love, but just like you, we are the victims of rejection and heartbreak in the hands of the ones we loved and our heartbreaks ultimately led to our deaths here in the sea. But we were given a second chance; a chance to return to earth and live forever as one of the undead. We live here as undead spirits, haunting our former homes and our place of death. But to haunt our former homes is not our sole reason to rise from the waters at sunset, for every Rusalka is given the chance to seek vengeance on the one who was responsible for her death. You may take that chance, Marina; the choice is all yours, but first, come with me."
The Queen of the Rusalki took Marina by the hand and led her into the large group of the many Rusalki.
"Prepare her," ordered the Queen.
The Rusalki stripped Marina of her beautiful bridesmaid dress and dressed her in a dress identical to theirs. Indeed, she looked beautiful, as if she were a bride of the sea. Once this was done, the Queen approached her and ordered her to kneel. Marina obeyed without hesitation and on her head, the Queen placed a hair band of blue flowers, identical to the ones the others wore. Then she kissed her forehead and Marina felt a strange coldness running through her to her heart.
"Now you are one of us," the Queen declared, "welcome to your new family, our new Rusalka."
And the initiation was complete; Marina the Little Mermaid was now a Rusalka and she was now in danger of forever losing her heart. The kiss the Queen had bestowed upon her had begun the journey Marina was now destined to make that would forever turn her into a heartless spirit incapable of love. Rusalki lose their hearts forever once their revenge on those who caused their deaths is complete. The Queen and her Rusalki daughters had already lost their hearts when they took their revenge against the men who had driven them to death and the revenge of a Rusalka is most unpleasant. She would choose her victim and find ways to make him pay and suffer for the pain he inflicted upon her and once the vengeance had begun, the Queen of the Rusalki would finish it by placing a deadly, inescapable curse on her daughter's victim. She and her Rusalki were destined to forever remain on the earth knowing anger, hatred and vengeance among other emotions of coldness and resentment. Once a Rusalka loses her heart, there is no turning back.
The Rusalki embraced their new sister and Marina could only accept their welcome, for she was no longer in control of her fate. She felt sadness knowing that now, she would never gain an immortal soul, but would exist forever on earth as an undead spirit of the sea.
On board the ship, all was astir and lively again, but the Prince and his bride, who had been in search of Marina, were gazing sadly into the seething foam, as if they knew she hurled herself into the waves. While his bride was filled with sorrow at the loss of Marina, the Prince felt himself overcome with a great sadness and was unable to tear his eyes from the sea, knowing with instinct that it had taken his dear little foundling. His bride could not help, but notice the sadness in his eyes.
"She meant a great deal to you, didn't she?" she said gently.
"She was most dear to me," he said, his gaze still fixated on the sea, "I deeply cared for her; she was the dearest friend I ever had and she loved me more than anyone else did. But why would she...?"
He was unable to finish and his eyes were now wet with tears; his bride took placed one hand on his and the other on his shoulder as she attempted to comfort him.
"It doesn't make sense," he managed to say, "I told her we were never to part, that we would always be together. I don't understand any of this and I feel that losing Marina has felt such a void that can never be filled."
"Well like you said, she was your dearest friend and such a dear friend can be replaced," his bride told him, "but she is with God now and she will always be watching over us."
The Prince finally drew his gaze from the sea and looked at his bride; her attempt to comfort him was working.
"You're right, she's our guardian angel now," he said as a smile appeared on his face, but it disappeared again, "but I'll always miss her."
"I know," his bride said reassuringly; she took his face in her hands, "but she'll always be with you as long as you hold her close."
The Prince smiled with gratitude and kissed his bride. He turned to look at the sea again, before joining her in all that was happening on board. And indeed, the young Princess was right when she told her new husband that Marina would always be with him. Marina would always be with the Prince, but not in the way his bride had referred to, for the former Little Mermaid had already decided how she was going to live her new existence.
