An edict was passed in the depths of the ocean. The mermaid king, the lord of the sea, had found no suitors for his six lovely daughters. For in the war, he had conquered all others who might take the throne from him. He had no choice. "And so it is in my name, the law, that at age fifteen all Mermaid Princesses must go to the surface. And find a prince."
It was years before the eldest reached that age. Aariana was the best female warrior in the palace and wanted nothing to do with marrying. However, she was determined to find a prince so she could rule the sea. Leaving her sisters behind she swam to the surface, with the plans to kiss the first prince she found. For once you kissed a human, the mermaid magic would transform them into a merman, or so they thought. She swam for hours, then days, until she reached the shore. Aariana was relieved to find that she had not only located the shore, but also a boat. Or at least that's what they were called in classes. She threw her long bright red rope braid over her shoulder, the eerie music of shell-bells clanking at the end of her hair to signify that she had never lost a battle. She thought of what she should do; look at it like a battle, you must learn about your enemy before attacking. She swam along the side of the boat, her mind calculating about how many fighters the ship might carry. Then suddenly a head popped over the side of the ship, it was high above her, and male. It had shortly cropped hair, just like the stupid men who lost battles, and kind weak eyes. She scoffed and almost left the boat to find another. Then she noticed the circlet around that head of a fallen warrior. "A king?" she whispered. "How could a king have such short hair?" she swam closer. The King turned around as if someone was speaking. Aariana broke the surface of the water to listen better, finding that she could breathe above the waves. She had little time to ponder that because the King now spoke.
"Son, you are being ridiculous. You are promised to another princess, no amount of witchcraft from a blasted old man will help that."
Aariana wondered if all humans spoke such rubbish, witchcraft changes absolutely everything.
"Father I don't care what you said, the man said all I needed was a braid of a warrior." The young strong voice paused, "What ever that means."
A woman spoke, "Rupert." Aariana bristled, she needed that prince he couldn't be married to another, "You're son has been in the sun too long." She relaxed the woman was his mother. "Let him retire."
The King waved a hand, the sun shining off of a brilliantly polished wedding band, "Let him leave then."
Aariana decided she must wait longer; she had no way of climbing the vast side of the ship to reach the royals above. But humans have to leave the water sooner or later.
So she swam at the boat's side for about a week before it made landing. Aariana was so tired she was swimming without a thought and nearly collided with a post of the dock. "Darn humans." She hissed.
She watched them file off of the boat. The prince wasn't with them. She gasped, "No, I can't wait any longer!" she waited for the king or queen to come to her side of the dock. Blasted royal humans, they were all covered in thick layers of fabric that must be why they moved so very slow. She wore nothing but her sheathes for her twin swords.
At last the King waddled close enough to her, "Now, now, Titana. Jamie will come around. He never saw any warlock."
The Queen sounded tired and sighed, "Rupert, your son will never give up. I'm afraid I never should have let him see that woman."
Aariana didn't wait to hear more, the King was close enough, she reached out and drug him under the water with her. She pulled a blade from its sheath on her back, "Listen!" she shrieked in her best battle call.
The whole dock fell to its knees plugging their ears.
"I want the prince." Her eyes turned to cat like slits and she showed her rows of sharpened teeth. "Now."
She felt the King struggling against her vice like grip, "Now!"
She saw a young man run back onto the ship, "Stay away from the water!" came the young strong voice she knew was the prince.
She worried for a second that he had short hair too, but she mustn't be picky.
"Now!" she pricked the throat of the king not noticing that his struggle was growing weaker and weaker.
"Jamie do something! Guards!" But the guards stood by the queen looking at the water in pure terror.
Jamie stood on the deck trying to think quickly. "Paper!" he called. A boy from the deck gave him a sheet of yellowing paper and a pen, "Good boy." He sank to the ground and began writing as fast as he could. "Take this to the Summer Palace." He handed the note to the boy, "Do not stop for anything. Tell the princess there I can't help her if she doesn't help me first." Then Jamie collected himself. He must walk bravely to his death.
Aariana relaxed as the prince returned. She released the King not paying attention to the Queen wailing with grief or the guards pulling her back from the water as her husband sank to the depths. "Prince. You don't know how lucky you are. I am a princess and an undefeated warrior." She pointed at the braid.
Jamie swallowed. A braid of a warrior. That's what the man had wanted in exchange for him to marry Olivia. And here it was.
"Even if you have lost a battle I will take you." She grabbed his arm and pulled him into the water with her kissing him fiercely and then pulling him down into the water.
Jamie panicked at first, how could he breathe? But after a few minutes of being towed under water he found he could breathe just fine. "How?" he asked without thinking, how could he talk?
Aariana shrugged, "Magic. It doesn't seem to work properly on you though, you have no fins."
Jamie looked at her like she was mad, "Fins?" but of course she had fins. "Where are you taking me? Why are you taking me?"
Aariana pulled him harder, "Stop talking before I make you."
Jamie stopped talking.
Rory had run from the grieving Queen and her too familiar Knights. "I wonder if she is really sad?" he asked before he pulled himself onto one of the Knight's horses and galloped away from the dock, no one the wiser. He rode and rode for two days until he reached the Summer Castle. "I am to see the princess." He held up the crinkled yellowed paper. The guard laughed. Rory ran off before he was beaten, "Not something you thought of eh prince." He muttered. Looking for another way in. He found an entrance to the kitchens, and snuck in. He followed a servant who mentioned the princess until he saw her sitting in a parlor. He approached once the servant had left, "You ought to up your guard." He whispered handing her the paper. Whatever is said of women being scared and worthless, never applied to this princess, she pulled out a knife and pinned poor Rory to the ground as she read.
Dearest Olivia,
I promised to save you from marrying that knight, I will, but first you must save me. Go now! To that little church by the water. Play until I can hear you under the ocean.
Jamie
"What in the blazes?" she whispered letting Rory go, "Boy! What is the meaning of this?"
Rory dusted himself off trying not the be hurt that a princess had pinned him, "Rory, and the prince has been taking by a water-woman who killed the king."
"You are speaking nonsense." Olivia pointed the knife at him again.
Rory tried to back away only to have her follow him, "Oi! Save the prince or whatever! I finished my task."
Olivia put the knife back in her dress and grabbed Rory's arm, "Off to the church then." She pulled him with her down to the stables. "If this is a trap you die first." She hissed in his ear throwing the saddle on the horse and tightening all of the straps before jumping onto the horse and kicking the gate open. "Up." She pulled him up with her.
Rory wasn't sure if this was a trap or not, but he knew he was being drug along now, and all he could think to say was, "You ride a horse like a man."
Olivia laughed, "A man taught me." Before she forced the horse forward at a dead gallop to the church where she had spent all of her summers. She blazed past guards and yelling teachers and lords, "Come back!"
She got off of her horse her knife out, "Tie up the horse." She whispered. Rory did as he was told starting to like this princess.
Olivia walked into the church throwing doors open and racing to the huge organ. She sat at the keys, "Play loud huh?" she looked down at her dress. "I have to get out of this thing." She took the knife and cut the dress apart, pulling off the skirt until her legs were free. She began playing. A monk came out to see who it was and seemed to accept that she was there like it was normal. Rory, who had been made to hold all of the fabric, now dropped it to the ground. She could sure play.
Jamie had almost given up hope, it had been two days, and not even Olivia could play that loud. But he didn't know that their ship had passed that very church two days before docking. That was where Aariana had surfaced to listen to the King, and that they were still close to the surface. Then he heard the music.
Aariana was no lover of music, but this was so moving she stopped swimming to listen. "Do you hear it?" she asked Jamie.
Jamie tried to pull his arm away again, begin rewarded with a slice to his arm with one of her knives. "I thought I wasn't supposed to speak." Blessed Olivia. Lovely Olivia.
"Do you hear it!" she shrieked.
Jamie covered his ears, "No! Not with you talking."
Aariana closed her mouth and motioned at the surface.
Jamie held back a smile. So that was the surface. "No I don't hear it." Or at least he wouldn't for much longer, Olivia might burst his eardrums.
"How can you not, stupid humans must have bad hearing." She swam up. Her prince could hear this music with her.
Once they broke the surface Jamie shook his head. "Nothing."
Aariana looked at him funny, "Maybe it's because you have been under water for so long, you did not take to the magic fully."
Jamie took in a slow deep breath, so he could still breathe air, good. He cocked his head to the side and shook it like he had water in his ear. When in truth his hearing was better than ever. "You're right maybe if I get to the rocks."
Aariana sighed and swam him to the rocks, "Useless." She was starting to like this prince, and she wanted him to hear the song. It seemed so sad to her.
Olivia yelled at Rory to go outside to look, maybe this was too be a sign for something, Jamie had been so cryptic.
Jamie stood on the rock his legs weak and his heart racing. He smiled, "I hear it now." He leaned down as if to kiss Aariana and took one of her knives, one in each hand, and chopped off her braid. He grabbed it and raced backwards from the water.
Aariana had lost. She had lost her first battle. Lost her prince. Lost her weapons. Lost her braid. She was nothing. Her father would disown her. She began crying. And swam away.
Jamie took the two knives and the braid and began the winding trail from the beach to the church. He reached the church and was spotted by the small boy from the deck. Rory raced inside and the music suddenly stopped. Jamie had barely reached the door when Olivia burst from the doors and hugged him. "Jamie, my Jamie." Jamie grinned that he was, her Jamie. Two days later the man showed up at the Summer Castle, "The braid?" he asked. Jamie handed it to him, "Now how may I marry her?" he whispered. The man laughed, "Well the King is dead, and the Queen killed herself, you are king. Marry whoever you like." Jamie gasped out tears rolling down his cheeks. Both his parents dead? Olivia came out to comfort him, Jamie jumped out of her arms looking for the man. Wanting to demand his parents back, but the man had left. With the braid. Whatever that was for.
Aariana washed up onto a beach one day later and died drying out in the sun. In her last moments she felt a hand on her face and a hand wiping away a tear.
A year later the next daughter was old enough to go to the surface.
Aairee was terrified. She knew that her sister hadn't returned. And she knew why. This was a death sentence. She wouldn't return from this. Her sisters crowded around her, the twins pulled at her loose hair. Aairee had never bound her hair, because she had never been in a fight. She was fought over. Aairee was used to being the center of attention, she was dainty and had always been the prettiest of the daughters. She hugged her four sisters and felt like crying, there should be another head of red hair in this hug. She swam off to the surface, trying not to hear her little sisters calling to her about seeing her soon. She wasn't coming back.
Aairee swam for the surface, it had been a full week of swimming for her to find land, and she couldn't be happier that she had finally found it. She saw a ship, or a boat. It was really small. So she thought it should be safe.
She couldn't be more wrong.
Aairee surfaced by the boat, her hair flaming red and fanning out around her. "Hello humans!" she cried.
Cameron looked up at Charlie across the nets, "Did you hear that?" Cameron raced to the side of the fishing boat. And saw what might be the most beautiful creature in the world. "Charlie? Do you see it too?" he whispered. Charlie gulped, "Yes."
"'It' is a girl, and her name is Aairee." She huffed, "Are either of you princes?" She pulled herself out of the water and up the side of the boat to look at them.
Charlie gulped again shaking his head. Cameron moved closer to the girl, "No dear I'm not." Aairee frowned, "Take me to one."
Cameron looked at Charlie for help, "Cameron." He whispered and pulled him away from the edge, "A creature like her could be worth millions." Cameron fought between punching Charlie and telling Aairee to leave as fast as she could. Charlie pulled him closer to whisper to him, "Cameron, you know that you're family needs the money. And that I need it even more."
Cameron knew this was wrong. But Charlie was right. "Of course dear, we can take you."
Aairee pulled herself on board and lay on the floor of the small boat. "Alright humans." She tossed her head trying to make her hair stay behind her shoulders. "Lead on."
The boat traveled for another three days, and the three sailors talked. Aairee learned that Cameron had two sisters and no parents; they had woken up one morning to find them gone. And Cameron and Charlie learned about Aairee's father, the law, and her lost eldest sister. Charlie said nothing this whole time, not wanting to grow closer to the beautiful mermaid.
After docking Charlie made a litter to carry the mermaid. Aairie pulled herself onto the litter pouring the last of the water on her tail to keep her wet. "So sorry you have to carry me." She smiled sweetly.
Charlie and Cameron carried her into the palace and set the litter down. Charlie went to the palace guards and whispered something to them and was lead in. Then four more guards came out to carry in the litter.
Cameron couldn't take it. He lunged forward to fight off the guards. And was rewarded with a blade in his stomach. Aairee gasped and tried to jump off of the litter to help him but Cameron shook his head, "I am so sorry." His whispered and he grasped at the hilt of the sword. "So sorry." He coughed and sank to the ground. Aairee shrieked and tears rolled down her face. "Cameron no." she sobbed.
Once inside the palace she saw the prince, and found that she didn't care for him at all, she wanted Cameron back. And he wasn't ever coming back. "I will take her." The prince said.
Aairee looked up at Charlie who stood in the corner not looking at her. "You did this!" she shrieked, "You killed him."
"And sold you to me dear heart." The prince smiled. "Put her in a tank." He said snapping his fingers.
Aairee died three weeks later from not eating. She cried out as she died for the one man she could never see again. "Cameron."
The next year the twins reached fifteen. The two had never been parted for more than a day and so they decided to search together. Aqua and Aquata hugged the little sisters their hair loose and floating around them like a red sea. Aqua broke apart first, "No need to worry Ariel." She smiled kissing the youngest on the head. "We will be back before you know it." Aquata broke away and nodded in agreement.
They swam away their hands still waving until the city was a spec in the distance. Aqua looked over at her double and nodded; they swam down deeper into the water. Aquata had come up with the plan months ago. They would find the sea witch for advice, after Aairee and Aariana not returning the two had decided that this was the best course of action. Allying with evil this once couldn't hurt them.
Aqua found the entrance to the cave first, hidden behind large black ferns that writhed in the water like it was reaching up to them. Aquata nodded in silence. Aqua swam forward, "Ursula!" she cried into the huge maw of the cave, "I summon thee with all the power of the royal court."
A deep laugh rumbled from within the cave, "No need to shout my love, I can still hear, even after the past three hundred years."
Aquata gulped, "We have come for—"
The sea witch cut her off, "Oh I know." She giggled as the ferns parted, "Come on in my dears."
The twins nodded and they swam forward. "You two want to find your prince?"
Aquata began to say something but Aqua cut forward, "If you know, cut to the chase we are in a hurry."
The sea witch swam forward out of the darkest shadows of the cave revealing the jet-black tentacles and her purple skin. Witch. The twins shivered. "So anxious." She held up her hands as if to defend her, "I will 'cut to the chase'." She made quotations with her fingers. She swam, her tentacles writhing as she reached up to reach a bottle, "I have what you need. Drink it."
Aquata lifted an eyebrow, "When? What does it do?"
Aqua grabbed it. Ursula laughed, "Not to worry love, nothing bad. And I wouldn't drink it until the right moment. This one's on the house."
Aquata frowned, "Why?"
Ursula shook her head, "So many questions," she paused twirling some of her think gray hair around one knarled index finger, "Let's just say I'm invested in your future. As you ponder that little nugget, I have a piece of advice, split up. You'll cover more ground that way." A huge sickly sweet smile spread across her purple face, "Now get out."
Aquata swam out without looking back, Aqua following suit clutching the bottle to her chest. Once outside the ferns instantly fell back into place hiding the cave. "Should we part?" Aquata asked her voice small and worried.
Aqua nodded, "That at least made sense. We will meet up at the shore line in a week."
Aquata gulped, a week? "Whatever you want." She muttered.
The two hugged for a moment, Aqua slipped the bottle into her bag, "I will keep this." Aquata nodded not wanting anything to do with it. And with that the twins separated.
Aqua swam for about a day before finding a ship. She was promptly shot at. She swam away and it was another full day until she got caught in a fisherman's net and had the rip her way out. She sighed inwardly praying that he weak sister was fairing better than she.
Aquata swam for about her day, her tail ached and her stomach grumbled. She sighed, "I'm not cut out for this." She thought she saw a boat in the distance and swam towards it. It was a tiny little fisherman's boat, but she approached anyway looking for something to eat. She surfaced, "Hello." She whispered.
"Holy mother of God!" the boy on board yelled, "W-What are you?"
Aquata yelped and dove under the water hiding under the boat.
"Hey come back, I'm sorry I yelled." A voice called from above her head. Aquata bit her lower lip not really wanting to come back out but her stomach grumbled again to remind her of the importance of this. Slowly she resurfaced.
"I'm a mermaid." She whispered.
The boy ran a hand through his hair, "No way."
Aquata nodded solemnly, to this the boy laughed. "Well if you really are, I am a human, and my name is Curtis."
Aquata bit her lower lip, "I knew you were human. I'm called Aquata." Her stomach growled again. "And I'm hungry."
Curtis let loose a real carefree laugh, "Of course I get a beautiful mermaid come up to my boat for a snack. Do you want to eat me Aquata?"
Aquata gasped, "Eat you! No!"
Curtis shook his head, "Then you will have to follow my boat back to the island so I can get you something."
Aquata paused, "Can I stay in the water?" she didn't trust the wooden thing.
Curtis shrugged, "There's a river on the island you can swim right up to my house if you want."
Aquata sighed, "Alright when can we go?"
Curtis pulled in his net, "Now." He sighed seeing that the net was empty.
He rowed his boat back to the island and up the narrow river until he reached a hut deep in the secluded woods. "Here we are."
Aquata grinned, "It is lovely are you alone here?"
Curtis' face fell, "Lately yeah I am. My mother died."
Aquata covered her mouth, "I am so sorry!"
Curtis smiled weakly, "Don't be she was ready to leave this earth." He paused looking at the house like he thought someone might come running out of the dark rooms. "Well you would like something to eat." He hopped out of his boat and pulled into onto the shore. "Shall I carry you in?"
Aquata bit her lip again, "Is there any water inside?"
Curtis lifted an eyebrow, "There can be, I have a bath."
Aquata lifted her hand up, "Then I suppose if you are asking me in." she liked this boy he was nice.
Curtis picked her up and carried her in his eyes seemed glued on her tail. "It looks so lovely."
Aquata blushed, "It's not really that nice. Blue tails are very commonplace for the royal family. Aariana had a lovely red tail."
Curtis blinked, "Royal family?" He set her down in the metal tub and began pumping the water into the basin so that it covered her tail. He turned to begin making her something to eat.
Aquata began telling him everything. Soon he knew about her family, her sisters, the edict, but she never mentioned her twin. Aqua had wanted to leave her, and she felt hurt still.
Curtis whistled handing her a bowl filled with stew. Aquata looked at it, "You eat water?" Curtis laughed, "It's soup." He took a spoonful and held the spoon to her lips, "Open." He smiled. Aquata did and he poured the soup into her mouth. She moaned, "It's warm!"
"Yeah it is." He grinned handing her the spoon and letting her continue trying to feed herself. He pulled up a chair to sit by her.
And for days it was like this, the two of them being together in his hut, until the day before she must go meet her Aqua.
Curtis woke up and rolled over in the bed. "Aquata." He groaned. Aquata woke with a start; "No!" she screamed her dream vivid and still playing in her mind's eye. Her twin bashed up against some rocks broken and bleeding.
Curtis jumped up at once and was at her side, "It's fine, I promise it was just a dream."
Aquata buried her face in his dry shirt and breathed in his earthy smell, "I know." A few tears slid down her face.
Curtis pulled back, "They are black?"
Aquata nodded, "Mermaid." Her voice cracked. "Fish thing." She distracted trying to forget the dream she couldn't talk about.
Curtis frowned and whipped the tears away, "I don't mind."
Aquata looked up into his eyes, "You don't?"
Suddenly Curtis was kissing her. And it was everything that Aquata had ever been told would be. She pulled back, "I meant to tell you, that means you can be a merman now."
Curtis blinked, "Kissing?"
Aquata nodded grinning. Oh no he can't he's no prince. "But who wants to be a fish anyway, I would much rather be a human."
The next day dawned, "Curtis, may I go out for a swim."
Curtis froze, "Of course you can, I need to go out in the boat."
Aquata bit her lip, "yeah." She flicked her tail a few times, "Well actually I'm meeting someone, would you like to meet them?" she asked.
"Who?" Curtis whispered.
"My sister." Curtis visibly relaxed.
"I would love to meet one of your sisters."
Aquata still didn't mention that they were twins. For some reason something didn't want him to know that another was out there that looked just like her.
She swam out in front of the boat flipping in the water and shot out arching into the air like a dolphin her laughter on the wind.
Aqua had no luck finding anything. She was going to return to the meeting place to tell her sister they must drink the potion now. She reached the shore and waited for sometime before seeing her sister approach. With a fisherman following her.
Aquata leaned up on the edge of the boat and kissed Curtis, "Wait a sec." she grinned. And swam off to reach her sister. "Aqua!" she called. Curtis leaned back into the boat he was so blessed.
Aqua's eyes flew wide; Aquata had just kissed the fisherman. The obviously poor fisherman.
She hissed. "Sister." Aquata froze a few feet from her.
"What's wrong Aqua?"
"You have fallen for that boy haven't you?" she had never been angry with her sister before, "You fell in love with this poor fisherman? Have you forgotten why we are here?"
Aquata backed up. Curtis couldn't hear them but her could see. "Aquata!" he called not liking the way this was looking.
"Oh and look he cares for you." Aqua sneered. "How disgusting."
Aquata felt her face turn red, "Don't talk about Curtis that way."
Aqua laughed, "Curtis! God even his name sounds poor. You must leave him sister."
Aquata shook her head, "No."
With that all of the frustration of Aqua finally failing at something that Aquata had succeeded in came flooding forward. Aqua was the outgoing one. The important one. The better one. She lunged at Aquata and drug her under the sea.
"Aquata!" Curtis yelled. He looked anxiously over the edge of the boat. He couldn't see them. He began stripping off his clothes and then dove in after them. But he had taken too long the twins were already too deep.
The fight was short. No matter how much Aquata wanted to fight, she couldn't hurt her Aqua. Aqua however watched as her sister breathed her last. She drug her sister back up to leave the traitor with her 'Curtis'.
Curtis sat in his boat anxiety eating at him. "Aquata!" he called again to no response. Until he saw that familiar head of hair surface by his boat. "Thank God." He kissed her not noticing that it was not the familiar smile. Then he saw that this mermaid was holding a limp body in its arms. "Do. Not. Touch. Me. Human." Aqua hissed. "Take your traitor." She rolled her sisters limp body onto the boat. Curtis gasped and lifted Aquata's head into his arms, "No." tears rolled down his cheeks and he wailed. He pulled a knife out of his pant's pocket and balanced the blade on the crease of his elbow; he leaned down and kissed her soft still warm lips. No magic happened, true love's kiss couldn't bring someone back to life. And Aquata was dead.
Aqua gasped, "Why? Why do you love her?"
Curtis looked up at that painfully identical face, "She was perfect and I can not live with out her." He said simply.
Aqua bit her lip then pulled out the bottle. "I don't know what it does." She handed him the bottle. "But you should give it to her." She hissed the last word out. How could she go fall in love, then die. Her mind splintered, wait she killed Aquata. She had. She was the cause. "No." she whispered backing away from the boat. Then anger draining from her now that the bottle left her hand. She paled. She should have been the one who died.
Curtis pulled out the stopper and poured the purple liquid down her throat.
Both Aqua and Aquata began shimmering, then Aqua was being pulled towards Aquata. Aqua screamed. Her voice began shaking, and through the pain she yelled, "You love my sister like I never could." But she began paling even more until her whole body was milky white even her hair the color floated off of her and into Aquata. Her chest began to rise and fall as Aqua began choking. Before long Aqua float limp on the water and Aquata's eyes fluttered open. She looked around in surprise, "W-what?" she was being pulled into Curtis' arms and he cried into her hair for a while.
In this time Aqua's body drifted out to sea never to bed found.
Aquata finally got him to calm down enough to splutter out what had happened. A black tear slid down her face. She pulled her tail to her chest then gasped. It wasn't a tail anymore. It was two legs. Two beautiful human legs. Curtis kissed her, "Don't worry I am sure we can find a way if you want the tail back." He had heard of a witch a few towns over.
"Never. I want to have these human legs with you." She smiled through her tears trying not to think about how much she had lost for this chance at love.
Months later she was walking well enough and the two went into town and got married. Later in the year Aquata learned she was pregnant and the town doctor told her it was a girl. They decided to name it Aqua.
Ursula sat at her gazing ball watching the happy couple, "That little one will have so much power." She swirled one knarled hand over the surface of the sphere thinking of the little witchling.