"Hey, Ursula! Come on, wake up!"
With a tap on her shoulder, the girl jumped awake, banging her knee slightly on the bottom of her desk.
"Huh!? Wha-?" She gasped, looking around frantically until her eyes found her roommate next to her. "Oh... it's you."
"Geez, I'm gone for 5 minutes and you're already asleep."
"Sorry… welcome back. Thanks for waking me up."
Her roommate was carrying a potted plant in one arm, a typical situation for everyone in her field. The herbalist crossed the dorm and placed the little tree on the windowsill.
"You really ought to give yourself a break, Ursula," her roommate said, but she barely registered it as she had returned to her homework. "You're easily the best, most hardworking student I know."
She silently disagreed. She wasn't the best. There was only one student who she considered the best, and that person was far in her past. She was on her own now - no more gracious help from her former friend. The thought left a hollow ache in her chest.
There was a rustle of clothing, and a creak of wooden planks, and she knew her roommate had crawled into bed. Not long after, the room behind her darkened as several candles were put out. Only a single one remained - the one on her desk. Her roommate wouldn't mind - she was a heavy sleeper.
The candlestick was nearly twice as tall since she started her homework that night, but she had barely made any progress with how difficult it was. As much as she squinted through the darkness at the problems written on the parchment in front of her, the answers refused to come.
I can't keep doing this. She thought, blinking and rubbing drowsiness from her eyes. Too many late nights… I'm gonna lose my eyesight.
She was already starting to actually. She couldn't read the handwriting on the chalkboards now unless she sat at the front of the lecture halls.
But she had to do this, less she fell behind in her studies to become a professor. She wasn't gifted with intellect... not like her old friend. The pressure and stress manifested in the ever-worsening dark bags under her sunken eyes, in the disheveled locks of her long, blue hair. It was much longer now than it was in the past - at least to her shoulders now, and not all of it through transformation magic. Occasionally she thought of braiding it, or tying it up the end.
She sighed and pushed away from her desk. Maybe she did need a break. After barely a moment of contemplation, she decided on where to go.
She got up and headed for the door, leaving behind her homework. Before she left, she grabbed a thick coat and extinguished the candle with a wave of her hand behind her.
There was always one place she could always go to find rest. It was a place where she could be herself, for she held a secret unknown to all but one.
She was a graduate student at the academy, working to be a professor. That much was true, but she wasn't Ursula Callistis as her roommate called her.
She was Chariot du Nord, once the wielder of the Claiomh Solais, a former world entertainer… a failure.
Throughout her years at Luna Nova, she had uncovered much of its secrets, either by serendipity or her own exploration.
A dense forest surrounds the academy, infeasible to traverse except by the leyline terminals and protected from demolition as a nature reserve by national law. Within these woods lie many curiosities, including Arcturus Forest, the ruins of the abandoned northern campus, and the Big Dipper Arch that leads to the Fountain of Polaris.
One other mystery is a series of luminescent estuaries, and more specifically, a being that resided within them. It was towards these waters that she snuck out under the cover of night.
As she approached the glowing pool, she put away her wand that she was using for light. She sat at the bank, and gently dipped a hand into the water.
"Hello? Are you there?" She whispered, swishing around her fingers slightly.
Before long, bubbles began to rise to the surface. She removed her hand and watched as the surface rippled harder and harder. Finally, a figure burst from the water.
From the waist up, the being had a woman's body. Her skin was fair, her eyes large but droopy, as if always sleepy. Her long flowing hair glistened in bright greens, yellows, and pinks, like malleable glass in front of sunlight, which was only enhanced by the glow of the water.
From her waist down, just barely visible as it rested on the portion of the bank beneath the water, was a long tail of a fish, with scales colored like her hair, equally as brilliant. In all, she was a species of true rarity - a mermaid.
"Chariot," spoke a soft voice, the accent foreign but pleasing.
There was only one other person who knew her true name, and hearing it out loud instantly set her at ease.
She smiled, then reached out a hand, which was met by the mermaid's own. It was smoother than silk, and warm despite the water that dripped from it.
"Pisces… it's so good to see you."
"And you." Pisces clasped the girl's hand between hers, holding it lightly in the space between them. "What is wrong?"
Pisces was a person of few words, not just because speaking the human language was difficult for her kind. But her friend came to her often to seek solace from the burdens of life, so that she had asked her such a question now? It only meant she sensed there was something more tonight. Mermaids are magical creatures by nature, and their intuitions are never wrong.
There was a long sigh before the answer came. "I've just been thinking about my past… all the mistakes I've made. I thought I was doing the right thing, but I only hurt people."
Pisces let her friend speak, as she always did. She waited patiently through every pause, no matter how long, until she was sure she was done.
"I just can't seem to move on. Now I'm hiding under a new name, Ursula… it just feels like running away. How can I really be someone else? Someone that… hasn't done what I've done..."
A long time passed without a word, then Pisces spoke again.
"Forgive, be kinder to yourself. Every day, you grow, you are a new Chariot."
Chariot's eyes were downcast, but she nodded in reply. She placed her other hand over Pisces, seeking more warmth in the chilly night. They stayed like that for while, holding hands, listening to the chirp of evening insects, the whisper of the breeze through the trees, the sloshing of the water.
Eventually, Chariot broke the quiet and cleared her throat. "You're right. You always are, and I guess I already know it too… but it's so much harder said than done."
"Yes."
"I lost a friend, you know... my closest friend."
"People come, people go."
"Now she isn't here to help me when I need her."
"But see what you have earned by yourself!"
Chariot thought about her studies, how she struggled alone all the time. She was too afraid to ask anyone for help - then again she was too afraid to approach anyone for anything now. Even so, hadn't she always made it through in the end?
"Hmm... I guess so... how come you never help me with my assignments, though? You're already about to get your first feather!"
"Our fields are too different. You know this," Pisces said with a small, tinkling laugh, to which Chariot chuckled as well. That was good. She was beginning to feel better.
Chariot lay down on the ground, not caring whether she got wet or dirty. She was tired, but at least now it didn't feel like the tiredness seeped through every inch of her body, into her soul.
Pisces had a freed a hand and stroked gently through her hair. Together they indulged in one of their favorite shared past times - stargazing. Above them the canopy of trees opened to the night sky in a perfect circle, and the lake's magic light did nothing to hinder the view of the stars. In fact, it seemed to draw the starlight, as if it were trying to pull down the constellations to match their own reflection.
The moon hung at the periphery of the circle. Carved on its surface was the evidence of her stained past, but at that moment, it didn't matter to her, not with her company.
"Thanks for listening to me all the time."
Pisces nodded. "Thank you too, for talking to me."
And she meant it, for Chariot was not the only one burdened with a secret identity. In the day, Pisces attended the academy in the form of a regular student, but at night, she returned to her natural habitat in the water. There was a reason why her kind were so rare. Her true identity as a mermaid was strictly kept secret for her own safety, but unfortunately, this only leads to a self-imposed isolation from the other students.
But around each other, neither had to hide their true selves. It was why they had grown so close.
"Do you remember the day we first met?"
Pisces smiled fondly at the memory. "It is as clear as the water in this lake."
It was actually in their younger days, when Chariot was a mere teenager at Luna Nova. However, it was only after they had met again in their graduate studies that the two became good friends. From her reminiscing, Pisces felt inspired.
"May I sing, Chariot?"
The girl sat up immediately. "Of course! You don't have to ask me. I love hearing you sing!"
Pisces bashfully smiled and nodded. It was something her species of mermaid loved to do, but she always felt a tad nervous when there was an audience.
She placed her free hand over her chest, then closed her eyes. She breathed deeply, and called upon the inherent magic of her kind. Then, she began to sing.
"Sur la luzerne en fleur assise,
Qui chante dès le frais matin?
C'est la fille aux cheveux de lin,
La belle aux lèvres de cerise."
The magic filled her voice with layers of alto and bass, a choir all on her own, as well as the gift of tongues, that it may touch the heart of her audience in their native language. It was the same power of old that led many a sailor astray, but for Chariot it was merely a song of love - passionate, but gentle and soothing. She recognized the lyrics instantly.
"Hey, I know this poem!" Chariot said before the next stanza. "I didn't know there was a song to it."
"There is not. I am creating it new."
Despite how many times she had heard Pisces' singing weaved with magic, a sigh still left Chariot's lips in amazement. She felt herself leaning in to the music. She let the melody envelop her, until she saw only Pisces' slender face - the delicate lips upon it and doting eyes that returned her rapturous gaze. It filled her body with a warmth that melted away all thoughts, all worries, and in the same moment, an excitement bursting in her chest.
"Adieu les daims, adieu les lièvres
Et les rouges perdrix! Je veux
Baiser le lin de tes cheveux,
Presser la pourpre de tes lèvres!
"L'amour, au clair soleil d'été,
Avec l'alouette a chanté."
As the song drew to a close, so caught in her reverie was Chariot that she hardly noticed just how close her and Pisces' faces had drawn together. They were only centimeters apart before she noticed. Chariot coiled back, blushing furiously.
"That was a... great song!" She stammered. "Lovely! Uh… beautifully arranged… I love it!"
Pisces never responded to her compliments, but Chariot had learned to discern her happiness by the way her tail fin did a quick dance in the water. That was enough confirmation for her.
Chariot cleared her throat. "It's getting late… I guess I should head back now."
Pisces nodded, so Chariot began to get up until she felt a tug on her hand.
"Before going, I want to give you something."
"Oh! Sure! What is it?"
Chariot's eyes went to the water, expecting some object to be produced from its depths. She failed to notice Pisces leaning closer until she felt a peck on her cheek.
"Goodnight, Chariot," Pisces whispered.
"Good… Yes! Goodnight!" She said, trying to dig the words out from her idled mind. Pisces' knowing smile wasn't making it any easier either. "Thank you..."
Then their hands parted - the first time that night. With one last smile, Pisces pushed from the shore and dived into the water.
Chariot stared at the still water for a time, her fingers ghosting over the spot on her cheek where Pisces had kissed her.
Finally, she pushed off from the ground and headed for the dorms. Her spirits high, she nearly pranced the way back. Her homework she would put off until day, she decided, for a restful night's sleep instead. For the time being, everything had been pushed to the back of her mind, and in its place was only thoughts of how she ought to return Pisces gift.
Despite all that plagued her conscience these days, nothing seemed as bad when she had Pisces by her.
A/N: For my dear friend, Marjo. Please see her beautiful mermaid Pisces art on her tumblr: missmarjolaine!