Of Tail Fins and Seaweed Mist
Chapter 5
She was named Calypso, after the Sea Goddess of Old.
After her birth, Adriana became more depressed, and more withdrawn. She stopped going to town, and she stopped talking to her children, who pleaded her to talk to them. Three years went by, and she did nothing worthwhile.
She just watched the sea, as it roared and thundered. She muttered under her breath, things no one could understand. Andrew pleaded with her to tell him what was wrong. She shrugged away from his grasp, and looked down at her feet. She eventually just stayed in bed, never eating, and only getting up to sit on the beach.
Then it happened.
Andrew came home, and found his children huddled together, crying.
"What is wrong?" he asked them, very worried.
"It's mother, she's gone, and she's taken Calypso," said Robbie, who was comforting Martha.
"Where? Where has she gone?"
"To the sea."
Andrew ran out the door, and ran down to the edge of the ocean. He saw Adriana's head bobbing out of the water, her shoulders bare. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. Then Andrew saw that she had Calypso in her hands.
"No! You can't leave, I love you! Calypso is my child too, you can't take her!" Andrew waded out, trying to swim towards her. Adriana let him, and he soon came to her, panting.
"I'm sorry, Andrew, I love you too, but I can not stay, I need to go home. The sea is my home. I didn't tell you the truth, but I need to go. I can't stay here anymore."
"But why take Calypso?"
"She is like I am. She must return to her home, below the ocean. I'm sorry."
With that, she turned away, and dove deep down.
Andrew screamed, and dove down after her, his ears pounding. He kept swimming, he needed to find her. Then he saw her. He saw her for what she truly was. She was no human. She was a mermaid. He stared at her in awe. She was the same from head to waist, besides the fact that she looked wild and free, but below this naked part of her, she had a long, shimmering, silver tail. She kissed him once on the lips, and was gone.
His love, her that he had loved with all his heart, was gone.
He tried to keep swimming, but he couldn't breathe. He wanted to drown. He let the waves bring him up, and he swam slowly to shore, thinking of what he would tell his children.
"Where is mama? Is she coming back?' the children screamed, they were frightened.
"She is...gone."
I remember that day, fifteen years ago. I was three years old, and I was just snatched from the only place I knew of as home, and taken to a completely different world.
Mother came out from her room, and she told me to get up and come with her. I wondered why she was only taking me, but I went, because I was ecstatic to be included in her game, for I was in awe of my mother. She was beautiful, and I wanted to be just like her. I picked up my doll, and took her hand. She led me to the beach, and pulled me into the water with her. I screamed, I didn't want to swim. She hushed me, and began to swim, slowly removing her clothing. I looked down, and my eyes widened as I saw that she had a silver tail. She was one of those creatures that I had seen in my picture books.
She kissed me, and pulled me under the water. I panicked, I couldn't breathe! She put her finger to my lips, and said,
"Breathe, sweetheart, this is where you belong."
I did reluctantly, and as I did, I felt myself getting stronger.I tugged at my clothes, they were awkward in the water, and I didn't like being weighed down, so my mother helped me. Then I kicked my chubby legs, wanting to go deeper. We swam on and on, and I was getting hungry. I saw a light up ahead. My mother took my hand and took me further towards it. As we neared, I could see a beautiful castle, with lights lit up in it. I had never seen anything like it!
I reached my arms towards it, trying to propel myself faster. As we neared, I saw other beautiful women and men with tails like my mother's, stepping away from us in fear and apprehension. I grew scared, I cuddled closer to my mother. She held on to me, and propelled her fins even quicker. We soon reached the castle. My mother carried me up to the steps, and the crowd silenced, and parted, watching as my mother swam towards the center of the room, where an imposing merman with a long silvery tail to match his hair where a crown made of shells stood. She kept propelling herself, and then stopped in front of him, and said,
"Here is the child, your Highness."
"You had betrayed us, leaving us for that realm which we do not speak of, and what is worse, married one of them. What you have done is unforgivable, even condemnable, but since you have brought back the child of the prophecies, all will be forgiven in good time. For the rest of her life, she shall be instructed in the palace along with the Royal Children, and you shall live faraway from here."
Adriana bowed her dark head, tears in her eyes, and said, "I apologize my lord." Then she left, and that was the last time I ever saw my mother for the next ten years.
I was immediately handed over to a gentle, kind, old mermaid who wore many necklaces of pearl which meant she was high ranking, and took me to a lovely room all made from pearly white shells, with a bed of pink coral rock, and lovely clam lights.
"Here we go my poppet, sweet dreams to you." She left, and I slept, happy with where I was, but the last thing I saw when I fell asleep was the sad look in my father's eyes as we disappeared into the sea.
Life was good for me, I was treated like one of the princesses of court. There were 18 princesses and 18 princes, all sons and daughters of the king, for, as I learned soon enough, the King had 10 wives, who's sole purpose was to supply the kingdom with heirs, and also many mistresses. The wives varied in ages, from the first wife who was almost as old as the King himself and had given birth to two sons, and had miscarried six times more, and who was no longer treated as a queen but as a nurse, she was the one who had taken me to my room, to the youngest of the wives a girl of fourteen, little more than a child, Ralia, who had just been married, and had yet to conceive a child. There was, of course, a high Queen, for who else would appear alongside the King? Her name was Miranda, and she was less than half the age of the King, only 25, and she had given birth to four daughters and two sons. She was his favorite of the wives, and a good woman, beautiful beyond comparison. So I had my lessons with the royal children, and made friends with some, enemies with others. High Queen Miranda taught us the history of the Mer People, for she was one of the most learned mermaids in the ocean. Later on, I sometimes wondered if she had wanted more than to be equalized with the other wives, such as Ralia, who only cared about jewels and her scales. Yet when I asked her she told me that it was the fate Poseidon had given her, and though she did not like to see her husband with the other wives, this was her position and she would turn her eyes away and be a loving wife and mother. It was then, as she said that, that I decided never to be a victim of fate, but to take control of my own destiny.
So, the years went by, and soon I was seven years old, and the King, whom I refered to as High Father, (I did not like him much), decided that he would have the court sorcerers change my legs into a tail. The day came, and I was led deep into the sand, underneath the sea kingdom, and followed many corridors until we reached a small room that was so bright I had to squint, where many mermen decked in black seaweed were standing, a mark of the sorcerer. I removed all the shells, cloth, seaweed, and clams that I wore to show my status and to hide my lack of tail, with the help of my maids, and lay down on a plaque of rock. I closed my eyes, bracing for the pain, while they began their work.
Hours passed, and I heard mutters of confusion. I opened my eyes, and gasped. They had mangled me! My legs had random patches of scales, that weren't the usual silver colour of the merpeople, but a nasty red tone. I had gashes on my lower abdomen that had seeped blood onto the sand, and my toes had grown to twice their usual size. When one saw me with my eyes open, he hissed something, and I felt myself falling into a deep, restless sleep.
Hey! Thanks everyone for coming back and reading this, I am so sorry that I had said I was not continuing this, but I had no time before, and I was going to be away, so I thought it better not to keep you waiting. Sorry if this was a little gory, but it's part of the story, so I had changed the rating to PG-13 for obvious reasons. Thanks again!
Aerinha: Yes, betrayal does suck. How did the publishing go???
NightSiren: Hope I answered at least one question!
Kaio: Sorry for the wait!
Mel: Glad you like that other chap!
Naughty little munchkin: Im so glad you like it, your review was great, thanks so much! Yeah, I love my name too, piranhas are verrrry awesome!
Chunsa1004: Glad you like it!
Shiseidox: Maybe the fluffiness will last, I dunno, I can't tell fluff from fluff!
Miss Piratess: Yeah, they are sorta opposites!
Elvendreams: My favorite one too!
Mish: Yeah, I think I made it up, but maybe it is out there somewhere, because it isn't that original!
Chapter 5
She was named Calypso, after the Sea Goddess of Old.
After her birth, Adriana became more depressed, and more withdrawn. She stopped going to town, and she stopped talking to her children, who pleaded her to talk to them. Three years went by, and she did nothing worthwhile.
She just watched the sea, as it roared and thundered. She muttered under her breath, things no one could understand. Andrew pleaded with her to tell him what was wrong. She shrugged away from his grasp, and looked down at her feet. She eventually just stayed in bed, never eating, and only getting up to sit on the beach.
Then it happened.
Andrew came home, and found his children huddled together, crying.
"What is wrong?" he asked them, very worried.
"It's mother, she's gone, and she's taken Calypso," said Robbie, who was comforting Martha.
"Where? Where has she gone?"
"To the sea."
Andrew ran out the door, and ran down to the edge of the ocean. He saw Adriana's head bobbing out of the water, her shoulders bare. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. Then Andrew saw that she had Calypso in her hands.
"No! You can't leave, I love you! Calypso is my child too, you can't take her!" Andrew waded out, trying to swim towards her. Adriana let him, and he soon came to her, panting.
"I'm sorry, Andrew, I love you too, but I can not stay, I need to go home. The sea is my home. I didn't tell you the truth, but I need to go. I can't stay here anymore."
"But why take Calypso?"
"She is like I am. She must return to her home, below the ocean. I'm sorry."
With that, she turned away, and dove deep down.
Andrew screamed, and dove down after her, his ears pounding. He kept swimming, he needed to find her. Then he saw her. He saw her for what she truly was. She was no human. She was a mermaid. He stared at her in awe. She was the same from head to waist, besides the fact that she looked wild and free, but below this naked part of her, she had a long, shimmering, silver tail. She kissed him once on the lips, and was gone.
His love, her that he had loved with all his heart, was gone.
He tried to keep swimming, but he couldn't breathe. He wanted to drown. He let the waves bring him up, and he swam slowly to shore, thinking of what he would tell his children.
"Where is mama? Is she coming back?' the children screamed, they were frightened.
"She is...gone."
I remember that day, fifteen years ago. I was three years old, and I was just snatched from the only place I knew of as home, and taken to a completely different world.
Mother came out from her room, and she told me to get up and come with her. I wondered why she was only taking me, but I went, because I was ecstatic to be included in her game, for I was in awe of my mother. She was beautiful, and I wanted to be just like her. I picked up my doll, and took her hand. She led me to the beach, and pulled me into the water with her. I screamed, I didn't want to swim. She hushed me, and began to swim, slowly removing her clothing. I looked down, and my eyes widened as I saw that she had a silver tail. She was one of those creatures that I had seen in my picture books.
She kissed me, and pulled me under the water. I panicked, I couldn't breathe! She put her finger to my lips, and said,
"Breathe, sweetheart, this is where you belong."
I did reluctantly, and as I did, I felt myself getting stronger.I tugged at my clothes, they were awkward in the water, and I didn't like being weighed down, so my mother helped me. Then I kicked my chubby legs, wanting to go deeper. We swam on and on, and I was getting hungry. I saw a light up ahead. My mother took my hand and took me further towards it. As we neared, I could see a beautiful castle, with lights lit up in it. I had never seen anything like it!
I reached my arms towards it, trying to propel myself faster. As we neared, I saw other beautiful women and men with tails like my mother's, stepping away from us in fear and apprehension. I grew scared, I cuddled closer to my mother. She held on to me, and propelled her fins even quicker. We soon reached the castle. My mother carried me up to the steps, and the crowd silenced, and parted, watching as my mother swam towards the center of the room, where an imposing merman with a long silvery tail to match his hair where a crown made of shells stood. She kept propelling herself, and then stopped in front of him, and said,
"Here is the child, your Highness."
"You had betrayed us, leaving us for that realm which we do not speak of, and what is worse, married one of them. What you have done is unforgivable, even condemnable, but since you have brought back the child of the prophecies, all will be forgiven in good time. For the rest of her life, she shall be instructed in the palace along with the Royal Children, and you shall live faraway from here."
Adriana bowed her dark head, tears in her eyes, and said, "I apologize my lord." Then she left, and that was the last time I ever saw my mother for the next ten years.
I was immediately handed over to a gentle, kind, old mermaid who wore many necklaces of pearl which meant she was high ranking, and took me to a lovely room all made from pearly white shells, with a bed of pink coral rock, and lovely clam lights.
"Here we go my poppet, sweet dreams to you." She left, and I slept, happy with where I was, but the last thing I saw when I fell asleep was the sad look in my father's eyes as we disappeared into the sea.
Life was good for me, I was treated like one of the princesses of court. There were 18 princesses and 18 princes, all sons and daughters of the king, for, as I learned soon enough, the King had 10 wives, who's sole purpose was to supply the kingdom with heirs, and also many mistresses. The wives varied in ages, from the first wife who was almost as old as the King himself and had given birth to two sons, and had miscarried six times more, and who was no longer treated as a queen but as a nurse, she was the one who had taken me to my room, to the youngest of the wives a girl of fourteen, little more than a child, Ralia, who had just been married, and had yet to conceive a child. There was, of course, a high Queen, for who else would appear alongside the King? Her name was Miranda, and she was less than half the age of the King, only 25, and she had given birth to four daughters and two sons. She was his favorite of the wives, and a good woman, beautiful beyond comparison. So I had my lessons with the royal children, and made friends with some, enemies with others. High Queen Miranda taught us the history of the Mer People, for she was one of the most learned mermaids in the ocean. Later on, I sometimes wondered if she had wanted more than to be equalized with the other wives, such as Ralia, who only cared about jewels and her scales. Yet when I asked her she told me that it was the fate Poseidon had given her, and though she did not like to see her husband with the other wives, this was her position and she would turn her eyes away and be a loving wife and mother. It was then, as she said that, that I decided never to be a victim of fate, but to take control of my own destiny.
So, the years went by, and soon I was seven years old, and the King, whom I refered to as High Father, (I did not like him much), decided that he would have the court sorcerers change my legs into a tail. The day came, and I was led deep into the sand, underneath the sea kingdom, and followed many corridors until we reached a small room that was so bright I had to squint, where many mermen decked in black seaweed were standing, a mark of the sorcerer. I removed all the shells, cloth, seaweed, and clams that I wore to show my status and to hide my lack of tail, with the help of my maids, and lay down on a plaque of rock. I closed my eyes, bracing for the pain, while they began their work.
Hours passed, and I heard mutters of confusion. I opened my eyes, and gasped. They had mangled me! My legs had random patches of scales, that weren't the usual silver colour of the merpeople, but a nasty red tone. I had gashes on my lower abdomen that had seeped blood onto the sand, and my toes had grown to twice their usual size. When one saw me with my eyes open, he hissed something, and I felt myself falling into a deep, restless sleep.
Hey! Thanks everyone for coming back and reading this, I am so sorry that I had said I was not continuing this, but I had no time before, and I was going to be away, so I thought it better not to keep you waiting. Sorry if this was a little gory, but it's part of the story, so I had changed the rating to PG-13 for obvious reasons. Thanks again!
Aerinha: Yes, betrayal does suck. How did the publishing go???
NightSiren: Hope I answered at least one question!
Kaio: Sorry for the wait!
Mel: Glad you like that other chap!
Naughty little munchkin: Im so glad you like it, your review was great, thanks so much! Yeah, I love my name too, piranhas are verrrry awesome!
Chunsa1004: Glad you like it!
Shiseidox: Maybe the fluffiness will last, I dunno, I can't tell fluff from fluff!
Miss Piratess: Yeah, they are sorta opposites!
Elvendreams: My favorite one too!
Mish: Yeah, I think I made it up, but maybe it is out there somewhere, because it isn't that original!