Chapter Seven: Mermaids

Even with a jacket borrowed from Tad to help starve off the cold, icy wind, Mabel still felt completely unprepared for the snow that was outside. She stared down into the cold water that was so dark it looked black, glaciers in the distance, almost seeming to taunt them. Mabel shuddered, feeling the cold nip at her cheeks and wished she could go back downstairs.

"I read once in a story that when they thought the world was flat, the closer you get to the edge the colder it is." Mabel muttered more to herself than to anyone else, watching them approach an island that looked more like a floating glacier than an actual island. They were preparing the dinghy to go out to shore, a couple men staving off the cold with activities rather than bundling up.

"Aye, I remember that story." Someone said near her, extending a hand to help her into the small boat. Bill had been all too willing to let her go along with him, and if they hadn't just worked through most of their feelings, it would have been a red flag going up. Instead she was just excited to see a mythical creature her uncles had told her about when she was young.

Bill climbed into the small boat, and Kryptos came along as well to row so they wouldn't have to. Mabel not so subtly moved as close as she could to Kryptos, leeching his heat and doing her best to stay warm. The sheer amount of warmth Kryptos' blush was putting off was enough to keep her warm.

Soon enough they were heading out, leaving the ship in the distance and rowing towards the small island that Mabel still could see as a floating chunk of ice instead of a home for mermaids. Did they just stay in the arctic or did they travel? Mabel had so many questions she was almost thrumming with excitement. Dipper was going to be so jealous when he heard that Mabel got to meet mermaids.

The boat hit the shore of the island with a crunch as the ice that coated the sand had to move. Bill got out first, helping Mabel so she wouldn't slip and fall, and then the three of them worked together to pull the boat ashore so it wouldn't drift away.

"Go get a head start, Mabel. We'll be right there." Bill said to Mabel, grabbing Kryptos so they could make sure the boat was completely tethered.

Mabel hesitantly nodded, a bit wary of going off on her own but also wanting to see the mermaids. Her arms were firmly tucked around herself to conserve warmth as she went into the island, almost slipping on ice with every step. How penguins managed to keep their balance, she would never know.

"Sir, shouldn't we…" Kryptos asked softly, shivering as well at the cold. Bill seemed to be the only one not affected by it.

"She'll be fine. You know how the legend goes. Women are the only ones who aren't killed on sight by mermaids." Bill sighed, leaning against the edge of the boat. It wasn't like she'd be able to get away, or escape on an island in the arctic.

It was gorgeous, the way the water carved the ice into patterns, making small caves that led down to murky depths. Mabel walked into the largest one, which even then was almost too small for her to squeeze through. Her breath misted out before her, the one semblance of heat in an otherwise icy domain. How Bill found this place, she would never know, but she loved it. Even if there were no mermaids.

Yet in the corner of her eye there was a splash of water that made even Mabel jump. She was almost standing on a ledge, in a natural ice cave carved by waves, and chilling water just barely brushing the edges of her shoes. Forget waiting around for Bill, Mabel knelt down by the water, letting one arm leave the warmth of her body to gently brush against the freezing water. The tips of her fingers instantly went numb at contact, but she got to watch the ripples bubble up and hit the edges of the ice, the only thing that mattered.

She blamed her lack of sense on being memorized by the ripples, and that's why when a pale hand slowly creeped out the water, revealing a mermaid with hair as bright white as the ice could be, Mabel jumped back as though the water burned instead of froze. She gasped, amazed with the sight as the mermaid came to rest on the ice, staring up at her with pale eyes that were almost white, and a tail that was as dark as the night. Mabel felt flat on her behind, gaping silently before the biggest grin spread over her features.

"You're amazing." Mabel breathed, leaning closer once more. She had no idea if the mermaid spoke English, but Mabel didn't care. She was never going to see this sight again.

The mermaid opened her mouth, revealing a sharp set of teeth and making a sound that Mabel could only describe as the waves hitting the shore. Mabel fumbled for words for a moment, unsure if they could even communicate beyond hand gestures and signs. But then the mermaid paused, seeing her confusion, and croaked out a word that meant everything to Mabel.

"Lost?"

Mabel couldn't keep the smile off her face, sitting down on the ice despite how the cold immediately soaked into her pants. The mermaid tilted her head, and Mabel could have sworn she saw more of them in the water, but it was too dark for her to tell.

"Not lost. Came for friends." Mabel placed a hand on her chest. "Mabel."

The mermaid stared for a little bit before reaching out, feeling the fabric of Mabel's clothes and making sounds in her native tongue when she felt Mabel's leg and Mabel didn't have a protest against being touched.

"How get here?" The mermaid asked, twisting her tail to give Mabel a peek at the sight. Around her, other mermaids were starting to peek their heads out of the water, all interested in staring at Mabel.

"Ship." Mabel answered, hesitantly reaching out and silently asking permission to touch the tail of one of the mermaid. It was allowed after a moment, and Mabel felt along scales and ice water to feel what no one else probably had the joy of feeling.

"Pirate?" Mabel would have panicked for just a moment, if they had pulled away from her. Instead they just seemed curious, and Mabel didn't know better about a wrong answer.

"Them, yes." Mabel answered, but then placed a hand on her chest. "Not me."

Whether or not they really understood her was something to be seen, but the mermaids seemed to accept her answer, one even coming up on the ice to touch her dry hair and compare it to her own. Mabel just couldn't keep the smile off her face, even though their wet hands easily soaked through her clothes and she was shaking with the cold.

One mermaid sat behind her, with grey hair and wrinkles that spoke of age, braiding her hair and weaving things into it. Mabel wasn't sure what it was, but it weighed her hair down and it made her feel pretty, so she put up on word of complaint. All she did was sit there and try her best to communicate, brushing her hands over tails and scales and seeing everything new.

"Mabel?" Bill's voice came through the end of the ice cave, making a smile light up her face even as the mermaids around her cowered. They huddled around Mabel, glaring at the man who was approaching.

"Bill!" Mabel chipped, watching his jaw drop in shock at the sight of Mabel surrounded by mermaids. She waved brightly at him, despite how her teeth were chattering already and she felt like she was frozen to the ice itself.

"Cipher…"

"Traitor."

"No good."

The mermaids around Mabel all started chittering to themselves, and Mabel did her best to just try to keep them calm and stop them from leaving. Bill took a step forward, but stopped the moment one of the mermaids hissed menacingly at him.

"Mabel, your lips are blue, we need to get you back to the ship." Bill held out his hand for her, the other one going to rest on the hilt of his blade. Mabel pouted for a moment, but still nodded, trying to get up but slipping. It didn't help that her new friends pulled her back down the moment that she got up.

"It's really cold, I can't stay here." Mabel tried to explain, rubbing her arms to try to get warmth through friction. She was so sick of being cold.

"Not with him."

"Cipher is no good."

"Killer."

Mabel glanced over at Bill, who was glaring hard at the elder mermaid who had been once braiding her hair. She never realized just how threatening they looked when they weren't curiously looking at her.

"He will not harm another sister." The elder said, sharp clawed hands placing themselves on Mabel's arms. Her breathing hitched a little, looking at Bill and then back at her new friends.

"Bill, what did you do?" Mabel asked, the chattering of her teeth starting to make her words sound choppy, but she tried to hold firm.

"This isn't the time to talk about it, we need to get you back to the ship where you can get warm." Bill moved his gaze back to Mabel, stretching his hand out just a little bit more to her.

It was like a protective coven, wrapped around her but absolutely freezing. At some point, she had stopped seeing her breath come out of her lungs, and slightly wondered if it meant her lungs were as cold as the air around her. Bill was staring at her, the mermaids around her were threatening, and Mabel still couldn't get up from the ice on her own.

"I know he's scary." Mabel said softly, resigning herself to her fate on the ice since she couldn't get up. "I know he's mean, but I have to go with him. Please, let me go."

The mermaids around her twisted, some faces showing rage that she would even suggest something of the sort, going with a man who killed their sisters, while others seemed more understanding. The elder looked down at her for a long moment, before pulling away and calling for the others to disappear into the water.

"Sister." The elder mermaid declared, taking and holding Mabel's almost numb hand for a moment. Mabel smiled, watching her friends disappear into the dark water, and Mabel hoped more than anything that she'd be able to come back and see them.

Bill walked forward, picking Mabel up without a word. She almost flinched at the heat he was putting off, but after a moment the heat made her realize just how cold she was, and she almost melted against Bill. He sighed slightly, and if Mabel didn't know any better, she would almost say he was disappointed with how this went.

"You hide a lot of things from me, don't you?" Mabel asked when they got to the boat. She still attached herself to Bill. refusing to let go of him now that she realized how cold she was. Bill sighed again and let Kryptos row, still just trying to warm Mabel up.

"The past isn't important." Bill muttered. "It doesn't matter."

Mabel didn't say anything for a long moment, resting her head against his shoulder and wondering if her lips were still blue. He was always hiding things from her, but she supposed that it wasn't something he needed to come to terms with on his own.

"You're strange." Mabel said, the chattering of her teeth only stopping when they got to the boat and the ladder went down for them. "You get mad when I don't trust you, you hide things from me, and...it just seems like you want me just for my body."

Kryptos scurried up the ladder before Mabel could talk more, not really wanting to hear where this was going. Bill attached the pulley's to the dinghy so they could haul it up, not speaking for a long moment.

"Keep your distance then. I'm not a kind man." Bill still reached down to help her up, making sure she didn't fall over in the boat. "I'm the worst pirate who ever sailed the seas, love."

Mabel paused a couple steps on the ladder, staring down at him and her numb hands still holding the rungs to keep her in place. Bill's arms were out, as though he expected her to fall and for him to have to catch her, but Mabel just stared at him curiously.

"And?" She asked after a long moment of silence and staring. She saw the briefest flicker of surprise rush over his face. "I know who you are. I've heard the stories. I know the facts. I know you're cruel, and inhumane, and the reason why my uncles have issues they won't ever really be able to work through. I also know you're the same man who shot a part of his crew who struck me, who took me from Gideon without even checking to see if my words were correct. I'm not saying that there's no darkness in you, no evil, I'm just saying that you're not completely devoid of kindness either."

Mabel turned back around, starting up the ladder once more, though she did need help from the crew once she got on deck. Meanwhile Bill was left on the dinghy, shock and surprise on his face, but a small spark of happiness in his heart.