It took Arthur a long time to convince the mermaid to leave his room. She ignored him for the longest time, and then swatted his hand away when he tried to pull her up off the floor. For whatever reason, she had decided to curl up in a corner between his bed and a wardrobe and refused to move no matter what the Captain said. He was beginning to lose his patience, and for a brief moment considered threatening her.

He sighed. Captain Kirkland was a gentleman at heart, and gentlemen certainly don't threaten women no matter how unreasonable they are. He tried to reason with her some more, but to no avail. She wouldn't even look at him as if it were Arthur's fault this happened, which in a way it was. He finally gave up and plopped on the floor beside the unresponsive girl.

"Look, you want to go back to normal, don't you?"

She stiffened at that. Her eyes darted toward him and back as she pulled her knees closer to herself, but still not a word.

"I know you want to fix this, and so do I," Arthur said. "But I'm going to need you to get up first."

"You just want to sell me."

The Captain was so surprised that he almost didn't catch what she said. "It's my job."

"Leave me alone."

"I can't do that." Arthur set his face into a stony expression. "We've already sacrificed a lot to get you here. I'm not stopping until this is over."

The mermaid flinched. Arthur couldn't say for sure, but she was probably remembering Lanham dropping to the floor dead with a bullet lodged in his chest. He thought about that too, and Jamison who had been killed the night she was stolen. Two men in exchange for what? A girl that didn't look like a mermaid who wouldn't leave his room.

"Fine, stay here if you want, love. I just hope your conscience can handle knowing you've gotten two men killed." The Captain stood up to leave.

"Two?" Her eyes were filled with pain, and Arthur almost felt guilty. Almost.

"That's right. Lanham died trying to rescue you, and Jamison was killed by the men who kidnapped you. That's a lot of blood on your account."

She wrestled with that information. Arthur could see her working the issue over in her mind. It was almost cute how her brows came together in concentration, and how she bit down on her bottom lip. The Captain quickly dismissed those thoughts. He couldn't find her attractive. That wasn't part of the job description. He just needed to get her back to normal so he could ship her to Gaal and be rid of her once and for all.

"Okay," she said startling him out of his thoughts. "What do I have to do?"

"Simple." Arthur smiled. "We just need to visit an old acquaintance of mine."

I wasn't prepared for how bright the sun was when I stepped out onto deck. The room I was in wasn't as bright, and the sudden sounds on deck didn't help my disorientation either. My legs felt weak and awkward, but I forced them to move so I could follow Arthur as he walked toward a group of men. I didn't like the way they stared at me, like I was something to eat. I'd seen that look plenty of times before, but usually on sharks.

Everything seemed to come to a standstill as I followed Arthur, which made me more nervous than I was. Everyone stopped to watch the two of us, and I wanted to cling to Arthur for protection from their preying eyes, but I couldn't give him that kind of satisfaction. I got the impression that he thought I was completely under his control. If only he knew.

He said a few words to the group of men, who were paying more attention to me than their captain. He didn't seem to like that. A loudly barked order later, the crew aboard the ship was going about their business as usual, and Arthur and I were getting ready to leave on the same small rowboat we had used to escape the Bloody Rose. It seemed kind of strange that no one else came with us, but I preferred it that way. If things got bad and I had to act, I'd rather not anyone else be there.

The rowboat was lowered into the water, and Arthur began to paddle toward a white beach. I could tell we were in a small cove somewhere in the Sea of Norden by the smell of the water, but I had never actually been here before. My kind didn't usually come so far north, not to say that it never happened. I trailed my fingers in the cool water as the ship, which I now realized was called the Queen Lady, grew smaller and smaller behind us.

"Don't get any funny ideas," Arthur warned.

"I wouldn't think of it," I replied tensely. I already agreed to do this, didn't I? It frustrated me that he still thought I would try to escape. I could barely walk on these new legs, so I wasn't sure how he thought I could swim with them.

The bottom of the boat scraped against sand as Arthur rowed onto shore. He hopped out first and pulled the small craft up onto the beach to keep it from drifting away. I was surprised to see him offer me a hand out, but took it anyway. Might as well keep things civil while tensions were low. I didn't have anything on my feet, and yelped as soon as they touched the warm sand.

"What are you-?" Arthur swore when he noticed my bare feet. "Did you step on something sharp? I should have gotten you some shoes, how careless of me."

"I'm okay," I said quickly. "I've just...never walked on sand before. It's warm."

He started to give me a funny look until he remembered my predicament. It probably wasn't every day that he walks with someone that's never had feet before. "Well, just try to be careful."

With that he turned and began to walk toward the dark forest that was beyond the beach. I followed closely behind him while enjoying the feeling of sand between my toes. It was a brand new sensation, and even though I missed my fin, I kind of enjoyed it. Walking gave me a kind of thrill, but I could feel my new legs tiring fast. No wonder humans ride instead of walk whenever they can.

The forest loomed just in front of the two of us when Arthur stopped. He looked up at the towering trees before turning toward me. "Follow me and try not to get lost. Or touch anything. Definitely don't touch anything."

He plunged into the foliage before I could answer, so I quickly followed him. His warning hadn't quite scared me, but it did make me wonder what could be in this forest that was so dangerous. My curiosity continued to grow as we walked further and further into the forest's dark depths. It was starting to look more like a jungle, which was odd since the climate wasn't warm enough for jungles to grow this far north. I could feel it becoming more humid too, and I really wanted to know exactly what this place was.

The chance to ask never came because we had reached our destination. A large hut had been built in a gigantic tropical tree with vines and moss growing all around it. It actually looked more like someone had built it but decided it was too small. Other huts and walkways had been built around the largest one, which made the additional huts seem more like an afterthought than part of the actual structure. A staircase spiraled down around the sides of the tree and connected the whole ensemble of buildings to the ground. Arthur started to walk toward the stairs without hesitating.

"Are you sure we can just walk in?" I asked nervously.

He shot me a look which gave me the impression that he thought the question was extremely stupid. The pirate just kept going up the stairs, and I followed him as fast as I could. Something about this weird jungle made me not want to be on the ground by myself if I could help it. It was probably the eerie silence. I had never been in a forest before, but I always imagined it would be noisier with all the things living here. Unless nothing lives here. The thought sent a chill down my spine.

A bright red curtain was hung in the doorway of the biggest hut, which was right next to the stairs, and Arthur pushed it aside as he went in. I slipped in behind him and took a good look around. The place was decorated with all sorts of weird looking things like wooden statues, painted war masks, and glass containers, along with plain wooden furniture. There were selves just filled with different sized glass jars with strange looking things in them. One even appeared to be full of eyes, so I looked away before I could feel sick.

Arthur stood with his back toward me and stared into a small fire crackling in an open pit. That seemed rather dangerous since the whole place was made of wood, including the jungle outside, but that didn't seem to bother him. He just stared and stared as if the fire could tell him how to fix me. If only it could. I did want to go back to normal, but I didn't want what came with it. Being treated like a piece of merchandise was not something I particularly enjoyed.

With a sigh, I turned to look at some random items sitting on what looked like a countertop. There were things that looked like charms carved out of wood, and a few colored glass baubles that twisted into random, aesthetic shapes. The thing that caught my eye was a charm made out of silver and shaped like a fish. A really big fish. I reached out and picked the thing up without thinking. It was cold and smooth against my fingers.

"Your girl has good taste, Arthur." An old woman seemed to appear out of nowhere and grabbed my wrist.

She was very pale and very wrinkled, but her eyes sparkled with the same kind of youthful energy I saw in Peter's. Her hair was white and twisted up into a big not on top of her head with stray bits falling out here and there. She even had strange sticks with charms dangling from them poking out of the white mass, and they swung with every twitch of her head. The old woman was short and hunched, and she did a sort of waddle as released my wrist and walked away from me.

"I-I wasn't going to take it," I stammered out.

She cackled in amusement. "Oh, I know that, dear. It's not in the nature of your kind to steal, which is more than can be said about that scoundrel over there." She glared at Arthur with mischievous gray eyes.

"Hello, Ojigwa," he said. He didn't seem at all surprised by her sudden appearance.

"Don't hello me, boy!" She hopped off the countertop and hobbled toward the pirate. "Where's all that lilyweed you promised me?"

Now Arthur looked uncomfortable. "Er...we tried to get it, but it all burned up by the time we got back..."

"Bah!" Ojigwa spat with a wave of her hand. "Pirates. You can't count on them for anything!" She waddled back toward me and leapt up onto the counter. "I see he's let you down as well."

"W-what?" I looked back and forth between her and Arthur nervously.

"Don't pretend like you don't know. I can tell by just looking at ya that you're a mermaid. The ocean clings to you like stink to a pile of dung."

I didn't know whether I should be amazed of offended. "You can tell all of that by looking?"

"I can tell a lot more than that, girlie," she said with a twinkle in her eyes. "For instance, I know that you're about one hundred and fourteen, and that you're going to die."

My mouth dropped open, and Arthur looked like he swallowed something terribly bitter. Ojigwa just looked around the counter and muttered something about tarot cards. She didn't seem concerned at all about what she had said.

"What kind of tricks are you up to?" Arthur asked with narrowed eyes. He seemed very friendly with the old woman, but also cautious, as if she's fooled him on some previous occasion.

"No tricks. Hee hee hee. No tricks. Where have those cards gone...?" She hopped below the counter and continued to mumble for a while. "Ninya! Ninya! Where have my tarot cards gone?"

A young girl came running into the hut from a different entrance than Arthur and I used and skidded to a halt next to the counter. Her feet made no sound as she walked, which reminded me of the silence in the jungle outside. She leaned over the counter with concern evident in her dark brown eyes.

"They should be next to the dragonfly wings, Ojigwa."

"Eh? Oh yes, here they are." The old woman appeared on the counter once more with a dusty velvet bag clutched in her withered hands. "Hee hee hee. It's been a long time since we've used these, hasn't it child?"

"Yes, Ojigwa."

"Since when have you had an assistant, old bat?" Arthur asked. "One from the Southern Continent nonetheless."

"How can you tell that?" I questioned.

"Her skin," he answered simply. "Only the people of the Southern Continent have dark skin colored like coffee. How did she get here?"

"Oh, she's been here for years," Ojigwa told us. "Some foolish men from the Eastern Continent stopped by one day and traded her for my services. Hee hee hee. They won't be doing any more trading after what I sent them to do. Hee hee hee. She must have been gone the last time you came. Yes, picking hennah flowers for me. Very good girl Ninya is. Very good."

Ninya curtsied slightly with her dull yellow dress. It stood out against her dark skin like a clownfish against the deep blue ocean. She had soft eyes and thick, curly hair that cascaded down to her waist in black ringlets. I felt a twinge of jealousy. The young girl was stunningly beautiful, and Arthur noticed. He hadn't taken his eyes off her since she walked in, not that that's what made me jealous.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by Ojigwa clucking her tongue. She had laid out the cards in an odd pattern on the counter and was hunched over them in concentration. I had no idea what any of the cards meant, but she obviously didn't like what she saw. Arthur stepped closer to get a better look, even though he probably didn't understand it any better than I did.

"Do you see this, Ninya? Bad, bad, bad." The old woman pointed to a group of cards, and the girl leaned in closer.

"Oh dear," she murmured.

"What? What?" I looked at them both with a growing sense of dread.

"Death, sea, man, god..." Ojigwa trailed off. Her eyes got a faraway look. "Your journey will not be easy."

"Journey?" Arthur narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about, old bat?"

The hunched woman clucked her tongue again. "You are a mermid, aren't you dear?" I nodded. "But you've fallen under a curse. Poor thing. Walking on land has severed your connection to the sea. I can see it. It weakens even as we speak. You can feel it, can't you?"

I stiffened as her words confirmed my deepest fear. Ever since I was carried onto shore and I lost my fin, my connection with the sea had been lost. I couldn't feel the tides or the mysterious currents that always swirled in the deep. I couldn't feel the great whales or the playful dolphins swimming in the blue. I couldn't feel anything.

"Yes," I answered softly.

"That is why you will die."

I felt a stabbing pain in my heart, and Arthur also seemed to flinch at the news. His green eyes met mine for an instant before he dropped his gaze to the floor. I didn't know for sure, but something told me he was feeling pretty bad right about now. Then again, I was just cargo to him. It was possible he didn't feel anything at all.

"There has to be a way to fix it," he said. There was emotion in his voice, but I couldn't tell what it was.

"Of course there is, silly boy. Of course," Ojigwa said like it was obvious.

"How?" I asked desperately.

"I don't know that. Your kind does not offer their secrets to just anyone. I can see the future, read minds, and make a jungle grow on the Northern Continent, but I don't know how to patch you up, dear."

My stomach dropped to my feet. The feet I was beginning to hate more than anything. "What do I do?"

"Go home," Ojigwa said as she gathered her cards back up. "Ask your people. You aren't the first, I imagine."

"Okay...but how do I get home?"

"Ask the pirate. He would do just about anything for a pretty girl." The old woman winked at us.

"Forget it," Arthur said with crossed arms. "She's already got me in enough trouble. I'm not going on a bloody wild goose chase now too."

"You don't have much of a choice, Arthur. She owns your heart."

His eyes practically popped out of his head. Then he laughed. Hard. "You've really lost it this time, old bat! Hahaha! I couldn't care less about her. She's just another deal. I'm not sailing around the world to fix this."

"You have to, or you'll die with her."

"I very much doubt that."

"But you told her your name, didn't you foolish boy?"

Arthur's smirk faltered. "And what if I did?"

"Mermaids. Such mysterious creatures. Not much is known about them, but I do know this. They have great power over names, isn't that right dear?" Ojigwa gave me a toothless smile.

"Yes," I whispered.

"Yes what?" Arthur demanded. "What did you do?"

"I...I..."

"She tied the fate of her heart to yours through your name," the wrinkled woman explained. "You know what that means?" She sounded almost happy about it. "If she dies, you die."

"What?" Arthur looked like he wanted to strangle one of us, but couldn't pick who. "Is this true, (y/n)?"

I hesitated, but I couldn't stay silent. "Yes."

"Oh ho ho! This is interesting!" Ojigwa shuffled toward me and looked me straight in the eyes with an amused gleam in her stormy eyes. "A mermaid that has told a human her name. Interesting. Not often that that happens either. Very interesting."

Arthur watched the two of us suspiciously. "What does that mean?"

"Names are power. I will leave it up to the mermaid to explain further." The old woman cackled. "You will have a fun journey indeed."

"Hey, wait a minute." The pirate stepped forward. "I never agreed to anything."

"Please, you have to-"

"I don't have to anything!" Arthur yelled. "I've lost so much bloody gold because of you already! I'm not going to help you. You're on your own!"

He stormed out of the hut. I stood rooted to the spot unable to do anything. My life was completely in Arthur's hands, and he made it fairly clear that he didn't care. Tears started to form in my eyes, but I wiped them away before they fell. Blubbering like a baby wasn't going to get me anywhere.

"I would hurry if I were you," Ojigwa said. "He can be awfully stubborn when he's upset." She laughed. "I've seen it more times than I can keep count. Ever since he was a young boy. Go. You must hurry or he will leave you behind."

"What do I do?"

"He will come around. You'll see. In the mean time, I would get a move on." She shooed me toward the door.

I turned to leave, but remembered the silver fish charm in my hand. "Oh, here."

"Keep it," Ojigwa said with a smile. She closed my hand over the charm and gave it a comforting pat. "It may come in handy."

I forced a smile. "Thank you. Both of you." Ninya smiled softly.

"Go, child. May the gods of fortune steer your ship and fair weather lead your way."

I gave the two of them one more smile and hurried past the red curtain with the silver fish clutched tightly in my hand.