Seirra: Chapter Twenty

I left Doris’s home in a stunned daze, but was later forced to go back to reality. I was immediately summoned by my father to report to Erma and Lukos then forced to help with the preparations for the Ceremony of Kys tomorrow. It was supposed to be a big celebration but we could not delay it any further because we needed to avoid the mermaid sightings and the King’s relapse.

My mind kept on replaying what I saw of Margaret as I sulked later that night. I was perched on a huge rock in a secluded cove at the far end of the kingdom, trying to figure out if I should go back to Doris to see Margaret again. When my eyes got pulled back into Aquania, I found Doris panting with lost energy and I realized that she must have used too much of her magic to help me.

Maybe there’s no need to see her again, I thought miserably to myself. She looked normal enough, anyway.

I almost convinced myself that I was being stupid sulking alone in a cove like a lovesick fool when the water began to move, indicating the presence of another merman.

It was a mermaid.

Her shining gold hair was now draped with randomly placed black pearls, her face bare of makeup but certainly blooming. Her lime green eyes were almost luminescent and it took me a while to realize that this almost angelic creature was the bitch who gave me a difficult time while on land.

Only, there wasn’t any sign of Her Royal Bitchiness.

In her place was a girl who looked utterly vulnerable.

She looked at me in surprise, obviously not sensing the presence of another living thing in her chosen hiding place.

“Hmph. And I thought I finally found a place where I can have some peace and quiet,” Marina muttered in annoyance.

I saw her immediately turn around, intent on leaving.

“Stay here. I’ll go,” I said before she was out of earshot.

She stopped in her tracks then faced me.

“Well?” she asked highhandedly. “Why aren’t you moving?”

Her arrogant defense mechanism was really making me tick. “Will you do us both a favor and stop being a wiseass?” I saw her haughtily raise an eyebrow. “Look, it’s obvious you need someone to talk to and whether you like it or not, I’m the only friend you have here.” Her eyebrow lowered but she kept her chin up, refusing to acknowledge that she needed any kind of comforting. “What happened with your father?”

I most probably struck the right chord because her puffed-up stance practically disappeared. She momentarily looked away and I saw tears forming at the corner of her right eye. Something she did not expect must have been revealed. I moved over to give her some space and she promptly took her seat.

She sighed. I guess bitches get tired of themselves sometimes.

“He didn’t know I looked for Aquania,” she said softly.

I had already surmised as much.

“He tried to find me as well but…he couldn’t get through. For three human years, we’ve been trying to find each other but someone was…” Her expression changed from one of lament to something that resembled hatred. “Someone actually tried to fool us into thinking I can’t go back,” she uttered in a venomous tone. “I’ll find him, Seirra. And when I do, I swear I’ll kill him!”

“Hey,” I consoled. It wouldn’t be good to have a royal criminal. “Easy on it, Princess.”

She was already shaking her head before I finished my short sentence.

“Easy on it? There’s no way in Hades that I can go easy on it! You don’t have any idea what it’s like to think that neither of your parents wanted you! My entire life, all I wanted was a family!” she raged, waving her hands all over. “And I would have had it a long time ago if not for that damned whoever who didn’t want me back in Aquania!” she said in an angry, dejected voice.

As I looked at her distressed state, it became clear to me that this girl had more to her than a tendency to irritate people. Given time, she could evolve into someone with the potential to lead Aquania with grace and wisdom. If she let her cynicism down, it was obvious she cared for the welfare of others. She could give love and trust as much as she needed them. This was exactly what the merpeople of Aquania needed and wanted from a queen. It actually made me admire her.

“Before you plot your murder, Princess, I think it is best you find out who’s behind it first. Then, we punish him. Or her,” I told her in a serious tone. Somehow, keeping Marina from entering Aquania felt like an act of treason. Besides, my task would have been accomplished long ago had there been no interference.

But you wouldn’t have met Margaret.

Sometimes, I hated my subconscious’s ability to surface with ideas I didn’t really want to think about. I quickly tried to bury the unsolicited thought.

“We? You actually think I’ll let you in on my revenge?” Marina asked.

“Whoever it was endangered the lives of the merpeople of Aquania by keeping you from returning. It’s only right to punish him,” I replied.

“Fine,” she yielded. “But you take whatever is left of him. I deal with him first,” came her ultimatum.

“As you wish.”

We were quiet for a few moments. She was still obviously trying to come into terms with her newfound chance for happiness and I was contemplating about the possibility of having a dissenter in Aquania. If this merman—or merpeople for that matter—had anything worse planned, it was bound to cause danger and probably a civil war.

The thought made me shiver in fear.

“So,” Marina said to break the silence. “What exactly happens tomorrow?”

“To put it simply, it’s like a marriage ceremony. Only, the importance lies in the kiss. We don’t end up married,” I explained. She looked terribly curious. With the way she looked now, nobody probably remembered that she grew up on land and knew nothing about the things she was being thrown into.

“So how do we know if it works?” she asked. Her look of disapproval told me she thought the kiss thing was absurd.

In a way, I thought so too.

“The Key of Saol would change its color from clear crystal to red,” I told her matter-of-factly. “The Crystal symbolizes love, after all.”

She stared at me like another head had just popped out of my neck.

“Love?” she exclaimed in disbelief. “You don’t even call me by my first name. How can that be love?”

“As of this moment, I question that symbolic meaning, myself,” I averred. Then I glanced at her and asked, “Would you prefer that I call you Marina?”

“Of course! Frankly, all that ‘Princess’ or ‘Your Magnificence’ stuff irks me,” she answered, making faces as she enunciated the words we use to address her. “I’m Marina. Period.”

“Okay,” I agreed as I gave her a small smile. “Marina.”

“Hmph. Judging from what you just told me, I’d say Margaret should be the one attending that ceremony thing tomorrow,” she casually remarked. Although I’m sure she meant for that comment to aggravate me. “Am I right in assuming she’s the reason you’re sulking here in the middle of the night?”

She was the only one, aside from Doris, who knew about Margaret. I found no reason to hide from her whatever I found out today.

“I saw Margaret today.” Marina’s eyes widened in surprise. “Doris showed me.”

“What? How?” she asked in wonder.

“She knows magic that allowed me to see what was happening on land.”

“So…what happened to her?”

“As expected, she has forgotten me.” Sadness colored my voice and I swallowed the lump that almost formed in my throat. “She passed her auditions.”

Marina nodded twice. “Good for her.” I lowered my eyes and she must have thought I misunderstood her because she sputtered to say, “I—I mean about the auditions. Not the, uhm, forgetting stuff.”

She averted her eyes in slight embarrassment for her blunder.

Without looking at her, I said, “I know.”

“You want to see her again,” she declared after a short pause.

“It’s impossible. Not to mention useless.”

“But you still want to.”

I shrugged then leaned back on my arms and looked at the ceiling of the cove.

“I assume the magic took a lot of energy from Doris,” Marina started to say, her voice full of excitement. “So maybe I can learn it from her then I can use my own powers to let you see her again.” She leaned over so that I was forced to look at her in the eyes. “What do you think?”

I raised an eyebrow at her. “What for? You forget that after the Ceremony of Kys tomorrow, our wedding will be next.”

She raised an eyebrow back then snapped in annoyance, “Whatever. I’ll go see her first thing tomorrow and ask her to teach me.”

“Good luck trying to avoid the organizers. They won’t let you out of the castle, I’m sure,” I replied sarcastically.

Her chin lifted higher as she announced proudly, “I have my ways.”

*****

The following day was one of the busiest days in Aquania. Even the other sea creatures had come to celebrate with them. Everybody was now aware of the princess’s return and was enthusiastic about the upcoming ceremony that afternoon. News of Marina’s miraculous healing powers and her lack of aging had also spread throughout the kingdom that everywhere one went, all he or she could hear was “We’ve finally found our long-lost princess!” or “She’s going to be an amazing queen!”.

Preparations were almost complete: the plaza decorated with colored sand and glowing lights while the people had gone and worn their best adornment. Delicate shells and different-colored jewels decorated everyone’s hair, neck, arms, hands, and body.

An hour before the ceremony, I found myself all scrubbed and adorned with the traditional look for the ceremony. My scales had been polished into shining silver-blue, my brown hair showered with silver powder, three silver earrings attached to my left ear, and the Crystal Key of Saol dangled around my neck, as I held the Ardus sword in my right hand. The shining silver that covered my entire body was in complete contrast to my bronze skin and green eyes. I stared in horror at myself the moment I saw my reflection on the mirror.

I look like a merman wrapped in what humans call aluminum foil. All ready to be grilled.

I was about to laugh at myself when a woman’s voice beat me to it.

“Oh my goodness!” she tried to exclaim in between her laughter. “I need a camera for this!” She paused to wipe some imaginary tear from her left eye. “Your Margaret will love to see this for sure!”

I gritted my teeth in annoyance as I glared her laughter down.

When she calmed down, she had the nerve to thank me. “You know, I thought my outfit was horrible but thanks to you, I can live through the embarrassment.” Before she could finish her sentence, her shoulders were already starting to shake with mirth.

Her golden hair was up and laced with intertwined black and gold gemstones, her shoulders covered with something that looked like flowing jellyfish tentacles, and dangling from her ears were large amethysts that matched her lavender and green tail. Tail that was currently decorated with the same intertwined gemstones as in her hair. The rest of her jewelry was amethyst stones set on gold.

“What’s with the jellyfish?” I pointed out, trying to find fault in her wardrobe. Although to be honest, her face sort of erased whatever ugly impression her outfit may have given.

“Who knows?” she shrugged. “They forced the outfit on me without even asking.”

I snorted a laugh. “And I thought you’re Miss High and Mighty.”

“Oh, shut up,” she retorted.

“So did you get to talk to Doris?” I asked casually when the silence ended our jabs on each other’s costumes.

She moved her mischievous eyes towards me and smiled knowingly.

“Were you able to do it?” was my next question. How she escaped from the organizers was something I care nothing about.

“Not yet. She told me I needed more time to learn it.” Marina lifted her chin proudly. “I was able to see Margaret though.” She looked sideways at me again. “Man, that Robert’s adorable.”

Knowing that Marina had seen Margaret did not affect me as much as knowing that the princess actually thinks that Robert was ‘adorable’—which means that Margaret might think so too.

I shrugged in an attempt to look indifferent but her smirk told me she knew exactly what I was thinking. Thankfully, someone came in, ending our conversation about Margaret.

“Beg pardon, Sir. Your Highness,” the guard said with a bow. “It’s almost time. I shall escort you to the King as he wishes to see you before you appear in front of the crowd.”

We both nodded solemnly and began to follow the guard beyond the tentacle curtains.