Fates: Chapter Thirty-Five

Seirra

After the events that happened since the day I got back on land, I began to feel confident that Margaret was on her way to accepting the truth of our situation. It became difficult for me to think that after everything she saw and experienced, she would still insist that what I had been telling her were lies. I had easily seen the play of emotions on her face and knew that the confusion she was feeling was because she was starting to believe me. I shouldn't force her but she knew how urgent it was for her to decide if she was going to accept her fate with me or not.

I stood by the door of Books and Covers, frozen for a moment, my thoughts in shambles, as I looked at Marge's blissful face. Her arms were wrapped around Robert and she looked safe and content.

And just like that I realized that being with me had never allowed her to feel that way.

My life revolved around danger. Yes, we loved each other but that cannot erase the fact that she would constantly have to fear for my life and that I would always have to worry about her safety.

She saw me and immediately staggered to move out of the embrace but I didn't let her see another moment of vulnerability. She already had enough in her mind and my jealousy would only make things worse. I walked as fast and as far away from her as possible, pretending not to hear her calling my name.

She didn't run after me.

*****

I didn't even notice that the sun had disappeared, turning the sky into a black canvass of dark clouds and stars. The waves came crashing to the shore as I lay on the sand with my eyes closed. I must have looked relaxed and comfortable to anybody who had seen me but the questions whirling in my mind were enough to make me feel as if my head was about to explode.

Will I be able to save Aquania?

Will Marge ever remember me?

Was I being unfair to Marge?

What kind of life would she have in Aquania?

Will she be able to survive underwater?

More importantly, would she ever love me again?

"Aarrggh!" I growled as I lifted myself up to a sitting position. "When did everything become so complicated?" I asked no one in particular.

The burden suddenly seemed too much for me. I raised one knee and dropped my head on it. Maybe, there was something I still needed to do. Or maybe there was something I should not have done.

All my life, I'd known how to follow the law. I knew about rules and I knew about order. When the truth I knew suddenly became a lie, everything started to spiral out of control. What turned all of this into misery was also what I had always longed for—to know that the person I had to marry was someone I would want to actually spend the rest of my life with.

If only she felt the same way. If only we didn't have an entire world of difference. Maybe if she was a real mermaid, things would have been different for us.

But she wasn't a mermaid. And no magic could ever change the fact that she was born a human.

I lifted my head and stared out at the sea, longing for this week to be over. Five more days and I would know the fate of Aquania. I shivered. How terrifying.

A few silent moments later, the wind began to pick up and the waves started toppling over each other. I squinted to survey my surroundings more carefully. It seemed like a brewing storm but there was something odd about the abrupt changes in the water's movements. As a merman, it was often easy for me to predict the weather but if this really was a storm, how could I not have felt any kind of warning?

As I tried to figure out what was happening, I noticed that the water seemed more alive and was sparkling with a glow that wasn't just from the moon's reflection.

And then it hit me. This was not natural.

I looked up at the darkening sky and knew then and there that I wouldn't be alone for long. I swallowed.

An Aquanian was about to surface.

It always made me apprehensive when I knew there was or would be an Aquanian on land besides me. Mermen and mermaids were never supposed to interact with humans and defying this law of nature often meant danger or threat. Being inconspicuous by myself was difficult enough. To conceal the presence of my fellow merpeople could very well be the most challenging task for me, next to saving Aquania.

And then without preamble, the sea calmed in a blink of an eye.

A few seconds later, the water rippled as a merman slowly appeared in front of me.

Erwann.

It took me a moment to react. There were very few things that would make this particular merman go on the surface. All of them urgent. He smiled at me in greeting which somehow allowed me to relax a bit.

"Pardon my inability to approach you by the sand but surely you understand that my tail isn't something we should let ordinary humans to see," he said in a formal tone. His eyes, however, glinted with mischief as he tried to observe as much of Grasveld Aisles as he could.

I finally regained my composure and I grinned back at my best friend.

"Certainly," I replied in a tone that rivaled his. "Unnecessary attention from humans are what we need least right now. In that case, what brought you here, my lord?"

He smirked at the way I addressed him before he shrugged.

"Nothing much. I just wanted to visit."

I raised an eyebrow at him. It was time to be serious. "We both know you can't afford to make a casual visit."

My statement completely altered the expression on his face and he sobered. Something about the way his eyes glistened with...desperation triggered a sense of foreboding in me. I thought so. I should not have believed his smile. Erwann was always the one who could hide truths behind his expressions.

"What happened?" I asked, fearing the answer he would give me.

He pursed his lips and turned away from me. And then in a soft voice, "The princess..."

His pause was more than I could take and I almost rushed into the water to demand that he finish what he was about to say.

"She's...she's dying, Seirra."

Now I wished he didn't say anything.

"What are you talking about?" I snapped. "She couldn't have been unconscious for more than a few hours!"

"Exactly. It had only been a few hours but she already looked as lifeless as a corpse." He turned grave eyes on me. "If not for the fact that she hadn't dissolved into bubbles yet, I would've declared her dead." He ran a hand through his brown hair. "Furthermore, I'm starting to have a hard time keeping King Tideus from finding her. We've got to remember that they have a bond. Sooner or later, the king would find out where she is and they'd know exactly what was going on. If this is going to remain a secret, we have to hurry before Princess Marina dies."

And there it was: the ultimatum that I wasn't waiting for.

"Marge still doesn't remember me and is a long way from trusting me enough to become a mermaid," I told him in a voice that was almost a whine.

I stood up and began pacing. I knew I shouldn't start complaining but I did anyway.

"I should never have let Marina do the Sacred Enchantment! Using her magic for something that we weren't even sure had been effective before is ridiculous enough as it is. But off she went and insisted on using her life to bargain for mine. Damn it! She may not be one of the Fates but she's still the princess! Any Celari should have put her safety first. How stupid can I be?"

Erwann took pity on me and began to offer reassurance.

"She's a powerful mermaid. I don't think she'll be killed easily. We just have to make sure we don't have to take that risk. It's the least we can do with her sacrifice."

"If only that was easy."

The morose expression on my face was enough to make my best friend a little scared of the outcome of this mission.

"She'll come to Aquania, won't she? We just need time...Right?"

I wasn't sure of it myself but I assured him anyway.

"Yes. Marge will come with me to Aquania. She has to."

He nodded. Looking at his eyes I knew that he trusted my words and for some reason, I began to think that maybe some miracle might occur to make Marge leave everything behind and go to Aquania.

After a few seconds of silence, Erwann decided it was time to leave.

"I have to get back to Princess Marina." Without having to say so, I knew he was telling me to hurry.

"Be safe," I told him with a nod.

He turned and dove into the sea, the end of his green tail causing a series of small waves as it splashed through the water. I stood there, trying to follow him with my eyes, knowing full well the direction he would go to reach Aquania.

Things were not going well at all.

I left the beach and decided to go wherever my feet would take me, mindless that the night had settled deeper and that I probably should be going home. I must have walked for about twenty minutes before I found myself treading a familiar path that led to someone who was always a source of serenity and wisdom. The acacia tree looked eerie as it became a backdrop for the tombstones that lined up across the graveyard.

As I continued walking, memories from when I first arrived in Grasveld Aisles flooded my mind. I would always be grateful of the day I first saw Margaret brooding in that small cave by the sea. At that time I already knew she would play a huge role in my mission to save Aquania.

Who would’ve thought that she was actually my mission?

I smiled. Doris. Of course. And for some reason, I knew that Grampa must have known something too.

I came closer and closer to the acacia tree, pausing briefly in front of the tombstones of Marge’s parents. The wind began to pick up but I ignored it. It may have made the night colder but I guess a chilly night was not a problem compared to everything else I needed to find a solution to. I looked around and thought how different the beauty of the night was. The lampposts around the cemetery provided enough light but the moon was shining brightly that everything looked more surreal.

And then I saw her.

Her red hair and green dress was being blown by the wind, making her seem ethereal, like the water nymphs that roam the springs and rivers. I could almost imagine how beautiful she would be as she swam beside me across Aquania. I sighed.

Marge must have sensed my presence because she turned and saw me approaching behind her. Her eyes were anxious as she stared at me and I realized that I shouldn't have walked away this afternoon without talking to her.

“Seirra,” she began as I came closer to where she was standing. “Seirra, it wasn’t what you thought it was. It was just...I was...Well—”

“—I’m sorry,” I interrupted. The smile I gave her was genuine. "It was wrong to walk out that way. I was rude."

She smiled back at me in relief. "I was worried that you got angry at me. For all it's worth, I didn't want to lose whatever friendship we might have started." She looked down and laughed softly at herself. "I don't even know why but for some reason, you've become an important person for me. And to think it's only been three days! I mean you're a stranger but...but I feel as if we already know each other too well." And then she shrugged. "Or maybe not but I still feel that way." She finally looked straight at me. "I don't know if you understand but it's how I feel."

I grinned. "Honestly? I didn't get it. But I like that you think I'm important."

She rolled her eyes but her smirk was good-natured. "Don't let it get to your head."

We were silent for a few seconds, her eyes focused on Grampa’s niche as if she was having a private conversation with him. I observed the way her eyes would glisten at one point and then beam brightly at another. When it came to Grampa, she was more than just an open book. She bared her soul to him, trusting him with all of her being.

“I miss him so much,” she whispered.

“We all do.”

“What was he like to you? I still don’t have memories of you so I couldn’t tell. Grampa’s a very private man.”

I let about three seconds pass as I recalled the day I met Marge’s adoptive grandfather. “He wanted me out of your life the moment he saw me.” Those words made her lift her face up and stare at me in surprise. “He knew exactly who I was the first time he laid his eyes on me. He was a merman who voluntarily turned into a human but then his daughter became a mermaid and left to be with the man she loved.” She gasped at my revelation as she turned to face Grampa again. “He was afraid of losing you too.”

“Grampa...”

“As the days passed by, however, he changed towards me. I guess he had learned to accept my presence. He became the person I could talk to about Aquania, making me feel less lonely. Before I left, he must have known something about the future because he asked me to take care of you. Little did I know that he would die too soon.”

"He died in his sleep." Tears were threatening to fall from her eyes but she tried keep them from falling. "We had a wonderful conversation during dinner, laughing and telling each other about our day. The following morning, I couldn't wake him up."

She finally gave in and she let out a sob. I wrapped an arm around her back to comfort her. She didn't flinch nor did she step away. It felt good that she was no longer too wary of me.

"What made everything better was that he died with a peaceful look on his face. As if he knew that everything was going to be alright." She smiled ruefully. "It must be because you already gave him your promise."

"Everything is alright. I intend to keep my promise. I will take care of you."

She turned her entire body to face me which caused me to drop my arm. Her blue eyes were clear as they bore into mine. She was looking at me like she was searching for answers. And then she took a deep breath.

"Give me until Friday. Let me finish the concert and then we can go to Aquania."