In which, Freya Swan discovers that being a mermaid isn't exactly a fairy-tale. From fearing the ocean to the siren curse, can Freya Swan find her happy ending?
[New Moon | Breaking Dawn - Jacob Black]
[Book 1 in The Syreni Series]
[cover by @hanni...
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Freya had never rushed home so quickly. Hearing Alison so upset caused Freya to panic, heartbreaking at the thought of something happening. It's late evening by the time Freya gets home to see her mother hugging Alison, supporting her.
"Oh, Sweetheart," Natalie rubbed her back. "Your mother is just in shock; she'll come around."
"What happened?" Freya questioned, kneeling before Alison, who was sat on the sofa. "Ally?"
Alison sniffled, rubbing her eyes as she sat up. "A lot has happened," Alison confessed, not meeting Freya's gaze. "I don't even know where to begin."
"Jake, why don't you and I go start on dinner?" Natalie suggested.
"Sure thing," said Jacob, eyes flickering from Freya to Alison in concern, wanting to help in whatever way. "Do you want me to call Leah?"
"No, please don't," said Alison. "I...I can't see her right now."
The two then leave with Freya moving to sit on the sofa next to Alison, wrapping an arm around her friend. Recently, Freya had thought Alison was doing a lot better, but maybe she had regretfully been wrong.
"I went home just before Bella woke up," Alison started. "My family... they were there and so worried about me, knowing that I had been lying and keeping things from them. I couldn't do it anymore, so I told them...everything."
"And how did they react?" Freya asked, gently.
"Well, I was so afraid of my parents not liking Leah or the idea of me liking girls, but they were happy about that bit," Alison confessed. "They've known about us for a while but didn't realise how serious it was. It was the siren stuff they couldn't understand."
"It's a shock," said Freya.
"I know it is," Alison's head dropped into her hands. "The way they looked at me, though... it was like I was a monster. For a second, they didn't look at me like I was their daughter or sister. Then they started questioning things, which led to you and I just couldn't cope anymore, Freya."
"Ally, give them time," Freya told her friend. "It's a lot to process, they're probably more in shock than thinking you're a monster."
"But what if I am?" Alison whispered. "The first thing that came to mind was to compel them so that I didn't have to tell them. And now, all I want to do is change their memories. That makes me a monster, Freya."
"But you didn't do it," Freya pointed out. "You're here now, talking to me, and that's something, Ally. You're not a monster. You haven't fallen."
"Yet," Alison added, sighing. "It's gonna happen, Freya. I can't keep fighting it and with the full moon coming up... Leah wants to do the ceremony, but it's all too much. How do I even decide something like that?"
"That I can help with," Freya said. "You can decide with a pros and cons list."
Alison laughed. "I can't make a decision like this based on a pros and cons list."
