The Octopus Queen (A Little Mermaid Retelling)

10 - Sea Witch for Hire

I spend the rest of the day inside the house, mostly worrying and sleeping. When I get up the next morning, I'm shocked to find Marc Lentz and his son Sébastien sitting with Papa at the kitchen table. Not dressed suitably for company, I rush back to my room and throw on a plain brown dress and one of my mother's shawls. When I come back into the kitchen, both men stand up and take off their flat caps respectfully.

"What are they doing here?" I inquire, not particularly caring if I sound rude. While they aren't friends, Papa and Marc have a close working relationship.

Or had.

Whatever the current status, I always believed that there was healthy respect on both ends.

Marc bobs his head in my direction. "I came to apologize to your father, Sina. And to ask you a question." He glances at his son; Sébastien twists his cap between his hands and doesn't meet my eye.

Suspicious. "I'm not marrying your son, Master Lentz."

Sébastien's head snaps up and he turns a bright shade of red. Still seated at the table, Papa coughs. Looking at the poor boy, who's only a year younger than me, I feel a tiny bit of guilt for my words. Sébastien is a tall, lanky young man who knows how to manage a fishing vessel but not much else. By the look on Papa's face, that's exactly what Marc was going to ask.

The fishing captain straightens his collar and puts his cap back on. "You haven't even considered our proposal, Sina," he begins, but I cut him off.

"No means no, Master Lentz," I tell him firmly. "The last time I checked, women in this kingdom cannot be forced into marriage by their parents or guardians. Or have the laws changed since I read them last?"

Marc's eyes widen and Sébastien slowly sinks back into his chair, turning away so he doesn't have to look at me. "You read—of course, you have." He sighs, as if a well-read woman is trouble. "Be that as it may, would you please hear me out?"

I glance at my father. Papa lifts his eyes to meet mine but only takes a sip of his tea. I fold my arms firmly across my chest. "Fine." I'm still going to say no.

"Would you like to sit?" Marc asks, gesturing to the kitchen table.

"I'll stand."

"Very well. By marrying Sébastien, you would have access to the Lentz family fortune, which would be more than enough to move your father into a nice home in the village proper. He wouldn't have to work anymore. Don't you want your father to pass into his later years comfortably, Sina?"

I blink. Of course, I do, but something tells me that entering into this pact with the Lentzes is akin to striking a bargain with an evil spirit.

"You just want a live-in witch."

Marc's face goes pale, then red in embarrassment. He makes a strangling sound in his throat, caught.

I press further. "You want me to use my powers to increase the family wealth without being paid a cent, am I correct, Master Lentz?"

Silence.

Unfolding my arms, I take a step forward. A small part of me is thrilled when the fishing captain moves a half-step backward. "I am not marrying Sébastien, nor will I serve this village for free. My mother died being at the beck and call of her hometown. If the citizens of Farbarrow want something from me, they will pay me a wage as benefit any craftsman and I will have the freedom to refuse a job should I see fit."

"B-but, your gifts are from the gods!" Marc splutters, fingers tightening.

So? "It is a talent, like any other," I argue, lifting my head. "By your logic, if there is an unruly customer in Dunfield's, Mrs Dunfield should put up with it because her skills come from the gods. But she doesn't have to. She has the right to refuse him or her service. Any craftsman in this kingdom is free to refuse a customer, so why not me?"