The Siren's Song

Chapter Two

Dipper watched as Mabel swam ahead of him. He wanted to sing but wasn't going to risk it.

"Dipper?" Mabel turned and looked at her brother. Her hair floated up around her head. "Why don't you speak much?"

Dipper paused his swimming to look at her. He shook his head.

"Come on! You rarely speak! You never sing! When we were talking to Captain Bill was the most I've ever heard you talk!" Mabel shouted. Dipper frowned. He didn't know why he had spoken so much to the human pirate captain. That was the most he has ever spoken at one time.

"I like when you speak. It reminds me of Mom and Dad." Mabel muttered. "What little I remember about them." She wrapped her arms around herself. "Speak to me. Please."

"There's a reason I don't like to talk." Dipper whispered. Mabel looked up. Her eyes shone with hope.

"Why?" She whispered back.

"You haven't seen what I'm capable of when I'm mad. You haven't seen how many have killed themselves just because I've told them to." Dipper looked off at the distance. He couldn't figure out why he had a curse like this. Well, he considered it a curse.

"Dipper, why?" Mabel laid a hand on his shoulder, just above the blue scales that formed a pine tree shape on his arm.

"I can't control it." Dipper sighed and shrugged her hand off of him. "Now, go home. I promised to follow Bill. You are going to go back to your betrothed."

"No." Mabel said. "I'm going with you."

"Go home Mabel. I won't let you get hurt. Go home." Dipper's voice took on a double edge. Mabel looked at war with herself. Finally she turned and swam off even though her eyes looked like she didn't want to.

"I'm sorry. I had to." Dipper whispered as he watched her retreat. He turned and swam after Bill's ship. He noted that it had stopped moving. Did they dock?

He swam up a bit and watched as Bill walked over to the railing. He didn't poke his head above water but he did watch as Bill swiftly took his sword out and turned. Dipper heard a clang of metal on metal as, he figured, Bill blocked another sword.

What is going on up there? He wondered as he poked his brown head above the surface. He heard Bill speaking along with someone else.

"Because I've lived on the water my whole life. I'm not changing that now. The sea is my home. I can go anywhere I want, food is plentiful, entertainment is daily, water is everywhere, the breeze is clean, the days are never to hot or cold, the sea is perfect!" He heard Bill say.

I have never heard a human that loved the sea that much. He thought to himself as he dove back under. He swam around the boat and watched as two older men walked off the ship.

"I swear, the queen would have that man's head on a stick if she could just get him off that damned boat." The one said.

"He is dedicated. You have to give him that, Ford." The other said.

The one called Ford straightened his jacket and continued to walk. "There's dedicated and then there's stubborn." He muttered.

"You know I can hear every word you're saying?" Bill called from the ship.

"Fucking pirate. I swear he's a wizard." Ford muttered. "No man has that good of hearing."

"It takes training Ford. And fuck you too." Bill called again. Dipper laughed. Ford's head snapped towards where Dipper was hiding under the dock.