A Mermaid's Tale

Chapter 18

Gravel crunched loudly underneath the Captain's boots as he paced along the shore of a completely black island. It was the second largest of the three volcanic islands in the area that were known as the Fire Islands. They were known for being inhospitable death traps for anyone unlucky enough to get stranded on their black shores. Being here made Arthur nervous, but not as nervous as the fact that his ship was in rough shape and the mermaid was still missing.

The Queen Lady had somehow managed to maneuver through the tempest to one of the islands and roughly scrap herself up onto its dark shore. The crew then had to jump out and pull the vessel as far out of the water as they could so the sea wouldn't drag her back out. Then they waited. It took several hours for the storm to blow over, and Arthur was a wreck by the time it was over. He was soaked down to the bone, and worry gnawed at his insides as every minute passed.

The Captain swore loudly and kicked away a rock with his foot. Where could she be? He had wanted to go out looking for her as soon as the storm passed, but his ship was in no condition to leave. There were several leaks that had to be patched with tar and a torn sail that was being repaired. He glanced at the horizon again hoping to see any sign of the missing girl, but there was nothing except an unbroken plane of water.

It was just his luck that the winds had completely died after the storm broke. Even if the ship was in tip top shape, he wouldn't be able to get her anywhere without some kind of breeze. Arthur bit back another curse. Shouting foul things wouldn't fix anything. That's when he felt something tug on his coat sleeve.

"Uncle Arthur, where's (y/n)? I haven't seen her since she told me to stay in her room."

Arthur's blood froze in his veins. No one had told Peter about the mermaid yet.

"She fell overboard during the storm. The Captain wouldn't let us look for her." The contempt in Alfred's voice made Arthur want to kick him in the gut again. The Captain turned to see the spectacled brat sitting nearby with a dejected look on his face.

"I-is that true?" Peter asked with hurt in his eyes.

"Of course not," Arthur assured. "I wanted to look for her, but it would have been impossible in the storm. We'll go find her once the ship is fixed up."

"Likely story." Alfred cocked his head slightly toward the Captain. "I bet you're loving the fact that she's gone."

"What?"

"You heard me. I know all about how your plans to get rich off of her fell through. I bet you're glad to be rid of her, you sick bastard."

Arthur clenched his fists. "You don't know a thing, you stupid git."

"Then why didn't you save her?!?" Alfred got to his feet and pointed a finger accusingly. "You wouldn't let me save her! It's your fault she's gone!"

"I was doing you a favor! I saved your bloody life!" The Captain heard Peter back away a few steps behind him.

"By sacrificing hers! You're a murderer!"

Something inside Arthur snapped. He pulled a revolver out from inside his coat and cocked it while he pointed it at the enraged youth. "You don't know what you're saying."

"So what? You're going to kill me too?" Alfred's eyes blazed defiantly.

"Only if you continue making a bloody fool of yourself."

"But-"

"She's not dead!!!" Arthur roared. He couldn't tell if he said it to convince Alfred or himself. "She's not dead."

"How...how do you know?"

The Captain lowered his weapon and pointed to his chest with his free hand. "We have a heart-bond. If she dies, so do I."

Alfred looked absolutely flabbergasted. "I...I forgot about that...When did she...?"

"Long story," Arthur sighed as he slipped his gun back into his coat. "All you need to know is that since I'm alive, so is she."

"Does it work with emotions too?"

"What?"

Alfred squirmed uncomfortably. "Well, since it's a connection through the heart maybe you can feel each other's emotions."

Arthur hadn't thought too much about that, but it did explain a few things. It also made his stomach turn. "What are you getting at?"

"I know the way you two feel about each other. I'm not as dumb as you think I am."

The Captain nearly choked on his own spit. "There's no way-"

"Don't try to deny it!" Alfred shouted. "It's because of you that she won't look at me as anything more than a friend, and that's why..." He paused briefly. "That's why I need to know if your connection works with emotions too because maybe it's just your feelings she has, not her own."

Arthur hid his growing concern with a smirk. "What if it's the other way around?"

Alfred's fists clenched, and for a second Arthur thought maybe the kid was going to charge. "Just...just find her!" He turned around and stomped off.

"Humph." The Captain folded his arms, his mood worse than before. Although, it would seem that the mermaid doesn't have feelings for the brat at all. Arthur should've taken comfort in that, but a new worry plagued him instead.

"U-Uncle...?"

Arthur winced. He had forgotten all about Peter. "I'm sorry you had to see that." He turned around to see the boy watching him with wide eyes.

"I-is it true...about your heart...?"

"Yes," the pirate sighed. This was something he wanted to keep from Peter, but that idiot had to go screw things up.

Before he could say anything else, Peter hugged him tightly. "I don't want anything to happen to you or (y/n)."

Initially, Arthur was surprised by the boy's sudden actions, but he embraced Peter and chuckled softly. "Don't worry. Nothing's going to happen."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

~000~

I was swimming practically blindly. After I fell of the ship, it was next to impossible for me to get my bearings. Everything was roaring and heaving, so I took shelter in a small sea cave until it calmed down. That part took a while. I spent most of the time sleeping since there was nothing else I could do. It wasn't particularly comfortable, but I managed.

When I woke up, the ocean was back to its usual self. Now my problem was I didn't know which way the Queen Lady went. There was no way it was still in this area, but I couldn't say for sure which way it had gone. On a whim, I started swimming west away from the rising sun. I didn't know why, but it seemed as good a direction as any.

I kept going for maybe an hour or so before I began to get worried. There wasn't anything in sight around me. The horizon formed one continuous line all the way around, which usually wouldn't have worried me had I just been swimming on my own. Unbidden, my thoughts turned to Peter. I had left him in my room before running up to the deck, and I hoped he was alright.

Steeling my resolve, I continued swimming toward the west. Right about the time when the sun was directly over my head, I saw the first signs of land. Some kind of odd peaks rose in the distance, and I figured it was my best shot. I swam closer and closer all while praying everyone made it through the storm safely. My heart clenched. I hadn't gotten the chance to talk to anyone before the wave hit me. What if I never got another chance?

I quickly shook those thoughts from my head. As irritating as he's been, I trusted Arthur to take care of my friends. I held onto that belief tightly as I swam toward the black peaks in the distance. There was something odd about the second largest peak. It looked like there was something big sitting on its shore. I recognized it as the Queen Lady.

I swam with renewed vigor as the peaks started to resemble three separate islands, and the spots surrounding the ship morphed into human shapes. Somehow, I had managed to find exactly what I was looking for. I clutched the Leviathan charm. Maybe it brought me luck, or maybe my heart just knew where I needed to go. I heard shouting as the men aboard the ship saw me coming, and several figures jumped into the water to meet me.

The first to arrive was Peter. He swam as quickly as a minnow and leaped into my open arms. "(Y/n)! It's you! You made it!"

"Of course, little one," I said as I hugged him close. "You didn't think a little water would stop me, did you?"

The two of us were tackled by Alfred next. "(Y/n)!" he exclaimed. "How did you do it?" He squeezed us tightly.

"Miz...er, (y/n)! It's really yew!" James swam to us next with a shaking Squeaker on his back.

I laughed happily as my friends surrounded me. "C'mon guys. Let's get back to shore. I don't know about you, but I could definitely use a break from all this swimming."

"I thought mermaids liked swimming," Peter said as he followed me toward the shore.

"Oh, we do," I answered. "But that doesn't mean we don't get tired."

I turned toward the black island and my eyes met a pair of bright green ones. Arthur was standing on the shore waiting. My heart skipped, and I was quite sure it had followed him all the way here. I smiled sheepishly at the pirate as I exited the water. He didn't say anything, but he didn't look away either.

"Arthur, I-"

He didn't let me finish. I practically had the air squeezed out of me as he hugged me tightly. "Don't ever do that again," he murmured in my ear.

I relaxed and wrapped my arms around his sturdy chest. "Sorry."

Just then, a loud bang filled the air. I jumped away from Arthur in surprise. "What was that?"

The pirate captain's face paled. He pulled back the front of his coat to reveal a smoking hole in one of his pockets. I immediately realized that was where he kept his revolver.

"Why...? What...? Who keeps a primed gun in their coat?!?" I demanded.

"I...I must have forgotten..." Arthur said in hardly more than a whisper.

"At least you're not hurt."

He vaguely nodded. Then he slowly turned to look to his left. Alfred stood there with a shocked expression on his face, which quickly contorted to one of pain. He looked down at his foot and laughed once in a hoarse, crazy kind of way. There was a hole in his shoe that was oozing dark blood. It ran down the sides and dripped onto the black gravel at Alfred's feet.

What came next was unnerving. I'd never heard anyone scream like that before in my life.