Midnight Pearls (17 page)

“Sounds like several people.”

Then one word rang clear through the air. Someone cried, “Witch!”

Mary turned and began to run back the way they had come. Her blood turned to ice water in her veins. It was a word she had long prayed not to hear, and on today, of all days, it was not a good omen.

Shouts of anger spurred Mary on to run even faster. When they reached the square, her heart flew into her throat. There was a girl lashed to a wooden beam. Flames were licking at her feet. The fire reflected off her silver hair.
Pearl!

“No!” Mary screamed as she raced forward. Beside her she heard Finneas shouting.

She picked up a bucket of water standing nearby and doused the flames as Finneas shouted at the angry crowd.

She glanced up at the face of the girl and felt herself sag in relief. It was Faye. Something was wrong with her, though, she was too still. It was then that Mary saw the tail where the girl’s legs had once been. She gasped aloud.
A mermaid!
Suddenly everything made sense. Tears swam in her eyes. This, then, was what her Pearl was as well.

Faye was so still, Mary thought she might already be dead. She couldn’t let herself think that way, though. If the girl was a mermaid, then she was like a fish. Fish didn’t do well outside of water, but some could certainly live longer than others.

She picked up another bucket of water and doused her with it, aiming at her face and torso. Faye gasped, and her chest heaved as the water entered her mouth.

Villagers jumped back with shouts of “Witchcraft” on their lips.

Finneas’s voice boomed out. “Aye, ’tis witchcraft, but not of this young one’s doing. She has been cursed by an evil Witch.”

Good thinking, Finneas
, Mary thought.

The crowd quieted slightly, listening to what he had to say. “It is part of a plot to kill our beloved king. The king lives, though, and this girl helped save him. That’s why the Witch has tried to kill her.”

He pointed to the body of the fallen marquis. “Behold, the marquis was another victim of her evil”

There were murmurs of anxiety as everyone began crossing themselves. Suddenly there was a shout, and the crowd parted as though by magic.

Prince James strode up to them. “What is happening here?” he boomed.

He saw Faye, and his face turned ash white. For a moment Mary was afraid he would faint. He regained his composure, though, and turned to the crowd. “It is true, what this man says. An evil Witch has attacked the kingdom. We have, all of us, been saved, though, by this girl and by Pearl.”

Ragged cheering rose as Mary helped James cut the ropes binding Faye to the post. She slumped into his arms, and Mary splashed more water on her face.

“You must get her to the sea, and quickly, Your Highness,” she advised him.

He looked at her with tears streaming down his face. “Yes, of course, you are right”

He picked her up and called for a horse. One was at his side in a moment, and he mounted with Faye in his arms. He kicked the beast into action, and Mary and Finneas ran in its wake.

“How did you know the king was all rightr” Mary gasped as they ran.

“I didn’t, I was bluffing,” Finneas admitted.

They arrived at the ocean shortly after James did. The prince was crouching in the water, holding Faye and splashing water over her face. As they watched, the girl began to move and finally she looked up at him. He bent down and kissed her once. She then slipped from his arms and into the sea.

Mary rushed forward but hesitated when she reached the prince. He looked up at her. “Pearl too?” he asked.

“I think so,” she whispered as she crouched beside him. They knelt together in the water, mourning.

Pearl broke the surface of the water near the beach. She scanned it for a sign of Kale, but there was none. That was a good sign that what she had done had worked. She flipped her tail up and slapped it on the surface of the water.

Moments later, Kale’s head popped up. Delighted, she ducked back beneath the water and swam to him. He met her halfway and caught her in his arms. Their tails wrapped around each other as they kissed.

At last they broke apart. “Faye?” Pearl said.

A cloud passed across his face. “I don’t think she made it,” he said. “When you broke all the spells the Sea Witch had cast, it turned me back into a merman. I barely made it into the water. Faye was still in the village. I don’t know how she could have made it.”

“I am so sorry, Kale,” Pearl sobbed, wrapping her arms around him.

“It’s not your fault. There was nothing we could do,” he told her.

They drifted closer to the shore, holding each other, comforting each other. Slowly, a new sound intruded upon Pearl’s subconscious. It was a splashing sound. She lifted her head out of the water and stared toward the shore.

She saw Mary and Finneas on the shore. James was in the water and he was holding something.
Faye!

Quickly, she and Kale headed for them. Before they made it there, a new sound emerged in the water, and suddenly Faye collided with them. She was wide-eyed with despair and threw herself into Kale’s arms. He held her close, trying to soothe her, and Pearl lifted her head out of the water again. She saw Mary and James huddled together in the water and she could feel their pain.

She ducked back down and looked at Faye. “Faye, do you love him?” she asked.

“Yes,” the girl cried, turning to look at her.

“Do you love him enough to live out there with him?”

“Of course. He had asked me to marry him and I would have stayed with him, gladly.”

“Come with me, then,” Pearl said, grabbing the other mermaid’s hand.

They swam toward the shore, Kale following them. When they were close to Mary and James, they stopped and broke the surface. “James,” Pearl called.

He looked up, startled. The joy that flooded his face made her heart sing. He had always been her dearest friend. He had given her so much, and now there was something that she could give him. The other two hung back as she moved toward James.

“How long have you known?” he asked wonderingly.

“Only a day,” she told him. “I was kidnapped as a child and turned into a human by the Sea Witch”

He laughed through his tears. “I always told you there was magic in the world.”

“And you were right,” she told him. “Do you love Faye?”

“Heaven help me, I do,” he told her.

“Would you marry her if she could live in your world?”

“Tonight, if she would have me”

Pearl turned to Mary and Finneas, who had come up beside her. “Would you both watch after Faye as though she were your own daughter?”

“As though she were you,” Mary said, touching her face.

Pearl nodded and then turned. “Faye,” she called.

The other mermaid floated up, fear and hope mixing in her eyes. Pearl took the necklace from her neck and placed it around Faye’s. “The pearl is magic, and I want you to keep it safe for me. It will help you be who you truly are. You just need to look in your own heart.”

Faye closed her eyes. “I want to be that which I truly am inside” she said, clutching the pearl.

Before her eyes, Faye’s tail split once more into legs, and her skin lost its scales. Slowly she stood in the water and James stood with her, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her.

Mary smiled up at them before turning back to Pearl. “I’m going to miss you, daughter.”

“And I, you, Mama,” Pearl told her, embracing her.

Mary nodded at Kale. “Make sure he takes good care of you.”

“I will, Mama”

“And make sure you come to visit from time to time,” Finneas added gruffly.

“Papa, look out for your nets,” Pearl laughed as she hugged him.

They parted, and Kale swam forward, taking her hand. Together they turned and dove into the ocean.

Pearl was sad to leave the others behind, but her heart lifted the deeper they went.
I can always go back and visit
, she told herself.

“Do you still want to marry me?” Kale asked as they swam.

She turned to him. “More than ever.”

A smile broke across his face, and they dove together, racing around each other.

After a while she could see a tiny pinprick of light ahead in the darkness. It grew brighter as they drew near.
Home
, she realized with a thrill.

“Are you nervous?” Kale asked.

She nodded. “A little bit”

He grinned as he grabbed her hand. “Don’t worry. You defeated the Sea Witch today. This will be easy.”

She smiled into his eyes and held his gaze as they sailed into the sphere of light. They stopped, and she looked around cautiously. Dozens of mer-kin surrounded them, with dozens more arriving by the second. An older merman came to the front. “Son!”

“Father!” Kale cried, embracing the other.

“Where’s your sister?”

“It’s a long story, Dad, but she’s safe and sound. Right now, I’d like to introduce you to someone. Her name is Pearl, but we all knew her as Adriana.”

“Adriana?” he gasped.

Kale nodded as the cry was taken up by the rest. Kale squeezed her hand, giving her strength. Suddenly the cry died down and a path cleared. An older couple swam toward them. They each wore a crown of seaweed strewn with white pearls.

“Mother, Father!” she cried, recognizing them. She let go of Kale’s hand and flew into their outstretched arms. They held her close, and all three babbled incoherently.

Minutes passed before her father regained his composure and stretched out his arm to Kale. The merman joined them.

“I owe you a great debt for restoring our daughter to us.”

“Your daughter has consented to marry me, that is all I need.”

He beamed upon them both. “Well, then, let’s get this wedding underway. I believe the two of you have waited long enough. After all, a seventeen-year engagement must be a record.”

As she laughed, Pearl felt encompassed by warmth and understanding. As Kale’s lips met hers, she knew that she had found the home she had been searching for.

Debbie Viguié
is the coauthor of the Wicked series, Debbie has been writing since she was eight and counts it as one of the great passions of her life. She and her husband, Scott, currently live in Anaheim, California, where they indulge their mutual passion for theme parks. Her Web site is www.debbieviguie.com.

DEBBIE VIGUIÉ holds a degree in creative writing from UC Davis. She currently lives with her husband, Scott, in Anaheim, California, where they are able to indulge their passion for theme parks. Her Web site is www.debbieviguie.com.