The Island Curse

Coming to an Agreement

Kieran wasn't kidding when he said we would wait. I stretched out on the beach, shivering where the sand touched bare skin. The grains were cool, untouched by the sun. Kieran sat beside me, his shoulder pressing into mine. Any other time, I might've found this situation to be romantic- a moonlit beach, the sound of waves against the shore, and a boy far too handsome for his own good. But tonight, I leaned into his touch for reasons other than desire. He made me feel safe. My anchor in a crumbling world.

After an hour, two dark heads broke the surface. Tara looked grim, but when she met my eyes, she nodded. "She's coming, and she's agreed to behave."

Kieran snorted. "Behave? So, we'll get a head start before she tries to drown us?"

I shoved him. "Let's be optimistic."

Niko placed her palms flat on the ledge of the pool and hoisted herself out of the water. I couldn't help but stare as she wrung out her silky black hair. Just as Kieran described, her scales didn't end at her waist. Instead, they turned translucent, the darker purples in her tail turning to lavender as they wound up her abdomen in glistening swirls. They darkened again, becoming more dense around her breasts. It didn't exactly provide as much coverage as a bra, but it was better than the girls hanging free. 

Of course, it explained why no one really batted an eye when Niko pranced around in her tight clothes. I sneaked a look at Kieran to see if he was watching the beautiful girl, now lounging across the rock, the fins at the bottom of her tail floating on the water like silken scarves, but he was gazing at the heavens, his face a mask of worry.

Tara's body was covered in the same way, only instead of purples, her scales were in shades of yellow. The brightest bit was at the bottom of her tail, blazing like morning sunshine, but they softened as they moved up until her hips were the color of fresh cream.

"You're beautiful," I whispered to them both.

Niko winked, dropping back on her elbows and arching her back to better showcase the lines of her body. Tara let loose a low whistle, her admiration for her partner clear in her face.

"Better watch out Kieran, we might steal yer girl," Niko crooned. Her words earned a splash in the face from Tara, but it only made Niko laugh.

"Please," he said, sliding his hand into mine, this thumb making circles on my skin, "a tail is not going to make her bat for the other team."

"I don't know, Kieran," I admitted, "those are some pretty magnificent tails."

It felt good to tease. Made me feel like a normal girl- despite the subject matter.

"See, there you go," Niko said, her mouth curving into a wicked smile. She dropped her gaze to his lap and then back up to his eyes. "Guess size really does matter."

The boy beside me spluttered as I fell over, clutching my middle and unable to contain my laughter. What could he say to that, really?

"No, no," I said around gasps, "it's less about the size and more about the...bedazzlement."

"Bedazzled. You want it bedazzled?" Kieran croaked, eyes wide with horror when he looked at me.

Even Tara's somber mood broke for that, and the cave echoed with the pleasant sound of feminine laughter. We carried on for several minutes, probably longer than the joke called for, but it was a balm to our jagged nerves. As the last echo faded, I hugged my knees to my chest and drew in a deep breath. Kieran slipped an arm around my shoulders, drawing me to him and pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

"Yer not really into them, are you? I mean, it's cool... if you like both. I mean, guys and girls- not both at the same time. A lot of merrow are into that... but um, I just...I'm kind of a one at a time guy so...um."

"Hey," I said, cupping his face and pressing our noses together. He went motionless at the contact, and I almost changed the angles of our faces so I could put my lips on his. But now was not the time. Eventually, I wanted to kiss this boy without an audience.

"Sorry."

"I was joking. There's just one merrow I'm into, and I'm talking to him."

"Even without seeing my tail first," he joked.

"Even with-" My words were cut off by a shout from the pool, and I jumped to my feet as Tara and Niko both dived below the surface.

"Stay close to me," Kieran hissed, grabbing me around the waist and pulling me against his chest. I could feel his heart thudding against my back. "If she acts out, it'll be easier for Niko and Tara to get us out of here if we aren't separated."

"I don't need a reason to stay by your side," I replied, grateful for his explanation.

Another head broke the surface, this one as fair as the others were dark. I didn't know if I was relieved the sea witch had come in the flesh, or if I would've preferred the woman of water again. The glowing eyes flashed in my mind, and I grit my teeth. Definitely preferred the in person version.

"Foolish child," Agnes said, swimming to the ledge Niko had vacated. She launched herself onto the hard surface and turned to look me over. Disapproval was evident in every elegant line of her face. "You should've run when you had the chance."

"You promised Tara and Niko you would listen," Kieran said, pushing me behind him.

Agnes folded her arms across her chest and pursed her lips. They were the red of ripe cherries, matching her serpentine tail. I gulped as the appendage wriggled in the water, deadly looking spikes flexing along its surface. This was not the Disney version of a mermaid. She was a predator.

"Are you dead yet?" she demanded, sounding quite bored.

"Agnes, you and I have something in common."

"Oh, and that is?" She turned her head to the side, twin turquoise lasers piercing me.

"I don't want to be a mermaid anymore than you want me to be one. I want you to take away my tail."

She stiffened. "I don't believe you. You'd be a queen. Who doesn't want that?"

"Someone who doesn't want her choices made for her," I answered. "I've been lied to my entire life, and now I'm supposed to be a willing sacrifice for people I've only just met. People whose only interest in me is what I can do for them."

"That's not true," Kieran argued, but I held up my hand to quiet him.

"If I become a merrow, it'll be for life. I won't have the option to come and go like the others. I'll be cursed."

"It's not so bad, really," Agnes said, drawing her tail out of the water and coiling it beneath her bottom. "I have not walked on solid ground in nearly four hundred years, and I cannot say I miss it."

"Maybe you've just forgotten."

The sea witch studied me, and for just a moment, I swore I saw sympathy cross her face. "I chose this life. Unlike most sirens, I didn't become one by accident. I knew what I was giving up. I'd come to terms with it."

"Then understand me when I say this is my choice."

"Why not just hide until your seventeenth birthday? If you shift, Lorelei cannot complete the spell that would take your legs from you."

I turned to look at Kieran. He gazed back at me with hope and encouragement. "Because, I need to free the Islanders. If I escape, they will still be locked on this Island, and the next Halloran daughter will face the same fight."

"I cannot do what you ask," Agnes said. "I don't have the power."

Tears burned behind my eyes, and I swayed as the weight of defeat crushed me. "I understand."

Agnes shook her head. "You don't. I can't do what you ask, but I think I have an idea that will work for all of us."