The Magical Mermaid and the Moon

by Angiah Harris

  The gray-eyed shark knew he should leave. But he accepted the princess’s invitation.

  Chapter 14

  Memories

  “Sir, still no word from the general, and the light in the sky continues to grow! Should we be concerned?” asked the third-in-command.

  More than a week and a half had passed, and the shark king expected his general to have returned by now. Frustration grew in him as more and more questions about the light in the night sky arose in his mind. He dared not say how desperate he was becoming to know what the growing ball of light was.

  He glared at the soldier, standing in front of him and awaiting his orders. “Travel quickly to get an update from the general,” he said. “Report back to me immediately. Go.”

  “Yes, sir!” shouted the soldier as he exited the study.

  The shark king stared at the door, after him. He had searched every book in his study and could not find anything on the growing light in the night sky. The only remaining option he could think of was to ask the mermaid queen. She was highly intelligent and had traveled much of the sea in her younger days—she might know something about this mystery. He’d have to risk telling her about it.

  * * *

  In the dungeon, the queen lay on her cot, staring up at the disgusting ceiling of her cell. She was thinking about what she’d overheard a few evenings before when the guards, changing shifts, had clearly assumed she’d been asleep and had been careless.

  They’d quietly discussed a light in the night sky that was growing large like the sun. She hadn’t been able to believe what she was hearing. Many, many years ago, she’d heard the legend of such a fire in the night sky. It was said to appear at times of great awakening and change.

  After hearing the guards’ discussion, the queen slept better than she had been sleeping and felt lighter in her energy than before. Something had shifted in the universe, and it was good.

  For the first time in a while, the mermaid queen was hopeful of the future.

  As she lay on her cot, she heard someone enter the dungeon; her ears had grown sensitive to the sound of unlatching hooks and locks. She stiffened as approaching footsteps echoed in the halls.

  Only one guard, she thought. What could he want?

  She closed her eyes and listened as the footsteps grew closer and then stopped outside her cell. A familiar scent wafted through the air. She knew it was her old friend standing there in silence.

  “What’s the matter?” she asked, her tone condescending. “Feeling a little desperate, my king?”

  She opened her eyes and slowly rose from her cot. Her eyes locked on the shark’s through the bars as she moved toward him.

  He grunted. “So you have heard the news, then?”

  The queen stared at him intently. “I have heard passing rumors between your ignorant soldiers.” She’d already imagined this moment and understood the angle from which she needed to approach the current circumstance—an angle that would get her out of the cell and into the open, where she could see this ball of light for herself. The defeat in the shark’s tone told the queen she had ammo, so she took a shot. “I suppose you would like to know what I know about this new mystery?”

  He paused, then nodded.

  “I can help you,” continued the queen, “but first, you must release me from this dungeon and give me a room in the castle.”

  After a tense moment, he said firmly, “Done.” He walked away without another word.

  When the mermaid queen was finally brought out of the dark dungeon, she was surprised by what she found and how much everything had changed. But the walls of her home, releasing a faint glow from the magic rocks in the castle’s foundation, would always be the same, even beneath all the new decor.

  While she waited for a room to be prepared for her, the queen temporarily lived in a study near the main library at the top of the castle. It appeared to be unoccupied, with a few scattered books lying around and nothing else. She was allowed to bathe and received new dark garments to replace her torn and tattered clothes. The new clothes did not have gold in them—because she had refused to rule next to the shark king, she assumed. Her beauty, however, remained radiant, despite the peasant clothing she was given, and she could tell that each creature crossing her path was filled with admiration, though they still tried to avoid her.

  She was soon taken by two servants to the library, which was now the new king’s special room. As the two large doors opened, revealing the amazingly restored library, the queen couldn’t restrain a gasp. The rest of the castle had been torn apart and decorated in such a depressing manner, but here was this room, so beautifully preserved. The doors locked shut behind her, startling her. She moved forward farther into the room.

  She examined the shelves, pulled out books, and smelled them. She traced her fingers over the books as she walked by them—then realized the shark king was standing at the other end of the room.

  “Did you get everything you desired?” asked the shark.

  The queen smirked, continuing to move quietly along the wall of books. “To honestly answer that question would offend you, so I will just say that I did get the temporary things I needed to clean up, and I thank you for that.”

  A moment passed as she continued to trace her fingers up and down the rows of books, reading each title, smiling gently at some of them as they brought up old memories.

  The shark king stepped forward. “Do you remember when we were just kids and you and I would read all day?”

  The queen stopped moving.

  “I would watch you when you were engulfed in your favorite stories,” the shark continued. “I felt like I was watching them unfold in your eyes. You got lost in the stories, like I did. Do you remember?”

  The shark’s question surprised the queen; she’d assumed they’d get straight to the point about the light in the night sky. But his voice had a gentleness that she had never heard before, and the old books paired with his words brought a cascade of memories flooding into her mind.

  She hadn’t spent much time in the library after she had married the mermaid king, because she’d been deeply involved with the kingdom after that. She’d only found herself in the library when she was looking for the princess—who always seemed to be reading. But now, the shark’s question transported her back in time; she remembered sitting in this room, across from the young adopted shark prince, wanting to be near him. It was a special memory of a different time, before she’d so deeply loved the mermaid king, one she remembered with fondness and kept locked away in her heart.

  “Yes, I do remember,” she answered softly. She felt herself blushing as she turned toward the shark king.

  He moved toward her.

  He’s a shell of the creature he once was, the queen thought as he neared her. He remained strong and rugged, but an emptiness consumed him, and she could feel it.

  “I have always thought you were beautiful, my queen,” he said, “inside and out. I have but one regret, and it will remain until the end of my days—I regret not telling you how I felt before you became someone else’s.”

  At his words, she looked downward, and just as she did, he stopped, his chest inches away from her bent head. Her heart broke for the shark king. They had loved each other long ago, and she had let that love go. He had not.

  “I am deeply and truly sorry for all the pain I have caused you, my queen.” He began to stumble over his words, trying to keep his composure.

  The queen heard his breathing quicken and could feel him tighten up in defense. She gently touched her head to his chest. He froze, then continued speaking.

  “I will pay for my actions in this life or the next. Just know that in the next, I hope I claim you before he does, because you and I are connected eternally, in one life or another.”

  Tears began to fall down the queen’s cheeks, dripping onto the floor. How could she withstand the many emotions she suddenly felt? She pushed away from the shark king and left the library, returning to h
er room.

  The exchange shook the queen to her core. She had to rest, to regroup.

  * * *

  Meanwhile, the shark king’s third-in-command sped toward the prison enclosure.

  He had waited for an opportunity to prove himself to the king, and this would be it. When the shark king had still been the mermaid king’s general, the third-in-command had worked hard for him, rising in the ranks right next to him, always remaining more loyal to the shark than to the mermaid. But when the kingdom was finally overthrown, he’d been disappointed he was not made the shark king’s new general. He knew nothing of this gray-eyed soldier who had taken the job he desired.

  But he would not let it bother him.

  Selfish, greedy, and happy to do the dirty work, he’d graciously accepted the role of third-in-command, hoping one day he would rise higher. Maybe this was his chance to start.

  What will I find at the prison? he anxiously thought as he drew near his destination.

  Chapter 15

  Blooming Love

  The princess gathered fruits for herself and the gray-eyed shark in her enclosure.

  The shark sat comfortably on the floor, resting on a large, tattered cloth blanket she had spread out next to her bed, and watched her carefully handle the fruits and vegetables, as if they were alive and breathing. She took each one in her hand, seeming to admire their unique differences and beauty. He remembered her doing this with the flower, when he’d watched her long ago when they were younger. He admired her ability to see such simple beauty, especially after experiencing her tremendous loss.

  He’d pondered this thought the night before and considered his own choices he’d made after losing his family. The princess made him feel again, or at least want to try to feel again.

  She seemed to finally decide to start with three beautiful fruits that burst at the seams with amazing flavor and colors. He had eaten the fruits before, but not peeled open, revealing their beautiful, delicious insides. Much of the food in the dark kingdom was all mashed together—quantity over quality was the motto in that place.

  “Your boss has fed this prisoner well, despite his vicious reputation,” the princess joked as she sipped the juice out of the purple fruit in her hand.

  The gray-eyed general remained quiet, unsure of how to engage with the princess. He simply smiled and attempted to eat the fruit the same way she was. He struggled with all three of them, although he did enjoy what he could get down.

  The princess chuckled. “Have you ever had any of these? You must have—this came from your kingdom’s supply.”

  The gray-eyed general wiped the juice from his lips. “A very long time ago I did, but for much of my life, food has been prepared in a way that’s easy to feed to masses—mashed together, with no regard for the beauty of the food. Your supply is handpicked.” He took another bite. “I have never stopped to appreciate each piece of food that I put into my body.”

  She smiled as she finished up the last of the fruit. Then she arranged a buffet of different foods and encouraged the gray-eyed shark to sample each of them. They laughed and joked over each piece of food and told each other stories.

  The daytime sky had long vanished, and the brightly lit night sky was above them. The princess grabbed a couple of pieces of carrot fruit and prompted the gray-eyed general to follow her to the surface. On the boulder, they propped themselves up and lay there together, staring directly above them at the beautiful light, now almost fully grown into a sphere.

  * * *

  The third-in-command arrived at the gray-eyed soldier’s camp shortly after sunset. There was no sign of anyone around, so he assumed the general was at the enclosure, spying on the princess, since the light in the night sky would soon be appearing.

  Then he heard faint laughter in the distance. Confused and curious, he moved in the direction of the noise. As he stealthily approached the prison’s large entrance, he found an abundance of glowing plant life surrounding the enclosure, which startled him. He could hear the princess talking—and occasionally also the new general. His heart raced. Why was the general in there speaking with the princess? He had to see with his own eyes what was going on.

  He glanced inside the enclosure. Inside, his comrade and the princess were eating food, laughing, sharing stories, and stealing glances at each other. His heart beat wildly, so loudly he could hear it—he was afraid they would hear it. Trying to slow his heart rate and his breathing, the soldier watched the two eat and talk and eventually swim to the surface and climb out onto the giant rock.

  He didn’t need to see more—he had plenty to report back to the shark king.

  Excitement flowed through his veins. This would be the end of the gray-eyed general and the beginning of his own promotion.

  The soldier hurried back toward the dark kingdom.

  * * *

  As the princess and the gray-eyed general lay on the rock, staring at the mysterious bright light in the night sky, the princess reached over to give the shark his piece of carrot fruit and lightly brushed her finger against his. She blushed and giggled a little.

  The breeze was strong and wrapped them both in its massive blowing arms.

  The princess slowly bit into her carrot, closing her eyes as if she were reminiscing about a different time. The shark watched her do this, admiring her beauty. The light from above glowed down on her, and she was even more breathtaking than he’d previously thought. He could think of no other place he would rather be than right there next to her.

  She opened her eyes and found him staring at her. He smiled and returned his gaze to the almost-full ball of light in the sky. She appreciated his strong silence and found comfort in his company, but beyond this, something inside the princess ached for him, and she could no longer deny it as she looked at him in the light of the night. His soft gray eyes examined the sky as he bit into the fruit. She watched as the juices exploded into his mouth and a pleased expression appeared on his face. She longed for more moments like this one.

  The breeze picked up, and she moved closer to the gray-eyed general. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close, pressing what was exposed of her smooth skin against his. Neither of them knew what was happening between them, but neither could deny the chemistry either. The breeze swaddled them, twirling them into a cocoon of pure feeling. Their hearts beat together, as if as one. He finished his piece of fruit and glanced back to the princess; she stared at him in a way that connected their souls.

  He saw a beautiful sunrise in her big, bright eyes. She saw a dazzling sunset in his. Something had grown between them, and they both had an idea of what it was.

  It was love.

  He gently placed his free hand under her chin and moved closer to her face. Her heart exploded, and her eyes stayed locked on his; she thought the contact felt right, and she didn’t hesitate to lean in as well. The moment their lips touched, an energy pulse vibrated off of them and the light above them pulsated in a way it never had before.

  Their two opposite hearts had collided in love, and another shift had occurred in the universe.

  Chapter 16

  The News

  The mermaid queen sat on the balcony of her new study, staring out at the big light in the night sky. She couldn’t believe how beautiful it was, and how bright, lighting up everything below. Seeing it with her own eyes strengthened her hope that it signaled a change in her kingdom’s fate, and she broke down in tears, missing her family.

  She had no idea what the great awakening would be like, but she hoped a solution would present itself soon.

  * * *

  The shark king watched the queen from a balcony adjacent to hers. Her sorrow seemed to feed something in him, as if it were fuel. Revolts were occurring all over the kingdom, and the new king felt he might soon find himself without a home again.

  If the light in the night sky did not leave.

  He continued to watch the queen cry, then finally decided he would try to get some rest. The day had
been filled with emotion, and he needed to clear his head to figure out his next step. He lay down that night feeling uneasy, which made it impossible to sleep for a long time.

  Around midday the next day, his third-in-command came storming into the chamber, startling him awake.

  “My king, forgive my rudeness, but this cannot wait. I have news you need to hear!”

  The shark king shook sleep from his eyes, sat up in his bed, and stared at the soldier. The third-in-command hadn’t been gone long, so the shark king hoped for a good report.

  “Go ahead,” the king grunted.

  The third-in-command reported all he’d seen, including the gray-eyed general’s visit to the princess and the glowing plant life outside the enclosure.

  The king sat in silence as he listened, stunned by the news. When the soldier finished, the king whispered, “Well done,” his voice thick with utter disbelief. After a moment, finding himself unable to breathe, he shouted, “Leave me!”

  The soldier quickly exited as the shark king leapt out of bed, angry and baffled. The princess and his general—how could this be?

  She must have put a spell of some sort on him, he thought.

  A sense of betrayal screamed in his mind, and with each breath he took, anger grew inside him.

  “I will kill them,” he said. He prepared to travel to the prison.

  * * *

  The princess and the gray-eyed general woke to find they had slept through much of the day after falling asleep in each other’s arms the night before.

  The shark smiled and played with the princess’s beautiful purple hair. “Did you sleep well?” he asked her gently.

  “Yes,” she whispered, still in awe of what had happened between them.