The Siren Princess

by Lichelle Slater

  And finally, her warm arms as we stood on the porch overlooking Port Mere and the ships below. She told me someday I would be my own captain, chart my own course. I would conquer the sea and everything she’d ever been afraid of. It was that moment she told me she first mentioned how we can only outrun our pasts a short time. I never could get out of her what she meant.

  And then the voice of the stone echoed through my chest and into my mind:

  Hardened by the passage of time.

  Stolen by the longing of dreams.

  Crumbled by the passion of lovers.

  Imprisoned by the slander of crime.

  A finer prize can no man have,

  Than the heart of a woman fair.

  But to take the heart of a woman

  Is to lay your soul out bare.

  I had no other choice.

  I kept my eyes on my mother and dug deep into my heart. I wished for my mother to be transformed into her most useless form. I didn’t take time thinking what that might be or how that would impact anything else. I just acted.

  With the summer stone in my hand, I held it out, directed at my mother.

  Athena looked up at me in a panic as the green wave of magic hit her. “What did you do?” She gasped and dropped Ulrich from her hands. “What did you do?” she screamed and ran at me. But as she did, she took on her siren appearance before shrinking further and disappeared into the folds of her dress.

  twenty-seven

  I panted, tears in my eyes, then ran over and moved the dress aside. A fish as big as my hand flopped helplessly on the ground. I quickly scooped it up and sprinted to the glass tank with the octopus. I promptly dropped my mother inside.

  The octopus scrambled up to the top and I scooped him out.

  “Sh-she said you were my father.” I trembled as I looked down at the summer stone. “Let’s see if I can fix this.” I licked my lips and the summer stone sent out another wave of magic.

  The octopus’s arms shrunk in, his body elongated, and just as quickly as my mother had been turned into a fish, the octopus transformed into a man. King Eric stood before me in sopping wet, royal clothes. Ulrich looked just like him. He had the same short chin, wide nose, gentle eyes, and dark hair.

  “In all my days . . .” he said on a breath, looking me up and down. He smiled at me. “My little Odette.” He walked over and stopped in front of me. “I don’t suppose you remember me?”

  I shook my head, still trembling.

  “Of course you wouldn’t. You were so young when she took you.” He ran his hand over his face and looked over at Ulrich as he hopped with little slaps across the wet floor. He crouched and picked up the frog. “Ulrich, I am sorry.”

  “I’ve got to turn her back,” I said in my panic. “I . . . I didn’t mean to turn her into a fish.” I looked at the stone and back at my mother.

  “Not yet,” King Eric said. “Think about everything that has happened. We need to learn how to help her before letting her go.”

  “Your plan is to leave her in there?” I stared at him with wide eyes.

  “It’s the best we can do until we discover what has changed her.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “I know you have no reason to trust me. I don’t imagine she’s said many good things to you over the years. Not that I gave her many good things to say.” He looked at the fish in the tank with complete and honest sorrow. “I should have been a much better man to her.”

  “She told me you betrayed her.” I pulled out of his grip. “That you made bargains behind her back and when people who were loyal to her told her, you threw them all into the sea!”

  He blinked and then sighed. “There are two sides to every story, but that is not true.”

  “Then what is it?” I demanded.

  “The truth is, she seduced me. I knew she was the siren queen, and I knew she wanted power. It was sort of a double-sided arrangement. Her people would no longer attack my ships. My men would no longer kill her people.” King Eric’s lips flashed in a smile. “We most certainly didn’t think we would fall in love with each other.”

  “Then how did she end up a pirate?”

  He walked over and sat on his throne, looking around at the damage. “She began trying to pass laws without my seal of approval. She wanted to move her sirens to the land, have them live among my people. She even snuck three of them into the castle as servants. One of them was your nanny.” His jaw flexed. “I saw them as vile, murderous creatures and didn’t want them around you children. I made a terrible mistake.”

  I felt the stone grow warm as if to confirm his tale.

  “I ordered my men to kill those sirens.” He let out a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. “Their . . . executions put too much strain on your mother, and she gave birth to Ulrich a month early. He barely survived. After that, she refused to speak to me no matter my attempts to reconcile. When I caught her stealing the summer stone, I had no choice.” He looked up at me and I saw tears streaming down his cheeks. “I had to return her to the sea. Knowing I needed an heir to the throne, she took my firstborn child. You.”

  “All she ever wanted . . . was for her people to be safe?”

  He nodded, again lowering his head in shame. “I am truly ashamed of the man I was. I searched for you for years. I kept the trade routes open she made, ensuring my men wouldn’t cross pass with the sirens and kill them on accident. When the pirates began to show up, I even requested over and over to meet with them. I had no idea she was their queen until the end of last year. It was then I truly sought to meet with her. I failed.”

  King Eric looked so small. Feeble. Useless. He didn’t look like the arrogant king I’d heard him to be or even seen from Ulrich’s memories. He’d been beaten down and now was completely helpless to help his own son, his wife, and his kingdom.

  “I don’t want riches,” I stated.

  He lifted his dark eyes to me.

  “I don’t want pearls or goblets of gold. I don’t even care if I have a roof over my head!” I heaved a breath. “All I ever wanted was a family. People who love me. All I wanted was for my mother to see what I’d done and be proud of me. Ulrich was the same, you know. He did everything seeking your approval, and you ignored him when he warned you about the contract.”

  King Eric nodded. “I know. I pushed him away when I found he preferred the company of men.” He shifted the frog Ulrich so Ulrich could see his face. “I never should have done such a thing. You are my son. I’ve always loved you and always will. When Athena made me her figurehead on her ship, I realized the errors of my ways. I want to be better.” He looked at me. “Truly. When she used her powers to sink Delphi, I did the only thing I knew to protect my people. I used the summer stone to turn them into sirens.”

  I lowered myself to one of the broken pillars in the middle of the room. “You made your own people sirens?”

  “It was all I could do to save them.”

  I drew a big breath. “We need to get the pirates and find out how to make them humans. I don’t know if the summer stone can help with that, but if all Mother wanted was for them to be a part of the kingdom . . . I think we should try and integrate them into the kingdom.”

  The king smiled softly. “I agree. Perhaps I can hire them to rebuild Delphi.” He looked around the palace. “We need some repairs before the summer solstice in two days. I suppose it’s too soon for you to call me father, so why don’t you call me Eric for now?”

  I nodded with a weak smile, but jumped to my feet. “I’ve got to go get James and Gerard!” I spun on my heel and sprinted from the room, all the way down to the beach.

  The sea creature men were pushing the pirates into the surf while a few were giving a hearty fight.

  “Wait!” I shouted. “Stop!”

  All eyes shifted to me.

  “Athena is gone, but I can help.” I raised the stone up
in my fist. “You will all be made into men, human men, where you will be properly hired. The king has offered to help give you jobs and homes. I command you to take a human form.”

  The dolphin shed away from the siren’s back and landed in the shallow waters with a heavy splash. The siren looked down at himself, completely confused, as the scales shed from his skin, hair grew on his head, and a rather handsome man in his thirties took form. He turned to the dolphin, took him by the tail, and dragged him into deeper water so he could swim away.

  This happened to each of the creatures. Whatever they had been combined with separated from their bodies, and human forms took place. I wasn’t exactly sure what my mother’s hopes were, but this was a start.

  “Now, release the pirates,” I commanded.

  They followed my orders, cutting through the seaweed ropes with swords the pirates wore on their hips, then returned the swords to their owners.

  James ran to me and pulled me close with his left arm. “Don’t you ever scare me like that again.” He pressed his lips to the top of my head. “What happened to your mother?”

  “I . . . sort of turned her into a fish.” I flashed a nervous smile.

  “A fish?” He raised his brows. “I didn’t see that coming.”

  “Your shoulder.” I bit my lip. The wound was horrible.

  He looked down at it. “Yeah. That.”

  I shook my head. “I have to get Gerard.”

  “Already got him!” Nibs announced proudly.

  I turned and saw the fairies in their human forms, marching in a row with Slightly holding on to Gerard’s hand. I gave him a relieved smile. “I was worried about you. I wasn’t certain they would actually take you away. I was worried they were going to lock you up somewhere.”

  Gerard twitched his brows. “I thought they were going to execute me, to be honest.” He stopped in front of me. “What is the plan now?”

  “Fixing him.” I pointed my thumb at James.

  “You have the stone.” Gerard motioned with his eyes.

  I faced James. “Oh. Right. Why do I just have to wish what I want? Why don’t I have to use a spell?”

  “I don’t know,” Gerard answered. “I haven’t had a chance to study them.”

  “Oh, that gives me comfort. You just barely found out your mother was a powerful witch and now you think you can use magic too,” James teased me.

  I grinned. “I am my mother’s daughter. In a way.”

  “Let’s hope you don’t do the going crazy part,” Gerard said.

  “I have a question for you about that,” I said. I placed my hand on James’s wound.

  He hissed and turned his face away, bearing a grimace on his face.

  The summer stone’s green magic spread through my body, into my hand, and into James’s wound. Slowly, the grimace on his face faded, and he turned his head back to watch in astonishment as the power healed his wound.

  “Wow,” he said. He lifted his shoulder and moved his arm. “That’s incredible.”

  “Let’s go turn Ulrich back to himself!” I said. I took off running. The boys fell into step along with me. I reached the throne to find my father fast asleep with Ulrich on his lap.

  Ulrich began croaking when he spotted me and hopped off our father’s lap.

  This caused King Eric to jerk awake with a snort and sit up.

  I fell to my knees in front of Ulrich. “I know just what to do.” I held him in one hand, and just as I’d healed James, I tried to fix Ulrich.

  Only, it didn’t work.

  I frowned and tried again.

  Nothing.

  “She must have put a curse on him,” Gerard mumbled. He crouched and picked Ulrich up himself. “Ah. Yes. It’s an old curse, and pretty typical. Also, very easy to solve. These sorts of spells can be broken by true love’s kiss.”

  “He’s my brother. I love him.” I pulled Ulrich from Gerard’s hands and kissed him on top of the head.

  “Not that kind of love,” Gerard clarified. “Real love.”

  I looked down at Ulrich, then up at James. “We need to find a true love for him.”

  “Don’t look at me.” James put up his hand and hook.

  I rolled my eyes. “I wasn’t saying you loved him.”

  Battle cries sounded before the sound of running footsteps followed.

  I grinned. “Sky is here with the others.”

  James headed for the door and held up his hand. “Oy! We’re all safe!”

  “You mean you had the battle without us?” Sky whined.

  “It didn’t last long, to be honest.” James shrugged.

  Grumpy, or Michael, leaned against my side. “I’m sleepy.”

  “Me too.” I wrapped my arm around his side and pulled him close. “We’ll get to bed soon enough. We just have to figure out where to sleep. And you did great.”

  Luckily, curious people from the nearby towns showed up within the hour. There was much joy with the city of Delphi being returned, along with their king, though no one could understand why pirates would be willing to help. We were directed to nearby houses with spare beds or shops with empty attics, sheds, and so on.

  The people of Delphi, who had been turned into sirens and back, were able to travel to family or were also given places to stay.

  I found myself, however, sitting on the beach, watching the sun rise. Ulrich sat in my lap with his eyes closed behind transparent eyelids. I looked over my shoulder and watched James walk over.

  He sat at my side and drew me to his chest. “Told you that you were brave.”

  I snorted. “I was absolutely terrified if you must know.”

  “I could see it. But you overcame that fear and saved us all.”

  I shrugged.

  “We get to stay for the summer solstice,” James said. “We have to help Ulrich find his true love. Want to know the best part?”

  “Hm?”

  “I get to see you in a dress again.”

  I groaned.

  James kissed my head.

  twenty-eight

  The next day everyone worked on cleaning up as much of the debris as possible. The square in front of the palace was cleaned first and prepared for the summer ball. Word traveled fast, and soon hundreds of people carted away rotten and broken wood or chunks of stone.

  Women began to put up colorful triangles of fabric and ribbons, strung on ropes, between poles that had been erected around the square. They painted the skeletons of houses in vibrant colors while men worked on ensuring the palace was structurally sound.

  I saw the appeal of living in a city.

  I had worked in the palace all day, helping to clean out the guest rooms, haul new furniture in, and hang curtains in the windows since they no longer had glass in them. Luckily, that also meant the coolness of the sea would help the temperature in the room at night.

  By the time the sun set that night, the palace was actually decent. We had rooms to sleep in with proper beds. I kept Ulrich with me at all times, keeping him safe.

  When I woke the next morning, my heart jumped. It was the summer solstice, and that evening would be the summer ball. I was put in a green sleeveless dress, the servants pulled up my reckless red hair, and an emerald necklace was draped on my neck. Much better than pink.

  I looked at my own reflection in a small temporary mirror. I looked . . . beautiful.

  And then I realized it was because I saw me as the princess. Crown princess.

  I didn’t want to admit how excited that made me feel. I almost felt guilty for feeling such joy. I’d insisted I wanted to be a pirate the rest of my life, but I actually had a chance to live in a palace. And I wanted it more than anything.

  I exited the palace, relieved the sun hadn’t reached its hottest point, and easily found James in the crowd. He stood beside Sky, who h
ad attracted a group of girls, as per the usual. One of the girls even flirted with James, flipping her blond locks over her shoulder or curling them around her fingers.

  I stood behind her with a bemused grin on my face until James spotted me.

  His face lit up with a smile, and my heart fluttered. “Excuse me.” He put his freshly shined hook on her shoulder and moved her aside so he could approach me. He bowed at the waist. “You look positively stunning.” He took my hand with his and kissed the back.

  I laughed. “What was that?”

  He pouted. “Is it so terrible I have manners?”

  “No, but you don’t need to be so formal.” I pulled him close and planted a kiss on his lips.

  “Pardon me, Princess Odette,” a young man said.

  I swung my head to look behind me and spotted a young man. He was handsome, with the sides of his head neatly shaved and the top of his hair parted to one side, a boyish smile, and beautiful blue eyes. He was a little older than me, but I couldn’t tell if he was older or younger than James.

  “Can I help you?” I asked.

  “Yes.” He nervously shifted his stance. “My name is Prince Keltin. I am from Arington. I wondered . . . have you seen Prince Ulrich?” He glanced around. “I’ve been searching for him everywhere.”

  “Are you his true love?” I gasped.

  Keltin’s eyes widened in horror. “Pardon me?”

  “Odette,” James scolded.

  “Forgive me.” I let go of James. “I’m afraid he’s under a curse. Come with me.” I motioned for Prince Keltin to follow and led him to my bedroom, which he nervously entered.

  Ulrich, in his adorable frog form, sat in a lump on the nightstand. He started croaking louder and louder when I entered, but when I reached for him, he hopped onto the bed and then from the bed to the floor.

  Keltin took a step back. “What is this?”

  “That’s Ulrich,” I explained. “Remember how I said he’s under a curse? He’s been turned into a frog. Gerard said he will remain like that until someone breaks the spell with true love’s kiss. I tried, but apparently it doesn’t work with siblings.” I shrugged.