Viridis-Latin origin; green

Again she dreams of the world above, the vast unknown land she knows only through stories, and she smiles, because this is what she always looks forward to.

They are vivid, her dreams, and this one is no exception. There was grass, tall slender green stems that littered the land and shone the colour of those floating weeds on the shelf of coral above the deep end. Then there are other shades too; the green when the slight sheen of sunlight penetrates the surface and the green of fish scales. The colour gradient was endless, and she finds herself in awe even though she was dimly aware that none of it was real.

There were giant fat irregular cylinders that sprouted more green and patches of elevated brown mounds on the land. Trees and...soil, she thinks she remembers what Papa had said about them. In the midst of all the green there is a tiny wooden structure settled on the ground, with openings big enough to allow entrance. It was a house, the very thing that mirrored her family's nest within weed and rock.

The sun was out, and its radiance was something incomparable to the sight of it under the surface. So bright and yellow. The feeling of it soaking away moisture was borderline uncomfortable on her skin, and she wonders drowsily if the feeling intensifies on land. She craned her head from her unmovable spot and sees two. Two creatures so much like her from top up but yet so different from bottom down.

Humans, rulers of the land above. Moving with two long stumps called legs. She takes in every detail, from the naked peach colour of the slender stumps to the dark spots that dotted the side of the joint linking to a flat surface that looked like her hand, tiny wriggling things that looked like blunt thumbs attached to the end.

How strange, how almost terrifying they looked. Different, but so familiar at the same time, as though in an another life legs would have fitted perfectly on her. If this appendage would allow them to walk on the solid ground, she would give anything to try it on herself.

The humans in her dreams were talking, their mouths opening and closing like gaping fish, so much like how she spoke with her siblings, but so different too. Their expressions were much more animated, and their mouths and eyes moved with the intensity of her father when livid. They were not quarrelling, but the amount of emotions they put in simple communication gave her so much mirth she had to laugh.

After all, mermaids never needed to present their emotions like this. Their songs were more than enough to convey what they wished.

The dream starts to end and desperately she stretches a hand out to grab at invisible fragile seams from disappearing into corners of her mind she could never follow. She does not want to forget the sight of land no matter how inaccurate it might have been. But her head was already turning fuzzy, and the expressions the humans wore were fading into wisps of mist.

.

She wakes up with the colour green in her head and the frustrated sense of having dreamt something else. But she cannot for the life of her remember.

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.

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They sing songs again. Her family and her. In the deep endless blue the melodies of her father and her siblings echo in her ears, making her heart soar as she joined them in their chorus. Her sister comes to her, and together they twirl around and between the masses of seaweed.

Miriam was beautiful. With shining locks of blonde and a lithe figure, her sister looked simply breathtaking as she moved in the water, the exact replica of their father himself. Her eyes sparkled in the clear blue, clashing with the sparkling of her scales down under. A smile adorning her features, Miriam twisted and brought both their hands together, leading her to where her brother and father laid in the sand.

Her brother, a quiet timid gentle being, had both his eyes closed, humming lightly under his breath. His burgundy tail shifted slightly as he opened his eyes and smiled at her, exposing deep violet pearls for eyes. She waved in greeting as she swam towards him, loosening on sister's grip as she rested back-down on the sand.

She hummed along with him, recognising the melody as one he always sings when he is contented. Matthew's song. Her tail formed slight indents on the seabed as she moved to his invisible rhythm.

Weaving upwards, Miriam made to sit beside their father on the top of one greyish boulder, who had by then placed aside the incomplete circle of coral he had been working on and turned his attention to braiding her hair.

All was serene until their father started to sing. Removing his hands from the completed braid of Miriam's locks, his lovely voice shook the small glade, causing vibrations in the otherwise still water. It was quiet while he sung, every living creature in range straining to take in the voice of the older merman. Neither baritone and tenor, her father's voice was an indescribable piece of sound, and in these waters it was something that no female creature or human could bear to turn away from, not that there were many humans living in these parts.

Slowly, Miriam joined in song, her clear voice hitting the higher chords, complementing her father's tune. With shared looks, the duo on the sand changed the tune of humming, distorting a light-hearted tune into something resembling the counter to their father's melody. Their voices rose with passion and echoed around the glade, in sync with the rhythmic swaying of the floating weeds. Reaching a crescendo, the tempo to the tune increased significantly, and it was not long before the mermaid found herself dancing in the clear waters with her siblings.

Laughing, smiling, singing her heart out, the mermaid could not help but shoot a glance wistfully at the patch of light coming from above that bathed the glade in a bluish glow. Oh, what she would give to go above the surface to see the green that her father had spoke of so fondly before.

A playful brush of a fin drew her eyes downward, and she swallowed a sigh as she casted a glum look at her tail. She had always been different from anyone else. It wasn't just the hair, the skin, or the eyes. While the fins and tails of her siblings and father shone brown, red, purple, the colour of merfolk native in these waters, her's was of the vast blue, the exact colour of the ocean surrounding her. Because of this, she used to think (and still does) that she was plain, unnoticeable, easily bypassed. Who would have good reason to watch one whose tail blended and disappear within the sea? Her voice was ordinary, and so was her beauty, her personality. Nothing about her stood out. She did not belonged.

Sometimes she cannot help feeling that she had been adopted. She wouldn't be surprised if she actually had been. But it wasn't the thought of being adopted that saddened her, no. Her father had never failed to provide and showcase his profound love for all of his children. He'd always made sure to shower gifts upon the three of them, teaching Myriam a new song or preventing Matthew from ever being lonely, and telling her she was loved every single day. Never neglecting, always loving equally.

Her siblings cared for her too, and made sure she was never left out and always with them as they played or explored away from their home. Her family had never once made her feel apart from them. They loved her, and she them, but even love could never conquer the physical differences in between.

Perhaps it was because she might have came from somewhere else, that her heart felt differently. While her siblings were contented to spent the rest of their lives below the ocean and remain unseen by humans, she had always wanted something more. She wanted to feel the land with her own two hands and see more than just the sun and sea while on the surface. She wanted to try walking and touching, smelling, doing things unknown to her. More than anything she wanted to feel the green.

Her father had spied land once, long ago in his youth. He had seen sights so stunning and astounding that even now he struggled to put them into words when telling stories to his beloved children. She had always been the most fascinated, so while her sister and brother swam with dolphins, played tag and sang, she would always pestered her father for more. He would smile, a gentle handsome tender smile which caused dimples to form in his stubble, and readily grant her one request.

These stories she swallowed up with zest and many a time she would follow her father up to the surface to breathe the air up above. It was strange, how her body adjusted from gills to lungs as she expelled and took a deep breath. Up there scents and sounds were sharp and tangy, loud and painful, different from those mellowed down by the water below.

It had amazed her and made her wished for more. And her father (her wonderful loving father who loved the fresh air and the feel of the sun on his skin and shared the same fascination as her) would always laugh at her childish wonderment and teach her what he knew.

"Michèle, do you see those flying specks in the sky?" Her father gazed at her expectantly, as a younger version of the mermaid nodded vigorously in excitement.

"Yes Papa, they are birds. They make these painful-sounding cawing noises in the air."

"Yes," her father laughed, "but that's just how they sing cherie. It might sound terrible to us, but to a sea bird like them, it is a wondrous sound."

"Oh! But where do they go Papa? I see them flying around every time we surface."

"Everywhere Michelle, they fly the seas, around the world! They go where there is food and company but never leave the side of the sea. Never mixing with the land birds, they stay grateful to their motherland."

"There are more than just sea birds Papa?"

"There are Michèle, so many! Plenty to fill the skies and then some!" Slipping back into his accent in excitement, her father resumed to paint more pictures of the world for his daughter to see.

Always, they would stay until the evening sun wavered or until their skin started to hurt from the heat of the lustrous golden orb in the sky before re-entering the depths of the ocean and heading for home.

Arriving at the glade, she would direct a pleading gaze to her father, always without fail, repeating this same question. "Can we go to the land together someday?" And he would smile at her with sad eyes and answer back. "The world is a wonderful place Michelle, but also very dangerous. Humans do not take kindly to beings different from them. They would trap us, take us away from our home, and do some really bad things. I think it is best that we do not go near them nor land at all."

"Oh." She would sigh, but her longing to visit land would not dissipate but rather intensify even more. The next time her father and she took to the surface, she would have been prepared to ask the same question again.

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"Michelle, sister. Wake up. I want to show you something." Miriam hummed eagerly, using her tail to prod the smaller mermaid awake. Rousing her up successfully, the older red-tail begun to push her out of the nest of seaweed and into the glade.

"Where are we going Miriam? Why are we sneaking around?" Michelle asked tiredly, her blue tail stirring tiny ripples in the water as she relented being pushed out of the maze of seaweed and into the opening of a rocky crevice.

"Papa doesn't know about this and its best if he doesn't. We have to be very quiet or we will wake him up." Propelling herself forward, Miriam took the lead, swimming through the rocky formation before emerging into open water and away from the coral reef where their home lay. "Matthew and I were chasing fish near the greensand. Lucky him, he caught a salmon. But we found something else we thought you would like to see." Smirking slightly, she beckoned her sister towards a distant spot in the vast blue.

"What were you doing so close to the greensand? Papa doesn't want us anywhere close there, it's not safe." Keeping pace with her sister, Michelle panted as she shot a glance at her sister's beautiful locks. "Did Matthew get carried away again?"

"Hm, you know him. He loves his salmon."

"You chased salmon all the way to the greensand?"

"Yeah." Miriam had a vaguely proud look on her face as she flicked a stray lock of hair away from her face. Michelle had to smile. The greensand was a part of the sea bordering coast and surrounded by massively tall rock formations, far away from where the colonies of salmon reside. Understandably, the waves there were choppy and dangerous, the underwater currents even more so. Some areas contained huge bodies of trapped water, while others had shallow bays and lagoons, not to mention sharp jagged rocks, thus making it dangerous for any traveller-human or not-to navigate their way through.

It was a long way from their nest, and their father had made it very clear that none of them were to enter its premises, but it seemed like the prospect of fish was too much for her siblings to resist going there. A poke to her belly snapped the mermaid out of her thoughts, and Michelle turned to see her sister wagging a playful finger at her, sky blue eyes alight with unhidden amusement. "Look at you sœur, you have pudge on you."

Flushing with mortification, the mermaid averted her eyes from her sister, stammering a quick reply. "I do not!"

"Yes you do, and to think all this could be avoid if you'd come and swim with Matthieu and I more often."

"Won't I get pudgier that way?" Michelle retorted, laughing as she blocked a playful shove from Miriam. "All you guys do is eat fish!"

"Hush," Miriam smiled. "We are here." Slowing down, Miriam tilted her head to the appearing visages of rock in the distance. "Follow me. We have to be very careful."

Diving deep, Michelle followed her sister passed the massive structures half buried in water. Weaving their way through the debris, the two mermaids avoided the narrow channels and holes between rock that lead to dead ends, carefully managing to evade the strong currents that would sweep an unfortunate, careless soul into depths unknown. When she noticed her sister moving upwards, Michelle stopped, confusion lighting her features. Miriam noticed, and so turned to regard her sister's hovering form curiously.

"What's wrong?"

"Why are we moving to the surface?"

"There's something up there that I want to show you. Matthew's waiting up there too." Noticing the hesitation on her face, Miriam added, "are you alright? I thought you liked the surface."

"I do, but I'm not sure about this. Papa isn't here." Michelle swallowed nervously, but the longing on her face as she gazed at the rippling light on the water's surface told her red-tail sister otherwise.

"It's fine." Grabbing her arm, Miriam pulled her sister upwards, eagerness pushing her to move faster. Surfacing, Michelle gasped as her lungs opened to take in the tangy air. Beside her, Miriam huffed as she absentmindedly placed a hand over her throat. "See? It's okay, though I can never get used to breathing with my-"

A deep snarl tore through the air, sending off warning shockwaves through both sisters. Whipping her head around, Michelle stared in horror at a colossal floating wooden moving thing that currently spotted frantic movement aboard. A ship, her father had said once with a serious edge to his tone, filled with humans. Never approach one, as those onboard will attempt to kill or capture you.

Noise pierced her eardrums, raucous calls and hollers making her head spin. A musky odour emitted from the deck, making her queasy. The snarl came again, more familiar and livid, and as she heard her sister hissed venomously, something that made her stiffen, (her sister had never ever sounded that angry before) she locked eyes with frantic livid scared violets and could not help the strangled cry that escaped her lips.

Yards away from her and above the layer of sea was Matthew, trembling and struggling inside an enormous fishing net.

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"Michelle, go get help." Miriam whispered urgently as she made her way unnoticed to the net that held her captive brother and the sparkling pearls and jewels the both of them had discovered merely hours before. They had come across the loot while chasing fish and had marvelled at the prettiness of the gems. The pearls especially, had filled them with much joy. Their father always had a penchant for the humble round beads, and he would have been delighted if the three of them had presented to him the finds.

If only they knew that loitering near the treasure would result in Matthew being captured by a pirate ship of all things, they would have left the spoils a long time ago and be far away from harm. Hissing, Miriam felt the nails on her fingers begin to warp and stretch, growing into something long and terrible. Fins and scales lining her back and tail sharpened and stiffened into deadly spikes as her eyes started to gleam with a predatory glow.

Gaining speed, she struck the side of the ship with all her might, causing it to shake and give an ominous creak. With one swift motion, she jumped out of the water and clawed at an unlucky man who had the misfortune to grip the rail of the ship for balance. Noting his howl of agony alerting the rest of his crewmen, she leaped back into the water victorious, locking eyes with Matthew for a split second, who renewed his assault in the shaking of the net.

Blood dripped down after her and stained the water rust, the victim crying at the loss of his appendage as she smirked grimly in the safety of the water.

They will never take her brother away. Not if she had anything to do about it.

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Michelle searched the depths desperately for anything to help her sister at all. Surrounded by rock and dangerous currents, the greensand was isolated and stood far from any known mermaid habitat. Even the closest known one would take minutes at most to reach-theirs. Their father...even if she went now, they would never make it back in time. Michelle swallowed back her rising fear as the sound of muffled screaming and rippling of waves escalated. Miriam could never do this on her own.

Ascending back towards the surface, she spied men steadily lifting the net aboard the ship. Her sister was trying to claw them away, but other men held long pointed sticks that shot tiny metal beads at her, keeping her away and thus rendering her advancement forward to aid her brother useless. Miriam could only watched helplessly as the men pulled their struggling brother even closer up to the deck.

Anger surfaced in Michelle's mind, and she thought of nothing more than saving her brother. Never mind that humans were creatures she used to be in awed of and envied, her father was right; they were dangerous and posed a threat to them. When Miriam next struck the ship again, she took a chance and dove for the net, feeling spikes and razor sharp nails break their way up to cover the surface of her body.

The net swung haphazardly as Matthew thrashed in it frantically, the tremors against the ship further loosening the hold the men had on the net, making it an easy target for her to reach. Darting out of the water, she made a mad jump skyward and managed to cling onto the thick fibres, digging her nails in deep. Hearing the startled gasps from a few of the men onboard, she ignored their excited shouts and held on desperately, attempting to drag the net down with her weight as her tail swung violently in the chilly wind as the net dangled back and forth turbulently.

Fingers scratched against the netting painfully as she squeaked, the feeling of being airborne frightening her as she hung on for dear life. Another set of claws joined her, and Michelle looked up to watch Matthew pulling apart the fibres she had been working on. Golden coins splashed beneath the sloshing waves as Miriam continued to hit the side of the hull.

Twisting her head, Michelle attempted to pull away from the hands trying to grab at her, crying out as an outstretched knife managed to nick the side of her tail, drawing blood. The sight of her lifeforce leaking to drip beneath the glistening blue surface drew another snarl from Matthew and an angry shout from an authoritative voice onboard. Writhing against the net, Michelle's eyes locked with green and she froze, momentarily forgetting her dilemma. Green eyes stared back at her, equally stunned, the owner of those peculiar orbs halting his opened mouth to stare at her.

This man looked different from all the other men onboard. Unlike the others, he carried himself with poise and commanded an air of respect. His clothes were different-shinier and brighter than the others-, and a strange cover with a feather stuck in it sat on his head. But it was his eyes that caught her attention. Those eyes were a shade of green like none she had ever seen before. Michelle wondered if his eyes reflected the colour of grass.

A harsh knock against the hull sent the net flying, and Michelle rejoiced as Matthew shred open a huge hole in the net. Her grip loosened, and in a split second, the force of her brother pushing himself out of the net and landing safely in the water flung her high into the air. Shrieking in terror, she could do nothing as her body freefell onto the deck of the ship.

Wooden splinters scratched against her sensitive tail and skin as she made impact, producing blood as she shook the stun from her body and cowered away from the surprised and frenzied looks of the humans.

The spikes and nails she was armed with soften and fell off as her body went through shock, leaving her exposed to the mercy of the men. Her pupils enlarged back to their normal state and she whimpered, every ounce of protection and defensive mechanism gone, horror and fear twisting in her gut. Backing away from the advancing humans, she yelped as the ship shook, stronger this time, the enraged cries of her siblings sounding below.

Quickly she scrabbled for anything to anchor herself on deck as men stumbled and fell around her. One foolish enough to lunge for her tail earned a harsh smack to their outstretched hand. Crawling her way towards the rail, she winced as her tail caught the edge of a sharp hook half buried in the deck, the fragile membrane tearing apart. The smell of her blood filled her nose, intensifying her fear and panic and blotting out her vision.

Crying out, she bucked at the feel of grubby hands touching her. Tears pooling down her cheeks as she struggled, not remembering ever being so scared in her life. A body crashed down over her, hands and knees coming to rest near her shoulders and tail, caging her in even as the ship continued to tremble and shudder, splashes into the water signalling the fall of men.

A gentle hand came to smooth her hair, thumbs brushing away the falling tears from her eyes. "It's alright. Shh..don't be scared." Green eyes blinked above her, their owner holding her steady as the ship continued to rock roughly. "I won't hurt you." The man made to wipe away a fresh wave of tears, but she shrunk away, shaking with panic as her arms moved to over her chest in a instinctual movement.

"No! Go away!" Flinching away from the man caging her in, Michelle shuddered shakily, her breaths coming in raspy puffs of air. She continued to cry out even though her words meant nothing more but panicking clicks and squeaks to him, her tongue not understandable by the ear of man. "Miriam, Matthew...! Help!"

"Papa!"

The ship rocked harder, hitting the side of a giant rock formation, the force of it causing Michelle to jerk and bumped her head against the male above her. It was mayhem onboard as the shouts and screams of men continued to violate her mind. Hyperventilating, she watched through blurred vision as the human male shouted something to his crewmates, bracing himself over her as another hit wrecked the hull. The current in the area was getting stronger as well, further increasing the strain of pressure on the ship.

"I'm sorry." The green eyed human picked her up gingerly, frowning at her whimper when his hand accidentally touched a deep cut on her tail. Carefully he stumbled his way to a opening leading into the ship's interior, grunting whenever tremors shook the hull. Tugging the sleeve of his shirt, Michelle struggled to speak the few human words her father taught her before, in hopes that the man would understand.

"P-Pleas-se, me g-got l-eeave. Sis- b-brother. Let me-"

The man looked at her in surprise before opening his mouth to answer. "I'm sorry love, but I cannot do that. I-"

"Captain, incoming nine o'clock!"

.

The impact on the ship was instantaneous, and the captain found himself falling, the mermaid following him. Twisting himself so that he took the brunt of the collusion, the captain cradled her close to him, grunting at the impact and growling as his hands came away from the mermaid's body red. Watching the shivering mass above him, he felt anger as he scanned the numerous wounds inflicted on her torso.

His men should had never touched her. Her kind below should had never put up a fight. The instant their eyes met he had known she would be different from all the other creatures they have caught before. She had not fled from him, like the others had. Instead she had charged at him and his men head on, a fool's move. But there had been something in her eyes as she hung wobbly onto the net. Determination? Courage? Resolve? It had tugged him in, and he could not help being attracted like iron was to a magnet.

But now she was hurt because of him. Guilt and protectiveness swelled over his heart. How laughable, the Captain Arthur Kirkland, famous pirate of the high seas, master of pillaging and conquering has fallen at first sight for an inhuman creature. And to top it all off, she was of the sea, with a tail for legs. They would never work.

The call of an unfamiliar angry man sounded from below, the blows to the ship having subside for the moment, and Arthur could not help the surprised gleam in his eyes as he set the maiden down and looked over, catching sight of the caller. An older merman was flanked by the two younger merfolk, the siblings, he reminds himself if what she mumbled had been true, of the beautiful girl in his grasp.

He had to hand it to them. They looked worse for wear, multiple bruises littering their bodies from all the times that they had hit the ship hard. But apart from that, fire still burned in their eyes, not a hint of tiredness in their beaten bodies as they stood guard. The merman between them however had a relatively clean torso, with a purple tail he could glimpsed just below the surface of the water.

"Human," the merman spoke his tongue coldly with no hesitation, drawing sharp inhales from the men around him. "Return me my daughter."

"And what if I say no?" Arthur crossed his arms and regarded the merman sceptically, closing one jade eye. "I could leave right here. Or shoot you, and take your precious daughter away for myself."

"I dare you to try it. You and your crew will never leave these ridges alive."

"Is this a challenge creature?" Chuckling, the handsome captain met the stare of the stony merman. "In all my pirating career I have never met any merman or maid who could speak the tongue of humans. Any creature for that matter."

"Now you have." Feeling spikes hardening over his back, the father stood tall and fixed narrowed blue eyes at the pirate. "I will say it only once. Let my daughter go."

There was a period of tense silence, both males looking at each other challengingly. It broke only when Arthur heard a pained yelp behind him, courtesy of the mermaid who was trying to move from her spot on the ground.

"Hmph." Closing his eyes, Arthur gave a tired smile. Walking back to the mermaid who was sprawled awkwardly on his deck, he picked her up gently, careful to avoid her injuries, before walking back and revealing her to the trio below.

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Michelle could hardly believe it as the green eyed man picked her up and placed her on the a wooden crate overlooking the rail. What was he thinking? If she pulled away and jumped, she could be back in the water in seconds. Her siblings had already spotted her, and she could hear their encouraging cries coaxing her down to freedom.

"Michelle, Michelle." They hummed. "Michelle.." her father sighed her name in relief, and she smiled as her tail shifted restlessly, anxious to be down there with her family.

"Michelle... That's a beautiful name." The voice of the captain echoed behind her, and she turned to watch him holding on to a roll of white fabric. "My name is Arthur. I'm going to treat your injuries, is that alright?" He gestured to her bleeding tail and it took a moment before she nodded warily.

His touch was soft and reassuring as he removed the splinters and wrapped the roll of stretchy cloth over parts of her injured tail. His words were kind when he spoke, comforting murmuring she wishes she could understand every time the cuts flared up and blood dripped to stain the wooden crate. Despite her distrust she feels herself starting to relax under his ministrations.

It was uncanny how..safe she felt near this man. It scared her, the trust she felt for a human that had attacked her and her siblings, but also saved her from his men. And now he was going to return her back to the sea. Watching his green eyes, Michelle wondered what this man (Arthur..?) had seen in his travels round the world. All the different shades of green the world has to offered? Any other colour imaginable? All kinds of birds? Her heart yearned to know.

When they next met eyes, she lifted a hand to brush against the skin below his left eye gently. "Green, p-pretty.." She was sure she stumbled over the pronunciation, but he only smiled in answer and moved to cover her hand with his. Michelle blinked warily and made to pull away, afraid that he would do something to hurt her. But there was no force in his actions, no intent to hurt. Slowly he took her hand and pressed the tip of her fingers against his lips, smiling.

"You are prettier."

"Gr-rass..grass?" She cocked her head, missing the meaning of his previous words.

"Yes," he hummed as he leaned in closer. "They are the colour of grass."

Michelle laughed, watching the way his eyes twinkled and the colour of his iris shifting. They were iridescent, a deep rich green that had her enamoured, but in the sun it sparkled other colours, a hint of sea green here, a bit of brown there. It shone a very light green once, and she could not help the widening of her smile as she watched the colours play in his orbs. "I want see. Grass." Unconsciously she moved closer to the male until their faces were inches apart. "I want see," she murmured. "Real thing."

"Come with me, and I can show you." Arthur whispered back, his breath tickling the edge of her mouth. "Anything you want at all." His lips grazed her bottom lip, and she jolted back, the fear returning to her eyes. Hurriedly he did the same, murmuring an apology as he released her hand. To his relief, her distrust of him was short-lived as she smiled wistfully and parted her mouth to speak.

"Can't, fami-li." She tilted her head to the three heads down in the water. "Fa-Family important. Grass a day." She smiled a sad smile at him and made to dive into the water, pausing only to pat Arthur's hand, heart twisting strangely at the subdued expression he had on his face. "Thank you for freedom." Diving into the water, Michelle felt the touch of his fingers grazed hers, a fleeting warmth, replaced quickly by coolness that enveloped her entire being.

Her gills opened reflexively and she sighed as the salt water commenced their natural healing properties. Surfacing, her siblings immediately came to surround her in a protective circle, gentle hands brushing against her skin to check for harm. "He hurt you." Matthew muttered, raw hands coming to touch the white fabric wrapped around her torso and arm worriedly. "He must pay." Miriam added as she bristled, only relaxing reluctantly after their father placed a soothing hand on her shoulder.

"Enough Miriam, there has been enough bloodshed for today." Turning back to assess the pirate and his crew, he dipped his head slowly, the guarded look not leaving his eyes. "Thank you for giving me my daughter back. But you have overstayed your welcome in these waters. Leave, and do not come back."

"Don't worry, I don't plan on staying any longer. Your daughter, Michelle... It's best if you keep an eye on her from now. Or I just might have to steal her all for myself."

"Is that a threat?" Growling, the merman stared hard at Arthur, a hint of predatory hunger flickering in his eyes.

Sneering, Arthur turned away and shouted orders to his watching crew. Ignoring the lower lackeys that attempted to question him, (Why did you let the lass go? You had her captain! We are going to leave just like that?) the rest of the experienced sea-hardened crew dispersed and commenced steering the ship out of the pillars of rock. They knew not to question the captain in times like this. Kirkland always had a reason for the things he did. Bad or good, he did what was best for his men in the end. Besides, not many could boast surviving a merfolk attack in these dangerous waters.

Locking eyes at the blue-tail maiden in the water, Arthur made sure she returned his gaze before winking at her, his green eyes twinkling. He thought he saw her smile before being dragged beneath the surface by her family.

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The swim back home was one filled with silence. Michelle had never seen her father so distraught before, and it broke her heart when he would not respond to any of their apologies. Reaching the glade, he only muttered for Miriam and Matthew to clean their bruises before heading off into the mass of seaweed, the warning look in his eyes dissuading them from following.

Her siblings exchanged a pointed look before Michelle felt Matthew prod her towards the direction of her father's purple tail. And so it was with great hesitation when she followed, pushing pass the barrier as she followed the trail of swaying weeds. She found him hovering near the centre of a barren reef floor, head in his hands and muttering incomprehensible accented words to himself.

"Papa..," she begun quietly. "Are you mad? Please, scold us, do something. Don't..don't be like this."

"He could have killed you. Anyone of you. Dieu, if he wanted he could have taken you all away from me." Her father dropped his hands, fisting them at his sides, his body quivering with emotion. Michelle swallowed heavily at the sight of water leaking from her father's eyes. "Mes chers, Myriam and Matthieu and you, he could have taken you all away."

"I'm sorry Papa. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to."

He did not resist when she hugged him, tiny bubbles of similar liquid escaping above her head. Pressing her closer, he smoothed his daughter's hair, petting it comfortingly. "What did he tell you?" He asked quietly. "I saw him talking to you, what did that fool say?"

"Nothing-"

"Michèle please."

"... The green. He wanted to take me to see land. He said he would show me everything." Hiccupping, Michelle released her hold to watch her father, who had his eyes closed tiredly.

"Why can't we go to the land together Papa?" She asked again softly, the same question she always asks her father after a time spent above the waves. The conversation is the same, except this time there is no usual answer, and so without another word she left the empty glade to return to her nest, leaving him to his thoughts.

.

.

.

Weeks pass, but Michelle does not go to the surface. Her life dissolves back into everyday intimacy, and she spends her days playing with dolphins and fishing between coral reefs, always staying together with her siblings. Over time her wounds heal, and she removes all the bandages save one, which she wears as a reminder of the encounter with the green eyed man onboard the ship.

She never forgets his smile nor the brilliance of his eyes, though she knew it was likely that she would never see him again.

Her father joins them in song and his smiles come back, and he becomes a bit more like the father they had always known. But something is different now. He brooded more, and more often than not the trio of siblings always find him deep in thought.

One evening he suggests a trip to the surface, and they agree, all four of them. When Michelle takes in air with her lungs after weeks of not feeling the breeze, she can't help but beam happily.

As her siblings marvel at the sight of the setting sun, she points at a far off speck in the clouds, making sure her father was watching. "Seabird." She stated, coaxing a grin from his face.

"A gull actually. But yes, a seabird." Clearing his throat, a father fixed serious blue eyes on his beloved child. "Michèle, I have something to ask you."

"Yes Papa?" By now sister and brother had focused their attention on their father as well, and the trio stayed quiet, listening to the sound of the waves sloshing as they await their father's words.

"I have been thinking and I'm ready to-... Cherie, do you really want to see land?"

When Michelle smiles, her father returns it.

.

.

.

The sight of green catches her eye, all bright and rich and so so beautiful that she could only covered her mouth in awed shock. Tears come to her eyes and she feels her father squeezing her shoulder, similar emotion overflowing in his cerulean orbs.

Matthew pushes her forward, and so does Miriam, their enthusiasm contagious. Michelle could only laughed in pure happiness, as she stretched one hand out...

.

.

.

They were swimming close to the surface, jumping alongside the flying fishes. Matthew had caught one in his mouth, and his hilarious chewing sounds were making their father laugh. Miriam was twirling and doing spins in the air, blue eyes sparkling as she performed a perfect arc. Holding out an arm, Michelle giggled at the feel of tiny scaly bodies brushing against her skin.

When they spot the distant ship heading straight for them, they sobered, slowing down and allowing the humans to take one rare good look at them before flinging themselves under the safety of the sea.

Michelle hesitates at the last second, and in that moment she sees him onboard; all green eyes and feathered hat. When he shouts her name, she replies back eagerly, no more stumbling with the syllabuses of his name.

Hello.

A/N

This was sitting in my writing folder for way too long, so have it. It's about time you guys get something new anyways.

Originally I wanted to do a writing practise on prose and description about grass in a wide open field. Somehow the idea turned to writing about Ludwig winning the world cup in the finals and then to this. Idk man, my mind is weird, but the end result was cool.

I hope you like the concept of my mermaids and men. Since they aren't sirens, their songs do not have any effect on humans apart from sounding pretty. Hence they have other attack and defence mechanisms like longish nails and sharp spikes that grow and fall off after serving their purpose. It's like regenerating armour. Only cooler.

Matthew loves his fish. I don't blame him, I love mine too.

Lol my stories just keep get longer and longer. This piece even surpassed the KorBela one. I don't think I can stop hahaha help.

A Happy End this time, which is surprising because originally I planned for the ending to be sad. At least I don't break hearts right? Right? Nah I'm kidding give me your heart or I'll smash it for you. B)

I'm sure you guys can understand or guess the French, so no translations this time.

This will be the last piece for a while, I will get back to writing after exams.