The Mermaids Curse


It was a sunny morning. The children thought that nothing could go wrong. But today was the day they would receive terrible news.
“William, Gabrielle…we have something to tell you. And I’m afraid that it’s not good news.” It was the voice of their father Christopher. Hands placed in his lap, tired and the look of sadness in his eyes. Their mother Elizabeth in the kitchen, hands indulged in hot , soapy water, gripping the cloth as she wiped away the food on the plates. The tears building in her eyes, until one is free and rolls down her cheek. The tears were warm and salty, as she could taste them on her lips, feel the warmth on her skin. She could hear everything that was being said in the next room, she could also see, as the living room and the kitchen were adjoined by a by open door frame. She looked out the kitchen window and saw her 7 year old son playing in the yard. “To young to understand, To young to know…” She thought this to herself. It was true. The same thought was for her Husband. There youngest son Zachary, looked so much like his big brother Paul. The straight black hair, and the ocean blue eyes, which they got from their father. Only Paul was 20, and Zachary was only 7. They loved to be around each other. When Zachary first awoke, the first person he’d go to find was his brother Paul. Paul was a tall well built strong boy. Full of life. Loved spending time with his family. Their Father Christopher, had curly blonde hair, and was tall man. The friendly giant some called him. He hated seeing others in trouble and would do everything he could to help them. That’s how her met Elizabeth, the short sweet girl. Black hair, and almost a emerald green coloured eyes. Some would say that it was “love at first sight”.
Elizabeth pulled her hands from the water, and dried them on a cloth. And made her way into the living room as she looked into the eyes of her two children, they had a look of curiosity in their eyes. She knew he hadn’t told them about the challenge that they were about to face.
“What’s wrong mom? Were Paul?” Those words from her daughter’s mouth, made her want to cry. Her voice soft and sweet, but she held it back, she knew she had to be strong. The thoughts running through everyone’s minds.
“Paul is…is…not doing so well” Christopher said.

Their mother watched as she saw William and Gabrielle take hands. They knew that they were going to be heartbroken. They sat and watched as their mother took a deep breath. Then she opened her mouth and said “Paul is sick…and they don’t know how much longer he is going to be here.” Tears streaming down her face, as she turned and walked up the old creaking stairs. She could not bare to the thought her heartbreaking every second.
Gabrielle and William looked at their father. “Is she serious?” Gabrielle said, with a raised tone on her voice. Her face red, tears forming in her eyes. “Your mother is telling the truth Gabble. He’s sick and there’s nothing we can do. I wish there was…but there isn’t. The disease has progressed to quickly. William check on Zack please.”
“Yeah no problem dad.” As William stood he hugged his sister. As they both knew how much Paul meant to her.
“Dad…What is it?”
“What Gabble?”
“What does Paul have?”
“Its called Cholera”
“Well…whats that?” pasting…all she was doing. Nothing else. So many questions, so many thoughts.”
“It is a disease, It is an acute, infectious epidemic.”
“What…what the hell is that. How did he even catch it?”
“Doctor Landry says that It could have been some water he drank that wasn’t properly treated.”
A slight laugh escaped Gabriella mouth “I cant believe this. How do they know this is Cholera thing is actually what he has? How did he drink contaminated water?”
“He must of drank unbioled water. I’m sorry. And how does Dr. Landry know. He fits all the symptoms. I know, he means the world to you.”
“Of course he does, he my brother. He saved me from that fire when we were younger. You know that, and you also know that he never leaves me alone ever. I’m going to go see him.”
“Gabri-“ He was cut off, by cold look of his only daughter.
“I don’t care. I’m going to go see him”
She turns and walks up the stairs. With every step the wood creaking behind her.
Gabrielle’s arm out stretched. Placed her hand on the door knob twisting it, not knowing what she would be seeing. She pushed the door open. And saw her brother Paul laying in bed. Sleeping,. He was pale, and sunken eyes. Breathing shallow he had a clammy feeling to him. The room smelt of vomit and sweat. The room was filled with a dead silence. Her knees hit the floor and she took Paul’s hand, and sat there. Staring at her brothers expressionless face. She was wondering when he would come back to her. Hours past and noting was said, nothing was done. Every one was sitting, trying to think of a solution.
“I’m going for a walk near the docks” Gabrielle said as she rose from her chair.
“Alright. But be back by 7. Ok.”
“Yes mom. Bye”

She walked to the front door, and glanced back. There are all sitting there. Helpless. They have no idea what’s going to happen.
She opened the front door to feel the cool summer breeze through her hair and her face. She walked down the path to the ocean dock. “my favorite place” She thought to her self. Sitting on the hot sand of the beach She began talking to her self. “Id give anything to keep you alive. I whish you’d live. Ill do anything. Please let him live.” She was pleading with god. Hoping and wondering if he had heard her. The wind was getting rougher, clouds were forming all around. A wave forcing itself upon the beach, and touching her feet. The cold ocean water touching her feet sent chills up her back. You could smell the ocean water, hear the waves bashing against the rocks. “did they hear me?” was her thought. She heard a faint scream. She stood to her feet and ran over to the rocks. She could see hair, lots of sunny golden blonde hair, floating in the water. She grabbed the girl by the arms and rolled her over. With hair sticking to her face, she pushed it out of the way
“Hey are you alright?”
“I’m fine. But I am stuck in this net.”
“How did you get stuck in a net? That’s the most bizarre thing I have ever heard of. You have legs get out yourself.”
“look…”
Gabrielle looked, into the water, as the net rose, underneath tangled in green net were fins. Big Aquamarine blue fins. Shining and sparkling…
“oh my god….wha-what are you?” Gabrielle could feel her jaw on the ground. She was shocked and spurised. As she has never believed of such a creature.
“I’m a mermaid. And my name is Morgana. I know, I’m fabulous….now close your mouth. I was swimming when a storm hit the ocean and this net wrapped around my fins. And it is really bothering me. And I cant get it off.”
“oh…wow, I don’t even know what to say…what to do”
“Well are you going to help me get out of this net?…And you could tell me your name. Hey…You know” Morgana said, you could see the devious, sly evil like smile on her face
“Oh my name is Gabrielle.” She looked at Morgana
“If you help a mermaid you get a wish.”
“Are you serious? If I help you I get a wish?”
“That’s right you do…but I should warn you that all wishes-“
“You know what I don’t care. If you can grant my wish I don’t care what the consequences price whatever it is As long as you can do it.” She ran to Morgana fins and began to pull at the net.
Morgana looked at her and in her mind began to think. “Poor girl. I tried to warn you. All mermaids wishes come with a consequence, a sacrifice. You should be more careful for what you wish for.”
“So while your down there, you know untangling me. Tell me what is your wish?”
“Oh well..” She said looking at Morgana, her deep blue eyes filled with curiosity.
“My Brother…he sick. And he’s dyeing. There’s nothing we can do so…my wish is that he lives.”
“So this is a pretty big wish of yours…that’s your wish. For your brother to live? You do know that a wish that big has a price…right”
“I don’t care. As long as he lives. That’s my wish. For him to live”
With the net free She stood and looked at Morgana. “So I helped you. Now you help me.”
“Will do.”
“Ill bring my parents down. Ok. I’m gonna get them right now. Stay here ok.”
“Hey, wait…do you really think that your parents will belive what your about to go off and tell them? Do you really think that they will listen to you? They are going to think your crazy. There your parents, they never would belive that you met a mermaid, that saved your brother. I mean its true…but think about how they are going to react.” Morgana sat there in the sand looking at Gabrielle, who was standing thinking. Her arms fell to her sides “Your right, they would never believe me. So what should I do?”
Morgana picked up a handfull of sand, looking at it watcheing it fall through her fingers, not even looking at Gabrielle “Then just let me grant you your wish”
“You can still give me my wish without my paretns here?”
“Of course I can…This is your decision, not theres…but you know your going to pay right?”
“That’s alright. I told you already id give anything.”
“I know you did.”
“So…do your thing and make my brother good again. I don’t mean to be bossy, but I want him to be ok, they don’t know how mush longer he has so I’m kind of in a hurry. “
“I totally understand. Now sit down. I need you to be very quite while I do this ok….your sure you don’t want to know the price for a life?”
“I don’t care what the price is, just do it ok.”
“ok then…don’t get snappy with me alright, you have no idea what I’m capable of ok.”
“Ok yeah I don’t ca-“ Morgana placed her hand over her mouth.
“Open your mouth one more time…I’m going to fill your lungs with water….got it?”
Gabrielle nodded. “Good.”
Siren took her hand off Gabrielle’s mouth.
Gabrielle sat, her hands in the sand. Looking at Morgana, she could smell the salty water, feel the ocean breeze. The little splashes of cold water that blew in her face when I wave came on th ebeach. The cool summer wind blowing on her face. She looked at Morgana, she opened her mouth. She began to sing. A song that no one knows, her voice was beautiful, soft smooth. As she sang wind blew violently, the clouds formed and painted the sky gray. The once calm sea, was growing violent, pushing its wild waves upon to the sandy beach.. Then it stopped, frozen in place. She closed her mouth and looked at Gabrielle…”What is your wish?”
“My wish is that my brother Paul, lives, survives this disease that about to take his life”
“Well…Your wish is my command.”
Gabrielle looked at Morgana. She had knots in her stomach, she had a feeling that it was a mistake.
“The sea is wild, the waves are cold. Death comes for a boy named Paul. He is sick, he is Dying.
This is a wish from his flesh and blood, His Sister Gabrielle wishes that death lets him live. As wild as your soul is, and cold throbs your heart, let it be filled with warmth and let him live. Let death not reach him. Save him. She is willing to pay the price for his life.”

It was silent, cold and quite. Sitting wondering what was going to happen. “What now?”
“Well Gabrielle, your wish has been granted.”
“Really...oh my god I have to get home and see him”
“Ah, wait just a minute there young lady. We haven't discussed the subject of payment. You can't get something for nothing, you know.”
“Oh right…well I don’t have much what do you want?”
“I'm not asking much. You'll never even miss it. What I want from you is . . .your legs.”
“what?”
“Life's full of tough choices, isn’t it?:
“You…you cant do that” Gabrielle snapped back
“My dear, sweet child. That's what I do - it's what I live for. I told you, you have no idea of what I’m capable of. You should have listened. You didn’t think that the solution to your problem would be that simple, no it wasn’t, it was a wish, a whish that was most expensive. I told you that you would have to pay a price for your brother life. You said that you didn’t care what it was. The only way for you to get what you wanted was to come to me, you had no other choice. And the only way to get what I want is to become human. Therefor, I need your legs.”
“But why do I have to give my legs to you?”
“I know its painful to give up something up like that but I had to do it, so do you. That’s if you want your brother to live…don’t you?”
“I want him to live but…wait, you had to do it?”
“Yes I did. You see someone I loved dearly was dieing. And I met a mermaid and I helped her. So she gave me a wish that was to let her live. So in return I gave the mermaid my legs. It’s a curse. You see we…well mermaids can hear when someone wishes for something big…you know like keeping someone alive. There’s nothing I can do now. Those legs of yours are mine. There’s nothing you can do. Now I am going to be up there, now I will be able to walk, run, stay all day in the sun. I get to wonder, freely.” Morgana looked at her. Gabrielle, was in shock, angry.
“Well….I have to…” Gabrielle looked at siren. Morgana looked at her “That’s right you do.”
“I made a wish. Then how am I suspose to see my mom and dad my brothers?”
“That’s…well the beauty of it for me. Maybe not for you. But the thing is, no one will remember you. Not your mother, Father, not William or Zack. No one in this town will. All there memories of you will be replaced with me, only I wont be the memory of a daughter, but ill be the memory of a future dauhter-in-law. If you know what I mean. And I will have all your memories. I will pretty much know everything you know and well everything I already know” Morganalooked at her. The skies still gray, the ocean was still. There was no wind blowing. It wasn’t cold out or hot.
“What?”
“That’s the pirce.”
“You want my legs..and my life…you want my family?”
Gabrielle dropped to her knees. Looking at Morgana. Morgana layed on her side, looking at Gabrielle. She smiled at her. Drawing in the sand with her finger.
“If you just listen. I can try to explain. You see I was going to get married before this happened to me, but sense I gave my legs and my memories and my life to the mermaid that granted my wish. She got to marry him. Its happening this very moment. You will remember everything that went on. But they wont. And you wont be able to grant a wish like this for a hundred years. Just like me. I saw Paul on the beach a couple of years ago. I saw him and I said to myself, that’s my future.”
“That’s…that’s just crazy. Your crazy”
“Remember I told you that there would be a price, and I drive a hard bargin. It is crazy, but that’s whets going to happen. Maybe next time you will listen to me. So, Gabrielle, get into the water now.”
“What?” Looking at Morgana in shock.
“I cant belive this…”
“Don’t act so surprised. You should have known that we are devious creatures. So I can make you get in, but I’m being nice. So do it now. But first I have a question for you?”
“What is it?” Gabrielle said. Morgana looked at her“Gabrielle…did you really think that you met me by chance? I knew your brother was dying. You forget, that we are very powerful people. I know more then you could ever know.” Gabrielle had tears in her eyes, as she stepped into the cold still ocean water. The water gave her Goosebumps all over. Her hair touching the water and it began to flow out. “Now” Morgana said looking at Gabrielle as she stood shivering in the water. “Don’t worry after you will be warm. Calm down theres noting to afraid of” Morgana sat on her knees. She looked up to the sky and began to say “after I became a mermaid, I always dreamed of a life above again. For a hundred years I hoped. Of a life with family. I wanted to dance with my prince.”
Morgana looked into the water and began to say “This young girl gave up her legs for the love of her brother. She agreed to be blessed with this sleek graceful tail. And I have been given her legs. So I say to you Mother ocean taker her change her, and give me what I deserve. This is the blood and Flesh of the boy she has saved with her wish.”

Then the winds bean to blow, the waves grew bigger they forced Gabrielle into the ocean water. Deeper and deeper her body sunk. The water cold and dark. She could feel scales forming on her legs and the brought them closer together, she couldent pull them apart. She looked up from under the water to see the dark clouds disappearing and the sun was shining in the water. She looked down, the water got darker and darker as it pulled her under.

Morgana sat on the beach, she watched as the fins disappeared, she saw flesh underneath. Her toes beginning to show. ”Im back home.” She said to her self. She looked out to the ocean “Good luck Gabrielle” She rose from the sand. It felt good to feel the sand beneath her feet, and being able to stand once again. She brushed her hair from her face. Picked up a towel that someone had left there. She looked around, “What a beautiful day to be home” The sun was bright, it was a warm afternoon. The light summer breeze was cool, and refreshing. The smell of the ocean and the breeze calmed her. She wrapped the towel around her waist and walked. She walked up the gravel path, the rocks and the dirt underneath her feet crunching and crumbeling with everystep she took. She walked up the the short steep hill, and onto the grassy yard of her new home. There was a garden that was gated in, filled with colourfull fruits and vegtibals. She walked up to the front door and opened it. “Mother I’m home” she stood in the doorway.
“Oh Morgana…He awake, he’s much better…isn’t that amazing?”
“It is very amazing isn’t it. So just over night pretty much? Can I see him?”
“Oh yes overnight, or course he’s your future husband.” Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Morgana hugged her held her
“I’m so happy Morgana” Morgana looked down at Elizabeth, “So am i.” Morgana walked up the stairs and opend the door that led into Paul’s room. His room no longer smelt of sweat and vomit. It smelt like flowers. The room was much brighter, there was a vase of lillies on the night stand near the bed. “Paul?” Looking around. “Oh Morgana, hi. I was wondering when you were coming back. They told me you went for a walk.” He smiled at her, he came out of the closet were he had just finished getting dressed.
“Paul” She said, she walked over and hugged him. “I’m so glad to see you.” He looked at her.
“I know, and I’m thankful that your ok.”
“Im fine. Don’t worry. I will be ok. Hey, You know what I want to do right now?”
“What’s that Paul?”
“I want to go for a walk on the beach its been a while, I want to see the ocean, and feel the sand under my feet, I miss the smell of the breeze that comes in. You know what I mean? Morgana, will come with me?
“Of course. I know what you mean, and you know what? I wouldn’t have it any other way.Id love to join you. It were I belong. With you”
As Paul was leaving, with Morgana behind him, she looked back and looked out the bedroom window and out to the view of the ocean.

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 27.03.2011

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