Zaira had collected clams from the ocean floor so she could use them as her alibi. At least one mermaid would question her whereabouts, especially after a hunt. She only hoped that the Malloran would be done with her meal by the time she crossed the border. It took them under thirty minutes to strip a human corpse clean to the bone. She shuddered at the thought of swimming in on her, mid-meal. She swam at a leisure pace to ensure it wouldn't happen. Instead, she occupied her mind with the boy she'd saved. How many sacred laws has she broken just by saving him? Bubbles rose to the surface as she released air in a sigh. Just thinking about it gave her a headache. Something had been off about him though.

He was attractive for a human, an angular jaw and straight nose with dark brown, almond shaped eyes. His wet hair had hung around his oval face making him seem more vulnerable, and he had full, dark lips, the bottom pinker than the top. When she pressed her lips to his, she found they were just as soft and warm as they'd appeared. She shook her head, ridding herself of such unnecessary thoughts. What had been truly strange was not his physical appearance but his apparent immunity. Her sister could take anyone's mind with her song. Unless-

"Where have you been?" If Zaira had been on land, she would have leaped at least three feet into the air. Her heart accelerated, no longer from surprise but fear of the creature before her.

The Malloran had stopped her, not a single other mermaid in sight to protect her.

"K-Kat..." She stuttered. She hated talking to people in general, but Kat especially. Kat's eyes were large and as black as the night sky, her iris nearly taking up her entire eye, leaving very little white. Zaira could taste blood in the water around her and it made her stomach twist, but she managed to hide how it effected her. She held out the clams encased in her arms. "I've collected food for myself." She only hoped that it had been enough for Kat to let her by.

Kat's eyes narrowed with suspicion, but she nodded nonetheless, her black hair dancing around her as her tail curled threateningly.

"By the way, there were two males on that boat, Zaira. I only ate one." Zaira's eyes widened at the blatant accusation, but she hoped her look of guilt was perceived as shock.

"R-really? I-"

"You know the pod's laws. If, for whatever reason you've interfered with the hunt, you'll be my next meal." She sent Zaira a wide, sharp-toothed grin. "Been a while since I've had mermaid."

Zaira gulped nervously, unsure of how to respond.

"The Matriarch is having an emergency meeting. Wouldn't want to be late." Kat's grin only widened as she spoke and it was in that moment she realized.

Kat knew. She was just toying with her prey.

Zaira swam away, towards the place of the meeting, her stomach twisting when she glanced down at the fresh human skeleton below. Tiny bits of flesh drifted with the current and she moved faster as Kat cackled from behind.

---

Kai awoke to the pleasant smell of frying pork, his dry mouth immediately filling with saliva as he groggily stretched his arms over his head. Letting out a sigh, he sat up slowly, wincing when he placed too much pressure on a bruise. He brushed a hand through his hair with an exhale as he glanced around his bright room.

"What a dream..." He muttered. It had all felt so real. One moment, he was on the sea with his father, then suddenly he was being carried away by a sympathetic mermaid in a group of murderers. There was absolutely no way that had actually happened and he chuckled at his creative mind.

He stood, his stomach growled violently as though he hadn't eaten in a few days and he gripped his bed post when his legs nearly gave out from under him.

It was then that he noticed his older brother asleep in the wooden rocking chair that sat in the furthest corner of his room. His neck laid in such an uncomfortable position that even Kai could feel the resulting stiffness. He grinned at the fond memories it brought him, of times when he would beg the elder to stay at night to scare the monsters away as he slept.

"Breakfast!" The booming voice of Kai's mother carried all the way to the top floor of their house and his brother finally stirred, groaning as his hand immediately moved to support his sore neck. Outside of his room, Kai could hear the pounding steps of his younger siblings as they raced each other to the kitchen table.

"Tough night?" Kai asked jokingly. His brothers gaze moved quickly to where Kai stood, flinching when he moved too fast for his stiff neck. His eyes widened.

"Kai... you're awake?" He didn't miss the hint of excitement in his older brothers voice as he stood from the aged rocking chair, the back of it banging against the pale blue wall.

"Of course I am..." Kai trailed, mildly confused as the elder embraced him in a powerful hug. He returned it hesitantly.

"Xiumin!" His mother called, slightly louder now.

"Coming!" He yelled down before taking another good look at Kai as though he'd miraculously recovered from deaths door. His face brightened with a grin. "Let's go, Kai."

The breakfast table was strangely quiet, Kai quickly noted. His younger siblings, twins, silently argued over the largest piece of pork, forks clanging loudly compared to the static of the room.

"Where's Pa?" Kai inquired upon realizing that they had begun eating without the older man. The twins' argument stopped immediately, their heads whipping around to stare at Kai with wide eyes. Xiumin's fist tightened around the metal fork that had been half way to his mouth and his mother gently placed her fork down with a heavy sigh.

The silence resumed for a long moment, the twins quickly looking back and forth between Kai and their mother.

"Ma..." Kai began again, a feeling of dread overwhelming him, hands shaking with fear of what she was about to say. Please, don't say what I'm thinking... he thought, begging her with his eyes.

"You're Pa... he's with the seas now." Kai's mother stared down at her plate of food as she spoke, voice wavering for a moment. She looked up, her eyes red and watery with unshed tears. "I-I'm sorry. I can't." She stood quickly, chair scraping against the wooden floor as the first sob shook her small frame, a shaky hand covering to quiet her cries. She rushed past the living room, to the bedroom and slammed the door with a loud bang.

One of the twins who sat beside Kai leaned over from the chair to pat his shoulder. "Don't worry. Pa'll come back, I know it."

But he won't come back... Kai still sat in shock, his mind struggling to process the new information. It hadn't been a dream. Mermaids were indeed real, and they killed his father.

Rage flowed through Kai's bloodstream as he stood, violently slamming his hands on the kitchen table. The young twins jolted in surprise. Xiumin flinched and stood up, reaching out for Kai.

"Kai..."

"Don't!" He snapped, pushing past the older brother, throwing open the door and storming over the hillside and down to the boardwalk. He glared out at the ocean, waves sloshing lazily against the wooden beams of the dock.

"Bring him back!" He yelled, voice straining from the sheer volume. The townspeople who passed by glanced at him with pity. The news traveled fast in such a tiny fishing village. He collapsed to his hands and knees, peering over the side of the dock and into the black water beneath him. "Why?" His voice cracked with emotion, but tears refused to fall, even when his body shook with soft sobs. "Why am I still here...?"

No one has ever survived a mermaid attack but... Kai froze as he recalled a soft voice. "I saved you once, I don't know if I can a second time."

"She... saved me?" He held a hand over his heart to make sure it was truly beating.

His chest throbbed at the thought of his mother crying in the house. "She should have saved Pa instead..." He muttered, fists clenched with a strange sense of guilt, sending dull waves of pain through his body.

He waited a moment to collect his emotions before continuing down the boardwalk.

As he walked, people stared. Fellow fishermen spoke much too loudly amongst themselves.

"It's the damned mermaids I tell ya! Told 'im not ta go, but 'e didn't listen. Now look! A widow with four little ones. A shame." Kai clenched his fists at the old mans insensitive words but trudged on.

The younger of the two fishermen elbowed the other hard. "Don't cha talk like that!" The eldest rubbed his sore ribs and glanced apologetically to Kai as he passed but he ignored them. The wooden walkway over the ocean eventually veered back over the land and faded to a dirt road. Small colorful shops littered the street sides, mostly for tourists and something in a faded antique shop window caught his eye. A book, green in color, it's cover depicting a swimming mermaid with shimmering gold scales.

Curiosity piqued, he passed through the front door, the loud bell going off and alerting the shop owner.

"Yes! How can I help... oh, Kai! How've you been, son?" The older man grinned as though he hadn't heard the terrible news, and perhaps he hadn't, though it seemed unlikely.

Kai shrugged, avoiding the mans gaze as he pointed to the book in the display window. "I saw the book as I was passing." He said simply and the shop owner picked it up for him.

"This old thing? Has no real purpose. Tourists love their books." He shrugged disappointedly. "Thought it would draw 'em in but maybe it's bad luck." He sighed with a shake of his head as he handed Kai the worn novel. "What's got you so interested anyway?" He'd moved back behind the cash, polishing the same cup he'd probably been doing for the last hour.

"I wanna learn about mermaids."

The shop keeper nearly dropped the precious china in shock as his mouth fell open.

"W-why ever would you want that?" He stuttered. "Besides, no one in this village can read. There's no reason to, so how-"

"I'll go to school." Kai spoke with finality, standing tall with determination in his eyes.

"Have you talked to your mother about this? The nearest school is almost a week away." The shop keeper tried to reason with him to no avail.

"How much for the book, sir?" He ignored the mans words entirely.

"Uh... none. It's of no use to me."

"Thank you for your business."

Kai left before the shop keeper could say more. He'd always liked Kai's mother, taking any chance he could to try to win her over. Even now, Kai could only see hope in the old mans eyes. He didn't mourn is old friends death at all and it was people like him that made Kai sick. He left the small bustling main street and walked briskly over the boardwalk, book tucked under his arm. The hot sun made the docks smell like rotting fish and drying seaweed. If not so used to the stench, Kai probably would have been sick. He traveled over the rolling hills dotted with vibrant wildflowers and crisp, green grass. The ground beneath his feet worn to the brown earth due to his frequent trips.

The air here smelled of sweet nectar and salt, the sound of insects and birds surrounded him. It was the closest thing to paradise. The hills grew steeper and steeper until he found himself atop a towering cliff that overlooked the small harbor where his village was nestled. It was a straight drop to the bottom of the cliff where rocks protruding from the crashing waves waited.

Sitting down on the grassy edge, he let his feet dangle. His shoes lay beside him as he felt the cool breeze against his heated skin. He reclined until his back touched the ground and watched the clouds pass above for a moment. Slowly, his eyes fell shut, a single tear falling.

 

When he woke, the sun was gone and the moon had risen to take its place. A sweet voice, carried by the wind, reached his ears and he listened intently, as he always did. Despite the happenings of the recent past, he was still enraptured by the voice of the sea. Nature seemed to alter its own melodies and beats to blend with theirs, creating an even more beautiful, rich sound. It made him want to leap into the water and damn the consequences. He wanted to find the source, finally see the face behind the voice.

Mermaids, although cruel and arguably satanic, had the voices of angels, he grudgingly admitted.

Book in hand and stomach growling, he returned home, the haunting song to replay in his mind for weeks to come.