Reincarnated as an Ugly Step Sister

Chapter 30

A few hours later, I decide it's late enough for us to go down to the beach. The overall excitement and nervousness about what's going to happen soon, combined with my strange interaction with Chase, has made the last hours hellish. Unable to sit down or concentrate, I paced the room as my mind darted between finding Cinderella's cure and Chase.

I knock on Nicholas's door first, so that I don't have to be alone with Chase for even a second. Nicholas comes out of his room, blinking in the rather dim light of the hallway. "You were able to fall asleep?" I question in a hushed voice.

"I figured I should, though I didn't sleep very deeply. Were you unable to get any rest?" he asks with concern.

"I'll be fine," I say as I knock on Chase's door. He comes out of his room and looks me up and down. I look away but he reaches out and fixes my hood. I freeze until he pulls his hand away. He didn't touch my skin this time but it's an intimate gesture when it comes to Chase.

Nicholas doesn't seem to notice and walks ahead of us. Chase won't stop watching my face so I avert his gaze and hurry after Nicholas. Something has happened to him that is making him act very strangely, I know that much. Usually after going on a trip down memory lane, like we did for the day we just met, he avoids me but now he seems to be doing the opposite. We've completely switched places.

Once we're out of the castle I begin giving Chase and Nicholas instructions. "When we get to the beach you need to hide. You can't look at what I'm doing or try to eavesdrop or anything. I'm trusting you to trust me."

"Of course, whatever you need," Nicholas says.

"Yeah," Chase agrees.

"Great, if all goes well I'll come and get you. If you can't come I'll send you away. That's just how it has to be."

When we get down to the beach, I ask them to hide behind some rocks. Then I walk over to the mermaids. They're laid across the rocks again, clearly waiting for me. I stand beside Adella, who's dipping her feet in the water.

"Hi," I say nervously.

"Hello. Are you ready?" Ione asks.

"Umm, no. I brought my friends. They're really good people and they won't try and hurt you or anything. They just want to help me."

"You told other humans about us?" Ione says angrily, her face growing dark. "You have betrayed me and now I will have to-"

"Oh, I haven't told them about you yet. I wanted to wait for your permission."

"Well, then my answer is no."

This actually surprises me. I wasn't expecting her to say no, that's not how fairytales usually work. "Please? I need them and I'll do anything to have them come along," I beg.

"No, humans are magic haters. They make laws that hurt my people. We used to be traders and our city thrived. Then humans cut off ties and started stealing fish from our farms, rather than trading."

"My friends are magic lovers," I say. "One of them is a prince who plans on getting rid of the segregation laws once he becomes king. I think you'd really like him."

Ione contemplates this. Suspense hangs in the air until finally she rolls her eyes. "Fine, bring them out. However, if their presence harms the mission in any way, we'll take it out on you."

"That's fine," I tell her. Then I run to where I hid them and beckon for them to follow me. "This is Chase and Nicholas."

As they take in the mermaids, splayed across the rocks, their eyes widen and their mouths open with awe. "Chase, Nicholas, meet the mermaids. They're Adella's sisters." Adella waves shyly so they know who I'm talking about, since we've never addressed her during meals. "That's Ione," I say, pointing to the eldest mermaid sitting on the highest rock. "She'll be turning us into mermaids too."

"They're male," Ione states. I nod to confirm. "Yet you called them mermaids."

"Oh, sorry. I meant mer-butlers," I say jokingly.

Ione either doesn't understand or isn't a fan of humor. "It's mermen."

"Oh, right."

"Let's get started then," Ione says before gracefully leaping off her rock. I'm not sure how the mermaids manage to move so well out of water but either they've been doing this for a long time or there's a magic element to it.

I'm impressed with how Chase and Nicholas are acting. They've just met eight mermaids and learned Adella, the mute princess, is also one. Other than acting a little off guard, they maintain their respectful posture.

Ione has us each sit cross-legged on the sand. One of the mermaids, I don't recall her name, sits in front of us. She takes my hand and opens it, so my palm is facing the sky. Then, before I know what's happening, she rips a scale off herself and slices my hand with it.

"Oh my god!" I say in shock. I pull my hand close to my chest and examine the wound. Blood is pooling in my palm but no one seems to care. In fact, the mermaid is doing the same thing to Chase and no one is batting an eye. Except Nicholas, who looks like a deer in the headlights.

"It doesn't hurt that much," I whisper to Nicholas. "I was mostly just surprised." He nods slowly but his eyes still stay wide open as he watches the mermaid approach him, her scale ready.

"I'm just a little afraid of blood," he says. "It's meant to be inside the body, you know?"

He's holding his hand close to his body to keep it away from the mermaid. "Nicky, I get it but this isn't enough blood to do you much harm. We need to do this so close your eyes and it'll only hurt for a second." To my relief, he nods, closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and tentatively holds his hand out. The mermaid cuts his palm with a graceful swipe and though he winces, Nicholas doesn't react any more than this.

Next, a different mermaid takes my hand and dips two of her fingers in my blood. She draws a symbol on my forehead and moves on to Chase and Nicky, drawing the same thing.

Once she's done Ione speaks up for the first time in quite a while. "Do you see this cliff?" She points to the jagged cliff that's directly behind her. We nod. "Climb up and jump off."

"With all due respect, why?" I ask.

"It takes an act of courage to become a mermaid. Once you hit the water, you'll have a tail. Alright?" she speaks with exasperation, as if I were already supposed to know that.

I look at Chase and Nicholas then shrug. "Okay, let's go."

We climb up the rocky cliff, following a faint path. It's steep and long but I'm determined not to look weak in front of the judgy mermaids. When we finally reach the top I can see why jumping off counts as an act of courage. I look over the edge so I can gauge how far up we are. It's at least a fifty foot jump with jagged rocks at the bottom. I'll have to jump as far out as I can and try not to let the waves smash me into the rocks when I get in the water. A jump from this height is going to hurt so I also need to get into a good position while I'm in the air.

"This looks pretty dangerous, maybe we shouldn't do this. We won't be any help to Cinderella dead," Nicholas says, peering over the edge of the cliff.

"No, we're doing this," I say firmly. "Listen, when you're in the air, try to land in the water feet first. Make sure to jump out so you don't land on the ground and as soon as you're in the water, swim against the tide so it doesn't throw you into the rocks. Got it?" Chase and Nicholas nod.

"Do you want me to go first?" Chase asks.

I shake my head. "No. I have to be first." I turn around to look my friends in the eyes. "See you on the other side." Before I have a chance to think again, I turn around and leap off the cliff.