Queen Alessandra's brow furrowed. "You wish to go to the human world? Have we not made a good enough home here in the underwater kingdom?" The queen commanded, casting her blue eyes down to look at the young girl.
"Of course, your majesty!" Cora mustered. She floated next to her mother in the royal throne room. Venus had pulled some strings to get her daughter a private audience with the queen. "I just wish to visit the human world– the land of my people– for a few days. I've never truly been on land."
"And you will return to the sea when you get back–If you were to actually go?" Queen Alessandra sighed.
Cora felt her mother tense up beside her. She wasn't sure how transformative this adventure would be. How could she know? Cora couldn't help but think she may find her place in the human world. "I'm not sure, your majesty."
The Queen clicked her tongue and sighed before descending from her throne. She swam swiftly past Cora and Venus, before beckoning them to follow her. They swam through a hall to a large room, a study of some sort.
Queen Alessandra lifted a book and flipped through the waterlogged pages. Not a word was shared between the three of them until the queen mermaid cleared her throat and swiveled the book to face Cora.
"You may visit Krystalle, but on one condition. You must retrieve a valuable necklace stolen from the sirens years ago, the Trident Necklace. This necklace can allow a human to shift into mermaid form and vice versa. It was taken by King Xavier, the monarch of Krystalle. The King has just died, and the crown prince is soon to take over the throne. I don't believe the prince knows of the trident necklace's power, so it should be relatively easy to take. Find the necklace, and bring it back in one week, the night of the prince's coronation. Then you will have to choose. You can return to the human world again or use the trident necklace to be transformed into a mermaid."
Cora stayed still, in apparent shock. Venus raised her brow and looked at her friends skeptically. Queen Alessandra shrugged and gave a look that seemed to say "that's my final offer".
"A week isn't much time," Venus said, breaking the silence.
"I'm aware, but this is how it has to be, the hustle and bustle of the Krystallian royal palace will be a wonderful distraction. No one would notice Cora stealing back the necklace."
"I could do it." Cora agreed. "It'll be a time crunch, but I can make it work. I'll figure out a way to get into the castle and steal the necklace back. You can trust me."
"Cora," Venus whispered. She smoothed down Cora's dark hair. "This could be dangerous. Do you really have to go to the land to find yourself?"
Cora met her mother's eyes, ringed with sadness. Mermaids didn't cry, due to the obvious reason that they were surrounded by water, but Cora had learned how to detect their sadness.
"Who knows if I'll even like the human world, Mama. But I have to figure this out for myself."
Core smiled slightly. "When did you get so grown up?" She chuckled and pulled Cora into her arms. "Alright, let's move on."
The rest of the day, Cora said her goodbyes to the kingdom. Adri and Venus escorted her to Siren Rock, where the sirens were directing Cora on how to get to the coast.
"Keep swimming northward. The waves will push to the west, so you'll have to fight them. Once you are near the shore, you'll see it's littered with ships. They start popping up the closer you get so use those as your guide. Swim to one of the beaches or follow the ships to the ports and you'll reach the shore."
After Selene's spleen on directions and the Carolin Castle, she offered Cora a new dress. "No one will take you seriously with that dirty old thing. Even though you'll be soaking wet, you should look pretty." She pulled gauzy white chiffon out of their chest filled to the brim with shipwrecked dresses.
Cora stepped into the dress, and Selene pulled the steps up over her shoulders and tied them off the back. Creamy pleats cut off right above Cora's ankles. The loose skirt would make it easy to swim in. "Thank you, Selene. It's lovely."
"It really isn't," Selene confessed. "It's drab compared to our other dresses. Dalia wanted to feed it to the sharks."
"Thanks anyways," Cora said awkwardly.
She dove into the water rejoining Adri and Venus. They shared a final hug as they rocked in the waves. "It's only a week," Cora reassured her family.
"What if you choose to stay in the human world?" Adri asked quietly.
"We'll think about that later. I have a job to do now, though. I need you guys to be happy for me though."
"We are happy, dear." Venus cried, throwing her arms around Cora. "You're so brave. Even if you choose to go to the human world for good, you will have helped the underwater kingdom, so much by retrieving the Trident necklace. You'll be remembered as a hero."
No pressure.
Cora laughed nervously. She cast her gaze out to the waves. Just continue north. Look for ships. She took herself to breathe.
Core said her final goodbyes. She swore she even saw Selene give her a bittersweet smile before turning away. Cora dunked herself into the waves, feeling the cold rush of water cover her body. She kicked her legs sending the nearby fish scattering away. She left the rocks, the outermost limit of the designated sea kingdom, and forced herself not to look back.
Thank you for reading!!
I know its been a while without an update, but I've been super busy (and a little uninspired). Hopefully, I'll get to write some more soon!
xoxo Canary
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Legendary: A Retelling of The Little Mermaid
Fantasy✴UNFAMILIAR FAIRYTALE 2✴ Cora has always been caught between two worlds. The ocean and land. Life isn't easy for a human who was raised by mermaids. Her legs divide her from the merfolk, but she's never walked on the sand of human land. A mission f...
