These Barren Lands

Chapter 6

It does move, though. Papa pulls back and exhales painfully. "Shifting."

I run my tongue across my upper lip, surprised to taste saltwater tears. Any worded response I have gets caught in my throat, so I just nod.

"It's easy," he says with a laugh. Then, he turns towards me. "You know that spot where the Divine resides—deep in your stomach?"

We pat our lower stomachs in unison and laugh. It's the most harmonious sound I've ever heard, even if mine is a bit strangled.

"Reach for it, just like you're about to use Her magic," Papa continues, "and then—crush it."

His words make me jump. "Crush it?! You always told me to be careful with the Divine fire."

"Yes, I did." He smirks. "But now, you have to crush it. The fire is what makes you a mermaid. It gives you life, power, and a tail. If you stifle it, even momentarily, the shift will happen." He holds up a finger as I start to close my eyes. "Just know, it will take conscious effort to keep it down. She doesn't really like being quietened. That's why it makes us feel so weak. Watch."

I step back, and Papa walks into the shallows. He smiles softly at me, and then there's a blinding flash of gold. I shield my eyes; someone across the sand gasps. But it fades, and I inhale in shock when I find Papa sitting in the water—tail and all. It's the same evergreen shade it's always been, some scales sparkling like diamonds in the morning sun.

He inhales deeply, his entire body relaxing at last. "Easy."

If I opened my mouth any wider, birds would fly into my mouth.

I hear Finn's response before I see him. "Are you kidding me?" My head whips around to find him standing beside me, arms crossed over his chest. "I've been a human for nearly two months now, and I could have just crushed the Divine flame?"

Papa chuckles, but his cheeks darken. Shame? Certainly not embarrassment. "I know. I shouldn't have censored the knowledge, but..." He shrugs. "Fear makes a person do ridiculous things."

Finn and I both walk over to the shallows. By the time we make it, Papa is standing again, dressed and dripping. He shifts like it's perfectly natural. Like it's not illegal or forbidden. Like I didn't sign my life away to shift.

"You go first," I mutter, giving my friend a little shove towards the water. My stomach knots nervously. It took me a while to adjust to legs; what if I've forgotten how to swim?

Finn nods, takes a deep breath, and closes his eyes.

"Find the fire," Papa coaches from behind me. "Got it?"

"Yes, sir." Finn smiles. "Mine isn't as big as Ari's, I'm sure, but it's still there."

"You better be talking about that fire," I tease.

Finn laughs. "Settle down, princess. Not everything's about you. What now, your majesty?"

"Imagine holding the fire in your hands. Don't be scared of it; you've felt it all your life. Once it's there, in your palm, just... close your hand around it."

For a moment, nothing happens.

I stare at Finn; he stares at the back of his eyelids. The water splashes up our legs, and birds yell at us from the trees. The pinnace rocks in the slow waves. Eero shifts uncomfortably in the silence. We all just wait.

Then, I feel it. Heat—growing in my own chest. Finn's body starts to glow and tremble, like a mirage on the edge of the horizon, a thirsting man's dying dream. It's happening! He's going to be able to shift back!