Tears of the Tides | Ben Florian Beast

Chapter 6

As the sun sets on the horizon by the west, Ursa, Uma, Harry, Gil, and the other crew members swim by the Lost Revenge, splashing, chasing, and racing each other, having fun during the few opportunities they get to do so. When they get to have fun, it's usually because of Ursa, as Uma is all about work and keeping her reputation in the Isle.

Despite the threats of throwing off their prisoners overboard to the sharks, there are no dangerous marine life there.

The real sharks in the water are the crew of the Lost Revenge, roughhousing each other, and even Ursa is not safe from that. She, in turn, doesn't hold anything back while retaliating.

They swam until the sun went down and the water was too cold for the humans. But Uma and Ursa, who are mermaids by blood, stay there, treading the waters, refusing to go back to land.

"I wonder which ones we get," Uma says.

"What do you mean?"

"Whether we get our mom's cursed tentacles or our dad's mermaid tail."

"Huh." Ursa looks up at the full moon. "I never thought we would get out of this hellhole of an island and find out, so it doesn't matter which one we would get."

"I'll get us out of here," Uma says resolutely, which makes Ursa look at her. "I'll get the whole crew out of here.

"Though I bet you would get the mermaid tail since you're so nice and kind like the prissy Auradonians," Uma says with fake venom in her voice and her eyes jokingly looking at Ursa. "And I would inherit the curse and get tentacles since I'm the evil one out of the two of us." She says this candidly as if she fully believes it so.

"If ever you inherit the curse of the tentacles, it'll be because you're firstborn, not because you're 'evil'. And if you're so evil, then why are you so nice to me?" Ursa goes closer to her sister, all smiley.

"That's because you're my little Ursa. My little sister."

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"It's your date with Crown Prince Ben, and it seems like I'm the one who's excited out of the two of us," Lonnie jokingly jabs at Ursa, helping her style her hair and clothing.

"I have," Ursa counts quickly in her mind, "three things to say to what you just said. One, it's not a date, we're just going to go swimming together as friends. Two, you're saying as if I'm only going because he's going to be king. Which I am not, he's my friend. Three, I'm just nervous, alright?"

However, under the nervousness is the excitement of being with Ben again and swimming with him, for all her memories of swimming are with loved ones, and this not-date was going to be added to that list. Having Ben and swimming would feel like two homes coming together where she could be just her, just Ursa. Not that she would ever admit it, even to herself.

"Okay, no girl would ever be this nervous for a not-date," Lonnie counters and sighs. "Just look behind you and see if you like how you look in the mirror."

She does, and oh. She likes it. This is one of the few times she felt pretty. No thoughts of hers were planting seeds of doubt in her mind, no.

She just feels pretty.

Her dress looks like a clean ocean, shimmering when she moves. Her hair is pulled back, out of her face, in braids that unravel with her natural curls showing at the end, which she got when Lonnie dragged her to a hairstylist. Before that, Uma braided her hair, and Ursa braided Uma's. Even with taking good care of her braids, they had to be redone already. Lonnie put on her face light make-up, for a change, instead of her bare-faced 'beauty,' as Lonnie would say.