Mermaids and Cigarets

Prologue.

                     Marcy waited for the sun to greet her with its warming rays. The ocean lay before her, with its intimidating waves, crashing against sturdy rocks. Marcy's waist length blonde hair began to dry out as she combed through the thick strands. Her blue tail blurred under the water as it was cooled by the oncoming waves. Marcy was a mermaid, and where she lived the locals called it Marcella Cove. There were many underwater caves where Marcy had her human possessions and underwater treasures. Underwater entrances lead to caves where she dwelled. 

              It was an early morning and the sun was about to rise, a graceful creature awakening from the sky. Marcy always watched the sunrise in the early morning. She sat on a rock as high tide rolled in. Her dark blue tail wrapped around the rock she sat on. She had an odd feeling about today, a gut feeling. Marcy sighed; this was her last week of school before winter break, except the warm climate didn't really make it winter. Marcy had never seen snow, her uncle Nick had told her that he would take her inland one day to see it. He had mentioned once before that snow was like sea foam, there once for you to observe its grace, then gone before you knew it. Before the sun came up, she could just make out a boat coming towards the cove. She cursed under her breath. Marcy entered the water with superior grace, heading toward the opening that lead her to her favorite underwater cave.
A small pool was the entrance to the large cavern, Marcy pulled herself out of the water and onto the old Indian style carpet on the rough ground. A small trunk sat next to the pool where Marcy lay. She reached over and opened the rusted box to see if she had replaced old towels with new towels inside. She was in luck, Marcy sighed in relief.

                Once dry, Marcy stripped out of her blue bikini and into a dark blue sweater and black leggings. Even though the sun was shining she was shivering. Black boots were up to her knees and her hair was down to her back. "Okay", Marcy huffed going up the few steps carved into the rock towards her built in kitchen. It had been there since her mother used the cavern. Her backpack was sitting on the stool to an island in the middle of the Stonewall kitchen. Not much was in the simple kitchen, a small granite top island was the center of it. Since it was only Marcy that was living there, it wasn't anything grand. She didn't have a refrigerator, nothing needed to be kept cool. Lobster she hunted always were in a small tank on the countertop. She hated hot food, so there was also no oven or microwave. In an old giant muscle shell, used for a bowl, there were fruits of the land and sea. Marcy grabbed a pear and her back pack and headed down a stone pathway that lead to an empty beach. The opening was hidden by rocks and blocked by tide pools leading to the cove. No one could find it if they tried. From the opening Marcy could see the peaceful beach.

                   Down the beach, she could see her uncle's beach house, a simple two story cottage with a screened in porch. In the opposite direction was the high school she attended. Walking onto a sidewalk, Marcy followed the path towards school. She could tell someone was following her, her heightened senses let her see better, hear better, and even smell better. She shook her head. "Brody how many times have I told you, I am not going to one of your crazy rave parties!" She protested. Marcy hated humans and their stupid parties, she also hated when boys glared at her in every way. Sure she was a bit curvier than most girls at her school, but it wasn't her fault. She blamed Mother Nature for tainting her soul with belonging to the sea.
                         "Aww, come on Marcy, you didn't even let me start this time!" he whined, now walking briskly next to her. He was way taller than Marcy, with short blonde hair and green eyes. He had high cheek bones and a defined jaw line, with which no pimples or acne were even visible. His biceps were muscular and his shoulders seemed bigger than that a normal eighteen year old's should be. It wasn't uncommon for Brody to annoy Marcy like this, it was a recurring happening. "Too bad Brody!" she started walking faster but he kept up, walking with her all the way to school. "Just this once Marcy, it would do you some good to relax, hang out you know, chill, or do you not know what that means?" he teased, laughing. A small dimple showing on his left cheek and temple. A smile carved on his statue of a face. His Claire-dune blazer made his shoulder's look even broader than they already were. Marcy did admit he was handsome.
                        Marcy stopped in front of the school entrance. "Thanks, but no thanks Brody, I have other plans." she lied. Marcy entered the school that was buzzing with students. She quickly headed towards her locker and grabbed her English and Biology binders while putting her backpack away. Next to her locker, a girl in all of her classes, Portia, stood there staring into a mirror, hastily applying lip gloss. Marcy didn't really care for Portia, however. She smelled too much like perfume and makeup for her, additionally her mouth never knew when to cease. Marcy hated a lot of things, about humans especially. Portia always seemed to talk Marcy's ear off, constantly. She found Portia highly irritating, and still aggravating. Marcy pretended to be her friend most of the time. She knew it was wrong but, it's not like it mattered, Portia had many friends. "So my Dad plans on buying me a red Porsche for my birthday......" Portia squealed. "Sweet", was all Marcy could force out at the time, she wasn't really a morning person, and not getting to see the sun rise this morning made her very upset. The oncoming boat disrupted her already stingy morning mood as well.
                               Marcy pretended to listen and care about what Portia was talking about. Cars did not really fascinate Marcy and anytime she rode in one she instantly became sick. The morning went by fast however, soon it was lunch and she made her way to her uncle's room to eat.
                                  She sat at one of the tables in his room and pulled out a sea urchin and a sea cucumber. Not her first choice, but it's what she found last night. Her uncle came up to her and put a newspaper in front of her. His face expressionless. "Read it", he stated. His voice was stern for a man of thirty, he was tall with dark hair and eyes that matched his tan skin. He wore a plain shirt with blue buttons and tan dress pants. Another thing Marcy put on her human hates list, human clothes. When she was in the water, scales covered her front and tail. She looked up at him and her brows furrowed. "What is it?" Marcy pondered. Then her eyes drifted towards the article that sat in front of her. Reading it she stopped eating and put away her food. She suddenly didn't feel hungry anymore. A twinge in her stomach made her wince. The article read of marine biologists coming to explore the Marcella cove and its scientific opportunities no one has yet discovered. "Great", she muttered. Nick was quick to respond. "You have to get out of there", Nick commanded. "That's my home Nick, I can't just leave!" Marcy tried to whisper, so no one in the hall could hear her. He sat down across from her and looked her in the eyes. "I know you're not a big fan of what I am about to suggest but", Nick started. Marcy quickly interrupted him however, "If you are saying I stay on land your crazy!" she stood, crossing her arms across her chest. "Don't shout Marcy." Nick said quietly. "Ha! Live on land with you! No way!" she put her bag over her shoulder, and even after all the fuss she gave him most of the time, she figured she would have to give in sooner or later. Family was family and Nick was all Marcy had.
                           "You'll survive," he explained while she had her back turned to him. Marcy turned around and looked at him in the eyes, "How so?" she questioned. Marcy would find any reason not to stay on land. "You could sleep upstairs, right across the hall, and if you wanted you could bring your stuff from the caves, they would be safe there, no one could find them, I promise." Nick started. He really didn't want her in any kind of danger the last thing they needed was exposure. Nick knew how much Marcy's treasures meant to her. "No way, I'm not sleeping in a bed, and I'm not trusting you or that crazy wife of yours with my treasures, family or not!" She pointed at him. Marcy was stern, she wasn't leaving the cove for some box with white walls. Her soul was free and she intended to keep it that way. Nick was getting frustrated when Marcy was being fickle. "Do you want them to find you there? Do you want to become a science experiment?" he asked her seriously. Sometimes all it took with Marcy was a reality check. She was surprised he had been strict with her. Marcy gave in, she hated fighting with her only family. "Fine, I'll bring my stuff tonight. I hate fighting with you." she sighed. Nick smiled, "You'll get used to it Marcy I'm sure of it. I'll pick you up later tonight." He stood taking the newspaper back to his desk. Marcy didn't eat the rest of her lunch, her stomach felt dead. She left Nick's classroom and headed to history class.
                         Out of all her afternoon classes, she hated History the most. Listening to how humans dealt with their problems seemed so alien to her. Everything always ended in war or violence. Nothing like that ever happened under the waves. The council of mermaids and of course the king and queen, silenced any threat before it happened. Marcy tried not to think about it, being at her cove was what she liked best. She spent the rest of the afternoon, after school walking the beach and pondering over what her uncle told her. Then she looked towards her cove and saw the white ship.