A Tail of Love - Book One: Forever Fins

Forever Fins-Eleven

I woke before the sun rose but I stayed in my room until well after it was up. When I decided to leave my room I entered the great hall. I saw Daddy waiting for me. "Aura, I i'll perform the bonding ritual between you and Elias after the moon ceremony." I nodded.

"Thank you Daddy." He smiled.

"I do not like this. His kind is our sworn enemies. But as our laws states I cannot interfere with your bonding. I will have to learn to accept Elias as part of our family." I smiled in return.

"Again, thank you. I love you Daddy."

He nodded and kissed the top of my head.

"I love you too, my little guppy." He left then, to prepare for the ceremony. I ate breakfast alone, as was custom. I spent the day wandering around the gardens. When the sun was setting I went into the small room that was just to the left of the main doors of the palace.

When the moon rose I would swim through the doors and up to the shrine of Osarya's and the ceremony would begin. I changed into my ceremonial korsta. It was soft, dark blue fabric that exactly matched the blue in my hair and hugged my body closely and reached to about mid-thigh if I had legs. There were two other pieces of gold fabric that flowed down the sides and fanned out near the top of my tailfins. The neck scooped down into the traditional style, a v slit that reached down to the top of where my skin stopped and my fins started. There was a lacing in between the slit that had tiny pieces of black and white coral inlaid in it. The sleeves were pieces of gold, silver and blue transparent fabric that hung loosely around my shoulders.

I brushed my hair as best I could and pinned up the front half into a loose ponytail at the back of my neck with a small, blue starfish pin. The rest of my hair I left down. I pulled on my necklace and tucked it under the lacing. I put a choker of dark blue and purple fabric with a gold coin with the kingdom's crest imprinted on it.

I was ready. The only difference between my ceremony and everyone else's was that when I was finished the blue in my hair and the silver that my eyes turned would stay in both my forms. If I went back on land I would forever have blue and black hair and I would always have silver flecks or rings in my dark blue eyes. I would also have a mermark, which would set me apart from other humans.

It was almost sunset. I left the room and swam to Osarya's shrine. The shrine was not far, but the swim seemed to take hours rather than minutes. As I grew closer the sound of the drums grew louder. The drums would go on until the ceremony was complete and the flutes would join in with their haunting sound that sent a shiver up my spine when I arrived.

The flutes started as I crested the hill. I swam to the foot of the shrine and kneeled down, waiting for Daddy to start speaking the age old chant. I looked up when I heard him start. I did not understand the words because it was in the old language. I glanced around for Eli and found him near the back of the shrine, slightly hidden from view. Under normal circumstances only the court and the royal family would be here, but Eli was my mate, or would be in a few minutes.

I tried to catch his eyes but he was not looking at me he was looking at the table on the top of the shrine, a beam of moonlight had started to shine there and continued to get brighter and bigger as Daddy chanted. Finally Daddy stopped chanting and grabbed my hand gently and pulled me up to the table.

I lay down on top of the table, bathed in moonlight, I closed my eyes. I felt the moonlight washing over me, moving in slight ripples, I heard Daddy chanting again, this time I could understand him.

"Dear goddess Osarya, we, your humble children ask that you take this soul into your spirit and make her life eternal and all her own. We ask that you forgive her for any misgivings about your rule that she may have done, and for you to give her a place among us as part of us as a whole. Love her as we do and let her love us and you. Bless this daughter of yours in her life and may your light forever shine upon her."

I felt myself rising up from the table, I could not move and I felt a stabbing pain in my chest. I could not cry out but I faintly heard someone do so. I did not know what was happening so I relaxed and waited for it to end. The pain grew substantially stronger until it was all I could focus on. I finally did cry out and as soon as I did the pain started deteriorating and I felt myself float back down to the table.

I felt the moonlight fade and disappear, the flutes and the drums stopped. I opened my eyes and saw Daddy and Eli standing over me. Eli's eyes widened slightly and Daddy smiled. "Daughter, you did wonderful, one of the smoothest ceremonies I have ever performed. You look beautiful." I smiled and sat up.

I looked down at my chest and saw my mermark over my heart. I studied the light blue waves that encircled the dark indigo heart shell. It was beautiful. I looked at a lock of hair that had pulled free of the ponytail. I saw the dark blue, almost purple streaks in it. "What do my eyes look like?"

Daddy answered. "They are the same beautiful dark blue that they were before but now you have many silver flecks in them. You're beautiful Aura. I love you guppy." I hugged Daddy and he hugged me back. "Now for your announcement as to who your official mate is, I know the court already knows but you have to make an official statement to the rest of the people."

I sighed and turned to the court and the rest of our subjects.

"I have chosen Elias Keoki Clevaltin Carver, selkie prince, as my mate. I know you are worried or scared that Eli is a selkie, but I am living proof that they are just like us. Please respect my decision for it would pain me to see any of you punished for a foolish act. That is all I have to say. Goodnight friends, be well." The court murmured and said goodbye, shooting distrustful looks at Eli as they swam back to the palace.

I grabbed his hand and he smiled. "I will perform the bonding ritual now." I nodded at Daddy. He raised his trident and chanted a few words in the old language, I understood these though because Daddy had taught me the words a long time ago. 'The love of these two souls has been made known, make their love hold fast as they continue on through their lives, bless these two in all they do.'

I felt a small tug in the back of my mind and in my heart and suddenly I could hear Eli. 'Aura I want ta prove my love on land if you'll go with me.' I nodded. 'I will go anywhere with you.' He smiled. Daddy looked from me to him, then back to me. "You can hear each other's thoughts?" We nodded. "That is good, it means that it worked. Good luck. Aura as you know you must stay on land for a month now that you have finished the ceremony so that the magic can properly seal. I will miss you so."

I hugged him and kissed his cheek. "I will miss you too Daddy." He nodded and turned to Eli.

"You hurt my daughter and I will make sure that you will never swim again." Eli nodded, not cowering but not disrespecting Daddy either. Daddy left with one last look at me.

I grabbed Eli's hand and we swam to the surface. We swam to shore and lay on the sand, we were a few miles away from town, on a little beach that no one knew about. Eli cringed and arched his back as his fins disappeared and his legs came back. I now realized that he was naked. I blushed and turned away as I transfigured. I sat in the sand, bare from the waist down and Eli sat beside me, holding my hand. 'I won't make ya' if ya' don't want to.' I nodded. 'I know, but I want to.' I turned to look at Eli and he smiled.

He kissed me and I let him take me away from this world for a while, secluded on our little beach, we would live for a long time, long past any friends we would ever make, maybe even longer than we would want.

But one thing I knew is that we would always be together, as one.

Fin.