The Cursed Mermaid

Prologue

The boy beside her was trembling.

She glanced at him, and saw that he was clutching the hand of his personal guard so hard that his knuckles turned white. Others might have assumed that the boy was bringing the guard in to complain about him, but she knew why he was holding the guard's hand. He needed reassurance. He needed stability.

He was in love, and he was about to reveal his true feelings to the world.

She laid a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay," she said gently. "Father may be harsh, but he will understand." He had to understand.

His skin felt hot. He was sweating, and they had not even opened the doors yet. "You haven't seen him when he's at his worst."

She wanted to argue, but she knew it was true. Out of all her siblings, she spent the least amount of time with her father. She was the youngest, and therefore she was labelled the least important.

Even her mother was sometimes too busy with socialising with the townspeople and keeping them happy and pleased to pay much attention to her. Sometimes it struck a chord inside her. Sometimes it didn't. It didn't matter, for she had her siblings, and that was more than enough.

Now, they fanned out around her – her brothers and sister.

Their expressions varied from hard to agitated, but they were all here. They were here to support their eldest brother, because they were siblings whose bonds ran deep, and could never be cut.

Already, their combined presence outside the doors was calming her.

"Are we sure this is a good idea?" her other brother questioned nervously, straightening his glasses.

Her sister gave him an incredulous look. "He has to do this, or he'll receive worse consequences. Sooner or later someone will find out and tell Father. We may as well tell him ourselves before anyone is punished." A cold, straightforward answer – it was so like her sister to be the realistic one of them all.

Her eldest brother squared his shoulders. The guard whose hand he clutched like a lifeline watched him carefully. "Vic's right. If I'm going to tell Father and Mother, I have to do it now." His eyes flickered to the girl and stayed on her face, as if waiting for her to say something.

What could she say? The idea to come clean to their parents had been her idea. She hoped to the bottom of her heart that everything would turn out alright, because if it didn't, it would be her fault.

But she didn't say any of those things. "Don't be afraid," she breathed out, meeting her brother's gaze. "We are with you."

"Always," her other brother added, stepping closer.

Her sister's voice was firm. "Keep your head high. Don't paint yourself as a coward."

Their eldest brother's eyes shone with unshed tears as he beheld the sight of them, ready to protect him. "Thank you. For everything." Taking a deep breath, he reached out with a shaking hand, and opened the doors.

Their mother and father were seated upon the thrones of jewels birthed from the sea. While their mother greeted them with a warm smile, their father's expression was cold and calculating. She could feel his gaze land upon them individually, finally coming to a stop at her eldest brother.

And how he held the guard's hand.

He bowed his head. He was still trembling. "Father, Mother, I have something I must confide." When their father said nothing, he took it as a sign to continue. "I am in love with my guard. I have been for a while, but I was too stubborn to admit it. Now, I will no longer hide from it."

Their parents grew still. Too still. Her eldest brother spared one glance behind him, at his siblings, before turning back around. The girl found herself praying for her brother, that he would leave unscathed.

The gods had never listened to her.

"You would disgrace our family by claiming to have feelings for a commoner?" their father's face was purple with rage.

"With all due respect, Father, he is the Captain of the Guard," her eldest brother got out through gritted teeth. He had stopped trembling, and he was heeding their sister's advice – raising his chin, refusing to look afraid.

Their mother attempted to soothe their father. "Perhaps we should take a moment to think this over –"

Their father ignored her and rose from his throne, pointing his index finger at her eldest brother. "This is wrong on too many levels. Too many. Putting his status aside, there is another matter you need to consider. You are our kingdom's next King. Tradition decrees that you must be able to produce the next heir, and how can you do that with him?" He gazed at the guard with distaste.

"He can be a consort," their mother suggested hurriedly, a hint of fear showing in her eyes as she registered the level of her husband's anger.

"No," her eldest brother interrupted, even when her sister made a small noise for him to stop talking. "The Captain won't be anything but the one I marry. I will not cheat on my love for him because tradition says so." If possible, he gripped the guard's hand even tighter. "If you object, Father, then you do not understand true love."

His words sliced through them all like arrows, shot one after the other.

He should not have said them.

Their father's voice was deadlier than any weapon when he spoke next. "And you do not understand what it means to be King. From here on, right at this instant, I am revoking your claim to the throne."

Her eldest brother's eyes widened, and he stumbled back as if he'd been struck physically. "Father –"

"You have shown that you do not have the right to rule," their father shouted over him. His gaze fixed on the girl's sister, silent beside her. "Your sister will take your place as heir. Starting tomorrow, she will be trained to become Queen."

Her sister started, her stoic mask slipping from her face. "That is absurd."

Her words only made their father angrier, and he didn't bother to keep his rage in check. "You dare turn your back on this honour?"

Their eldest brother had fallen to his knees on the ground, the tears he'd kept at bay now flowing freely down his face. The guard knelt beside him, comforting him. The girl wished she could share his pain, but she could not. She hadn't been the one who had been preparing for the throne her entire life, only to have it ripped away from her. She could imagine how her brother must be feeling now.

Their other brother looked terrified, rooted to the spot as his eyes darted wildly from their father to their sister.

Their mother would not speak.

Their father was still waiting for an answer. The girl, paralysed by fear, could only watch as her sister swallowed. She glanced once at her eldest brother before shutting her eyes tightly. "I accept. I will become the new heir, in my brother's place."

No. This was wrong. This was all wrong.

The look in their eldest brother's face was one of utmost betrayal. "Vic?" he croaked, his voice hoarse.

But their sister refused to look at him – at any of them. "I will become Queen."

Their father only smiled coldly. "Good."

Their eldest brother shook his head, again and again, as if he could not believe what was happening. Neither could the girl.

She had thought that they were the epitome of perfect siblings. That no matter what, despite their differences, they would still be together. They would still stay together.

She had believed in this fact for so long that it hurt her, like a hand yanking on the strings of her heart, when it was revealed to be not so.

They were supposed to be on the same side.

This was her fault.

We are with you. Always. Keep your head high.

Already, those words were fading into mist, as a knife that none of them could see wedged itself between the bonds that connected them, and began to tear them apart.