Tails Are For Water, Legs Are For Land (Unedited)

Chapter 1 - Revealed Secrets

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"We summon you! Come to us child! Do not ignore us!" I bolted up in my bed and looked around my room for the sea witches. No one was there. I heard soft knocking on my door. I got out of bed and swam over to it. I cracked it open and saw my little sister there. I could barely make out her small figure in the shadows, since she was the same color as them. She swam straight into my arms. I quickly shut the door. "Hey, Angel. What's wrong?"
 
"Nothing. I just wanted to say good luck today. Do you think you'll make it? Because I think you will." I smiled and hugged her. "Ah, thank you, Ange. Don't worry. I'll make it" I said, more for me than her. Today, I take a series of tests. If I pass, I'll become queen after the current queen dies. If I fail... I shuddered just at the thought. "Are you okay?" Angel asked. I smiled. "Yeah. Just... cold." She smiled and sat on the edge of my bed. "You know, Lily's coming today?"
 
"Really? Well, I have a big day ahead of me and Mom'll kill you if she finds out you're not in your room or doing princess duties." She sighed. "I know." She hugged me one more time and waved as she slipped out of my room. I sat back on my bed and petted Manny, my manta ray. "How do you think I'll do? Huh, Manny?" I asked. He just nuzzled under my arm. "I hope that means 'You'll do great. Good luck!'"
 
"You know he can't answer you? Right?" I turned around. I didn't even hear the door open. I felt an arm around my back and looked up to see Chris, my twin brother. I leaned into him. "Yeah, but it's still someone to talk to."
    
"You know, I'm always here." I looked up at him. "Yeah, but after today, I might not be the one here."
 
"Don't say that. Of course you'll pass the test. You have to. My three reasons why; One, if you don't you'll get killed; Two, if you don't, Angel takes the test once she turns sixteen in six years; And three, I'm your twin. We have the same DNA, the same parents. If you die, they'll kill me too."
   
"Great to know you have so much confidence in me." He chuckled. "Well, I have to go. But Sis?" He turned back to look at me from the door. "I've got your back. Whether you pass of fail, you will live," he said. I nodded and he slipped out. After a few minutes, three of my ladies in waiting came in. They all curtsied. "Princess Cordelia, the queen has sent us to prepare you." I nodded and there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" I asked.
    
"It is Prince Dylan. May I come in?"
 
"Yes, you may." Then I turned my head to my ladies in waiting. "Leave us please. Will you prepare a shower for me?" I asked. They nodded and hurried off. Dylan came in and shut the door behind him. "Hey, Lia." I smiled and patted the bed next to me. "Hey, Dylan." He sat down next to me and held my hand. He was my betrothed. We were to be married once I turned eighteen, or when the queen died. Whichever came first. "I wanted to say good luck." I nodded. "Thanks." He nodded. "You'll pass," he said. I looked at him. "How can you be so sure?" I asked.
 
"Because you're a good actor." I laughed. "Yeah, all I have to do is act like a perfect princess." He looked at me once we finished laughing. "What?" I asked.
   
"I have a present for you," he said. I raised my eyebrows.
"Really?" He nodded and pulled out a jewelry box. From inside it, he pulled out a beautiful necklace. I gasped. "Dylan, it's beautiful!" He smiled. It had a shark tooth in the middle and had colorful pieces of coral on it. I couldn't tell what it was made on though. "What's it on?" I asked.
    
"Sea spider silk." I gasped and put my hands on my mouth. "Dylan! Did you make it?" He nodded. "Yeah." He pulled out a bracelet too. "This is also for you." He tapped some of the beads on it and smiled. "You can hide pearls in these. Up to five." I hugged him. "Thank you, Dylan." He wrapped his arms around me. "I want you to wear it today. Just in case. I already have pearls in it. Invisibility, glamour, healing, night vision, and speech."
    
"You're amazing." He smiled. "Just promise me you'll wear it?"
 
"I promise." He smiled. "Good luck. I have to go before my mother finds out I came here." He gave my hand one last squeeze, cast an invisibility pearl, and slipped out the door. I sighed. Dylan's been different for the past year. Like he's a whole new person. I heard a knock on the door. "Come in." One of my ladies in waiting, Mia, came in. "Your bath has been drawn, Princess." She curtsied as was custom. I hate the customs. They're ridiculous! 'So and so cannot marry who they want', 'Royalty cannot do this and that', or 'You cannot be friends with so and so.' "Princess?" I looked up and realized she had said my name more than once. "Sorry, Mia. I was lost in my thoughts." She nodded and smiled understandably. "Ah, yes. Today is a big day is it not?" she said as she led me towards my bathing chambers. I stood under the stream of hot bubbles burning off all the dirt from my skin and hair. My ladies in waiting practically tackled me when I came out of the shower. They gave me a new dress. It was a turquoise blue that was the same color of my eyes. They left my white blonde hair unnaturally curled and down. "Can I have my hair in a pony tail?" I asked. Lynn objected immediately. "Of course not! Your mother wants it down." She was always doing this. She has some kind of grudge on me. I don't know why. I had never done anything to her that I know of. Mia sent her a glare for the way she had talked to me and Sasha spoke up. "Your mother has already told us that you can not have your hair in a pony tail." I fought back the urge to groan. "Perhaps an up do, then?" I asked.
   
"I suppose that would be okay," Mia said. I nodded my head and smiled, knowing that that was the closest I would get to a pony tail. They put my hair into a fancy, braided bun. They then put a pound of makeup on my face, trying to make me look prettier than I actually am. They finished and then painted my nails an arctic white like my tail. They gave me a crown to wear that weighed down my head. Mia saw my bracelet and pursed her lips but didn't say anything about it. Mia was swimming me to the kitchen for my breakfast when she stopped me in the hallway. "They have to come off," she said quietly. I furrowed my brows, pretending to be confused. "What does?" I asked.
 

"The bracelet and necklace." I cocked my head to the side.

"Why?" I asked.
 
"They are not allowed, you know this." Fake tears started at my eyes. "Please, Mia? They are from my betrothed, Prince Dylan." Her eyes softened and I knew I had won. "Fine, but I had no idea whatsoever," she said. I smiled and hugged her. "Thank you!" She smiled. "Now, let's go child. Your mother is expecting you." I tried not to cringe when she called the queen 'my mother'. Sure, she looked just like her, but that woman was not my mother. She's someone else. I had tried to tell my uncle, her brother, once, but he had blown it off saying I was just sad that my dad had died and she was remarrying to another man and was having a child. That child turned out to be Angel. She looked the complete opposite of me because of her father. My dad had died when I was six, and my mother was replaced then as well. I had confronted her about it then and she had said the same thing to me as my uncle and then started yelling at me. My mother would have never yelled at me like that. She wouldn't have done a lot of the things this woman was doing. "Cordelia!" Stacy, my "mother" yelled.
    

"What?" I realized she had called my name several times while I was lost in thoughts. "Are you ready?" I nodded.

"Use your words, Cordelia!"
    
"Yes, I'm ready." She sighed in exasperation. "Well eat your food. You have fifteen minutes." She left and after a minute, Chris and Angel came in. I raised my eyebrows at them but Chris smiled. "What are you guys doing here? You shouldn't be here!" I whisper-shouted. Chris held up a camera. "No." I said and he nodded.
    
"Please, sis? I really want a picture," Angel begged. It was forbidden to have pictures with the person who would be queen on this day to remember them by, because if they fail, they are 'not worth remembering'. It was another stupid custom. "Fine," I relented after they both gave me begging eyes. I only relented because I didn't want them to forget me if I don't pass or something happens to me. Chris put his arm around my waist and I picked Angel up. "Ugh, you're so big!" She giggled and shrugged. Chris took a quick picture of us, then Angel and I, and then him and I.
    
"Angel, how about you say bye to Lia and you let us talk privately?" Angel nodded and with tears streaming down her face, hugged me tight. "Angel, sweetie. Don't cry. This isn't goodbye." I stroked her hair and she looked up at me and nodded. I kissed her forehead and she swam off. Chris then turned to me. "She added a new obstacle. You have to fight. I don't know what. One of the guards told me. Be careful, sis." I nodded. "Alright, thank you. Chris, I have to tell you something." He nodded. "Okay."
    
"Do you remember when Dad died when we were six?" I asked. He nodded. "I can never forget."
    
"I think Mom died then too. Or, she was at least replaced. Something had to have happened to her." He sighed. I was ready to explain when he said, "I know." My eyebrows shot up. "You know?" He nodded. "You knew and you didn't tell me you knew?" I asked, somewhat hurt. We tell each other everything, or I at least thought we did. "You knew and you didn't tell me," he defended. That's true... "Alright, sorry," I said.
   
"Yeah, me too."

  "Wait, that means neither the king nor queen right now are our parents." He nodded slowly, confused. "So what if Stacy switched the blood?" Horror dawned on his face. "Then that'll make it seem like you're the impostor." Suddenly, a worse thought came to mind. "What if they didn't though?" I asked.
    
"Then that'll be good, right?" he asked. I shook my head. "Not if I fail the rest," I said. He tilted his head in confusion again. "If they didn't switch the blood, and they're not our blood line, then that means Angel isn't our sister by blood." Realization dawned on his face. Before I knew she was coming, Mia swam into the room. "Let's go," she said. She was glaring at Chris because she knew he couldn't be here. I nodded at him as she pulled me along after her and I swam into the arena...

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