To Complicated to Title

Chapter Thirteen

“Alexia!” Alex shouted, looking at the water.

“Emma!” Emily said, doing the same.

Rowan looked at them in confusion, until there were ripples in the waters surface and two heads appeared.

“You called, sisters?” One of them asked, her voice soft and melodious.

“Why have you called us? You have not used our bond in ages.” The other inquired.

Rowan stared at the maidens, gawking at their sheer beauty, as if in a trance. “Your... pretty...” She said, grinning stupidly.

“Oh, Alexia, we forgot to turn off The Bliss.” Said one of the mermaids.

“Oops,” Alexia giggled, “I didn’t expect them to have company with them, Emilia.”

“Neither did I,” Emilia laughed as the glow that seemed to surround them faded and Rowan was brought out of her trance. The mermaids were still stunningly beautiful, but Rowan wasn't as entranced as before.

“We have called you here because we are in need of aquatic assistance.”Alex told the mermaids.

“Yes, our new friends Ella and Rowan need a mermaid scale.” Emily said.

“Whatever for?” They asked, clearly perplexed.

“We are trying to reverse a spell, and need it as a binding agent for our magic tea.” Ella said.

“Oh, I see, that makes sense.” Emilia smiled. 

Ella gave Rowan a pointed look, muttering, “See? I’m not crazy.”

Rowan sighed and rolled her eyes, before turning her attention back to the mermaids.

They were looking at eachother uncomfortably. “Well, you see, giving away a scale is almost unheard of, and while we would love to help... that sounds painful. All our magic is stored in our scales, and we need our magic. Queen Joy, on the other hand, has the power to remove one of her scales if she feels it is for a worthy cause, and it will eventually grow back.” Emilia explained.

“You would need to speak with her in order to obtain any mermaid magic.” Alex said thoughtfully. “We could take you to her, I’m sure. You could explain yourselves and ask for a scale.”

“How? We can’t breathe underwater, and I doubt the queen would be able to come here, she probably has things to attend to.” Rowan questioned.

The mermaids looked at each other and smiled knowingly, before the disappeared into the deep blue ocean without another word. 

“Where did they go?” Ella demanded, having been strangely silent throughout the conversation.

“oh, you insolent cat, they went to find a solution to your inadequate abilities to breathe water.” Alex said.

“Hey, you can’t breathe under water either!” Ella pointed out. 

“Oh can’t we?” They smirked. “Our bond with Emilia and Alexia allow us to do more things that you would believe.”

“What do you mean, bond?” Rowan questioned.

“We, my oblivious fox-friend, are one of the few special beings in the world. We have a connection to one other being of each magical species. Mermaid, dryad, shifter, witch, even troll. We are recognized by our similar names.” Alex said proudly.

“Now, if we are done with this delightful session of Question and Answer, our mermaid friends are returning with a solution.” Emily said.

Emilia  and Alexia resurfaced holding two long, thin strands of seaweed.

“Eat this.” Alexia ordered. “And then we must hurry. Daylight will only be here for so long, and it is too dangerous to swim at night.”

Alex and Emily jumped into the water with the mermaids, and Rowan and Ella poked the seaweed distastefully. After a few moments of deliberation, they both choked down the repulsive vegetation. They jumped into the water, using their wings to propel themselves after the mermaids and dragon as they went deep, deep into the ocean.

Soon, a magnificent underwater utopia came into view, and Ella gasped in awe.

“Follow us.” Emilia said, leading them through the city.