The Mermaid-Cursed Pirate

Chapter 37

Recap:

At long last, the mermaid opened her eyes again. Confusion covered her face as she realized she was in the sea and not Viviane's room.

"What happened?" she shouts at the crowd gathered behind the railing.

"Get yourself up here and we'll tell you all about it, lass," Killian shouts in reply. She grins and creates a wave to place her on the banister beside him.

"Well? Let's hear it," she requests with a soft smile to the captain.

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Killian recounts the beautiful transformation he seen. The crew recounted what they thought as the waves went wild. And then they described how their captain had tossed the girl into the sea, which made her laugh heartily.

"You threw me in without a second thought? What on earth made you do that?" she questioned as she tried to stop laughing.

"Viviane told me to!" he defended, pointing to the guilty woman.

"You would have brought the ship down with you. During the transformation, it's best to be either in the water or on land. But I suppose no one ever told you that. When your magic grows, you cannot control it, which means everything goes mad. Being far away or directly in water keeps it from going wild," she explains.

"And it's not like you would have drowned. You can breathe underwater," Killian adds.

"I suppose that is true. It's still funny, though."

"You should have seen the crew when I tossed you in. They were about ready to attack me for it until Viviane explained."

"Aw, I didn't know you guys cared so much," Sirena teased the men.

"Maybe we should throw 'er back 'n," one of the men joked back.

"I have a better idea, let's celebrate that the curse is broken!" Sirena suggests, earning a hearty cheer from the men. They all went to the mess hall to start celebrating, but Killian caught the mermaid's arm before she could follow them.

"So, true love's kiss, eh?" he comments with a smirk.

"It seems so, doesn't it? Why? Do you have a problem with that?"

"Not at all, lass. That just means I get to do this," he replies, grabbing her by the hips and pulling her into a sweet kiss. Even though the transformation was complete, there was a strong pull towards the woman in his arms and the kiss felt as magical as the last one.

"I think I could get used to that," she sighed, smiling up at the man.

They hear a wolf whistle, interrupting their moment. The pair turns to see Viviane and a few crew members cheering and teasing them.

"Come on, you two. Let's go celebrate! You can kiss later," Viviane says with a wink at the couple.

They laugh and follow their friends for some rum to drink to the mermaid and the captain's freedom.

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Later that night, after the mermaid and captain had celebrated enough to please the crew and Viviane, the couple finally made their way to the captain's quarters. Both had refused several drinks from the men to their own surprise, so they were fairly clear-headed as they entered the room.

Killian clears his throat. "So," he trails off.

"So," Sirena repeats in a questioning tone, raising an eyebrow at the man.

"Are we going to talk about the whole soulmates thing?" he questions her, a nervous look in his eyes.

"Sure. What about it?" she replies in an innocent voice. The only answer she receives is a confused look and shocked stutter as he tried to find the words. "Come on, captain. You can't tell me that you didn't feel something long before we knew we were soulmates, can you?" she teases.

"Oh, I definitely did, lass. But what does this mean now?"

"It means the curse is broken and now we get to decide what it to do about what we know. The curse only gets us here, it doesn't force anyone to stay. So what do you want, Killian? I can leave if that's what you want. I won't stay somewhere I'm not wanted," she answers, her eyes boring deep into his own. He could see the hope and anxiety in her eyes as she waited for him to speak.

"I would never want you to leave." Her face brightens at his words. "I can't promise you anything grand, but you will always be welcome to join me for whatever adventures the Jolly Roger takes us on." He takes her hands in his. "I care too much for you to ever want to see you leave, though, lass. So don't ever think that you are not wanted here."

"I think I love you, Killian," she blurts out suddenly, immediately blushing from her outburst.

He chuckles, "I think I love you, too, Sirena." He puts his hand to her cheek and gently pulls her into a sweet kiss. She smiles into the kiss and pulls him closer. The couple's hearts leap in joy.