The Mermaid-Cursed Pirate

Chapter 46

Recap:

"Pappa, are these your friends?"

"They sure are. Especially that one," he says, pointing at Viviane. Then he whispers to her, "She's a mermaid, just like Sirena." Her eyes go wide in awe and she runs to Viviane. Jefferson chuckles and calls to the rest of the crew, "Let's go inside and have some tea, okay?"

"Yay!" Grace cheers, grabbing his hand and pulling her father and the mermaid to the cottage. The men follow her into the cottage, not enthusiastic about having tea.

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"As wonderful as it is to see you, Glinda, we need to find her," Sirena says in a low voice.

Glinda lets out a confused giggle. "And which her are we talking about?"

"Shh!" Glinda's eyes widen in surprise at the mermaid's brash interruption. "We need to find Elphaba. You and I both know she didn't die that day. And we need her help."

Glinda looks around the room they are in. "May I suggest a tour of the city?" she says in a cheerful voice, giving Sirena a slight wink.

Belle groans. "Can she help us or not?" she mutters to the mermaid.

"Oh, come on, Belle!" Sirena teases, giving her a look that screams 'Just go with it.'

She nods in understanding. "I suppose a quick tour won't hurt."

"Excellent! This way!" she sings. She takes them to the base of the tallest tower in Emerald City. There are guards in the room, but Glinda sends them to the top to set up a table for lunch. She watches them leave, then grabs Belle and Sirena and pulls them toward a wall. She brushes the grout between the bricks while murmuring a spell. The bricks slide out of the way to reveal a staircase going down into a tunnel. "Come on, quickly," the witch urges.

The women follow her into the passageway. Belle looks behind her to watch the bricks slide back into place with her mouth open in amazement.

"Belle, keep up!" Sirena calls, her eyes bright from the excitement of their adventure. "We have to keep going."

The brunette gives the wall one last glance, then jogs to catch up to the other women. They keep walking for a long time, but Glinda and Sirena keep the atmosphere cheerful as they get caught up. Finally, they see stairs going back up to the surface. Glinda climbs them first, casting the same spell to leave the tunnel. The trio enters a large, dark room. Sirena casts a spell to light up the torches around the room. It looks empty, but Sirena can feel Elphie's magic. She's close.

Glinda opens her mouth, but Sirena raises a hand to stop her. She spins, taking in the room. She smiles, then sings, surprising the other two. "So if you care to find me," her voice echoes in the room and down the halls connected to it. The mermaid waits, listening for an answer. A cloud of green smoke appears, revealing the "wicked" witch.

She smiles and opens her arms for a hug, singing back, "Look to the western sky!" The mermaid runs towards her, a grin lighting up her face. The two embrace, then turn to the others.

"Belle, meet Elphaba. She is the one I told you about."

"So you're the one who can help us get to other realms?"

The green woman chuckles. "Yes, I can get you where you need to go."

"Elphie," Glinda murmurs. "How have you been?" she asks in her normal voice once she gets Elphie's attention.

"We're doing just fine, Bubbles. I'm getting close to a cure for Fiyero."

Belle walks over to Sirena as the witches have their moment. "So can you do the spell now that we have a way to follow it?"

"Yes. But I think they might need a bit."

Another cloud of green smoke appears, this time, revealing a man who looks like a scarecrow. He hugs Glinda, they chat for a bit, then the Ozians turn to Sirena and Belle.

"Hey, Fiyero," the mermaid says with a wave. He returns it with a nod and a smile. "Well, what do you say we get this show on the road?"

"You guys go right ahead. I have to stay in Oz, so much to do. But I wish you all the best of luck." She gives everyone one last round of hugs, then waves her wand, disappearing in a cloud of bubbles.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" the scarecrow asks.

Sirena grins, pulling out the teacup. Belle's smile fades when she remembers the mermaid's words. "You always did dive into everything head first," the mermaid teases Fiyero, not noticing Belle's expression. She casts the enchantment on the cup, which begins to glow. Her eyes close as she focuses on the dagger. "Elphie, time for you to work your magic. I've got the trace!"

She nods, then mutters a spell in a language Sirena does not know but recognizes, waving her hands to cast the enchantment. A large, green cloud of smoke appears, transforming into a swirling portal. A glowing, white line connects the teacup's glow and the portal. "After you," she says, keeping her hands still so the portal will stay open. "I have to go last."

The crew walks through the portal one at a time. Elphaba dives into it last as it closes. She gets up and looks around. "Where are we?"

Sirena answers her, "We're in Wonderland."

AN: Sorry for the long break in writing. School was getting crazy. But now this whole quarantine thing has given me a lot of time, so I'll be updating a lot soon.