The Mermaid's Mirror

Chapter 43

Lena stared at the seal rolling and flipping in the water near her.

"Ahh, it feels good to shed that human form for a while," said the seal in her mind.

Lena continued to stare. The animal was a normal-looking seal, except for a streak of blond in her brown fur. "Psamanthe," she stammered. "You ... I didn't know—"

"No," said the goddess. "No one ever does. My story is little known. I assure you, however, that I am a goddess. What is your name?"

"Lena."

"Where is your offering, Lena?"

With a sinking heart, Lena regarded her empty hands. Ohhhh ...That was what all the other items in the cavern were—gifts offered up to the goddess in return for hearing an appeal. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't realize—"

The seal's eyes seemed to flash in the murky light under water. "You came on a pilgrimage to a goddess, and you did not bring a gift?"

"I'm so sorry!" said Lena. "I've never done this before."

"But my dear," said the seal, "I can grant no wish without an offering." She swam closer, her plush fur grazing Lena's arm. "However, I can listen to your appeal for a tail."

Lena's mouth fell open.

Psamanthe said patiently, "Of course I know what you seek, young supplicant."

"How—?"

"I did explain that I am a goddess, yes? I knew you were coming. Your need drew me back to my cavern." The seal made a sound like a sigh. "Only to find you empty-handed."

"I'm sorry I don't have an offering," said Lena. "What should I bring next time?"

"Oh, Lena. I rather doubt there will be a next time." Psamanthe flipped and rolled some more, then added, "Honey is the classical tradition. And I'm very fond of it. Certainly, I can acquire my own honey, but the taste of votive honey is so much sweeter."

"Honey?" said Lena. "But ... I live in the sea. How can I get honey for you?"

Psamanthe's flippers appeared to lift. "Maybe you can ask an Ancient to get it for you."

"An Ancient?"

"The ancient sirens were half-woman, half-bird," said Psamanthe. "They lived on land, not in the sea. Some of them are still around, you may be able to find one willing to help a sister siren."

Speechless, Lena watched the seal swim around for a long moment. She glanced back at Lorelei and Havfine, who had been observing this exchange in amazed silence.

"Your question remains unasked, my dear," said the seal. "Your ambivalence is palpable. Thus I will broach the topic for you. No, the change is not permanent. But yes, it is painful. Just like a mermaid getting legs ... a human getting a tail is not for the faint of heart. You have heard the song? The reference to burning sand? It is quite true. In the heat of noonday, I bury you from the waist down in sand." She smiled, causing Lena to shiver. "There you remain for twenty-four hours. If you can endure it."

Psamanthe's voice in Lena's head had been perfectly friendly the whole time they were together, but a chill touched Lena's soul. After all, gods and goddesses were not famous for their kindness.

The seal regarded Lena, cocking her head. "Surely you do not deny your own ambivalence, young supplicant. Observe the cumbersome cloak, still hanging from your shoulders. If your desire to live in the sea were stronger, you would have stripped it off by now. And what of this?" The seal swam close to Lena's ankle, her whiskers tickling the skin of her foot. "This braid is a human memento. You wear it still because you have not fully embraced this life."

Lena reached down and touched the yarn around her ankle and, for an instant, saw a human girl's face in her mind.

"I have enjoyed meeting you, Lena. No human has sought my favor in more than a century. But as I am unable to grant any wish for you, I must take my leave."

"You don't live here?"

The seal chuckled and rolled. "No, I reside among the humans now. It's far more comfortable. But I will be here whenever you decide to make a formal request." Psamanthe slid fluidly out of the water, and when Lena raised her eyes above the surface, the goddess stood on the sand in her human form again.

"That was refreshing," she said, shaking water out of her short hair. "It has been far too long since I enjoyed my seal form." She pulled on her clothes and came close to the edge of the water. "Selena."

Lena nodded, eyes wide.

"The problem is not that you must choose between the two worlds." For the first time, a gentle note came into the goddess's voice. "The problem is that you feel like an outsider in both worlds."

They stared at each other, then Psamanthe said, "Choose wisely."

She slid on her sandals and walked out of sight.

Lena watched her go, then sank beneath the surface. Lorelei and Havfine rushed to her side.

No one spoke for a long moment.

Then Lorelei burst out, "That was unbelievable! I thought Psamanthe dwelt in her cavern at all times, but of course! She is a goddess. She would have riches and a human dwelling and—"

Lena turned to Havfine and said, "I need your dagger."

He was staring at Lorelei, so it took him a second to absorb Lena's words. "What?"

"Please, may I borrow your dagger?"

Havfine unsheathed his ivory blade and handed it to her, hilt first.

Lena reached down and sliced through the braid around her ankle, letting the bits of yarn float away. It's not an offering, she thought. It's a promise.

***

Brian told the lie so many times he almost believed it: "Lena has gone on a trip with her grandmother." The neighbors, the school, even his co-workers. He knew her friends were upset because Lena didn't answer their calls or messages. But he did not have the energy to craft a more convincing lie for them.

Since he could not look into his son's face and lie to him, Brian asked Allie to do it. She told the tale very plainly, but still Cole asked every day, "When is Lena coming home?"