50. Epilogue

Epilogue

Meria

“ W hat do you think?” Dominick asked. I could feel his jaw move when he spoke, as he rested it on the top of my head.

“I think it is beautiful! I did not know that there were oceans on land!” I gasped, wanting so desperately to wade into the water and float about.

“You want to go in, don't you?”

“What do you think?”

“I think if you dove in there, right now, Gwendolyn might be rather startled.”

“That is true,” I said as Dominick moved to my side, letting go of where he held me around the waist. He bent down and touched the water. It smelled different from what I was used to, a rather strange salt-lessness.

I watched Dominick take off his boots, stockings, roll up his pant legs, and wade in up to his calves in the small ocean.

“Peter loves it when Gwendolyn is startled, because he gets to comfort her. Men love that.”

“Do they?”

“Yes, my mermaid; It is an easy excuse to pull a lady, or a mermaid in my case, in for a hug,” Dominick said with a wide grin. I loved that look on his face, loved his unmarked skin. Not for any other reason than it meant that he was not in constant pain. Not anymore. Dominick bent down and hit the water, sending a spray at me. Gwendolyn squealed from behind me, but I closed my eyes and let the water wet my face. I even licked my lips, then scrunched up my nose.

“What is this?” I asked, wiping at my face and smelling the water. “This is awful.”

“It is water, Meria,” Dominick said with a chuckle, spraying me again. I bent down and took off my shoes and stockings, I could hear Gwendolyn behind us, becoming startled. For the few weeks we had spent in Walden, we had discovered many things. One thing we had discovered was that Gwendolyn Darling was a very proper noble lady. She was not judgemental and unkind, but she was easily rattled, and she had been very sheltered. She did not like it when one evening Dominick and I went swimming, and afterward, we ran through the castle with me in one of his large black shirts, and he was shirtless. She spoke to Peter about it, who spoke to us, and explained that Gwendolyn was rather proper, and it had offended her sense of propriety. She was proper, but she was also one of the kindest people I had ever met. Humans, I learned very quickly, were mostly kind. Mermaids were not as modest as humans, so while taking off my shoes and stockings made Gwendolyn nearly faint, I felt more like myself when I was barefoot.

“This is the strange water you always drink. Where is the salt?”

“It is what we like to call fresh water; you know, what I need to survive,” Dominick said. I did not like fresh water, but a swim did sound lovely, as it always did. I placed my stockings and shoes to the side. Humans always wore so much clothing. I turned around, looking for Peter and Gwendolyn. Peter was fanning her, and I called out to him.

“Peter!”

He looked my way and jogged over to me.

“Yes?” he asked.

“Is Gwendolyn okay?”

“She will be fine; she just has to adjust to you two and your rebellious ways. She likes you very much, but her mother did teach her to be shocked.”

“Well, you may want to head back to the palace because we are going for a swim.”

“Indeed, thank you!” he said with a laugh. “Hey, did you hear about the princess from Solalune who disappeared? Rumor has it that she is at the Lost Lake.”

“Lost Lake?” I asked.

“It is a lake, somewhere in Solalune. They can not seem to pin down where it is either–rather irresponsible of them,” Dominick said with a chuckle.

“But, last I heard, her brother is sending men in search of the Princess–Princess Odette! It is a great story,” Peter went on.

“Peter loves stories.” Gwendolyn said, coming up beside him with a smile.

“It is true, I love a good tale. Can you imagine? A lost lake, and discovering such a thing?”

“I can imagine that, but do you wish to find this princess?”

“No–of course, not,” Peter said with a smile.

“Well, I am going to–” I said, looking at Peter. He needed to leave with Gwendolyn, so she would not panic when I entered the water.

“Gwendolyn, let’s go back to the castle; we should brainstorm ideas about what could happen in a story where there is a lost lake.”

Gwendolyn laughed and nodded. Peter escorted her through the forest, and I waited a few moments.

“Are we safe?” Dominick called from the water.

“I told Peter to go–as we were about to become rather improper.”

“What do you mean, mermaid?” Dominick said, raising his eyebrows up and down, teasingly.

Without another word, I ran into the water and straight for Dominick’s arms. He picked me up, twirled me around, and tossed me. With a splash, I sank under the surface, and while, yes, I did not have a tail, when I entered the water, I could still hold my breath for long periods of time, dive deeper than humans could, and see under water just the same as before. Except, I did not like that kind of water very much, fresh water. It was murky.

I rose to the surface to see Dominick had completely submerged himself as well.

“What do you think of this lake?”

“I am sorry, Dominick, but I do not like it, not very much. It is trying to be a sea, but it is a horrible imposter.”

Dominick chuckled. “Come here–” He took me in his arms.“We are getting married tomorrow,” he said, tenderly, brushing hair from my face.

“Yes, can you believe it? Are we sure everything is ready?” I asked.

“Yes, the ship sets sail at dawn. Finn spoke with your father, mother, and sisters, and they should be out in the harbor, above the sea. Sands is in charge of the crew on board the ship.”

“And your mother, she really will not mind us being gone for a while on a honeymoon trip, as you call it.”

“She will miss us. She loves you, probably, just as much as me.”

It was true, the Queen was kinder than I had ever dreamed, taking me in as her own, and even meeting with my own mother. I had spent many afternoons in the palace and in the sea with my mother, too, and getting to know her was like getting to know a piece of myself.

“I am excited. I love our adventures.”

“Yes, but not as many near death experiences this time, okay? This should be a relaxing trip,” Dominick said with a smile.

“I saw those maps you were prepping. You have some adventures in mind–any treasure?”

“I may have a few things planned, but they are surprises, and you should know that you are all the treasure I will ever need,” he said, then reached down to kiss my lips.

“I want you to know, I really do not have kind feelings for this small false sea of horrible fresh water–”

“Lake,” Dominick chuckled.

“Dominick, I do like adventures, but I do prefer the sea, and salt in my water.”

“Well, there is not much salt water on land. I guess we shall have to stick to traveling upon the seas, which I must admit is exactly what I would prefer as well. I just wanted to make sure you had this human experience of a lake. Seems important.”

“Water should always have salt in it.”

“Again, Meria, if a human drank only seawater as you did, they would die. There are stories of men doing so and going mad.”

“So am I a human–completely, or am I still a mermaid just without her tail?”

“Well, you will officially be my mermaid tomorrow–and then after that, forever. We can travel all of the seas.”

“For ever and ever.”

One Year Later

Meria

“Three?” Dominick gasped as I cradled our three new babies in my arms. They barely fit, but I was glowing with happiness and pride. I could not wait to bathe them in the sea and see the color of their tails, if they had tails. We were still not sure if they would.

“I told you, mermaids have multiples, and I guess, even though I have no tail, I am still a mermaid. Three, that was why my stomach was so large.”

Dominick sank down beside the bed and reached out his hand to each of the babies’ sweet heads.

“Meria–they are so–”

I looked from our children to Dominick. During that first year of our marriage, his soul’s melody came out more clearly than ever, and I could sense his joy through his song.

“I know–beautiful–precious–incredible,” I said gently.

“All of it, and more,” he said in a reverent whisper. “What will we name them?”

“It is customary for mer to name their children after things within the sea–”

“But you are Meria .”

“Yes, it is based off of Mer, it actually means, ‘little mermaid.’”

“It does? You never told me this!” Dominick said with a chuckle as he kissed my cheek, my forehead, and neck.

“Yes, well, I was the youngest–”

“Then I shall call you that more often. You need to rest, my love. Let me take them.”

“I want them near,” I complained.

“No problem,” Dominick said as he stripped off his boots, his socks, his coat, vest, and belt. “I shall join you.”

He walked to the opposite side of our rather large bed and sat down beside me. I passed two of the babies to him, still wanting to hold one, at least. I still could not fathom such joy. I had a family. It was not just Dominick and me, but we had those three precious lives that we had brought into this world.

“I think we shall name this one Ocean ,” Dominick said, nodding to the one with light hair in his arms.

“Really?” I asked Dominick with a laugh.

“Why not?”

“I like that name, We need other names, too. I was thinking about Forest . It was one of my favorite things on Marren island, and I love the land-forests here in Walden.”

“That is more of a boy's name,” Dominick said.

“And?”

“I guess, I did not ask what they are?” Dominick asked with a laugh.

“Two girls, one boy.”

“Aw, so Forest for the boy; I like that.” Dominick smiled.

“Which two are my daughters? I must get a good look at them.”

“You are holding the girls.”

“Ah–yes, well, this one is Ocean –no doubt about that. It appears that with her hair, she will take after her mother, and I am sure she shall have your tail coloring,” he said, kissing the top of his daughter’s head.

“And her?” I asked, motioning to the other. She had dark hair, just like Dominick’s, as did the boy in my arms.

“What about Sky ? All three of the important things that connect us–the sea, land, and air,” Dominick said, looking at me with a smile.

“Forest, Ocean, and Sky?” I asked. As strange as it may have sounded to some, it felt right. It represented us. I hoped for even more children and had no idea how the other names would be selected, but for those three, those names represented our unique family, for we were a combination of two different worlds.

“Yes, if you like that?”

“I love it.” I shifted from the bed.

“Where are you going?” Dominick asked me as I stood up, a little wobbly from laying in bed for so long.

“I must know, Dominick–if they have tails,” I said.

“Oh, yes, let's find out. Will they be alright?”

“Of course, even if they have no tails, they will love the sea. They will always be at least half connected to it.

We walked with our three priceless babies in our arms. I was still in my nightgown, and Dominick was barefooted with only his pants and shirt on. We were known for our casual appearance, and always heard gasps because of it. The new princesses and prince were with us as we made our way to the water by way of the sandy beach. The babies woke up as soon as we reached the foaming waves. Their eyes were wide and alert.

“This is your home, too–whether or not you have a tail–the sea is also yours,” I whispered as Dominick and I sat down in the surf, holding our babies above the waves.

“Ready?” I asked with my heart pounding as waves crashed against us.

“I know they will all take after their mother,” Dominick said with a smile. We unwrapped them from their blankets, their small little legs and toes exposed. Then we placed them partially in the water, up to their waists. I squealed with glee as one by one, each of my sweet babies’ legs turned into tails. Forest, with a teal tail, just a few shades darker than mine; Sky with a silver tail, which matched the clouds, and then, Ocean, with the exact same tail as me and my mother.

“Our children are beautiful, Meria–so beautiful,” Dominick leaned over and kissed me tenderly.

“This life is beautiful, Dominick. Thank you for making all my dreams come true.”

“Thank you for being my dream.”