Thunder rumbled and water crashed and slapped against wood as it slammed against a large cargo boat. The sea tossed it about as if it were not but a child’s toy. Rain doused every other spot the waves couldn’t reach, and the men aboard the flailing ship slipped and slid precariously, as they tried to keep the boat afloat. A young man of about 17 slid into a huge stack of secured crates, the wind whooshing out of him, as his chest made contact. Fighting to regain control of his breathing he blinked rapidly trying to see through the torrential down pour of rain. He held onto the crates til his knuckles were white. The ship tossed again and seemed on the very edge of tipping. The sensation of the boat falling back into the water left the young man’s stomach turning and he feared he would be sick. This had to be the worst storm the crew had seen in some time. But they had left their port late and ran into one of the winter seasons famous gales as they were headed down to the islands of Barbados.  
  
They normally didn’t allow for passengers but the captain had been best friends with the young lad’s father, and now they were taking him with them. The crew didn’t seem to mind much for the boy was likeable and seemed quite willing to pull his weight in chores and even learn a few other’s. He was tall and fairly well built. He had long shoulder length black hair and his eyes were the most startling shade of green. The men joked that the boy probably could make all the ladies swoon with how pretty he was. He would simply smile and wave them off. He didn’t speak at all and at first it had left the men fairly suspicious. What man didn’t speak?  They had considered that maybe the lad was touched in the head...but they had been shot murderous looks from the Captain and that had ended that theory quite effectively.

  Pretty soon they became used to the lad and it didn’t bother them so much.  He was smart as a whip, learned stuff fast, and seemed quite eager to learn more. This in the end not only impressed them but won them over. After about 2 months out at sea they were actually quite fond of the lad and had adopted him each in their own way. Even Sarley, the grouchiest and least easy to please of the bunch had taken a personal liking to the lad and made it so no one bothered the boy. With the force of the storm the men were busy at their posts and none could spare a glance in his direction. If they had known he had came up from below deck he would have been quite efficiently locked back down in his quarters and only retrieved if the ship was sinking or they had cleared the storm.  As it were he had in fact come up topside feeling quite ill. He had not wanted to soil his cabin. Upon reaching the outside he realized it was actually quite worse than what he had originally gathered. He could see the men yelling and hanging on to whatever was available as a hand hold.  Moments later he had been toppled into a stack of crates.  Lightning arced dangerously and topped the tip of the tallest mast. It snapped like a twig under a boot. Men hollered and the ship teetered as its main mast fell in towards the deck. Men scurried as fast as they could to get out of the way. The boy was not as lucky as the mast fell a huge knot of rope flew at him striking him in the side of the head. He knew a moment of sharp pain and then slid into the black inky calm of unconsciousness. A minute later as a wave crashed over the deck his body was swept overboard.
    
   He hit the water and the icy coldness of it shocked him awake. He barely drew in breath as the water closed over him and he fought against the swells lifting him up and then back under the water.  His head crested the water and for the first time in 9 years he made a sound. He opened his mouth and yelled for all he was worth. Sadly the wind whipped it away and tossed it carelessly back against the sea so that none other than the water could hear him. He could barely feel his limbs anymore and sadly he realized that this was it. His head ached horribly and he was trying desperately not to pass out. Even though he knew he was going to drown something in him made him not want to go with at least fighting first? He could feel himself slipping below the water and he knew he didn’t have the strength to fight his way back up again. Drawing as much air as he could he let the sea pull him down. The salt water slightly burned his eyes. The sound of the thunder and the waves had muffled and he realized it was peaceful. Maybe drowning wasn’t so bad after all…
Sure his lungs burned like hell and he was on the verge of passing out…but the quietness lured him and he let his eyes drift shut.

   Unbeknownst to him something had taken quite the interest in him. Well actually in the ship first and then in him. As he slid into a dead faint, a pair of pale arms wrapped around his waist and another around his legs, they propelled the unconscious youth to the surface.  His head lolled back against a pale shoulder as his head cleared the water and he would have been amazed at the speed they were traveling at if he had been aware of his surroundings. As it were he was far better off blissfully unaware of the storm and the sea which had tried to claim him as its own.  A female’s voice singing carried on the wind, and it would have swept chills through anyone who would have heard it. As it was only the sea heard it and listened to it as it raged.


Sunlight sparkled down and played across the much calmer water than that of the night before. Gulls cried looking about for fish that had been swept ashore and their calls are what awakened the young man. At first...he assumed he was dead. His vision was blurred and the light seemed hazy and soft. He moved and then realized he certainly wasn’t dead. No one could be in this much pain and be dead...or so he thought. Gingerly he moved his arm and reached up to touch his chest. Somehow he had lost his shirt...and apparently his pants too. What on earth? He was wrapped in some sort of silk cloth and lying on more of the stuff in what appeared to be a cove of some sort. His head swam as he attempted to sit up. O definitely not good, he thought as his vision swam and he could feel the coldness sweep over him, as if he were about to pass out. Something touched his back and he very nearly yelled. It trailed up his back to his shoulder where it came to rest. Turning he found himself staring into eyes similar to that of a cat. A female was sitting perched half in water and half on the sand. She cocked her head quizzically at him and then smiled gently. She reached up without a word and pressed her hand against his forehead. Seemingly pleased with herself she opened her mouth and made a small sound. It sounded almost like a bird chirping. He clutched the silk cover closer to himself as an involuntary protective gesture.

His eyes widened and he scooted back when she suddenly leaned in close to him peering at his face. She blinked and grinned broadly. Again she chirped at him and then placed her hand against his chest...then suddenly she pushed. Caught completely off guard, he fell back against the makeshift bedding, completely alarmed, and when he went to get up again she pinned him in place. She was amazingly strong for one so delicate looking. She smiled at him and made another chirping sound this time seeming to have some effect on him. He calmed and laid there on his back staring up at her. Her hair was a golden brown color streaked with hues of gold and bronze. It was long and wavy and fell about her shoulders and arms. Her unusual eyes seemed to glow and this totally should have freaked him out, but instead he found himself reaching up to trace her cheek in curiosity. She let him and nuzzled his hand when he touched her. Her skin was covered in iridescent scales...but they were not hard like that of a fish. They glittered and sparkled when the sun caught them and fascinated he continued to look at her in wonder. Was this a siren? The men had told him countless stories about them when they had been traveling and now he seemed to wonder if the stories were in fact true. She didn’t seem hell bent on eating him and it seemed it was she that had pulled him from the sea sparing his life.  He found that he was drowsy and the girl pulled herself closer towards him...it was then that he realized she had a tail. He gaped, staring in wide eyed amazement at the green and violet jewel toned colors and sudden realization dawned on him. She was a mermaid...but...but how? They existed only in folklore. He turned his attention back to her and then caught in her gaze, he felt himself falling asleep. It was she that was making him tired...too exhausted to try and fight it… he drifted off.

The mermaid stayed there resting her arms across his chest and leaning her chin against her arms. Lazily she flipped her tail up and down enjoying the gleams of water droplets as they fell from her fins. The boy before her was a mystery. While she had spoken to him he had been unable or unwilling to speak back at her. She frowned as she traced a finger across his collarbone. Tilting her head again she studied him...the lines were gone from his face and he looked most innocent in his sleep. The bruise on the side of his head concerned her and she hoped that it was not very serious. It discolored the skin near his left eye and temple and partially covered his cheekbone. She winced as he flinched when she traced the multitude of purple and black hues lightly. It looked very painful. It had been a long time since she had had a companion and when she had seen him fall into the water she had gone against instinct and saved him from the seas clutches. The sea had understood though and had let her have him. She was  quite understanding of Aiwarnfae’s loneliness.  There were so few of her kind left and often she found herself spending the days alone. Sure, she kept herself busy collecting small shells and talking with the sea life, but it wasn’t the same as being near another being similar to her own kind.

This boy was an unexpected blessing…now if only she could get him to speak to her. Suddenly she had an idea. Checking to make sure he was sound asleep and well enough to be left alone she flopped down into the water and raced away to floor of the ocean...Aiwarnfae kept her eyes open looking this way and that for a certain type of seaweed. After a few moments she found what she was searching for. She tugged the dark green colored plant from the sandy bottom and clutched it in her hand. She smiled and began again to race back to her little cove. She had remembered hearing that if a human were to ingest the seaweed they could understand what a mermaid was saying. She had completely forgotten that humans could not translate mer-speech. Reaching the cove she pulled herself over to where the dark haired young man lay still asleep almost exactly as she had left him. He had moved slightly...his arm was now bent up his hand curling towards his face. Aiwarnfae smiled again…he really was fascinating. Breaking the seaweed up into small bits she scooted closer she held her breath as she gently parted his lips with her finger. Pushing a small piece of the seaweed into his mouth she encouraged him to swallow by rubbing gently at his throat. He swallowed as she coaxed him and soon she had fed him about half of the seaweed. She figured that it should be enough and laid the rest of it down and went back to her perusal of the human.