by Susan Fodor
“Yes, your majesty.” He nodded, without taking his eyes off the floor.
Mum lifted his face unabashed. “Look at me; the carpet hasn’t been vacuumed,” she joked. “Do you know what the parley concerns?”
“The breaking of the treaty and its ramifications,” he replied vaguely.
“So, the death penalty?” she asked, giving him a look that communicated that he could speak freely in front of me.
He nodded and gulped, fighting the urge to look at the carpet again.
“Paul is away till late,” Mum said vaguely. “With everything that’s going on I don’t want to leave Mya alone.”
“Muuuuuuum,” I complained, but stopped the minute she fixed me with a regal glare.
“Sorry, your majesty.” I curtsied with flare.
Mum looked ready to burst out laughing but maintained her poise.
Charlie stepped forward, announcing, “That’s why the king sent me; I’m to give you the message and to stay with Mya ... er, the princess, till you return.”
Mum nodded, a knowing smile playing across her lips. “Thank you; I’ll go.”
Mum retreated into her room and left a few minutes later. I wanted to fight with her and demand to attend too, but Charlie’s presence meant I had to behave like a princess and not a teenage banshee.
Charlie and I stood in the hallway between the front entrance and kitchen, a blanket of awkwardness hovering over us. The house was inordinately quiet with my parents gone, and it made me feel more keenly how little I knew about everything. I wanted to go to parley but I knew that no one would appreciate my presence, least of all after a guard had been sent to keep me safe.
I wondered if I could act like a princess and order Charlie to take me to parley, but his posture was regal and goofy like Prince Harry. He had to be more than just a guard. I wished someone would give me a princess’ handbook, so I’d know what to do.
Charlie interrupted the silence. “So I should cook you dinner or something.” He turned toward the kitchen, as though occupying his hands would make looking after me easier.
“Mum already made dinner,” I replied, standing immobile in the hall. I tugged at a loose thread on my sleeve. All I could think of was Mum facing Cordulla, and being hurt and Daniel getting caught up in the middle. I felt powerless to protect them, and that wore on me.
Charlie smiled, his face like a pin-up boy. “I forgot how hands-on she was.”
His smile was reassuring. Charlie felt like a safe person to ask questions of and be honest with. I smiled in response. "I’m sorry I don't remember you ever being here," I admitted.
"You were young; it was a weird time—that's why I remember it," Charlie replied, barely making eye contact with me. A strange look passed over his face.
“Must have been bad for you to act so weird,” I stated, comfortable enough to tell him the truth. His eyes caught mine, searching to see if I remembered. I met his gaze unperturbed, and when he saw that he was a virtual stranger, he visibly relaxed.
"You don't usually curtsy to your Mum do you?" he observed, his tone jovial.
"You noticed." I laughed. "All this stuff is pretty new. Mum just told me two days ago."
"So, the rumors are true, you did develop some kind of amnesia? And you finally turned two days ago?" Charlie looked into my eyes with excitement. "I'm so relieved; that'll put an end to all the paternity rumors."
He clamped his mouth shut, realizing he had said too much. After nearly 18 years without changing, it made sense that some selkies would question whether Paul was my biological father. I felt betrayed that the people claiming to be loyal to my family would think such disloyal things about us. Mum’s philosophy was to think the best of others, and it made me mad to think that anyone would speak ill of her, especially as she was their queen.
"I'm sorry," Charlie said gently. "Living on seal rock makes everyone a little crazy. Closed quarters and all that...”
A surge of anger filled me to protect Mum’s honor, but he didn’t say it was his opinion. He was the only link between me and my parents and the boy I loved. So I stowed my anger and asked, "Tell me about parley."
I knew Charlie would tell me whatever I needed to know, there was a familiarity between us that I couldn’t shake.
"The merfolk are demanding the death penalty for three kids they claim are spies." Charlie exhaled heavily, frustration pinned to his words. "The king is hoping to propose a trade; one of their kind broke treaty and came on shore. We're hoping they'll see reason and release the prisoners."
"How old are the spies?" I asked, surprised at the other side of the story.
"Twelve and thirteen," Charlie replied, disgusted. "Just stupid kids being immature and now they might die for it." The way that he spoke convinced me further that he was someone important, involved; he wasn’t an impartial observer of selkie culture. Charlie really cared about the selkies.
"The merfolk queen broke treaty too." I sighed, unwilling to let children die for a prank.
"How do you know?" Charlie asked, searching my eyes.
"I met her." I sighed, looking at my hands, afraid to see the disappointment in Charlie’s eyes that I’d been liaising with the enemy.
"And she didn't kill you?" he asked in disbelief.
"She didn't know who I was, otherwise I imagine she would have," I replied, happy to have someone to talk to about the weirdness of my recent experiences.
"Hopefully when the queen delivers that news it'll get the kids back," Charlie said hopefully.
"Except she doesn't know," I admitted, blushing with embarrassment. I had told Mum that Daniel was going to parley, but I had left out creepy Cordulla and the spies information.
"You didn't tell her!" Charlie said getting mad. Despite the firm set of his shoulders and the regal tone in his voice, he was goofy. Even his anger seemed amusing.
I stifled a giggle and reminded sarcastically. "I've been a selkie for less then forty-eight hours."
"Whose side are you on anyway?" he accused. That ceased the amusing element of the conversation. It was a fair comment, but I didn’t want to wear it.
"Watch it," I threatened. "I'm your future queen." I strongly doubted that I would ever be the merfolk or selkie queen, but I wanted to one up him. It was like sibling-rivalry gone awry. I had a vague sensation that I had spent a lot of time one-upping Charlie.
Charlie paled significantly. "Sorry again."
"Do you have a vehicle?” I demanded, using the advantage to form a plan.
"Yes," he answered dubiously.
"Then we're going to parley," I told him.
parley
I’d expected Charlie to flat out refuse my request or in the very least try to dissuade me from attending a parley.
Instead he cocked an eyebrow and let a small smirk play across his lips.
“I guess you haven’t changed that much,” he said, more to himself than to me.
Then he became serious and still studying my determined face, he asked, “Are you sure we should do this?”
I really wasn’t sure. I could be leading both of us to extinction, but I wanted to help the selkie children. I was the only one with information that could bring them home; it felt wrong not to try.
Nodding confidently, I replied, “Absolutely, what’s the point of being princess if I can’t make life better for my people?”
The words felt foreign on my lips; I was claiming people I didn’t even know to be my own. I was putting myself in a place to fight for them and die; it was illogical, but felt right.
Charlie nodded. “OK, get some warm clothes, it’s going to be cold out there.”
I bundled myself in a Michelin Man jacket and pulled knee high boots over my jeans before following Charlie out to the driveway. The front of the house and driveway were clear; then my eyes landed on Charlie’s vehicle.
"You have a motorcycle?" I said, furrowing my brow at the sleek green machine. Daniel’s face flashed into my mind, he would have forbidden me
from going to parley; he would never allow me to ride on the back of some guy’s motorbike. I pushed the errant thought from my head, by the end of the night; Daniel might not care what happened to me.
"It's not just a motorcycle; it's a 2012 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Special Edition," Charlie boasted.
Talking about his motorcycle lit a spark in Charlie that drew me to him. The feeling was so powerful and unnerving I took a step back. The impulse faded within seconds, the familiar feeling returned immediately.
"That's supposed to mean something to me?" I said, exaggerating my bored face.
"It's just a good bike." He grinned, handing me a helmet.
"You often dink strange girls?" I teased, pleased that he carried a spare helmet.
"You're not a strange girl," he replied, raising an eyebrow at me. "I've known you my whole life, and I assumed that you'd want to sneak over to the island."
"You only knew me till I was 9," I replied, intrigued that he thought I was adventurous. The most daredevil thing I did was shave my legs in the laundry sink once, because Dad was taking too long in the bathroom. I’d lost my balance and almost broken a leg. Charlie’s faith in me gave me courage.
"Twelve,” he corrected distantly, like he was reviewing the memory, “and you're right; I haven't seen you in a long time. Let's just go."
I clumsily climbed onto the bike behind Charlie and wrapped my arms around his waist holding on tight. Before he took off, I spoke into his ear, “Hey, if you hurt me, Dad’ll kill you.”
Charlie laughed. “If I hurt you, I’ll hurt myself.” It was meant as a joke, but I knew that he would keep me safe. King Leo had chosen Charlie for that reason; which made me even more interested in meeting him.
We sped along the Geelong waterfront, with its pristine running track and Australianized totem poles. I reminded myself again that when I took up running, I would find out what the totem poles represented. We snaked past the botanic gardens and high school, till the suburban road opened out into a highway. The setting sun brought a cold bite into the air. Charlie’s body heat emanated through his leather jacket, I nestled against his back, seeking comfort from the icy wind.
Charlie was so different from Daniel; he was goofy and regal while Daniel was coolness personified. Daniel made me feel like I had to strive to be better to have him, but Charlie was comfortable. I was grateful for Charlie’s willingness to help me.
As the wind whipped my hair under the helmet, I kept thinking how angry Daniel would be to find out that I was a selkie. He had assured Cordulla that I would be his Other, but that was not going to happen. I hoped Daniel would understand that I hadn’t known about my heritage.
The look in his eyes when he spoke about selkies, proved that any explanation would fall on deaf ears. He hated my people. I shuddered at the thought of Daniel looking at me with hatred.
"Are you cold?" Charlie yelled, over the rushing wind that threatened to freeze me into a popsicle.
"A little," I shouted back.
Charlie pulled in behind a semi-trailer with countless hungry wheels that blocked the wind, but was even more dangerous than the cold. I watched the tires chew up the road till my stomach was shaking. I told myself that it was the semi-trailer, and not the fact that I was about to see my biological father for the first time in memory, and that Daniel would most likely hate me by the end of the night.
I'd never been so happy to see the Queenscliff pier come into view. Happier than on my thirteenth birthday, when the sea had been particularly choppy and I'd been sea sick the whole cruise. That memory was enough to make me believe I was a human throw back.
Shaded lamps lit up the pier, giving a soft glow to the frigid night. I loved Queenscliff Pier; its large wooden slats were rustic and romantic. I wished that Daniel and I were walking on the pier laughing and having a good time, not negotiating the release of children. I hoped that Daniel had already seen the futility of executing tweens, but Cordulla would want them executed anyway.
Charlie parked his motorcycle in the shadows, where it was virtually invisible. He took my hand to lead me down beside the pier. "Your hand is so warm," I said involuntarily.
"So I guess you haven't been dating that much." Charlie smiled, pleased.
I shrugged, unwilling to divulge my relationship status with Daniel, because it felt complicated.
The frigid water lapped the pier posts as we made our way under the pier.
"We can change under the pier and leave our clothes up there," Charlie coached, pointing to the pier support.
"You're taking your clothes off?" I gapped.
"Yeah; how do you usually morph?" he asked, perplexed.
"I don't ... I mean, I haven't yet..." I blushed caught in a lie.
"You lied to me?" he asked, devastated.
"No... I.... I... You can morph and I can swim," I offered weakly.
"It's nine kilometers!" he grumbled, pointing out to sea. "Even if you could make the swim without freezing to death, the parley would be over days before we got there."
"I'm sorry," I replied, starting to get teary. The mantle of the task ahead of us was heavy, but Charlie’s ire was too much. I needed him to help me and I felt guilty at having misled him.
Seeing the tears crumbled Charlie’s anger.
"No, I'm sorry; I shouldn't have yelled at you," he said, impulsively pulling me into his arms. "You used to get so mad at me for bossing you around and yelling at you. I'm sorry; I guess I haven't grown up that much."
"I don't remember," I replied, standing limply in his arms.
"I guess a lot happened." He stepped away awkwardly. "I'm not surprised you don't remember. I'll tell you about it; just promise you won't lie to me anymore."
Looking into his caramel eyes triggered a memory of another time, when we had stood on the beach together and he had asked me the same question.
Like reenacting déjà vu, I replied, "I promise. Let's find a boat."
"We're going to steal a boat?" he asked, chagrined.
"We're borrowing a boat for a couple of hours," I replied diplomatically.
It only took a few minutes to locate a small fisherman's dinghy with a motor. We jumped in and headed out to sea, the roar of the motor dispelling the sound of the wind.
"I am dating someone," I confessed as the Queenscliff lights began to dwindle into the distance behind us. The only reason I’d kept that information from Charlie was because I knew that he would ask who the guy was, and I didn’t know if Daniel and I would be a couple by the end of parley.
"Oh," Charlie replied, hiding his emotions from me.
"I just don't want to lie to you," I sighed. It shouldn’t have made a difference that I was dating someone; it was odd how strange telling Charlie felt. I shrugged off the weirdness as part of the pile of things that had changed so suddenly in my life. I didn’t even know what it meant to be a selkie princess, or how I was supposed to relate to Charlie as my guard or friend.
Charlie looked unperturbed by my announcement, except for a small twitch in the corner of his mouth. "Thanks." He shrugged.
"In for a penny in for a pound," I exhaled, psyching myself up to tell him the rest.
"Huh?"
"He's-the-prince-of-the-merfolk," I said as one word.
"Who is?" Charlie asked, confused.
"My boyfriend," I squeaked.
"Your boyfriend is the prince of the Merfolk?" he stated, a mixture of emotions playing across his face. "Your dad's going to be pissed."
"I didn't know who he was or who I was..." I tried to explain. In the back of my mind I reasoned that if Charlie could understand, then maybe Daniel and my father would too.
"Now that you know?" Charlie asked.
"It makes no difference," I said, busying myself with pulling my jacket closer around myself.
"I guess he'll be expecting you then?" Charlie said, annoyed.
"Not exactly." I sighed.
"You were never this complicated at 12 years old," he said, a boyish grin pl
aying across his lips. "Just as dangerous, but not as complicated."
"Hey," I said, poking him in the ribs so unexpectedly that he yelped.
Charlie looked ready to poke me back, except that the Mud Island’s shape was taking form quickly. It drew both our attention, as our eyes swept the vicinity for any guards or potential danger.
“Nearly there,” I said ominously.
The Mud Islands loomed dark in the indigo sky. They were three low-lying landmasses, which were primarily used by birds to procreate. We had to be careful as the water became shallow suddenly, and we could see the boat being destroyed.
Charlie expertly turned off the motor and flipped it up out of the water. "This is as far as we can go with the motor," he said, stripping off his jacket and jumper in one smooth motion.
"What are you doing?" I asked, startled by his muscular chest gleaming in the moonlight.
"Take it easy, princess," he mocked. "I'm not going to take advantage of you, with your father and boyfriend over the ridge."
"I wasn't thinking that," I said, my cheeks burning red as he kicked his pants off and folded them on top of his jacket and jumper.
The moonlight glistened off Charlie's muscular shoulders as he turned to explain. "I need to pull this boat into shore, and it'll be a whole lot more pleasant if I do it in my seal form. Also, you need to get used to seeing people naked because I assure you that everyone over that ridge will be clad in their birthday suits. As the royal princess, you can't stare at people's privates or the ground. So..." Charlie stood carefully and pulled off his jocks.
"You couldn't do that any closer to my face?" I asked sarcastically, my face flushing.
"It'll give you more incentive to stay upright, so you don't end up with a face full of sausage." Charlie laughed.
"Charming," I muttered.
"You're already sounding more like a princess, and we've been hanging out for just over an hour," he teased. "Now watch carefully; this is what you can do."
Charlie crouched in front of me, looking me in the eyes. His body began to shake, his skin split, and a seal erupted from the space that had been Charlie.
"Cool, huh?" He smiled, with his seal tongue poking out.
