Pearl

October 30, 2024

The current pulled me along as I allowed myself to drift in and out of sleep. It was a lazy afternoon and my chores were long completed until later in the afternoon. I wasn’t supposed to allow the current to take me because it lead to dangerous parts of the ocean, but they were so far away, and I would make sure I didn’t sleep that long.

Or so I thought.

Next thing I knew, I was in an old ship yard. The old ship yard. My father said that this was called the Titanic and that many people died on this ship as it sunk to where it is now. It was only a couple miles from home, but we all were advised to steer clear of this site because it was rumored to be wildly haunted. Most merfolk didn’t believe in ghosts because we are rumored to not have souls ( thanks a lot Hans Christian Anderson ) but humans for sure did, and their souls made the water around the ship thick and hard to breathe. I needed to get out of here as quickly and quietly as possible. How did I get back home again? Would I be able to get back home unnoticed?

“Pearl. Pearl. Pearly girly, come down and see us!” My breath caught in my chest. How did they know what Grim calls me? No, this couldn’t be happening. I couldn’t get stuck here. Their voices sounded like they were gargling - their ghostly mouths still not used to functioning under water, even after being down here for decades. No, no, no, no, no.

“Pearl, we know you’re there! Come to see us! We have so few visitors, please don’t leave us here!” I camped my hands over my ears and try to swim back the way that I came, but I was unable to. I was trapped. I removed my hands from my ears and tried to listen to where the voices were coming from.

“Pearl, you can’t leave us, not yet, you just got here!” I spun around as quickly as I could, only to come face to face with a woman in a long white night gown. I did what I could not to scream, but I know the fear showed on my face.

“Oh, I am sorry.” The voice gurgled out. “I was trying to help you get away. I am not trying to trap you here like the others. Please forgive them, they lost their minds down here. We have all been so lonely, we don’t know why we are trapped here. One of the ghosts from a pirate ship not far away told us that he has to trap merfolk in order to be released from his haunt, but the thing is, he is still here. They all believed him, and have been trying to trap someone since.”

“You have a lot to say…” I responded hesitantly. I didn’t know ghosts were so chatty.

“I’m sorry. I died at 13, so I am still in, what my mother calls, the chatty years. Much to her dismay, might I add.” she looked somewhat bashful. What had I gotten myself into?

“So, how do I get out of here?” I ask, with obvious panic.

“You don’t.” I heard from behind me, before being dragged to the belly of the ship and everything going to black.