Nyleigh_416 has a minion!

the Blossom Fish

Time cast a spell on you...

"Good work, lads. We're going home."

At the sound of these long-awaited words, the crew begins to cheer, boisterous sounds of relief and satisfaction at a job well done. Hats are tossed lightly into the air and cheerfully retrieved as they begin the task of readying the ship for cast-off. The soft light of the early morning sun beats gently across their backs as go about their happy business, renewed eagerness in their steps. Too long have they been away from their tumble-tossed sons and their curly-haired daughters, too long away from the warm embraces of the wives who love them. The ocean is clear and blue, and it rocks the ship slowly, tenderly, as if singing a lullaby.

To humans and sea-creatures alike, this day is unsurpassed in its beauty.

To all but one...

You could be my silver springs,
Blue-green colors flashing.
I would be your only dream.
Your shining autumn ocean crashing...

Nyleigh watches from her awkward perch atop the rocks jutting stiffly from the waters just off-shore, gray storms swirling slowly in her heart. The sunlight, seeming so kind and warm to the sailors working in the distance, is angry and harsh against her vulnerable flesh. The heat makes her scales dry and unbearably itchy. Only the cooling waters of the sea can bring her relief. They call to her, beckoning her home, but she refuses the call with iron-clad tenacity. The need to be here, to be near to him for as long as possible, outweighs everything else.

Her blue-green eyes flicker back and forth as she scours the ranks of the crew, searching for the one who called her here. Her breath falters as she lays eyes on him, working and smiling as lightheartedly as any of his fellows. There is a skip in his step as he moves, a certain swagger in the way he hurries himself up and down the wooden levels of the ship. His face is that of a young boy, shining with eagerness at the thrill of moving forward. Too long had he been stranded here, with only the sea, the men, and her for company. He couldn't be more keen to leave her God-forsaken little island. For all the riches it had wrought him and his companions, nothing is worth more than the warmth of home.

The day seems only to become more beautiful as the hours pass. Ever so slowly the sun moves about its guided path, its rays glistening against the surface of gently breaking waves. Water laps soothingly at the edges of Nyleigh's stone perch, but she does not notice. By high noon, her luminous skin is red and cracked, and her hair is as brittle as dry sea coral. But, despite all this, she does not leave. The time is drawing near for his departure, and the only pain she feels is an ever-growing and encompassing throb in her soul.

Is this what it feels like? Her shriveled hand grasps the loose cloth of her billowing shirt, just above heart, and her face melts into a mask of pure agony. My heart is bleeding...

Not for the first time, the notion of captivating him with her mysterious, commanding voice tempts Nyleigh. For so long, she has wrestled with the compulsion to sing to him. For so long, she has denied her nature for the sake of his. Now, with him so near to sailing into the distant skies beyond her reach, she feels the first quiet, desperate stirrings of a song welling up inside the hollow of her chest.

Nyleigh's eyes flutter, and a sad, delicate smile plays on her lips as she begins to hum...

Time cast a spell on you, that you won't forget me.
I know I could have loved you, but you would not let me...

She hums, but only softly, so softly not even the powerful currents of the sea nor the turbulent force of the winds can carry the subtle sound of her song to the smiling man in the distance. If she sings to him, he will be hers, but he will not smile anymore. Not truly. He will smile to see her, but only because she wishes him to. He will stay with her, only because he has no choice. He will stay because he is enchanted by her, by her voice and her beauty, but not for true love of her. He will love her, but it will be an empty, mindless love, compelled by nothing more than a siren's magic, and just as hollow. Just as meaningless.

The love she feels for him has meaning, more meaning than anything she has ever felt in her life. Because of it, she will not sing to him. She will not take away his choice.

His choice is all that is left to them now, but the hope he would choose to stay began to fade and wither the moment she saw his shining face, so eager to begone from this forlorn pile of stone and sand. He is not staying. The cold, brutal truth wraps around her heart like an iron weight; she buckles under its force. He is not gone yet, but already she is consumed by an agonizing loneliness. She had never felt more content, more at home, than when she was in his company. Even the uncomfortable prick of the sun had been worth the happiness being with him had brought her. Those times, short as they had been, were among the best of her life. Now they were coming to an end, and the pain was nearly unbearable. Nyleigh closes her eyes and tears creep slowly down her fragile cheeks, then join the rippling waters of the sea below.

"Cast off!" one of the men bellows jovially. The ship slowly lurches forward, and the crew cheers. Nyleigh lifts her head, tears still swimming in the depths of her eyes.

...Will he even look back?

The sea calls gently for her home, but she stays until long after the ship disappears over the golden orange glow of the horizon. She cannot bear to return to the sea, to her family and home, because for the moment she hates them. They weigh against her as heavy as chains, keeping her away from the one she loves.

She wonders if he knows only he could hurt her in this way. Of all his crew, of all the crews and travelers before him, he was the only one who was beautiful to her. For the rest of her life, the ocean will be filled with her tears, and she will cry for no one but him.

Give me just a chance...