Tag Archive | mermay

Darling it’s better… a tale for MerMay

Things Unspoken, South Coast

There were not people in all the seas.

Some of them were too dark, too cold, too inhabited by things that either had been driven off the land or had simply claimed the water for their own.

Some were too close to human people, some were too heavily sailed, some were simply not very nice to swim in.

But there was this place off the southern coast of the Empire where wise captains did not send their ships.  And there was this place deep in this cove where people lived.

Elliallein and Milleffeou conferred in the shadows.  Mille had the sort of magic that allowed her to take on legs, and the sort of voice that sometimes convinced people to listen.  And so she would wander to the ports and tell people how unwise it was to portage all the way around rather than just sailing through the cove, or she would tell people how good of fishing there was deep in the cove.

Elliallein was too far from the humans to do that.  Her magic was a different sort – the sort that came later.  She draped a necklace over her cousin’s neck and hummed a little song.  There would be boats along soon.  There always were.

And when there were, the sea here would do what it always did, and very few boats would make it out alive.

But Elliallein and her sisters and cousins, they would save who they could.  Some they would drag to shore, of course.  But the best ones, the strongest swimmers….

Elliallein’s magic would teach them how to swim properly.  And her children and theirs might be able to walk on land.


Written to Eseme’s prompt: I quite like this one, because very colorful mermaid! Which likely indicates poison or something. I expect the tail has bright angel-fish fins. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/64528207131870453

Want more?

Mermay: The Date

Percival looked at the clock.  The day was right; the calculation was right; the ball was the perfect setting.
It had taken a little doing.  Yes, the Club had a ball like this once per year.  Yes, they held it in this place, the Grand Promenade, as it was called, right on the water.  These things were always true.  But to get them to move the date, to hold it not on a day of rest – that had taken all of Percival’s skill to convince his sister Gwendoline to convince the planners.  And it had taken no little bit of Gwendoline’s skill and leverage, either!

There she was, the grande belle of this grand ball, dancing with a handsome man in a top hat.  A handsome stranger.  Percival leaned forward.  This was the right time.  He checked the huge clock on the wall, the masterpiece of the clockmaker’s craft.  Where were they?  Where were the Creatures?

“Oh, don’t trust that cake, m’lord.”  The waiter passing by pressed a glass of sherry into Percival’s hand.  “It’s always gone two minutes slow, and nobody can make it right.”

Two minutes…

Percival’s little pocketwatch clicked and tinged midnight.

Were those… tentacles suddenly sliding out of Gwendoline’s dress?  And from behind the had of her dance partner?

“Nooo.”  Even now, it was only a whisper.  He had come so far.  He had done so much…

But they weren’t supposed to manifest within his sister!


Written to Kelkyag’s prompt Intrigues at the ball.  It feels either like Science! or Things Unspoken, or like Victorian Fairy City. 

MerMay: Breathing, Barely

So Chanter-Greenie asked for a continuation of Under Water, and it turned out I already had 500+ words written on that, so voila!  

Aelia screamed.  The secretary screamed some more.  The man gasped, screamed, and spat up water all at once.

“Call an ambulance,” Aelia repeated.  Her voice at least sounded like her voice.  “I’m Aelia Hartman. I know I look – funny, sure – but this is the guy who just tried to drown me.  I fought back. He’s breathing but I’m worried about him. Please call 911.”

The secretary, staring, pulled out her phone and dialed 911.  Once she had gotten through the phone call – full of shaky words and not a small amount of gibbering – she looked at Aelia again.  “Are you really-”

“Yeah, sorry.  I don’t know what happened.”  She poked the man in the chest.  “You. Stay there. You need medical attention, and also, I think you’re a murderer.” Continue reading

MerMay: Family

Addergoole, sometime after year 9

“I don’t, uh…”  He wasn’t exactly uncomfortable, something more like amused and a little awkward.  “I mean.  That is.  Girls…?”

The last time this had come up, he’d gotten punched.  Not by the girl; by her brother.

This woman – this girl?  This Valkyrie with the horns curling out of her head and eyes like shadows themselves, she just smiled at him. “Conveniently, I don’t do guys.” Continue reading

Mermay: Pedestal

They had given her a plinth.

They collected the most interesting members of every family, and for them, she was very interesting indeed.

There were three of her distance cousins who also had plinths, but hers was the highest and the most decorated.  And if there was a chain, and she could not swim that far from her plinth, well, many others had chains as well, in this land.  It seemed to her, watching the land from her water-bound pedestal, that there were more people with chains than without. Continue reading

MerMay 1: Fourteen, Fifteen…

Her lungs were burning.  Her ears were popping.  Her face felt like it was going to explode.  Her throat felt like it was on fire.  She couldn’t take it any longer.

Audrey held on to the weight and counted to twenty.  She could do twenty more, maybe fifteen more, eleven-twelve-thirteen oh god. Four… teen, Fif-teen.

She popped up out of the water, trying not to scream.

It wasn’t working. Continue reading

Mer-May

Warning: Pinterest

In honor of Pinterest getting sub-boards (YAY!) and Mer-May and… things… I offer this prompt call.

Either:

Check out my Addergoole Changes Pinterest board and/or the Mermaids sub-board (I’m still moving stuff…)

or my Tumblr tags Addergoole Change and/or Addergoole Changes

(or just do some google image searching)

Pick an image, and prompt me with it.

Text along with the image is welcome (“what is he plotting?” “Why is she there?” “This should be in Things Unspoken…”)

No promises I’ll get to them all, but I’ll try to do at least a few a week all May.

(Aquatic creatures are clearly the preference but not required)