"Come on Pip!"

The dog obediently followed his owner as she stepped out into the fading daylight. It was that odd time in-between the late afternoon and early evening, right before the sun set. The world had a soft glow to it that made Jess smile as the warm air hit her skin.

She had recently discovered that she enjoyed taking walks, especially during this hour. Her dog, Pip followed wherever she went, and while walking him had used to be a chore, now it was her favorite part of the day. The switch from taking him in the later hours of the day opposed to the early mornings made all of the difference. She lived in a small beach town, where grass and sand mixed together, the salty smell of the ocean was a constant presence, almost everyone knew each other, and she found herself waving to neighbors sitting out on their porches. She would be lying if she didn't say she loved it.

She walked down to the water, where the tide was low, and the waves were small. She could see out for miles. The water had an almost golden hue, as the sun began to fall, and streaks of color began to cross the sky. It was almost too perfect. She was staring at the water and the sky, when Pip growled. He was an old, mellow dog, and rarely barked or growled. Startled, Jess looked down at him, and then let her gaze follow his. A set of footprints were heading into the ocean. She looked out, at the empty beach, and then to the seemingly empty ocean. Pip continued growling. "What do you see buddy?" Then, a loud splash. Pip barked, and Jess's head swiveled. But, alas, there was nothing there. The water glimmered, looking the same as it always had. But something felt off. Suddenly she felt a feeling she had learned to become all too familiar with. Her head whipped around, as she wildly searched for where it was. Scared, she cut her beach walk short, turning around and calling for her dog before walking home.

That night, she laid in bed, still unable to shake that feeling. It had been a good few years since the last time, but she knew it immediately. She was being watched. She fell into a restless sleep, and even then, had dreams of aquamarine lights, bright, oh so bright and the feeling of floating, submerged in the depths of the ocean she loved so much. She sat up, rubbing at her face. Stepping out of bed and into the bathroom, she splashed cold water onto her face and stared into the mirror. A pair of big brown eyes stared back. Her hair was wet and sticking to her face, pale strands still managing to look bright in the dark lighting. There were dark circles under her eyes.

The next week continued as normal, well, mostly normal. Every night the dreams came back, each more vivid then the last. She avoided the beach as best as she could, only going once with her friends. They asked her what was going on, what happened, and why was she acting like this around her favorite place? The trip was fine, but she still couldn't shake the thought that someone was watching her, even when all of her friends were engaged in an animated conversation and everyone else seemed to not take any notice of her.  She went back to where she had seen the footprints, and as she suspected they were gone. Probably washed away. It was odd, how something so seemingly minor had caused such a huge reaction in her. It was almost visceral how acutely she had felt on that day, but she tried with all her might to move on from it. It was nothing after all, right?

Slowly, but surely her mind began to go back to normal, letting go of the strange fear that followed her almost as faithfully as Pip. Her beach walks returned, and the once deafening anxiety dulled into a quiet buzz. Until the night it happened again. She was walking, a bit later than usual, but as she always did, the darkness becoming to envelop the beach in its cool embrace. But, almost like clockwork, Pip growled. Oh no. Her stomach dropped and she turned. Sure enough, footprints. A seemingly fresh set of then heading right back into the ocean. Oh no. Not again. The splash, louder this time, almost as if it was closer. Oh no. Everything in her was screaming at her to turn around, leave, run home and take Pip with you, but she stood fast. "Go home buddy." The dog looked up at her, and through a moment of communication that needed no words, ran off back in the direction they had come from. Jess stood tall and stared at the ocean. She felt a little silly, but she wanted to put an end to this madness. Whatever was watching her was still doing it, and she stared, looking for whatever it could be. She stood for five minutes, watching, searching the waters for anyone, anything, slowly getting angrier and angrier. She could never have anything nice, anything she enjoyed without it getting ruined. Her old best friendship? Ruined by her fears the first time this happened. Being popular in school? Ruined by the old friend telling everyone that Jess was scared of the water and some other things were entirely untrue, reputation ruining things.

Rage built up, louder and louder as all of the memories flooded back. Opening her locker and finding it full of soaked tissue paper in middle school, having a bucket of water dumped on her head when she went out for recess once, finding her art final cut up and thrown into the sink once. All because of her stupid old friend and this stupid old fear. Thank goodness high school had been different, her friend moving away Jess having a chance to restart. She didn't want to lose everything again. "Just come out already I know you're there." She spoke loud and clear, hoping that nobody saw her. And nothing, for a moment or two.

Until slowly, the waves began to grow larger, taller, and more violent. Jess backed up, knowing that the crash could easily injure her. An 8-foot wave crashed down, swallowing her in salt water. She fell, coughing as it receded. She was fully soaked. She stood up, ready to bolt out of the beach when her eyes landed on a woman. A naked woman who was standing in the water, seemingly unshaken by the waves.

She smiled. "You finally found out."

Not a lot of people believe in fairy tales. They think that it’s just stories read to you as a kid. Snow White, Ariel, Rapuzel, Merida… it’s all the same. The princess falls has something tragic happen, then is saved. This one though, this one is different. This one is mine. And I’m the villain. The villain who sings people to their sweet death, drowning in the vast sea. This wasn’t how I always was, though. Just how I came to be, after one day on the beach…

It was early in the morning; the sun not up yet. I was walking down the beach, on my way home from my friends house, after a party. I saw a spire shell washed up on the sand. I picked it up. It was beautiful. It was splattered with browns and blacks and grays. There were footsteps in the sand, leading to the ocean. They weren’t washed away by the tide yet, and I wondered if someone was surfing or kayaking. This early in the morning? They must have gone out recently. A sweet noise arose from beyond, in the ocean, far out. A head rose out of the water, looking directly at me. I walked towards it, a hum overtaking my body. I wasn’t aware of what I was doing, just that I was being pulled deeper and deeper into the ocean. I couldn’t stop moving, not even as the water grew to my torso. The figure moved towards me, pulling me towards them. My throat closed up as I was submerged in the water. The humming stopped. Before me, was a young woman. I looked around with my eyes, still unable to move my body. Then I noticed something odd. She didn’t have legs. She had fins. Like the mermaid tales that you see in fairy tales. Her didn’t look like that, though. Hers was black, moving back and forth in the water victoriously. Two fins poked out of her sides, moving with the tail. I felt my body loosen, and I gasped. I chocked on water, trying to swim up towards the surface. A hand enclosed around my ankle, pulling me down. I heard a hissing noise. I didn’t look, afraid of what I would find. Something cut into my ankle, drawing blood. I looked down. She’d bitten my ankle. She seemed to sniff in the blood. My head grew light, I felt dizzy. Was I going to drown? Was this where I died? My eyes fluttered open and closed, losing sense of what was up and what was down. My head spun, and I felt movements in the water around me. Then, my eyes closed, and all I could see was black.

It had been a month since the incident. I still wasn’t sure if it’d really happened, but I had a scar on my ankle shaped like a bite mark. This is why, when my friend asked I wanted to go to a bonfire on the beach tonight, I’d said no. But yet, here I was. Walking down the beach holding a basket of marshmallows and chocolate and crackers. I wasn’t sure why I was in charge of bringing the snacks, since I hadn’t planned on going. “Hey, Monica, over here!” Shouted one of the people crowded around the campfire. I realized that I didn’t know more than half of them. I waved, none the less. I looked towards the ocean, out of habit. My head throbbed. I winced. I’d been having bad headaches for the last couple weeks, and medicine didn’t seem to help. I had my bathing suit underneath my shirt and shorts, but I wasn’t sure if I’d have the courage to get in the water. As I approached the fire, I heard mumbling. “She actually brought snacks? Doesn’t she know we’re just out here to smoke and get high?” and “Ugh, why’d Jason even invite her?” and “Isn’t that your ex’s friend?” I scoffed. It’s like I wasn’t even here. I set the basket down, glaring at them as I did. They rolled their eyes, turning back towards the fire. “Hey, glad you could make it, I wasn’t sure that you would be able to come.” Jason said, chuckling. I smiled at him. “Yeah, sorry, I had homework, but I got it done,” I glanced around. “I’m glad I could come. Thanks for inviting me.” He grinned. “Yeah, no problem!”

I lasted fifteen minutes before the smoke overwhelmed me, and I decided to take a walk down the beach. The waves were crashing into each other smoothly, back and forth. It was calming. My heart began to race. It sang to me, drawing me near. No one would notice if I was gone for just a moment. I slipped off my clothes, letting the air touch my shoulders and legs. I walked in, until I was below the surface. My heart was pounding, my throat closing, but I didn’t want to move. Didn’t want to swim up, towards the surface. My legs felt sticky, pulling themselves towards each other. They seemed to wrap around each other, making a spiral. The sides of my throat bulged away from the skin, then ripped. I lifted my hand up to notice that I had webbing in between my fingers. I gasped, instinctively. I didn’t choke on water. What was happening? I breathed in. Bubbles floated out of my mouth. I tried again. I still didn’t choke. I was sinking towards the bottom and my legs started to touch the sand. I tried to move them to stay floating. It didn’t work. I looked down. I didn’t have legs anymore. They were replaced with a long… mermaid tail. Black fins were at my side and where my toes would have been, flowing with the water. I reached to touch my neck again. I felt three tears in my neck on either side. Gills. I moved up, and stopped when I felt my ears. They weren’t round anymore, they were pointed with webbing along the side. I heard a giggle from behind me. I turned, or tried to, and failed, just turning my head. A figure moved in front of me. It was the girl from earlier. “You look confused. Have you never heard of a siren before?” A siren? That’s what… I was turning into? I swallowed. If she could talk, then so could I. I tried. “W… what’s happening?” She moved so she was in front of me. “Your a siren now. Y’know, like the creatures that sing to men and kill them.” She chuckled. “So… your like an evil mermaid.” She scoffed. “Ugh, no. Mermaids are the evil ones. They just get all of the prasie because of their beauty. But they can’t walk on land, like we can.” She grinned, watching me. “Ok,” I said, processing it. “But why am I like this? Why is this happening to me—if it’s even real and I’m not hallucinating…” I raised my arms, noticing that I had a fin extending from my elbow. She sighed. “Cause I bit you, how else? You get turned into a siren by blood being shared, or taken by another siren. And this is real.” “But why me?” She shrugged, looking away. “I saw you, and was bored.” I stared at her. “You made me into a siren… because you were bored?” “Yeah, pretty much.” I clenched my hands. Really? “And you didn’t have anything better to do?” “Nope, sorry.” She shrugged, starting to swim away. “C’mon, I have to escort you to the city.” The city? Of what, sirens? I tried to follow, but flipped in a circle instead. I made a frustrated noise. Clearly physics wasn’t going to be good for anything. She chuckled again. “Need help?” My ears burned. “Yes…” I didn’t know her name. “What’s your name?” She came to me, helping me stay still. “Tay. Yours?” “Monica.” She sighed. “It’s been a while since I’ve explained to someone how to… move.” Tay moved back, giving me space. “Ok, imagine you still have your legs. Squish them so they would be side my side, touching. The move them at the same time.” I tried, and failed. I tried again, and I flipped a circle. Tay sighed. “This is going to take a while.”

After I’d learned how to move forward, turn, and stop, we started to make our way towards the… city. Which, Tay said, was a city of sirens. I wondered how long I’d been down here. If wondered if Jason was worried. She’d said that we could walk on land, so I wasn’t trapped here. We’d already been swimming for what felt like an hour. “How much farther?” My legs… fins were starting to get tired. “Not long, maybe ten minutes.” “How long have we been down here?” “Two hours, I think. I’ve been down here longer than you, though.” She grinned to herself. She suddenly stopped, then dove down. She hadn’t taught me how to dive. I thought abt what she’d told me. I imagined my legs stuck together, moving at the same time. I moved forwards, towards the drop off and tipped my body downwards. I moved my fin back and forth, propelling me through the water. I couldn’t see anything. It was pitch black. “Your a black fin. You can see in the dark. Just imagine the space around you body lighting up.” Tay said, from somewhere ahead. I closed my eyes, imagined seeing myself in the water, and light eliminating around me. “Open your eyes.” I did, noticing that we were at the bottom of a ravine. Tay was in front of me, and her fins and webbing were glowing a soft gray. I looked down; mine were too. “All… black fins can do that?” “Yeah. The fin color represents what you need to most when you turn, and it gives you that power.” That made sense, I guess. Had I needed light? Maybe it represented life or something like it. “How many different colors are there?” “Nine. Warms, Cools, and Neutrals.” “And each has different power?” I asked as she moved forward, towards the soft light coming through stacked rocks at the entrance of a cave. “Yep.” She said, turning her head as we both moved forward, into the cave. It wasn’t as dark as I’d expected it to be—even with the glowing… power, thing. She came to a stop, turning towards me. The cave ended, and I swam to the edge before it went dropped off. It gasped. It was the city. It was beautiful. “Welcome to Siren city, Monica.”

“Who are you?” I asked, staring at the prints beside mine. They were freshly made, not yet washed away by the steady stream of the waves. They led straight into the water, where no one was. I’ve heard legends of sirens. Mermaids, hippocampus, kelpies. Some happy children stories while others were filled with horror that passed from generation to generation. I took a deep breath of salty air and recalled every story my parents told me. Kelpies were almost always portrayed as mean spirited, catching people on their backs and dragging them into the water to drown. Similar to sirens, who’s music was so intricate no sailer could resist. Mermaids could be friendly, swimming alongside the fish or ferocious creatures with sharp teeth. I tilted my head to the side and studied the marks. Definitely human. And besides, those were just children’s stories anyways. Stories to convince kids to be good out on the boat. Stories for parents to use as threats when they misbehave. That’s why the stories are so widely known, anyways. I took a step out into the ocean. Something swam by my feet and I looked down, ready to see a fish beneath me. Then my feet were pulled from under me. I collapsed with a splash. Something was grabbing my legs. Down, down, down we went. My ears started popping. I thrashed, trying to release myself from the iron grasp ripping at my flesh. Then all went black.

It’s a summer day and you choose a secluded beach to walk along, the sand is littered with shells, sharks teeth, crabs and there’s even a nest of baby turtles.

The sun shines on your skin, it brightens and warms the air.

There isn’t a cloud in the sky, the sky shines a baby blue, and the rays of sun travel from it like a halo.

The ocean is calm and serene, you dip your feet in and the water ripples as you walk across it.

You stop and observe towards the water, you see fish dancing and swimming along. There is crabs below, reaching up to see what’s going on, you look below your feet, dipped in the shallows of water and notice a star fish appear.

You decide to turn around and notice there is footprints in the sand, but no one is in sight. Who could it be. As you observe, you notice the footprints aren’t human, they are tiny and you notice there is thousands of little prints in the sand.

Then you spot it, the nest you walked past on the way to the waters edge is the nest of turtles, they have hatched and are heading into the ocean.

They scurry away to find the water to begin their new life in the ocean.

I don’t remember leaving But I know I’m no longer here She claimed me long ago The shore hasn’t missed me since.

In little ways each day I leave bits of soul with her Plastic, pieces, polluting Particle everything.

Back on the sand My legs hold the shell of body That’s weighed me down Since I can remember.

And it’s only when I’m under the noise of floating and sinking Like closing my ears on land Sink into release, sink into relief.

The footprints lead in I pray they never lead out I pray to stay Inside her waves.

Gone Into the sea I no longer see Was that you It wasn’t me Are you gone forever Don’t say never I’ll see you again My old friend

Foot prints leading to no where. Did he she or other swim in the cold icy North Sea The foot prints were small slightly webbed unusually With 6 toes not 5 Imagine a mermaid swimming sea Tina far away kingdom undersea yet undiscovered It could have been a suicide the thought made me feel cold.

That one day I can’t forget the day I first saw the footprints. The footprints were not normal footprints that a human would make but ones an animal like a dog would make. I started following them but they always lead me to the small beach by our house, the one I couldn’t go to.

Then one day I followed it onto the beach knowing that if I got caught I would get in trouble but not caring about it. The footprints continued to the middle of the beach where a stick was stuck into the ground.

Then sand started flinging everywhere next to the stick so I knew now that it was a dog. I saw something wooden in the sand so I started digging with the dog. We had found a wooden box with something inside that was clinking around.

When she opened the box she found a small bottle full of a beautiful blue colored liquid. I picked it up and out of the box then a small drop of the liquid dripped out of what looked like a crack in the bottle and landed on the dog who was now at her feet.

When the blue liquid landed on the dog she could finally see him. He was a beautiful brown dog with black spots, but what was even more surprising was he then spoke to her in a little British accent

“Thank you Amber” he said “Wait how do you now my name and how can you talk and why were you invisible?” I asked him “Oh so many questions ok. 1, I heard your mom calling you Amber. 2, A spell was cast on me, and 3, another spell was cast on me.” He replied.

“Oh” I had said back “Well can I have you as a pet would you mind that? I’ve always wanted a dog.” “Oh yes! I would love that” he said so we walked home withy me finally being able to see him.

I searched for the culprit of those steps that lead so neatly to that retreating tide. Each a stamp that betrayed it, the drowned thing that visited our world. I reached into my jacket pocket and fingered the the grip of the pistol that weighed heavily there. Could I do the deed if given the chance? Kill that thing that wrought such evil upon my family?

The questions were many that passed through my mind, as the water soaked through my shoes, and all went unanswered. All I could focus on was the sound of the waves lapping against the sun like a hungry tongue. The sound which had once brought such calm to me now filled me with a building dread. My ears twinged at each irregularity in that sound, each break of the surf suggesting an emergence, a return of the beast.

When it eventually surfaced I almost didn’t see it. The sun had begun to set, and the waters surface had become confused by the evening sky above it. It was unmistakable now though, as it marched grimly towards me through the roiling waves. Its eyes locked on me like two great moons, shining their cold light on my face. I could smell it now, a putrid musk of dead and rotten things, and then I heard it, drawing whistling breathes into its many gills. I watched in frozen horror as it approached, webbed hang outstretched and grasping.

I hadn’t felt myself pull out the pistol and now I was peering down the sights at the thing and its searching hand. I squeezed the trigger.

One shot left its chamber and met its target - its scaly chest, glancing off of the shimmering carapace.

Another clipped the fin protruding from its head, sending a spout of black blood behind it.

The last missed its mark and flew clear of it and into the sea foam behind.

I didn’t have a chance to catch my breath before it lunged at me, pushing me down with its immense weight and pressing my head beneath the water. Salt water washed down my throat and burned in my lungs and as much as I struggled, the burden of its monstrous form lay heavy on me. I sank deeper into the wet sand and in a moment of morbid clarity, I thought it a fitting burial.

I wondered if they would find my body, or if I would be pulled out to sea by the tide like everything else. Nevermind, It’s over now.

The warm dry, ashy sand nessles between my toes as I walk down the spacious stormy beach in deep thought. I twist my head around, almost as swiftly as an owl. The low brushing sound of waves clashing fills the air. I breath in the strong intoxicating scent of salt infested water. Nobody is on this beach. Nobody but me. Not even a bird. It’s almost like a revery come true. The weeping clouds in the sky look down at me, showing remorse and sorrow. It’s about to rain and I can already sense thunder by looking at the grey horizon. The dim atmosphere is so perfectly gloomy it makes my heart feel delighted. Only a secluded beach can improve my sour mood. I’ve been dumped, discarded like trash. No one seems to understand heartbreak like nature does. The unsettled thunder and lightning foreshadows a destruction that mirrors my inner turmoil. There an ocean of its own raging inside my being. Yearning for love and redemption. I dip my feet in the foaming water on the empty shoreline, save for the several seashells distributed nicely across the dampened sand.. It’s cold, dominant and intimidating. It stings me like a bee and stuns me like a taser. I step back onto the damp sand. It’s all flat and smooth and looks untouched. The whole beach looks like it hasn’t been visited by human life in ages and no visible prints can be detected by the human eye. I strut back into the freezing ocean water as tiny rain drops start falling on my bare skin. The slight earthy smell of rain arises. I forcefully pull myself into the water until I’m waist deep and shivering because of the biting frozen cold water. I swish around and work my way out again, shying away from the icey cold. I’m even more cold now. Now it’s starting to pour and it’s also windy as fuck. It’s eating at my body parts and making me numb. No wonder this place is so unpopular at the moment. I glance to left then to my right. I see something. Something unexpected and strange. I long trail of footsteps, leading to the middle of the beach. No more. And there doesn’t seem to be anyone around either. So whose are they? Why did the footsteps just. Stop. I speed up and follow the steps that I swear were not there before I got into the water. They’re 100% human. Maybe female? I follow about ten meters worth of footsteps and then they just, end. I flinch when a loud booming sound of thunder and lighting overpowers the sky and surprises my ears. I should leave. This isn’t normal. There’s no way there’s no other visable footsteps and no one around either. I run. Run up the beach, and to the car park where my ride awaits. I turn around once more hoping to see other people also inhabiting the beach, ones who may own those unsettling prints. But what I see stops my heart. A woman. Dressed in ragged white with overgrown black hair floating above the water and defying gravity. Bloody hands. Pale skin and hands in the shape of feet. I then spot a sign. It reads, permanently closed due to abnormal and seriously paranormal activity please do not enter this beach. I don’t what really went down that day, but I know I won’t be going back. I still think about it and wonder if it was just a hallucination or maybe twisted reality.