Recalling all that she had lost, the Little Mermaid heeded not lavish the wedding ceremony but only contemplated the night of death, which approached apace.
On the same evening, the bride and the bridegroom boarded the ship while canons roared, and flags waved. With swelling sails and a favorable wind, the boat glided away smoothly and lightly over the tranquil sea. Everyone on board reveled with joy and jubilation.
Along the rest, the mermaid laughed and danced while thoughts of death pierced her heart. Grievously, she had no soul and now could never win one.
When all became still on board, the Little Mermaid leaned her trembling arms on the edge of the vessel and peered toward the east for the first blush of dawn, which would bring her inevitable death.
Palely, raising out of the sea, she was approached by her sisters.
“We have surrendered our silken, flowing tresses to the Sea Witch,” they told her, “to obtain help for you that you may not die tonight. Our aging grandmother so mourns for you that her hoary hair is falling off from sorrow, just like ours fell under the Sea Witch’s scissors.
“In exchange for our locks, the Sea Witch has given us a knife. Before the sun rises, you must plunge it into the prince’s heart. When his warm blood falls on upon your lacerated feet, they will form back into a fish’s tail. You or he must die before sunrise. Hasten, then. Do you not heed the first red streaks in the sky?” they asked.
Sighing deeply and mournfully, they sank beneath the waves.
Comments