Page 66 of Between Salt and Serenades
“Mmm?” The muffled sound came from the other room, where Zellia reluctantly sat up on the settee and stretched out her spine. Her hair, while now free of scales and slime, was reminiscent of a straw bird’s nest. She wiped at her drool-coated chin and smoothed out the black witch’s dress that laid crumpled in her lap. It was odd seeing her like this—dwelling onland as if she’d been born human. I wondered if she felt equally as perplexed as she watched me maneuver around Rory’s tiny cottage.
“Sid, it’s far too early to be awake. Couldn’t you be any quieter?”my sister’s voice echoed in my mind. At first, I thought nothing of the sound, but when I attempted a response, I realized my mind was blank. There were no words to send back to her, just gibberish and stray thoughts.
My head swung around to glance at Rory, and I asked, “Did you hear that?”
“Your sister’s downright musical yawn?” he asked, transfixed on my sister’s ratty appearance.
He didn’t hear her.
“Zel?” I asked. “Say that again.”
“Couldn’t you be any quieter?” she asked again, as if to confirm that’s what she’d said the first time. She ran her parted fingers through her hair like a thick comb, smoothing out the bits that stuck out until her hair was silky and straight once more.
“But you said it in my mind the first time, you know that, right?”
“I did?” she asked, her head cocking.
“You didn’t realize?”
“I think I’m too tired and hungry to realize much of anything. Can you not talk in people’s minds on land like in the sea?”
“No, never,” I admitted then attempted to reach her again. Nothing. “Interesting. I suppose we haven’t tested everything you can do on land yet. I shouldn’t have assumed we would have the same magic. We never did in the sea, either.”
Sure, our magic was similar. Anyone full blood, or close to it, had standard siren magic, but all our skills varied slightly. Mine made it easier to hunt, and Zellia’s was great for healing. Isuppose now it was time to figure out what it meant for her on land.
“Rory, will you fix Zellia something to eat while she messes around with her magic a bit? Make sure she doesn’t… I don’t know, break anything.” My back turned to my sister as I spoke. “I’m going to go check on Breena and get myself together for the day.”
“She’s not going to accidentally kill me or anything, will she?” he asked, his eyes darting from my sister to me.
“How should I know?” A devious smile crept onto my face as I made my way out of the kitchen.
“Do ya like sausage?” I heard Rory nervously ask Zellia as I entered his spare bedchamber.
Breena laid unmoving on the bed. If I hadn’t known otherwise, I’d think she looked perfectly at peace. I sat on the edge of the mattress closest to her and reached for her hand. While my songs couldn’t heal or wake her like Zellia’s could, I could certainly sing the lullaby I’d crafted for her the week earlier. My eyes fell closed, and I envisioned flat, warm rocks misted by the sea. I could almost hear the gulls in my mind as my lips parted.
There was no way for me to know what was going on in that mind of hers, but I could at least make her slumber more restful. I could make her feel at home as she slept in this strange bed.
When my song was over, my aching body found some relief, and I hoped Breena’s had too. I stripped out of the evening gown and threw on the white dress I’d donned a few days earlier. Zellia wasn’t the only one in need of a new dress. Breena and I had a bag jammed with a few items from my dad’s old place, but nothing to call our own except the pendant around my neck and the tail Breena couldn’t seem to rid herself of.
I crept around the corner when I was sufficiently ready for the day. I’d overheard Rory explaining what sausage was, andI didn’t miss Zellia’s horrified expression. I chuckled under my breath as I watched the pair from afar. Rory set a glass of water and a cup of tea in front of her, and she stared down at her hands, presumably wondering what she was still capable of here on land.
Within seconds, the water erupted out of her glass, and piping hot tea began bubbling over the sides of the ceramic mug. The wooden chair she’d been sitting in scraped across the floor as she stood to dodge her own mess.
With a flick of my wrist, every last droplet of water and tea began slithering from the floor, up a leg of the table, and back into their appropriate vessels. Zellia flashed me a sheepish grin as I leaned on the wall across the room.
“You have some work to do,” I said with a laugh.
“I’ll get there, don’t you worry.”
Zellia’s eyes flicked back to the cups, and as she raised her hands to try again, I said, “There’ll be time for that later. We’ve got places to be.”
The brass bell rang out as we walked into our grandfather’s shop, but I could barely hear its chime over Zellia’s excited babbling. While we waited at his front desk for him to appear, Zellia’s eyes hopped from one glass piece to the next with a small, amused grin.
Even though this visit was a family affair, I wished Breena was here with us. Zellia would only be on land for so long, and I wanted the important people in my life to know each other, to love each other just as I loved them.
When a few minutes passed and our grandfather still hadn’t come out from his workshop, I called out his name. When thatdid nothing either, I grabbed Zellia’s hand and gently guided her behind his counter, saying, “Let’s go.”
I called out for him again as I pushed open his workshop door, his name coming out as a question this time.
