Chapter 4

"Knock knock."

"Hello?" "Hi Bob, Daisy, and Mia you're here to see Penelope I assume?" "She is sleeping up stairs."

"Thank you Danny so much for helping our daughter."

"You're welcome."

I showed them up the stairs but when I opened the door she was nowhere to be found.

"What?" "I thought you said she was here?" "What happened to her?"

"I don't know, she was here when I went to sleep on the couch." "I will help you look for her."

"Yes." "Danny is right Daisy, let's get to looking."

"Bob, what if we don't find her?" "What if she went back because she didn't want to see us?"

"Mrs. Daisy she wouldn't have gone back to her land mother because she is a sea witch and plus she told me herself she wanted to see all of you." "We will look at land first.

We got to the surface in no time but what we saw was horrible.

"Mother, father, what happened here?"

"It was a live death, a sea witch has been burned to death Mia, something you never want to see."

"Father what's that cross in the sand for?"

"No, please don't say it."

"Daisy please don't worry she is not there she must be somewhere safe now."

"What should we do?" "She could be anywhere?"

"Danny and I will look around on land, you and father look in the water."

"Danny, where do you think she could be?"

"I don't know Mia." "But we will find her."

I know if she was here and witnessed that she would be somewhere on land hiding.

"I hope she is alright."

We looked around for a long time then I looked to my right to see a silhouette of hair and it looked like they were in a ball.

"Danny, I think I found her."

I ran to where Mia was pointing.

"Penelope are you alright?" "Are you hurt?"

She has been crying.

"Penelope what happened?"

I looked up to see my sister and Danny around me. Why are they even looking for me?

"You all should leave." "Get away from me."

"What?" "Why?"

"I don't want to put you in danger and you all staying here you are in danger."

"What are you talking about?" "You're not putting any of us in danger."

"Yes I am." "Just look at what's around my neck."

"You're overreacting, we can just take that thing off."

"No, please don't try." "I have gotten zapped way too much, it just won't come off." "I am begging you both to leave right now before you get hurt."

"Mia, please go get your parents."

"Ok."

"Penelope please tell me how this all happened."

"Why?"

Warm tears fell down my face remembering everything. I don't want to ever remember anything about last night. I felt my heart shatter.

"Please." "What happened last night?"

"Nothing."

"Penelope please, I am begging you." "Something had to have happened if you were here crying with that thing around your neck."

"I don't magically."

"Come on, we are wasting time." "Your face is standing with tears and you are still crying."

"Fine!" "My land mother called me and she was very sweet about it and for some reason I felt like I could trust her just one more time." "When I got to land everything went black when I came to I was tied up then they burned my mother they wouldn't let me look away." "Before she died she apologized for saying she didn't know they would hurt me if she did she wouldn't have done anything that had to do with mermaids she said she was sorry for doing everything she had done." "That made me realize she truly loved me."

What have I done? My land mother loved me even though she was forced to call me back here to put a tracker on me to save her life so she could still be here for me but yet they turned on her and still killed her.

"I am sorry for what happen."

"Thank the gods you're alright."

"Yes mother, I am alright."

"How or why did you come back to land?"

"Because I wanted to see my land mother one more time there was something about the way she called to me." "I knew I could trust her." "You shouldn't judge them just because they are called sea witches." "That doesn't really define them, it's just a nickname given to them because of something one of them did." "My land mother was always so nice to me but now she is gone."

"Excuse me if she is your mother then what does that make me?"

"My real mother."

We don't need anymore drama right now.

"She's right Daisy, you are her true mother no matter what other mother she had before finding you."

"No, She's wrong." "I should have left her on land so I didn't have to deal with this problem that she had put on herself."

"Mother, is that what I am to you a problem?" "Have I always been a problem for you?" "Is that why you sent me to land?" "You all should leave."

"Penelope."

"Leave!"

Flames surrounded me. What is going on? How am I able to do this?

"Fine but remember I won't give up, I will come back everyday until I figure it out to get that thing off your neck."

What in the world just happened? Flames? That's impossible.

"Bye Danny."

***

"Why isn't she moving from the shore?"

"She knows that we want the mermaids so she is playing it smart."

"Why is she being s difficult?"

"Maybe we should have burned Janie after we got all the mermaids."

"Yes your right we should have done that we could have black mailed Penelope." "Let's just give her a shock to see if she will move."

***

"Ouch!"

I didn't even touch the caller. I wish Danny was here.

"Ouch."

Stop the caller please. I didn't do anything to you.

"Penelope I am here."

"Danny." "Ouch!"

"What's happening?"

"The thing around my neck keeps shocking me." "I didn't do anything to it."

"Wow it must have been for a long time." "Your face is red and tears are just flowing down your face."

I have to figure out how to get it off and face or it could kill her.

Moments later

"Finally it's off."

"Thank you so much Danny."

"By the way, how did you do that flame thing?"

"I don't even know myself." "I thought that it was cool."

"I know you're the only mermaid that I have ever seen or heard of that could do something like that."

"Really?"

"Yes." "It just makes no sense." "Not even our ancestors can do anything like you have."

"How is it possible for me to do anything like this?"

"That's the question." "How?" "The only thing that I can see that is possible is that one of the mermaids went to land and fell in love with a sea witch and then you came along."

"What?" "You're saying that I am two things?"

"Yes." "I believe that if that is true your real mother was the mother you had on land."

"That's probably why I was so close to her." "Danny thanks for helping me."

"Not a problem." "Let's go tell your family."

"No!" "I don't think that would be a good idea."

"What?" "Why not?"

"Well you saw what happened when my mother got mad at me." "I don't think it would be a good thing to go see them right now."

"But they don't know, they deserve to know the truth." "You have to tell them."

"Sigh." "I suppose you are right." "Let's get this over with."

I don't know. What will they say?

"Knock knock."

"Hello?" "Penelope?" "Hey Daisy, Mia Penelope's here." "Well look at that you got that horrible thing off your neck."

"Yes it is gone and I am so relieved."

"Penelope?"

"Hi Mia."

"What do you think you are doing here?"

"I have something I need to tell all of you." "I am sorry but I am not your real daughter."

"Sweety we already knew that."

"What?"

"Yes, your Father Jack brought you here when you were the tiniest baby." "He wanted you to be hidden from all mermaids because you're different and if they found out they might have killed you." "Someone like you scares people and they will not hesitate to destroy what they are scared of."

"Did he ever tell you who my mother was and why she left me?"

"No, just some human, we are not sure who the lucky woman was." "The reason why he didn't tell us was to keep us safe from harm."

"When were you planning on telling me?"

"Were sorry we just didn't know when the right time was we didn't want to tell you because we loved you so much like our very own one day you took Mia and went to the surface that is when we never saw you two again well until you came of age and Daisy went and found you and brought you both home safely."

"What?!" "Penelope, you're the reason why I never had real parents?"

"Mia please, you were both so young."

"So Daisy you lied yet again to me." "You said that we were sent up there to be safe when it was all my fault." "I have to go."

"Penelope." "Sigh." "Danny, please keep her safe."

"I will Mr. Bob." "Penelope, wait up." "Do you want to do something fun?" "To get your mind off of things?"

"Sure."

"Come with me."

"Where are we going?"

"I am taking you to a special place that I like to go to when I am upset about something."

We were both quiet as we swam to the place.

"Are you ready?" "We have to have legs to go to that place."

"Yes."

(Singing)

Tails transform into our land legs.

We walked onto shore.

"Here we are." "Home away from home."

"Wow this is beautiful, it's an underwater cave." "Wow I love it."

Why am I crying?

"Penelope are you alright?"

"Better than that." "When did you find this place?"

"When I wanted to be alone I would wander around and one day I came across this beautiful cave."

"That is such an amazing story."

I still can't believe that everything that has happened was all my fault. No, don't do this to yourself. Don't cry. Why can't I keep them in?

"What's wrong?" "Please Penelope, it's not good to hold anything in."

"I am sorry I wish I was a normal mermaid like everyone else but I am not." "Cough,cry." "It's all my fault."

It's hard to breathe while crying. That's when I started to cough.

"Penelope it's not your fault maybe there was a reason why you brought Mia up to the surface with you."

"What reason?" "There is no reason why I decided to take Mia and myself to land, there's no other reason than that I am a witch and nothing more."

"You are more a mermaid with powers and you're not who you were years ago."

"That's not trying, you see how I treated my step mother just five minutes ago." "I am a monster just like the witches that killed my mother."

Why can't he just understand what I am saying?

"Penelope, you were just upset, scared, and confused."

I have to calm her down. She still doesn't know how to use her powers; anything can happen when she is emotional.

"You can't let others define who you are."

"I am not!!"

He's right I really do let people define me. I started to cry again.

"I am sorry Danny, you're right."

"Sigh."

That's the last thing I wanted to do was make her cry.

"I am sorry I didn't want to make you cry, I am just trying to tell you that you're not evil."

"I know and it's my fault for yelling at you."

I wrapped my arms around myself. I sat down and cried harder.

"Why am I screwing up so much?" "I am sorry."

I watched as Penelope started to break down. What can I do to help?

"You're not a screw up."

I sat down beside her.

"You want to know what my parents would say about this?"

"What?"

"You may screw up but everyone does just keep your head high and do the best that you can."

"That's a great saying."

I leaned on Danny.

"Thank you."

There's that smile I have been waiting to see again.

"You have an amazing smile, please don't let anyone tell you differently."

Sleep took us over.