I'd been thinking about pronouns long before my previous post. Here's a little story about a character who went from she to he. This young man has decided to embrace being 'he', although he's still getting used to it, along with his legs.
She gripped the staircase railing, trying to find her, no his balance in this new human form.
“Is walking so difficult, my son?” The man waited at the bottom of the staircase, holding one hand outstretched toward her…him. Ready to catch his child if she..he…fell.
“I’m not used to legs, Father.” Her tail had been more purposeful and powerful, propelling her with great force through the water. “Nor am I accustomed to manmade structures.”
Both defy nature and the gods. It was on the tip of the former mermaid’s tongue to say it, but she stopped herself.
He was one of the defiant now. A man.
“You’ll adapt to them, given time.” Father’s hand was smooth, unweathered, except for calluses from writing. “This world is yours as much as mine. You were born to it.”
“I don’t remember it. I grew up in the waters and upon the shores.” All he had to do was close his eyes, to recall the stinging splash of salt water, the playful giggles of her sisters, inviting her to the games mermaids practiced in preparation for the ones they’d entrap mortal men within.
Only she was no longer an aquatic predator. She…he…had found his legs.
He had found his place, the human family he’d been snatched from as an infant.
Resolute, he made his way down the stairs and claimed his father’s hand. It felt so warm, tingling with affection and love.
Yes, this was something more mermaids never felt, even if flirted with the notion, delighting in it, like some bright, shining bauble, or a tear running down the cheek of a human.
The young man savored the sensation, the warmth, feeling something soften in his once cold chest.
“I’ve come home,” he whispered, marveling at the wonder of the words as much as everything else.
Tears gathered in the corner of his father’s eyes. He didn’t let go of his son’s hand.
If he’d still be a mermaid, she would would have dragged the man down into the watery depths. Perhaps this lord of this earthbound castle was aware of this, yet willing to be taken.
He just wanted to pass on all he had to his child, to have someone he could leave his legacy to.
This didn’t mean the lord was without tenderness for his offspring any more than a mermaid was without feeling for her prey.
“Do you remember this place at all?” His father stroked his hand, gazing at him with anxious eyes.
His son considered a comforting lie. This man might be happier with one.
“I’m sorry, Father.” Honesty spilled from his lips, like water gushing out of a crack. “I wish I could remember it.” He lifted a free hand to caress the wooden carving of the railing. Such delicate grooves and whorls, creating a new shape, had it really been the work of human fingers?
Yes. This, too, was part of their world, this creativity, this transformative power to make something new of what already existed.
“I’m willing to learn.” He met his father’s eyes, felt his heart beat a little faster, stretching his lips into a smile.
This was human emotion. This was also part of his birthright.
There was so much to learn.
The former mermaid had a feeling he was going to be too occupied to miss his former games. Not that he had any desire to resume them.
Time to start a new life on land. Hopefully the land was ready for him.
The young man’s smile widened.
That's a powerful piece. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome and thank you! (blushes)
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