A Tale That Never Was
Chapter 7: The Little Mermaid

Selvina climbed out of her small bed and meandered through the narrow space between all the bunks where she and the rest of the crew slept. It stank of sweat, body odour and passed wind. Crinkling her nose and holding her breath, she walked through the dim quarters to the light streaming down from the open hatch on the main deck. She then climbed the ladder leading up the opening and poked her head out, blinking her eyes from the intensity of the bright sun. After climbing out, she walked up the steps to the quarterdeck where she found Sinbad at the wheel. She furrowed her brow in confusion while watching him hold Red back with a hand on one of her arms, the both of them staring at something further down the deck.

“He’s going to get himself killed, Sinbad!” Red was saying through clenched teeth. Her blue eyes were wide and she appeared incredibly concerned. She struggled to free herself from Sinbad’s grip but he held her tightly. “Let me go! It’ll be your fault if Captain Hook gets killed!”

Sinbad gave her a wink and smirked. “He won’t get hurt, fire-haired one. He knows what he’s doing. Just watch.”

Wanting to know what was going on, Selvina followed their gazes and gasped when she saw what the commotion was about. Standing amidships was Captain Hook and Bigbad. The large wolf was seated on his haunches and was eyeing the captain intently. The captain held in his right hand what looked like a piece of meat. Jack stood beside him, holding a bag which Selvina only guessed was more meat. Every time Bigbad tried to snap his jaws over the meat chunk in the captain’s hand he’d receive a sharp smack on his muzzle. The wolf’s ears would bend back but he would lower his head, as if shamed. Many of the crewmen aboard the ship were watching with smiles on their faces.

Selvina couldn’t help but smile as well. Captain Hook was training Bigbad the wolf like a dog. She quietly walked down the steps and crossed the deck to stand beside Jack. He gave her a smile, which she returned with a blush, and the two watched the captain in action.

“Now you listen here, Bigbad,” Captain Hook was saying, his voice stern and authoritative. “Lad, you need to take this out of my hand nicely. I’ll have no rude wolves on my ship.” He showed the wolf the piece of meat and Bigbad went to clamp his teeth over it quickly. A loud smack was heard as Captain Hook hit the wolf’s muzzle with his left hand and both Jack and Selvina winced. Bigbad’s ears flattened and he peeled back his lips, showing his sharp fangs.

“You won’t intimidate me with those, boy,” the captain said, lowering the piece of meat. “I’ve told you already that if you want this meat you need to do as I say. My hand is faster than your mouth so you’re wasting your time trying to take it from me. Take it nicely. Do you understand?” Selvina watched Captain Hook stare into the wolf’s glowing blue eyes deeply. The two gazed at each other for several long moments as if having a mental conversation. She saw Bigbad’s ears stand up and his entire body relax. Something had happened but she didn’t know what.

Captain Hook lifted the piece of meat toward the wolf and the large animal sniffed it and then closed its jaws over it as gently as it could. The captain smiled wide and rubbed the wolf’s muzzle with his gloved hand. “That’s a good boy, Bigbad. How about another one?”

Bigbad wagged his tail and Selvina giggled as she watched the captain take another piece of meat from the bag Jack held and then fed it to the wolf. Bigbad took it gingerly and nuzzled the captain’s chest with his large muzzle. Captain Hook scratched behind the wolf’s ear and laughed.

Red burst onto the scene then, her eyes bulging and her face pale. “Is everything ok?”

Captain Hook nodded. “Aye, lass, all is well. You’ve got yourself a fine beast here. I just thought he’d like some chicken.”

“You could have just given it to him!”

Captain Hook nodded. “Indeed, I could have, but if he wants to remain on my ship he needs to follow the rules and know how to behave.”

Selvina furrowed her brow in bewilderment. “He’s just a wolf, though… It’s not like he knows what rules are…”

Captain Hook gave her wink. “He knows more than you think, princess. Isn’t that right, Red?”

Red nodded. “He is really smart. Why didn’t you just let me feed him though? Why did you go through all the trouble of doing it yourself?”

Hook shrugged. “I am the captain of this ship. He should obey me as well as he does you, which I am glad to say that he does.”

Selvina readjusted her corset and got a sudden whiff of foul body odor. She took a step back from Jack, blushing immensely, and hoped he hadn’t smelled her. She looked at the captain as he was returning to the wheel. “Uh, Captain Hook!”

He stopped walking and glanced back at her. “What’s the matter?”

“Nothing. Well, actually I was wondering if you maybe had any clothes that I could wear. I know there aren’t really any women onboard but this dress is starting to stink and I’m sweating in places I don’t want to talk about. My corset is also becoming uncomfortable…”

“A corset?” Jack asked with interest. “So that’s where that cleavage comes from.”

Selvina’s eyes widened like saucers and her face turned the same shade as Red’s cloak. She instinctively wrapped her arms around her chest and stormed away to stand closer to the captain. Red hadn’t heard Jack’s remark but she followed Selvina anyway. Bigbad eyed the young man with the bag of meat with great interest and licked his lips.

Captain Hook narrowed his eyes in thought as he pondered on Selvina’s request. “You know, I may have something in the old chest I have in the captain’s quarters. There should be a few dresses in there. It used to belong to a princess that fell in love with a monster or something of the like. I can’t remember her name but in any case she forgot the chest here and I’ve never got around to selling it. You’re welcome to have a look and see if anything in there fits. I certainly won’t be making use of it.” He gestured to the door to the captain’s quarters in the room underneath the quarterdeck.

Red and Selvina thanked him and proceeded through the door. The room was lavishly furnished with varnished oak furniture, a large bookcase, a magnificent wardrobe, a table and chairs, a massive bed at a far corner of the room, and several large wooden chests. One of them was set apart from the rest so the girls inspected that one first. It wasn’t locked thus they lifted the lid and looked inside. Many dresses of various colors and fabric greeted them and it did not take long before Selvina found one quite similar to the one she wore but in a darker blue. She was about to ask Red to turn away to dress up but then thought of something.

“I don’t want to wear this one stinking the way I do…” she complained. “Doesn’t he have a bath around here?”

Red laughed. “Selvina, these men live at sea. They sail on a bath.”

“I’m not the best swimmer, Red… I was never really good at physical activities and that water looks very deep…”

“Well, I saw us sail past a few islands early this morning. Maybe they can anchor the ship near one of them and you can go swimming near land. Hopefully they pass one again soon…”

Selvina shrugged and grabbed the dress. It was worth a try. She walked out onto the deck once more and found Captain Hook at the wheel. Sinbad was chatting with some of the crewmen and Jack was on the ground being licked to death by Bigbad, the bag of meat he had held on to ripped to shreds. She smiled at the adorable scene and then climbed up the steps to the captain.

“Your wolf is about to devour my best climber,” Captain Hook advised Red as she came up with Selvina. He didn’t appear worried but rather quite amused. “You might want to go help him out.”

Red shook her head, a great grin on her face, and walked across the deck, calling Bigbad’s name and ordering him to stop his licking. The large wolf listened obediently and lay down, his long tongue hanging out of his mouth and dripping saliva on the deck. Jack was still laughing and wiping the drool off of his body. He didn’t look injured at all.

“Did you replace what you were looking for?” Captain Hook asked Selvina.

“I did but I don’t want to wear it smelling the way like I do,” she replied. “Is there somewhere on this ship where I can clean myself?”

“The men have a pail and a brush belowdecks they use to clean most of the grime from their bodies. I wouldn’t use if I were you, though. That brush is probably full of hair from strange places. I can anchor the ship and you can swim out in the water. Would that work?”

“Well…it would but not in the middle of the ocean. Those waves look like they’d throw me around too much and I’d probably drown.” She felt ashamed telling the captain that. It made her feel weak and demanding.

Hook only nodded. “Fair enough, lass. There is an island maybe two furlongs off the starboard side. What say you to Jolly Roger anchoring near that so you can set your feet on solid ground?”

It was exactly what Red had suggested and Selvina nodded. “That would be great!”

“It is done then! I haven’t heard of any of my men cleaning up any of Bigbad’s gifts yet so it’s possible the large wolf needs a place to empty his load.”

“Eww…”

Captain Hook chuckled. “I’ll make sure to let Red know he doesn’t do it near you or in the water. The island looks big enough to give him some privacy so I’m certain you will be fine.”

Selvina hoped so. She didn’t want to be brushing herself clean only to replace a large, floating, brown log bump up against her. The thought itself nearly made her puke.

The ship closed the distance to the island rather quickly and its captain had his crew furl its sails and anchor it as close as it could get before hitting rocks. When Jolly Roger had stopped moving and was fixed in place a rowboat was brought up from the cargo hold and tossed overboard with a pair of oars. Sinbad, the girls, and Jack entered the boat and the oldest of the four rowed them to the rocky island. Bigbad watched from Jolly Roger’s deck and danced on his paws in anxiousness, his ears standing straight and his nostrils flared. Red finally called him and without any hesitation he leapt off the deck and landed in the water with a great splash. Paddling powerfully he swam to the rocky island which was not quite twice the length of the ship. Once he reached land he ran about, stretching his legs and flexing his muscles.

It wasn’t long before he found a spot behind some rocks to curl his back and lift his tail…

The rowboat reached the island just as Bigbad was finishing up and with instructions from Red the wolf clamped his mouth over the bow and used his great strength to pull it and everyone in it up on the island. Once the rowboat was securely grounded Red hopped out and began playing with Bigbad, tossing him driftwood and rocks to go chase. Jack stripped to his leggings and immediately jumped into the water. Sinbad sat against a boulder and soaked up the rays of the sun. Selvina grabbed the two brushes she had brought with her and ensured that they were free of any foreign hairs. She then found a large bush to hide behind as she undressed into her swimming attire. It consisted of little more than a strip of cloth around her chest, as the dress hadn’t allowed her to wear a bra, and her lower underwear.

Once inside the cold water she found a spot where she could be mostly submerged yet still feel the ground and then began to brush her body. She had no soap but the brush would have to do for now. She watched Jack float on his back and had an urge to splash some water on him but knew he’d do the same so she held back from acting, at least until she was done cleaning herself.

Enjoying the feel of the hair brush passing through her long strands of gold she closed her eyes and let it overtake her. She felt at peace for a few moments. She had accustomed herself to the water and the sounds of Red playing with Bigbad filled her with joy. She took a deep breath, taking in the scent of salt water, and exhaled slowly.

Opening her eyes slowly she found herself staring at a young woman with very long brown hair and yellow eyes so round they almost appeared fish-like. She was beautiful nonetheless with incredibly smooth skin, thick pouty lips and a slightly-upturned nose. She smiled at Selvina as she mimicked her hair brushing by grabbing some locks of her brown tresses and running the fingers of her other hand through them. She giggled and Selvina didn’t know whether she should scream or giggle with her.

“Would you look at that?” Captain Hook called out from the deck of Jolly Roger. “Is that a mermaid?”

Mermaid?! Selvina looked down through the water and saw that the young woman’s body ended in a scaly, fish-like tail. It swayed from side to side as she treaded water and the urge to scream intensified. Her upper body was human and completely naked but her thick locks of hair veiled most of her front. She had always loved mermaid movies but seeing one in the flesh was almost too much to handle.

“Say hello!” Captain Hook shouted. “She likes you, Selvina! Something like this rarely happens!”

Selvina gulped down some of her fear and shakily waved a hand and said, “Hello…”

The mermaid giggled again and raised one of her hands, placing it on Selvina’s. It felt so smooth it was almost slimy. She opened her mouth and tried to repeat the word but her voice didn’t come out properly. It was as if she was mute.

“Can you talk?” Selvina asked it. She had wanted to ask Captain Hook if it could but didn’t want to startle the mermaid by raising her voice. She noticed that Sinbad, Jack, Red and even Bigbad were watching. “Can you say….hello?”

The mermaid furrowed her brow in confusing and again tried to speak but could only manage a gurgled whimper. She arched her eyebrows and looked down, as if sad.

Selvina felt a strange pity for the young mermaid. “You can’t talk?”

The mermaid’s shoulders lowered and she looked away.

“My name is Selvina.” She put a hand on her chest, catching the mermaid’s attention once more. “Selvina.”

The mermaid studied her closely and then put her hand on Selvina’s chest. The young woman felt uncomfortable but she didn’t remove the hand. The mermaid didn’t appear to be dangerous. “Ssssss…”

Selvina smiled. “Yes! Selvina! That’s my name!”

“Ssssss!!”

“Haha! You’ve got it! Great job!”

Selvina didn’t know if it was her words or the smile on her face that the mermaid understood as her being happy but whatever it was the fish-like woman appeared overjoyed by it. She laughed and splashed the water, sending cold droplets all over Selvina’s exposed skin. It made her shiver but she didn’t mind it. She was talking with a mermaid—an actual mermaid! She splashed the mermaid’s face and that only made her splash Selvina even more. The two laughed as they splashed one another for several blissful minutes.

Jack suddenly swam up to them and tossed a huge wave on them both, laughing as he did so. The mermaid caught sight of him and widened her eyes in terror. Before anyone could do anything she dove underwater and was gone with a few flicks of her tail.

“Way to go, Jack!” Selvina scolded. “You scared her away, you dumb brute!”

Jack held his hands up innocently. “All I did was splash her!”

“Aye, that you did.” Sinbad said from his position against the boulder. “Young mermaids are afraid of men and are taught from a young age to avoid them. They like women well enough but not many women sail the seas so encounters with them are rare.”

Selvina glanced at the water around her, hoping to spot a glimpse of the mermaid again. “Will I ever see her again?”

Sinbad shrugged. “You might. Some have been known to follow women across the entire ocean to ensure they had a safe passage. If she liked you enough she might do the same.”

“I hope she does… I wasn’t afraid of her. I was at first but somehow I knew she didn’t mean to hurt me.”

“Young female mermaids are mostly harmless. As they get older some develop a singing voice and become sirens. Those are indeed dangerous, mostly just to men, though. Some never develop a singing voice and just live their lives as fish do. I’ve heard legends of a third type, though.”

“What kind is that?”

“It may just be the stuff of stories but legend has it that if a mermaid replaces true love with a man from the surface that she gains a voice and her tail splits into two legs. I have yet to meet a former mermaid so it may not be true.”

“She’d need to replace a patient and kind man who would take the time to know her for that to happen, if it even does.” Selvina then stabbed a finger in Jack’s chest. “She sure as hell won’t replace that with you!”

“I never said I wanted a mermaid wife!” he returned, smacking her finger away.

“Well…that’s just because you don’t deserve one.”

“Her breath would probably smell like fish anyway. I’m probably better off.”

Selvina frowned and shook her head, still angry at Jack for scaring the mermaid away. “You’re hopeless…”

“And you look really hot with your skin all wet like that.”

“SHUT UP, JACK!”

On the island, Sinbad and Red laughed as Bigbad sniffed a crab.