Prologue:

The Floating Stars

Attina

“Come on, Andrina!”

Attina beat her orange tail in the calm water, heading toward the surface. Night had befallen the land and the moon hung high in the sky above the smooth surface. The stars twinkled brightly across the blackness of the sky; the water's surface glistened and gleamed, reflecting the silvery glow of the moon above. As Attina darted to the surface, she marveled at the beauty above.

“Father says we’re not supposed to go to the surface,” Andrina whined but continued to follow her sister.

Attina halted her ascent and turned to look down at her younger sister. Her eyes sparkled as she gazed upon Andrina’s beautiful form. Andrina's blonde hair was as magnificent as the Sun’s rays, adorned with a lavender decorative design that matched her tail and made for a makeshift ponytail. Her eyes glimmered with the silvery glow permeating the surface above them, causing her hazel irises to appear as green as the seaweed that grew from the ocean floor. Her creamy, smooth skin radiated beneath the glimmering surface and her slick, lavender scales glistened like the stars above.

Attina sank her teeth into her bottom lip as a smile took shape across her lips. “What father doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”

Andrina caught up with Attina and she feigned a gasp, “But, Attina, you always listen to father!”

“There’s that sarcasm,” Attina jested. She smirked and grabbed her sister’s hand. Their eyes aligned as they floated near the surface, gazing upon each other. “You’re so beautiful,” Attina whispered.

“You’re not half bad yourself,” Andrina replied, her sarcasm in full swing.

Attina giggled. She gently shoved her sister, causing the water around her to ripple. “You know you love me!”

Andrina gathered her composure and floated idly in the water. Her lavender, translucent fin at the end of her tail whipped back and forth through the calm water. She grinned, her pearly whites illuminated by the moon above. “Are you sure? Perhaps if you made me a shrimp and clam seaweed pie, I’d know for sure whether or not I really loved you?”

Attina swam over to her sister. “Perhaps I will,” she whispered. She leaned in close to her younger sister until their noses were mere centimeters apart. Attina eyed Andrina’s lips and then stared back into her soft, hazel eyes. She leaned closer as if to kiss her, but then took her hand and swam quickly toward the surface instead. “But first, I want you to see this!”

The worry returned to Andrina's voice. "But, Attina... you know what he told Ariel about the surface."

"And neither one of us is Ariel. Besides, she broke the forbidden rule that mermaids are to never make their presence known to the humans, and to top it off, she went and married one of them. And look where that got her. She's back in the sea and treated as if she's sixteen again."

"Yeah, but father knew she married Eric. He let her be a human. He let her follow her heart."

Attina came to an abrupt stop, Andrina nearly crashing into her sister. Attina turned her back, lowered her eyebrows, and narrowed her eyes. She scowled at the thought of Ariel being able to be with a human when she couldn't be with the love of her life. "She's daddy's little mermaid, of course he let her do it. She's the youngest and she always gets her way."

Attina turned back to her lovely sister, her scowl dissolving as she stared into those majestic eyes. She smiled. "Well, you're my little mermaid and I'll do anything for you."

Andrina blushed. "Attina..."

Attina lifted her hand and placed it gently against Andrina's soft, smooth cheek. She brought her forehead forward until it was resting against Andrina's. Her orange, five-pointed crown hung over Andrina's blonde hair that floated gracefully in the water. Their eyes locked and Attina couldn't help but smile.

"I mean it," Attina murmured. "I'd do anything for you."

Andrina smiled. Attina tilted her head back toward the surface. She took Andrina's hand and continued their ascent.

As they swam hand-in-hand, both mermaids couldn't help but grin. Andrina rarely ever went to the surface and even when she did, it was with their father. She was known for being witty and sarcastic, but she always followed their father's rules. Attina was much the same. She loved being a princess of Atlantica and she felt great ardor at one day inheriting the kingdom, though not to the extent that she would wish an ill fate upon Father. She liked things in order, and she made it her life to follow those orders.

Attina made her feelings for Andrina her one exception. Andrina was her sister, and for as forbidden as it was for a mermaid to fall in love with a human, it was just as forbidden for a family member to have romantic feelings for another family member. She went out of her way to make sure no one knew about her and Andrina, and tonight would be no exception. They were all alone, and on the verge of breaking through the surface to spend one night together. Attina's heart pounded against her rib cage at the thought of their romantic night together.

The stars grew closer, the moon became brighter, and the sounds of life above the surface became louder. As they broke through the water, both Attina and Andrina squealed at finally being above—breathing air!

Water surrounded them, and at a distance to the south was an island with elevated land. Atop this land sat a castle with several spires stretching high into the sky that overlooked the sea. Lining the hill were houses on all sides. There was a bridge that led to the mainland that was barely noticeable to Attina and Andrina. Luckily, they were far enough away from the island that they wouldn't be noticed by humans.

"We did it!" Andrina cheered, her worries gone as she shared this moment with the love of her life. "We actually did it! We made it to the surface!"

Attina giggled at her sister's elation. She turned to her and took her hands in her own. "We did it together.”

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Andrina bit down gently on her bottom lip, a crimson blush filling her cheeks. "You're the best."

"You make me the best," Attina replied, gazing into those soft, hazel eyes.

Andrina smiled and turned her head, her cheeks blazing red. "You always know just what to say to turn me to seafoam."

Attina gasped. "Don't say that! How could I ever live without you?"

Andrina narrowed her eyes. "Now who's being sarcastic?"

"I learned it from the best." Attina sank her teeth into her bottom lip, which in turn caused Andrina’s left eyebrow to rise ever so slightly.

Attina and Andrina giggled as they floated together at the surface, their bodies gradually drawing closer. The tips of their tails brushed gently against each other. Their laughter faded, replaced by a deep, shared gaze. In that moment, it felt as if they were the only two beings in the world.

Slowly, their heads moved closer. Their eyes closed. Their noses brushed together. Andrina’s hot breath warmed Attina’s lips. Their kiss was imminent.

Off in the distance, people cheered.

The flicker of golden light cascaded above the two young mermaid princesses and before their lips could meet, their attentions were drawn to the light that glowed red beneath their eyelids. Attina and Andrina opened their eyes to see brightly-lit golden stars lifting from the surface of the far-off land and rising high in the sky to be with their brethren.

Living under water, Andrina had never seen such a beautiful sight. Her only frame of reference was seeing the stars in the black sky, dancing about as the surface rippled above her. This sight was far prettier and it left her in awe.

Attina had glimpsed these golden stars once before, purely by accident. As the heir to Atlantica, she often roamed Father's palace late at night, ensuring everything was in order. Two years ago, during one of these nocturnal inspections, she noticed something strange in the throne room. The ocean floor was illuminated as if by daylight, despite the deep night. Curious and perplexed, Attina ascended to the surface without alerting Father and discovered the source—golden stars drifting from the surface to the Great Sea Above. The sight was breathtakingly beautiful, and she vowed to share it with Andrina if it ever happened again. Last year, the stars returned, but this year, she made sure Andrina was with her to witness the magical moment.

"Attina," Andrina stammered, "the golden stars... what are they? Why are they here? Where are they going?"

Attina knew only of what her mother used to tell her. Queen Athena had said that when a merfolk would pass away, they would ascend to be with the other merfolk in the Great Sea Above. She told this to Andrina and this elicited a gasp from her sister.

"They're... they're so beautiful," Andrina whispered.

Attina gleamed. She averted her gaze from the golden stars to her sister's awestruck face. She leaned in close, her lips next to Andrina's ear, and whispered, "But, not as beautiful as you."

Andrina, gazing with bated breath, turned her head to Attina. Their eyes met and they stared at each other for several seconds. Her eyes turned glossy. She lifted a hand from the water and placed it gently against her sister’s cheek. "I love you." She leaned in and kissed Attina.

Attina’s lips tingled as her sister’s lips pressed into hers. They were soft, full, and cool from the night breeze. Her heart fluttered in her chest. Attina slipped a hand up Andrina’s body, stopping where scales met skin. She slid her hand around Andrina’s waist until it rested on her lower back and she pulled her sister close. With their bodies pressed together, their tails wrapped around each other and Attina slid her hand up Andrina’s back, pulling her sister as close as she could get, their clamshell-covered breasts mashing together.

Andrina returned the romantic gesture. Her hands slid up Attina’s body, her left hand traveling up Attina’s side and her right hand traveling up along Attina’s spine, her nails grazing her skin. Attina shivered at her sister’s touch which elicited a grin, mid-kiss, from Andrina. As her lips spread with the grin, Attina took the moment to embolden herself, and slipped her tongue through her sister's parted lips and into her mouth. Andrina moaned as Attina circled Andrina’s tongue with her own.

They pulled away from their loving embrace to take a breath. "I love you, Andrina," Attina moaned. "I never want to spend a day without you. I don't care if we have to spend our whole lives hiding our relationship; I don't want to be without you, ever."

"Oh, just kiss me again!" exclaimed Andrina, lifting her hand to the back of her sister's head and pulling her face to her own, their lips colliding again. The golden stars continued floating above them. They held each other tightly in their loving embrace, sharing sweet kisses as they watched the phenomenon above.

# # #

Nearly an hour later, the golden stars were still floating, though fewer and fewer were coming with each passing minute. The spirits must enjoy going all at once, that way they never have to travel alone, Attina thought.

Attina held Andrina against her chest, her arms wrapped around her younger sister and her hands clasped just above Andrina's navel. The sisters were silent.

Attina kissed along Andrina's shoulder and to her collarbone. She made her way up Andrina's neck, her lips cool and wet against Andrina's clammy skin. As Attina approached Andrina's ear, she parted her lips and sucked on her sister's earlobe. Andrina shivered in her older sister's arms and Attina moaned softly, opening her eyes to see her beautiful sister. In the distance, something caught her eye.

She pulled away from Andrina's neck and gently detached herself from her sister. She submerged beneath the surface and swam a short distance, the golden glow of the floating stars illuminating her orange, scaly tail. She resurfaced.

"Attina, what is it?"

Attina squinted and noticed a familiar shape. A woman was sitting on a rock. As the golden stars floated overhead, she could make out the soft flow of the woman's hair resting over her shoulders and down her back. The woman's hair appeared black in the dark, but as one star floated over the mysterious woman and then another, Attina caught a glimpse of the woman's natural hair color.

Red.

No, it can't be... Tracing the woman's figure with her eyes, Attina noticed a sparkling gleam from her waist down. The floating stars were glistening off of her legs. Attina followed the legs to what should have been feet, but instead, she saw a fin.

No…

Attina retraced her eyes up the woman’s figure and back up her body and what should have been legs was an emerald green tail that gleamed brightly, reflecting the golden light emitted from the floating stars above.

Ariel!

Attina's eyes widened and she submerged quickly. She made her way back to Andrina and pulled her under the surface. "Ariel's over there!" Attina pointed in the direction of her youngest sister.

Andrina gasped. "We should say hi!”

"We can't! How will we explain to Ariel why we're the only two at the surface, watching the floating stars? If she finds out about us and tells Father, he'll separate us for sure and Andr—"

Attina's voice caught. She couldn't bear the thought of losing the love of her life. Attina took in a deep breath and calmed herself. "We can't say anything to her. We have to tell Father that she was at the surface. You know he doesn't want her up here, especially since she likes to mingle with humans."

"What? We can't tattle on Ariel! She's doing nothing more than we are. Father doesn't want any of us at the surface. If you tell Father about Ariel, you'll have to tell him about us, too."

Attina attempted to protest, but nothing came to mind. She sighed. "Fine! I'll tell him I was keeping an eye on Ariel. I saw her go to the surface and then I immediately came back to tell you—er, Father, I mean."

Andrina narrowed her eyes. "You're going to rat on Ariel. Why? Why can't you just let her watch the floating stars like we were doing? She's not harming anyone. She's not interacting with any humans. She's just watching the stars float away so they can be with the other merfolk"—her eyes softened and her shoulders sank— "like mother," she whispered, her voice doleful.

Attina pursed her lips, feeling a pang of shame as she imagined her mother looking down on her being intimate with Andrina. She knew their relationship was deemed wrong, but the love she felt for Andrina seemed so undeniably right. Will anyone ever understand? A lump formed in her throat and she tried to swallow it away, but to no avail.

"Promise me you won't tell Father," Andrina said.

Attina stared down at the dark abyss below her. She heard Andrina's voice but the words didn't register. Why does Ariel get to have the forbidden love, but I can't?

Andrina touched Attina's shoulder softly. Attina lifted her head, giving her attention to her sister. "Please, promise me you won't tell Father about Ariel.”

Attina looked back in the direction Ariel was sitting. She turned her focus back to Andrina and with a pained expression, she nodded. "I promise."