Chapter 3 Vanessa

It’s the first time I’ve seen my reflection since becoming a land-dweller. I blink, startled by my own appearance. Am I considered beautiful by land-dweller standards? My hair is black, fading into a deep blue, reminding me of my tail. My eyes are dark and large. I like the tone of my skin—it’s not pale like Violet’s, but I don’t know how to name it.

“Violet, what’s the tone of my skin?” I ask curiously, staring at the mirror behind what they call the bar.

She looks at me, puzzled, scanning me from head to toe.

“Your skin’s divine, bronzed, the kind of glow women pay a fortune to get,” Violet says, beaming. “But we gotta fix you up. The boss’s shirt is practically a nightgown on you.”

I smile at her compliment. Divine skin—I like that. I like Violet. She leads me to the back of the bar, and I hear a male voice coming from behind a closed door, making me tense. We reach a room with sofas, clothes, and mirrors.

“This is the dressing room. It’s small, but it’s got everything you’ll need,” Violet says cheerfully.

After a while, Violet fixes me up just the way she wants. I look in the mirror again, and my new look is… nice. My hair’s tied back in a low ponytail. Violet put me in pants and a shirt that actually fits.

“Come on, I’ll whip up something for you to eat. What do you like?” she asks as we head back to the front.

“Anything,” I mumble.

I have no clue what these people eat up here on land.

“Who’s this?” a male voice asks from behind me.

I spin around, startled, and face a dark-skinned man, tall and muscular like Romeo. His gaze is suspicious, almost threatening.

“Vanessa. Romeo brought her here and asked me to look after her,” Violet says curtly. “Back off, you’re scaring the poor thing, Rael!”

Rael flashes a smile, his face softening toward me. He extends his hand, just like Romeo did back on the beach.

“She doesn’t like being touched,” Violet explains, and I give an awkward smile. “No need to be scared of Rael, hon. He looks like a ferocious grizzly, but he’s more of a dreadlocked teddy bear,” she says, laughing.

“That’s not how you talk about me! I’m the beta of this pack!” Rael grumbles, sitting near me.

“I’m not even a wolf, so your rank means zilch to me,” Violet shoots back.

I watch her grab various things, itching to ask what each one is, but I stay quiet. I’ve noticed my questions sound weird to them.

“You talk, girl?” Rael asks, his voice deep and vibrant.

“Y-yeah…” I stammer, startled.

“You smell different… what are you?” he asks, curious and wary.

Violet shoots him a sharp look.

“Leave her alone!” she snaps. She sets a plate in front of me with everything she grabbed. “Here you go, hon, enjoy.”

I look at the food—it looks appetizing. My stomach makes a weird noise, and I take a bite without caring what it is.

***

I spend the whole day in the bar, blending into the furniture, motionless, just watching. I tuck myself into a chair in the corner, half-hidden by the dim light and the bottles lined up on the shelf behind the counter. My eyes follow Violet and Rael’s every move, like they’re part of an improvised dance, synced to the rhythm of the bar’s tasks. They tidy up, organize objects I don’t understand, clean surfaces with relentless energy. They talk with a familiarity that feels almost magical. There’s laughter, teasing, and glances of complicity they exchange like secret words.

Sometimes, their questions hit me like tiny, sharp barbs. Simple things for them, but secrets to me. In return, I ask my own questions, laced with innocence and strangeness. Questions that make them frown, scratch their heads, and exchange looks, as if wondering how someone could not know what a “socket” or “wi-fi” is.

But, oddly, this cycle of mutual confusion comforts me. I learn so much. These discoveries distract me from my inner monsters. For a few hours—just a few—I forget the weight in my chest.

Out of nowhere, I feel a tug at my core, a deep, invisible stab. It’s not just any pain—it’s a tearing, a pulling away, like part of me is being sucked out by cold, unseen hands. Like something’s digging inside me, meddling where it shouldn’t. The feeling is so raw I press a hand to my chest, trying in vain to hold whatever’s slipping away. My fingers clutch the fabric of my clothes, as if that could keep my essence in place.

It’s almost like the pain I felt when I parted with my tail. No… worse. Because now, I don’t even know what’s being taken from me.

Meanwhile, Violet and Rael carry on, oblivious to my inner turmoil. They tease each other constantly, with quick quips and intense glances. One tosses a towel at the other, she rolls her eyes, he fires back with a mocking grimace. There’s a lightness in how they treat each other that fascinates me.

For someone like me, raised on tales of surface creatures as hunters and destroyers, seeing a werewolf and a human nudge each other with smiles is almost surreal.

Maybe times have changed. Maybe the monsters have turned into legends.

Other members of Romeo’s pack come and go throughout the day. Some eye me curiously, brows raised, noses sniffing the air as if trying to pinpoint my scent, my origin. But Violet and Rael quickly shoo them away with firm words or cutting glares.

“When’s Romeo coming back?” I ask softly.

Rael glances at the clock and shrugs.

“Maybe later. Don’t worry. Come help me with this…” He beckons me toward the stage.

I follow hesitantly. He hands me some cords, and I watch him unravel them, placing them near the speakers.

“You singing tonight, Violet?” Rael asks, and I glance at her.

She shakes her head while setting napkins on the tables.

“Nah, I’m on table duty tonight.”

Rael turns to me with a playful glint in his eyes.

“What about you, Vanessa? Can you sing?”

The question catches me off guard. We sirens are known to them as treacherous creatures who lured sailors to their doom with our songs. Well, it’s not a lie, but that was another kingdom, not mine.

“I think so…” I mumble, shy.

“Sing something for us!” Violet says, her eyes sparkling like newly lit stars.

Before I can say no, Rael hands me a microphone, as if he’s sure I’ll agree. I feel shy and unsure. Will my siren song have any effect out of the water?

I grip the microphone with both hands and start humming a few notes, no words. A melody rises on its own, ancient, flowing from my core and spilling through my throat like warm water. My voice softens, my body relaxes. I close my eyes, and my mind fills with crashing waves, the scent of salt, and memories of my family. I lose myself in the melody and the ocean’s pull.

“Wow, it’s true then…” Romeo’s voice cuts in suddenly.

I open my eyes, startled. Romeo looks different now, just like I do—he’s changed clothes. He’s wearing a light blue button-up shirt, dark pants, and his hair’s slicked back. His gaze is fixed on me, his full lips curved in a half-smile.

“What, alpha?” Rael asks, confused.

Romeo points at me, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.

“She’s a very special little fish, isn’t she, Vanessa?” he says, and my body freezes.