Modern Fairy Tales Ch. 05

"Yeah. Really pretty." Jackie sounded completely insincere. "It's a good color for her, I guess. So are we going shopping, Petra? I guess we need to replace the clothes she's borrowing."

"Jackie, give it a rest!" Finn snapped. "I don't know what your problem is, but Ariana isn't here to take advantage of anyone. She needs help, and I'm helping her."

"You're too nice. But whatever." Jackie stood. "See you later, little brother."

Petra gave Finn a peck on the lips. "Don't worry about it, Finn. She'll get over it." She followed Jackie out the door.

Finn looked at Ariana and forced a smile. "Don't worry. Jackie's always been a little overprotective of me. Did you have a good nap?"

Ariana nodded. "That's good," Finn said. "Maybe tomorrow we can go somewhere, get out of here. I mean, I'm sure you don't want to spend all your time in my apartment." He yawned. "But right now, I think I need to sleep. See you in the morning, okay?"

Ariana nodded and gestured toward the bedroom. "No, you sleep there," Finn told her. "I meant what I said. You sleep in there and I'll sleep here. It'll be fine." He pulled a lever on the side of the chair and a footrest sprang up. He pushed back against the back of the chair until he was lying almost flat. "See? I'll be all right. Good night, Ariana."

Ariana smiled and went back into the bedroom. She thought she wasn't tired anymore, but she fell asleep almost immediately.

* * *

Over the next few days, Ariana and Finn grew more accustomed to each other. He worked, but taught her how to use the TV and the DVD player so she was entertained while he was gone, and took her out to see the city when he returned home at night. Although the walks they took were painful to Ariana, she never minded. At least she was with Finn. A couple of times, Petra joined them. She seemed to like Ariana, and flirted constantly with Finn, though Ariana thought it was just a game between the two of them.

After they returned home on those nights, Ariana listened while Finn talked about himself, his past, his dreams. She sensed that he didn't often open up to others, and was honored that he felt he could talk to her. She only wished she could return the favor; she wanted Finn to know everything about her, but despite her best efforts, she still could write only her name, and of course couldn't speak.

Ariana spent much of her time alone trying to decide how best to show her feelings for Finn. Her love for him deepened daily, and she was certain he felt the same, though she desperately wanted him to say so. She also continued her explorations of herself. She discovered the kind of touch that made her feel best, and experienced many more of the bursts of pleasure she'd given herself on the first evening at Finn's. Among the DVDs Finn had, she found some that showed men and women together, touching each other and doing what the people in the films called "fucking". After watching those, Ariana always felt the desire to touch herself, or better yet, to try what was in the films with Finn.

But with only two days remaining of her seven, Ariana was no closer than on the first day to winning Finn's love. He cared for her, clearly, but she needed him to truly love her and to express that love. Finally, she made a decision. She understood from watching the DVDs what Havian and Garrett had wanted from her, and she determined that she would give that to Finn.

He came home from work exhausted and sat in his recliner. "Ariana, I'm sorry, but I'm not up to going out tonight," he said. "It was a really long day, and I just want to rest. Is that okay?"

Ariana nodded and went to him. On one of the DVDs she'd watched, a man had come home tired and his woman had rubbed his neck and shoulders. The man had seemed to enjoy it, and it had led to more. Perhaps Finn would enjoy a shoulder rub. Ariana stood behind the recliner and began to gently rub. "Mmm," Finn said. "That feels nice, Ariana. Keep going, please."

Ariana massaged his neck and shoulders, pleased with Finn's sounds of appreciation. After a few moments, she gave into an impulse and bent to kiss his lips. "Ariana?" Finn said. "What are you doing?"

Ariana replied by pressing her lips more forcefully against his. Finn pulled her around the chair and onto his lap. His tongue slid between Ariana's lips; unlike that of the Sea Witch, Finn's tongue felt pleasant against Ariana's own. The kiss brought a feeling of tingling moisture to the spot between Ariana's legs, and the feeling grew stronger when Finn's hand caressed one small breast.

Abruptly, Finn broke the kiss, though he didn't remove his hand from her breast. "What am I doing? Ariana, I'm sorry. I shouldn't..."

Ariana covered his hand with her own and smiled reassuringly. "Do you want this?" Finn asked. "Do you understand what's going to happen if we don't stop now?"

Ariana didn't understand, not completely, but she knew it would be what the men and women in the DVDs did, and she knew she wanted Finn to do that to her. She nodded and moved his hand from her breast between her legs. "Ariana," Finn moaned. "All right. All right. I've wanted you since I found you. If you want me, then okay. But in bed. This chair isn't comfortable enough for fucking."

Ariana gracefully slipped from his lap. More clumsily, Finn got up from the chair, almost falling over the footrest. Was he this flustered because of her? Now Ariana knew why he'd seemed so nervous her first night there, when he'd seen her naked parts on his bed. She extended her hand to him and he took it and followed her into the bedroom.

Beside the bed, he pulled her close against him and renewed their kiss. As his tongue explored her mouth, his hands roamed her body. He didn't touch between her legs, not yet, but his touch on even the bare skin of her legs set her body on fire. She felt as though she would explode from the pleasure of it. Growing bolder, she moved her own hands over his body, feeling his chest beneath his T-shirt, caressing his buttocks.

Against her belly she felt something hard, and reached between herself and Finn to touch it. It was a large bulge in the front of Finn's pants. Cautiously, not wanting to hurt him, Ariana put some pressure on it. "Oh, god, Ariana, that feels good!" Finn exclaimed. "Here. Wait a minute."

He let go of her and peeled off his clothes, then helped Ariana off with hers. For the first time in real life, Ariana saw a naked human other than herself. Between his legs Finn had what the men in the DVDs had, a hard shaft with two small sacs hanging beneath them. In person, the shaft looked larger than the ones in the films. Ariana reached for them, then looked at Finn questioningly. He nodded. "You can touch. You can touch me anywhere you want," he said hoarsely. "Have you done this before?"

Ariana shook her head and cupped the sacs in her hand. Finn moaned. "Ariana, wait, please." She took her hand away, and he caught it in both his hands. "Ariana, have you ever had sex before? Ever done anything with a man?"

Again Ariana shook her head. "Are you sure you want to do this now, with me?" Finn asked. "I want to. God, I want to. But if it's your first time, it will hurt, and I don't want to hurt you."

Hurt? How could it hurt? Ariana stroked Finn's shaft and a thought occurred to her. Her fingers felt good when she put them inside her opening. This part of Finn was much larger than her fingers. If it was meant to go inside her, it would hurt; his shaft looked too big to fit into her. But she knew she wanted him to try. Wanted to join with him that way, to be as close to him as possible. She looked into Finn's eyes and smiled. "You want to make love to me?" Finn asked.

Ariana nodded. "Then lie down," Finn said. "If this is your first time, I want to make it incredible for you."

Ariana lay on her back on the bed. Finn lay beside her and pressed his lips to hers. His hand moved over her breasts and down, down to the place between her legs. He pressed a finger against her nub and Ariana caught her breath. "That feels good, doesn't it?" Finn whispered in her ear. "Ariana, you're so wet! I can't wait to be inside you, but I want to do something for you first."

He moved down the bed, leaving a trail of light kisses from her neck to the junction of her thighs. Ariana waited to see what he would do, and was astonished when his tongue touched the nub. She jumped, then relaxed into the pleasure as he licked and sucked it lightly. She felt the now-familiar sensation building, and knew she was about to burst, but had no way to let Finn know until the strong pleasure hit her, stronger than she'd felt with her fingers. She bucked, and Finn looked up with a grin. "Did you like that?" he asked.

Ariana nodded enthusiastically. Finn slipped one finger into her opening, then two. "God, Ariana, you're so tight," he said softly. "It's going to hurt when I fuck you, but I'll go slow, all right? You're still sure you want me to fuck you?"

His fingers felt amazing; Ariana was sure she was going to explode again. If his fingers brought her that much pleasure, she had to know what his shaft could do. She nodded and spread her legs wider apart, inviting him to lie between them. He accepted the invitation, covering her body with his own, and she felt the head of his shaft against her entrance. "Are you ready?" he asked softly.

Ariana replied by kissing his lips. Finn pushed his shaft forward, and Ariana felt her opening stretch to accept him. There was discomfort, but at the same time it felt so wonderful, as though she was connecting completely with Finn.

Slowly he pushed into her, then stopped. "The next bit is going to be the painful part," he said. "But it will only hurt for a minute, and then it will feel very, very good. Okay?"

Ariana nodded, and with one fast thrust, Finn was fully inside her. Tears came to Ariana's eyes at the sharp, searing pain between her legs. Finn lay still. "I'm sorry, Ariana," he said softly. "I know that hurt, but just wait and it will stop, I promise."

As he'd said, after a moment, the pain subsided. Ariana moved against Finn, and he took the hint, beginning a slow, steady motion in and out of her. "Is it okay?" he asked.

Better than okay. It was the most incredible thing Ariana had ever felt! She meet each of his thrusts with one of her own, savoring the intense pleasure, until another burst came and she opened her mouth in a soundless cry. "You came again?" Finn asked. "Damn, Ariana, you're amazing! I can't believe how good you feel!"

He picked up his pace, thrusting harder and faster into her, until he shouted, "I'm coming!" Ariana felt him push hard into her, then he rested on her. "That was so fucking good," he said. "Did you enjoy it, Ariana?"

He looked at her face to see her response. Ariana couldn't speak, but it occurred to her that she could still move her lips in the shape of the words she needed to say. "I love you," she mouthed.

Finn stared at her, stunned. "Ariana, no," he said finally. "No. You can't love me. You don't know me. And I- I care for you, a lot. Having you here has been wonderful. But Petra and I... God, Petra's going to kill me. Ariana, Petra and I've been dating for a long time. We're planning to get married in a couple years. I care about you, but I love Petra."

Ariana felt as though her heart was shattering. Finn loved Petra? That explained the flirting and teasing between them, but why then had Finn introduced Petra as his sister's friend, not as his girlfriend? And why had Finn entered Ariana as he had if he loved someone else?

"Ariana, I'm so sorry," Finn said. He moved away from her and sat on the edge of the bed. "I never meant to hurt you. I just... I can't explain. I love Petra, but I wanted to make love to you. But it can't happen again, okay?" He stood up. "I'm going to go take a shower. We can talk about this after. I need to think."

He left the room, and after a second Ariana heard the bathroom door close behind him. She got off the bed; where she had lain was a bloodstain, which she realized must have been from when Finn had buried himself in her. Just as the Sea Witch had predicted: pain and blood.

Ariana gathered her clothing from the floor and put it back on as best she could. Her hands shook, and she fought back tears. She couldn't stay here, not anymore. Finn loved someone else, and Ariana could never gain his love for herself. There might be two days remaining of the seven the Sea Witch had given her, but as far as Ariana was concerned, her time was up. She would turn to foam, as the Sea Witch had predicted, and would never see her family again.

Once dressed, Ariana slipped out of the apartment. It was best to leave while Finn was in the shower; he might try to stop her otherwise. But there was nothing left for her, no reason to stay with him. She had come here for love, but he had none for her. Her heart was broken, and she felt her body failing her. With Finn's denial of Ariana's love, her time had indeed ended.

Fortunately, in their evening walks, Finn had shown Ariana how to get from his apartment to the harbor. She walked straight there, ignoring the looks from passers-by and the catcalls she heard from some of the men. At the edge of the water, she hesitated. This was the end for her, she knew. Mermaids had no souls; there was nothing beyond death.

She was about to dive into the water when she heard singing a distance away. She looked out into the harbor and saw her sisters, all missing their beautiful hair. Stunned, Ariana waved to them, and they swam closer. "Dear sister," the eldest said, "we've been searching for you. Father was so saddened when you didn't return!"

"We went to the Sea Witch, and she told us what you'd done," the next said. "We made her tell us where you were."

"We gave her our hair to save you," the third told her. "She told us of a way that you can regain your true form and not crumble to sea foam if you do not win the love of the man."

"You've already failed to win his love, haven't you?" asked the fourth, who had always been close to Ariana and recognized the sadness on her face. Ariana nodded. "Then in two days' time, you will die if you do not do as we say," her sister said.

The fifth sister swam right up to the platform on which Ariana stood and held up a sharp knife. "The Sea Witch told us that your man has a true love," she said. "If you can find them together and run this knife through their hearts, you will be restored to your true self and will be able to return home."

"But you must do so tonight," the eldest said. "Go now. We'll wait for you here."

Ariana took the knife from her sister and turned it over in her hands. Stab Finn and Petra? How could she? They'd been so kind to her, Finn especially. But then he had taken the love she offered him without loving her in return. If she didn't take his life, she would lose her own.

She nodded to her sisters and set off back through the city. Would she find Finn and Petra together? If Finn had found her gone, he might have called Petra for help in finding her. They might be together now in Finn's apartment, or in his bed. Ariana set her heart against the man she loved; she had no other choice.

She turned the final corner and ahead of her saw Finn and Petra hugging on the sidewalk in front of Finn's building. It was a perfect opportunity; the way they were holding each other, it would be easy to run the knife through both their hearts. She moved slowly, carefully, toward them, thankful that neither was looking in her direction. She raised the knife, ready to strike-

And lowered her arm. No matter how hurt she felt, no matter what Finn had done to her, she couldn't bring herself to kill him and his true love.

Although Finn and Petra hadn't spotten her, Ariana had been seen. A police officer standing nearby shouted, "Drop the knife!"

Finn and Petra jumped apart. "Ariana?" Finn said. "What are you doing?"

"Looks like she was about to stab you," the officer said.

Ariana shook her head, but she couldn't bear the look of fear on Finn's face. Dropping the knife, she ran.

The officer ran after her. "Stop!" he shouted. "You're under arrest!"

He was fast, but Ariana was faster. She ran straight for the waterfront, knowing now that there was no hope for her. She had seen enough TV in her few days with Finn to know that if the officer caught her, she would be locked up in jail. There, she would die far away from the ocean. At least if she escaped, she would die near her home.

"Stop!" the officer shouted again.

For blocks he pursued Ariana. A few people tried to grab her, but Ariana dodged their hands and finally reached the water. She ran out onto one of the long platforms and, without hesitating, dove from it.

Death didn't hurt. Ariana had expected pain, but there was none. She felt her body dissolving into foam, then heard a voice, one that sounded like music, and felt her form rising from the waves. "Child, you are one of us now."

Ariana looked around. Surrounding her were dozens of transparent beings. She and they hovered above the water. She rose higher, and the beings rose with her. "Where am I?" Ariana asked, and was astonished to hear her own voice. "What's happening?"

"You are with the children of the air now," said the voice which had first spoken. "We have chosen because of your love for your man and your choice not to harm him or his lover to bring you to us. You have no immortal soul, but if you stay with us for three hundred years and perform good for the humans over whom we watch, you may gain a soul and will live forever. Do you wish to remain with us?"

"Oh, yes!" Ariana said.

"Then so shall it be."

Ariana looked with new eyes at the city below her. At the water's edge, she saw Finn and Petra, heard them calling her name. Both had tears in their eyes. She went to them and pressed her lips to Petra's forehead, to Finn's cheek. "I wish you every happiness," she said, though of course they could not hear her. "And I wish you all love."

Then she rose with the children of the air.