A Sirens Future

"This is stupid," Calix mumbles in the dark. He is lounging across a large stone, his long dark tail wafting in the gentle current of the small pool inside the cave where we are hidden, and he seems calm and relaxed. I can hear the venom in his voice, though, see the clench of his jaw as he lays there with his eyes closed. I don't blame him. This is stupid. We should not be hid in this small cave so near the surface and human population just to satisfy my intense curiosity. But I can't help it. I have to see him again. I need to see the human who caused such a surge of fire to course through my body. The only thing a siren ever feels for a human is hunger...not fire! Though Calix has agreed to help me find the human man again, he does not know why. I suppose he thinks I just want to make a meal of him, but I can still tell he is annoyed and confused, regardless of the reasoning. "Enough," I try to silence him with a hiss and a flick of my tail. Siren's tails are all beautiful, a trademark of our kind. Humans believe, and have believed for centuries, that its a sirens voice that has lured many to their deaths, but its actually a sirens tail that holds sound and music.My tail is said to be more beautiful than most, with colors that reflect all the Oceans of the world and sings as it moves through the water without even calling on my Song. My mother named me Lyris, because my tail sounded with a thousand symphonies as I was born. Or so she tells me repeatedly. My tail flicks Calix in his long, smooth torso, causing a small hiss to escape his full lips as he peeks through dark lashes at me. "Careful Lyris," he warns, "I'm helping you search for this human out of amusement, but should I become unhappy, well maybe my time would be better spent elsewhere ." Calix gives a demure smile but there is a seriousness in his overly-large green eyes. I take a deep breath to calm the surge of irritation I feel. I really do need his help, so I don't want him getting angry and swimming off. "Fine Calix, I'll be sweet," I mummer with false sugar in my voice. He hears it and grins, showing his second set of sharp teeth, before closing his eyes again. I turn and continue watching the humans on the beach. We have been waiting in this cramped cave for hours, but Calix has tracked the humans scent to this area and I have learned to never doubt his gift. My eyes, large, the color of irises on fire, and sharp with perfect vision, scan the sandy white beach restlessly. There. My breath hitches, stills for a moment, and then picks up double as the strange fire moves through me once again. The man with the strange eyes strolls across the busy sand, looking for the perfect spot to set the heavy basket he is carrying in one hand.Im so mesmerized by him and this uncontrollable burning, that it takes me a moment to notice the pale hand that is clutched in his other. I follow the delicate twine of their interlaced fingers to the petite, eleven-like face of a young woman. She has strawberry curls that match her rosy cheeks, and full rich colored lips. Her eyes, the clearest blue I have ever seen, look up at the man happily and her lips part over perfect teeth as she smiles up at him in delight. His own strange eyes, one a rich brown broken up by startling gold flecks and the other a green so deep it surely can't be real, look down at her tenderly. My fire is doused. Cold ice runs through me now as I watch the two settle on a blanket the man has pulled from the basket and spread on the sand. He pulls her into his lap, causing her to blush and giggle. This causes a ringing in my ears and the ice in my veins grows colder. The water around me seems to grow colder too, and Calix sits up, a worried look now on his sharp features. He lays his hand on my shoulder but I don't turn, I barely even notice. My eyes are still on the man as my breathing becomes heavier, the ice colder until I seem to freeze entirely. Then, even though I know its impossible because there is no way a human can see us from this distance, the man looks up as if hearing someone call him and seems to lock eyes with me. Fire returns, thawing my frozen body and warming me as I stare into those extordinary eyes. "Mine," I hiss out in a long, slow voice.