My domain, my catch
My ocean has started to thaw, as it usably does in the late spring, and with the thawing that brings ships of the boring ones, here to fish in my waters, or try at least. I know old maps mark this area as a mermaid's domain, and newer ones tend to give the area fun names: Fisher's folly, The cove of ruined nets, Fisher's demise, are common, but my favorite one would have to be the one that marked the island witch I spend most of my time above water as "Ice witches' haunt". they think me an ice witch, or serval if the grammar is be believed, though I wouldn't call my self a witch, only magic I have is what the winter court gives me from being born within it's ocean.
It's fun listening to them, after giving them a glimpse: "There's no mermaids here!" a captain often yells to their crew "She'd stick out like a sore thumb! Bright greens and reds and yellows she'd have!" thinking the mermaids of the spring and summon courts, who would survive in theses waters yes, but be miserable the entire time. Myself on the other hand, with naught but my orange strips on my tail and deep blue that matches the ocean, and my silver hair are all the color I need in these lonely waters. They are right though, no mermaids, just lonely old me, perhaps I should make friends with one of these ships one day? When they don't bright their nets. Till then a slap of the tail on the side of the ship, head above water long enough to hear the confusion and under the waves I go.
The ones who bring naught but rods and lures, are left mostly alone, some tugs on the line but nothing on the hook, a mass of seaweed, or a "bad cast" that gets stuck between some rocks is all they get. The weighted nets? Perhaps they are the ones who thinks a witch haunts these waters. Usually my knife will do the trick to ruin the nets, and the pocket books and newer crews, but those who come prepared need "special treatment" none more so than the "mighty" Captain Caldwell Drake, who I think may be the only captain who knows hers dealing with a mermaid, he doesn't know how to deal with a mermaid mind you, but I think he knows what he is dealing with.
Most ships use rocks or brass or bronze to weigh down their nets, not Captain Drake. "Alright men, this time I have a specials trick up my sleeve, we will be going home with a haul, and the ice witch won't be messing with us again!" Oh how tempted I was to soak him, but sadly his main deck is almost as tall as the ivory tower he lives in. "Specials nets, with steel wire, and steel for the weights in days of old the fae would have called this "cold iron", if she touches this, even in theses frozen waters she will burn!" Fairies and pixies, your thinking of true fairies and pixies there Captain, not mermaids. The steel wire woven into the rope did mean I couldn't cut it, but once I got the enough of the rope off of the wire it was easy to bend and twist it to be useless. In all my years lurking in theses waters, and having fishers swear at me... Tatiana help me, I did not know the boring ones has that many curses, swears, cusses, or that many words for a woman who just cost you a lot of money, and a lot of reputation.