The Gentle Mermaid
Once upon a time, in Scotland, there lived a boy who lived with his parents on a farm. His name was Adam. Since Adam was a little boy, he liked to go fishing in a pond which was nearby his farm. He used to fish very often in that pond.
When he was still a little boy, his father taught him how to catch fish. When Adam was 10, he could fish all by himself. One day, when Adam was 14, he was out fishing in the pond when he suddenly heard a big splash. The waves were getting very noisy. Adam rowed as fast as he could to get back to shore. Suddenly, a fierce wind arose and knocked over his oars. The oars fell to the bottom of the pond and sank.
Without a pair of oars, Adam could not row his boat and get back to shore. The storm was getting worse. Adam pushed the boat with all his might, but he could not move it. Adam was scared. Finally, the storm was over. But Adam still could not get back to shore because he had lost his oars. Suddenly, Adam heard a cry. It was coming from the west. Adam looked at the west and saw that it was a mermaid. The mermaid was very beautiful.
She had a face which glowed in the sunlight and the moonlight. Her waist was thin, and her arms were fair. From the bottom of her waist, she had a long, smooth fish tail. The only thing different about her was that instead of black or brown hair, she had long, smooth, red hair. The mermaid was crying and she looked as if she was in great pain. Adam took pity on the mermaid and wiped her tears. “Why are you weeping?” asked Adam.
“I am sad because one of your oars knocked over a sharp needle into my hand,” said the mermaid. “No matter how hard I try to pull the needle out, it always gets deeper into my skin.” Adam said to the mermaid, “Let me try to pull it out.” But the mermaid said, “I have heard that humans are not very gentle.” “What if you hurt me more?”
Adam said, “I promise I will try not to hurt you and I will try to be very gentle.” “Very well,” said the meraid. First, Adam took some oil out of his fishing bag and rubbed it on the mermaid’s skin. Next, he took a few cotton balls and laid them around the place where the sharp needle was stuck. The oil and the cotton balls would keep the mermaid out of pain. Then, Adam gently took hold of the needle and tried to pull it out. All the time, Adam blew at the wound so it would not hurt much. Finally, he pulled the needle out. Then Adam put a large piece of cloth around the wound. Then he got some water from the pond and he gently poured some water over the cloth. The cloth and the water would work as a bandge while the wound healed.
After a few hours of resting, the mermaid felt much better. She quickly dived into the pond without thanking Adam. After a few seconds, the mermaid rose up to the surface of the pond holding Adam’s oars. “Here,” said the mermaid. Adam was very happy to know that he could row home again. He thanked the mermaid and was just about to leave when the mermaid suddenly said, “Wait, you don’t even know who I am yet!” Adam rowed back to the mermaid. The mermaid said, “My name is Gloria, and I am the daughter of The Emperor of the Seas.” “I have four sisters.” “My mother is called, The Queen of the Seas.” Me and my four sisters are The Princesses of the Seas.” “Every day, me and my sisters swim to the surface of this pond and search for humans.”
“My father hates humans, so our job is to kill all of the humans we can find with our magical powers.” “But you, young man, you have saved me.” “And I cannot kill a human who has saved me.” “Instead, I will ask you what your name is and where you live so that we can meet very often.” Adam blushed and shyly said, “My name is Adam, and I live on a farm with my parents.” “My farm is very close to this pond.” “So we can meet very often?” asked Gloria.
“I will try to come to this pond as often as I can,” Adam replied. After a few hours of having a conversation, Adam realized that it was past midnight. “I must leave,” said Adam. “My parents must be worried about me.” “But I promise that exactly one month from now I will come to meet you again.” “Promise?” asked Gloria. “Promise,” Adam replied.
Then Adam bade farewell to Gloria and disappeared from sight. Adam’s parents asked him what took him so long to get home when he entered the house. Adam just said it was because he could not find fish. One month later, Adam told his parents that he wanted to fish. So his parents let him go. Adam came to the pond and listened for Gloria. This time, Gloria’s voice was coming from the east. Adam rowed his boat to the east and saw Gloria calling and waiting for him. When Gloria and Adam saw each other, they fell into each other’s arms and hugged. They talked and laughed all day. At midnight, Adam promised to be back the next month and left for home. This time, one of Gloria’s sisters was watching. She told the whole matter to her father, The Emperor of the Seas.
The emperor was furious when he heard that one of his daughters was in love with a human. He had Gloria arrested and thrown into the dungoun. How sad Gloria was! Her mother, The Queen of the Seas, tried to tell the emperor to set Gloria free, but the emperor would not listen. A month later, Adam came to the pond and looked for Gloria.
But Gloria’s voice came neither from the west, nor from the east. Gloria was gone. Adam sadly sat at the bank of the pond. He was so sad he began to weep. “Gloria, my Gloria, I have come!” “You had made me promise to come back the next month, so here I am!” “If only you would fulfill your promise and come back to me!” “Oh, Gloria!” Adam was so sad he made up a sad song about Gloria. It was like this, “I know you will come, oh yes, you will, or I’ll search for you in every river or mill!” He sang this song ten times. Finally, Adam wiped his tears and set off to look for Gloria.
Meanwhile, Gloria had no hope of being rescued by Adam. Suddenly, she saw a note blowing up from the land. Gloria caught the note and opened it. It said, “To see Adam once again, you must wiggle your fish tail as hard as you can.” “Then sit in the dungoun for three days without food or water.” Gloria immediately did as the note told her. She wiggled her fish tail as hard as she could and then she sat in the dungoun for three days without food or water.
At sun-set on the third day, Gloria saw an old woman come up to her. The woman took a magic wand out of her pouch and waved it hard. Suddenly, Gloria’s fish tail disappeared. In the fish tail’s place were two legs as fair as her arms! Gloria was no longer a mermaid. She was a human! Then the old woman disappeared. Even though Gloria was now a human, she could still swim. So she swam up to the surface of the pond and waited for Adam. But Adam did not come. Finally Gloria realized that Adam was looking for her. So she set out on her brand new legs to find Adam.
Meanwhile, Adam almost lost hope of finding Gloria. At last, Adam came to a mountain which was so high, no man could ever climb it. Adam then saw a priest throwing leaves into a stream. “May you live long, Holy One,” said Adam. The priest greeted Adam but he would not stop what he was doing. Adam asked, “Oh Holy One, do you know how to get over this huge mountain?” The priest stopped for a second and looked up at Adam.
He said, “To get over this mountain you must build a camp and a fire at the bottom.” “Then you must go to a river and get some water.” “Bring the water to me and then start climbing.” Adam didn’t know how this would help him, but he did as the priest said. To Adam’s surprise, the journey to the top of the mountain was only a day’s walk. At the top, Adam saw Gloria calling loudly for him. As soon as they saw each other, they fell into each other’s arms and began to weep for joy. At first, Adam was surprised to see that Gloria was a human. Then Gloria told Adam the whole story. Now they could be married and Gloria could live on land!
That very day, with the priest’s help, Gloria and Adam were married. Then Gloria taught Adam how to swim and together, they swam to the palace of Gloria’s father. At first, the emperor was furious. But over time, he too began to like Adam. After 10 months, Gloria and Adam bade fare-well to the emperor and left for Adam’s house. Adam’s parents were so glad to see Adam again. They were even happier to know that Adam had a human wife. Also, very often, Gloria and Adam swam to the bottom of the pond to greet the emperor. So they all lived happily ever after. THE END
When he was still a little boy, his father taught him how to catch fish. When Adam was 10, he could fish all by himself. One day, when Adam was 14, he was out fishing in the pond when he suddenly heard a big splash. The waves were getting very noisy. Adam rowed as fast as he could to get back to shore. Suddenly, a fierce wind arose and knocked over his oars. The oars fell to the bottom of the pond and sank.
Without a pair of oars, Adam could not row his boat and get back to shore. The storm was getting worse. Adam pushed the boat with all his might, but he could not move it. Adam was scared. Finally, the storm was over. But Adam still could not get back to shore because he had lost his oars. Suddenly, Adam heard a cry. It was coming from the west. Adam looked at the west and saw that it was a mermaid. The mermaid was very beautiful.
She had a face which glowed in the sunlight and the moonlight. Her waist was thin, and her arms were fair. From the bottom of her waist, she had a long, smooth fish tail. The only thing different about her was that instead of black or brown hair, she had long, smooth, red hair. The mermaid was crying and she looked as if she was in great pain. Adam took pity on the mermaid and wiped her tears. “Why are you weeping?” asked Adam.
“I am sad because one of your oars knocked over a sharp needle into my hand,” said the mermaid. “No matter how hard I try to pull the needle out, it always gets deeper into my skin.” Adam said to the mermaid, “Let me try to pull it out.” But the mermaid said, “I have heard that humans are not very gentle.” “What if you hurt me more?”
Adam said, “I promise I will try not to hurt you and I will try to be very gentle.” “Very well,” said the meraid. First, Adam took some oil out of his fishing bag and rubbed it on the mermaid’s skin. Next, he took a few cotton balls and laid them around the place where the sharp needle was stuck. The oil and the cotton balls would keep the mermaid out of pain. Then, Adam gently took hold of the needle and tried to pull it out. All the time, Adam blew at the wound so it would not hurt much. Finally, he pulled the needle out. Then Adam put a large piece of cloth around the wound. Then he got some water from the pond and he gently poured some water over the cloth. The cloth and the water would work as a bandge while the wound healed.
After a few hours of resting, the mermaid felt much better. She quickly dived into the pond without thanking Adam. After a few seconds, the mermaid rose up to the surface of the pond holding Adam’s oars. “Here,” said the mermaid. Adam was very happy to know that he could row home again. He thanked the mermaid and was just about to leave when the mermaid suddenly said, “Wait, you don’t even know who I am yet!” Adam rowed back to the mermaid. The mermaid said, “My name is Gloria, and I am the daughter of The Emperor of the Seas.” “I have four sisters.” “My mother is called, The Queen of the Seas.” Me and my four sisters are The Princesses of the Seas.” “Every day, me and my sisters swim to the surface of this pond and search for humans.”
“My father hates humans, so our job is to kill all of the humans we can find with our magical powers.” “But you, young man, you have saved me.” “And I cannot kill a human who has saved me.” “Instead, I will ask you what your name is and where you live so that we can meet very often.” Adam blushed and shyly said, “My name is Adam, and I live on a farm with my parents.” “My farm is very close to this pond.” “So we can meet very often?” asked Gloria.
“I will try to come to this pond as often as I can,” Adam replied. After a few hours of having a conversation, Adam realized that it was past midnight. “I must leave,” said Adam. “My parents must be worried about me.” “But I promise that exactly one month from now I will come to meet you again.” “Promise?” asked Gloria. “Promise,” Adam replied.
Then Adam bade farewell to Gloria and disappeared from sight. Adam’s parents asked him what took him so long to get home when he entered the house. Adam just said it was because he could not find fish. One month later, Adam told his parents that he wanted to fish. So his parents let him go. Adam came to the pond and listened for Gloria. This time, Gloria’s voice was coming from the east. Adam rowed his boat to the east and saw Gloria calling and waiting for him. When Gloria and Adam saw each other, they fell into each other’s arms and hugged. They talked and laughed all day. At midnight, Adam promised to be back the next month and left for home. This time, one of Gloria’s sisters was watching. She told the whole matter to her father, The Emperor of the Seas.
The emperor was furious when he heard that one of his daughters was in love with a human. He had Gloria arrested and thrown into the dungoun. How sad Gloria was! Her mother, The Queen of the Seas, tried to tell the emperor to set Gloria free, but the emperor would not listen. A month later, Adam came to the pond and looked for Gloria.
But Gloria’s voice came neither from the west, nor from the east. Gloria was gone. Adam sadly sat at the bank of the pond. He was so sad he began to weep. “Gloria, my Gloria, I have come!” “You had made me promise to come back the next month, so here I am!” “If only you would fulfill your promise and come back to me!” “Oh, Gloria!” Adam was so sad he made up a sad song about Gloria. It was like this, “I know you will come, oh yes, you will, or I’ll search for you in every river or mill!” He sang this song ten times. Finally, Adam wiped his tears and set off to look for Gloria.
Meanwhile, Gloria had no hope of being rescued by Adam. Suddenly, she saw a note blowing up from the land. Gloria caught the note and opened it. It said, “To see Adam once again, you must wiggle your fish tail as hard as you can.” “Then sit in the dungoun for three days without food or water.” Gloria immediately did as the note told her. She wiggled her fish tail as hard as she could and then she sat in the dungoun for three days without food or water.
At sun-set on the third day, Gloria saw an old woman come up to her. The woman took a magic wand out of her pouch and waved it hard. Suddenly, Gloria’s fish tail disappeared. In the fish tail’s place were two legs as fair as her arms! Gloria was no longer a mermaid. She was a human! Then the old woman disappeared. Even though Gloria was now a human, she could still swim. So she swam up to the surface of the pond and waited for Adam. But Adam did not come. Finally Gloria realized that Adam was looking for her. So she set out on her brand new legs to find Adam.
Meanwhile, Adam almost lost hope of finding Gloria. At last, Adam came to a mountain which was so high, no man could ever climb it. Adam then saw a priest throwing leaves into a stream. “May you live long, Holy One,” said Adam. The priest greeted Adam but he would not stop what he was doing. Adam asked, “Oh Holy One, do you know how to get over this huge mountain?” The priest stopped for a second and looked up at Adam.
He said, “To get over this mountain you must build a camp and a fire at the bottom.” “Then you must go to a river and get some water.” “Bring the water to me and then start climbing.” Adam didn’t know how this would help him, but he did as the priest said. To Adam’s surprise, the journey to the top of the mountain was only a day’s walk. At the top, Adam saw Gloria calling loudly for him. As soon as they saw each other, they fell into each other’s arms and began to weep for joy. At first, Adam was surprised to see that Gloria was a human. Then Gloria told Adam the whole story. Now they could be married and Gloria could live on land!
That very day, with the priest’s help, Gloria and Adam were married. Then Gloria taught Adam how to swim and together, they swam to the palace of Gloria’s father. At first, the emperor was furious. But over time, he too began to like Adam. After 10 months, Gloria and Adam bade fare-well to the emperor and left for Adam’s house. Adam’s parents were so glad to see Adam again. They were even happier to know that Adam had a human wife. Also, very often, Gloria and Adam swam to the bottom of the pond to greet the emperor. So they all lived happily ever after. THE END