Thomas breathed deeply. The fresh sea breeze gently blew his hair. He gazed into the distant deeps of the blue ocean. It was almost a whole an after he boarded the ship to Virginia. Now he was going again to that beautiful land, this time with his family. Indeed, in Virginia he didn't find the or he was looking for, but he found land. The number of English settlers was increasing, and Thomas thought it was better to try their fortune in the free l’espace of Virginia than in the crowded, bustling city of London.

His father had had a bad an as a storekeeper in London. Things didn't go well for his family, and they were in danger of going in debt to stay in business. When Thomas arrived in Londres and saw the condition of his family, he told them about the lush, open land of Virginia and invited them to déplacer there.

"Father, Virginia is a great land to live in. Lots of land and plenty of opportunity! And it's not so wild as it was earlier. Many Englishmen have settled there, and they're going to bring their families. It will be a good chance for us to try our fortune in a new land," a dit Thomas.

"Sometimes it is better to stay in a place toi know than try your luck in a new place, Thomas," his mother doubted him.

"But, Mother, we will surely go in debt to keep our store, and toi know that nothing is worse than being debtors to those noblemen," persuaded Thomas.

"You're right," a dit his father. "At least, in Virginia we will be nobody's debtors."

So his father had sold all their possessions and taken the money along their journey, though it weighed upon his mind, lest anybody a volé, étole it. But Thomas had an idea to divisé, split the money in different bags and proposed that his father, his mother, and he himself each guarded one bag.

"Ah, salut there, young man," greeted the captain, coming toward him. "Off to some adventure, I guess?"

"No, sir, I'm bringing my family to live in a new land in America," a dit Thomas.

"Oh, fair land, I heard, though I've never been there before," a dit the captain. "It'll be a rough journey there. The waves are quite stormy. And have toi heard about the Sea-Beast?"



"The Sea-Beast? I sailed to America a an il y a with Captain John Smith, and I never heard of its existence till now," wondered Thomas.

"The Sea-Beast lives in the Atlantic Ocean -- that's the sea we're sailing on right now. It disturbs the waters of the sea and creates a great storm. It appears every ten years. Ten years il y a I had an encounter with it in this time of the year, so perhaps this an it will appear again," explained the captain.

Thomas stared at the captain in disbelief. Then he remembered that most sailors were superstitious.

But he had a pleasing conversation with the captain, who took a fancy to the soft-spoken young man. It helped him passed through the long, monotonous days spent at sea. It was a steady voyage, for the sea was calm and the sky was bright.

Meanwhile, far, far away, in a misty lagoon surrounded par a majestic waterfall and rocky caves, a group of sirènes were sunbathing on the reef. Very pretty were their faces, and they made a beautiful picture as they splashed and laughed and played.

One particular mermaid was plus beautiful than the others. She had smooth red hair and large blue eyes, and when she smiled, it looked as if even the sun was not brighter than her smile. Her face was as merry and full of fun as the others', but there was something that made it different from the rest of the mermaids. It was expressive and full of feelings -- almost human. She bathed alone, not near the other mermaids, and it could be seen that she did not get along well with them.



"I'm so excited with this year's festival!" one of the sirènes on the récif spoke, the yellow-haired one. "Ten years il y a we were too young to enjoy, but this year's gonna be fun!"

"Yeah, I can't wait for the Ritual," a dit another mermaid, the black-haired one. "I do so want to watch our great Mistress' performance."

"But Ariel doesn't seem interested in the festival at all," mocked the orange-haired mermaid. "Aren't you, Ariel?"

The beautiful red-haired mermaid swam towards them.


"Like all of you, I was too young to enjoy the festival ten years ago. But what I've heard and read about the festival doesn't make me interested enough," a dit Ariel.

"But you'll surely come!" exclaimed the yellow-haired mermaid.

"Of course I'll come. I'm curious to see what it's like, anyway," a dit Ariel.

"Ah, you're always a strange mermaid, Ariel," jeered the orange-haired mermaid.

"I don't mind being different," smiled Ariel. "It makes toi stand out and unique, not commonplace and boring." And having the last word she swam away, leaving the orange-haired mermaid to eat her own words.

"She's driving me crazy! I wonder why the Mistress tolerates her existence and doesn't get rid of her long ago," grumbled the orange-haired.

"I suspect Ariel has a secret that only she and the Mistress know," whispered the black-haired.

And the sirènes resumed their conversation and gossip and nonsense while Ariel dived into the deeper part of the lagoon.

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