"I've seen them!  I've seen them! I knew I wasn't crazy!"

Brandon Grove,  the village drunkard, ran through the town to the town hall yelling about seeing mermaids for the thousands time. He had been on the hunt for mermaids ever since his little girl,  Jeannie,  disapeared. "I've seen them!  I've finally seen them!"

"Brandon,  what are you on about?" The chief asked him impatiently. "Winter is coming and I can't deal with your wild goose chases."

"This isn't a wild goose chase! I promise not this time." Brandons eyes were wide,  showing his sobriety.  He hadn't been drinking. "I was out fishing,  getting my catch for the village,  and I saw its tail splash the water. It had a bright,  sparkly red tail.  And it was big too. You've got to believe me."

The chief sighed and stood up from his crouched position. He turned to fully face Brandon. "I am telling you for the last time, mermaids do not exist. They are as real as dragons,  or trolls. Just stories used to teach the kids."

Knowing he wasn't going to be taken seriously,  he dejectedly walked away. He slowly made his way back to his house on the east side of the mountain. "Sir! Sir please slow down!"

He slowly turned and saw two little girls and a small boy following him. "What d'yer want?"

"Tell us about the mermaids please! Did you really see them? Are they pretty? What do they sound like?"the little kids bombarded him with questions about the mermaids, and he didn't know how to handle it.  Most of the time kids stayed away from him,  not daring to be seen talking to him.

He said, " Okay,  I guess I can tell you about the mermaids. Come to this little diner and we can talk."

They all walked together to the seafood restaurant and they sat down  at one of the corner tables. "First thing you should know is that mermaids are not friendly. They act friendly to little girls and boys to draw  them in close. Kids trust them because they are so pretty,  and have beautiful voices. The voice of a mermaid is unresistable. I know. My daughter,  Jeannie,  was walking by the water one day when she met a mermaid. They talked for hours. Jeannie came home and told me all about what the mermaid had told her. How the underwater palace is being destroyed and they need girls and boys to help fix it.

" I told her not to go. It is far too dangerous,  but a few days later she was gone. I searched everywhere for her with no luck. I went down by the shore to clear my mind,  try to think of where she could be,  when I saw her. The most beautiful mermaid in the seas. She has a glittery red tail, smooth silk like hair,  and caramel colored skin. Her hair was the color of the sky at sunset,  and her eyes we're the color of the night sky.

"Her voice was like nothing I had ever heard before. She came as close to me as she could without getting out of the water,  and she whispered 'thank you for your sacrifice. She was very helpful.' I hadn't known what she had meant until I got home. My daughter was the sacrifice. They had taken my daughter into their palace. I don't know what they did with her,  but I know this for certain she is no longer alive.

"Children,  stay as far away from the ocean as you can. The mermaids will not hesitate to take you in as well." With that Brandon silently stood up and left,  leaving the children shocked,  scared and worried. Jeannie had been their babysitter, and they knew how she had met the mermaid. She had promised to come back,  but they knew she wasn't coming any time soon.

One year passed,  and the little boy and his sister pretty much forgot about the story the sailor told them,  but the youngest girl remembered. She had been playing in the water when she heard a large splash. She looked up and saw a beautiful creature. A mermaid!

It had a bright blue tail with black hair down past her shoulders. "Come help me little girl.  Come lead my kingdom."

The little girls eyes widened and she ran away.  Or tried to at least. The mermaid grabbed her ankle and pulled her in the water. They were on the way down,  deep down the water. The small girl was running out of air,  and the last thing she saw before she passed out was the body of her old babysitter floating in the water.