The next moment was a blur. I took action immediately, sprinting at the pool as fast as I could. I could see someone running next to me, but I ignored my peripheral vision. My only goal was to hurt Symphony as badly as possible.

I took a running leap off the end of the dock, planning to collide head on with Symphony. However, at the last moment Symphony looked up and saw me. She flitted out of the way, and I barely took a breath before plunging into the pool.

The water was crisp and cool, and might have been relaxing if I wasn't in full on panic mode. I tried to open my eyes, but as the water pressed in on me they began to sting. Everything around me was blurry, and my heart began to race much too fast. To make matters worse, my dress had come up over my head and were suddenly constricting my movement. I began thrashing around, trying to free myself from the fabric that continued to grow tighter and more twisted. Much too late, I realized I had never been in water deeper than I could touch. I had no idea how to swim or float, and my air supply was already dwindling. I tried to stop breathing bubbles out of my mouth, but my head was beginning to pound. I could feel my heartbeat thrumming throughout my body and my lungs beginning to twitch. I flailed my arms, trying and failing to free myself from my dress, but I could tell I was going to be too late. My air was gone, and my vision was starting to go dark. The pounding of my pulse was the only thing I could feel, the only thing I could hear...

I was suddenly shoved toward what I assumed was the surface, as my wet dress continued to press against my face but air surrounded my head. I gasped, then immediately coughed as water from my dress seeped into my mouth and throat. Kicking my legs with all of my might, I managed to stay afloat as I pushed the fabric off of my head. It was sopping wet and weighing me down, so much so that I almost sunk beneath the surface again. However, something tugged at the skirt for a moment, then some of the weight seemed to fall away. I continued to cough as I took in my surroundings, no longer fearing for my own life. I had no idea what had happened to my dress, but I decided to just accept it and ask questions later. I saw Miles tugging Andy's limp body to the side of the pond. I moved my arms and legs in a sort of doggy paddle, working to keep myself above the water and also to bring myself to Miles's side.

I reached the boys as Miles reached a spot on the steep floor of the pool where he could touch. He was panting, and he looked terrified as he grabbed Andy under the arms and began to bring him to dry land. I helped as soon as I reached them, grabbing Andy's legs and lifting him up. Miles set him down as soon as Andy was fully out of the water, and he quickly leaned over Andy's head with his ear turned toward Andy's mouth. He also grabbed Andy's wrist. I knelt next to Andy on his other side, shivering and breathing hard. No, no, no, I thought, unable to fathom Andy being gone forever. Please.

"Please," I breathed out loud.

Miles did not look at me, but he suddenly said, "He has a heartbeat, but he's not breathing."

Immediately, Miles plugged Andy's nose and put his mouth against his. Rescue breaths, I realized. That must mean there's a chance.

A sound from the pool drew my attention, and I looked over to the water to see Symphony, pushing part of my soaked skirt and a knife onto the shore.

"You," I snarled, stumbling to my feet in the dripping petticoat that I was left in and leveling a glare at the siren that could have burned holes into her head. I wish it had. "How could you? You said you knew that humans couldn't breathe underwater." I took a step toward the water and snatched the fabric, which I recognized to be the top skirt of the dress ensemble I was in, as well as the knife from the ground. Symphony looked... sorry? Guilty? Her big, sad eyes only served to make me madder. "Symphony, I thought you were different! I thought you didn't want to kill people, I thought you knew that was a horrible thing to do..." I looked around, trying to come up with the words I needed. "Why bring him back here? To see me suffer? To see him die while his family watches?" My voice broke on the last word. I was trying not to think about what would happen if Miles could not save Andy, but the fear was looming ever larger as time continued.

"Of course not, Winifred," Symphony said softly, swimming a bit closer. "I thought that I could help, and I--"

Before she could get any closer, I shouted, "No!" and pointed the knife I was holding directly at her. She stopped moving, her eyes wide and her lips open in a small "o". "No," I said again, calmer this time. I was gripping the sharp weapon so tightly that my fingers were white and my arm was shaking. "You thought you could help?" I shook my head, water dripping into my eyes and almost laughing at the absurdity of her statement, but refraining due to the severity of the situation. "Do not come closer. Do not come back. I don't ever want to see you again." I gritted my teeth, trying to fight back tears. My breaths were shallow, but they were slowing down a bit. My pulse was beginning to return to its regular pace. I felt a bit more in control, though not much.

"He's breathing!" The exclamation broke my glare at Symphony, and I twirled around so fast that I almost fell over. Andy was coughing and spitting water, and I watched him as his chest rose in a long-awaited breath.

"Thank God!" I returned to Andy's side and grabbed his hand. His fingers squeezed mine weakly, then fell limp again. I looked at Andy's face and noticed his eyelids were fluttering weakly. "Are you sure he's okay?" I asked Miles worriedly, pushing my wet hair out of my face.

Miles's eyebrows drew together. "Honestly, no. We need to get him back to the castle right away." Miles tried to sit Andy up while also making sure he was breathing. The combination did not work well, and Miles looked to me for help.

"Can we help you stand up?" I asked Andy, who took a moment to process the question before nodding slightly.

We each got one of Andy's arms over our shoulders and wrapped one arm around his waist. I could feel his ribs expanding weakly with each breath. I looked back for moment, and found Symphony still floating in the pool. She looked heartbroken and worried and everything you should not look after attempting to drown someone. I ignored the strange twisting feeling in my stomach and turned away from her.

~~~~~

It was a slow, painstaking journey to the castle, since Andy was semi-conscious the whole way and we were terrified that his weak breaths would eventually stop. But we had made it to the castle, gotten help, and told the whole story several times. Now Miles and I sat outside of Andy's room in the medical wing, slumped side by side against the wall. We had been silent for awhile, not sure what to say. They hadn't told us if Andy was going to be alright, and I was nervously picking at the edge of my petticoat. I hadn't even changed out of my ruined dress yet, but I didn't want to leave until I knew Andy would be okay.

"Do you really think it was her?" Miles suddenly broke the silence. I looked at him, taking in his wrinkled uniform and messy hair. He didn't look at me, just stared at the wall across the hallway. I could tell he was worn out and nervous and all of the things that I felt too. "Do you think she tried to drown him?"

I shrugged, turning to look at the opposite wall. "I don't know," I admitted, giving way to the doubts that had begun to cloud my mind since we had gotten Andy to safety. "She seemed upset about what was happening, although that could have been regret. And she told me that she didn't want to kill people, though it could have been an accident. I'm not one hundred percent sure how their magic works," I added, voicing something else that had been bothering me. "Symphony had talked about singing in order to lure victims into the water, but when Catalina tried to drown me..." My breath caught a bit in my throat, remembering the way her words had made me feel. "She didn't need to sing. Hell, she barely said ten words!" I laughed shortly, then quickly stopped, remembering how easy it was for her to distract me. "It must have something to do with intention."

"I guess," Miles responded. He sounded disinterested, still staring at the wall. "I just... well, you knew Symphony better than me. Does this seem like something she would do?"

I frowned at Miles's use of the past tense. It wasn't like she was gone for good, right? Then I cringed, remembering the harsh words I had said to her when Miles was trying to save Andy's life. Maybe she was gone for good.

"Well, no, but here's the thing," I said, suddenly second guessing most of what I knew. "Symphony could have been working her magic on me the whole time we were friends. I might not know her at all." Telling Miles my fears was a relief, but it also scared me more. I thought I had finally found a good friend, but she might have been enchanting me from the beginning.

Miles finally looked away from the wall, locking eyes with me and squinting a bit. "What did it feel like when Catalina was tricking you?"

I thought back to barely an hour before when I had nearly jumped off of that dock because Catalina told me to. "It was... terrifying. I didn't know why I wanted to listen to her, but I had to. Everything else just faded away."

"And how did it feel when you talked to Symphony? Before today?"

I frowned at Miles. "How is this supposed to help? This is just comparing the two, and when I do that, they start to seem more and more similar."

Miles looked up to the ceiling, almost rolling his eyes. "I'm not trying to reassure you, I'm trying to help you find the truth. Now, how was talking to Symphony similar to talking to Catalina?"

I huffed, but I did what Miles asked. "Well, I always wanted to talk to Symphony. And I listened when she talked, and I believed what she told me. That seems pretty similar to what happened with Catalina." I paused, before adding, "They were both really pretty."

I wasn't sure where that last part had come from, but it was true. I might as well point out all of the similarities first.

"She never tried to get you to hop in the pool though, did she?"

Miles had a point. Symphony talked to me for fun. She was always happy when we talked, and she didn't seem to have an ulterior motive either.

"Winnie," Miles said, turning to me and looking me in the eye again. "Like I said before, I didn't know Symphony like you did--"

"Stop using the past tense." Talking about Symphony like she was gone for good made me irrationally upset, and I glared at Miles.

Miles raised one eyebrow. "Why? You told her to stay away. She might have drowned Andy."

"I don't think she did," I blurted suddenly. Thinking about Symphony and everything that I knew about her, I realized I had jumped to conclusions too fast. "That's not something she would do."

"Well, maybe you should have thought about that before you yelled at her for attempting to kill your cousin."

I gasped, surprised at Miles's bluntness. "I obviously wasn't thinking straight at the time, and I jumped to conclusions! If you were on her side, then why didn't you stop me before I scared her off?"

"I was a little busy saving Andy's life!" Miles fired back, and I gritted my teeth in frustration. Of course he was right, but I was angry at myself, and it was coming out as anger at him.

"Sorry," I muttered.

"It's fine," Miles grumbled back.

We sat in silence until a nurse came out of Andy's room a short while later. She told us that he would be fine, but that he was asleep and needed to rest. Miles asked to go in and see him anyway, and the nurse allowed it after a bit of negotiation and a promise to let Andy sleep.

"I'd better go tell Andy's parents about this," I said suddenly, realizing that no one had thought to tell them.

Miles nodded, not really acknowledging me as he headed into Andy's room. I might have thought that was rude on any other day, but Miles was obviously distracted. The nurse closed the door behind him, then promptly dropped into a small curtsey. "Andrew's father is still at sea Princess, but is set to return tomorrow. I'm not sure if anyone told his mother, so maybe you ought to do that."

"Okay," I said quietly, and I left the hallway feeling more hurt and confused than was really necessary. At least you didn't drown today, I thought to myself. There were several opportunities for you to do so.

On any other day, I would have found my little joke funny. Not today.