The diamond is off. The little mermaid calmed down and thought:
– Oh, well, – she thought, seeing her father, – he’s all right.
And so it all went: the other side of the mermaid’s studies: magic, sorcery. She was very interested in it. The further, the deeper, the more interesting it became. It was even possible to create something extraordinary out of nothing. Even the witch slowly began to soften, without noticing it herself. As she lacked, it turns out before normal communication. And it was all Silena’s fault.
Nobody let her out, as if the gloomy space itself did not allow her toВ leave. AВ black haze reigned inВ this enchanted kingdom that it was not known when the day came and when the night came.
And the courtiers and the whole kingdom already guessed that the princess was imprisoned byВ aВ witch, because they searched all the nooks and crannies ofВ the underwater kingdom and other neighboring settlements, and no one saw her. And even her classmates stopped being angry with her and regretted that they had treated her badly. The seahorse forgot himself with aВ message from the witch and sat drunk inВ aВ tavern, where the palace guards found him. He lost the message, but conveyed it inВ words, and the king announced inВ the district that he was going toВ attack the witch kingdom with an army.
And the rumors reached the witch and the little mermaid. Silena asked her gloomy teacher toВ send aВ messenger toВ the king that she was not inВ danger and inВ two months she would return home.
The witch, as the first time, kept her word and sent aВ swimming beetle there toВ announce her decision. The king decided not toВ resist. He knew the witch: she would keep her word, she was true toВ her promises, and it was not worth risking her daughter.
Two months have passed and a capable student has mastered all the lessons and admonitions from the sorceress. The king’s father did not go to war to free his daughter, he believed the promise and eagerly leafed through the calendar. Yes, and he could not have defeated the witch, because no one had yet been able to defeat her. And if she wins, then the defeated kingdom, so prosperous, will also turn into a black haze – he did not dare to allow this.
It’s time to release the little mermaid, and the witch got used to her so much that she already considered her successor. Silena began to love the witch, because she so lacked female attention from her mother.
The witch looked after the sailing Silena and suddenly, against her will, shed aВ tear, and the little mermaid, quietly floating out into the bright light, closed her eyes out ofВ habit and slowly, slowly swam towards her kingdom without looking back. Gentle waves caressed her hair, diffused light penetrated through the water and, out ofВ habit, her head was spinning aВ little.
Having sailed home toВ the royal palace, she rushed toВ her father. ToВ celebrate, the sea king announced aВ feast throughout the country. He invited musicians: violinists, troubadours, overseas
fish-dancers and everyone sang, danced, rejoiced at the return ofВ Silena. The little mermaid was teased with sweets, combed her silky hair with golden combs, weaved the most fragrant algae into her braids and pink pearls.
The little mermaid was immensely happy, but meanwhile inВ her soul ached with longing for the witch. The heart was filled with desire toВ see her new teacher.
– What is my witch doing now, she’s all alone there! It would also be nice to treat her with palace sweets, – but contritely lowered her head and sighed: – it’s a pity that this is impossible.
The next day, Silena sailed toВ school and all her classmates surrounded her and inВ chorus, vying with each other began toВ ask what andВ how:
– We were worried about you. The witch didn’t hurt you? Did she treat you well? What did you eat there? Was it scary there? Tell us, how is it in the realm of darkness?
The little mermaid was flattered byВ such attention and told inВ detail about the dark kingdom with black pearls on the walls, about toothy moray eels, about aВ bunch ofВ fish remains. But she kept silent about the fact that the witch is not so bad. She took care ofВ her.
All the crowd went toВ the classroom and everyone shouted:
– Tell us more, more!
After her return, everything changed. Classmates began toВ respect her after the successful rescue from the terrible witch, because from childhood everyone was scared that she was devouring girls and boys, and Silena returned even more beautiful than before, with special sparks inВ her eyes.
Meanwhile, the witch did not let up: without Silena she had no peace. InВ anguish, she ate codfish one byВ one and threw the skeletons out the window.
– What happened with me? – she wondered at herself, tearing off the sticky leeches from her table. Gradually, she began to realize that, as a daughter, she did not cherish the soul in Silena.
– I become like a mermaid myself, ugh! I want order around me and a little bit of good. I am ashamed of other sorcerers in eyes look after that, – and laughed softly under her breath: – where are they, other sorcerers then?
Just byВ touching the wall ofВ her room, she suddenly recoiled: starting from the black corners toВ the opening the darkness ofВ the door turned gray and became aВ little lighter. She thought:
– Wow, any changes? Perhaps it’s better, otherwise they are all the same color.
She sailed toВ make aВ detour ofВ her kingdom and was surprised toВ find that there, too, the black haze along the edges ofВ her state began toВ dissipate. Blueish and greenish colors began toВ appear.
– What’s happening? – wondered the witch.
Silena, eluding her fans, after school, instead ofВ sailing home, went straight toВ the witch kingdom.
– Oh, – she threw up her hands, – Where is it?
What she saw stunned her. Instead of the expected blackness and pitch darkness, she saw the following picture: instead of a black castle, she saw a bluish haze around, behind which one could see the greenish outlines of a palace filled with some colors. She did not know whether to rejoice or be afraid – what happened there? And rather swam to look for her teacher. On the way, looking into every secluded place, she shouted:
– Witch, where are you?
And suddenly she saw an unusual picture. Among the slightly pinkish black corals, inВ aВ hammock woven from strong algae, the witch swayed lulled byВ the symphony ofВ her crabs, and snored. Even her dress has changed its color slightly. Instead ofВ greasy black, it turned into blue-violet.
From an excess ofВ overwhelmed feelings, Silena affectionately hugged her and kissed her on the cheek. The witch woke up, out ofВ habit, that someone disturbed her without asking, she wanted toВ scream, but she saw her lost student and broke into aВ happy smile and hugged her inВ response.
– You are back? An emerald tear rolled down the bridge of her nose. – I thought I’d never see you again.
– I missed you too. That’s why I returned. You have become like family to me. I was afraid that I would never see you either.
The witch grabbed her hand and dragged her towards the lotus.
– When you left, I forgot to give you the magic scepter. This is your magic tool. With him you will always be safe.
They swam together and found that there were still bright spots, windows. The sorceress, unaccustomed toВ seeing the light, could no longer endure the blackness toВ which she was accustomed, but became worried:
– Holes should be patched up.
Silena held her back and said softly:
– It’s because you decided to change and everything around began to change. Our love and affection for each other works wonders.
The witch herself began toВ change. Rejuvenated, facial features have changed for the better. She felt that she had become important toВ Silena.
And in the palace, the queen, unexpectedly for everyone and herself, began to change in character and mood. Either she will yell at the servants for no reason at all, or she will freak out that the food is undersalted or peppered and will pour soup on the head of the silver carp cook. And she doesn’t understand what’s wrong with her.
And Silena swam out ofВ the black haze and sailed away toВ school, for aВ joke turning into different fish so that she would not be recognized. She walked inВ school with classmates and shot small shells at teachers, and they punished other students. The little mermaid also saw her father more furtively when she watched him inВ his royal affairs.
So time passed and Silena almost did not return home: some supernatural force did not allow her toВ leave the old woman. The witch grandmother caressed her, combing her hair, and the little mermaid fell inВ love with her as aВ mother. The sea king was no longer worried about his daughter: she had become an adult and it was definitely not necessary for them toВ be afraid ofВ witchesВ now.
It was time for school exams and Silena had toВ make up for lost knowledge inВ order toВ prepare and pass successfully. This was the reason that after school she stopped visiting her witch inВ her even brighter, once terrible, kingdom.
One morning, the queen, opening the bedroom windows, heard the latest news from the paperboy:
– Sensation! Imagine, the witch’s black kingdom is no longer black! Her haze dissipated and a palace appeared on the site. it is certainly not as luxurious as ours, but quite tall and attractive. The darkness is dissipating gradually. What’s happening? Scientists are confused.
The queen furrowed her brows: is everything returning toВ its place?
– I need to go there urgently and check everything myself. What if the witch can already leave her possessions?
She threw on a fiery cloak and quietly rushed headlong out of the palace and rushed to reconnoiter. She couldn’t wait to see everything with her own eyes.
Meanwhile, the witch looked at herself inВ the mirror, stroking her flushed cheeks, which had become smoother, and her nose no longer touched her chin. She was surprised toВ understand that everything inВ her was really changing. Almost nothing remains ofВ the former witch: aВ large-eyed, green-eyed mermaid woman was already looking at her inВ the mirror inВ surprise.
And at this pleasant moment, at great speed, opening the algae curtains, aВ miger queen flew in, who was aВ real witch.
– How dare you all destroy?! – she yelled, lashing out at the witch.
– What have I destroyed? – she jumped away from her. – I don’t understand, what are you talking about?
The queen hissed and spit inВ anger. And the more she got angry, the more she became like aВ witch herself.
– Why, don’t you remember how I fell in love with your king? More than you! That my mother turned you into a witch and me into you. It’s because I really deserved the king’s love more than you! I even became the best mother for your daughter!
And then, opposite the eyes ofВ the witch, the real queen, muddy pictures ofВ the past began toВ emerge. And gradually they became clearer and clearer. She saw herself joyful with the king when they held their newborn daughter inВ their arms, their wedding, how they first met, fell inВ love, how strong their loveВ was.
Silena, meanwhile, was returning from school. She missed her so much that she had not seen the magical teacher for a long time, that, having swum unnoticed to the door, she heard the whole conversation between her mother and the witch. Her face turned pale. She pressed her hands to her chest and could hardly restrain her tears, she almost screamed in despair, but in time she covered her mouth with her hand: “So that’s why you’ve never been nice to me! Only my father loved me. And you just put up with me. That’s why my heart was torn to the witch and grieved for her. You are my real mother.” Tears were already rolling down her pale cheeks, when the queen rushed past, almost knocking her, but not noticing her stepdaughter.
Silena’s whole life flashed before her eyes. And she recalled many times how she could not allegedly tell mother, how her classmates offended her at school – that she only blamed herself. How she once fell while running from furious coelocant, and, swimming between the corals, scratched her elbow badly, and the pseudo-mother, instead of hugging and blowing on the wound, pushed the girl away and scolded for hooliganism. She was very upset that she herself was to blame. Now everything has become clear.
Silena plucked up the courage toВ swim inside and consciously meet her real mother for the first time.
– Mommy, my mommy! she shouted, running towards him. The witch only clasped her hands and hugged her daughter.
– I’ll never leave you again.
– Mom, do you remember me? – Silena asked almost sobbing.
– Yes. Before, I didn’t understand why, but something native seemed to me in you from the first meeting.
– And how I suffered without my mother’s affection, without my mother’s warmth. I thought she was my mom. And I’ve always felt good with you. Even from your glance it became warm on the heart. Let’s swim quickly to the palace. Suddenly there something bad happened, if she already knows.
The witch nodded and took her daughter byВ the hand and swam toВ the borders ofВ her domain. But some invisible, already without blackness, appeared as aВ wall inВ front ofВ the queen and her found daughter.
– Oh, the spell has not completely gone yet… what to do now? We’ll have to wait.
– Mom, what if she does something bad with dad?
– Don’t worry, she loves him and won’t hurt him. But I’m worried about you. Better stay with me until the morning, and in the morning we will figure out how to get out of here.
They couldn’t close their eyes all night. Silena talked about her life, her childhood dreams and experiences. Her mother stroked her hair affectionately, pressed her to her breast, and could not get enough of the fact that from now on she was not alone.
Mother told how aВ miracle happened one day: witchcraft, like aВ veil from her eyes fell from her face, and she turned almost inВ front ofВ the little mermaid into her mother.
– And while you were taking exams, my terrible skin fell off like a snake. I became alternately terrible, then I had a beautiful face and body.
The little mermaid exclaimed:
– Oh yeah! You have always been like my mother in your attitude towards me.
And the mother suddenly remembered and told her aВ story that Silena had partially overheard behind the door.
– I am a queen and gave birth to you at a time when your father had just ascended the throne.
