The Mermaid and the Centaur Part II by Ana Ruiz Nearly ten years have come and gone since Shaira, once a mermaid, and Shanan, once a centaur, reunited and became rulers of Lunaria; a kingdom named after the Moon, full of wonderful people and magnificent centaurs. As a queen, Shaira built playgrounds, schools, and libraries for the children, and as a king, Shanan
built homes, farms, and workshops for their parents. Together Shaira and Shanan oversaw the land that became plentiful and prosperous. No-one was ever hungry. One of the many things that the king taught his people was how to make musical instruments and in a short time, Lunaria was known throughout all lands for its melodic music and wonderful instruments. Everywhere that you went, the sound of music was heard. The Royal Musicians of Lunaria played instruments such as the flute, drums, cymbals, harp, trumpet, tambourine, and the favorite of all, the lute. These musical instruments were indeed a very big part of the festivals, ceremonies, and celebrations of the people of Lunaria.
One early summer morning when Shanan was cheering on his old friends at the annual centaur races, Shaira entertained herself at the royal palace by singing to the music of her harp. The Queen loved to sing beautiful melodies and songs from her childhood that she learned from her old friends. Whenever she sang, the brightest orange canaries would fly to her windowsill and line up in a row to sing in harmony to the sound of Shaira's song and music of her harp. She had become quite good at playing the harp, she smiled and thought to herself. Her happy thought was innocently interrupted by the tapping of a bright bluebird that also perched itself alongside the canaries carrying a written message. Shaira carefully untied the ribbon,
unraveled the letter, and began to read out loud as her eyes widened; "Hail Shaira, Queen of Lunaria; Your good deeds have earned you a wish, That shall be granted by a special Starfish. At the next full Moon by the waterfall, You will then know everything and all." Three nights passed until the next full Moon. Meanwhile, Shaira could hardly think of anything else as she became more and more excited with each passing day as she thought about her wish and what it could be. The night of the full Moon finally arrived and Shaira went down and sat by the waterfall as she waited under the bright light of the Moon. These were the times of the year when all of Lunaria was spectacularly illuminated by the Moon; after all the land WAS named in her honor!
Moments later, a colorful, little Starfish approached and introduced himself in the squeakiest voice; "Although I am but a tiny starfish, I am here to grant you one single wish; You have been kind to all and the gods know, Now tell me your wish and I shall go!" Shaira thought very deeply as she had everything that she had ever wanted; good health, a happy marriage, two wonderful children, and a magnificent kingdom. The little Starfish cleared his throat and insisted; "Make the gods smile and say your wish out loud, I'll be on my way and of me they will be proud. For I am very little and will show them all,
That I can grant a wish even though I am small!" Shaira thought to herself one last time and instantly she knew what her wish would be! She would wish to be reunited with her childhood friends, Aisha and Kasia. The Queen often wondered about her mermaid friends while she took walks by the seashore hoping to one day catch a glimpse of them in the waves. Shaira fondly remembered how they would play in the ocean laughing and giggling for hours and hours. Then she jumped up and declared; "I know now what my wish is to be, To see Aisha and Kasia, my friends of the sea!" As soon as these words were spoken, the Starfish disappeared and left behind a soft trail of jasmine perfume in the air. Shaira waited and fell asleep by the calming sound of the rippling waterfall and soothing distant melodies.
Aisha and Kasia had been swimming and traveling the many seas finding one adventure after another, always side by side. One evening, while they were playing with a jumping catfish that they befriended, the mermaids saw a distant castle miles away brightly illuminated by the light of that full Moon. Moments later, they heard the faint sound of music that was becoming louder as they began to swim towards the castle. Mermaids are quite fond of music as delightful songstresses with magnificent voices and Aisha and Kasia began to sing along to the sweetest melodies that they had ever heard. It took them nearly two hours to swim to the shore and they both decided to rest for only a short while, as mermaids cannot live on land for very long.
Suddenly, a shiny sea-lion with the longest whiskers appeared to them and spoke; "It has been written in the sand, That you both arrive at this land. For here lives one who misses you two, And her wish to see you will now come true! Now back into the ocean you both shall go, And as it has been written, it shall be so!" Meanwhile, Shaira was awakened by the sound of familiar giggling and splashing she heard from afar. She stood up, rubbed her eyes, and saw Aisha and Kasia playing in the distant ocean waves! Shaira ran across the sand, dove into the water, and swam as fast as she could to her friends. They all began to play and laugh just like they used to -
well almost, as Shaira was no longer a mermaid. Aisha was the first to speak; "We are tired of the seas we roam" And Kasia quickly added; "And we look for a new place to call home." To which Shaira cried out; " By the oceans of Lunaria, you both shall stay, And never again, will you be far away!" The very next evening, a great feast and lavish festival was prepared for the reunion of the Queen and her old friends. For everyone to enjoy, there was music, dancing, banquets, family activities and games. When the feasting was over, Aisha and Kasia mesmerized everyone as they sang to the wonderful music that the royal musicians were playing. Shaira joined in the song with her harp and
it wasn't long before Shanan and the rest of the people began to sing along too! The King and Queen were so pleased that they crowned Aisha and Kasia as the "Enchanted Singing Mermaids of the Kingdom of Lunaria." Ana Ruiz 2012