Chapter Text
Soft white starlight and the orange glow of flickering streetlamps trickled between the verdant green pine needles of Copperdale’s evergreen forest. It was a beautiful sight, the green pines hugging the coastline along the beautifully clear lake, Lake LaSuli. The early stars of a purple twilight reflected in the waters like a near-perfect mirror, and on such a mer-minded mission Rory wondered to herself what it would be like to live in the lake. Not along it in some old wooden cabin, but truly within it. Part of the lake itself as inseparable from it as the individual water droplets that created it.
Or was being a mermaid also administrative work? Perhaps this band was just the escapees, seeking freedom outside of the paperwork of whatever siren society they came from.
Rory turned her face towards the boardwalk, no longer interested in diluting her thoughts of the magical underwater world with that of administrative work. Even if it was true, she didn’t need even a shadow of confirmation. Some things deserved to exist in the sacredness of childlike imagination.
As per her father’s advice, Rory had gotten Lou to be responsible for wrangling the pack on this full moon. She knew there would no doubt be some packmates who’d be disappointed by her lack of appearance, but they’d get over it. Afterall, she had reasoned, there were basically 12 moons in a year, missing one full moon with them wasn’t going to kill them. Plus, this mission seemed interesting, and Lou needed something to do.
Rory had spent her free time in the last couple of days doing her research on this siren band. They hadn’t even bothered to hide their fishiness – though, perhaps that’s what worked in their favor. The band name was Sereia, Portuguese for siren. They were seemingly a band that mixed rock with soul, or perhaps soul with rock and a bit of rnb. The music she did find of them were uploads of concerts they had done with a completely enamored audience. They had no albums or singles – though all of their music seemed to be original. Their music was smooth, slow, with guitar and drum solos. Their voices were equally as smooth as the music that came from their bass guitar, with harmonies so eerily perfect it caused a shudder to go up Rory’s spine. With no press, physical media, nor even a social media presence (outside of what was created by fans), Sereia had managed to grab just enough of a hold on the culture to always have a full concert. Purely off of word of mouth.
But that’s where their power was anyway, right? Word of mouth. The siren song their species was so infamous for. Rory remembered she was around 12, learning about the different occults that populated her world from her father. She remembered being oh-so jealous of the merfolk – children of the moon like her, but with significantly less hair. Their powers were beautiful songs and mysterious sea sorcery that controlled the tides, weather, and hearts of men. And women. It seemed out of all of the occults in the world mermaids were one of the most blessed. They didn’t have to spend their entire lives hiding who they were – they had entire societies beneath the waves and their time amongst everyone else was largely leisure for them. They lived in the tropics with few other occults, so they got to avoid all the occult-y politics of the terrestrial world. And they weren’t even reliant on a particular strict diet – they could literally eat whatever they wanted, maybe they were required to eat seafood but it wasn’t like that wasn’t hard to find in the ocean. They truly were seemingly the luckiest of the luckiest.
But that was before Rory realized how awesome being a wolf was. The blessing of the hunt, the beauty of the forest, and the true honor and companionship of a pack. She wouldn’t trade it for the world; but if she couldn’t be a wolf, she’d be a siren.
Speaking of sirens, they hadn’t even arrived yet. Or if they had, Rory couldn’t see them. The boardwalk – a surprisingly well-maintained bit of infrastructure with rides and games and even a Ferris wheel – was full of chittering teenagers, many of whom had no doubt snuck out of their homes to be there at this late hour. So enamored were they by talk of the band and whatever relevant high school gossip was going around, none of them seemed to notice as Rory joined them. A small stage was being set up nearby the Ferris wheel, and a vendor was eagerly selling fruity boba drinks to the crowd, really emphasizing the pearl part of boba pearls. Pretty on theme considering neither he, nor the older teenager offering ‘merch’ at extreme prices to his peers, seemed to be officially affiliated with the band.
No one there seemed to be affiliated with them.
Then, Rory felt a soft tap on her shoulder. She turned around to a face a teenage girl much smaller than she, with an iron grip on a pink boba. “I love your hair!” The girl started blushing almost immediately, but before Rory could say thanks the girl continued, “Did you get it to match Nerissa?”
Nerissa? Rory furrowed her brows and opened her mouth to ask what the girl meant, but before she could the girl started screaming and ran into the crowd of now screaming teenagers. Now, Rory could have used her strength to push her way into the front, but honestly – she didn’t want to make herself the focus of attention. She was there to intervene if the sirens started making trouble. Not to cause trouble.
Besides, the music wasn’t much her scene anyway and she didn’t want to get in the way of people who did enjoy this music. Based on her research, Sereia wasn’t a band that booked a venue more than once, so for most of these people this was their one and only chance to see the band live.
“HOW’S EVERYONE FEELING TONIGHT!” A raspy voice boomed from the stage. A tall, lanky teenager with dark curly hair sectioned into several braids gripped tightly on a pearl-encrusted microphone, waving eagerly to the crowd. The crowd screamed louder in response, various people shouting his name to hype him up. “You all know me, but for those of you who are in town just for the concert, my name is Sidney and I’m one of the members of Copperdale High’s very own varsity cheer team!” Another round of hooting and hollering followed, a few pompoms being raised in the air and vigorously waved around – some in gold and white, and others in red, white, and blue. Perhaps the difference between varsity and junior, or maybe the difference between two different schools. “Today we have a great show tonight! The viral band Sereia is here for a great show, and we are honored to host it! So let’s show Sereia that we’re the greatest crowd they’re going to meet on their tour tonight! And remember – there’s no pro-shot, so all you’re gonna have are pictures and memories so make it last people!”
Even if they were miles away in the woods, Rory’s pack could probably hear all the screeching these teenagers were doing. Sidney, the mc, seemed rather unbothered by it though, and simply waved to the crowd as he walked off the stage.
Blue and pink lights burst from the stage after Sidney walked off, and a hush fell over the crowd as they eagerly anticipated the band. Rory looked all around in hopes of seeing them walking in from behind the Ferris wheel or something, but instead, a small, low fog crawled over the stage, and when it disappeared there was the band.
The crowd roared with excitement. Rory rolled her eyes.
Weather manipulation, she remembered. All things considered, there were certainly worse ways to utilize such a power outside of a dramatic entrance. There were four girls in this all-girl band. Two on guitar, one on bass, and one on the drums – with the second guitarist seemingly also being the lead singer. Likewise, each girl had a different hair color – the lead guitar had pink hair, the drummer had purple hair, the singer/guitarist had white hair, and the bassist had blue hair. That must be Nerissa, Rory thought, recounting the girl’s previous comment.
Naturally, no, Rory didn’t get her blue to match Nerissa’s. Nerissa’s hair was a lovely shade of blue though, with curly mermaid braids decorated with gold and cowrie shells in stark contrast to Rory’s shaggy wolf-cut with shaved sides.
Though, as she looked out into the crowd, she noticed that there were several people who had their hair dyed in some fashion to match their presumed favorite. Sometimes it was their whole head, but most of the time it was a streak or two, or just highlights. Maybe they weren’t even dyed, but extensions bought for the show. Not that the difference mattered much to Rory.
They really had a cult following. It was eerie, and when Rory looked out to the band whose lead singer was talking eagerly towards the crowd in thanks, she thought she could see a twinkle of mischief or pride in the singer’s eye. Like she noticed the hair, too. They hadn’t even started singing yet and they had a hold on the hearts of the crowd.
“- and finally, we’d like to thank Copperdale’s Cheer Team for helping set this up for us, you guys are awesome!” Rory tuned back into what the lead singer was saying, Cecelia her name was if the screaming teenagers chanting the name were meant to be believed. Her white hair was done up in braids on the front that cascaded into white bubble puffs connected by gold pieces in a long ponytail. They looked like fluffy, white bubbles illuminated in the purple glow of the set lighting. “Alright, let’s hit it!”
The concert began with a roar from the ground that quieted soon after the vocals began. Cecelia’s voice seemed to and rise fall as elegantly as the tide, snaking its way through the crowd and into hearts. The other performers’ voices blended so beautifully with hers, in some moments as if it was one voice entirely. Each song flowed into the next as smooth as butter, and the crowd swayed almost hypnotically to the rhythm. Even Rory for a few moments felt the pull of the siren song, a pull only staved by the strength of the wolf. The very thing that protected her from the hypnosis of vampires.
The sirens were certainly powerful.
But not that powerful.
Rory had faced a vampire once before – a too, bold young prime vampire who had thought he’d be tough enough to waltz into Moonwood and leave unscathed with his new rank amongst the fanged – and their power seemed not too much stronger than his. They were young though – possibly around Rory’s age if she had to guess. But naturally, that was assuming sirens aged like wolves and humans did, and not enough of their lifespan was known to confirm or deny such a thing.
Unbothered by their song, Rory had no issue scanning the crowd and frankly – despite clearly being enamored – they didn’t seem harmed. And it wasn’t as though the band was charging anything so no money was being lost, either. The band just seemed really into their music, and at worst flexing their power. The crowd wasn’t even entirely unaware, just really zoned in.
But then there came the moon.
The full moon had finally crept over the tree line as twilight came to an end and night truly set its claws into the world. As the familiar, maternal glow cradled its strange offspring, Rory felt the power of the moon set upon her. When she was younger, such a night would be one of a wild state, only remembered like a dream the following day. But as she grew older and stronger in the wolf, the full moon was now a time of rejuvenation, strength, and control. She could feel it in her very bones as she had for almost her entire life – the strength of a true wolf. She could at any point shift into the beast she had embraced as her own and be in complete control of herself. Just stronger and larger.
Normally this would be her time to simply focus on the wolf.
But instead, her eyes were locked onto the band. With her vision now stronger, she could truly see what the sirens hid skin-deep. She could see the glimmer of scales on the arms, shoulders, legs, and faces of these women. She could see nails that were a tad sharper than before. Where she had previously seen normal, human ears were something softer, fin-like in texture and shaped like a petal or seashell. She could even see the notes of the song, softly gliding in the air in hues of blue, pink, and purple, falling like snow on humans who saw, well, none of it.
The human teenagers saw a band. But Rory could truly see sirens.
And the sirens were moonchildren, too. Cecelia glanced Rory’s way, no doubt seeing the wolfiness the way Rory saw the fishiness. No fear nor concern crossed her face, just a coy smile that tugged at the corner of the lips as her voice grew stronger. Despite being on a freshwater lake, Rory could’ve sworn she smelled the sea on the wind and tasted salt at the tip of her tongue. With the moon in the sky, the sirens didn’t need the sea behind them, it seemed to have simply come with them. Like the lake had turned into their own, magical lagoon under the moon’s gentle touch.
The voices became stronger too, the notes glowing a silver hue. And then they stopped.
Maybe they didn’t want to be too much? Maybe it was too strong? Or maybe they didn’t want to ruffle any fur now that they were certainly aware that this was wolf territory. All things Rory considered. And all things she was quickly proven wrong about.
Nerissa, the blue-haired one, now had the spotlight. She lifted a leg upon a box before her, showing off iridescent, lacy platform heels covered in pearls and the long slit in her flowy, lavender silk skirt and the gold thigh chain beneath it. The chain, too, decorated with dangling pink keshi pearls straight from the South Sea no doubt. Much like the fog before, it was certainly a dramatic introduction. Rory awaited to hear her voice, which till now had been part of harmonies in the background, never a solo.
The best for last?
No. Sirens were masters of song – but more things sang than just the vocal chords. With deft fingerwork, Nerissa made her bass sing. And oh did it sing. In a soulful solo marked with twinkling gold of her rings that ran up and down the neck of the instrument, the music that came out from it sang so sweetly it almost seemed human – alive. It echoed throughout the boardwalk, lifting souls and hearts with its melody, the siren never looking up to face the crowd, only in brief moments lifting her head to the sky as if to thank the moon itself for the power to create something so sweet. The other sirens soon joined, becoming background singers to the new lead singer – the bass.
Sirens never truly need their voice, only the ability to craft song.
What once felt like a light tug became a full thrust forward into the siren song. Rory’s eyes locked onto the guitar, onto the siren, unable to focus on anything else. And there was something that felt like a snap in her very soul. Something created, something light yet strong. A tie made of moonlight itself.
Her eyed widened in near-horror at the realization, and whatever snap she felt must’ve been mutual as Nerissa finally opened her near-black eyes and locked them onto Rory.
Fuck.