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Somewhere long ago, near a small forest, lived a kind girl along with her sisters and brother. Their parents passed away from a fatal illness the year before, so they were left on their own. Since the brother was the oldest, he ended up taking care of his sisters. Every morning, he’d go to the town to work and every night he’d come back with the money he’d earn. He’d make his sisters meals and he would put the younger ones to bed with a bedtime story. Everything seemed to have been going well.
One morning, the kind girl woke up early. She got out of bed and after getting dressed and ready, she headed to the kitchen. There she saw her brother, making breakfast for himself, before he’d eventually go to work.
“Jonas, good morning!” the girl greeted him with a bright smile on her face.
He turned around to face her and smiled as well: “Good morning to you too, Grace. Did you sleep well?”
“Mhm,” Grace nodded, heading over to the pantry to grab herself a piece of bread, “I did.” She spread some butter over the slice, before lifting it to her mouth and taking a bite out of it. “And you, Jonas?” she asked after swallowing the bit, “Are you well-rested?”
The man shrugged with a light laugh and turned back to making his food: “When you're as old as me, you never get a fully good night of sleep, Grace.”
“You're not old, Jonas,” the girl argued, “26 is a respectable age for a man like you.” She took another bite out of the slice of bread in her hand and soon finished the whole thing.
“Whatever you say, Grace,” he chuckled and rolled his eyes.
They talked for a while longer, while Jonas finished his breakfast, and eventually he had to go to work. Before he left though, he told the girl: “Don't go outside, Grace. It snowed the whole night, everything is covered in ice. I wouldn't want you or any of your sisters to get sick.”
Grace nodded and waved him goodbye as he left for the town. But as soon as the door closed, she ran to the closet to get dressed so she could go out. She put on her coat, scarf and boots and headed into the freezing winter outdoors.
As she walked, she gawked at the beautiful white landscape. The snow covered up everything — the ground looked like it was sprinkled with flour and so did the treetops. The sun reflected off the white blanket creating a glittering layer of diamonds. The winds swept past her ears, whispering sweet nothings, as she continued walking through the charming land.
After a while she stumbled upon a small lake where she used to feed ducks as a child. However she could not find any ducks there right now. The lake was completely frozen. It looked so solid, she almost wanted to test walking on it. Instead she decided to go sit down on the nearby bench, after brushing the snow off it, and take out the lyre she brought with her. She enjoyed going out in the morning and playing for the animals and whoever passed by. A little bit of snow was not going to stop her.
She took off her gloves and placed them besides her, but right as she did, the cold winter air hit her fingers. She pushed through and positioned herself.
As her melody started to echo through the surrounding area, she closed her eyes and completely switched her focus to the instrument in her hands. She couldn't hear anything, but the song she was playing, that was until a loud noise interrupted her. Her eyes opened and she saw a crack in the ice on the lake in front of her. Before she could even try to guess what caused it, a shadow appeared under the ice and started banging into it from below.
And finally, after a few agonizing minutes of pure confusion and terror, the ice broke completely and only a small hole was left. Grace patiently waited for anything to happen and soon a strange creature popped its head out of the ice. It wasn't a duck though, it was something else. It had fins for ears and lacked a nose. Its hair was white, long and seemingly soft. The girl couldn't see its eyes properly since she only had a bad side view of the creature, but it appeared they were completely blacked out, only tiny white pupils shining through the darkness. The most curious thing about it was its skin, it was this pale blue with what seemed like scales on certain parts of it.
As it started to emerge from the hole, Grace could see more of it. The gills on the side of its neck, the webbed hands and even more scales on its skin. It only got out halfway before it noticed her and turned its head. Surprisingly it stayed like that. It didn't go back into the water to hide, it just stared.
“Who– what are you?” Grace stammered out weakly.
The creature ignored her and only tilted its head to the side as if observing her. Finally it started to move again, it pushed itself out of the water completely, now sitting on the ice. Grace could see its full form now with its scaly legs, webbed feet and a long fish-like tail that was still partially submerged in the water. Its hair turned out to be even longer than she imagined and with the texture and color, it reminded her of the snow surrounding them.
Before she could say another word, something started to change on the creature. Its skin started to lose its blue-ish color and its features started to shift. The tail began to completely disappear and merge into the rest of the body. The scales on its body also faded and the gills closed up. The creature didn't look like a fish-y creature no longer, instead it took the form of a beautiful, yet naked, lady — seemingly Grace’s age.
“Ahh–!” the girl covered her face in embarrassment when she realized the thing before her was completely bare, her lyre falling into the snow as she did so.
The creature, now a lady, tilted her head to the side once more. This time, she appeared puzzled. She soon realized why Grace was reacting this way and decided to submerge herself back into the water, so only her head and arms were peeking out.
“Is this better?” the lady finally spoke, her voice soft and sweet.
Grace lifted her hands slightly to look and then completely, but slowly, put them down. She nodded, but still couldn't keep her eyes on the being before her: “Mhm.”
“Very well,” the lady replied. “You asked what I was, correct?” she questioned, “Well, I cannot answer that, but I can tell you my name. It is Isolis.”
The girl simply nodded her head in acknowledgement, still a bit nervous. After another moment of silence, she decided to turn her gaze back to the lady and when she did, she was completely mesmerized by the sight before her. Isolis was the most beautiful woman she’s ever seen. With her long white hair and her piercing blue eyes, she looked like someone straight out of a fairytale.
“It is a pleasure,” she answered quietly while fiddling with the skirt of her dress, “you can call me Grace.”
The lady nodded and leaned forward onto the ice, folding her hands before her and laying her head on them. “What is it you are doing here, my Grace?” she questioned.
“I was playing my lyre,” the girl responded, her eyes switching back and forth between Isolis and her instrument, “you might've heard me.” She reached for her gloves and slid them back on, before picking up her lyre and bag. She stood up and walked over to the lake: “And you?”
There was no response at first, instead the lady simply observed Grace as if trying to figure out if the girl could be trusted. Finally she spoke: “I can only come out of the lake once it freezes and only for three days in the year.” She paused for a moment and glanced away. “Those three days I spend searching for my true love,” she explained silently, “once I find someone who will accept me, the curse holding me here will be broken and I will be freed from the lake.”
She then turned to look at Grace once more: “The person has to stay quiet about my existence for those three days, they cannot speak of me to anyone, otherwise we shall never see each other again.”
Grace observed the lady curiously: “So, a curse is holding you here? How did that happen?”
“It is a punishment,” the lady replied with a sigh, “I was vain, I had shown an excessively high opinion of myself, and paid the price for it.”
“And you haven't found your love yet, I assume?” the girl questioned.
The lady simply shook her head.
Grace, now determined to help the stunning woman, declared: “I shall assist you then in finding that one who will free you!”
Isolis looked taken aback for a moment and then smiled: “How kind of you, my Grace. I shall accept your offer then.”
And so they went. After Grace got some clothing for the lady that is. They ventured into the town since the girl knew people around their age hang out there often, either for work or for fun. They didn't find what they were looking for there though. No one caught Isolis’ eye, instead her gaze was on Grace for the whole day. The two spent that time together, conversing and complimenting each other, while the girl led Isolis through the various shops.
Once the sun started setting, Grace led the lady back into the lake and said her goodbye. Before she left though, Isolis told her one last thing: “Don't tell anyone about me, my Grace.”
That caught the girl off guard, she couldn't believe her ears. Did she mean what Grace thought she meant?
Her suspicions were confirmed when Isolis blew her a kiss before disappearing into the lake.
Maybe Grace DID manage to help the lady out in the end.
When she got home, all she could think about was Isolis. The warm smile she wore like a beloved jewel. Her ocean eyes that held only care and affection in them and nothing else. Her bare skin and her soft white hair that Grace wished to braid for hours on end. And of course, her wit and humor that she couldn't get enough of. Those were the thoughts trapped in her mind and the things keeping her awake at night.
She couldn't wait to see the lady tomorrow as well.
And so the next morning, after Jonas left for work, Grace snuck out and headed to the frozen lake once more. Isolis was already waiting for her there, sitting on the nearby bench.
Right when she spotted Grace, she got up and ran towards her, wrapping her arms around the taller girl and placing a soft kiss on her cheek. “My Grace,” she spoke with a smile, “I’ve been awaiting you!”
The tips of the girl’s ears turned red when Isolis pressed against her. “I was looking forward to seeing you again as well,” she admitted quietly.
With a light, enchanting chuckle, the lady pulled away and took Grace’s hand in hers instead. “Let us spend the day together in the town again, my Grace,” she said.
Grace only nodded, she couldn't bring herself to do more, and followed the lady.
Meanwhile in the town, near the square, worked a young man, Jonas. He was attempting to sell the bread he made. It wasn't going as well as he hoped.
“Jonas, how long will you continue to do this?” the old woman asked with a raised eyebrow, “It is starting to get a little embarrassing.”
The man smiled awkwardly as he wrapped a cloth around the loaf this lady asked for and tied it at the top, handing it to her. “I need money for my sisters,” he answered, “so as long as it takes.”
The old lady simply shaked her head, paid the man, and left. He was left at his stand alone once more. The people passing by didn't bother to stop and buy something from him, at least for now, so he waited.
That was until he spotted a familiar face in the crowd. Grace. And she was there with a woman he’s never seen before. They were holding hands while picking out some jewelry.
His brows furrowed as he watched the display. He clearly told his sister to stay home, yet she didn't listen. He couldn't believe it.
Despite his head telling him to go confront his sister this instant, he didn't. He kept his anger locked inside and just stayed in his stand, not wanting to cause a scene. Not here.
Later when he got home though, he immediately headed to the girl’s room. “Grace!”, he shouted upon entering, “What were you doing in the town today!? I told you to stay home.”
The girl looked taken aback for a moment. That surprise morphed into guilt soon and she glanced away. “I did stay home, Jonas,” she responded, “I was here all day.”
“Liar!” he yelled.
“I am not lying, Jonas,” she replied simply, “I do not know what or who you saw, but it wasn't me. I was here.”
The man wanted to continue to argue, he was sure he saw her there, but he didn't say anything more. In his anger and rage, he turned on his heel and shut the door behind him.
He was going to get to the bottom of this in a different way.
The next day, upon waking up, Jonas waited for Grace to do as well. Once she did, he pretended to leave for the town, but he instead hid in a bush next to their house. He waited to see if his sister would go somewhere again and she did.
Soon Grace opened the door and glanced around as if to see if anyone was there, and then walked out of the house. Jonas followed her.
After a few minutes of walking, Grace finally stopped near a frozen lake, so the young man hid behind a tree there to watch. The girl sat down in the snow and looked into the lake. All of a sudden, a strange creature emerged from the water and wrapped its arms around his sister. It leaned in and pressed its lips against Grace’s while Jonas could only watch in horror.
But he had enough. He didn't understand what was happening here, but he couldn't just let this creature attack his sister like this. So, he stepped out of his hiding spot and shouted at it: “Let my sister go, you foul beast!”
That's when the thing pulled away and turned to him, its void eyes following his every movement. Grace turned to look at him as well, but her gaze was filled with shock and terror.
Before he could say anything more, the creature’s focus switched back to his sister. It took her hands in its own webbed ones and spoke: “I told you to keep quiet about me, my Grace.” Its hand moved to the girl’s cheek as a single tear fell from Grace’s eye.
“I didn't tell him, I promise,” Grace begged as her hands desperately reached for the creature only for it to pull away.
“That doesn't matter. You weren't careful enough and now he knows of my existence,” it let out a sigh and turned away. “Goodbye, my Grace,” was the last thing it uttered before diving back into the frozen water below.
The young man’s sister tried to go after the thing, but he caught her in time. She wept and begged for him to let her go, but that soon turned to her yelling and shouting at him. Blaming Jonas, telling him that this was all his fault. Before he could even say anything, she ran off.
Jonas wanted to go after her, but he couldn't. He needed to go to the town to make at least some money, especially since he wasted a part of his day on this. So, with one last glance at the frozen lake, he walked away.
Later that day when he returned home, he couldn't find any of his sisters. Not Grace, not anyone. He thought about where they could possibly be and his mind went to the cursed lake from this morning.
Immediately he headed there and he was right, his sisters were there. All except one, Grace.
He wanted to question his sisters about the missing girl, but all he got in response was crying and weeping. The girls couldn't form a single sentence and they all just continued glancing at the lake.
Soon enough, Jonas understood. Grace, his sister, due to her broken heart, jumped into the lake and drowned.
She was gone.
Her body was never recovered. Instead it ended up lost in the dark and cold depths of the frozen lake, along with the lady that was said to still inhabit it.
The End.