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                Deep-Current-That-Pulls-Strongly flowed swiftly up the river, despite going against the current. She was smiling happily; it had been several months since she had last been in the rivers, and she had missed the feeling. She had travelled south into Gracewood Duchy, in hope that she would be granted permission to travel its rivers as well (after word of her arrival in Riverjoin the Duke of Gracewood had barred her permission; a move made due to a mix of politics and fear).

                As she had expected, negotiations had taken months but had eventually born fruit. She had left behind the rest of the negotiation party (several of the Duke of Riverjoin’s advisors, and a Count whose income had increased significantly following Deep’s presence in and advice about the rivers) to swim up to Riverjoin; and then on up until she reached where her mother dwelled.

                She had entered the section of river her mother called home when she noticed something unusual. Each time she returned for her annual visit – this being the twelfth time – her mother had set a watch, using her magic, to detect Deep as she drew close. But this year she could feel no spell waiting to bring word to her mother.

                That’s very strange, Deep thought to herself. Though I suppose I am a month later than usual.

                Deep continued up the river, caught up in her thoughts. She was worried; but that was something she often did. She worried about the rivers, about Riverjoin, about her mother, about the Duke’s health, and about so many other things. I should have been called Deep-Current-Worries-Constantly, she thought to herself with a smile.

                Only a short distance up the river from the beginning of her mother’s territory Deep noticed someone – a girl, perhaps nine years old – sitting at the water’s edge. With a jolt Deep recognised that the girl was a river siren, like herself. Shock quickly turned to horror and worry. Mother didn’t! She wouldn’t reveal the girl like this! she thought. Flowing into the shallows, Deep rose from the water and stared at the girl; her heart pounding like thunder.

                “Hello sister,” the girl said as Deep emerged, in a sickly sweet voice. The girl rose to her feet, and added, “I am Late-Blossoming-Waterlily; shortened to Waterlily, not Late.”

                Biting her lip to control her fears, Deep said, “I am Deep-Current-That-Flows-Strongly, and called Deep. But you knew this already, I think. Where is mother?”

                The girl grinned; a cruel grin that ill-suited the otherwise innocent looking girl. “Cutting right to the chase, haha. You certainly didn’t get that from mother. Well, she’s dead,” the girl said; pausing for a moment before concluding with, “I killed her.”

                “WHY?” Deep screamed, enraged.

                “I didn’t need her anymore. You probably remember her books; all the knowledge she had, just in case something happened to her,” the girl said, almost without emotion.

                “HOW dare, how – how COULD YOU? She was your MOTHER!” Deep yelled, unable to control her rage and growing grief.

                Waterlily replied, “She wasn’t my real mother. Or original mother. However you want to phrase it. You know what I’m talking about – you told her that we remember, after all. That made hiding what I really felt very hard, you kn-“

                “Today you die, Waterlily. You’ll have no chance to use our nature to dark ends,” said Deep, moving forwards.

                With a smug smile, the girl replied, “Would I be here if I wasn’t already more powerful than you? Mother told me all about your limits. But I’m already better than you.”

                “You’re too young to be stronger than I,” replied Deep, viciously. Suddenly she paused. “Which means that you’re taunting me to… make… me kill you? But… Why do you call her mother, and not Swirl-Of-Rivers-Meeting? Or Swirl?”

                A flash of anger crossed the girl’s face. “Fight me! You – you’re an arrogant hag! Just like mo-Swirl-Of-Rivers-Meeting is! Was! Until I killed her!” yelled Waterlily, starting to step towards Deep.

                Deep began to back away, confused. “Do you want to die? You haven’t killed mother, and you only said you had to anger me. Why? Why would you want to die?” she asked.

                “Kill me!” yelled the girl, her feet splashing in the water as she stomped towards Deep. “Or I’ll kill you!”

                “No,” said Deep. “Unless you have a good reason to want to be dead.”

                Waterlily pulled a knife from a pocket in her dress, and slashed at Deep. Deep easily grabbed her hand and squeezed it, forcing her to drop the knife. Catching it and hiding it away in one of her pouches, Deep dragged the girl into the water and pinned her to the riverbed. “You may as well tell me now,” Deep said, her rage and grief already gone. Instead, she was filled with pity and kindness. Waterlily was, after all, her sister.

                Waterlily struggled against Deep’s pin, but couldn’t do anything. Not only were they vastly different in size (Deep being an adult), Deep had training – and not only from forty years ago – in several forms of hand to hand combat. The girl eventually gave up struggled, and lay her head back against the riverbed.

                “I was planning to learn everything I could from – from mother, at first. Then I’d kill her, and sneak off to another river before raising an army. I was going to do it this year, and flee with the books. But when it was the right time, I realised I couldn’t kill her. SHE ISN’T MY MOTHER but she – I love her and I can’t kill her and,” Waterlily said, trailing off into a sob.

                “And now that I’m like this I can’t be ME. I couldn’t even steal the books and leave; I ran off for a couple of days but I didn’t want to go and she found me and she’s so nice but. I’m not really me anymore I’m a river siren but I can’t kill her for turning me into this and I don’t want to hurt her and disappoint her so I can’t do what I wanted to do but I don’t even want to kill and steal anymore like I did but I did and that’s who I am but,” the girl rambled.

                A bandit, of course. Or at least a murderer and a thief, thought Deep. Mother, why. It’s not surprising she’s so confused now, although… Maybe mother didn’t make such a bad choice.

                “You don’t have to be who you used to be,” Deep said, interrupting Waterlily’s babble.

                Waterlily looked up at her, almost in tears. “You are. And that’s easy for you. You didn’t kill so many people that you stopped feeling anything. You never tortured someone to death to see what it was like. You’ve never killed anyone’s parents in front of them and not understood why they cried so much because you never knew yours! And now… Now I know what it feels like to have a mother who loves you and I can’t go back and say how sorry I am even though I want to so much,” said Waterlily, bitterly.

                “And it’s all just more proof that I’m not really even me anymore because I’m feeling sorry for those useless fucks I killed and stole from. Except I know I’m still me even if I’ve changed and I hate the idea that I’ve changed and how I’ve changed and I want to hate her, because I know that she’s the reason I’ve changed but I love her because she’s – she’s my mother,” Waterlily said, finishing with a sob; tears of pale blue forming, visible despite the water.

                Deep sighed, and plucked the girl up from the riverbed, pulling her into a hug. Waterlily seemed shocked at first, but quickly tightened her arms around Deep; returning the embrace. Holding the crying girl to her, Deep started to make her way up the river.

“Just be someone entirely new; not the person you were before at all,” Deep whispered to Waterlily as they travelled. “Remember who you were, and make reparations if you can, but don’t be someone you aren’t anymore. We’re going to go up the river to mother now, okay?”

                In amongst Waterlily’s sobs and cries, Deep heard a muffled and sad, “Okay.”

                I guess we do change greatly when we become river sirens, Deep thought, or at least, we can change greatly. But I think that mother’s influence is the reason Waterlily has changed for the better.

                Adjusting Waterlily slightly, Deep smiled. It is kind of nice to  have a sister.