The Mer-Aunt BY JENN WEBSTER

It looks like it won't be long now before Terri, the mermaid leader of the four mer-sisters, and her true love now fiance and soon-to-be husband, Mani, would soon be taking their wedding vows of marriage, and it seems that the excitement is just beginning to build… On day, beneath the ocean, Terri announced this to her three sisters, Shanna, Kaline, and Aquella: “Guys, our aunt is going to come and visit us to help us prepare for our wedding and to attend our big day…We haven't seen her in quite a long time, so with the fact that I am getting married soon, it would really be so very wonderful for all of us to have a visit with our aunt for the very first time in years!” Yes, they haven't, and as a matter of fact, it's true-Terri and her mer-sisters have not seen their aunt in so many years, ever since they were children; their mother had somehow passed away all of those years ago, her having turned into sea foam after dying. And so it was that the mother's sister took on the task of taking care of her sister's four daughters, who were also the aunt’s nieces.

And now, the four mer-sisters have grown, with the lead sister, Terri, engaged to be married to the man that she loves so much, Mani; meanwhile, Terri and her sisters clean and prepare the grotto for their aunt’s visit. Meanwhile, the mer-sisters’ aunt was cleaning something that was very special to her sister, and would somehow become very special to her niece when she takes her vows of marriage: It was a bridal veil that she made for her sister herself when she married a merman all of those years ago. However, two years later the merman husband just swam out on her right after her daughters were born, and that he was never seen again. That left the mer-aunt with the task of taking care of her nieces, as I have mentioned, until they grew old enough to swim away to be on their own. Enough time has passed before the mer-aunt wondered what had happened to them, while realizing how much she had missed them.

And so, the mer-aunt decided to visit the four mer-sisters; she packed up her things, including the veil that she hoped Terri would wear, and then swam off. The four mer-sisters became excited when their aunt, who goes by the name of Tessa, by the way, finally arrived at their grotto home; they helped Tessa unpack her things, and then they sat down and began talking about how much time has passed between the time when the mer-sisters were just babies to the coming moment that Terri is to be wed. Later, Terri led Tessa to a special room for her aunt; Tessa then took the veil out of her bag, and then she said to her niece as she gave it to her, “Your mother wore this special veil for her wedding when she wed the merman who was your father…when she saved this veil, it became her dream to see one of you wear it at your own. Well, it looks like you have become the lucky one.”

Tessa then placed the veil on Terri’s head, and then Terri herself looked at herself in the mirror with the veil on her head, and then she smiled, thus knowing full well that her mother would be so very proud that she will be wearing this special veil on her special day. Later on that evening, the mer-sisters and their mer-aunt were sitting on the island beach having a picnic, talking about the big plans that they have in store for their wedding. ©2026 Jenn Webster