Alekona sat at the diner table, with his father and mother. Speaking about the latest news, the unknown girl that was carried inside the city by Acale P'ula'ula.

"I honestly do not know what he was thinking." His father said. "That girl will be sentenced to death, no matter who she is." Alekona looked at his mother and she nodded. Alekona narrowed his eyes, of course he knew the rules. His grandmother, the old shrimp, was the Matriarch of their family. But that didn't mean that he liked them. A flash of the girl he spent a summer with flashed through his mind. A naiad, beautiful voice and a beautiful girl overall. He knew that their time together was forbidden, still he did not regret it for one second. He had not found the girl with their song, and he was glad that he had found something that came close to it. All was it for a short moment, too short. He sighed, and both his parents looked at him. "What in the sea's name is wrong with you?" His father asked, and he was about to tell them. When the door flew open.

"Where is he!" His grandmother yelled. Alekona knew that she meant him. He stood up and sighed. 

"Here." He replied. She looked at him with narrowed eyes. She was the Matriarch of their family, so he was supposed to show her respect. Well to the deepest cavern with that, she never earned it. "What have I done this time? No I still did not find a girl, and I doubt I ever will be."

"And that gives you the right, to dirty our bloodline with naiad blood." It was not a question, it was a comment.

"Wait, what?" He replied, the blue blood in his veins turned cold. Was the girl...

"You know what I talk about, you may be stupid. But not that stupid." His grandmother snapped at him. "You somehow slept with a naiad and got her pregnant." His eyes grew wide, he had a child. O dear Kelby, why did she never tell him? Maybe because of her own parents, or she didn't know how.

"So that girl is a half-breed?" His mother asked. "And you think that Alekona has fathered the child?" 

"I do not think, I know. Lady P'ula'ula is sure that the girl has our blood in her veins. And she is not the kind of woman, how says those things lightly." His grandmother snapped. "And as far as I know, we have only one rebel inside this family." His grandmother's eyes snapped back at him. She was right about that. And she was right about him sleeping with a naiad, but he did not know about any child. He gasped, he was a father, and he had a daughter. A daughter who was now inside the city, he needed to see her. Be there for her, like he needed to be there all her life. He made the motion towards the door. He was not thinking, alright he was thinking, just about one thing. "Where in the sea's name are you going?"

"I am going to see her." He replied. 

"To the cavern with that." His grandmother said. "You will not claim that half-breed, that abomination to our kind."

"I have said nothing about claiming, I said that I needed to see her. To see if what you are saying is true." He said.

"You will not do that either." She said. "You will not see her, talk to her, acknowledge her. In any shape or from. She is not part of this family." 

"She is if she is my daughter." Alekona snapped. He was sure that she was, but he was not going to tell her that.

"She is not, and my word as your Matriarch is to be obeyed." She snapped, and she looked at his father. "This is all your fault, you should have raised him better. Now he is a man grown, and still acting like a spoiled teenager." Alekona felt his blood boil, his father was the best man he had ever known. And nobody not even this old shrimp was going to talk to him like that.

"My father is not to blame for my actions. If there is someone to blame for not acting my age it is you. You are right now preventing me to take my responsibility. It is you ..." He couldn't finish, a feint mark of pain was still burning on his face. She had slapped him.

"You will regret this. And do not hope to reconnect with that of spring of yours. She is as good as dead." She said and left the house. He knew what that meant. His daughter was sentenced to death and will not have long. He punched a wall, which cracked.

"Alekona." His mother said.

"Let him Nohea." His father said. "He has a right to be angry, to the cavern with it. I am angry for him, he just learned he has a child, our granddaughter. And he has no change at all to be there for her. Or to see her, talk to her. And he has also learned that she will be death soon."

"But Aouli, he has not conformed my mother's words." His mother said. By the sea's name what was she in the sea fog.

"Do I have to?" He asked through gritted teeth. "Do I have to confirm it, mother." He turned around to face her. "That girl is my daughter, I have slept with a naiad named Kelby. She was the light in my existence, all was it for a short moment. I met her in her capital, she was visiting some boring relatives. I first saw her on a rock, out of view. She was singing a sweet song, with an incredible voice. And I fell for her, right then and there. For weeks all we did was just talk, about everything above and under the sea." His mother gasped. 

"Did she understand our tongue?" She asked. 

"No I spoke in her tongue." He replied. "It was a great experience, and according to her, I was quite good at it. But on the last night I saw her, we slept together. I had no idea that I got her pregnant, otherwise I would have claimed the child as mine. No matter what grandmother thought about it." He frowned, and why should he mind her words now. It was his right and duty to claim his flesh and blood. Her flesh and blood, all was it to only save her life. He again made his way to the door.

"Where do you think you are going?" His mother asked. Really did she really need to ask him.

"Doing my duty as a father, you heard grandmother I am a man grown. I never cared about her laws, why will I start now." He said. 

"You could be exiled." She replied in horror.

"If that means that my daughter will out life me, then I will take it. Mom, I need to do this. I have to do this." He said. His father nodded.

"And I will come with you. That old shrimp, can talk all she wants. But in the end the girl is still our family, if she likes it or not. I can not believe that she can live with herself, knowing that she killed her own." He walked towards him and lay a hand on his son's shoulder. "I am so proud." Alekona nodded and together with his father he walked out of the door.

*******

"We need to hurry, your mother will without a doubt tell her mother." His father said, and Alekona nodded. Knowing that his father was right.  They ran through the streets, it became dark. And the lights flickered on. To someone he did not know what was going on it would have been a strange side. A siren those not run, unless he needed to. And in this case it was needed, they turned the corner. There it was the house of Acale P'ula'ula. They sprinted towards it and knocked on the door. His father was watching his back, the door opened. Lady P'ula'ula looked at him, surprise in her eyes.

"You are here to see the girl?" She asked. He could hear his father curse.

"Yes and barcade the door. My grandmother is here." Alekona replied, Lady P'ula'ula narrowed her eyes. She was clearly about to say something, but still stepped aside. Alekona and his father entered the small house. Made from coral and dried seaweed. Acale appeared with Lady Alani in the doorway of the bedroom.

"Is she in there?" Alekona asked. Acale nodded and stepped aside. Without a moment of hesitation, Alekona walked into the bedroom. "By the name of the sea, dad." He turned around and saw the surprised face of his father. The girl looked a lot like his mother, a younger version but still.

"Even a blind siren will see that she is yours." His father whispered.

"So she is your daughter?" Lady P'ula'ula asked, she had sneaked her way into the room. Lady Alani was with her.

"Yes." Alekona replied. "Although I do not know her name, I didn't even know of her existence." He looked at the two women. "I do not know how this works? Do I claim her now, in front of you two?  Will that be enough, or do I need to do it in front of the whole council. Because every God that made this world knows that my grandmother will not accept it." Lady P'ula'ula and Lady Alani looked at each other.

"I will request the others of the council to come." Lady Alani said. 

"No." Kalama Alani entered the room. "I am sorry that I am going against you. But you are needed here. I will sound the horn, the members of the council will know what that means. Again I am sorry, but I do not trust Lady R'ula'ula." He said and Alekona saw that his father nodded.

"You're wise beyond your years, Kalama. My daughter is lucky to have you as her husband." His father said and Kalama smiled at him.

"This girl is my niece, and I will do my best to protect her." Kalama said. He left the room and not much later they all heard the sea horn.