The Tail of Emily Windsnap

On Saturday, Emily follows Shona through underwater rock tunnels to the merfolk city of Shiprock. Their first class of the day is history, where the teacher describes the great shipwreck of The Voyager and the traitorous mermaids who went ashore with human lovers afterward. Falling in love with a human is one of the greatest crimes in merfolk society. Those caught are imprisoned in a labyrinth of caves, and Emily spends the rest of the morning wondering, “What if they found out that I wasn’t a real mermaid, and I ended up in that prison?” (61).

After class, Emily and Shona find The Voyager’s shipwreck site. The ship looks familiar, but Emily doesn’t know why. Pushing aside her unease, Emily explores the ship with Shona. They find a room with a pearl floor and golden ceiling, and with a jolt, Emily realizes “it was the boat from Mom’s dream” (67).

Emily tells Shona about her mom’s dream of a boat that looked just like The Voyager. Shona realizes where she’s heard Emily’s name before—in an old story about illegal marriages between merfolk and humans.