Imagine: the crime of silence

Imagine: The Crime Of Silence
Ellen combed her hair in silence. It was a habit for which she had been punished often. Yet she refused to do otherwise. She had no problem with combing her hair per sé. Nor did she mind sitting on a rock to do so. But she could not bring herself to sing.

As a little girl she had gone to choir lessons along with all the others. Her mother had taken her to the lagoon of the clear blue waters. There had been at least twenty girls in the group of four and five-year-olds.

Mistress Bubble stood at the front and explained that in a few weeks they would be singing on the beach. Ellen had felt daunted at the idea. But kind faced mistress Bubble with her soft yellow hair and blue eyes had assured her she'd be allright.

And she was. She liked singing in the choir both in the sea and on the beach. When she was seven her parents had arranged for her to get private lessons with Madame Whirl. It was common for girls to have both choir practice and private lessons from the time they were seven till their voices were fully formed at seventeen.

Madame Whirl had an overbearing aura. She was the tallest female Ellen had ever seen. Her dark brown curls seemed to lead a life of their own waving and dancing along with the tiniest currents. Madame Whirl had a passion for singing thunderous songs. Al the stories she sang had a dark, menacing feel full of questions and rebellion.

Ellen loved singing for Madame Whirl. It was a challenge she could dig into. But inspite all of her lessons and her love of singing, she combed her hair in silence. It had always eluded Ellen why combing would have anything to do with singing. For her the combing process was accompanied by a relaxed and pensive mood.

If she had been free to do things her own way, she would've started a club. A group of like minded females who'd comb their hair together and discuss the philosophies of the schools of Dolphin thought in comparison to those of the Whale academy of life. She knew there were plenty young females who took pleasure in philosophy.

Whenever Ellen had a free moment, she would swim to the grotto where the professors of philosophy met each other in public debate. The females would sit together huddled at the side pretending not to notice the frowning stares they got from the professors and the other mermen.

All this ran through Ellen's mind while she watched the sun set over the silent sea as she combed her hair. Waves crashed on the rock behind her, “Ellen! What do you think you're doing?!” Ellen sighed and turned around to face her doom.

“Hello mother, I'm combing my hair. How are you this evening?”, she asked in her most polite tone of voice. “Don't give me that! You are running away from your war duties, again! Shame, shame on you for leaving the other females to fight the battle. Oh that I should have a daughter so averse to fighting!”, her mother yelled.

“What war mother?! There hasn't been a sailor drowned by our song in decades! What's the point? Men breed on the surface and all our singing didn't stop their boats from getting bigger and stronger. I agree, something must be done, but singing has failed us!”, Ellen's brown complexion was flushed. “Singing is what we do. It's what we've always done!”, her mother persisted.

“And how many victories has it brought us these past decades? When was the last time a man actually threw himself overboard because he heard our song? And if the need to fight the land dwellers is so important, how come the males get to sit around and study philosophy while we sing ourselves hoarse?”, Ellen balled her fists as she spoke.

“Oh come now Ellen, you know the males can't sing to save their lives!”, her mother interjected. “Oh? And why is that then? Could it be because they never get any lessons, hm?!”, Ellen's near black eyes were spitting fire. “Well I am not the one in charge of the war effort. If you have complaints you can direct them to the king. In the meantime, you have to do your part!”, her mother shouted. 

Suddenly her shoulders went slack. She had a sad look on her face when she spoke in more quiet tones: "It will be a severe punishment this time. There is nothing I can do to protect you." With that, Ellen's mother disappeared beneath the waves making a big splash. 

Ellen sat with her lips pursed and her comb forgotten, staring into the darkening waters. She had tried speaking to the king already. Many times she had received an audience. The king had listened politely. He'd nodded and changed nothing. When all the stars were out Ellen slid off the rock. She went under without disturbing a single drop of water.

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