The Mermaid, the Witch, and the Sea

Aboard the pirate ship Dove, Flora lives as Florian, adopting a masculine identity to gain protection among the crew. Survival has required caution, emotional distance and a willingness to endure brutality. Lady Evelyn Hasegawa enters that world on her way to an arranged marriage she does not want. Their growing bond offers both a reason to imagine another future. An escape attempt soon entangles them with a captive mermaid, a witch and competing powers on the sea. In a world shaped by colonial rule and dangerous magic, their connection raises questions neither can answer by following an assigned role. Choosing each other means confronting the forces that treat people and creatures as possessions.