Chapter Text
As the waves thundered in the distance, Nerissa stared longing at the sea from the porch of her family’s so-called home. She wanted so much to just run to the surf and swim away. Their family had just moved there three months ago, for what her father said was "a change of scenery." For the most part, things were great. Her family had a nice house right on the shore. Marina and Zale, her parents had both managed to find jobs at the local restaurant around the corner from their house. Nerissa even had a best friend, Ashlyn McDonald. What made Nerissa hate land so much, however, were the sea witches and blowholes. In other words, the airhead girls and the degrading jocks that they drooled all over.
The sea witches, or airheads, would always make fun of Nerissa and generally not like her because of how beautiful she was. They were cruel, heartless girls that would do anything to exclude her. The blowholes, or low lives as she liked to call them, would always make rude or inappropriate remarks when she would walk by. Unlike the sea witches that always leave her out, the blowholes would do anything to get near her; they were always saying things and trying to touch her. Nerissa found all of their efforts thoroughly repulsive.
Ashlyn was the only person who got her or most of her anyway. Nerissa hadn't told Ashlyn her secret or rather anyone for that fact. She thought it would be best to just keep her secret to herself for the time being. Having never had a human friend before, Nerissa had no idea how Ashlyn would react after she told her the truth. She couldn't stand to lose her one and only friend she had at this new home.
"Nerissa, honey, come in for dinner." Nerissa felt her mother's hand touch her shoulder.
Nerissa finally tore her eyes from the sea and turned to her mother, Marina. Her soft green eyes searching her daughter’s face.
"Okay, I'm coming. Just... give me a minute," she sighed turning towards the sea once more.
"I know, honey. I miss it too, but this is good for us. Trust me, okay?"
"I just... agghhh... land is so frustrating," she looked down at the wooden deck trying to collect her thoughts.
Her mom reached over, grabbed her daughter's chin gently, and turned it so that Nerissa was looking at her, "How about a swim tonight? The whole family could go."
"If you don't mind, Mom, I would rather just go by myself."
"Whatever you want, sweetie," her mother said grabbing her hand and tugging her towards the sliding door leading to the living room.
"Thanks. What's for dinner anyway?"
"Atlantic Cod. Thought it would remind you of home." Marina smiled warmly.
"Really?" Nerissa's voice squealed in excitement, her face lighting up like a Christmas tree.
"Thought you'd like it." Marina's smile widened.
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After dinner, Nerissa helped her mother clean up while her father, Zale, and her brother, Irvin, continued their job hunt in town. Since Irvin had never gone to college, they were having some difficulty finding him a reasonable job. With the boys gone, and the work split between the two of them, the clean up from dinner went quickly. When they were finished, Marina settled in on the couch to watch some television; she had become obsessed with it, all the reality shows and cartoons. To her, they were hilarious, since no one back in Atargatis ever acted that way.
Atargatis had been the Loscogne’s home before they moved here. It was a quiet, peaceful place deep down in the Atlantic Ocean. There was minimal to no crime or theft, usually just caused by a rambunctious teenager, and all the neighbors seemingly got along well with each other. The homes were made out of colorful corals and sponges, some were even made out of old shipwrecks. And, unlike the human’s electricity, the city of Atargatis was lit by bioluminescent plants and animals, which was a far better system in Nerissa’s mind. The biggest difference, though, was the lack of a concept of time. Life in Atargatis had a go-with-the-flow kind of pace, you went anywhere you wanted, whenever you wanted. Everything just happened when it happened.
Nerissa made her way up to her room when the dishes were done, and plopped down onto her bed. She had tried to make her room as such like home as she possibly could. The floors were covered in a white colored carpet as soft as sponge and the walls were painted turquoise with tons of life-like fish decorating the walls. She also had an underwater themed bedspread, courtesy of the local K-mart store on the mainland.
She sighed heavily and looked at the digital clock on her nightstand. She groaned audibly. It was only 7:30 PM. She couldn't go out until at least 11:00 PM or risk being spotted by someone. Nerissa was staring at the ceiling trying to think of a way to pass the time when her new cell phone rang. She jumped, and then soon relaxed as the room was suddenly filled with the soothing sound of waves crashing on the shore.
Nerissa grabbed her phone off the nightstand and checked the caller ID. Ashlyn, just the person she needed to help pass the time. She pressed the answer key and held the phone to her ear.
"Hello?"
"Issy!" Ashlyn squealed into the phone.
"Hey, Ash. What's up?" Nerissa replied casually still thinking about the sea.
" 'What's up?' ? Girl, have you gone loco or something? Tonight's the night," Ashlyn joked into the phone, excitement lacing every word.
"Okay, I'll bite. What's tonight?" Nerissa responded, making a joke of her own, but Ashlyn just didn't know it.
"You know! I've only been talking about it for weeks. We're all going swimming off the pier tonight, duh. Aren't you going?"
Nerissa could tell that Ashlyn was disappointed, she knew the answer was going to be no even before she called. The answer was always no. Nerissa couldn't go with them, and risk exposing her secret and transforming in front of them. Now that would be a sight to see. What Ashlyn didn't know was that she would be coming but she just wouldn't see her. Nerissa always went with them, even though they didn't know it. Nerissa felt obligated to protect them from the sharks that always fed when the kids thought it'd be the "best time to go swimming."
"Ash, you know I would go if I could, but my mom won't let me. Besides, what about sharks?"
"Sharks? There are no sharks out there silly."
"That's because I always scare them away," Nerissa thought to herself bitterly.
"Please, don't go, Ash. For me?" Nerissa pleaded through the phone.
"Don't go, for me?" Ashlyn mocked, "What about me, Is. Come please, you'd have a blast. For me?"
Nerissa groaned, "Ashlyn, you know I can't."
"You always say that, Is, but do you ever actually mean it. You do this to me every time I ask you to come. Just come once, please."
"Ash, you know-"
"No! I don't know!" Ashlyn growled into the phone.
"Please-" Nerissa was cut off again.
"Whatever. I'm going. I'll call you tomorrow," there was a slight hesitant pause followed by a whispered, "bye."
"Ashlyn! Wait!" but it was too late, Ashlyn had already hung up.
"Damselfish!" Nerissa cursed throwing her phone on the bed and running out of the room.
"Nerissa, is everything alright?" her father asked walking to the staircase with her brother right behind him, apparently back from their job hunt.
"Just lovely!" she said sarcastically, walking past her father to the bathroom, where she retrieved a towel and headed to the living room.
"Where are you going?" Marina asked from the couch, muting the television.
"Out early," she mumbled walking out the sliding door.
Half running half sprinting, she made her way down the porch steps and toward the water. Her parents had built a hidey-hole inside a large fake rock beside the shore. Their beach was private and they had no neighbors to spot them coming and going from the sea. She stuffed her towel inside and undressed quickly, throwing her clothes inside as well before closing the door. With her bikini top already on, she was ready to go.
Nerissa dove into the surf and swam out until the water was deep enough for her to change without hitting the sea floor. She felt the sensation of the change swiftly flow through her body and allowed it to consume her. She felt a tingle in her legs as they came together and vibrant blue scales began to sprout from beneath her skin. She cringed slightly as her feet molded and elongated into her fluke. As soon as the tingling sensation passed, she took a deep breath of seawater and exhaled through her gills on the sides of her neck. The seawater helping to calm her frantic nerves.
She floated silently for a moment, listening to the sounds of the sea. Turning left, she made her way east with one massive sweep of her tail, heading towards the pier where she knew her friends would be swimming. She didn't want Ashlyn or any of the others to get hurt, so she would always go with them unannounced to protect them. The swim would be about twenty to twenty-five minutes at her current pace, which was about forty-five to fifty miles per hour. Nerissa was pushing herself. She knew Ashlyn would be over there in probably less than five minutes since she lived much closer to the pier than Nerissa.
"Damselfish," Nerissa thought, "Why can't I go faster!" It was more of an exclamation than a question.
"An eighteen year old shouldn't have to worry about stuff like this."