'Flight 247 from Victoria International airport to Brisbane International Airport is about to land, please remain seated until we reach a full stop, thank you for flying with us and enjoy your stay.' The plane's address system wakes me up, I am Mykaela Johnston and my family and I have just landed in Australia, we're moving to the gold coast, our dad found a high paying job here, I'm snapped out of my reverie at my mother Rosella saying

'it's time sweetheart' I smile slightly at her and say

'okay' I stand and grab my stuff.

We get off the plane and get our suitcases from the carousel and get breakfast, both my little sister Natalie and I are upset and mad at our parents for dragging us to Australia from Canada, but we're old enough (her at 13 and myself at 15) to understand why we're here, worst thing is almost exclusively for me, my secret, I am a mermaid, well only when I touch water, and now, there's only more people to hide from and I don't even have my moon poolto seek refuge in, and no friends

'Mykaela are you okay?' my dad asks

'Yeah, just thinking and I am really tired too' I say

'you can both sleep in your new bedrooms when we get to the new house' my mom says , I nod and finish eating.

We drive a rental car to our new house, when we get there, my jaw hits the floor

'wow, look Nat, it's huge' I say, astounded

'I know, it's beautiful' she says, we get out of the car and go inside and start unpacking our furniture that we shipped over from Nanaimo, after we finish unpacking mom says to us 'you can go pick your rooms now if you like' Natalie and I look at each other and go upstairs with our bags and go into both rooms together Nat says 'they're both the same size and have the same view of the beach' I say 'I'll take the one on the right, you take the one on the left, deal?' we hug each other and she says 'deal' and we go unpack our stuff, I sit on my new bed and think about home, my real home Canada, I hear my sister again 'Mykie are you okay?'

'No ,not really' I say honestly

'what's wrong? I won't tell mom and dad' I laugh a little

'I just really miss home, and with me being a mermaid, I don't have a moon pool to go to if I'm upset and I have no friends' I let out to my little sister

'Neither do I, we'll find friends and there is an island off the Gold Coast, with a moon pool, or so legends say anyway' she comforts, I hug her, we later go down to the living room and spend time with our parents, Natalie watches TV while I play my guitar.

That night after dinner, I go to my room and get ready for bed, and after an hour or so of reading I sleep.

The Next Morning

As I eat breakfast my mom gives me an envelope and I see she also hands Natalie one, I open it, it has a letter about my place at Gold Coast High, a map of the building and my timetable with all of my subjects on it, Nat's is the same, we both start school in a few days

'Maybe now we can start making friends' I say to her

'yeah, thank God' she says.

That afternoon, I decide to head down to the coast for my first swim in new waters, I dive in and my glittering, orange tail replaces my legs, I swim wherever the water takes me.

I stop when I surface in a moon pool, rather similar to the one I gained my powers in at Hudson's bay and say to myself, taking the place in 'wow, this place is beautiful' I decide it may not be safe for a foreigner, who just moved here to be here alone and swim back, when I get home I tell my family about the island, my dad says 'yeah, that's Mako Island'

'Oh dad, it's not just an island, there's a moon pool there, like the one I became a mermaid in two years ago, it felt magical, every thing: the cave, the nature and even the water, there must be something about that moon pool' I say

'Maybe you could ask about it at school' mom says

'yeah maybe, but leave out the fact that I am a mermaid, everyone would think I'm crazy.'

This place may not be that different after all, I just hope that the people are similar.