She thought she could hear Pascal– the gentleman captain of the boat– barking orders to about a dozen shuffling feet. Were they even still on the boat? The old man sounded so concerned! She hoped they were finally on the island.
Upside down, Akari felt herself being carried. There were so many loud noises breaking through her gaze into pitch black, and her mind rambled on about nonsensical things.
Ah. Mom was so beautiful! A beauty with long, golden hair and ocean blue eyes. And me?
There was a beautiful, glowing woman in a chiffon mermaid dress, with cerulean hair and serene eyes– but it wasn't Akari. It wasn't even mother. No one could compare to her mother. Not even she could...
Because I look like a boy and smell like a kappa. As Akari thought this, the glowing woman before her opened and closed her mouth, over and over, like a fish. Was she trying to say something or was she gasping for air? Akari couldn't figure this out, so she stared on at the helpless woman. This is a very peculiar dream.
Jin, the doctor of the island, glared down at the young woman on the bed before him. She was pallid and not sweating at all– despite her short breaths and warm temperature. It didn't make any sense. Was he dealing with a turtle? "You may wish to look away," he said seriously, shooting a knowing look at Pascal. He said this to him only (and not to the two women in the room). The captain huffed accordingly and looked away as Jin leaned onto the bed and lifted Akari's shirt up– sliding his instrument across her chest and listening intently.
Silence. And then a thump.
After three bloated seconds (in which Jin had panicked), three short beats fired in rapid succession before silencing once again. Akari's heartbeat did this over and over, like a theatrical drum beat.
"What the–" Jin nearly cursed, baffled by what he was hearing. These heart sounds were unrealistic and unlike anything he'd ever heard before. Maybe he really WAS dealing with a turtle.
"Is there something wrong?" one of the women spoke in a hush. She was the inn matron.
Jin took off his stethoscope and pocketed it, gulping slightly. He didn't have any answers, nor did he know what to do in this case. His old despair was seeping back. If he was this unable to save someone once again...
"She's not sweating properly," Jin said suddenly; "I'll need a wash cloth and a basin full of water." Though he had no idea what he was doing, he figured he'd at least tackle the first problem accordingly and work from there. That was what being a doctor was all about.
The two women nodded and rushed from the room to gather what the doctor needed. Swiftly returning moments later, they lugged a wash basin up onto the nearby night stand.
"Hmm, you've still got it, Yolanda," Pascal mumbled slightly, adjusting his white cap at the eldest of the two women. The pig-tailed lady huffed and turned to the inn matron to mutter about something else.
With a deceptively calm hand, Jin took the soaked wash cloth from the basin and spread it over Akari's face– waiting for it to absorb heat. Instead– something absurd happened.
Right before Jin's very eyes, the cloth was sucked entirely dry– dry as a dry sponge– and when he lifted the cloth, he found dark green scales lifting up, like goosebumps, on the girl's face. Scales, like a fish. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't.
"I..." Jin tried to speak, but his voice was being swallowed away. "Could... everyone please leave the room?" He finally managed to speak, after a bit of gulping and meditative breathing.
Concerned further, yet not questioning him, the three observers left the room.
Jin marched to the open doorway and slid the curtains closed. In such a small island inn (as this one was), there were no such things as doors.
This will be troubling, Jin thought. Wash basin in hand, he summoned enough strength to pour every ounce of its water onto the girl, splashing and soaking her clothes through. Within seconds, her clothes and the bed were dry. She had magically absorbed it.
"Is she some kind of... water monster?" Jin murmured to himself, watching as Akari's scales lifted briefly before folding back in. At this point, he was more fascinated with her than repulsed. How could any girl live with herself like this? It was ridiculous.
That's when he noticed it.
From a coin-sized hole atop the girl's head, hidden beneath her hair, poured a trickle of liquid. Like a spring, water was leaking out from the top of her head. It didn't make any sense! So Jin tried to make sense of it. "Her brains?" He surmised, quickly compressing it with the wash cloth. Human physiology meant nothing now, so anything was possible.
To prevent further drainage from Akari's head, Jin propped her upright against the headboard. Floundering about in his confusion for several moments, he yanked the doorway's curtains back open, advised the others to leave the girl upright, and left. A trip back through his medical literature was in order.
Was she a girl, a fish, or a turtle?