There were few things Cleo Sertori was ever truly enchanted by. When she'd been younger, it had been ponies. Now as a teenager it is the ocean.
Sitting on a blanket on the beach, she faced the island that had awed her from the second she'd seen it, so very long ago now. The sea swirled and swayed in front of her, the waves still turbulent from the fading storm that had almost stole her secret right out from under her.
But the she had weathered the storm and Cleo could not remember ever having been so proud of something in her life. She'd been even more captivated by the ocean than she already had been and she'd thought that was impossible.
The tips of the tallest waves and swells sparkled as they reached up to the sky, yearning for the attention of the last rays of sunlight. In the center of the sky the moon hummed with its own mysterious life, but on the beach the thrum of it could not reach her and she was glad. Becoming a mermaid had never really appealed to her but it had been thrust upon her and she had taken it, grudgingly at first. Now she had a hard time not jumping in the water every time she could.
In a way, she was jealous of the normal people because as much as she enjoyed growing a tail every time she got wet, she envied that they got to keep their legs, to be able to take a bath in under an hour, to do the dishes when they were told. She would need a second job by the way Kim keeps raising the price to do her chores.
But, she acknowledged as she idly drew shapes in the sand, then she wouldn't experience the rush of adrenaline that swam over her when she stepped into the saltwater. The quiet murmurs of ocean trickled across her mind, the gentle lull of being home and safe and knowing that for a while, no one was trying to expose her.
She sighed and shifted on her blanket, leaning back slightly, she closed her eyes. On the blank canvas of her eyelids, the ocean reappeared beautifully elegant, and ominous in her power. She felt a rush of warmth come over her and she shuddered at the sudden change.
She could feel his approach before she saw him and she took great delight in calling to him. It never ceased to kindle his interest when she did it as rare as it was. She would never tell him the ocean told her of his approach. She always lied saying it was intuition. Some powers she kept to herself, not wanting to make anyone jealous. It was silly, she knew.
"I'll figure out how you do that one of these days," he said quietly as he came down the dune.
"Good luck."
She smiled tenderly up at him, noting how his hair fell to the tops of his ears, no longer covering them. He unfolded a blanket and placed it delicately beside hers, sitting onto it with ease and Cleo sighed in content.
The ocean wasn't necessarily the only thing that enchanted her and as she cast a surreptitious glance to see the ocean reflected in his dark eyes, she knew why. Everyone had grown accustomed to him, to his awkward demeanor and quirky plans and few took the time to gaze in wonder at the real reasons behind it all. He didn't have to keep their secret; he was a scientist after all. Cleo wouldn't take him for granted again. Like her, he still found beauty in the ocean, in the lights dancing across the evening sky, in the magic saturating Mako.
A warm wind blew across them, rustling her hair and Lewis brushed it away when a few strands licked his face. The wind carried with it the gentle sway of the sea, the swishing calming her soul. When she licked her lips, the salt was carried to her tongue but the bitter taste could not alter her mood.
The ocean swelled for a moment in Cleo's heart before settling with a sigh that escaped Cleo's lips and she watched the stars appear above her.
Together they sat and stared at the ocean until the early morning.