"I don't have a mermaid! Why don't I have a mermaid? He has a mermaid. Why don't I?! I want a mermaid! Fetch me a mermaid!"

"Yes, your highness."

Too easy.

The prey was easy enough go find and such a security system was nothing to the him, who broke into the aquarium with ease. He slithered into the mermaid's tank as she lay sleeping in her nest on the floor of her tank. Long black tentacles snaked around her, abducting her into the night.

"Yay! My very own mermaid! Let me see it, Claude!" demanded the boy as he bounced up to the small enclosure prepared. Claude moved aside for the Earl. "Oh, it's hideous!" he said with a manic laugh.

"Most merfolk are," replied Claude.

"Why isn't it moving? Is it dead?"

"Merely unconscious, your highness, it should be waking up anytime soon."

Her fins stirred and the mermaid woke up to the strange new environment. Frantically, she looked around. When she noticed Claude, she bared her fangs and hissed as she cried, "Sea witch!"

"Ha ha! It doesn't like you, Claude! You've really pissed it off," the young lord laughed then frowned. "It looks awfully puny."

"Possibly due to being kept in captivity," Claude replied, noting the red round the mer's gills. The mer was sick. "Whatever do you want with one of these anyway when you have me?"

"You're not a mermaid, Claude," he sneered. "And now I can brag to Ciel that I have a mermaid too!" Alois Trancy danced around a bit. Then it dawned on him. "Just a moment. Claude! This mermaid is pathetic! I need one better than Ciel's not worse! How dare you bring me such a pathetic creature, Claude. Bring me a better one!"

"Yes, your highness," Claude replied, kneeling. "What shall we do with this one in the meantime?"

Alois looked at the mermaid for a moment then grinned evil grin at it. "Let's cut it up and dissect it."

Alois picked up a scalpel that lay on a tray nearby and poked at the displayed organs playfully. "Their insides are even more disgusting than their outsides," he said, ending in a laugh. The mermaid lay flayed on the table before him. Alois delighted himself by playing with the mermaid's innards, occasionally asking Claude questions and making commentary about the pitiful creature lying dead before him.

"I wonder…" Alois began before trailing off.

"Yes, your highness?" inquired Claude.

"Do mermaids taste good when you eat them?"

"Depends on who you ask. For instance some mer-."

"I did not ask for everyone's opinion," snarled Alois, stabbing the scalpel into the mermaid. "I asked for yours. Yours is the only opinion I care about. Now fix me up a mermaid steak." He stepped down off his stool, having lost interest in the dead mermaid. He went to go find something more interesting to do.

oOo

"Humans call me 'penis'...why?" Grelle asked Othello one day, causing him to spit out his tea. Her English had grown remarkably over a short period of time and she was able to form simple sentences. And there were certain letters she sometimes still had trouble pronouncing.

Othello grabbed a napkin and blotted at the tea now on his shirt. "No, no, no, no," he corrected. Her head cocked to the side in curiosity. "Phoenix," he said and then repeated it slowly, enunciating every syllable. "A penis is something else entirely." Her head cocked the other way and he sighed. He might as well her before she asked. He pointed at her exposed genitals. She had crawled out of the water as he took his tea. Her tail had dried at this point and she had refused to cover up, preferring instead to steal a biscuit off his plate. "That," said Othello, "Is a penis. Phoenix is what the humans, what the Viscount named you. A phoenix is a type of mythological bird. Usually red in color, elegant…I imagine that's why Druitt called you that."

"Grelle is not 'penis'," she replied, her face scrunched in irritation. Othello couldn't help a chuckle. "Grelle is Grelle."

Othello laughed again. "Yes, Grelle is Grelle, I agree." He finished his tea and began to clean up. "I have to get back to work. I'll see you later. I'll be back for practice time, alright?" he promised and left. Grelle sat on the shore a little longer before going back into the water.

"I assure you, my security system is the best money can buy!" Druitt reassured the agent from the society.

"All the same," said the agent as he followed Druitt through the aquarium, "With the mysterious kidnappings of merfolk lately, Mr. Spears wants to make sure everyone's security systems are up to date and secure."

"And I assure you, they are…Pomphries, your name was?"

"Humphries."

"Aaah, there is my beloved Phoenix!" Druitt cooed as he entered Grelle's enclosure. Grelle was basking in the shallows, waiting for Othello to teach her more words and practice using her legs. As soon as the area was clear of visitors, that is. Thinking she had caught a whiff of William's scent, she turned excitedly. She drooped when she saw it was not him, but he wore similar clothing. "See? All safe and sound and ready for breeding, soon I think."

"Hello," greeted Alan gently while keeping his distance. "My name is Alan Humphries."

Grelle stirred her fins slightly in response. He seemed a decent human. Too bad he was sick. She could smell it on him, the deadly illness that clung to him. She didn't know him, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She made a mournful cry on his behalf.

"Ah, my precious is unhappy," Druitt wailed. "Perhaps she is hungry. Doctor! Doctor!" he called in his flamboyant voice.

"Not a doctor~," Othello sang as he entered the enclosure. "Well, not exactly."

"My precious Phoenix is hungry. Feed her, would you?" Othello looked to Grelle questioningly as he had fed her not long ago. Grelle looked perplexed. She shook her head slightly and shrugged. Druitt shooed him away to fetch her something to eat. With a shrug, Othello went and fetched a crab. She could always save it for later, he supposed. He approached where she sat in the shallows and offered it to her. Grelle took it slowly and cradled it on her lap with the thought to ask 'Oto' about it later. "We can't have a sad mermaid in our hands. Especially with her special day fast approaching. Soon this tank will be swimming with little merbabies; ready to be sold to the highest bidder."

"When they are old enough," Alan stipulated.

Druitt seemed to ignore him as he approached Grelle like Othello. Grelle hissed when he drew near and plunged beneath the water. Druitt sighed dramatically and left with Alan as they discussed details further.

Grelle swam to the observation room window. The room was empty. Swimming to the surface, she popped her head out of the water and looked around. After their lessons, Othello had returned to his lab to work. After being stuck in the same surroundings for what felt like had been an eternity, Grelle was itching for adventure. She pulled herself up on the beach and pulled herself on her belly to some towels Othello had forgotten to put away. He often used them to dry her off quickly so they could practice walking. The fabric still felt somewhat strange to her skin as she rubbed it against her red scaly tail to dry it. It was still bizarre to see her tail split in two and turn to flesh. However, Grelle figured there were many bizarre things in her new life she had yet to discover.

Othello had always made her wear those pants things humans wore when the two of them took their walked. She thought it was silly and neither Othello nor pants were in sight, so she would happily go without. On wobbly legs, she stepped towards the exit.

"I practically run the place," Ronald boasted to his date. "I'm telling you, they wouldn't know what to do without me." Ronald walked through the aquarium with his arm draped around her shoulders as he led her about. His date giggled in response. "You ready for this tour, doll-face?" he asked.

"I'm excited! I can't wait for the mermaid room!" she replied.

"All in good time," said Ronald. "All in good time. Watch out though. That creature is vicious. I've nearly died a few times."

"Oh no!"

"But I can handle myself. I gave that mermaid what-for and made my escape."

"Weren't you scared?"

"Not in the slightest. I told ya, baby, I can-" They rounded a corner and ran into Grell. The woman screamed and the trio tumbled to the floor, knocking over a water cooler. The container busted, sending water to flood around them. The trio tried to untangle from one another. Grell tried to get up, but her legs turned back into a tail. "Are you okay?" Ronald asked his date as he helped her up. "Watch where you are- holy fucking shit!" he started to yell at the stranger before realizing the being on the floor was the mermaid. "What the…how??!" he asked aloud in disbelief. He could have sworn there had been three pairs if legs when they had collided. The woman stood off to the side staring wide eyed at the creature before her, her mouth agape. Ronald ran his hand through hair as he tried to figure out what to do, deciding to worry about how she got here later. Should he go get a tranquilizer?

"Geez, this is bad. You better leave," he told his date. "I'll call ya later. Now!" he shouted when she didn't move. She let out a small yelp and ran for the door. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," Ronald mumbled over and over as he started to pace. He couldn't carry her by himself. Put her on a cart perhaps?

Grelle watched him, perhaps he thought she was hurt. "Ronnieee," Grell called to him, trying unsuccessfully to dry off her tail with her hands, "Grelle okay."

Ronald stopped pacing and stared at her in shock. "Did…did you just…?" An ominous laugh surrounded them.

The lights flickered and went out. "Thanks for making this easier," a voice whispered in Ronald's ear, sending cold tingles down his spine before he was flung into the wall. "Ronnie!" Ronald heard Grelle shout as he fell to the floor. Ronald came to himself just as the lights fluttered back to life. He looked around frantically. "Phoenix?" he called. Grelle had vanished.

A dream. Maybe he was dreaming. Ronald got to his feet and sprinted to the mermaid enclosure. "Phoenix!" he called. All was still and silent in the enclosure. "Shit, shit, shit!" he cursed, pulling out his phone and calling the cops.

"My precious Phoenix has been stolen!" cried Druitt, placing a hand to his forehead dramatically and collapsing into a chair.

"The police are doing what they can," Othello tried to reassure him. He was having second thoughts about having destroyed the security footage before the police could see them. The world wasn't ready to learn that merfolk could trade their tails for legs just yet. The tapes hadn't really shown anything, however. All that could be seen was Grelle walking about the place nude anyway. Anything involving the perpetrator was a black screen.

"We have to get her back! Oh, my precious Phoenix, where are you?"

Othello sighed and shook his head, going over to the man who had been on security. "You're sure you saw nothing on the screens?"

"I've seen plenty on those screens, gihihi~," he replied with a laugh. "But not what you are looking for. And stop fretting so. Your secrets are safe with me."

Othello nodded, running his hands through his hair as he walked away, wondering what he could do. At a loss, he went to the hall where Grelle had disappeared. He had to find something, anything to help identify the perpetrator. Rounding the corner, he found a man in a suit kneeling on the floor, inspecting it. "You there!" he shouted. The man looked up and Othello recognized it to be William T. Spears. "Mr. Spears!" he exclaimed.

"The police will not find him," the severe man stated coldly. "It's very unlikely at least. We aren't dealing with a common thief."

"You know who took Grelle?"

"I have an idea," William replied. He looked at Othello sharply. "Grelle? The mer is speaking English now?" The color drained in Othello's face as he realized his error as a result of his worry. "I see," said William. "What else have you discovered?"

"Not much else, I'm afraid," Othello lied. "I can say 'crab' in mer-speach, but that's about it. You knew they could learn to speak?" William did not answer, instead going back to investigating the scene. Othello wondered what else he knew about merfolk. Did he know the secrets he did?

"Do you have a..a..chart?" asked William suddenly. "Not a chart," he said before Othello could answer. "Picture of the city."

"A map?"

"Yes, a map," William said, trying to hide his irritation.

After a bit of searching, Othello handed him the map. William thanked him and headed for the exit only for Othello to run after him. "You're going after them? I'm coming too."

"That is ill-advised nor do I need your assistance."

"Someone needs to drive while you navigate. Besides, we might be pursued. Someone waiting with a get away vehicle is a good idea. Besides, It'll be good for me to get away from here for a while. Feels like I've been stuck in here for like fifty years, it seems like. The fresh air will do me good." Othello got into the driver's seat and fastened the belt.

"Fine," grumbled William, getting into the passenger seat. He opened the map while Othello started the engine.

"So. Where to?"