Hey! I really am sorry to have not written in so long, but here we go :). By the way, Lydia is Leia from other Harvest Moon games, but she looks a lot more grown up in this version.
Kai tumbled back onto the shore and shivered, glaring at Gray.
"Now where is this Lala Mermaid chick?" Gray asked nonchalantly, attempting to hold in his laughter at the dripping wet mini man.
"It's Lydia! Lydia you carrot-top moron!" Kai screamed and jumped on Gray's head. Speaking of Gray's "head," I looked around for the hat that usually sat on top of that messy orange hair of his. When I finally spotted it, I stood up and walked towards it, Kai and Gray still fighting in the background.
His blue cap was just barely visible from behind a huge rock range. I finally reached it after walking a good 100 yards, and walked behind the rock to pick it up. I brushed the sand off the cap and smiled at it's simple design.
Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green
When you are king, dilly dilly,
I shall be queen
I heard a beautiful voice echo around me. I looked around, but couldn't seem to find the source. I climbed one of the very big rocks and searched for the owner of the beautiful sound. That's when I saw her.
Who told you so, dilly dilly,
Who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly dilly,
That told me so
I stared, unbelieving that there was really a mermaid in front of me, singing no less. Her hair was long and green, and her tail went from orange to a deep pink as it traveled down to her fins. Her long hair covered her breasts, but I felt kind of like a pervert staring at her while she was singing. I began to climb towards her. As far as I could tell, she hadn't noticed me yet.
Call up your friends, dilly, dilly
Set them to work
Some to the plough, dilly dilly,
Some to the fork
As I made my way down, I had an uncontrollable yawn come over me. I was suddenly very tired as I crept behind her to get a closer look.
Some to the hay, dilly dilly,
Some to thresh corn
Whilst you and I, dilly dilly,
Keep ourselves warm
She suddenly turned around and smiled, staring right at me, her teeth as sharp as a shark's. My blood ran cold as she continued to sing, beckoning me towards her.
Lavender's blue, dilly dilly,
Lavender's green
When you are king, dilly dilly,
I shall be queen
I climbed up on the rock she was sitting on and felt my eyes start to close. I was so sleepy, but I wanted to listen, but soon enough, I had fallen asleep upon her lap as she stroked my hair lovingly.
Who told you so, dilly dilly,
Who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly dilly,
That told me so.
*3rd person :S
Gray and Kai were still struggling on the beach when Kai finally shouted that they needed to stop acting like children.
"Truce?" Kai asked, breathing rather heavily. He held his small hand out for Gray to take.
"Truce," Gray replied, taking the small hand and giving it a firm shake.
"Okay, come on you two, let's go find Lydia!" Kai smiled and looked over to where Dani was once sitting. It took all of five seconds for the two to figure out that Dani wasn't there.
"Oh my Goddess! Where's Dani?" Kai exclaimed, his eyes almost popping out of his tiny skull. Gray's heart clenched as he frantically looked around for the girl. All he could see behind him was open beach for miles. In front of him was a long line of large rocks jutting out from the ocean. Gray went on a hunch and began making his trek towards the rocks.
Kai climbed onto Gray's head and held on tight, but Gray ignored him, only worried about Dani's safety.
He searched among the rocks, his heart pulsated in his throat, making it hard for Gray to swallow the thick dryness of his mouth.
"Where is she?" Gray muttered under his breath. Kai suddenly perked up and hopped off of Gray's head, landing softly on the sandy earth surrounding them.
"She had to have gone looking for Lydia! That would explain her disappearance!" Kai smiled, his face reassuring, but not completely convincing. Gray nodded, but his face, though he tried to keep his composure, betrayed his attempt at being positive. He scanned the rocks for any sign of Dani, but could find none. He was getting angry with his fear of not being able to find her.
He started thinking about it logically and came to the conclusion that it could be possible that she climbed up to get a better look at her surroundings, so Gray climbed the large tan rock in front of him.
He struggled to the top and observed the area, and that's when he saw her. A woman with long green hair held Dani in her lap, stroking her hair softly, possessively. Kai nudged up beside him and gasped when he saw the woman holding Dani.
"That's her! That's Lydia!" Kai whispered harshly, shoving Gray's shoulder as if he couldn't see himself. Gray rolled his eyes and groaned at his small companion. He began to climb down, but Kai stopped him, holding onto his sleeve.
Gray stared at him pointedly, wondering why the hell the sprite was stopping him from saving Dani.
"You can't just sneak up on a mermaid, especially when they hold someone like that! Unless you want Dani to die a quick and horrible death, then you need to listen to me!" Kai hissed. Gray glanced back at Dani, her face serene and deep in slumber, then back to Kai and nodded his head. He climbed back to his spot on the rock.
"So how are we going to get Dani?"
"Mermaids tend to choose one person that they love as if they are a child or lover. With the kindness Lydia is showing Dani, I'm guessing that Lydia has chosen her as a child like figure. If Lydia is disturbed from caring for Dani, then she could easily break her neck. You must approach cautiously. I can't help you once you go down, but she will ask you to solve a riddle. You only have one shot at answering, so don't screw it up!"
Gray was willing to do anything to take Dani back from Lydia. Though beautiful, Gray didn't trust Lydia at all. He quietly climbed down from the rock and approached the mermaid carefully.
He had walked only a few feet when she turned and glared at him, baring her sharp teeth.
"Who are you?" She asked, her voice as sinister as they come. Gray glanced from Lydia to Dani and gulped down his thumping heart.
"My name is Gray."
"Why are you here?" She challenged, her violet eyes turning dark. She held Dani possessively and stared at him as if daring him to come any closer.
"I am here to take the girl back," Gray could feel the sweat from his concentration pool above his brow and drip down his temple. The mermaid held her gaze and frowned.
"No."
"Please, I'll do anything!" Gray exclaimed, worried that Lydia wouldn't even give him the slightest chance at rescuing Dani.
The mermaid's brow quirked and she examined Gray from head to toe.
"Anything?" She questioned. Gray nodded curtly.
"You seem courageous, so I will give you a riddle. You are only permitted to give one answer. If your answer is wrong, I will kill you and keep the girl. If your answer is right then you can take her back, and you will earn my respect."
Gray nodded in understanding, waiting for the question that would decide his and Dani's fate.
"What always runs but never walks, often murmurs, never talks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats?" Lydia's riddle confused Gray. He thought hard about it, contemplating on the possible answers. He stared at the water beyond Lydia and thought it over. The waves pulled back and forth, and gave Gray an idea.
He stared at Lydia, hoping to the heavens that his answer was right.
"A river," Gray answered with mock confidence, hiding the frightened butterflies that flew uncontrollably in his clenched stomach.
Lydia smiled and closed her eyes.
Gray shut his eyes tightly, waiting for the outcome. A sudden weight change knocked him off balance, and he fell onto the sand.
He opened his eyes to find Dani laying on top of him, her hazel eyes starting to flutter open.
*1st person
I opened my eyes to find Gray beneath me in a somewhat awkward position. My legs straddled either side of him and my hands rested on his chest. I felt my cheeks grow completely red, and I quickly sat up, which just made the situation worse. Now I was still straddling him, but in a much more intimate way.
I glanced at Gray's face to see his reaction, but he quickly sat up and embraced me.
"Gray?" I asked, confused as to his strange behavior. He stood up with me still in his arms and I got goosebumps when he pulled me in closer for a tighter hug.
"Are you okay?" I asked, perplexed at his sudden change in character.
He pulled me back and searched my face, for what I don't know, and gave a sweet crooked smile. I felt myself melt a little with that smile, but attempted to keep my composure, even though I'm sure that I'm as red as a tomato.
"You can go now," a voice said solemnly, lonely. I turned to see Lydia weeping, her face in her hands. I stepped towards her, holding Gray's sleeve.
"I'll visit," I smiled, and Lydia looked back at me, and gave a nod and a sharp smile.