Hey, fellow authors! It's time to update. This chapter is a little shorter than the last, so just keep on reading, keep on reading, keep on reading, reading, reading...Anyhoo, ignoring my awful singing skills for now, guess who finally makes her appearance in this chapter? Well...uh, I guess you'll find out soon.

Also, a final note, Mr. Ray's real name is inspired by his voice actor, the brilliantly talented Bob Peterson.

~Cel

Chapter Four: In Need of a Lift

The sun slowly rose into the skies over Australia. The surface was illuminated a sparkling, brilliant orange by the rays. The waters of the ocean slowly became lighter until it was a beautiful, crystal clear azure. The reef slowly came to life with the sunlight of the morning, and soon it was alive with countless fish. They darted through the coral and surged through the waters of their home. They went about their daily lives, everything at peace within the serene reef. In one brightly colored anemone, the gentle orange tentacles swaying gently in the currents, a clownfish father was rubbing his tired eyes and trying to wake up his sleeping son.

"Nemo, c'mon son, it's t-t-t-iii," Marlin said, trying and failing to stifle a large yawn. He covered his mouth with a fin, the other busily, albeit gently shaking his son awake. "It's time for school. C'mon, boy, it's only a half day today!" Nemo opened his eyes and blinked tiredly, giving a large yawn. He looked up at his father, blinking awake and stretching his small body.

"Morning, Dad." He said softly, rubbing his eyes with his good fin. His lucky fin fluttered at his side, making little quivering noises. Marlin patted his boy's head, smiling widely.

"Good morning, son. Are you ready for school?" Marlin asked gently, knowing how bad of a night his son had been through. His sleep had been fitful and his dreams were probably quite troubling. Marlin had let Nemo sleep very close to his side that night, trying to comfort his poor boy. He knew that Nemo missed the tough veteran named Gill. Although Marlin had never met the Moorish Idol, and had only once caught a brief glance of him, he knew that the old fish had protected his son when there was no one else to. He was so very proud of Nemo as he watched his son rub his eyes again, sigh, and then smile widely. Marlin knew that the smile was forced, and that his boy was still upset about last night, and trying to hide it for the sake of his father.

"Yeah, Dad, you betcha!" Nemo said, leaping on the spot with false excitement. Nonetheless, Marlin couldn't help but chuckle and reach forward with his fins, tickling the boy. Nemo giggled, trying to squirm out of his father's grasp. Marlin laughed as well, before reaching forward and taking his boy into his fins, holding him tightly. He couldn't help but notice how Nemo nestled into his side, hiding his face. The poor little guy. He was having a rough time, and Marlin knew it.

"Nemo, are you okay?" Marlin asked, pulling away from Nemo just enough to look into his eyes. They were the exact same color as Coral's. "I know you couldn't sleep very well last night." Nemo sighed and nodded, his eyes downcast and his figure wilted.

"Yeah, I'm okay, Daddy. I was thinking about what you said, about remembering the good stuff about the people I lost. I was remembering the good things about Mom and Gill. I can go to school today, I'm just a little tired." Nemo explained, giving his father a small smile. Marlin returned it, although it was full of worry for his little boy.

"Alright, if you're sure." Marlin said, then waved Nemo off for the little clownfish to go brush himself. He complied, and then Marlin led Nemo out of their protective anemone home. Marlin poked his head out of the gently swaying orange tentacles, glancing around. As usual, there was no sign of any danger, so the two clownfish swam right out into the reef. There was no longer any of this "we go out, and back in four times" nonsense. However, Marlin still glanced at the world surrounding them each and every morning for a sign of danger – this was still Marlin we're talking about.

Nemo was unusually quiet today. Instead of bouncing around and swimming in excited circles around his father, he merely swam at Marlin's side, staring down at the beautiful, multicolored coral reef floor beneath him. Marlin couldn't help but reach forward and grasp his son's fin reassuringly. Nemo grasped back and smiled widely at Marlin. He knew that his father was very worried about him. Not in an overprotective kind of way, but in a very loving way. He knew that Marlin hated to see his only son so upset, and had tried in the only way he knew how to make him feel better. Nemo vowed to himself that he would no longer be sad. Coral, he knew from what his father had told him, would tell him that everything will be alright. Gill would tell him to keep strong, and that he was a tough little lad. He would stay happy and cheerful for all three. He would stay strong.

"Hey, Dad, after school, can I go and explore? There's a bunch of cliffs and me, Squirt, Sheldon, Pearl, and Tad are gonna go to. Can I, please?" Nemo asked brightly, looking up at his father with bright orange eyes. Marlin looked down at his son. Exploring cliff was dangerous, but ever since he had gone on the journey that would change his life forever, he knew that he must trust in his son. Nemo had told him that Gill, who had a bad fin as well, had taught him to properly swim. Perhaps a little adventure with his best friends would lighten his mood. So, Marlin cast Nemo a smile and nodded.

"Of course you can. Just be careful, please?" Marlin pleaded, and Nemo cast his father a look. Pretending to be exasperated and rolling his eyes, Nemo couldn't hide his grin.

"Okay, Dad, I promise." Nemo agreed, and Marlin gave a sharp, brief nod.

"That's my boy. Here we are," He said as the two clownfish descended into the clearing, which was full of happily playing and chatting fish of striking shapes and colors. Nemo released his father's fin and darted right over to the little square where his friends met, waiting for their teacher to arrive. He swam among them, receiving a high-fin from Tad, a head-bump with Squirt, and shouts and greetings from them all. Marlin swam over to his friends, the fathers of three of the children. Bill, the father of Tad, was as happy and excited about who-knows-what, as always. Ted, the father of little Pearl, was floating by, quiet as he normally was. Narrow-eyed Bob, the father of Sheldon, was talking to Bill in his stern, yet calm way and watching the four children play with each other. Marlin swam up to them, and was about to issue a greeting when a high-pitched, overly familiar voice rang in his ears. The voice caused everyone to look up from what they were doing for only a moment before resuming their daily activates.

"Ooohhh, Burrito, Carlin! Er…no, wait, um…I mean, ah, Elmo, Marion. Oh, no, that's not right either. Oh, shoot…" the voice carried through the entire reef, as a cheerful, bright, brilliant blue Regal tang woman came darting through the water. Her bright, garnet-colored eyes shone in the water, zoning in directly on Marlin. He turned and waved to her, beckoning her over. She swam right for him, yet not without pausing to scoop little Nemo in her black and yellow fins, giving him a tight squeeze.

"H-hi, Dory." Nemo mumbled, smushed in between his dear Dory's fins and her side. She was beaming, like it had just made her day to find the little one and squeeze the life out of him.

"Hello, Cheerio! Have a nice day at school!" Dory sang out as she released Nemo from her tight grip. Nemo coughed and cast Dory his usual bright smile. However, as the tang looked into his ginger eyes, she couldn't help but notice that a little bit of light had faded from them. Nemo wasn't as happy as he usually was. Wondering whatever could be wrong with her darling little Nemo, Dory swam over to Marlin. The older clownfish braced himself for his own typical good-morning hug. However, this morning, he didn't receive one. Dory was frowning to herself, her brow furrowed and her lips pulled down in the corners. She swam to her best friend's side, fixing him with a questioning look.

"Hey, Mango. Er, wait, I mean Marlin. Yeah, that's right. Um, what's wrong with…" her expression screwed up, her light claret eyes facing the surface as she thought. "With Nemo. He seems a little sad today. Is everything alright in the clownfish household?" Dory said, looking back down at Marlin. He sighed and looked to his boy, who was bouncing around and joining in with the gentle harassment of old Mr. Johansson. This morning, Marlin was far too worried to gently chastise Nemo, as he always did when he bothered the aged flounder.

"Do you remember that Moorish Idol in the dentist's office, the one in the tank?" Marlin asked, then immediately realized what he had just said to Dory. She fixed him with a blank gaze, blinking innocently. Marlin sighed, when suddenly Dory jumped up with a huge smile on her face.

"Ohhh! You mean the fish with the black and white body? He had a really long dorsal fin, like a flag." Dory said excitedly, dramatically gesturing behind her head to signify the length of a Moorish Idol's elongated filamentous extension. Marlin chuckled lightly and nodded. Deep down, somewhere within him, he was proud of Dory for remembering. He would congratulate her later.

"Yeah. Well, his name was Gill –" Marlin continued before he was shortly interrupted by Dory, which was perfectly normal. The tang fixed him with large, bright eyes.

"Gill? That's a funny name. Like we all have gills! And you are Mr. Grumpy Gills!" She giggled before catching Marlin's impatient look. She blinked innocently and held her fins together like a student that had just been chastised by a teacher. Coughing, Marlin continued once more.

"Well, he had protected Nemo when he was trapped in Sydney." Marlin rushed on, sensing Dory's extreme need to input, "P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney?" Dory opened her mouth, but was too late as her friend spoke quickly, blocking her words. "Nemo became quite close to him, and he…he thinks that Gill died saving him. From what I've heard, Gill was an older fish, and had a bad fin like Nemo." Marlin finished, and for once in the whole day, Dory was silent. She looked from the older clownfish to his son with sad, soft maroon eyes. Her lower lip stuck out in a sad pout.

"I wish there was something I could do for little Lilo. Er, I mean, Nemo." Dory said, her brow furrowing and her eyes downcast as she thought. She tapped her lower lip with the tip of her fin thoughtfully. Marlin left Dory to her thinking (who knows where that could lead) and resumed watching his boy. Nemo seemed just as playful and cheerful as ever, but Marlin could just see the sadness in the little clownfish lad's eyes. He sighed softly and silently to himself. Suddenly Dory gave a satisfied exclamation beside him, right in his ear. Marlin jumped, clutching his chest.

"I've got it! I'll be right back, Mar." She said brightly, wrapping her fins around Marlin in an ecstatic hug before joyfully racing off across the clearing to do who-knows-what. Marlin exhaled, willing his heart to slow its pace and not beat itself from his chest. Glaring after Dory's retreating figure, Marlin shouted, "I am not a young fish, there is no need to give me a heart attack!"

Within minutes, the usual cheerful singing of Mr. Ray filled the clearing around them, and all of the children rushed through the courtyard to greet their teacher. The spotted ray gracefully flapped his wings as he soared above the children, coming slowly in for a landing. He belted out the final note in his species song as he gently flattened himself on his class. The children all giggled as he feigned innocence, not knowing where his class could possibly be. The children all squealed and cried happily up to their beloved teacher. Mr. Ray smiled at them all, his grey-blue eyes sparkling.

"Hello there, kids! Before we embark on another knowledge-filled adventure, I have a very special guest today." Marlin's attention was sparked by these words, so he slowly swam forward. Nemo was in the back of the class, most unusual for him, but it seemed like his interest was captured as well. He perked up a bit, highly anticipating Mr. Ray's special guest.

Before they knew it, another spotted ray was flying through the clearing. It seemed like this one was smaller, and more delicate than Mr. Ray. She settled beside him, her eyes a brilliant blue and a sweet, gentle smile on her face. Although Mr. Ray had not yet introduced her, everyone could immediately tell from the way he gazed at her that this was Mrs. Ray.

"Hello there, children! Aww, you all are just as cute as Peter told me you would be." She said kindly, looking at each child. However, their attention was diverted to Mr. Ray, who felt his cheeks growing warmer.

"Peter? That's your name, Mr. Ray?" Pearl giggled, triggering an onslaught of giggles and chuckles from the rest of the class. Nemo couldn't help but laugh as well, trying to muffle himself with his good fin. Mrs. Ray shot her husband an apologetic glance, giving him a small, innocent smile. Mr. Ray smiled back at her with nothing but unconditional love. The children all shot each other smirks and knowing looks, while Marlin couldn't help but grin at the delightful ray couple as well. They reminded him so very much of himself and his beautiful Coral. Oh, how much he missed her. It had been eight years, but it still hurt his heart just as much. But like he had said to Nemo, he always tried to remember the good things about Coral – her gorgeous eyes, her beautiful voice, her lovely form…

"Well, as you all probably know, it is our anniversary today. So be nice to my husband." She said with a friendly wink. All of the children nodded.

"We will, Mrs. Ray." The entire class chorused. Mrs. Ray gave a satisfied nod before turning to her husband and giving him a loving peck on the cheek. Most of the boys in the class all cried out, "Eeew!" in unison, cringing as if this was the most gruesome thing they had ever witnessed. The girls all gave dreamy, adoring looks and all chorused, "Awww!" Mrs. Ray announced that she had to head off to her own work. With that, she turned and gave a large flap with her wings, rising into the water and gliding off through the reef. Mr. Ray cleared his throat and turned to the side, lowering his wing and announcing for his class to climb aboard. The children, still giggling and exchanging knowing glances with one another, swam onto their teacher's back. Mr. Ray rose into the water, slowly flapping his wings and continuing to cheerfully sing.

"Wow, Mrs. Ray is really pretty!" Pearl said, her pink eyes wide as she addressed her friends.

"Yeah. Her eyes are almost the color of my mom's eyes." Tad put in, scratching the underside of his chin. Sheldon, who sat beside him, nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, my mom's really nice like her. My dad says I have her eyes." Sheldon said, shyly looking down at Mr. Ray's spotted back before sniffling. Nemo took this warning in, and quickly grabbed the end of Sheldon's tail. The poor seahorse lad sneezed, and was hurtled backwards. However, thanks to Nemo's intervention, he was saved from careering into the reef below. He thanked Nemo, who smiled and replied, "No problem!" Squirt pretended to wipe sweat from his forehead with a dramatic sigh. Then he smiled.

"Yeah, dudes, my parents have been together for, like, what…a hundred and twenty-five years?" Squirt said, tapping his lower lip in thought. His friends all gasped with an amazed, "Whoa!" Nemo, however, cast his eyes down, staring at the colorful structures of coral and the darting forms of fish. He always found it hard when the discussion among his friends turned to their mothers. He could not join in the conversation. Therefore, Nemo always felt a little left out and out and incredibly lonely. However, today, he knew that he must do what his father had suggested: remember the good things.

School that day was as fun as ever, but Nemo just couldn't find it in himself to do as he had promised to himself: have as much fun as possible. The lesson today was even really fascinating. It was all about sea sponges, about the anatomy of a sponge, about its overall role in the ecosystem of the coral reef, and so much more! However, Nemo didn't participate in answering Mr. Ray's questions. His fin wasn't shooting up, among the first, as it normally was. He kept in the back of the class, quietly listening to Mr. Ray's cheerful lecture. When the spotted eagle ray announced that the lesson was over for the day, Nemo was actually glad. He just wanted some time to himself.

"Alright kids, hop on! Time to go home." He said, lowering one wing and allowing his class to all clamber onto his back excitedly. As soon as Mr. Ray felt all of the children on his back, he rose into the beautifully clear waters of the reef, and began to take them home. Nemo listened to his friend's avid chatter about many (rather random) things. He didn't jump into the conversations. He often received worried glances from his friends as they talked. After a few minutes, Mr. Ray touched down in the clearing, where several parents were waiting to pick up their children and take them home. As he expected, Marlin, Dory, and his friend's parents were nowhere in sight. Mr. Ray smiled and said a cheerful goodbye to his class. Some of the children turned and gave him a smile back. "Have fun on your dinner date!" Some of them called. Mr. Ray became all flustered as he blushed and flew away, thanking the children.

"Hey, guys," Tad addressed his friends excitedly. "Are you ready to go and see the cliffs!?" The four others all nodded vigorously, smiling. Even Nemo found himself to be incredibly eager. Perhaps a little adventure with his friends was just what he needed to lift his dampened spirits.

"You bet I am, dude!" Squirt exclaimed, throwing his front flippers into the air and bumping one of Tad's fins with his own.

"Then let's go!" Tad said with enthusiasm, turning tail and racing through the reef, his thin body slicing through the water. The others all followed their friend, with Nemo close behind, a wide grin on his face. This time, he was going to make sure to have fun. This time for sure.