From the office adjacent to the kitchen, Sharron smiled at Sam and her son as they laughed while cleaning up the lunch dishes. Cody had his mental walls down and she was able to hear his side of the conversation. It was a weird experience that she couldn't help quirk a smile. Sam's voice was muffled by the distance, but Cody's still rang clearly for all in the house to hear. He was more relaxed than he had been in weeks. It warmed her heart to know that he had such good friends who accepted him and he could confide in.

When she had first learned of Cody's secret, she had been so scared. She'd just known scientists and doctors were going to discover his secret and take him away. Then to learn Jess already knew everything and had even conducted tests of his own – she hadn't slept a wink that first night, or the next. To see her son now, back home and laughing with his girlfriend - it was one of the happiest sights a mother could see.

Whit walked into the office, dropping off his tackle box. The tour boat only did morning runs on the weekend, and he'd spent the afternoon fishing. He stood behind his wife and kissed the back of her neck softly. The iceberg of stress that she had been harboring on her shoulders melted. She had her family, and that was all she had ever wanted.

-TSLOF-

Jess stopped a few houses down as he biked up to the Griffith residence. Outside the lighthouse turned home, parked across the street, was an unfamiliar car. From what he could tell it was empty, but it made him suspicious. This was one of the quietest, non-tourist places on the island. He usually didn't see a vehicle he didn't know. While the vehicle being in that spot wasn't suspicious, there was something about it that set his nerves on edge. Still frowning he walked his bike the remainder of the way until he was just outside the white picket fence that marked the Griffith's property. His stomach felt heavy in an uneasy way, full of fear that something was up.

Turning he leaned his bike against the fence and reached for the gate. A strong hand clamped over his mouth as another grabbed around his shoulder and across his chest. His yells muffled as he kicked back, only to realize the hand on his mouth held a damp cloth. His eyes fell shut as his thoughts fluttered out.

-TSLOF-

Cody stood close to his girlfriend as they did the lunch dishes. Not only did his mom not believe in doctors, she believed in old-fashioned hard work to build someone's character. In other words – they didn't own a dishwasher. It was times like this when he was very grateful his mom was so holistic in her ways, along with other times. If she'd taken him to a doctor a year ago when he'd stared changing, instead of trying her methods, he could have been in a lot of trouble. So even though his hands grew scaly and his half formed wrist fins tickled, he was more than happy to do something so normal – so human. Sam hummed a soft tune next to him, throwing her head lightly from side to side. She was just as happy to be spending some time alone with him.

'We should probably head to the ferry after we're done here. Maybe see if someone turned in my bag, or if Pete has seen anything.' It was easy thinking his thoughts towards Sam. With her and Jess, and his parents, he felt like he could hold a normal conversation. He dunked a plate into the sudsy water and scrubbed it with the sponge.

Sam nodded, still humming. She grabbed the cleaned plate from him, shaking it lightly and then dipping it in the warm water in the next sink over, washing away any remaining soap. After a quick swish she shook it out of the water again and placed it in the drying rack.

There was one glass left when a knock came at the door. Cody froze, staring down at his hands and arms. A deep, instinctual fear gripped his heart and he gulped. Sam's hand was in his in seconds, squeezing his webbed hand, their fingers not quite interlocking. His heart beat a crazy rhythm, as flight instincts began urging him dash upstairs and hide. He started tugging Sam towards the kitchen doorway and stopped as his mom blocked the entrance.

"Let's see who it is first." Sharron gave her son a reassuring smile.

With a shaky nod, Cody let Sam drag him back to the sink where they would be out of view of the front door.

With his mom blocking the Kitchen entrance, Whit went to get the door. The mood in the house had changed in one breathe, the jovial lightness seeming to gloom into an unknown apprehension.

The door squeaked open and Cody heard the one voice he hoped it would never be.

"Hi Mr. Griffith. Is Cody home?" Sean's slightly nasally voice carried easily into the kitchen. Cody even suspected that he might have been talking loud enough to ensure anyone in the house could hear him.

A chill ran through Cody as he shut off his thoughts, cutting himself off from his family and Sam. He couldn't allow a slip up, not now when he looked like this. Frantically he glanced towards the back door, a profound fear overriding his rational thought. He needed to get out of there before he was discovered. If he made a run for it, he could reach his cove and hide in a deep seaweed patch. He braced himself against the kitchen counter, turning away from Sam.

Sam grabbed his shoulder, one hand still wrapped around his, watching the shear look of panic on his face. She had never seen him like this before. He was shaking and pale. His eyes seemed greener than ever and the scales on his hands shone a silvery hue. He was close to losing it. A small jolt shot from his hand to hers, shocking her, but she didn't let go. She needed to calm him down before he lost control and did something to give himself away.

At the front door, Whit looked back at his wife, who stood casually against the kitchen door frame. He was relieved to see that Cody and Sam were out of view and keeping quiet in the kitchen. He took a deep breath and plastered a smile on his face.

"Well hi Sean. We haven't seen you in ages." Whit laughed and clapped a firm hand on Sean's lean shoulder. "Cody didn't mention that you would be stopping by."

Sean glanced at the two adults. They looked as casual as ever, yet Mrs. Griffith was wringing her hands ever so slightly, and Mr. Griffith's smile didn't reach his eyes. He wasn't an idiot. He could tell him being there made them uncomfortable. Their behavior confirmed his suspicions. Something was definitely up with Cody, and his parents knew exactly what it was.

"He didn't?" Sean slipped the bag he'd been carrying from the shoulder and let it fall onto the stoop. "I figured he would have known I would bring this by."

Sean watched Whit frown at the bag and then almost glare at him, before the fake smile returned. Mrs. Griffith wore an equally grim expression. Back in the kitchen, the sound of the bag dropping seemed ominous to Cody. His backpack. Sean must have grabbed it right after he'd disappeared.

"Thanks Sean. That was very nice of you to bring it all the way here." Sharron took a step forward, as Whit bent to pick up the bag.

"Cody's been so worried about his tablet going missing." Whit shook his head. "It was good of you to return it."

The young man gave a slick smile, and then frowned. He had just noticed the jacket hung up on the coat rack by the door. It was a blue jean jacket – and he knew for a fact it was Sam's.

"Can I talk to Cody?" If Sam was here, Cody was too.

Whit frowned. "I'm sorry Sean, but he and Sam actually left on a bike ride an hour ago. I think they were going to the boardwalk to play some games."

Sharron nodded, now standing close to her husband. It felt to Sean as if they were trying to barricade the door. Almost like they were trying to keep him from something. What was with these people? Ever since Cody showed back up at school, everyone he was close to had been acting so secretive. Did they really think him stupid? That he wouldn't notice that there was some big secret they were all trying to hide? Him being thwarted just made him that more determined to figure out what it was.

"I see." Sean gave a casual shrug. "Will you tell him I dropped by?"

"Sure thing." Sharron gave him another smile, looking relieved. "He'll be glad to know you wanted to see him."

Without a goodbye, Sean turned and walked down the steps and out the fence. He didn't hear the door shut behind him and figured Mr. Griffith was watching to see if he was really leaving. He walked a few houses away until he got to a corner, and then he turned out of sight. When he was sure he couldn't be seen from the lighthouse, he pulled out his cellphone and called Sam. After a few rings it went to her voicemail. Sean, ending the call, frowned even deeper. She had to have been there. Cody had to have been there.

He scuffed his foot on the cement, kicking at some loose dirt that came up from a weathered crack. It was obvious the Griffiths hadn't wanted to let him inside. It wasn't like he could just go back and sneak in either. So, if he couldn't sneak in to see Cody, he'd just have to find some way to ambush him. An idea dawned on him, making him smile. It would be perfect. Turning he headed away from the lighthouse, down the cliff road, and towards the ocean.

-TSOF-

Now seated on the living room couch, Cody gasped and tried to take in a deep breath. He was having a hard time getting enough oxygen to his lungs. He hadn't felt panic like that in a long time. Not since he thought Mr. Wheatly had caught his Mother. Sam sat next to him, but was staring at her phone where the message of a missed call blinked at her. Sean had called. He never called her anymore. Had he somehow suspected that she was there?

Whit dropped the book bag by the door, whispering to his wife, giving Cody some space.

"You're sure the tablet isn't in there?" Sharron whispered, running a nervous hand through her shoulder length hair.

"I checked all the pockets. It's gone." Whit whispered back, glanced at Cody who had his eyes closed and head hanging between his knees.

"Do you think someone might have taken it before Sean picked it up?" Sharron was starting to sound frantic.

Shaking his head, Whit looked down at his wife. "Sean probably grabbed it as soon as he realized Cody had disappeared. His been suspicious ever since that swim meet. Maybe he's been trying to figure out what he saw ever since."

Silence fell between them. This was a complication they didn't need. Cody was already going through so much. Having a nosy, suspicious teenager lurking around wasn't going to help matters in the slightest.

"What do we do, Whit?" Sharron leaned into her husband's strong side.

Whit shook his head, his seemingly permanent frown deepening. "I don't know."

-TSLOF-

Deep orange and yellow hues played across the full evening clouds as the sun began to make its descent over the ocean. The buoy in the middle of the cove rocked back and forth on the mellow tide. Even with the rocking there were no tolls and Cody sighed. He wouldn't be swimming out to it and his mother had no reason to be here. How he wished she was. Despite Sam and his parents trying to reassure him, he felt like everything was closing in around him. Sean wasn't letting up, his fins were taking forever to return to what he considered his new normal – and he ached to swim deep into the ocean.

He placed a slightly scaled hand on his chest, just over where his heart beat out a steady rhythm. The rhythm matched the lapping tide, a reminder of his connection to his true home. Memories of sitting on this beach, late at night, wondering about the mysteries of the ocean caused him to give a melancholic smile. Just a year ago he'd been a human teenager trying to win some swim matches and maybe get a girl to like him.

Now…what was he now? A half-way creature who didn't know how he was going to fit in.

His phone buzzed, signaling a text message. Like the last five messages, he ignored it. He wanted to watch the sunset in peace and contemplation, letting his problems roll of his back, for just a few minutes more.

Soft footsteps in the sand sounded behind him and he couldn't help but sighing. Peace could only last for so long. He was about to call out to Sam when an inexplicable sense of unease filled him. Akin to the same feeling he had when a shark was nearby in the water, he immediately was on edge. The scales on his spine rose slightly at his agitation and he tugged his jacket sleeves down farther, hiding the scales on his hands and the remnant ridges of his wrist fins.

"You must have known it was only going to be a matter of time before I found you alone." Sean walked around him and then stood in his light. Cody had to crane his neck to look up at the harsh face of his once friend.

Cody moved to stand, only to feel Sean kick out, knocking a hard blow into his shoulder. A strangled moan slipped out of his mouth as the foot smacked into his collar bone. He rocked to the side and landed in the sand.

"I wouldn't do anything." Sean knelt down until he was crouching over him, an ugly sneer on his face. The expression made his angular features look cruel. "I've got questions, and you're going to give me answers."

Cody didn't move, panic rising once more from his gut. It made his chest squeeze and he found the air too thin for his lungs. He stared out at the ocean, just feet away. If he could get to the water, he could disappear. He didn't want to hurt Sean, but he wasn't about to let himself get beat up either. If he tried to fight him off, it was going to mean serious trouble for the both of them.

"You're a weird one, Griffith. You were weird before you just dropped out of school and disappeared, but you're even weirder now." Sean rocked onto his heals, playing with the sand in front of him. He frowned at Cody, upset by his silence. "First, no one gets as good as you did so quickly without cheating. Out of the two of us, I was always the better athlete. I've trained since I was five to swim professionally. Then, out of nowhere, you're beating all the records like it's nothing. Imagine how upset my dad was when he found out that, even with all my training, I could no longer beat you?"

Cody didn't answer, taking the tirade in stride. His shoulder ached where he'd been kicked and he could feel the fins on his wrists growing in response. Instinct demanded his body prepare for a fight. It was only minutes until he would be able to feel his current surging through his hands. He needed to get away before that happened.

"Did you take some kind of drug? Is that what it was? Maybe that's what's messed up your voice and made you mute. Though," he scoffed, "I don't believe that crap. I looked it up. You don't just lose your voice." Out of a mesh bag on his back, Sean pulled out Cody's tablet and tossed it on the beach between them. "I've decided I can be reasonable, so I'm going to make you a deal. I'll give you the password to get back into this funny device of yours, if you tell me your secret."

A stream of curses ran through Cody's mind. He had been meaning to put a password on the tablet. The extra step it took to access the robotic voice had been annoying, especially in class when he needed to quickly answer questions. It took long enough for him to type out his thoughts, why would he want to add another step? Now Sean had put in his own password. He wasn't going to be able to reason with him.

Quick as a dolphin he went to stand again, only to have Sean land on top of him just as suddenly, pressing his shoulders into the sand with his hands, one knee in his gut. The air whooshed out of his aching lungs and he wheezed out in pain. He felt his current stretch from his gut and spark across his now webbed hands. Sean was oblivious to the changes going on in the young merman, focused as he was on the agonized look on Cody's face.

"Come on Cody, just one word. I just want to know what drug, supplement or whatever it was you were taking. You tell me, I tell the school board, and they give the state championship first place to me, the rightful winner." Sean pressed into his gut harder.

The young merman shook his head, but didn't fight back. Instead he shoved his hands painfully under his back, attempting to hide his exposed forearms and the energy that sparked and pulsed from his hands. Scales were breaking out along his feet and his toes ached in his shoes. His instinct to fight off this predator was forcing him to change. Problem was – he was on land and facing off the one person he didn't want to find out what he was. His instincts were screaming for him to fight back. He was just as tough as this challenger. With sheer will he was forcing himself to act human – be human. Biology was just so hard to fight.

Sean sneered even more. Cody wasn't a wuss; he'd give him that. But he wasn't going to win this by being stubborn. Without warning he released the pinned boy's right shoulder, threw back his own arm, and then decked Cody right in the nose.

The young merman lost all control, the instinct of his kind taking over. Before Sean could react, Cody had his hands on his wrists, and a strange blue pulse shot through him. Sean gasped and felt his heart give a jolt as electricity ran through his body and out his feet into the sand around him. He dropped onto his back, writhing in pain, the smell of burnt hair hanging in the air around him. Black squares danced in his vision and his breathing grew shallow.

The pulse continued to flow through him and Sean felt his heart skip a few beats and his mind spin. Why was his vision darkening? His fuzzy eyes met Cody's own and he gasped. Cody's irises were a brilliant, otherworldly green and appeared to be almost glowing.

Then, as Sean watched, Cody shook his head, and a horror fell over his expression. His hands flew in front of his face where sparks danced around his webbed fingers. Cody had webbed hands? And were those fins he could see on his arms? Just like what he'd seen at the state finals… His thoughts came sluggishly and he felt like laughing, and then screaming as his heart painfully stuttered. His lungs seized and then his thoughts became erratic as he became aware of the burning in his veins.

Cody screamed, watching in absolutely terror as Sean's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he began to convulse. Foam was brimming at the young man's lips and there was a burning smell in the air. He'd been so scared and the punch had caught him so off guard he'd just reacted. Sean had taken all of his current in full force. He'd given him enough to stun a large female great white shark.

'Sean!' Cody grabbed the boy's shoulders, turning him onto his right side as he shook uncontrollably. 'Sean, I need you to open your eyes!' To heck if Sean heard him, he was in trouble! Cody began to panic even more. He had never wanted to hurt him! As he watched, the color began to fade from his once best friend. The shaking was getting worse and he spied a trickle of blood at the lobe of his left ear.

What was he to do? If he ran home to get help, he was afraid Sean would be dead by the time paramedics made their way down the cliff side. But if let Sean stay on the sand and did nothing he was almost certain he would die. If they had been in the water, he could have diffused the electricity still coursing through his body into the natural currents of the ocean.

Maybe he still could… Cody stood shakily, nearly losing his balance in his too tight shoes. It was a long shot, but he had to try. The salt water would act as a conductor, pulling out the current still running through Sean's body. He'd seen an elder in his pod do something similar to a young mermaid who had shocked her friend by accident. It had to work!

Now somewhat steady on his feet, Cody grabbed Sean's wrists again, noting the burn marks in the shape of hands he'd left behind. Heaving, he pulled the lanky boy the fifteen feet to the water and then even farther in. The ocean soothed the merman's skin, strengthened his limbs and brought clarity to his mind. With a kick of his webbed feet, his shoes slipped into the shallow tide, allowing him to swim faster. He dragged Sean out to deep water, and then kicked his legs in tandem to keep their heads above the surface. The sunlight was fading and the water had grown rough, a deep purple hue darkening the once aqua waters.

Cody placed a hand on Sean's heart and felt the electricity still sizzling through his body. With a press down he drew the electricity out into the water around them, only to feel it flow into his own body. The water snapped with diffused electrons as the young human's body calmed and his heart began to beat a regular one-two thump. The water washed around them as Cody felt tears of relief and agony fall down his face. Sputtering, Sean's eyes flashed open and he floundered as he tried to get his bearings. Cody released him at once and pushed back, dipping so only his head remained above the surface.

Sean looked around himself, frantic and in pain. His limbs felt stretched and his wrists burned like hot coals had been wrapped around them. What in the…why was he swimming? He did a quick turn in the water and then saw Cody, bobbing just a few feet away. Blood ran from his nose and his green eyes burned with that same unearthly glow. He was watching Sean like he was a shark getting to close for comfort.

"What the heck was that?" Sean shouted at him, kicking to stay afloat in the rising tide. The water was getting rougher and he was surprised to see they were almost to a buoy. "What did you do to me?" He lifted his burning arms to his face and gaped at the hand marks that wrapped around his blistering wrists.

Cody backed away farther, not wanting to give any answers, yet wondering if not responding would just make things worse at this point.

"What kind of a freak are you?" Sean hollered at him, swimming closer, only to have Cody push farther out to open water. Sean struggled to stay near enough, but the other boy moved with a strange grace that kept him out of reach.

Suddenly Cody's bright green eyes went wide and a look of panic filled his face. An echoed scream reverberated in Sean's head as Cody's mouth gaped in agony. Was he hearing his scream in his mind?

Then, with the toss of a high wave, Cody was gone, slipping under the surface.