WOWZA IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE AN UPDATE AND I DO APOLOGIZE FOR THAT
This chapter is longer so I hope it makes up for lost time! Also, I think this chapter is better than the last in my opinion.
Note: this chapter loosely follows the episode, "Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble" from H2O!
Hope you enjoy!
That night, disaster struck. The damage wasn't made known until Emma received an early phone call from Lewis, disturbing both her and Annabeth's slumber. After assuring Annabeth that she would be right back, Emma slipped out of the house and rushed to meet her friends.
Their fears were confirmed: Charlotte was a mermaid.
At the night of the full moon, she had gone into the moon pool and was now just like the three of them, much to the original trio's horror. Emma knew it was best to take Charlotte under their wing and help her. Mermaids had to stick together.
After spending some time at the cafe, the four girls returned to Emma's house later that morning. Emma was the first to enter in the doorway and there she immediately ran into her mother and father, both wearing cross expressions.
"Emma. Can we have a word?" Lisa beckoned. Emma glanced over her shoulder at Cleo, Rikki, and Charlotte, silently telling them to go to her bedroom and wait for her. Cleo nodded, Rikki rolled her eyes, and Charlotte followed the pair upstairs.
"Um, sure. I brought the girls here," Emma informed as she approached her parents in the kitchen.
"That's just the thing," Neil said. Emma arched an eyebrow.
"You're spending an awful lot of time with your friends, Emma," Lisa stated firmly.
"They're my friends," the blonde countered. "I always spend time with them."
"I know that and you know that your friends are always welcome here. But our family that we haven't seen in over four years is here to visit and you are neglecting them."
"Neglecting them? I'm not neglecting them!"
"You're not spending time with your cousin, Emma. He's only visiting for a little bit and then he's going back halfway across the globe and you're spending more time with your friends that you see everyday. How would you feel if Percy did that to you? It would hurt your feelings, wouldn't it?"
"Mum! I spend plenty of time with Percy. We've gone to the marine park and the beach and horseback riding!"
"Emma, you need to make the most of your time with our family," Neil warned. "We don't even know when the next time we will see them again."
Emma restrained herself from rolling her eyes.
"I don't want this to keep occurring, Emma. Please. Tell your friends to go home and go spend some time with Percy and Annabeth," Lisa commanded. Emma's mouth fell open in shock.
"Mum! I can't send them home!"
"And why not?"
"Because-" the mermaid sputtered. "That's not fair! We have plans!"
"You're going to spend some time with your cousin today, Emma."
Emma couldn't suppress her scowl, "Okay. Fine. I'll take Percy and Annabeth to one of the beaches today."
Emma turned on her heel quickly and had a stomp in her step as she went to the stairs. Lisa and Neil exchanged looks before they broke away, Lisa going to occupy herself and Neil following Emma.
"Emma," her father called in a low voice halfway up the staircase. Emma stopped and reluctantly met her father's softer gaze. "Please listen to your mother. She has missed her sister terribly and you know family means everything to her. You know she means well."
Emma sighed and nodded, "I understand." Neil smiled and patted Emma's arm comfortingly.
"That's my girl. Your mother and I appreciate everything you do."
When Emma rejoined her friends upstairs, they were talking with Percy and Annabeth, Charlotte the most animated of the group. The conversation halted when Emma approached, Rikki and Cleo's faces simultaneously looking relieved.
"Get your suits on. We're going to the beach, guys. Now."
Rikki and Cleo sagged their shoulders too soon and stared at the other blonde in bewilderment. Charlotte seemed unfazed and glanced at everyone else.
"Yes!" Percy whooped. Emma plastered a smile and eyed Charlotte nervously.
"Please join us, Charlotte. We'd love to have you come with," Emma added, much to Cleo and Rikki's dismay. The redhead's features lit up in delight and smiled brightly at Emma.
"I'd love to!" Charlotte chimed. "It's going to be so great, you guys!"
An hour later, the four mermaids were spreading colorful towels atop the white sand beach. Rikki was sure to keep her's the farthest from Charlotte's while Cleo and Emma tried to ignore the intense tension.
"You guys!" Charlotte came bustling across the sand to the group with the brightest grin on her lips. Rikki rolled her eyes and pretended she didn't notice the fourth mermaid. Emma frowned at the back of Rikki's head before forcing her lips to stretch into a smile. "I did it! I found my power!"
Rikki stopped pretending, "Please. You probably just imagined it."
"No, I really did it!" Charlotte protested. "C'mon! I'll show you!"
With great reluctance, the original trio followed Charlotte to a secluded part of the beach dotted with boulders and where no one wandered. Her gaze trailed the sands for any collections of water and smiled at the sight of a puddle. When Charlotte stopped in front of it, Rikki stepped over beside the puddle and peered into it with folded arms expectantly.
"Well?"
Charlotte stuck out her palm, up and open. The water in the puddle began to shake like it was experiencing its own personal earthquake. Rikki's arms fell to her sides in surprise as Cleo and Emma exchanged nervous looks of disbelief. Charlotte arched an eyebrow and smirked at their uneasy reactions. Her tongue stuck out just the slightest in concentration as Charlotte began to raise her steady hand and the water followed. Slowly, a tentacle of water raised itself from the puddle, moving just as if Cleo was using her power.
With a satisfied nod, Charlotte dropped her hand, subsequently dropping the water and dousing Rikki's head. Rikki blew out air between her lips before her features twisted into obvious irritation. Charlotte's lips pursed sheepishly but there wasn't a trace of regret on her face.
"Nice," she growled as her body transformed and fell into the sand.
"Whoops! Sorry." Rikki propped herself up on her elbow looking unconvinced at Charlotte's apology. The redhead proudly smiled over her shoulder at Emma and Cleo. "Did you guys see that? I just moved water!"
"-That's my power…" Cleo murmured disappointedly. She looked hurt more than anything. First, Charlotte had her boyfriend, now her power? What was more to take?
"I know! We can share!" Charlotte glanced at Rikki. "Besides, now you can show me how to use it properly."
"Great."
"There's one thing," Emma suddenly chimed to diffuse the growing tension. She sensed Cleo's hurt and was eager to change the subject to protect her friend. "Let's not talk about the mermaid stuff around Percy and Annabeth. They don't know and I'd like to keep it that way."
"Wait, your families don't know?" Charlotte couldn't help but raise her eyebrows.
"You didn't tell yours, did you?" Cleo questioned. Charlotte shook her head.
"No, but I thought about telling my mum since Gracie was a mermaid…"
"You can't tell her, Charlotte," Emma said firmly. "We didn't tell any of our families. It's simply too dangerous."
Charlotte sighed, disappointment etching itself into her features. There were more rules about being a mermaid than expected. Couldn't she just steer clear of water?
"Hey, you guys!" Percy's voice yelled, catching the foursome's attention. Immediately, all of their eyes went wide and glanced at Rikki, whose figure was hidden behind one of the boulders. She groaned and pulled herself closer to the rock to conceal herself better from the oblivious demigods' views. Meanwhile, Emma, Cleo, and Charlotte were quick to meet Emma's cousin halfway as Rikki dried herself. He jogged to them, dressed in a tank top and shorts with a volleyball in his hands. Annabeth followed behind him at a slower pace in a bikini covered by a wet shirt.
"What are you guys doing all the way out here? The beach is that way!" Percy teased.
"This is part of the beach too," Cleo protested. Percy shrugged.
"Hey, Percy. I thought you and Annabeth were taking a walk in the shore?" Emma quickly asked.
"We were but then we found this volleyball and net set up," Percy responded eagerly. "We can all play. Who's up for some classic beach volleyball?" Charlotte was the only one to return Percy's smile. As Percy talked, Annabeth narrowed her eyes at the landscape behind the trio of girls. Steam was curling itself over the rocks mysteriously. "Hey, wasn't Rikki with you guys?"
"What's that over there?" Annabeth pointed to the steam. Cleo and Charlotte turned to Emma for help, who masked her panic that seized her form.
"What do you mean?" Emma tried playing dumb. Annabeth looked unconvinced.
"The steam? Isn't that kind of weird?"
"That?" Charlotte added. "Oh no, not that. That's just...nature."
"Nature?"
"That's just a hot spot. Sometimes certain spots on the beaches heat up on hot days like these! Sometimes they get to be so hot that the water just evaporates and there's just steam everywhere! Weird, huh?"
"I don't think that's how beaches work," Percy pointed out.
"Well, things work differently in Australia," Emma continued. "The climate here is completely different here than anywhere else in the world. And we got the strangest things living here. I understand that you're not...used to it. But I am. It's normal. Common, even. Promise."
Suddenly, Rikki emerged behind the other mermaids in a casual stroll.
"Sorry, guys. I found a starfish," she said nonchalantly. Percy and Annabeth silently asked each other the same question but didn't have any answers. They supposed it was best to just go along with the strangeness for now, even though it was obvious Emma was hiding something.
"So, volleyball?" Percy held up the leather ball. "C'mon, Em. Please?"
"I guess one game wouldn't hurt."
"Great! I love beach volleyball!" Charlotte announced gleefully.
"Sorry, but I'm allergic to rubber," Rikki protested. Percy gave her an unconvinced look.
"And I'm allergic to oxygen," he said.
"Tragic," she returned.
"We can do teams," Annabeth chimed, joining the group a moment earlier. "There's enough of us to do three on three."
Emma suddenly got an idea. From the look on Rikki's face, she knew Rikki had the same one.
"I'll be with my cousin on a team," Emma quickly informed. Cleo's jaw dropped. "Family's got to stick together, right?"
Percy snorted. "Maybe you want to be on my team because you know I'd beat you at it."
Emma giggled, "As if, Percy."
The group walked to the beach volleyball court with Percy and Annabeth leading the way. Rikki and Cleo were grumbling to Emma the entire walk, much to the blonde's annoyance. She didn't let it get to her though-Emma knew that she had to remain levelheaded in this...time of turmoil as the threat of an outsider disturbing their balance loomed over them. Cleo was emotional as it was with Charlotte dating her ex-boyfriend and Rikki never made things easy for Emma.
Volleyball was difficult initially. Rikki and Cleo were not thrilled to be on one side of the net with Charlotte and hardly put forth effort. It seemed as whenever they tried, they were bumping into one another. Charlotte nearly knocked Rikki over and the blonde nearly bit her head off for it if Cleo didn't intervene quickly.
While the group tried to play a successful game, another group sauntered over to the court. This group consisted of five boys and one girl, all the same ages as Emma and her friends, and all wearing solid black swimsuits.
"Okay, time's up," the tallest boy at the front of the group called to the mermaids and demigods.
"Can we help you?" Annabeth asked as she caught the ball.
"Your time here is up," he replied. "It's time for the champs to use this court."
"And you can't use another one because…?"
"This is the one we use," he insisted. "Thanks for keeping it warm for us though."
"You heard the boy." Rikki turned on her heel.
"Rikki," Rikki stopped in her step and slumped her shoulders. Emma rolled her eyes before narrowing them at the haughty teenagers. "We were here first and we aren't moving."
"Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way."
"Emma," Cleo pleaded quietly. "Let's just go. It's not worth it."
"How 'bout we play you for it?" Percy chimed, stepping forward. The black-clad group said nothing. "We're all good sportsmen, aren't we? We'll play one game and if you win, you can have the court. If we win, we keep it. Deal?"
The leader scoffed at Percy while the girls sent him concerned expressions. The only one who really wanted to play volleyball was Percy and he was not going to let some Australian chump tell him, the son of Poseidon, what to do.
"Alright. Deal." Percy and the leader shook hands on it.
"Emma!" Cleo squeaked. "I don't want to do this."
"Sorry, Cleo. Just one game, alright? After all, it won't be much longer until Percy goes home to New York."
Cleo internally groaned but knew that Emma was right. Emma has done plenty of stuff to help Cleo in the past, even with her family members. Emma was her friend and she owed her this much. Rikki knew it too and that's why the mermaid of fire hasn't walked off the beach yet.
"Percy, did you have to pick a fight?" Emma asked her cousin. Percy rolled his eyes.
"C'mon, Em, where's your sense of adventure? You're not honestly going to let some assholes push you around, are you?" The blonde gave him a look. "C'mon. We can take them. You know we can."
"I've never fouled out anything in my life and I'm not about to start," Emma muttered but a smile was forming. Percy beamed and patted her shoulder encouragingly.
"That's the spirit!"
"Let's get this over with," Rikki grumbled as she pulled her curly hair into a ponytail.
A referee was pulled to overview the game. A coin was flipped and the other team won the coin toss, much to their delight.
"This game will be a walkover," the leader snickered.
"Oh real nice. There's a good sport for you!" Rikki clapped.
"Don't buy into it, Rikki. They're just trying to break your confidence."
"What confidence?" The six of them lined up in a row in front of the net and the six of the team in black lined the other side. Percy shook hands with the blond leader and the referee blew his whistle.
The single girl on the black team was the server. She threw the ball above her head and smacked it across the net. Rikki lowered her arms, preparing to hit it back, when suddenly Charlotte slammed into her from the side.
"Ow!" Charlotte cried.
"What did you do that for?" Rikki demanded, gesturing to the ball at their feet. "It was mine!"
"Well you should've called for it!"
"It was coming right for me!"
"It was not!"
"Uh, guys?" Annabeth injected, stepping between the glaring mermaids. The black team snickered at the quarrel. "It's great that you're passionate but it's just a game."
"Can we get on with it already?" One of the boys from the other side taunted. Percy tossed the volleyball to the other side. The ball was served once more, this time heading straight towards Emma. She dove after the ball and missed, the ball rolling to her side. Charlotte was at Emma's side and helped her to her feet.
"C'mon. No pain no gain, right?" Charlotte encouraged with a smile.
"'No pain no gain?' Who says that?" Rikki complained. Charlotte ignored her and patted Emma's shoulder reassuringly before returning to her spot.
When the ball was served again, this time Annabeth was able to get underneath it and send it back over. One of the boys spiked it right into Emma's stomach, nearly knocking her over.
"Hey! You didn't have to do it that hard!" Percy snapped angrily as the black team high fived each other.
"Oh, I'm sorry," the player who hit Emma said with mock-concern. "Must've been a sudden gust of wind."
Cleo's face suddenly was lit with a devious idea. She glanced at Rikki, who was thinking the same thing and returned her smirk. Cleo eyed the demigods cautiously but with their new positions on the court, she was certain she would be able to get away with her plot.
The ball was served and sent to Rikki. She was able to hit it underhand but the ball went flying out of play.
"Out!"
"Out!"
Before it could fly too far, Cleo twisted her hand, magically summoning enough wind to carry the ball back into the court, just on the edge of the other team's side.
"What?" the leader cried. "How did that happen?"
"Must've been a sudden gust of wind," Cleo retorted. He stared at where the volleyball made a u-turn in midair and ran a hand through his short locks. Percy and Annabeth exchanged puzzled expressions.
"You got lucky that time," he growled. The score was now 4-1. The mermaids and demigods were on the board.
Emma was the first one to serve the ball on their team. She threw it upwards and smacked her palm against the leather. The ball darted across the net and straight out of play behind the black team. However, as the black team snickered at the wildly served ball, Cleo flicked her wrist and a gust had the ball soaring back to the other team's court. One of the boys dove to get it, but merely knocked it foul.
Cleo and Emma exchanged a high-five. Percy and Annabeth silently asked one another what was going on while Percy hesitantly clapped with the others. A small crowd was gathering around the court, beachgoers enjoying the game as the score gap continued to close with 4-2.
Charlotte served the ball and the girl on the other side sent it upwards. Another boy came to assist and send it over, but there was another change in the wind, pushing the ball back and dropping it into the sand at the boy's feet.
"What?" One of the teammates in black cried. The score was now 4-3. "Time out, ref!" The ref blew his whistle and signaled to his right to the black team.
All the girls, save for Annabeth, were all smiles now They buried their faces with their water bottles, trying not to laugh with glee in front of the unsuspecting demigods.
"Do you guys, uh, have any idea what's going on?" Percy finally questioned. The mermaids shrugged innocently.
"Not a clue," Charlotte replied.
"Do you?" Cleo asked him. Percy shook his head. At first, Annabeth had thought Percy tried to manipulate the weather into their favor, his competitiveness getting the better of him. But he seemed genuinely just as perplexed as she was with the wind constantly changing in their favor. Was Zeus trying to signal them something?
"Guys, we could actually win this," Emma chimed, flashing a smile at her cousin.
"It doesn't feel right," Percy admitted.
"There's nothing we can do about the weather so we might as well just accept it," Charlotte added. Rikki beamed at the redhead.
"You heard the girl! Accept it!" Rikki agreed.
"It would be nice to put them in their place," Annabeth murmured, elbowing Percy. His face brightened as he glanced at everyone's happy expressions.
"We can beat them," Charlotte encouraged.
"Let's go!" Percy stuck his hand out in the middle of their circle. Emma, Annabeth, Charlotte, and Cleo quickly placed their hands atop of his. Rikki eyed Charlotte skeptically but she gave her a knowing look. With an inaudible sigh, Rikki's hand topped the pile.
"Team!"
Cleo was not liking the uncertain features on Percy and Annabeth's faces. Perhaps it would be best if she backed off from time to time so it was more believable. Of course, no one could ever notice that the brunette was wielding magic but it made it easier to lie about it.
Percy was the server this time. The ball bounced back from the black team towards Charlotte who got under it and sent it over the net, but foul. The ball rolled through the sand and into the saltwater not far from their court.
"That's out!"
"Nice one," the female from the black team teased before jogging to the shore to retrieve the ball. She tossed it to the leader, waterdrops flying in every direction as the leather gleamed in dampness. Emma visibly paled and nearly cringed.
"Don't you...want to dry that off a little first?" she called.
"You're not scared of a little water, are you?" the blond sneered. Emma looked at the obviously frightened Cleo. Before any of the mermaids could protest further, the ball was coming their way. Percy and Annabeth were on the side farthest from where the ball was going and watched it arch to Charlotte. The redhead cringed as she reluctantly raised her hands to set the ball.
"No!"
"Stop!"
"Charlotte!"
Emma dashed forward to stop her but it was too late-Charlotte pressed both palms against the drenched ball, dampening her fingertips. Rikki was at Charlotte's side in an instant, urging her to the shore.
"Get in the water! Hurry!" Rikki hissed under her breath.
"What is she doing?"
"She can't do that!"
Charlotte raced into the saltwater and dove under the surface. Percy and Annabeth stared at where Charlotte disappeared to in surprise before turning their puzzlement onto the remaining mermaids.
"Why did she do that?" Annabeth demanded. "Is there something wrong?"
The daughter of Athena stared at the girls expectantly for an answer, but Cleo merely bit her lip and Rikki and Emma looked at each other.
"Dehydrated," Rikki lied. She started nodding her head when Percy arched an eyebrow at her. "Yup. She's real...dehydrated. Just had to take a quick swim."
"When you're dehydrated, you take a drink of water. Freshwater, not saltwater. If anything, that'll kill her!" Percy pointed out.
"Since you don't have six players anymore, you guys forfeit!" The leader of the black team called. Emma rolled her eyes and stepped forward before Percy could.
"We don't forfeit!" she countered. "She'll only be a minute!"
"Em," Percy touched her arm.
"We finish what we start, Percy," Emma stated firmly. Percy shrugged.
"Percy, can I talk to you for a second?" Annabeth pulled her boyfriend several steps away from all the people.
"Well-"
"Don't even say it," Emma cut Rikki off.
"Say what? I told you so?" Rikki hissed. "You know me better than that, Emma."
"Percy," Annabeth's usual calm features began to show signs of worry. "I don't like this. There's something weird going on."
"I know, I know. You think I should go out there and see what's up?"
Annabeth shook her head. "Not now, at least. Maybe later. If you go now, it'll be too weird and it'll prompt questions-"
"Really? You think that would be too weird? Weirder than the sudden gusts of wind and Charlotte running into the ocean?" Percy demanded. Annabeth gave him a deadpanned look he was too familiar with.
"You know what I mean, Seaweed Brain," she grumbled. "I think we should confront Emma about this."
Percy pursed his lips in thought. The last thing he wanted to do was push and pry his cousin, especially when he had secrets of his own to keep. Granted, the Mist did most of the work for him. Wait. The Mist did most of the work to hide mythical stuff.
"What if Emma doesn't know about it?" Percy suggested. "What if she doesn't know what's going on because she can't see it like we can because of the Mist? Maybe she just thinks that something weird is going on too but it looks different from what we're seeing because we can see beyond the Mist. You know what I'm saying?"
"Yeah, but-" Annabeth frowned. She hated to be so involved in other people's family matters. But that was part of the job description of being a Greek demigod. "Percy, I think she's lying." Percy opened his mouth and Annabeth quickly reached his hand before he could protest. "I know you don't want to hear this. Emma is very nice and smart and knows what she is doing. I love your family and Emma but I really think that she's trying to hide something, don't you?"
The son of Poseidon said nothing to his girlfriend. He paused, mulling over Annabeth's words before nodding.
"It wouldn't hurt to ask her," Percy agreed. Annabeth's gaze softened and she squeezed his hand and he returned the squeeze.
"Thirty seconds," the referee warned Emma and her team. Cleo and Rikki were groaning as Percy and Annabeth rejoined them.
"This can't happen," Emma complained.
"Well, not everyone is reliable," Rikki said with nonchalance.
"Is she coming back?" Annabeth asked Emma. Emma opened her mouth to respond but no words came to her.
"Charlotte!" Cleo's voice snapped everyone's attention to where the brunette was looking. The missing redhead jogged onto the court with the widest grin on her features.
"Hey! We're good to go!" Percy called to the referee. Charlotte gave a reassuring wave to the ref to reinforce his statement.
"Are you okay?" Emma questioned.
"Yeah…" Charlotte breathed. She was out of breath from running but her smile never faltered. "Never been better! Play ball!"
The game resumed with a serve from Rikki. Charlotte played aggressively yet full of smiles and giggles. Her energy rejuvenated the original mermaids. As the mermaids worked together, Annabeth and Percy's mind cleared from the questions surrounding Emma's lying and they were able to play better too. Spikes became more natural. Every point scored earned high fives around the team and laughter. The taunts from the black team lessened as Emma's team took and held the lead at eighteen to sixteen.
"This is match point," the referee announced when the twentieth point was scored by Percy's spike.
Annabeth served the ball. The single girl on the other team sent it back over to be received by Rikki. Rikki set it skyward and Percy boosted it to Emma, where she spiked it into the team leader's abdomen.
"Woo!" Cleo cried out and jumped in joy. The team cheered and laughed together, enjoying their victory over the haughty team clad in black. Percy pulled Emma and Annabeth to him with each arm. Charlotte and Cleo joined the group hug with Rikki standing hesitantly at the edge.
"C'mon, Rikki! Get in here," Emma beckoned. Rikki rolled her eyes but her smile betrayed her as she stepped into the large group hug.
The moment diffused itself and the group hug was broken. The victorious team approached the disappointed losers who remained silent.
"Good game." Percy extended his hand to the leader. The leader was hesitant but eventually gasped the demigod's palm and shook it once. "Court's all yours, by the way."
"But you won," he protested.
"Yeah. We only just wanted to play one game." Percy smiled and looked over his shoulder at Emma, who snorted. The ball was tossed over to the team in black as the others walked back to where the towels and cooler laid.
Drinks were fished from the cooler and they all held them up against each other in a toast.
"To victory!" Everyone smiled and took a sip. Percy looked at everyone's faces-what a breath of fresh air it was to be surrounded by good human beings. This was a peaceful moment. Sure, evil metal birds attacked the other day, but for the most part, this was the best vacation Percy's ever had-also the most needed vacation. He was so content to be getting along with his cousin and to be at Annabeth's side outside of battle. It was like lying in a big, plush bed after a long day of work.
Percy noticed Rikki's expression falter behind her cup of juice.
"You okay, Rikki?" Percy asked the blonde. She was surprised to have been caught by Emma's cousin, but plastered a smile on her face.
"Yeah, fine. You know-my allergies to rubber are acting up," Rikki reassured with a forced chuckle. Percy glanced at Annabeth, wondering if now was the time to confront Emma. Annabeth's expression suggested otherwise, insinuating to save it for later.
"We're going to go check and see if we can go parasailing," Percy announced, draping his arm over Annabeth's shoulders.
"Parasailing?" Annabeth repeated.
"Yeah! I've always wanted to go!" he said playfully. Annabeth giggled and rolled her eyes.
"We'll be lying here for a while still if you need me," Emma informed.
"Bor-ing." Percy and Annabeth turned on their heels and strolled away from the group. Rikki's fake smile had dropped once again.
"There's one thing I can't figure out," Rikki chimed. She sat on her beach towel and placed her cup upright beside her in the sand. Her aquamarine hues narrowed at Charlotte. "How did you dry off so quickly?"
"Oh, that…" Charlotte chuckled sheepishly, but her expression quickly turned smug with a smirk on the edges of her mouth. "It was easy."
Her chocolate gaze lowered to the cup at Rikki's side and she reached her hand out with the palm up. Instantly, Rikki's juice heated up and steam rolled around it. The blonde immediately looked around and placed her hands in front of the cup, in case there were any beachgoers passing by. Emma and Cleo's jaws dropped open at the sight of the evaporating juice.
"Wait," Cleo sputtered. "I thought you already had my power."
"Yeah. I guess I got Rikki's too." Rikki's expression flipped from disbelief to fury at the fourth mermaid. The heating ceased and Rikki folded her arms across her chest without daring to remove her glare from Charlotte.
"Oh, and one more thing," Charlotte added with an innocent bat of her eyelashes. She stuck her palm out once again and this time, the juice in Rikki's cup instantly turned to ice-so much so that ice chunks littered the sand surrounding it. "I also got Emma's!"
Charlotte stared at the wild disbelief of the three mermaids with a satisfied smile and giggle, "Isn't this great? I must be some sort of...super-mermaid."
Just then, Percy and Annabeth were approaching the group. This wasn't noticed until the last second and being the last second, Cleo merely tossed a towel over the iced cup and ice chunks. Rikki jumped to her feet.
"Good news! Parasailing is open and discounted today!" Percy announced boisterously to the girls. Rikki ignored him, stormed past Charlotte and shot her a threatening look before storming past the two demigods without a second glance. Percy frowned at her rude behavior and looked at Emma, whose expression had changed dramatically from just a few minutes ago.
"What's wrong?" Annabeth asked.
"Nothing," Emma hissed. "Rikki's just going to take a walk."
"I'm going to call Lewis!" Charlotte said, grabbing her phone and strolling with a skip in her step away opposite from Rikki. Percy frowned at the girls. Cleo looked absolutely horrified and looked to Emma for answers.
"Em, is everything okay?" Percy touched his cousin's arm and she flinched. Percy was startled by her reaction. Emma took a subtle deep breath and tried to recompose herself. She glanced at Cleo, signaling to her that everything will be okay, before forcing the corners of her mouth to turn upwards at Percy.
"Yeah, everything's fine," Emma answered softly.
"You sure? What happened?"
"Nothing happened. Just a small misunderstanding between Rikki and Charlotte but nothing to worry about. In fact, we can just forget all about it!"
Percy and Annabeth exchanged looks. There it was again. Her expression was perfectly composed but distraught was swimming in her cerulean eyes. Emma was lying to them again.
I have a confession to make. I've been working on new H2O fanfiction.
I had this really intricate idea where every mermaid gets their own crossover fanfiction. See, this one ended up to be very Emma-centric. And I run a Rikki roleplay blog on Tumblr and I've developed a plethora of crossovers there.
But the obvious problem is, if it takes me so long to get through one fanfic, how am I supposed to get through the rest? Besides, if you think this crossover is farfetched, the others are way more out there.
Anyway, there's a good possibility I will just write another H2O fanfic after this one and it will serve as a sequel to the general series. Stay tuned.
ANYWHO YOU KNOW THE DRILL PLEASE REVIEW I GREATLY APPRECIATE ALL THE SUPPORT
-Spiz