Chapter 7

May sat outside the palace, hugging her tail to her chest. Her eyes were glued to the usually calm open ocean beyond the villages. She shivered as she heard another rumbling sound.

"What a show, huh?"

She turned and saw Dawn floating beside her. "Yeah," she agreed as her sister floated down next to her. "It's awful. I hope all the fish out there are okay." She turned towards the palace briefly. "I hope Popplio isn't scared." She turned back towards the ocean and watched the turbulent storm of currents writhe in the deep.

"Fish are small creatures," Dawn said in an attempt to reassure her. "I'd be more worried if a mermaid got caught out there."

"No kidding," May agreed. "Still, fish can get hurt in a storm like this."

"Yeah," Dawn nodded. They sat there a moment more before Misty and Serena swam out, floating beside them.

"You going to the surface again?" May asked.

"Of course," Misty nodded, smiling. "We should be safe from the storm up there. You're welcome to join us if you want." Hearing this, May sighed. Her sisters had said the same thing for a week straight now, trying hard to persuade her to come with them.

Not that she needed to be persuaded.

"Don't bother," Serena muttered, folding her arms and frowning. "May's too much of a chicken to go to the surface."

May glared at Serena and floated up to face her. "Okay, first of all, what the heck is a chicken? And secondly, I'm not that scared of the surface!"

"You've been hiding in the ocean all week when you could be enjoying the wonders of the human world!" Serena snapped at her. "You're completely scared!"

"Girls, come on now," Misty said, floating between them. "There's enough storm in the sea as it is without your bickering. Let's just go to the surface."

"Let's," Serena agreed. Dawn floated up next to them, and they got ready to swim up.

"Wait," May suddenly said, grabbing Dawn's wrist.

"What?" Dawn blinked, confused.

"May, what are you –?" Serena started to ask.

"I'm coming with you."

Her sisters blinked in surprise. "You...what?" Dawn said.

"I'm coming with you," May said. "I thought about what you said, Dawn, and you're right. I should give the surface another chance. Maybe this time I won't feel like I'm suffocating on air."

Her sisters stared at her a moment, then Serena smiled and turned to Misty. "There, you see?" she said. "I told you she could be convinced!"

"I'm glad you finally decided to join us, May," Misty smiled, putting her hand on her shoulder.

"Not so fast," May said quickly, putting her hand up. "I'm coming with you, but if I come up and find that I still have trouble breathing up there, then I'm coming right back down here, and you're not gonna bother me about visiting the surface again. Got it?" Her sisters looked at each other uneasily when she said this. "Got it?" May repeated.

"Yeah, got it," Misty said hastily. "Now come on! The night's not gonna last forever!" With that, the four of them flicked their tails and started swimming up.

May felt her heart start to pound faster as they drew nearer to the surface. After years of staying away, believing that the air could suffocate her, coming back obviously terrified her. Soon, she was so scared that she almost decided to turn tail and swim back down. Her sisters wouldn't let her live it down, of course, but at least she would be safe.

No she thought, steeling herself as she swam beside her sisters. I can do this. I won't suffocate up there. If I can't breathe, then I'll swim back down. But I have to at least try.

"Here we are!" Dawn said, turning to her. They floated side by side, gazing at the surface, which was now only inches away. The rippling water gleamed silver under the waning moon. Watching it move made May feel slightly nauseous.

"Here we are," she repeated, her nerves reaching a fever pitch.

"You ready?" Dawn asked.

May took a deep breath and exhaled. "Yeah," she said.

"Don't hold your breath now," Dawn winked, and floated up, poking her head out of the water. May wasn't actually ready, but in a situation like this, she couldn't wait to be ready. It's now or never. She flicked her fins, swam the last few inches, and broke the surface.

As she raised her head above the waves, she immediately felt her ears pound with sounds from above. Her eyes adjusted quickly to seeing through air, surprising her slightly. The water slowly flowed off her head and shoulders, leaving nothing but droplets as she emerged into dry air; she was surprised at how quickly it flowed off. Her hair uncomfortably clung to her head as her skin slowly dried up. The water beneath her neck continued to ripple, but she tried not to focus on that; it would only make her sick. She looked around and noticed her sisters floating next to her, discussing where to swim to tonight. She could barely make out what they were saying, as she was distracted by how different it sounded from how she heard them underwater. She exhaled slowly, then started to inhale.

Almost immediately, she felt a sharp pain in her chest. She clutched her abdomen, gasping as though she couldn't breathe. She tried to inhale, desperately trying to breathe, but she couldn't. Her sisters turned to her, concerned.

"May?" Dawn said. "May, what's wrong?! MAY!"

May came to her senses and immediately dove back down underwater. Immediately, her hair floated off her head and flowed about her like usual, and her dried skin gratefully absorbed the water surrounding her. Dawn dove after her and found her floating beneath the surface, bent over and breathing heavily. As she breathed in the water, she breathed out large bubbles of air. Dawn floated over beside her and put a hand on her shoulder, while Misty and Serena floated down to meet them.

"What happened?!" Misty asked, eyes wide with horror. Despite her state of shock, May could hear her clearly now as her voice travelled through the water.

"I can't," she gasped, still trying to catch her breath as she continued to exhale air bubbles. They were getting smaller now. "I can't go up there again."

"Why?" Dawn asked.

"I couldn't breathe," May said, her breathing starting to steady as tiny bubbles floated out of her mouth. "I can't...I…"

"May," Misty said compassionately, putting a hand on her shoulder.

May shook her head and looked at her sisters sadly. "I'm sorry," she whispered. Then, without another word, she turned and swam back down for home.

"So that's what happened to her," Misty whispered.

"She really wasn't exaggerating, was she?" Dawn agreed sadly. They floated back up to the surface while Serena looked down, sighing in disappointment before floating after them.

May sat outside the palace once again, staring at the storm out in the ocean. She sighed as she leaned her head on her tail, closing her eyes sadly. Why did I ever think that was a good idea? she wondered. I should've known that the minute I tried to breathe up there, I would start suffocating! She buried her face in her tail and curled up tighter, trembling.

"May?"

She looked up and saw a familiar face floating in front of her. "Ash?"

"Hey," he said, swimming over and sitting next to her. "What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing," she said, curling up again, although not as tightly as before so she could talk to him. "I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine," Ash said. "You look...scared." He looked out at the storm of currents in the ocean. "You're not scared of the storm, are you?"

"No," May said, looking at him.

"I didn't think so," he nodded. "You're the last mermaid I'd expect to be scared of that." She sighed and looked away, slightly ashamed. Seeing this, he sighed and started to float up. "Well, if you don't wanna talk about it, that's fine. See ya 'round." He started to swim away, only to feel something grasp his wrist.

"Ash, wait," May said, pulling him back so they were face to face.

"What is it?"

"I...I guess I should tell you what happened," she said quietly.

"Okay," he nodded. She flicked her fins in front of her, pushing herself back before sitting back down. Ash floated over with her and sat next to her.

"I went up to the surface with my sisters."

Ash's eyes widened. "You did?"

"Yes," May nodded sadly. Seeing her sadness, it didn't take long for Ash to figure out what happened.

"It didn't go well, did it?" he asked.

"No. It was just as bad as it was when I went up there the first time." She looked down and sighed sadly. "I can't breathe the air up there. I don't know why; I just...can't." She looked back at him. "I'm sorry."

He blinked, confused. "Sorry?" he repeated. "What for?" May opened her mouth to respond, but then she started to think about what he was asking. "May, it's not your fault that you can't breathe up there. You did nothing wrong. I don't know what it's like; I've honestly never heard of a mermaid who can't breathe air. But don't blame yourself. It's not like you have any control over it."

"I know," May nodded. "It's just...my sisters love the surface, and...they want me to love it too. But instead of being able to enjoy it like they can, I have to be the one who's worried that I'll suffocate going up there." She sighed again. "Serena was right. I really am a chicken."

Hearing this, Ash pushed himself up off his seat and floated in front of her so that they were looking into each other's eyes. "May," he said softly, "you're not a chicken: not at all. I mean, I don't know what a chicken is, but I know you're not one. You did the right thing going up to the surface tonight, and you're better for it."

"Better?" she blinked, confused. "How am I better for it?! I went up there and nearly suffocated, and now I'm sitting here at the bottom of the ocean feeling like pollution because of it. This was a terrible idea; I don't know why I ever thought otherwise!"

"No, May," Ash said, unwavering. "It was a good idea. Yes, you had trouble breathing up there, and I'm sorry I didn't realize how much breathing air hurt you. But the fact that you decided to go up there despite being afraid of what would happen says a lot. And now you know that what happened the first time you went up there wasn't just an overreaction. Whatever it is that makes it hard for you to breathe up there, it's not your fault, May."

May listened to Ash's words, awed at how well he was able to turn a horrible experience into something good. She felt her lips slowly curve into a smile as her eyes glimmered in the moonlight.

"When did you get so smart?" she asked, her voice squeaking slightly.

"What do you mean?" he smirked, winking at her. "I was born smart."

"You wish," she smirked back, uncurling herself and playfully shoving him. The two of them chuckled for a moment. Then she floated forward and pulled him into a hug. "Thanks, Ash," she said quietly.

"Of course, May," he replied, hugging her back. After a moment, they separated. "Anyway, I should go. I told Mom I'd get her some coral fruit from the palace and be back right away. She's probably worried about me now."

"Well, we don't wanna keep her waiting now, do we?" May giggled.

"No, we don't," Ash agreed, chuckling with her. "See ya around, May."

"Later!" she said as he swam off to get what he needed. She smiled as she gazed up at the surface again, thinking over what Ash said. "I don't know how he does it," she said to herself. "He's always had a way with words. He might be a knucklehead most of the time, but when it comes to being a good friend, he's second to none." She turned her gaze out to the ocean, where the currents continued to rage. Thankfully, they weren't coming any closer.

"Studying the storm?"

May looked up and saw her mother floating over her, a gentle smile on her face. "No," she said. "I was just talking with a friend. He just swam off a few seconds ago."

"I see," Cynthia nodded, floating down and sitting next to her daughter. "I suppose you must feel bored otherwise, not having much to do."

"I mean, I did go to the surface with my sisters," May said.

"You did?"

"Yeah," May sighed. "It didn't go so well, but at least now I know that what happened years ago wasn't just an overreaction."

"Indeed, not," Cynthia nodded sympathetically, putting her hand on her daughter's back as she gazed out at the turbulent ocean. "So, what are you gonna do now?"

"Probably just spend the rest of the night with Popplio," May shrugged. "My sisters won't be coming back down anytime soon, so she's the only other company I got."

"Yes," Cynthia said quietly. She sighed and looked at May with a serious gaze. "You know, one of these nights, your sisters are gonna go to the surface...and they're not gonna come back."

"I know," May nodded. "But Misty said that they weren't gonna leave until we were all old enough to get the forbidden potion, so we still have time together."

"Time flows quickly as you get older, May," Cynthia said. "If you wait too long, you'll lose so much more than you would otherwise."

"I know," May said, tensing up slightly. Her mother saw this and smiled gently, turning her gaze out to the ocean.

"If you don't mind," Cynthia said, "I'd like to share something with you: something my own mother once taught me." She looked at May, who had a curious look in her deep blue eyes. Seeing this, Cynthia went on:

"Life is like a network of currents. Whenever you find yourself caught in one, you have three choices: go with the flow, go against the flow, or find another flow. If it's the current you were made to swim in, then you'll have no problem flowing with it. If it isn't, then you need to find another one to flow with." She sighed as she looked up at the surface. "But if you try to swim against the current, you'll accomplish nothing: you'll just move nowhere and exhaust all your strength." She turned back to her daughter with a serious gaze in her eyes. "You may think you still have a lot of time left with your sisters down here, but one night you're gonna wake up and realize that the night they've waited their whole lives for has finally arrived. What will you do then?"

"I don't know," May said, her voice trembling, "but that's not gonna happen anytime soon. I have time to figure it out." With that, she floated up and swam away into the palace. Her mother watched her, concern evident in her silver eyes.

"You can't wait forever," she said to herself, looking back out at the ocean. "It can feel like you're caught in a storm of currents when others try to make you something you're not. But in truth, it's a far, far worse storm than that." She sighed somberly. "Yes...so much worse than that." After another moment of reflection, she floated up and swam back into the palace after her daughter.