Chapter 12

May awoke to the sound of fins slapping the outer shell of her shellbed. She groaned and tried to go back to sleep, but the slapping didn't stop. She sighed and pushed the top of her bed open and found Popplio floating there, looking somewhat impatient.

"I overslept again, didn't I?" May asked tiredly. Popplio nodded and swam over to her contraption. May sighed and slowly swam over to it, pulling the lever and getting Popplio her daily ration of food. As Popplio ate, the dejected mermaid princess swam over to her window and sat down beside it, staring out at the open ocean.

"This is the third night in a row that I've overslept," she mumbled to herself. "Three nights without my sisters, three nights sleeping in." She sighed again as she rested her head in her hand.

"May?"

She turned and saw her mother floating in the doorway before sighing and turning back to her window. "Evening, Mother," she mumbled.

"Evening," Cynthia said, swimming into her room. "Did you sleep in again?"

"Yeah," May sighed.

Cynthia also sighed as she stroked Popplio, who was still eating. "Did you give Popplio her medicine yet?"

"No," May groaned, facepalming. "I keep forgetting!"

"That's what I thought," Cynthia smirked slightly as she pulled out a tiny vial containing a green liquid. She took Popplio in her arms and gave her the liquid to drink. Based on the poor Pokemon's reaction, it tasted awful. Once that was done, Cynthia swam over to her daughter, putting her arm around her. "You miss your sisters, don't you?"

"Yeah," May sighed, looking up at her. "They could be annoying at times, and they never did understand me, but they were still my family." She leaned forward and hugged her mother, resting her head on her chest. "It's just not the same without them."

"I know," Cynthia nodded, hugging her back. "But I don't think they would want you to spend the rest of your life sulking beside your window."

"No," May mumbled bitterly. "They would want me to spend the rest of my life sulking in the human world."

"Now May," Cynthia said, pulling back slightly to look her daughter in the eye. "Just because they didn't understand you, it doesn't mean they don't love you. After all, Dawn came back to make things right before she drank the potion didn't she?"

"Yeah," May sighed. "It's better than nothing, and I'd give anything to find a way to see her again without suffocating." She looked down and shook her head. "But that's never gonna happen."

Cynthia sighed sadly as she pulled her daughter back into her warm, motherly embrace. For a moment, they just floated there, holding each other tight. Cynthia leaned down and gently kissed the top of May's head, prompting her daughter to smile softly as they pulled apart.

"Thanks," she said quietly.

"Of course," the Mertriarch smiled. "What are mothers for?" May returned the smile and turned to gaze out the window, only for her mother to speak up again. "May, I need your help with something."

"Oh?" May blinked, turning to face her.

"I met with the Mertriarchs of the ocean," her mother explained, "and we came to a decision regarding the merpeople of Alola. We each agreed to take some of them and give them shelter in our respective kingdoms."

"Really?" May said, her smile growing. "Mother, that's wonderful! I'm so glad they'll have a place to go after losing their home."

"That's where I need your help," Cynthia said. "The refugees are coming tonight, and we need to sort them into their proper homes. All the royal staff are helping as well."

"Oh?" May said, looking uncertain. "I don't know, I –"

"May, come on now," Cynthia said. "You haven't left the palace in three nights, and we rarely see you anymore. This will be good for you."

May sighed. She didn't want to admit it, but her mother was right. She'd been in a depression ever since her sisters left three nights ago: barely eating and never smiling.

"All right," she said. "I'll come help."

"That's my girl," Cynthia smiled, swimming to her and kissing her head again. Then she swam away out of the room. "Meet me in the royal hall when the moon is at its apex," she called back as she swam out.

"Got it," May called back. She turned to Popplio. "Be sure you behave yourself while I'm gone, all right?" Popplio nodded, and May set about grabbing her sacks which she usually brought for scouting; she had a hunch she would need them. Then, after checking her reflection to make sure she looked presentable, she swam out of her room. As she swam through the halls of the palace, she felt her lips curve into a smile as she felt the water rushing over her once again.

I'd almost forgotten how it feels she thought with a smile. Once again getting lost in the moment, she did a twirl before doing a flip as she continued to swim through the hall.

She hadn't forgotten her pain, but at least it was a start.

It turned out that the royal court had more help than they anticipated. When May, her mother, and the royal cohort swam out to welcome the Alolan refugees, many other merpeople from the village came as well, having heard about the disaster. It wasn't long before the refugees arrived, although May was surprised to find that the group was smaller than she expected. Nevertheless, she and the other merpeople set about building new homes for the merfolk, assembling dead coral and large stones. Although the homes were primitive in nature, the refugees were grateful nonetheless.

"Say dear, would you bring me some of that seaweed paste?" an older mermaid asked May as they pushed two stones together for one of the homes. May nodded and swam over to grab what she asked for and brought it back to her. "Thank you, dear," she said. "It was quite kind of you to stay here just a little longer to help these poor merfolk."

May blinked, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, didn't you hear? These poor merpeople lost their homes to a –"

"Yeah yeah, I know that," May said. "What do you mean that it was kind of me to stay 'just a little longer?'"

"Hm?" the older mermaid blinked. "Well, I heard that your sisters went up to live as humans at the surface, and I thought you would have gone with them. After all, you all wanted to be human, did you not?" May tensed up slightly at this. "But I supposed it couldn't kill you to wait a little longer so you can help these poor refugees."

"No," May muttered bitterly. "No, I guess it couldn't." Not long after this conversation, she made a hasty excuse to go help elsewhere and swam off, joining up with a merman and his two children. The children were immediately excited at the prospect of getting to meet one of the mermaid princesses, although their father made sure they behaved themselves. They spent the next several minutes working on a home, connecting the stones using the seaweed paste they had sitting to the side. There wasn't much paste to go around, so everyone used it sparingly.

"So where are the other princesses?" the merman's son asked.

"Hm?" May blinked, looking down at him.

"The other princesses," the merboy asked, flicking his stubby fin until he was face to face with her. "Where are they? Will we get to meet them, too?"

At this, May sighed and gave him a sad smile. "I'm afraid not," she said.

"Why not?" his sister asked, swimming up to her. "You're all so pretty; I wish I could be as pretty as you are."

"Aw," May giggled, blushing slightly. "That's really sweet. But my sisters actually don't live down here anymore."

"What?" the two children gasped.

"They swam up to the surface and decided to become human," May explained, trying to keep her voice steady.

"They did?" the merboy said.

"But they were so beautiful!" the mergirl cried. "Why would they want to be human?"

May couldn't help but giggle at the mergirl's logic. "Well," she said, about to explain, but for a moment she couldn't find the words to say. Eventually, she just shrugged. "You know, I'm just as puzzled about it as you are."

"Are you gonna be human?" the merboy asked.

"Me?" she said, smiling softly as she thought about how to answer his question. "I don't know."

"I hope you don't," the mergirl said. "You're a really pretty mermaid."

"Kids," their father said, swimming over to them, "are you bothering the princess?"

"No!" the kids said quickly, acting innocent. May just chuckled at this.

"It's all right," she said to the merman. "They're really no trouble at all."

"I'm glad to hear it," he nodded before turning to the kids. "All right you two, go find Mama and lend her a hand."

"Yes sir!" the kids grinned, and they swam off. May giggled as she watched them go.

"You didn't have to send them away," May said to him. "They really weren't a problem."

"I know," he nodded. "Their mother just needs a little help right now." May nodded, and they continued to work on the home they were building. "So," the merman said, "your sisters became human?"

"Yeah," May mumbled, wanting to change the subject.

"Good for them," he smiled. "It can sure be stifling living in the ocean, can't it?"

"Yeh," she mumbled again. She didn't agree, but she didn't say anything to avoid making a scene.

"You should go up there with them," he suggested. "You'd love it up there."

At this, May frowned bitterly. Shows how much he knows she thought, though all she said in response was, "I guess I would."

"The kids don't know what they're missing out on yet," he said with an innocently sincere smile. "Don't worry. We'll make sure they know when they're older." He started to ramble about telling his kids what made the human world so great. Up until now, May had been patient with this merman. As sincere as he seemed, the way he so casually spoke about the human world pushed her past her limit.

"Excuse me," she said, abruptly cutting him off mid-sentence as she flicked her fins in his face and swam off, leaving him floating there, confused.

"Was it something I said?"

May continued to swim about, lending help to the other merpeople wherever it was needed. Unfortunately, all of them made similar comments to the older mermaid and merman. Eventually, she got fed up with the comments and swam a short distance away, sitting on a rock and hugging her tail while staring at the open ocean with a frown.

"I just don't get it," she moaned, resting her chin on her tail. "Why would anyone think that I would just stay down here for the heck of it if I wanted to go up to the surface with my sisters?" She took a deep breath, breathing in the water all around her, before exhaling a deep sigh. "There's nothing stifling about water," she muttered, annoyed. "At least not for mermaids. If we weren't supposed to live underwater, then why would our bodies be built for just that?" She shook her head as she thought this. "We are such a strange species: living in one world, but acting like we belong in another." She looked up at the surface and sighed again. "Maybe some of us do belong up there...but not all of us!"

She turned and looked back at the other merfolk swimming about their business, building new homes for the refugees. Working together, they'd managed to build quite a few, almost more than was necessary. Sure, these homes would be bare-bones compared to the homes that were already built, but that was to be expected. The important thing was to get these merpeople places to sleep so they wouldn't be adrift in the ocean, easy prey for Sharpedo.

As May watched them swim about, she noticed one home that was barely half-finished. A young mermaid was there, carrying a stone and pushing it onto its place. The way she grunted and struggled with the stone made it clear that she was having a difficult time. Seeing this, May floated up from her spot and swam over to her with a warm smile.

"Need some help?" she asked.

The mermaid gasped and turned to her in surprise; she hadn't seen her swim up. "Oh!" she exclaimed, her long blonde hair whipping around with her and flying right into her face...and getting in May's face in the process. May brushed the hair out with a small chuckle while her companion frantically pushed her hair out of her way. "A-Ah, sorry!" she exclaimed, slightly panicked. "I-I didn't see you –"

"It's all right," May chuckled. "It's not the first time that's happened."

"Oh," the mermaid said, "it isn't?"

"Of course not," May replied. "I grew up with three sisters who all had long hair, so I'm used to it getting in my face sometimes."

"Oh," she said. "Sorry."

"It's fine," May chuckled again, extending her hand to her. "I'm May, by the way."

The girl's bright green eyes widened. "M-May?!" she gasped. "As in...the princess?!" She quickly bowed to her in reverence, prompting May to chuckle once again. "Milady! I was not aware that you were -"

"Oh, no need to worry!" May laughed, pulling the girl upright. "Yes, I am the princess, but you don't have to be so formal around me. I'm just here to help you out."

"Oh," the girl said again. "S-Sorry."

"It's fine, really," May said again. "So, what's your name?"

"Me?" the girl said. "Oh...I'm Lillie. It's...very nice to meet you, Princess May."

"You can just call me May," May replied, chuckling again. "Nice to meet you too, Lillie!"

Lillie smiled shyly in response, and they started working together on the home she was building. As they swam about, May got a better look at her companion. She was very surprised at how different Lillie looked from other merfolk. Her hair was a bright blonde, even brighter than Serena's, and her eyes were a bright green, reminding May of seaweed. What struck her the most about her, however, was her tail. It was, along with the shells she wore on her chest, pure white: no other color whatsoever. May had never seen a tail like it before. Eventually, she found herself unable to stop staring at it.

"Ah...May?"

"Hm?" May blinked, snapping out of her trance. "What is it?"

"Could you...pass me the seaweed paste?"

"Oh, sure!" May grinned, swimming over and grabbing what she asked for.

"Thank you," Lillie smiled as she took the paste and applied a layer to the stones. As she did so, she noticed May staring at her tail. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"Hm?" May blinked. "Oh, no, I'm sorry. It's just...I've never seen a tail like yours before. It's...really something else."

"What do you mean?" Lillie asked.

"Well, most mermaids I've met, including my sisters, have colored tails: blue, green, pink...all sorts of colors, some rarer than others. My tail's actually one of the rarer varieties." She flicked her bright red tail up to emphasize her point. "I've seen all different kinds of tail colors before, but I've never seen one that's so pure and white as yours. It's...really beautiful."

"Oh!" Lillie blinked, blushing slightly at what she heard. "Th-Thank you! I wasn't aware tail colors meant anything. Merpeople always commented on my hair or face, but never my tail."

"Yeah," May agreed. "Unfortunately, that's normal. Mermaids care more about those things than they do about their tails." She smiled as she watched Lillie's tail move in the water. "I think we should care just as much about our tails. It's part of who we are, isn't it?"

"I guess so," Lillie shrugged. They worked in silence for a few minutes before she turned to May. "Say, did you mention your sisters earlier?"

"Yeah," May sighed.

"Are they helping out here as well? Will I be able to meet them?"

"No," May shook her head. "They actually went to the surface a few days ago and became human."

"Oh," Lillie said. She noticed May's saddened face. "Did you want to go with them?"

"No," May replied, tensing up nervously. Here we go again.

"You didn't?"

"No, I didn't," May repeated, a bit more firmly this time.

"Oh," Lillie said again. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean to pry. I just thought that...well, with you being a mermaid princess and all…"

"You thought that I would want to be human, just like any other mermaid princess," May finished for her.

Lillie blinked in surprise. "How did you know?"

"Because that's what everyone thinks," May sighed as she laid another stone on the structure. "They think that just because I'm a mermaid princess that I'm obsessed with the human world and should trade my fins for legs." She groaned and shook her head. "It's really frustrating."

"Oh," Lillie said quietly, turning away slightly. "I'm sorry. I didn't know." She looked over at May and glanced at her tail. "But I'm glad you like your tail. It's really beautiful."

Hearing this, May's expression softened as she gave Lillie a soft smile. "Well, you're the first mermaid to say that tonight," she said, "but thank you."

"You're welcome," Lillie replied, returning the soft smile.

The two of them spent the rest of the night working on the unfinished home while talking about other things. By the time the sun was about to rise, they'd gotten to know each other quite well in the few hours they worked together. Eventually, they parted ways, but May assured her new friend that she would love to meet up with her again soon.

As May swam into her room that morning, she couldn't help but smile for the first time since her sisters left.

This'll probably be the last update for a while; I've got other things I need to focus on right now. The story's far from over, though.