Chapter 20

May spent the next night in the palace, bustling about as she prepared to make a journey she'd wanted to make for months. Knowing she would be away from home for a few nights, she made sure to pack plenty of food. When anyone asked her why she was taking so much food for herself, she simply said she was hungrier than usual. As the fourth watch of the night approached, May settled herself in her shellbed to go to sleep early, as she knew she would need her rest for the next night. It wasn't long before she fell asleep; the sun hadn't even risen yet.

Early in the evening, before the nearly-new moon had risen, May awoke. She peeked out of her shell to make sure there was still some faint sunlight coming in. Once she confirmed this, she pushed the top of her shellbed open and swam over to Popplio. She gently shook her awake and began gathering what she needed for the journey. Finally, with her sacks slung over her shoulder and back, she and Popplio quietly snuck through the network of corridors in the palace. They quickly arrived at the front gate. May squinted in the fading sunlight and swam away out the gate.

The journey had begun.

As they swam over the village, still sleeping under the light of the sun, May was somewhat surprised at how quiet it was. Sure, everyone was asleep, and they wouldn't be awake for a few more hours, but the silence was still jarring for her. Having swum over the village many times, she was used to the sounds of merpeople swimming about their business while their children played. Now, however, it was completely silent; the only sound to be heard was her flipping her fins as she swam off for unknown waters.

"So strange," she whispered to herself.

It wasn't long before they were past the village and out in the open ocean. As she swam out into the open, she felt a rush of excitement come over her and turned to Popplio. "Why don't I hold you for a while?" she suggested. "There's no use in wearing yourself out, you know." Popplio, whose fins were much smaller than May's, agreed. May scooped her into her arms and held her to her chest. "All right," she grinned. "Hold on tight!" With that, she started flipping her fins faster, propelling herself out into the ocean. Before she knew it, she was swimming almost as fast as a Sharpedo. As she swam, she could feel the water rush over her: roaring past her ears, flowing over her skin, and invigorating her tail. May quickly got lost in the euphoric feeling, closing her eyes and savoring every moment the water flowed over her. She started twirling around as she swam, spinning like a typhoon, and eventually got so lost in it all that she started doing somersaults and backflips.

Eventually, she had to catch her breath and paused beside a large rock structure, breathing heavily. She placed a shaking hand over her rapidly-beating heart, laughing through her heavy breathing. Popplio wriggled out of her arms a moment and floated around dizzily, prompting another chuckle from May.

"Sorry about that," she said, still breathing heavily. "I really got carried away this time, didn't I?" Popplio just smiled and did another flip, cheering as it did so, which prompted another giggle from May. "Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it, too." As her breathing started to steady, she looked up and saw that the moon had risen. Its light was faint, as the new moon was coming soon. "Let's keep swimming," she said, pulling Popplio back in. "The new moon is almost here." With that, they set off again, with May managing her pace so she wouldn't run out of breath so quickly.

Despite this, she couldn't forget how amazing it felt to swim through the water at such a blinding speed. She wasn't even sure she knew she could swim that fast before. Now that she knew, of course, she wanted to swim like that as much as she possibly could. At first, she thought it was amazing, but then she decided that she needed a different word to express what she felt. Awesome? No, too easy, she thought. Extraordinary? Maybe, but that didn't quite capture it. Incredible? No, still too simple. As she swam towards her destination, she continued to pore through the words in her head, trying as hard as she could to find the right word to describe what she felt when she swam like that. Hours passed; she and Popplio stopped for a quick meal before continuing. and she still couldn't figure out the right word to describe what she felt. Eventually, the night began to wane, and she decided to find shelter for the day. It wasn't long before she came across a small cave. After checking to make sure no predators were inside, she and Popplio settled in as the faint moonlight gave way to the sun.

May stretched her exhausted fins in front of her and flicked them to loosen them up before stretching her arms and letting out a long, tired yawn. Popplio curled up beside her, snuggling close to her tail, while May curled up to go to sleep, gently stroking Popplio's head.

"What a night, huh?" she smiled softly. "I may be spent, but at least we had a fun night." She closed her eyes softly as her head rested on a smooth stone. "I wonder if this is what Mother means when she talks about what it feels like to be alive."

It was then that she finally found the word she spent the whole night looking for.

The next night, May and Popplio woke up early to get a head start on the night. After a quick evening meal, they swam out and set off for their destination. May glanced up at the surface as the dim moonlight shone down. The moon was probably only a sliver by this point, which meant the new moon would likely arrive within the next two nights.

"We need to swim fast," she muttered to herself, maintaining her pace. As she did so, she sighed to herself, suddenly forlorn as she gazed at the ocean around her. She caught herself feeling this and blinked in confusion. "What was that about?" she wondered. "Since when did the open ocean make me feel sad?" She thought it over a moment, then shook her head. "Lillie once said that staring at the open ocean made her feel alone and insignificant. Is this what she meant? But why would I feel this way, and why now? It's not like I'm all alone, am I?"

But as she mulled over this question, she began to feel as if the massive volumes of water above her would crush her as easily as they would a human. Her sisters left the sea to become human, Lillie had joined them, she had no idea where Ash was, and her mother was still back home, likely worried sick that her last daughter still in the sea left without even saying goodbye. Popplio was her only company out here.

And she wasn't coming back with May.

"No," May whispered, her voice shaking. "It's fine. We'll have to say goodbye soon, but it's not like I'll be alone. I'll swim back home, and Mother will be waiting for me. I'm not alone, and I never have been." She felt a lump forming in her throat, but she shoved it down and focused all her energy on swimming, keeping a steady pace throughout the night. She and Popplio only stopped every now and then to rest and eat before setting off once again. When the sun began to rise, they swam into another cave to rest for the day, then set off when the moon rose once again. The light was so faint as to be barely noticeable.

"The new moon will be here tomorrow," May muttered as she swam. "If we don't make it to the Southern Sea by then, this will all have been for nothing."

No sooner had she said this than she heard a faint singing noise coming from her left. She glanced over to see what was making this sound, but she saw nothing. Thinking she was just hearing things, she turned forward and focused on swimming, only to hear the singing again, slightly louder this time. She pushed her fins out in front of herself and flicked them, slowing herself down before floating into an upright position.

"You heard that too, right?" she asked Popplio.

Popplio nodded excitedly and started doing flips in the water, prompting a smile from May. "Okay, come on, now," she said. "We're almost there, so we should keep moving." She pulled her little friend close to herself and continued swimming. As she swam, she noticed the faint light from above giving way to a mysterious shadow. Her eyes widened in concern. Pirates again? She glanced up to see what was blotting out the light. Then she gasped.

What she saw was far closer to where she was than a pirate ship would be, as it wasn't moving over the surface, but rather underneath it. The sound of a beautiful note confirmed that this was the source of the mysterious singing May heard seconds earlier. Curious and slightly confused, May turned herself to face the creature while continuing to swim through the water. At first, it looked like a mermaid, but as May looked over its silhouette, she noticed it resembled a creature of the sea more than a human.

The creature's singing continued, and as it did so, more voices sang around them, surrounding them like a bubble's exterior. May looked around in amazement as several similar-looking creatures moved in closer. Popplio's eyes widened, and she started swimming towards one of them, away from May.

"Popplio!" May called, swimming after her. "Be careful! You don't know –"

She stopped when she saw Popplio nuzzling up against the mysterious creature which, on closer inspection, May realized was a Pokemon. The creature turned to face Popplio with a distant stare and gently moved its tail to push her away. Popplio saw this and promptly swam towards another one. May followed her and continued to keep an eye on these Pokemon. Popplio got pushed away again and continued to swim towards each of the Pokemon, with May not far behind. Eventually, Popplio came to the last one, only to be pushed away once again. She sighed sadly and swam back to May.

"Don't worry," May smiled, holding her close. "I'm sure they can help us find your pod."

No sooner had she said this than she heard another voice singing: one far more beautiful than she had ever heard. She and Popplio turned towards it and watched as another Pokemon swam towards them. It was larger than the rest, and far more elegant and graceful. May stared in awe while Popplio's eyes lit up in joy, and she wriggled out of May's grasp and swam towards it. May quickly followed and found herself face to face with one of the most beautiful creatures in the sea.

"A...Primarina?" she breathed in awe.

The Primarina faced her with a reserved look in its eye, covering Popplio with a protective fin. Popplio, however, wriggled out and swam up to look Primarina in the eye and started communicating with it. May guessed that she was telling the Pokemon what the mermaid had done for her since she got lost, as Primarina's expression softened as she turned to face her with a smile. She slowly swam towards her and placed its fins on the sides of her tail.

"Are you Popplio's mother?" May asked. Primarina nodded and gently placed her nose on May's forehead. She then let out a single note, one so soothing and beautiful that May suddenly felt overwhelmed, small tears forming in her eyes. Popplio saw this and floated towards her as Primarina pulled back. "Sorry," May giggled, wiping the tears away. "It's just...I've never experienced something so soothing...so beautiful...so close before." Popplio smiled and rubbed her nose against May's, prompting them to giggle. Primarina began to sing once again as she swam with her pod, gently taking Popplio with her. May watched them swim away with a smile, but it didn't last as she realized what this meant.

It was time to say goodbye.

May forced another smile as she watched the pod swim away, then turned and slowly started to swim in the opposite direction. She had barely gotten far when she heard a sudden whimpering sound behind her. She turned and had the water knocked out of her when she felt Popplio crash into her, whimpering in sadness. In response, May hugged her tightly, trying as hard as she could to stop any tears from leaving her eyes.

"It's okay, Popplio," she whispered. "This is what we've been trying to do these past four months, right? To bring you back home. And now you're here." She pulled Popplio out and looked at her with a sad smile. "This is where you belong." Popplio looked down and whimpered sadly. May sighed sadly and gently stroked her head. Then her face lit up as she got an idea. Reaching behind her, she pulled one small scale out of her tail and handed it to Popplio. Popplio looked down at it, then looked back at her with a curious gaze. "It's yours," May smiled again. "So that no matter where you go, no matter how far away from each other we are, you'll never forget me." She gently stroked her head again. "I won't forget about you. I promise."

Tears welled up in Popplio's eyes, and she lunged forward and hugged May tightly again. May hugged her back and looked up at Primarina, who was watching all this with a heartfelt smile. She smiled at the Pokemon and released Popplio from her embrace. "It's time for us to go," she said to her little friend. "And hey, who knows? Maybe one night, when we least expect it, we'll swim into each other again!" Hearing this prompted a small smile from Popplio again, and she hugged May one more time, which the mermaid was only too glad to return. Finally, she pulled away and swam towards Primarina, looking back one more time at the mermaid who had loved and cared for her for so long.

"Goodbye, Popplio," May said quietly. "I love you."

Popplio smiled back at her one more time before turning and swimming away with her pod. May floated there for some time and watched as her little friend swam away. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the Pokemon faded into the deep blue haze of the ocean and were seen no more.