A/N: MysteriousMarch/May - Hi! I just wanted to thank you for all the lovely comments you have been leaving on the chapters as you read through. I thought I would leave this here on a chapter you are yet to read, so you see it :) Thank you again! - Krystalslazz

Chapter 80

When Rikki returned from the café, Lewis showed her what he had found.

"What Fi has, we think it is Zerailia, a mutation like we thought," he showed her the hidden pages. Rikki read over the information. She sighed in relief.

"At least we know it's just a harmless mermaid mutation, not some kind of disease. So let me get this straight," Rikki began. "Other than the fact she has gills and legs, she is like mers in every other way?"

"I think so," Lewis replied.

"I hope she doesn't feel ostracised from our other kids as she grows up – knowing she's different," Rikki said.

"If we make sure the others don't treat her different, then I'm sure it'll be fine," Lewis said. "Don't forget, her father and uncles, except for Ben, are all human. At least she can breathe underwater,"

Rikki smiled, "And she's going to have a much easier time hiding her secret – no danger of exposure still with cool powers," Rikki said. "You know what, I might actually be a bit jealous – now, I wouldn't trade my tail for the world, but the situations we could've avoided by not transforming on contact with water…"

OoOoO

When Hunter stormed out of the office, Anna and Jessie stood there in shock, half not believing what had just happened. After a minute of silence, Jessie released a heavy breath and turned to her friend and colleague. Anna had dropped down onto her chair, emotionally drained. Jessie pulled her own chair out and lowered herself slowly down, in a daze.

"Wow," Jessie said simply. "Unbelievable,"

"That man…" Anna began, trailing off. Jessie knew what she was thinking. They were in for a load of trouble.

OoOoO

When Alan picked his girlfriend up from work that day, he knew something was wrong. Jessie was still shaky, reeling from the encounter with an insane version of Hunter.

"Hey," Alan said, "What's up?" he asked concernedly.

"Um," Jessie began as she sat in the passenger seat, "I…" she didn't know how to put it. She was still distracted by what had happened.

"Jess?" Alan asked.

"Hunter threatened us again…" she started. Although Alan was still focusing on the road, Jessie saw his grip on the wheel tighten and his expression darken, a scowl spreading across his face.

"What happened?" Alan asked. Jessie heard the steel in his tone. As she relayed the story, Alan drove silently.

"And then he said, 'I'll get my evidence someday, don't you worry about th…'"

"Jess, you need to do something about this guy," Alan interrupted. "Get a restraining order or something,"

"And tell them what, Alan? That I need him to back off because he suspects I am a mermaid? No. That wouldn't work,"

"But saying he is harassing you in the workplace would – you don't have to say the details - he obviously scares you and is obsessing…" Alan trailed off.

"Even if I got one, I'd have to get a hearing, and without physical violence, it would probably take a while to get everything processed. By then it could be too late – it's so easy to get transformed in a public place – all he has to do is successfully get a drop of water on me,"

"Has Anna tried transferring him?"

"Yes. She is all too aware of how dangerous this is,"

"I wish that there was more that I could do,"

"Being here for me, that's the most important thing," Jessie smiled, placing her hand on his thigh. They pulled into a car park outside of her apartment.

"Did you want to come in?" she asked.

"Of course," he smiled, taking her hand once he had locked the car.

OoOoO

"Is your proposal done?" Anna asked Jessie a few days later at work. Anna had sent Hunter to meet with the partners to review the plans and the preliminary cost estimates for their project.

"Yeah, here it is," Jessie passed Anna the document. Anna thanked her and returned to her desk. A minute passed.

"Are you sure that you're okay?" Anna asked her friend gently.

Jessie nodded slowly. "Just a bit worried," she responded. "Are you okay? It's gotta be scary for you too, right?"

"But you're in the firing line. You know what? I feel like revealing myself so that you are not in this alone; I feel selfish, keeping myself safe while you're at risk…I know it's silly but…"

"Thanks for the consideration, Anna," Jessie smiled. "I got myself into this mess in the first place. I just didn't bank on Hunter turning into such a psycho. He was a nice enough guy before,"

"Yeah, but it seems like his true colours are showing through, right?"

Jessie nodded.

"I'll make it through this. Maybe time will get it out of his system,"

"Maybe," Anna said quietly.

OoOoO

Later that day, Jessie was in the print room, photocopying a copy of the site plan sketches for the new Rudd Management facility. Jessie had seen Hunter leave for lunch and felt that it was safe to venture from the office. She could not let Hunter rule the way she lived. As she was photocopying, she heard the door open and shut. She ignored it, thinking that it was probably another colleague.

It was another colleague but Jessie realised who it was a little too late. Fear filled her gut as water splashed onto her neck and back. She whirled around, her eyes wide.

Hunter was smirking.

Hunter had decided that now was when he was going to make his move – he knew that if Jessie saw him leave for lunch, then her guard would be down. Evidently, he was right. The print room was perfect for his needs. It was one of the few windowless rooms, bar the window on the door, being in the centre of the building. Paintings decorated the walls. He wasn't going to let someone else take a picture of the fish. He wanted to be the sole benefactor from the rewards for proof of the fact that mermaids exist.

As Jessie transformed, he had his camera ready. He took pictures of her looking at him in disbelief, as she turned into water, and as she fell back on the ground as a creature. A beautiful creature at that. Remembering what had happened to his device last time, as soon as he had the pictures, he gave Jessie a mock salute and jogged out of the room grinning. He had his proof.

OoOoO

Jessie breathed heavily. What on earth was she going to do? She had to transform into a human again before another architect came into the print room. She focused and using her powers, focused on every droplet of water on her skin, beginning to draw it off. What she would give to have Anna's power in these situations. A lot less concentration seemed to be required. Holding the water from her body with her powers, she felt herself transform. She breathed a sigh of relief. Now, what to do with the water. She could put it on the floor and make a puddle, or continue holding it in the air. Neither seemed like an option. She spotted the potted plant in the far corner of the room. Perfect. Disposing of the water there, she shakily returned to the office.

"Jessie, you look like you've seen a ghost! What happened?" Anna asked concernedly.

"Hunter,"

That one name was enough.

"He got evidence?" Anna asked cautiously. Jessie's look of desperation gave her the answer.

Hunter had photos of a mermaid. Of Jessie. What was he was going to do next?

A/N: Hey guys! Sorry the update took so long! I've been busy with life :P Also, this chapter was difficult to write - there were so many directions that it could go. I hope you enjoyed it and are excited to see the future developments! I know I am! Chapter 80 huh? Well, this story is going longer than I could have anticipated :P I can't believe it is still going strong after three years! Thanks so much to the amazing people who have stuck around that long. Incredible dedication. You don't know how much that means to me.

This story is officially the most reviewed in the H2O fan fiction archive. To all those who helped me get there, I LOVE YOU! It's such an amazing achievement. Who knows, maybe I can keep it there for a bit, with your help :-) You guys are awesome and I love thanking my supporters personally. (reviews help me to do that :D)

Thanks so so much to all the following for reviewing:

Mermaids Forever - Thanks so much! I know that it took longer than you wanted, but your review did push me to get started earlier :) Thanks for the continued support.

The Writer Es - Thanks for reading!

YaleAceBella12- I will! Thanks for your review!

Guest #1 (If you provide a name I can thank you personally) Thanks so much! I love the feedback.

CrazyHayniac - I'm glad you've caught onto that :P It's still separate, but the idea has come through :P Maybe :P Oh thanks :D Yeah, I always pick apart my writing, always want it to reflect my ideas the best way possible. Thanks for reassuring me.

Starlightdreamer12 - Yay! I love that you love this story!

HeartlandFan101 - I hope Rikki reacted in a way that you enjoyed. I didn't want to focus on that part too much, because I felt that Rikki would be accepting of it either way. Thanks for reviewing :D We need to Skype again soon :P

charmedhpgirl - Thanks for reviewing!

Guest #2 - Thanks!

zikki 3 - Yes, Hunter is definitely annoying. But I hope believable :P Thanks so much.

halfbloodbugsy - Maybe I'll delve into that another day :P Thanks so much!

KKbobbitt93 - Awesome! I'm glad you're enjoying this.

Acgisme - Thanks :D I'm glad. Thanks so much - believability of character is important to me.

Guest #3 - Here is more! :P

HybridsRose - Aw, thanks :-) I'm glad you're liking everything.

h2obeth - Thanks so much! I love hearing what you think of my writing style.

Green DayLuuver- Haha, yeah. Well, stick around to see how it all develops.

Guest #4 - I know! So stoked and excited and thrilled and humbled and...Thanks so much!

secretsmarts1 - Yay! Thanks! I'm glad you do!

Well...

That is a heck of a lot of reviews. I'm so excited right now :) You guys make me so happy. Give yourselves a pat on the back :D

See you all next time! Hopefully it'll be soon!