Incase you didn't know, I re-wrote part of chapter 6 to make it more emotional and "angsty". The storyline hasn't changed much, but I did add in quite a bit of detail.Anyway, I'll continue on with chapter 7. But please, go back and read chapter 6 if you haven't read the revised edition already. Thanks! :]

"Who Am I?"

Chapter 7

*Sam's POV*

Time seemed to freeze itself over as I looked down at my body. On my neck, I had three slits that felt slimy as a fish's skin. Instead of legs, I had an amethyst tail that started shimmering as the sun reflected off tiny water droplets scattered on it. To make matters worse, my bathing suit top had disappeared, and there was a guy sitting right next to me. My hair had doubled in length, so that helped to conceal my chest. Out of embarrassment, I wrapped my arms around my body and clutched myself as firmly as I could.

"Danny, what's h-happened t-to me?" I asked again as I trembled with fear.

Danny looked at me with widened eyes and a dropped jaw. Hesitantly, he extended his hand and placed it on my tail. Upon contact with his hand, my tail contracted and flicked itself on his. I gripped myself tighter and gasped.

"D-Danny?"

Danny took his hand away and placed it on my cheek. He smiled at me lovingly and gazed into my eyes with his glowing green pools of emerald swirls.

"Sam, l-look at you. Y-You're-"

"A fish?"

Danny shook his head. He gently pulled me closer and pushed my arms away so that he could wrap his own around me. As our bare chests touched each other for the first time, I blushed and began to tense up. Apprehensively, I wondered what Danny was going to do.

"No Sam. You're beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. You are the most majestic, divine creature I had ever set my eyes on. "

I wanted to hit him. I wanted to punch him in the face for casually hitting on me as I was sitting there in plain sight with a fish's tail and a naked chest. Danny pulled me in even closer (if that were even possible) and locked his lips with mine before I had the chance to protest. Still filled with rage, I struggled around, but Danny kept me in his grip. I soon felt my body relax, and before long, all of my anger faded away. Danny was the first to break the kiss before resting his forehead against mine. He smiled at me once more with his silly grin, and I couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Stop that!" I scolded playfully.

Danny's grin widened as he cocked his head slightly.

"Stop what?" he asked in an innocent voice.

I rolled my eyes and socked him in the arm.

"Ow! What?"

I giggled and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek.

"Oh, Danny, no matter was you say or do, I can't stay mad at you."

Danny smirked.

"Oh, really? Interesting. I'll have to keep that in mind." He said, as his smug expression grew bigger.

"Just be lucky you're sexy and muscular." I replied jokingly.

Danny flinched and pretended to cringe in pain.

"Ouch, that hurts, but I'll take it."

Danny tried to pull me into his arms once more, but I shrugged him away.

"Sam?"

"D-Danny, the fact still remains that I'm a…a…"

"A beautiful mermaid?"

I felt myself blush slightly.

"I t-think so, but I'm not entirely sure what's going on…Even if I am a m-mermaid, h-how did I end up this way?"

"Because I…kissed you?" Danny asked in a sarcastic tone.

"W-What does that have to do with anything? And for your information, the sarcasm is NOT appreciated!" I snapped.

Danny shrugged.

"I don't know. What I do know is that after our first kiss, there was a bright light, and when I could open my eyes, I saw that you had a mermaid's tail. If that isn't the reason why you changed, then I'm not sure what is."

I sighed and put my head down. There was no denying his logic; So far, it was the only possibility that we had. And it made perfect sense.

"Sam? Is everything okay?" Danny asked with concern.

Suddenly, I got an idea. I looked up and smiled at him.

"I don't have the slightest idea of why this happened," I began.

Danny looked back at me with confusion.

"Yeah, and…?"

"But I know how we can find out. Danny, do you remember that blue book I showed you once?"

"You mean the one about Atlantis and mer-people? Yeah, I remember. What about it?"

"Maybe there's something in it about humans turning into mer-people themselves. It's worth a shot looking through it once more." I suggested.

"But how are we supposed to get the book?" asked Danny. "Didn't you take it back home with you when you left?"

I shook my head.

"No I didn't. I left it in the cove."

"But I didn't see anything in there earlier. Are you sure it's in the cove?"

"Yes, Danny. I'm sure. Positive, actually. I hid it in the back within the shadows of the cove. I wanted you to find it, and I hoped that it would be of some use to you. As far as I'm concerned, that book was better off in your hands than in mine."

Danny averted his eyes and sighed.

"I see…well, you're probably right. I'll swim back to the cove and take a look around. Will you be okay on this ledge for a minute or two?"

"I'll be all right. Just don't take too long." I replied.

Danny nodded and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I'll be back soon, Sam."

Before he left, I pulled him back into a hug. I snuggled in his chest and held on tightly.

"I love you, Danny."

"I love you, too, Sam." Danny replied in a sweet, gentle voice.

"Hey, Danny? Could you do me a favor when you go to the cove?"

"Sure, Sam. What is it?"

"Well, along with the Atlantis book, there should also be a pair of sweats and a sweatshirt in the cove. Obviously, the pants are pointless to bring, but could you grab my sweatshirt? Just so…I have something to wear?"

Danny and I both blushed at the same time and turned away from each other. I covered my chest with my hair and arms as best as I could, feeling my body temperature rise every second.

"S-Sure, that's no problem. I'll get it. O-Okay, I'll be back soon, just as I said."

Danny slid himself off of the rock ledge and plummeted into the water. Like an Olympic swimmer, he tore through the ocean waves as fast as lightning. His tail flickered up out of the current, splashing water into the sky as he moved ever so gracefully.

~Line Break~

Danny came back to the rock ledge about ten minutes later. He was holding the book wrapped with my sweatshirt to prevent the pages from getting wet. If that were to happen, the letters would blur, and then there would be no way of deciphering them.

"Here, Sam. Take this." Danny said as he handed me the bundle in his arms.

I took it from him and placed it on the ground next to me. Danny hauled himself out of the water and sat next to me on the other side. Carefully, I unwrapped the book and pulled the sweatshirt over my head. Once I had it on, I took my hair out from underneath the shirt and pulled it back. I didn't have my hair-tie with me, so I just let my hair rest against my back.

"All right, let's take a look." I said as I picked up the book.

I flipped through the crinkled-up, yellowed pages and skimmed over the passages as fast as I could.

"Did you find anything?" Danny asked.

I shook my head.

"Not yet, but I'll keep looking. Just hold on for a few minutes."

I turned to the last few pages of the book and read them over. There were many pictures with captions underneath them. However, instead of being informative, the depictions appeared to tell a story.

"Danny, check this out."

What is it?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but it appears to be an old mer-people myth. It tells of a young teenage girl who rescued an injured merman."

"Go on, read it," urged Danny. "It sounds interesting."

"Okay, I will," I said. "It says here that the girl's name was Amy, and she had long, dark-brown hair and brown eyes. She had been separated from her family, so she wandered off looking for help until she came across an abandoned beach."

"Then what did she do?" Danny asked.

"She began to cry. It had started raining, so she took cover in a cove, just like yours. Amy was cold, hungry, and lonely. She cried because she didn't know what to do. Her family was gone, and she didn't think that she'd ever see them again. The nearest town was over a hundred miles away, and there was no one nearby that she could ask for help."

Danny frowned as his ears drooped.

"That poor girl…"

"When all hope seemed lost, Amy spotted someone on the beach, She came out of the cove and saw that it was a boy about her age. He had long black hair and ruby-red eyes. Instead of legs, the boy had a long, crimson tail with black specks of color scattered on it. He also had black and red fin-ears and red arm fins-just like you, Danny."

"Except that they're different colors," Danny added. "Other than that, you're right. So when Amy saw him, was she scared? I bet she was."

I shook my head.

"No, she wasn't. The merman had many wounds, cuts, and bruises all over him. He was bleeding so much that the ocean waves were stained red from his blood. Amy didn't know what she could do or if she would be able to help him, but she couldn't just stand by and watch someone die right in front of her."

Danny raised an eyebrow.

"She wasn't scared of him? Not even a little?"

"She wasn't scared of him; She was scared FOR him. Amy didn't care that the boy wasn't human. She didn't care that he was different. She didn't want him to die. Because of her desire to save him, Amy wasn't afraid. As gently as she could, she pulled the merman into the cove so that he would be out of the rain. Using a sweater she had tied around her waist, Amy was able to bandage his wounds and stop the bleeding."

"So does that mean he survived?"

I nodded.

"Yes. Amy stayed with him and nursed him back to health. It took a couple weeks until all of his wounds were healed, but eventually, they did."

Danny sighed with relief.

"Well, that's good. I'm guessing that he left for the ocean afterwards?"

"Not exactly. You see, during their time together, the merman had developed feelings for the little human girl. He had fallen in love with her, and even after he had gotten better, he didn't want to leave."

Danny smiled and nuzzled his head in my chest.

"You know, this story sounds oddly familiar…" Danny cooed softly in my ear.

I smiled and nuzzled him back.

"Anyway, Amy had also realized that she felt the same way toward him, too. However, she also knew that he had to leave soon, for it was not very wise for a merman to stay on land for very long."

"So, what happened? Did he leave?"

"Well, right as he was about to, the merman pulled himself into the water and pulled Amy in with him. Despite the fact that it was cold and she was wet, Amy didn't mind. She looked up into his beautiful red eyes and smiled. The merman then asked if she wanted to go with him and live in the ocean. He told her that he loved her and he didn't want to go alone and lose her forever."

"Aww…"

"Amy told him that she loved him, too, and she also wanted to be with him. The merman then asked her to trust him and close her eyes. Amy did what he asked, and her eyelids fluttered shut. The merman then leaned in and kissed her full on the lips. Upon his touch, Amy blushed, but she didn't fight him. She wrapped her arms around his body and returned his love."

Danny gently wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into his lap. I rested my head in his chest and smiled. Danny then cupped my cheek and kissed me on the lips.

"Danny, are you just using this story as an excuse to kiss me?"

"Maybe. Is that a problem?"

I smiled.

"Not at all, but as I was saying, Amy kissed him back, and when they pulled apart, there was a bright light that blinded them both. When it disappeared, Amy realized that she had changed-"

"Into a mermaid, just like you."

"Yes, Danny. She had an amber-colored tail that shimmered in the sun. With her new tail, she was able to leave the shell of her human life behind and be with the one she loved. And that is how the story ends."

I shut the book and placed it back down on the ground.

"So that's it?" Danny asked. "There's nothing else?"

I shook my head.

"Nope, that's everything. I guess that you were right after all. It was your kiss and our love that changed me into a mermaid. Because we loved each other so much, I was able to become like you. That way, we wouldn't have to separate and be apart from each other."

Danny smiled.

"You do know what this means, right?"

I smiled back at him.

"It means that we can be together, Danny. Forever. But more importantly, you can finally leave this place and journey the ocean. Discover your purpose and find out who you really are. And no matter what happens, I'll be with you all of the way."

Danny's smile grew bigger until he finally tackled me. I grunted and fell flat on my back with Danny on top of me.

"D-Danny?"

Despite the fact that I knew Danny couldn't …well, do THAT, I blushed, and my heart rate sped up immediately.

"You're so cute when you're nervous around me."

I scowled.

"S-Shut up! I'm not nervous!"

"Mhm. Sure you're not."

"I'm not!" I protested.

Danny laughed and leaned down to kiss me on the lips in order to keep me quiet. Once again, it proved to be very effective.

"Danny, please get off of me."

"All right, all right," Danny replied as he got off. "There, is that any better?"

I smirked and tackled him to the ground. This time, I was on top of him.

"H-hey! No fair!"

"Now, THIS is much better." I said as I pulled him in for another kiss.

Another chapter done 3 I apologize if it seems that this was mostly a filler chapter, but I needed to explain why Sam got her tail when Danny kissed her. That's why I added the little mini story about Amy in here. I also hoped that you enjoyed the fluff. In the next chapter, Danny will finally leave his cove for the first time and venture out into the ocean. What will he discover? You'll find out soon ;)