teamBLAZE: well, there are some reasons... but that's a chapter for another day, right? :P

In any case, this chapter is supposed to be longer, but when I wrote it out I found out I wanted this chapter to stand alone the way it is, no matter that it's a bit short. I want to dedicate a chapter just for a bit of humour and lightness, and for a bit of character developments as well ^^

"So… you are a Seeress, too?"

Reine finally decided to tell Neil of her new power as they travelled. She felt it was just fair if she shared one of her secrets after he told her about how he had grown up without a father by his side. Much to her surprise, he didn't seem to be so shocked about the revelation. And she had thought humans were not believers to magic. "Apparently," she sighed.

"You don't sound so happy about that."

"Well, what's there to be happy about?" Reine asked. "You see what happens to my sister, right?"

"You've been given power," Neil told her. "You can protect those you care about with that power—isn't that something to be happy about?"

Reine held her breath and glanced at the human. He was… surprisingly wise for his rough outlook. It debunked yet another Reine's perception of Neil being an insufferable ignorant.

"If you put it that way… I guess you're right," she finally agreed.

Reine had naturally swum right next to Neil even without Viv's engineering, the fact that pleased the dolphin beyond words. The pink dolphin was, of course, aware that in their current state, a romance would be near impossible unless Neil were willing to ingest haleweed for the rest of his life. However, this dolphin was a staunch believer of the saying "when there's a will, there's a way".

Who knows? Perhaps Neil could turn to a merman after all these quests?

Viv imagined the moment these two creatures she fancied confessed to each other; the murmurings of "I love you" and "I love you too", the enjoinment of their bodies as they melted into an embrace, and of course the kiss.

Viv squealed. Reine's first kiss would be soooo romantic if it happened the way she imagined it to be. She had heard that mermaid's kiss had magic in it when given to a human, but she didn't know what exactly the magic was.

BY AMPHITRITE MAYBE NEIL WILL TURN INTO A MERMAN AFTER THEY SHARED THAT TRUE LOVE'S KISS?!

Viv squealed even louder; she even somersaulted in excitement. Reine and Neil turned towards the dolphin. "What the hell is going on with you?"

The dolphin grinned sheepishly.

"Thinking about Viserys?" Reine guessed.

"NO!" Viv shook her head frantically. "I hate that dolphin!"

Reine shrugged. "People say hate and love has a very fine line between them."

"Nuooooo!" she cried out. "He's so condescending, cold, heartless, insesi—"

"Insensitive jerk who happens to have very fine eyes and nice tune when he whistles," Reine joined in. "Don't lie to me. I heard you saying that in your sleep."

"I DID?!"

Reine grinned. "You didn't," she said mischievously. "But I guess I was correct in guessing that, looking at your reaction. You dolt-phin."

"REINE, HOW DARE YOU!"

Reine laughed as she launched into a sprint and the pink dolphin quickly chased the mermaid. Neil watched their interactions and he couldn't suppress a small smile. They did have an interesting, lively dynamic.

Perhaps him helping the stranded Viv and his meeting with Reine soon after had a certain connection, after all. He saw them struggling against each other, circling like mad in the water until they spent quite an amount of energy.

"What's our next stop?" Viv asked excitedly after they rested for a while and began moving again.

"I was thinking of visiting the deep-water settlement from the other time," Reine replied. "To see how the folks are holding up."

"Despite your sassy attitude, you do care, huh?" Neil retorted.

"Being sassy is not equivalent to be uncaring, you dolt," she quipped back.

"She calls people she likes 'dolt'—she's a dolt that way," Viv whispered from the other side.

"What are you saying?"

Viv jerked up and grinned sheepishly. "No. Nothing!"

Reine rolled her eyes, but she let the matter aside. "Don't forget your haleweed," she told Neil.

"Is there any other way I can breath underwater without that weed?" Neil asked. "What if the effect wears off when I'm asleep?"

Viv then remembered—perhaps the mermaid's kiss would solve the problem?

"There is the mermaid's—"

Reine shut her mouth by gripping her beak tightly. "No!" her cheeks flushed red. "All the more reason you have to eat your haleweed before you go to sleep!"

She remembered Gwen told her that she would give something important to Neil. She was determined in not making that vision reality.

There's no way I'm giving my first kiss to this guy!

Will Viv's fantasy of hooking Reine and Neil up become true?

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

Thanks for reading! Please rate and review ^^

A/N: just to clarify, the Mermaid's Kiss will grant a human the ability to breathe underwater until they resurface. Obviously more convenient than the haleweed. :P