Pichi Pichi Pitch
Chapter 13
So far they only three, there was Caren's, then the two glows they saw was Coco's and Hanon's. The sun was four hours away. "This is hopeless, if we can't find them before sunset, it'll be more difficult to search at night in Antarctica." Noel said. "Why, if it's dark, we can search for glows easier." Seira said. "Yeah, but we won't be able to swim our way back to Subaru's, it'll be too dark to see the ocean, and we don't know how to work these things yet so we can't just say 'light' and they show us a light like a friggin flashlight." Caren said.
"Well, we have at least four hours, and we have four more to go. I say we split up and go search in the direction the pearls are pulling us to. If we do that, we'll find them faster." Rina said. "Sounds like a plan, we'll stay here, this will be the return spot." Hanon said. "Okay, see you guys in a little bit." Lucia said as she and the others swam away. "They better find them quick, I think Subaru mentioned there being a snowstorm soon." Caren said. "In any case they gotta hurry, or else we'll turn into mermaid ice sculptures." Coco said.
"I don't see any glows around, I better swim faster." Noel said, she was searching the farther west part. "Hey wait, what's this?" She looked at the sand and pulled out a crest. "I know this crest." She stared at it for a few minutes.
"This crest belongs to the Prince, he must have been here, I better find my staff and tell the others, quick!" She said as she swam faster. I don't believe this, how could he have known where we were, it's impossible to search all the seas and be able to find where we were. What if some of the creatures in the sea are on his side, they might've told him about our location. Hey, there's a glow up ahead. She thought. "That's mine, it's gotta be!" She said and swam even faster. "It is mine." She said as she picked it up and started swimming back.
"I've looked all over this area, I still don't see it." Seira said, she had looked all over the reef her's was supposedly supposed to be. "Still I can't give up." She said as she kept swimming. "Hey look, there's Rina." She said as she saw Rina swimming to her at a fast pace. "Seira, I found yours, when I found mine, yours was a few meters away. Come on you gotta get it so we can head back." She said as she reached her. They began swimming to where Rina found hers. "Look, see? There's yours." She said as she pointed to a glow. "Okay." She said as she swam and grabbed it.
"I wonder how many of the others have found theirs?" Lucia said as she kept looking for hers. "Lucia." She heard a voice call. "Who's there?" She asked. "Lucia, that's not something you say to a friend." The voice said again, this time a ghostly figure appeared before her. "Sara!" She said. "Lucia, beyond that ridge over there is where your staff is." She said as she pointed in the direction of a ridge as she had said. "How do you know we're looking for them?" She asked. "I know because the prince was here." She said.
"He was here? When, do you think he knows where we are?" She asked starting to panic. "No, he doesn't but he is planning to search the surface, he's here in this sea, and he's looking for you, and you only." She said with a sad look. "Why just me?" She asked. "He appears to have a little crush on you, but when he learned of you loving a human, he wanted to take you by force if necessary. If he goes on the surface and finds you all before you return to Aqua Regina, he'll take the others pearl, and kill the humans that are already on land." She said with a serious tone.
"You mean, he'll take me and kill Kaito and the others?" She asked now scared. "Yes, now listen, he's just a few miles east of here which means you all have got to leave first thing tomorrow morning. Return to Aqua Regina, so that the prince and his family can be returned to the Sea of Japan and remain there." She said and her ghostly form disappeared."Sara, wait!" She called but she was gone. "I gotta get back now!" She said as she swam over the ridge and saw a glow just as Sara had said. She quickly picked it up and swm as fast as she could back to Hanon and the others.
"Where are they, it's been an hour, and the storm's probably already starting on the surface." Caren said. "Wait a little longer before you start panicking." Coco said. "Hey look, there's Seira and Rina." Hanon said as she pointed to the two mermaids swimming to them. "Are Lucia and Noel not back yet?" Seira asked. "No, but they should be here soon." Caren said. "Guys! Guys!" They heard a voice shout. "It's Noel." Rina said. "Sister what's wrong?" Caren said.
"I found this crest while I searched for my staff." She said as she held up the crest. "That's the prince's crest." Hanon said. "Is he here?" Seira asked. "I don't know, but as soon as Lucia gets here we gotta leave." Rina said. "She's not back yet? What's keeping her?" Noel said. "We don't know, but maybe she ran into him, if you found that crest, Lucia might've found him." Coco said. "Then we better go look." Caren Said. "Guys!" Another voice shouted. "It's Lucia!" Seira said. "Come on we gotta get back." She said as she swam right by them. "What's the rush Lucia, we still got another two and a half hours til sunset." Caren said.
"The prince is in this sea, we gotta move." She said. "You already know?" Hanon asked. "Yeah, Sara appeared before me and told me to tell everyone we gotta leave first thing tomorrow morning." She said. "Well then let's hurry up and get back at least, the storm's probably bad by the time we get up there." Noel said. They reached the surface in just half an hour. "How far are we from the house?" Rina asked. "Not far, see?" She said as she pointed to a tire. "That tire has always been there and it never get's fully covered in snow, plus it's a signal we're near the house." Caren said as they began to walk through the snow.
"The storm's starting out there, I hope they get back soon." Subaru said. "Yeah, me too." Hamasaki said. "You know I'm wondering if they feel the cold or not?" Nagisa asked. "What do you mean?" Kaito asked. "You know because they're-" He was shut up by Hamasaki and Kaito. "We aren't supposed to talk about that around Subaru, you moron." Kaito said. "Right, sorry I forgot." He said.
"This cold weather sucks!" Coco said. "We know it's cold you said it five hundred times, shut up already!" Hanon said. "Well, being mermaids, we shouldn't be able to feel this stupid weather. I mean we swim through colder water, why is the air so much colder?" She asked. "We don't know, we aren't friggin scientists." Noel said. "Well, we should at least be able to know that-" "Just shut up Coco, we get the point." Caren said. "Okay, back on topic, Sara toldme that the prince plans to come on the surface, take all your pearls, take me, and kill Subaru and the others." Lucia said.
"Kill the others!?" Hanon shouted. "Yeah, I don't know why but he's gotten really angry with this whole situation, and I guess to him, the idea of loving humans is a symbol for war." Lucia said. "Well, what can we do about this?" Seira asked. "Well, we gotta get back and summon Aqua Regina again." Lucia said.
"Kaito, you've been sitting there staring out the window all day? Is it really that borin around here?" Nagisa asked. "Well, I'm not the one who spent his day trying to make experiments with Subaru." He said. "Hey, I was trying to find a creative thing to do." He said in defense. "Yeah, because your just as bored as I am. I mean Hamasaki's reading." He said. "Fine, I'll go find something to read. Geez, that guy can be annoying, how does Hanon put up with that? He thought as he watched out the window. He must've been tired from sitting there all day, because he fell asleep.
"Look, I think that's the house up ahead." Caren said.
"Yeah, that's it, thank god, I'm freezing." Coco said and they started running toward the house. "Hurry and open the door, we're turning into mermaids icicles." Seira said. "You were waiting for that pun weren't you?" Hanon said. "Yup, and I finally got to say it too." She giggled. Noel opened the dorr and they all ran in and fell to the floor. "Sweet warm floor, warm house, I'll never leave you again." Coco said. "Hey you guys are back." Hamasaki said as he entered the room. "Yeah, and we're exhausted, but we all found what we came her for." Rina said with a smile.
Lucia looked over to the window sill, and saw Kaito was asleep. "He sat there all day waiting for you guys to come back." Hamasaki said. He waited here all day? She thought, then she smiled and sat next to him and grabbed his hand and held it in hers. Thank you. "Hey what do you say we eat, I'm starving." Hanon said. "Yeah, there's some hot soup for you guys in the kitchen." Subaru said. "Hooray, soup!" Seira said.
Lucia stayed behind and stared at him. "You just sat here and waited for me to come back." She said quietly. She kissed his cheek and continued to watch him sleep.