In the depths of the North Pacific Ocean, the kingdom of the Mermaid Princess Lucia is having guests. A merman is waiting in front of the castle's door. The palace's shine would get on his nerves, but that doesn't stop him from maintaining his composure. It wouldn't be fit for someone of his lineage to act in such a debased way, especially not here of all places. 'Aqua Regina, I see the signs. Are you watching this palace right now?' are his thoughts. If someone can hear him, the waters don't give any indication, being as tranquil as before his arrival. As he ponders these thoughts, a creak announces the door opening. To his disappointment, he sees one of Princess Lucia's many attendants closing the door behind her after joining him outside. "Welcome to the North Pacific Ocean, dear guest", says the pink mermaid. Masking his emotions with a pleasant smile and a nod, the merman replies: "Thank you. I am Akragas, the vassal of Aqua Regina in the Mediterranean Sea. I have travelled from there to congratulate myself with the North Pacific Ocean's Princess for having returned peace to sea and land. With whom do I have the pleasure to talk?"
At the guest's reply, the attendant pauses, her eyes darting away from her interlocutor. "My name is Kei. My apologies for your long journey here, Mr Akragas, but Princess Lucia is currently on the land." The merman's bright amber eyes open wide, thinking about how the palace might as well be empty then. "That's quite unfortunate. Any information on when she will return to her kingdom?" Kei nods, having received a detailed report on this matter. "We are expecting her to return soon. While the princesses of the Artic, Antarctic and South Pacific Oceans didn't have much to tie them on land, the Pearl Piari Hotel needs to organise its affairs on land so that the humans wouldn't be affected by their disappearance. Nikora was running a business on land, which is not something you can't just shut down from one day to the next. " The merman's brow relaxes as he takes in the information. "I see. It wouldn't do for them to cause some turbulence as they return. Thank you. May I bother you with a favour? I hate to be a burden, but I would like to rest in the palace, Miss Kei. It was quite a tiring journey, which I'm sure you understand."
Looking back at the door that has denied Akragas entry, the pink mermaid seems to seriously ponder the request before answering. "My apologies, that's not possible. By decree of Aqua Regina, the seven kingdoms are forbidden from accepting guests unless their Princess is present. The heir of the Panthalassa and the Ancient Monarch have quite upset the balance of the oceans, so she has decided cautionary measures are in order." His reply comes with a frown. "For that Gaito and Emperor Michel to mess up our waters so much, it's such an annoyance. Does Aqua Regina think dark forces may still exist despite the princesses' victories then?" The attendant tenses at the demands asked of her, gripping her hands while she thinks about how to formulate her answer. "I'm afraid I don't know much. According to Princess Lucia, Aqua Regina is worried about the resurgence of secrets of the Ancients that should stay buried."
A grave look passes on Akragas' face. "I understand: few people nowadays know what they were capable of, and Aqua Regina is probably one of the few." Kei's expression relaxes at this perceived reassurance. "Exactly, so that's why…" However, Akragas presses on, not giving up his momentum. "But this isn't the first time we had relations with each other. I understand I may have privileged my relations with the North Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean due to their proximity, but it's not like I have never aided you. Is there nothing you can do?" Kei falters for a moment, rubbing her left arm. She replies: "I'm afraid not. Not even the Princesses can go against the will of Aqua Regina, let alone an attendant." Akragas nods in displeasure. "I understand. I will start making my way back then. My apologies for my intrusion." At Kei's farewell, the merman starts swimming away, his platinum hair trailing behind him. Within a few minutes, Akragas is just a crimson spot in the distance.
Pondering the events, Kei calls out: "Princess Sara?" In contrast with the darkness of the sea, an orange glow signals the appearance of a ghostly figure. "I don't think this is a matter with which to bother Aqua Regina." says the previous princess of the Indian Ocean. "Over the years, Akragas has never shown much beyond a simple desire to increase his station to Aqua Regina." Wondering how Sara couldn't perceive a vassal of Aqua Regina coming here without any security detail as anything but weird, Kei kept asking. "Princess Sara, shouldn't you inform at least Princess Lucia of this? If what you say about him is true, I feel she at least should know." The mermaid princess doesn't show much interest. "I will do so, though I don't feel him being intent on riding on Lucia's coattails is worth noting." As soon as she finishes saying that, she disappears, leaving Kei to her worries over the first time she saw the enigmatic merman.
Reappearing at the Pearl Piari, Sara looks around the familiar sight of Lucia's bedroom, but the girl is nowhere to be seen. Keeping herself concealed, she makes her way downstairs through the floor. With a single gaze, she notices she is both on the right track and facing an insurmountable problem: the hotel is swarming with customers, so Lucia, Hanon and Rina are darting between the tables and the kitchen to deliver the dishes prepared by Nikora. 'Well, all there is to do is wait. Weird how Seira is nowhere to be seen, though. I was hoping to check on how she was doing.' It takes a few hours before the dining area gets cleaned of people. The trio of mermaids are accompanied by Nikora this time, ready to start tidying the place after the onslaught of customers. Accompanied by the familiar orange glow, Sara enters the group's field of vision. "Hello, Lucia, Hanon, Rina and Nikora."
The mermaids quickly get tense as they all turn towards the sound of the voice. "Sara!" quickly shouts Hanon. "Can't you warn us when you appear the next time?" The intruder looks at her interlocutor with surprise. "My apologies, Hanon. Ghosts don't have the luxury of opening doors. I will take note to make my presence more obvious next time. But I haven't come here to dally. I would also like Hippo to be present since what I will say involves Lucia's kingdom. Where is he?" Nikora speaks up, having personally seen him exiting the premises shortly before the customers started coming en masse. "He took a chance to run away earlier. Now that things have started to settle, we barely see him anymore. Who knows where he disappears to". With a disgruntled look on her face, Hanon complains: "That doesn't stop him from being here somehow every time there is something he wants to reprimand us about."
Calmly accepting this development, Sara gives out the information she came here to deliver. "I see: we will have to go on without him then. I'm here because Akragas, the vassal of Aqua Regina in the Mediterranean Sea, has come from his feud to visit the North Pacific Ocean's kingdom. How many of you know him?" Rina's gaze focused on Sara. "I have met him several times over the years. He is not an unusual sight in our kingdom." Hanon crosses her arms. "He didn't appear much in ours. I never got what is his deal. What about you, Lucia?" The pink mermaid frowns while she tries to remember. "I'm sorry, but I don't remember him," Nikora interjects. "That's because he only came there once before, when your predecessor, Princess Lumina, still ruled over the North Pacific Ocean. Unfortunately, that's all I can say since I was too young back then." Sara starts reassuring the princess of the pink pearl. "Don't worry, Lucia. This visit is just a formality. Akragas appearing at your kingdom unexpectedly isn't a cause for worry. He has always been a social climber, even when I was younger. However, it's a sign that you can't hang around here much longer. You can only stretch your excuse for so long: people expect you to be back in the seas soon." Rina interjects. "Another factor is that he must be really dedicated to travel that far. I think we should hear him out."
Hanon broods. "Once we are back in the sea, they will avoid sending us back. What a nuisance. I still haven't figured out how to start telling Nagisa I will have to go away. Or rather, I still don't have the motivation. It's the same for you, right, Lucia and Rina?." The silence stretches uncomfortably after that. "At least I won't miss tiring days like today," points out Lucia after a while. "True. Besides, if the likes of this Akragas are all we have to deal with, convincing everyone that we can leave our kingdoms once in a while will be a piece of cake," exclaims Hanon. Nikora starts reprimanding her. "Don't count on it, Hanon. Your presence is reassuring for your citizens. Dealing with foreign dignitaries isn't the only duty of a mermaid princess." Hanon bursts out. "I am not talking about disappearing for months as we did due to Gaito and Michel. Just a weekend per month doesn't seem absurd to me." "Do you plan to travel back and forth between the land and your kingdom every month? Or do you plan on asking Seira to open the dream corridor for you each time?" counteracts the pink mermaid. Sparks are flying out of the two quarrellers' eyes. The aquamarine princess starts asserting her opposition again before Rina interrupts her.
"It's no use worrying about that now. We need to think of this dilemma right now." Rina starts outlining a plan, as a distraction at least. "We should start thinking of a way to present the situation to Nagisa since he is completely in the dark. Since Masahiro has already had an inkling of it, I suggest we use me as an excuse. Every single one of us suddenly having various kinds of issues at once wouldn't be believable. I propose we say that trip is due to my father's declining health which he refused to acknowledge until the problems stared at him in the face. If they try to accompany us, we will use this reluctance to make them understand he wouldn't like to meet new people while in his condition." "Sounds fair to me. At least Masahiro has never seen what your house is like, right, Rina?" asks Hanon. Rina raises her eyebrows. "No, why?" "Just thinking he would have been suspicious if a father you supposedly care lots about sprung up out of nowhere despite no photos of him being in your house." she elaborates. "Would you prefer if we were there with you when you have to explain things, Rina?" suggests Lucia. The green mermaid smiles appreciatively at her. "Don't worry, Lucia. I can do it. Focus on informing Kaito since that's one and done."
"Tell me what?" With terrific timing, Lucia's Panthalassan boyfriend enters the Pearl Piari. "Hey, Lucia. I was going to visit you since you usually are close to being done by now, but I see you haven't even started. What, were you afraid to lose your way once you went outside?" says Kaito with a smirk. "Come on, Kaito!" countered Lucia with a pout. "We were discussing having to go back to our kingdoms." This phrase immediately cancels the smirk off the boy's face. "Why is that? I thought the seas were at peace now." "Besides the fact the lack of a major menace is exactly why they expect us to go back home eventually", interjects Rina, "there is this Akragas guy who controls a fiefdom in the Mediterranean Sea. Earlier this day, he suddenly barged into Lucia's kingdom. We think it's a sign we can no longer put off our duties. Especially since I don't trust that guy and want him nowhere near Lucia by her lonesome."
"Got it. Do you know how to contact this guy?" inquires Kaito. That question leaves the group pensive. "That's something we didn't think about. We were probably too focused on having to go back", replies Rina. Hanon turns toward Sara. "Sara, could you locate him for us and tell him he should return?" The mermaid ghost shakes her head. "No, I can't. Aqua Regina specifically requested I relayed messages between the mermaid princesses and a few trusted individuals, which is an assessment I agree with. You would have to take the slow way and ask Momo to do it for you." Grabbing Kaito's arm, Lucia intervenes, wanting to take that duty off her friends' plate. "Kaito, do you want to accompany me? It has been a while since you last met Momo."
The boy nods with energetic emphasis. "Certainly, I miss that dolphin. How about we buy him some anchovies on the way?" Lucia lets go of his arm and claps excitedly. "That sounds like a great idea! He will love it so much. We can go then. Bye, everyone." After Kaito repeats the goodbyes, they move towards the Pearl Piari's door. "See you later, Lucia and Kaito." the others say as the two exit. Nikora starts walking in the same direction. "I will go look for Hippo then. He ought to be here as we close down the hotel. Take care of your parts, Hanon and Rina." With that, she walks out the door. Rina slowly takes out her phone. "I guess I will give Masahiro a call then. It's time, isn't it, Hanon?" Hanon nods, wordlessly imitating Rina. "That's the duty of a mermaid princess. We knew fully well what would have happened. You should have anticipated this. I remember Hippo's words whenever I think about our departure. It has even started to spoil my dates with Masahiro. Why did we have to get our hearts stolen by a human? What wouldn't have I given for Masahiro to be a Panthalassan like Kaito and Rihito? It keeps me up at night, sometimes. Is that the same for you, Hanon?" As Hanon speaks up, the two of them start getting teary-eyed. "Those thoughts have occurred to me too. At the same time, it is not fair to be jealous of Lucia. Especially since you know how she is. She probably understands our situation all too well and feels guilty she can be all happy with Kaito while we are in this situation of stasis. I wish he would just discover everything. For example, one day, Aqua Regina drops everything on his lap, and then we are free to be together. I hate this bursting sensation. I hate not being able to tell him the truth. What sick joke is it that we would burst into bubbles just because we want to be sincere with our loved ones? Why is Aqua Regina only around when we are close to being defeated? I am sure she would have some answers. But even some unknown guy from some backwater place seems to have more of a link to her than us. What's the matter with that? Why is he a vassal of Aqua Regina and not of one of the mermaid kingdoms like yours or Seira's? You are already neighbours." The mermaid princess of the South Atlantic Ocean is in tatters now, the pent-up tears overflowing from her eyes. Rina is in a similar state, feeling like she can't breathe over having to leave the one who makes her feel happy and loved.
Sara, who has been watching the whole time, looks at the two with an expression of understanding and sadness. The sorrow of the two at losing their love was having uncomfortable flashbacks right now. 'Would you turn your sorrow against Aqua Regina herself if I left you as is, I wonder?' The Mermaid Princess of the Indian Ocean turns to address the two: "Rina, Hanon, listen to me: I can feel the strength of the love you hold for Masahiro and Nagisa. I know all too well it's an absolute love that can change the composition of the world, for better or for worse. You don't have to doubt it will outlast everything and anything." Rina holds up her fingers to remove some of her tears. "Oh, right, you were still here, Sara. You don't have to worry. We know our duties." Sara holds up a hand to interrupt her. "Nikora is right about one thing: it's preposterous for you to enlist Seira's help to travel through the Dream Corridor with how busy she is with the reconstruction of her kingdom." The orange glow of Sara's spirit intensifies, enveloping the two mermaids in a warm hug. In it, the two of them could feel the turbulent force of the dark storm that ravaged the Indian Ocean. Now, however, it shone as bright as a star. "But she forgets I haven't become a mere ghost. Now that my duty of helping my successor be born is over, what's causing me to persist is that same kind of love that causes your suffering. That's why I don't see any issue in bending the rules like these. Nikora forgets that Seira and I come from the same source: I can open the Dream Corridor too. So don't ever feel like you ought to give up your love because it is the source of terrible and great things." A smile passes on the sorrowful faces of the two mermaids. "Thanks, Sara." comment the two of them in unison. "I guess I will change the version we present to Masahiro." The red faces of the two girls appear much calmer now. "Thank you, Sara. I will tell him about my father moving nearby, so while he doesn't want to be seen by strangers, it will be much easier for me to return. See you later." The green mermaid moves the door behind her, ready to give the merry news to her boyfriend.
Hanon stays back, looking at Sara with confusion. "Is that something you want to do? What if you miss something crucial in your perlustration of the oceans just because you are busy helping us? If Aqua Regina asked you to keep an eye on things, that must be important." The orange ghost smiles. "I can manage it. Besides, I still have a debt to repay ever since you reminded me of what was important. That's also something important to me. You should go talk with Nagisa now." Hanon smiles at her appreciatively. "Got it, Sara! Thanks for having our backs!" With the last staff of the Pearl Piari leaving the premises, Sara is left with nothing to do but resume her routine in the oceanic depths.
Currently sticking to her own plans, Rina had already called up her boyfriend. She is walking on the sidewalk, the sea breeze caressing her hair as she walks with lighthearted steps. Just about 30 meters away, she can see a small cafè, its umbrellas promising the revitalising presence of shade. Parked nearby, she recognises Masahiro's motorcycle. Looking for his figure, she notices the table he sits at and starts heading there. When she reaches her destination, she sits at the table, smiling at him. The boy reciprocates her smile. "Hi, Rina. It's nice to see you in such a good mood." Rina holds his hand across the table. "Hello, Masahiro. I have received some important news and had to call you. We don't have to stop seeing each other anymore!" she announces energetically. Masahiro's smile gets larger. "Really? That's amazing. What happened?" Before the green-haired girl can reply, a waiter brings a cup of matcha green tea and one of koji amazake. "Ah, I ordered your usual in advance", says Masahiro to Rina before addressing the waiter. "The amazake is for me, please". The waiter leaves their respective drinks at the table before excusing himself. Rina grabs her tea and takes a sip: "Thanks. I really appreciate these moments with you. In fact, we can keep having them thanks to what just happened. I don't have to go on that long journey anymore." A look of surprise passes on Masahiro's face before he composes himself. "That's so nice, Rina. I wasn't looking forward to how much I would have missed you. What happened?" She promptly replies: "The journey's reason was my father's frail health. It wasn't an immediate concern, partially due to his stubbornness about being able to manage, but I knew the moment he couldn't make do anymore was approaching. However, he was able to find a place nearby to move in, something he was set on since he didn't want to make me move that far. I won't be here as often since I will be busy helping him. We can afford some moments together though since he is so close by now." Masahiro's expression becomes a curious mix of concern and relief. "I'm glad we can still be together, but do you need assistance with your father?" Rina shakes her head. "My father doesn't like being seen by people he doesn't know. I think he feels like he is being pitied. It was hard enough to make him accept Hanon and Lucia, about whom I have talked a lot. He also heard a lot from them over the phone for the last year." Masahiro nods, his forehead frowning. "I see. I hope you three will be fine. If you need emergency help, stubbornness or no stubbornness, you can always talk to me." Rina shows Masahiro a smile, yet it doesn't reach her eyes. Masahiro hesitates, but he doesn't press the issue. "Do you like your tea?" he asks instead. "A lot." replies Rina. The two of them keep chatting over their drinks, until the cups are empty. "I will go back to the Pearl Piari then. We still have much to prepare for my father's arrival." Masahiro extends his hand to hold hers. "I can accompany you there. Our last moments together before you go to your father." Rina looks at him with appreciation, despite the thought she would have to dismiss him hastily once they had reached the hotel. "Yes, we can do that. We need to meet at the Pearl Piari." she replies warmly, squeezing the hand that held hers. After paying for the drinks, the two walk calmly to their destination.
"Thank you for accompanying me. Since we have to discuss some delicate details, I will go in alone", says Rina once they reach the Pearl Piari. "Thank you for spending time with me", counters Masahiro. Rina watches the boy leave before entering the hotel with a sigh. "I am back, Nikora." To greet her, however, she sees Hippo. The penguin was busy hauling some of his things when Rina entered. "Hey, Hippo. I see Nikora informed you." The penguin turns towards her. "Of course she did. And obviously, none of you thought to call me when Sara came here." The green mermaid tries to calm him down. "We thought of you, but we didn't know where you had disappeared to. We will be sure to avoid this situation the next time." The penguin turns his shoulders at her before replying with a much calmer voice. "That's good. Nikora and the others have already finished handling their matters. I trust everything went well with Masahiro." The girl replies: "Yes, he took the news well. I wish I could have spent a bit more time with him." Hippo scowls at that before being interrupted by Rina. "You don't need to remind me of the duties of a mermaid princess. I am going upstairs now." Doing just what she said, she goes to Lucia's room, sure to find her friends there. True to form, Hanon and Lucia are sitting on the bed, chatting about the upcoming trip.
"Hey, Rina", greets Hanon as soon as she sees the green mermaid entering. "Everything fine with Masahiro?" Rina replies with a nod before sitting next to the two of them. "Yes, everything went well. We even spent some time together before our trip. What about Momo and Nagisa?" Lucia speaks up first. "He really enjoyed the anchovies and agreed to track down and give our message to Akragas together with other dolphins." "As for Nagisa", adds Hanon, sighing dreamily, "he was nice about it, and he treated me to some ice cream as a goodbye gift, though he wishes he could have been more prepared for this moment. Anyway, we are all set here, so it's about time we head downstairs." The three girls do that, meeting with Nikora, Hippo, Seira and Madame Taki. "I trust everything went well with your boyfriend, Rina?" asks the latter, still holding her signature crystal ball. "Yes, thanks, Madame Taki." Nikora intervenes. "I have already sent a dolphin to inform of our arrival while we were getting prepared. All that's left is for us to go." Seira abruptly asks a question. "Wait, Nikora, what about Maki?" At the sudden question, she gets fidgety. "Oh, I have already informed him the Pearl Piari is closing down and said goodbye to him while you were busy snooping everywhere for Sara's presence." "I wasn't snooping", protests the Mermaid Princess of the Indian Ocean. "I wanted to make sure she wasn't waiting for me as my predecessor." Hippo clears his throat. "Matters of Sara's encounter from which I was unfairly excluded aside, you should stop dallying. All the preparations are over and you have ignored your duty long enough." The rest of the group nods their understanding before they all say goodbye to the hotel.
Heading to the hill giving into the sea, the group finds Kaito waiting there. He waves at them with a wide smile. "Hello, everyone. I thought I'd wait for you here." "Kaito!" shouts Lucia, hurrying over to him. "Are you missing me already, Lucia? It hasn't even been five minutes."Lucia protests. "Do you really think this is the moment to poke fun at me?" The boy only smirks more. "You are right: I should be blessing you for your travels. I, Kaito Domoto of the Panthalassa Clan, hereby grant you safe passage in these seas. How is that?" Lucia pouts. "As if mermaids would need protection in the sea." The boy suddenly becomes serious before hugging her. "Lucia, I am going to miss you. Let's see each other soon, ok?" The pink mermaid nods, surprised yet happy at his sudden change in demeanour. "Yes, I am sure we will!" Kaito looks at the rest of the group. "I haven't forgotten you, of course. Say hello to the kingdoms for me, will you?" Nikora nods. "I'm sure you are welcome at the North Pacific Ocean anytime." Giving their goodbyes, the group finally jumps into the water, leaving the land behind for the time being.
I do not own any of Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch's characters or original stories, only the plot of this fanfic. Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch's characters and original storyline belong to Michiko Yokote and Pink Hanamori.