At about 5:30pm, the Doctor pulls into their driveway. He rings the doorbell and Joanne opens the door for him. "Oh hello Doctor" Joanne said and smiled. "Come on in we were just making dinner." The house smelled of seafood. "Gray loves seafood, I think it's about all he'll eat other than fruits and veggies" Joanne said. "He doesn't eat sweets, candies, or cakes too often unless it's his birthday." "Really" the Doctor asked and raised an eyebrow. "Oh yes, although he does like burgers and chicken too from time to time" Joanne explained. "He'll also eat bacon, toast, and cereal when it's breakfast time." "That's good to hear" The doctor said. "Gray" Joanne yelled "Dinner's almost ready! We're having flounder fillets!" At the smell of seafood cooking, Gray ran down from his room upstairs. His speed went from zero to sixty miles an hour. He arrived downstairs in the dining room and saw his mother and the Doctor. "Oh hello Doctor, are you here to observe me today" Gray asked. "Yes, I am" The Doctor said. "Very well" Gray said back. "Is dinner ready Mom" Gray asked. "Just about babe" Joanne said back. "Okay" Gray and the doctor, sat down at the dining room table. "How are you doing Gray" The doctor asked and looked at Gray. "I'm doing well Doctor, how about you" Gray inquired. "I'm doing fine as well" the doctor replied. "Okay dinner is ready" Joanne said. "Gray, don't take too much fish, we've got a visitor." "Alright mom" Gray said politely. They all sat down to eat dinner. The Doctor gave Gray an odd look and raised his eyebrows as Gray consumed his flounder fillets like a hungry shark. The Doctor stroked his white beard "hmmm, is he always like this when eating seafood" the doctor asked and looked at Joanne. "Yes he is" Joanne confirmed. "Every time we have seafood which is almost every night actually, he always eats like that." "I'm surprised he hasn't grown scales from eating all that fish" Joanne said and chuckled. Gray stared at her. "Just kidding Honey" Joanne said and smiled. "At least he's using a fork and not eating like a sea lion" The Doctor thought to himself. Gray noticed the Doctor staring at him "Doctor, is something wrong" Gray asked. "You're staring at me and stroking your beard." "Oh, nothing is wrong I'm just observing you" the doctor said. "Okay then" Gray said and finished his last flounder fillet and moved on to his other foods.
Joanne turns on the TV where a Reporter is at the beach. "Hey, what's the reporter going on about", Gray asked. "There have been a few strange sightings of a naked woman today" The reporter explained. The reporter then notices Nerissa running by. "Is that a naked woman running on the beach" Gray asked. He covers his eyes "where are her clothes, is she poor?" "I don't know honey" Joanne replied. "Huh, she should put some on or she'll get cold" Gray said. "She probably should" Joanne replied "she shouldn't be naked like that. It could scar beach going children." The Doctor looked at the clock and then at Joanne and asked "when's Gray's bedtime?" "About 9pm and sometimes 8:30pm" Joanne replied. "Huh, I see. I need to talk to you alone when that time comes" The Doctor said. "Alright" Joanne said. Meanwhile the reporter is staring in disbelief. "Hmm" the Doctor caught a glimpse of the TV "that reporter looks like he just saw a ghost" he then laughed a bit. "Well we all just saw a naked woman on the beach" Joanne said "Anyone would be shocked." "True" the doctor replied back "why is she naked though?" "I can't really explain it" Joanne said and looked confused. "I can't either" The doctor said. "Maybe she lives around here and goes skinny dipping" Joanne said. A few hours later. "Mom, I'm tired" Gray said in a sleepy tone. "I'm gonna get cleaned up and head to bed." "Will you come visit me later" Gray asked and looked at his mother expectantly. "Sure baby" Joanne said gently. "G'night Mom, G'night doctor" Gray said to both his mother and the Doctor. "Good night Gray" They both said back. Gray gets cleaned up and heads off to bed.
Joanne and the doctor sit on Joanne's couch in her living room and begin to converse. "Good, the young one is asleep" The Doctor said in an assuring fashion. "I need to ask you something but it would be too difficult for Gray to understand right now" The Doctor said this with a worried expression. "Alright, tell me" Joanne said and looked at the Doctor. "You have blonde hair blue eyes and Gray has green eyes and what's not so common among humans is his royal blue hair" The doctor said while stroking his beard. "You're also single. Is that correct?" "Yes it is" Joanne said. The Doctor then looked Joanne straight in the eyes and asked "Is Gray your biological son?" "No, I adopted him when he was only eight months old" Joanne replied. "Eight months old" the doctor shouted in astonishment. "Where did you find him?" "I found him at an orphanage, the people there said they found him on the beach" Joanne said. "On the beach you say" the Doctor said. He stroked his beard with an odd look on his face. "The beach?!" "Yes, I didn't believe them at first, but they found a small sea shell locket around his neck confirming that they were telling the truth" Joanne said. "Hmmm, is he, no it can't be" the Doctor thought to himself while looking down stroking his beard. "Do 'they' really exist?" "Joanne, I need a day or two more to observe Gray, is that okay with you" the Doctor asked. "Yes that's fine" Joanne said. "By the way, do you have that seashell locket on you or does Gray have it with him?" "He usually hands it to me when he goes to bed" Joanne replied. "May I see it" the Doctor asked. "Of course" Joanne then hands the Doctor a blue seashell locket. The doctor finds some strange symbols and some numbers on it. He looks at it closely. "This is in some odd language but I can tell what the numbers mean" the Doctor said. "What do they mean" Joanne inquired. "The numbers are arranged in a date like fashion." Four Twenty, could that mean April 20th" the Doctor asked. Joanne confirmed this and said "Yes, that's Gray's birthday." "So he was born on April 20th was he?" "This locket is a birth certificate." I'm going to need to take a picture of this locket." I have a friend who deals with odd stuff like this." "I can't read the strange symbols on the locket just the numbers" the Doctor explained. "Very well" Joanne said. "Thank you" the Doctor takes a few pictures of the opened up locket with his smart phone. "Here's the locket back". "I'm going home now, I'll be back the next day to observe Gray." The Doctor said. "Okay" Joanne said. "Drive safe!" Joanne goes up to her son's room, reads to him, and gives him a kiss good night before going to sleep herself.
The doctor then leaves and turns on the radio in his car. All of a sudden his music is interrupted. "Hmm, what's the meaning of this" the doctor asked". The news came on all of a sudden.
"Breaking News" an announcer exclaimed. "Huh" The Doctor said. "There are reports that a strange woman has been sighted at the local beach today." "Hmm" the Doctor then stroked his beard. "Witnesses say the woman has light blue hair and is naked." "Light blue hair huh, how unusual" the Doctor froze and gasped as soon as he said that "wait a minute!" He remembers Gray's appearance. "It's a different shade of blue but it's still unusual. It's a rather rare hair color." "Could that naked woman be Gray's real mother" The Doctor asked himself. "Hmmm, I'll need to get a closer look at her and then Gray when I see him tomorrow." For now I need to send these pictures to my friend Akihiko to have him examine the symbols on Gray's locket." He sends the photos of Gray's locket to Akihiko. The doctor then heads home. "Blue hair, how odd even for a human. Gray's hair is also kind of long for a child his age." "I think that woman is an actual mermaid and Gray might be, no I don't know for sure. I don't have enough evidence yet" The Doctor arrives at home and retires for the night.
Meanwhile Nerissa is sleeping in her grotto. Nerissa wakes up for a bit, her emerald eyes full of worry. "Oh sweetie" Nerissa said in a saddened tone. "I hope you're okay wherever you are." "Mommy will come back for you soon to complete your transformation. Then you can come home and live with me." She stares at the ceiling of her grotto for a while and then goes back to sleep.
