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Mei daintily picked her way through the thick layer of leaves and pine straw, making her way to the small cove Bella had told her about. It was off the beaten path, less likely than the beach to have any human bystanders, which was nice. It had been some time since she'd transfigured out of the bathtub, and she missed it.
She was quite pleased when she found the place, standing carefully on the water's edge to look around. The water lapped softly at the sandy edges, the water itself flowing sluggishly past. Tree roots, rocks, and fallen limbs littered the edges, but farther out she could see where it got deeper. The thought of being able to fully submerge herself without having to squeeze into a tub to do it was a very nice one.
After carefully making sure there was no one else around for the thousandth time, Mei shed her pants and underwear. She folded them neatly and set them just under the rippling roots of a tree. Daintily picking her way over the rocks, she slipped into the brackish water, unable to resist a sigh of relief. Even half-salty water was enough to make her magic tingle. Bath salts were nice, as Alice had said, but they weren't the sea.
Mei slipped under the water, tying her hair back as she transfigured. The cool water was semi-clear, so she dared not go too far. Predators roamed all waters, and here she was a stranger, prey.
After a few minutes of flitting around the main pool, just swimming and poking around the root ridden sides, Mei hauled herself onto the large bolder near the edge. She perched there, tail out of the water, and looked out over the river. She could see the sea in the distance, and she felt strangely sad. It was her home, it always would be, but land had some appeal as well. It could be her home too, couldn't it? She liked the birds that rode the winds, the food, and the feeling of things between her toes be it sand or grass or simple floors. And of course there was no pandas or Hello Kitty in Atlantica. Would it be so bad, to want to stay on land? Yes she would be homesick, but none of her sisters were here. There was no one to shove her into the shadows, no one for her to live up to. On land she could just be Mei.
She was so deep in thought she didn't notice the figure coming nearer, branches and leaves crunching under heavy work boots. Only when it was too late to do more than turn and stare, mouth open in shocked horror, did the approach catch her attention.
Ivan Braginski, clad in old clothes and his usual trench coat, stared at the mermaid several paces away. Mei didn't know whether to panic or blush as his gaze slowly ran up her fin, taking in her black and copper scales, making their way up her drenched and clinging top, and finally stopping at her face.
Violet met chocolate brown.
Then, without a word, he turned and walked away.
BREAK*BREAK*BREAK
When Mei finally got to school the next day, she tracked him down in the halls before class. Ivan wasn't that hard to spot. There weren't many people in attendance that were over six feet tall and parted the crowds wherever they walked.
Emboldened with the bravery of fear and desperation, Mei grabbed a handful of his sleeve, digging her heals in to get him to stop. When he did, his gaze snapped down to regard her.
"I need to talk to you," she said urgently, tugging him out of the main current of students.
Ivan said nothing, gliding with her out of the mess. Mei had intended to march him outside where they could talk in peace, but the Russian seemed to have other ideas. He grabbed the handle of the nearest janitor's closet and yanked it open, his hand moving to grasp her arm. Before Mei could protest, she was forced, if gently, into the small room.
The door banged shut behind them, and Ivan flicked on a light. Mei didn't waste any time.
"Listen, you can't tell anyone about me," she blurted. "I'm begging you, you don't know-
"I have no intentions of telling people about you, Mei," he said, his gaze solemn. "People react poorly to what they do not understand. I give you my word I won't tell anyone without your permission, da?"
Mei felt a huge weight ease from her shoulders. All she could manage was a breathless, "Thank you."
Ivan nodded once, mouth turning up in a barely there smile. Without another word, he reached out and flicked the lights back out.
BREAK*BREAK*BREAK
Antonio, after much thought, had finally decided on what humans called a game plan. He would ask Lovina out, try and get her to warm up to him before he told her the truth. Originally he'd thought he could simply show her his fins and go from there, but what if she didn't react well? He didn't want to wipe her mind, he genuinely liked her, and the spell was notorious for giving the administrator a killer migraine for at least 24 hours after. It also meant he'd have to bring her to King Britannia to break the bond, and that was not something he looked forward to. No Mer king would gladly break a bond.
The Mer walked into school that day with this plan in mind, though he still hadn't decided on what sort of date he should ask her out on. Antonio was still trying to work something out when the doors banged open behind him. He turned in time to see Lovina's expression before she grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back outside.
"Where are we going, Lovi?" he asked, letting her pull him along. By now he had adjusted enough to legs to be able to stop both of them, but he didn't think that would get him much favor from Lovina. Besides, he was curios, not to mention worried. Her face looked haggard, dark circles were under her eyes, and she looked pale.
Lovina waited until they were behind the library and away from the general population to turn on him. "You had better tell me what the hell you did to me, and you're going to do it now." The demand ended in a ragged cough.
Antonio frowned. She was tired, he could feel it. Initially all he'd noticed was her irritation, but if he poked deeper he could feel concern, even a few traces of fear.
"Haven't you been drinking salt water?"
"It's the only thing that's helped," she said wearily. "And I'm taking salty baths, but the more I do it the less it helps. If I'm dying I've got a right to know."
Antonio frowned. This wasn't good, nor was it what he'd planned on. Sure he'd heard it was best to get your bond-mate into the sea within a few days after you kissed them, but he'd never heard anything about it being a necessity for their health. If he'd known that he would have done something sooner. From the sound of it Lovina needed a good swim in the sea. Antonio himself tried to get one in once a week. The salty water only did so much, but a Mer could go months off it.
Taking a deep breath, Antonio took the plunge. "Meet me at Wake Beach after school, I'll tell you everything you want to know."
"Why can't you just tell me now?"
"Because it's something I have to show you, and now isn't the place or the time."
Lovina eyed him suspiciously. "What are you trying to pull, idiota?"
"Nothing," insisted Antonio. "I promise I'll answer all your questions, just meet me there after school." He started to back up, about to bolt into the school, but paused, "Oh, and wear a bathing suit."
"Why the hell am I going to need a bathing suit?" demanded Lovina as he hurried away.
BREAK*BREAK*BREAK
Lovina scowled after Antonio. Honestly, what was he thinking? She had half a mind to ignore the meet, but she did want answers. She'd been surprised just how much the salt water had helped. The baths had felt like heaven, and chugging bottles of the stuff was the only thing to stop her coughing.
"If he lied about being sick, I'll kill him," muttered Lovina.
About to go inside herself, she turned when she heard her sisters voice. Her scowl returned full force when she saw Feliciana bounding over to Ludwig. She'd seen Feliciana get hurt one too many times by boys, and had taken to keeping her ditzy twin's suitors at bay. Feliciana loved easily, but she seemed particularly attached to this one. Though she would never admit it, Lovina had noticed Ludwig seemed more...appropriate than the others, if nothing else. Most just wanted the money that the Vargas family had, or they were in it for sex. When Feliciana didn't give them what they wanted, they dumped her. As far as Lovina knew, Ludwig hadn't even kissed her beloved twin yet. It was why she both hated him even more and allowed him the tiniest grain of grudging respect.
"Luddy!" cried Feliciana, throwing herself at him in a hug.
Lovina scowled, starting towards them as Ludwig stumbled back. Feliciana's toes dangled nearly a foot from the ground, her arms wrapped around his neck in a hug. She couldn't beat up Feli for this, but Ludwig was another story.
"I'm so happy to see you! Sorry I had to work on my project this weekend. We can go on a date next weekend though, right?"
Face turning a gradually darkening shade of red, Ludwig stammered, "Um, yes, of course. School comes first."
"Yay!"
With that, Feliciana planted a kiss square on his mouth.
Lovina froze in her advance. Since when had her sister ever made the first move? Oh gods she really liked this one, didn't she? Great, now how was she supposed to pulverize Ludwig? She hated to have to wait until he actually hurt Feliciana to do it, but until then her sister wasn't about to let her...
It occurred to Lovina that the noise had gone down considerably. She looked around, and was surprised to see the number of horrified looks. Yes there were the usual wolf whistles and glances of amusement, but at least half a dozen people were looking at her sister as though she'd just stabbed a puppy.
Shaking it off, Lovina resumed her advance, stomping up to them and dragging Feliciana down. "Come on, idiota. Time for class. You can make out later."
"Aw, Lovi, you're mean," whined Feliciana. "Let me go! Bye, Luddy!"
Lovina glanced back just before she hauled her sister through the school doors. She got another surprise by the dead white look on Ludwig's face. Damn, what was the problem? You'd think these Miami kids had never seen anyone get kissed before.
BREAK*BREAK*BREAK
One the twins were gone, Gilbert whistled softly. "Well, it's a good thing we didn't place bets. I would have lost." He swaggered up to Ludwig, clapping his brother on the shoulder. "Congrats, West."
Ludwig swayed slightly, something he hadn't done under his brother's heavy-handed back pounding since he was five. "She...she kissed me, bruder."
Alice groaned, dropping her face into her hands where she sat at a picnic table. "First Antonio, and now Ludwig. Who's next?"
Elizabeta cleared her throat uncomfortably.
Very slowly, Alice lifted her head. Her friend was shifting uncomfortably in her seat. "Oh no, Lizzy, not you too."
"He was being a perfect gentlemen, honest. His parents are total snobs, wouldn't leave us alone, so he brought me here to play a song he'd written just for me. Then he took me to dinner, and we walked along the beach. It was really romantic. He pulled out chairs for me, held doors for me, and he even walked me to the door. It was just a peck goodnight, really, I just...he was aiming for my cheek but I didn't expect it and I turned and..." She shrugged helplessly. "He apologized, but the damage was done. I haven't told him, but I plan to."
"For the love of Neptune, what were those officials thinking, letting so many hormonal teenagers loose on land," muttered Alice, rubbing her temples. "And why the bloody hell do humans kiss so much?"
"Well from what I hear it's very enjoyable. I can understand why they would indulge if there's no magic to worry about."
"Not helping," muttered Alice.
Elizabeta shrugged. "It's the truth. Did Alfred kiss you? I heard you two had a date."
Alice pinched the bridge of her nose. "No, thank Poseidon."
"What, don't want an immature bond?"
"No, the idiot has a love affair with McDonalds. I don't know how he eats that stuff. No fin-flipping way I'm letting him kiss me after a meal like that."
Elizabeta frowned. "I thought you were on a date."
"Sort of. I agreed to model for him, for the project he's doing for the art festival. He took me to get something to eat after, and...
"McDonalds, really? I mean I've never had it but I've heard it's as unhealthy as it is popular."
"It is! Do you know how many calories are in one of those Big Mac's? Honestly. He must have a extraordinary metabolism if he can eat there as often as I think he does and still not be fat."
"Wait, how often does he go there?"
"They know him by name, Lizzy. They know his name, they know his bloody order."
Elizabeta took a moment to digest this, and asked carefully, "How is it you didn't know this before?"
"I don't know," muttered Alice, getting to her feet and shouldering her backpack. "Come on, the bell's about to ring."
As Elizabeta stood she asked, "Are you sure you still like him?"
Alice sighed. "He's an annoying junk food junkie, but I have to admit things were going rather well. That is until McDonalds."
"Well, unless there's something that's too much of a turn off, why not keep going? If you don't want him I'm sure there's plenty of girls-
"I know," snapped Alice, and then sighed. She might have a temper but she wasn't nearly this volatile in water. "I need a swim."
"We'll go after school. Homework can wait."
"Don't you have a piano bench to sit on?"
Elizabeta sighed mournfully as they pushed through the doors. "No. Roderich has a dentist appointment after school."
Alice chuckled. Considering Elizabeta had the highest standards of any girl she'd ever met, she was head over heels for the human. The princess was happy for her, really, but she couldn't help being a little jealous. She'd seen the bond at work before, had seen the happiness it could bring. While there was still a deadline to keep in mind, she did find herself wanting this. The unintentional bonding could end up really well or as a big mess, though for their sakes she hoped it was the former.
Though now that she thought about it, knowing Alfred he was a prime candidate for surprising her with a kiss, as Feliciana had done to Ludwig. It was definitely worth seeing to, even if it would be embarrassing. The last thing she needed was to be the one at the head of the line if they had to bring Neptune knows how many humans to her father for un-bonding. That was not something she wanted to deal with.
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