AN: New chapter! It's kind of a filler, but it's some bonding between Elphie and her aunt, which I think is kinda important for the story... and there are some things in it that you need to know, but that will make more sense later.

I'm still surprised at the response I get for this story - according to my poll, three out of the four stories you like best are the three most AU stories I've written; this one is probably the most AU of all. I mean, it has a will of its own - it's getting way more AU than I had originally anticipated, yet it's the one that got the most votes. Remarkable.

Ozzie: yes, you're in the Frex Hunters ;-).

Dude. My name is never ever (I really love that new username, by the way): no, I haven't gotten any books published, but thank you for the compliment ^_^. I'd really like to try, someday.

Chapter 24. Stories and legends and myths, oh my!

After their talk, Elphaba asked Aurya to take her back to Adurin Iir, and the older mermaid complied.

'Will you come back?' she asked quietly. Elphaba hesitated, but then nodded. 'This isn't goodbye,' she promised her aunt. 'I mean… I can't just find out all these things about myself and my family and then turn my back on it. But I can't stay right now, either.'

Aurya nodded sympathetically. 'Because of Fiyero. I understand.'

Elphaba gave her a small smile. 'Not just because of him,' she said. 'Aurya… you're my family by blood, and I love the fact that I found you now. Plus you saved my life all those years ago. But you have to understand that Lori and Hamold are the ones who raised me, made sure I was clothed and fed, that I went to school, that I was loved… They're as much of a family to me as you are. I consider Cohvu my brother, Galinda my sister, and Fiyero…' She made a face. 'I'm not sure what I consider him, exactly,' she admitted, eliciting a soft chuckle from Aurya. 'But he's family, too. And… I can't just abandon them now that I found you. Not just like that.'

Aurya reached out and squeezed her niece's arm. 'I understand, Elphaba,' she said solemnly. 'Really, I do. You don't have to explain to me what family means,' she added with a wry smile, and Elphaba looked up at her. 'I'm sorry,' she said. 'For everything that happened.'

Aurya smiled at her. 'I am, too, Fabala, but it happened the way it happened, and we can't change it now. I'm happy that at least I got you back,' she added, and the green girl nodded. 'Me, too.'

Because despite everything, Morrible locking her and Fiyero up, having to fear for their lives, the story she had heard from her long-lost aunt… it had been so overwhelming and slightly scary, but, she realised now, somewhere along the way, it had filled the hole inside of her that had always been there because of the not knowing. It would be difficult, and she wasn't sure what the future would bring… but at least now she knew the truth.

'I meant what I said before,' Aurya said as they continued on swimming. Elphaba wasn't sure how her aunt knew the way back to the beach when everything under the water looked alike, but she supposed that was just a matter of looking at things… well, another way.

'You have to follow your heart,' Aurya continued. 'If you do that, Fabala, if you just listen to yourself, discover what it is you want from life and act like it… then everything will be okay, and you will find a place where you belong.'

Elphaba's head whipped around to look at her godmother.

Aurya smiled. 'Did I hit the nail on the head?'

'You did, actually,' the green girl admitted reluctantly. 'I was just thinking that… that with everything I found out today, and everything – everyone – back at Adurin Iir… I still don't feel like I belong.'

She sighed and pushed both hands through her long, thick hair. 'I never truly felt like I did before,' she said, 'but now it just feels like I'm being pulled at from two directions. A part of me belongs here, in the ocean, with you… and another part of me belongs with the Tiggulars at Adurin Iir… but I feel like there's not one place in the entire world where I completely belong.'

Her aunt just looked at her. 'You will find your place,' she said softly. 'Someday, somehow… you'll just know.'

They swam together in silence for a while, both of them lost in their own thoughts before Elphaba spoke up again. 'So, mermaids have powers?'

Aurya nodded.

'What kind of powers?' Elphaba asked. 'I mean… do all mermaids have powers or just some of them? I already know that I can manipulate water, to some extent, and heal people, and of course breathe under the water, but what else could I do?'

Aurya smiled. 'All mermaids have powers,' she explained. 'To some extent, anyway. We can all heal and naturally we can all breathe under the water. The royal family is generally stronger than other mermaids – it's in our blood. You are particularly strong, because you're not just from this world – you're a hybrid. Half mermaid, half human. That makes you even stronger.'

Elphaba listened intently, intrigued. 'Really?'

Aurya nodded. 'You're going to have to try things out to discover the limits of your magic, but I could guess your basic powers. Healing, manipulating water – that takes a lot of practice, mind. I'm surprised you did it this morning, to free Fiyero.'

Elphaba scrunched up her nose. 'But I didn't manipulate water then,' she protested. 'I blew a hole in the cave.'

Aurya smiled at her. 'By controlling the water,' she told her niece. 'You forced the water onto one spot, using it to put pressure on the cave wall until it crumbled. Most of mermaids' powers have something to do with water.'

'Which is rather strange,' Elphaba noted, 'given that we're allergic to fresh water. Yet we can manipulate it.'

Aurya looked surprised. 'We can?'

Elphaba just looked at her, and her aunt shook her head in mild amazement. 'I have never been ashore before,' she admitted. 'I've gone to the surface a few times, but I never actually explored the main land. I wouldn't know much about fresh water. I do know it burns us, of course – poking your head out of the ocean while it's raining is a hard lesson.' She made a face.

Elphaba chuckled. 'Tell me about it. I was almost dropped into a pond once,' she admitted.

Aurya looked shocked. 'How did that happen?' she demanded, and Elphaba shrugged. 'Some boy trying to pull a prank on me,' she said. 'He didn't believe I was allergic to water, so he thought it would be funny to drop me into the pond.' She smiled softly at the memory. 'Fiyero saved me.'

Aurya smiled, too, upon seeing the look on the girl's face. 'You really love him, don't you?'

'I do.' Elphaba chuckled. 'He nearly got a heart attack when Avaric threatened to drop me.' Then her gaze turned worried again. 'I bet he's worried sick right now.'

Aurya placed her hand on her niece's shoulder comfortingly. 'That's why we're on our way to Adurin Iir right now,' she reminded the girl gently, and Elphaba nodded and flashed her a quick smile. 'Right. Let's just hope he won't do anything stupid in the meantime.'

She looked at her godmother again. 'So, healing and manipulating water. Anything else I should know about?'

'Casting spells,' Aurya replied. 'There were several spell books in use in Melena's kingdom, which the merpeople could use for small spells; however, Morrible had all of those destroyed to prevent her people from turning on her and attacking her with magic. I myself managed to save a copy or two of those – I'll show them to you next time you visit,' she promised. 'You will visit again, won't you?'

'I will,' Elphaba assured her, and Aurya smiled. 'Good. Anyway, you could try and look up some spell books in the human world as well – I suppose they will work, too. Mermaid magic is not limited to the underwater world.'

'Perhaps there are some in the library at Adurin Iir,' Elphaba mused. 'It's a really big one – I love it. It's perhaps my favourite room in the entire castle,' she admitted a bit shyly, and Aurya laughed. 'You're a lot like Melena in that respect,' she smiled. 'And like myself, too. I love books.'

She shook her head. 'But I digress. We were talking about magical abilities. Let's see, is there more…' She tapped her chin thoughtfully.

'I can't really think of much else at the moment,' she confessed after a while. 'But like I said – you'll find out for yourself soon enough. Your powers will develop as you get older, and they will reveal themselves to you in time – particularly when you get emotional.'

'I noticed,' Elphaba muttered, and Aurya continued, 'But there are a lot of stories, myths and legends, about mermaid powers.'

'What kind of stories?' asked Elphaba curiously, and Aurya counted them on her fingers. 'Well, for one, there is this legend about a mermaid who fell in love with a human prince, only he did not love her back. In the end, she became sea foam and ceased to exist.'

Elphaba stared at her aunt. 'That sounds depressing,' she said finally, and Aurya chuckled. 'I know. But there are other stories. Many of them involve fresh water, too – there's a story about a mermaid who turned out not to be allergic to fresh water. For as far as I know, that story is real, to some extent, and she is the only one ever known to not be allergic to fresh water. But that, too, is quite a depressing story. It was a girl that lost her entire family in a war, a long, long time ago, and she herself became severely disfigured. Not wanting to live any longer, she turned herself into a human and jumped into a fresh water lake, intending to kill herself… only to find out that she did not react to fresh water at all.'

Elphaba raised one eyebrow, but her aunt was just getting started. 'That wasn't the end, though,' she assured her niece. 'She eventually just threw herself off a cliff and onto rock bottom. That worked, too.'

'Are there also tales about mermaids that have a happy ending?' Elphaba asked pointedly. Aurya flashed her an apologetic grin. 'I'm sorry – these stories aren't really giving you the right impression of merpeople, I guess. It's not like all we ever do is die.'

'Thank Oz, because I was already starting to fear for my life,' the younger mermaid said drily, at which Aurya chuckled. 'Let me see… There's the story about the King, one of our ancestors, saving his entire kingdom with his magical abilities,' she offered. 'Or the legend about the mermaid – also a hybrid, I believe, half human and half mermaid - who went ashore, was caught by a downpour of rain and died because of it, but then she shed her mermaid form and became human, getting a chance at a second life. There's also a story about a merman who spent his entire life helping others, believing that he could make a difference in the world. He went ashore to visit hospitals and heal sick people with his powers, he took out criminals by using his water magic… according to the tale, he even defeated the evil Sea Witch – an ancestor of Morrible's, I believe.' She smiled wryly. 'Take one thing from me, Fabala – never trust a Sea Witch. As a general rule, they are evil.'

Elphaba sniggered. 'Point taken, but trust me, I had figured that much out for myself,' she assured Aurya. She furrowed her brow. 'What I couldn't help but notice about these stories, though, is that a lot of them involve a mermaid going ashore. Does that happen often?'

Aurya smiled. 'Most merpeople are unusually curious,' she admitted. 'A lot of them want to see the human world for themselves when they hear about it, and it's not a rarity that a mermaid or merman goes ashore to explore. Most of them stay hidden, though. They observe the humans from a distance, seeing, but without being seen. Otherwise the newspapers would be full of stories about green- and blue-skinned persons,' Aurya chuckled.

'I've been wanting to ask you that, too,' Elphaba remembered. She held out her arms for her aunt to see. 'What's with the skin colour thing?'

'Mermaids are generally blue or green coloured,' Aurya said simply. 'I don't know why – perhaps to fit in better with the colours of the ocean. As you can see, my own signature colour is somewhere in between blue and green, while you are a definite green. Your mother was green, too, though a much lighter shade than you are; while your grandmother, mine and Melena's own mother, was a very dark blue.' She shrugged. 'There's not really any logic behind it,' she admitted. 'Our skin sometimes changes its colour slightly as we grow older, but it differs.'

She looked at her niece. 'Any more questions?'

'Not now,' Elphaba said with a small laugh. 'I feel like I'm going crazy already.'

'It's a lot to take in, isn't it?' Aurya patted her arm. 'Don't worry, Fabala, you'll be just fine. Why don't you let it sink in, talk it through with your… family, and… well, you know where to find me.'

She tried to make light of it, but Elphaba caught the small pause before the word 'family', and she knew it must hurt Aurya to realise that she wasn't that. She was, of course, by blood; but she hadn't been around while Elphaba had grown up. She didn't have anyone left, Elphaba suddenly realised. Melena was gone and so was her and Aurya's mother, and Aurya had then been banished, forced to leave everything behind and start over on her own. She suddenly felt a rush of sympathy for her aunt.

In an impulse, she kissed her godmother's cheek. 'For what it's worth,' she said softly, 'you did the right thing by leaving me here. You saved my life, Aurya. And you were right – I have been safe and happy for my entire childhood. Thank you for that.'

Aurya smiled a bit sadly and hugged her niece. 'You're welcome, Fabala.' She pulled away and looked at the girl solemnly. 'I just hope we can start building a relationship again now.'

Elphaba returned the smile. 'I'd love that.'

'Good.' Aurya squeezed her hand, then became practical again. 'We're here,' she said. 'So I'm going to cast the spell that will change you back to your human form. I'll teach it to you next time we meet, so that you can do it for yourself, okay?'

Elphaba nodded. 'Okay.'

'Now,' Aurya said warningly, 'it's a rather heavy spell, especially when it's cast by someone else, and you're not really used to all this magic yet… So there might be side effects. Headache, dizziness – you might lose consciousness again. I'm not sure what will happen, but I promise I'll take care of you, okay? I'm not leaving until you're awake and safe.'

The green girl nodded again. 'I trust you,' she said, and for a moment, Aurya got a faraway look in her eyes, a small smile curling the corners of her lips. 'Thank you.'

She closed her eyes and started chanting. Elphaba felt a little nauseous for a moment, and then everything around her suddenly blurred and started spinning.

Then it all went black.