"Yes, keep walking, carry on like this," Giulia said to herself as she got off the bus, "as if you don't know anything."

And she continued walking to the entrance; at least everything looked normal; her other coworkers didn't seem to notice; for them, it was just another day at work.

"The same for you; you don't know anything," she continued. Giulia knew she shouldn't be nervous. They hadn't left any clues incriminating them; besides, she had Guido's protection, and he had made sure to erase all traces.

Confident that all would be fine, she walked through the gates; and there realized the mess she had made.

The lobby was full of guards checking the cards of all the employees. There was one in every corner, and they were practically impossible to avoid.

"All staff, present your ID and access card," called a voice from the overhead speakers.

"My God! What the hell…?" exclaimed one of her coworkers.

Now there was a guard in front of the identifier. Giulia took out her card and handed it over; he checked it, then looked at her; the girl understood what she wanted and took out her citizen card. After checking it, the guard passed it through the scanner. After the beep, he nodded.

"Next," he said.

Giulia didn't wait for him to repeat it, and she entered. The best thing would be to act natural, so she went to the girls' dressing rooms; as she walked, she didn't notice Ercole or Ciccio behind the secretary's desk. Ercole wanted to check the entry process, thinking he would catch the thief if he saw him. He was sure he knew the profile the spy should have.

"In my opinion, it's a highly trained group," he told Ciccio, "I think it's possibly special forces or something similar."

"Do you think the Red Army is back?" Ciccio asked, scared.

"Possibly, highly trained soldiers, an elite group with plenty of financial resources."

"We found the van they used to escape a few miles from here," Ciccio mentioned.

Ercole stared at him.

"Something we can use?"

Ciccio shook his head.

"They blew it up; when our men got to the place, everything was burned, and the tracks buried in the snow."

Ercole cursed inwardly.

"And the man who was driving the truck?! The guard said he saw his face clearly!"

Ciccio nodded, feeling hopeful for the first time.

"Oh, yes, the man's face was burned; no one goes unnoticed with that detail."

Ercole laughed mockingly; Ciccio was a specialist in stating the obvious.

"The sketch artist is drawing a profile as we speak; soon, we'll have 'wanted' posters all over town," the blond continued.

Ercole crossed his arms; at least they already had something, and he looked forward and noticed Giulia.

"She was the only employee who had access to the lab," he recalled, "could it be that-"

Ercole laughed mockingly; what was he thinking? Spewulia couldn't even win a children's race; how could she steal two sea monsters from them? Besides, that job would take men, not a frightened little girl.

"We must be careful; from what you have told me, Ercole, we are dealing with efficient, ruthless men with pinpoint precision. It took them less than five minutes to infiltrate. I calculate that the attack unit was at least ten men."

"Yes, you're right, Ciccio."

...

Massimo wanted to open the pescheria immediately and tell everyone they could celebrate the holidays with fish. But he knew he'd have to get the boys some clothes first, not just so they wouldn't freeze to death, but their seaweed shorts would look strange, and the last thing they wanted was to attract attention. His first attempt was to find some of his old clothes, but unfortunately, Massimo didn't have much left. He had donated almost all his childhood clothes when he found out he was having a girl, and the few left were too big for boys. So after telling them to wait for him, Massimo went quickly to the store. They were a little short of money, but he could use the credit card; this was a special occasion, and something told him that this day would be lucky.

He bought jean pants for both of them, one brown and one light blue, a red long-sleeved shirt and another with blue and white squares, a yellow sweater and a navy blue one, and two scarves; one red and one grey, two pairs of socks and tennis shoes, one green and the other purple; he found it amusing that they matched the boys' scales.

After that, he returned home and found the boys playing with Machiavelli, well, they were studying him; the cat was on the kitchen table, while Luca and Alberto surrounded him, and from time to time, one of them was brave enough to pet the cat; Machiavelli looked with rather penetrating eyes at whoever would dare touch him, and grunted a little, but after a while, he relaxed and let himself go.

Massimo laughed a little at the scene. Machiavelli rarely trusted strangers, so the boys made a breakthrough.

As soon as Massimo arrived, the cat jumped off the table and took refuge on his friend's shoulder; without stopping to see the boys, although his gaze had softened.

"I brought you something."

Alberto chose brown pants, a red shirt, and a yellow sweater, and he completed his outfit with the red scarf. While Luca dressed in the checkered shirt, the blue pants and sweater, and the gray scarf, in the end, each put on the shoes that corresponded to their colors; they also found that detail quite amusing.

"Look, Alberto! Now we look even more human!" Said an excited Luca while he and his friend looked at themselves in a mirror.

He had felt a little weird the night before, with Giulia and her dad wearing clothes. While he and Alberto only had shorts made of material humans didn't use for clothing, so now he felt more even.

"We look great," Alberto said as he gave his most seductive look to his reflection.

Massimo laughed; he liked the boy's attitude.

"Very well, make yourself comfortable, boys. I'll be here if you need me," he told them; he was about to go to the store when Luca spoke again:

"What are you going to do, Mr. Massimo?"

He stopped. Giulia had already told him that Luca was very curious, so it shouldn't surprise him that he asked questions about everything.

"Work. I'm sure Giulia told you what I do for a living."

They both nodded.

"Well, now, thanks to you two. I can get back on business." He was sure the emotion was evident in his voice, and he couldn't help it; this had never happened to him before.

"Can we help?" Luca asked innocently.

Massimo raised an eyebrow.

"Have you ever worked in a pescheria before?"

"No," Luca admitted.

"But we learn fast," Alberto added proudly.

Massimo kept thinking; there were good things in accepting their help, but also disadvantages. Not only would he greatly appreciate the support, but he could also keep an eye on the boys, but their inexperience could be harmful and make the neighbors suspicious.

However, the confidence that Alberto emanated made Massimo think that perhaps he should give it a try.

"I'm gonna teach them; if I see they have potential, I'll leave them. If not, I'll find something to entertain them with," Massimo thought; after all, whoever doesn't take risks doesn't win.

"I guess we can try."

The boys smiled at each other. Luca put a hand on Alberto's shoulder and shook him playfully. Massimo had to admit he liked their enthusiasm.

"Very well, follow me."

...

Giulia had done her routine, starting with the bathrooms and keeping a neutral attitude; she didn't want to seem too happy to avoid looking strange.

After finishing that, she took her cart and headed towards the E-3 laboratory, she knew it was unlikely that they would let her in, but she felt this was the best way to hide it.

When she was about to arrive, she saw three guards at the door; one of them noticed her and stopped her.

"Stop right there, miss."

"Excuse me, but I need to clean the lab," she said innocently.

"Not anymore; this room has been closed," he replied.

Giulia turned her head and put on her best face of disbelief.

"Oh really? What happened?"

"It's classified; keep walking."

The officer's tone was somewhat harsh, but it seemed Giulia had convinced him she knew nothing.

"Okay," and she began to walk away when Ciccio's voice was heard:

"Oh, Giulia, there you are."

The girl stopped and turned to look at him. Ciccio looked unkempt and disheveled, his clothes were wrinkled, and he looked like he hadn't slept in twenty-four hours. She hurried up to him.

"Ciccio," Giulia said, faking a surprise, "may I know what's going on? I thought cleaning up E-3 was my job, and now these gentlemen tell me I can't get in."

"Uh… yeah, Giulia, there has been a change of plans."

"Oh, there has?" she asked, narrowing an eyebrow.

"Yes, from today, the laboratory has been disabled."

"Oh- will this affect my income?"

"Act disinterested," she told herself.

"No, not at all, don't worry about that," he assured her as he shook his head.

"Oh, thank God," she smiled and started to walk away when the blond called out to her again.

"Giulia, wait; that's not all."

She glanced at him over her shoulder.

"It's Ercole; he wants to talk to you."

"Okay," she answered, ready to face him. This time things would not be like their last meeting; now, she was in control.

...

Massimo had to admit that the boys did learn quickly; based on what Giulia had told him, he entrusted each one with a task depending on their abilities. He taught Luca what money was and how much each bill and coin was worth; he later instructed him in what and how a calculator worked. Luca was delighted and quickly found himself doing all the addition and subtraction that came to mind; Massimo laughed and continued to teach him the price of things and how to give change. The boy did not seem confused at any time; he seemed fascinated.

Later he went with Alberto; something told him that he was more active, so Massimo decided that the best thing would be for the boy to be in charge of checking and packing the orders, the first thing Massimo wanted was to teach him to identify the fish, but he soon realized Alberto already knew how to tell them apart.

"Sure, he comes from the sea," Massimo realized.

But he was able to teach him how to roll the fish in the paper for delivery.

And that's how they decided to divide the work, Luca at the counter serving customers, taking their orders, and charging them. Then Alberto chose the fish and wrapped it for delivery.

At first, there were no customers since no one knew or expected Massimo to open around those dates. But when Mrs. Marsigliese passed in front of the pescheria and saw it open, she entered feeling incredulous, which only increased when she saw the boys.

"Oh, hi?" She asked; as far as she knew, Giulia was Massimo's only daughter, and she wasn't aware he had nephews.

Luca was about to answer when Massimo passed into the store.

"Good morning, Mrs. Marsigliese," he greeted her, "This is Luca and Alberto; they are friends of Giulia's who come from Génova."

"Ah," she exclaimed, understanding the situation better.

"Madame Marsigliese?" Luca asked, "Oh, you are the one who organizes the Portorosso Cup."

"Oh, yeah, Giulia told us about that," Alberto added, "she also mentioned you are one of Massimo's best clients."

Marsigliese blushed a little.

"Looks like I'm famous."

"They are curious boys; Giulia does her best to satisfy that curiosity."

Now it was Luca and Alberto who blushed.

"That's good, and I guess you came for the Festa Del Mare, right?"

Luca and Alberto didn't know what to answer; Giulia hadn't mentioned anything about a party. Fortunately, Massimo realized that they didn't know anything, so he hastened to say:

"Yes, that's right, they were so enchanted by Giulia's stories that they wanted to see it for themselves, right guys?"

With a single look, they knew they had to play along.

"Oh yes, after what Giulia told us, we couldn't miss it," Alberto said.

"And to kill time, we decided to help Massimo with the business while Giulia is working," added Luca.

Massimo nodded; he liked that Luca knew how to improvise.

"That's good," Mrs. Marsigliese continued, "but how did you manage to fish during this time?"

"Let's just say that we have some tricks up our sleeves," answered Alberto, smiling.

A drop of sweat ran down Luca's face; he liked Alberto's enthusiasm but didn't know if Alberto was saying too much.

"That's great!" said Marsigliese; she knew how difficult this time of year was for Massimo, and to see that he was able to sell again made her happy, plus it meant she could cook herself some delicious grilled fish for lunch, "let me help the cause then."

And there was their first sale of the day; each carried out their task efficiently. Marsigliese thanked them and left happy. Massimo saw the boys and gave them a thumbs up, making them proud of themselves.

After that visit, more and more clients showed up, many had expected Massimo to reopen to be able to taste the marine fauna, at first the fisherman thought that the work would overwhelm the boys, but to his surprise, it was not the case, since Luca and Alberto demonstrated to handle the situation quite well.

Luca was agile in managing money, while Alberto knew how to copy Massimo's movements; it was something the boys enjoyed a lot, not only because they were helping their friend's father but because doing human work was quite fun. They doubted that another sea monster would have had the opportunity to do something similar, and they were happy to be the first.

Massimo looked at them with pride and smiled; it was clear why they had earned Giulia's affection.

...

"Security measures have been increased to the maximum level. Present your identification and access card" was heard on all sides.

"Calm down, calm down, no one suspects anything," she told herself as Ciccio led her to Ercole's office. Giulia knew she shouldn't be afraid, but the presence of the guards, and the mechanical voice of the horns, did put the creeps.

There was a line waiting at the stairs; however, Ciccio told her that she would not have to wait, no one questioned his authority, nor did they see Giulia with anger. They knew she was the one who cleaned the E-3 laboratory, so everyone had to assume that something had happened in that room.

Guido was checking the computers; he had erased all the footage that could incriminate Giulia. But now that he saw her go up to the lion's den, he couldn't help but feel nervous. Ercole suspected him and knew about his childhood friendship with the girl; Guido prayed Ercole hadn't made a connection.

"Attention. Security measures have been increased to the maximum level", the voice from the horns repeated.

"We already understood; you can shut up now," Giulia thought.

Finally, they arrived at Ercole's office; the head of security was inspecting some papers on his desk; he had asked Bellucci to print the entry and exit registers of all the workers from the previous day. He knew that the spy must be one of them.

Ciccio knocked on the door, and Ercole looked at him.

"Sir, here she is."

Giulia passed before they told her to; she wasn't going to be weak anymore, and she also didn't want to give Ercole the feeling that she was intimidated by what he did to her.

"Giulia," Ercole said as he took a report, his eyes searching for another, taking it when he found it, "it seems you checked out before the incident, and you didn't go back into E-3 after your work hour."

"What incident? Why can't I clean the lab anymore?" she asked, faking confusion.

"Someone stole those things," Ercole replied.

"Wow, now we're in confidence," she thought mockingly.

"What?" She expected to sound surprised. "How?"

"That's what we're trying to find out, but don't worry about it," Ercole leaned his waist against the desk, crossed his arms, and looked at her, "That's none of your business."

"You're not even going to try to understand what you did to me, are you?" She thought angrily.

"Then why did you call me here?" She didn't have to keep putting up with his shit.

"You were the only low-rank employee who had access to that lab; and the only one who knew what we kept there."

"If she wants to call out with me, I'll get her fired," Ercole thought; the last thing he needed was a sexual-harassment lawsuit.

"So if you know anything about what happened here, you must report any detail, no matter how small or trivial it may seem," after a few seconds of silence, he added: "Trivial means insignificant."

"I didn't see anything out of the ordinary or trivial. I did my routine as always, and then I went out... I think it was when you called me to clean your office, do you remember?" the girl said while pointing one finger at Bellucci, "Your secretary can confirm that."

Ercole gripped the edge of his desk, gripping it hard.

"So you want to play, bitch," he thought angrily.

However, Giulia only smiled; this was what she wanted, to see how despair was consuming him. The poor fool had nothing.

Ercole let off the table; it was better not to continue down that path; he had to find a way to continue questioning her without mentioning what happened yesterday. He looked at the lower part of the room and noticed Guido talking with another scientist.

"Guido, did you see him enter or leave the lab?" He asked while looking at her.

"He works there, doesn't he?" Giulia replied with a sarcastic tone.

"I mean something unusual, that he did something different."

"Something trivial?" She asked innocently.

That was the last straw. Ercole's features hardened; he walked up to her with a straight back, stopping when they were only inches apart; Giulia didn't flinch.

"Do you think I'm afraid of you? Do you think you have power over me? If so, you're dumber than I thought," Giulia hoped that her look could tell all that to Ercole.

Ercole's desperation increased; he felt like a child again in her presence. Even as children, Giulia was never intimidated by him, no matter how many jokes or insults he threw at her. And not even now, with all his power, nor after what he did to her in that same office, Giulia was a rock he could never move. She would never be his.

But he was too proud to admit it.

He laughed, he wanted to sound mocking, but the truth is that he was starting to get desperate.

"Why do I ask the damn Spewlia?" Ercole said as he walked away from her, "The shit cleaner," he turned to see her, "The urine washer."

"I suppose it's because you don't have a clue; you were never the intellectual one, right?"

Ercole turned red with anger.

"Get out of here," he said in a small voice, using all his strength not to explode.

"Thank you, sir," she thanked, and before leaving, she smiled like the sweet girl she was. Before leaving, she stopped at the door to see Ciccio, "I'm sorry I couldn't help more."

"Is okay; get back to work."

Giulia smiled again and went downstairs. Woah, she was feeling great that day. While Ercole just looked at his papers again and with more intensity than needed, he shouted:

"Next!"

...

At around three o'clock, Massimo decided that the boys had earned a break; after all, that morning alone had been very productive, he was sure they had sold a month's worth, and the wait had paid off.

So to reward them, he made pizza and a Caesar Salad to change from the pasta. He started preparing it before they closed; that way, when the boys ended their shift, the food was ready.

"Please, it's for you," said Massimo; the pizza had just come out of the oven and was placed at the center of the table.

Luca and Alberto smiled, sat at the table, and were about to grab it with their hands when Massimo stopped them.

"Wait," and he held up a knife, "hot."

The boys lowered their hands; Massimo cut a piece for each of them and served them on their plates. After his warning, the two were both more cautious, they blew on it before taking it, and when eating it, it was as if their taste buds exploded.

The combination of ingredients was like nothing they had tried; the sauce accompanied the cheese, the pepperoni tasted delicious, and what to say about the crispy crust. Everything was spectacular.

When they finished the first slice, they launched into the second, ignoring the salad. Massimo laughed a little; they reminded him of Giulia when she was younger.

"Boys, don't forget the salad."

Luca and Alberto saw the bowl; they smiled, showing their teeth, and began to help themselves. Massimo took the opportunity to fill his glass with wine, then looked at the young ones. Were they old enough to drink? Their appearance seemed to indicate that they had the same as Giulia, but their demeanor was more childish. Could it be that sea monsters age differently?

In the end, he shrugged. What difference did one drink make? This would be a unique opportunity for them. He took two more glasses and poured some.

"Try this."

The boys looked at the drinks without knowing what to think. The liquid looked strange; however, they decided to try it. Luca sniffed it first, then he felt his nose sting a bit. While Alberto ventured to drink it and immediately spit it out on the ground.

Massimo raised an eyebrow, Alberto chuckled, and Luca pushed his glass away.

"I'm sorry- too strong," and he wasn't lying; he felt his throat burning.

"Don't worry," Massimo answered; after all, he knew the risk and still took it, "I think you're more into soda."

He gave each of them a soda, and the boys seemed happier with it; they liked sweet things, plus it gave them a ticklish feeling in their stomachs, and it seemed to have woken them up. They suddenly felt more energized.

"That is the caffeine. Something we humans use to stay awake," Massimo informed.

The boys nodded in agreement; that explained a few things.

They continued to eat in silence, before long reducing the pizza to crumbs, though they left quite a bit of the salad.

"Sorry," Luca said, ashamed, "it's just that we don't have anything like this in the sea, although we do have a lot of vegetables."

Massimo nodded.

"How did you like the human world?" Massimo asked; he knew that the first experience must have been anything but pleasant, but he didn't want to think they would only be left with the memory of the bad.

"Well, being in the laboratory wasn't nice," Luca said, "nor being on the boat where they transported us, oh and Ercole, we won't remember him fondly."

Alberto just nodded; if he saw that bastard again, he would rip his throat out with his teeth.

"But… all the moments we had with Giulia… were great, she taught us so many things, and we had fun, so…," Luca shrugged; it sounded strange to say it- but, "we're happy we lived it."

Alberto nodded in agreement, they would have preferred to avoid the parts of the capture, confinement, experimentation, and torture, but other than that, seeing everything that Giulia showed them, the food they had tried, and the work, had been incredible. It was the adventure they always wanted.

"Yeah, and it has been a lot of fun helping you," Alberto mentioned, "work at home is too routine, taking care of fish, collecting seaweed, changing them with the neighbors, it's not bad, but sometimes we feel that it's all we do."

Luca nodded.

Massimo understood them, although life on the Surface could also become routine; he was a man of habit; at his age, it didn't bother him anymore, but he could understand the feeling of the young ones; they were always looking for something more.

"Well, I'm glad we could show you a kinder side of our world."

The two smiled.

"Maybe you can see a little more... if you want to."

"We've already talked about it; we want to stay until tomorrow. When the Great Fish comes down, we'll go home."

Massimo nodded, it sounded like a good plan, and so Giulia could spend a little more time with her friends, she hadn't told him, but Massimo knew how his daughter thought, she would miss feeling part of a group, it would be nice if they enjoyed themselves before the inevitable.

"Seems perfect for me."

Luca and Alberto felt happy to hear his approval. In that, Alberto put his eyes on Massimo's missing arm. The fisherman noticed him, and Alberto felt embarrassed and lowered his gaze.

"I lost it fighting a shark," Massimo said, raising it up.

"What?" the two boys asked, leaning closer to hear the story, but Massimo laughed.

"Haha, no, this is how I came into this world."

"Oh…" The pair looked at each other, disappointed but immediately laughing at Massimo's humor.

Massimo laughed as he drank more wine; it was nice to have them home. It was as if they had brought more life; there was no silence, just laughter, and harmony.

"I wish they could stay forever," he thought, but he knew that was impossible.

...

The day passed without further incident. Ercole didn't mess with her again, although the constant warning did bother her. And having so many guards around made her paranoid. But Giulia didn't let fear control her; she remained calm and collected.

She finished her routine and went to change; she couldn't wait anymore. Giulia wanted to see the boys and have fun with them, wanting to see their faces when they explored the town.

By the time she finished, the other girls were already leaving. Giulia was placing on her sweater when the emergency exit opened; she gasped and got up from the bench, had Ercole discovered her? Did they leave anything incriminating in the van?

Luckily for her, it was only Guido; there was very little light behind him, which gave him a gloomy appearance; he looked better than Ercole and Ciccio, although he also appeared tired.

"Guido!" She scold him.

"I'm sorry, but they could be spying on me," he looked behind his back, "and this is the only place without cameras."

"Yes, for a reason!" She answered, covering her breasts. He was lucky that she had already changed because if he had seen her naked, she would have ripped out his eyes.

Guido took a breath before speaking; he had also dealt with paranoia for the day.

"Luca and Alberto, did they…?" He didn't want to finish.

"Yes, everything went well, and they are safe."

"Perfect, and the keys?"

Giulia looked in her bag, found them, and handed them to him.

"When do you plan to release them?" He asked while taking the keys.

Giulia swallowed hard, she knew her intentions were somewhat selfish, and something told her that Guido would reclaim her.

"Tomorrow night, they are exhausted from everything; it will be better to let them rest before they start such a long journey."

Guido nodded; it wouldn't take that long, which was good, so Ercole would never be able to hurt them again. Guido would like to see them one last time, but it would be too risky. Ercole already mistrusted him; they had come too far to make such a mistake, and as much as it hurt, it was better to let them go.

"Sounds good; it seems that you have deceived Ercole. He doesn't suspect anything of you, continue like this and free them as soon as possible."

Giulia nodded, apparently deceiving the military, and scientists were becoming her specialty.

Guido turned to leave until she called out to him again.

"Guido-"

He turned to see her.

"Thanks for everything."

Guido smiled.

"Don't thank me, I just did what was right."

And saying that, he left.

...

The trip back home seemed eternal, not only because of how long the truck took to arrive but also the journey itself. At work, at least Giulia had things to do to distract herself, here she was dying of boredom, and the best she could do was watch the snow fall through the window.

So when they finally reached the town, Giulia was the first to leave, and she walked briskly to the pescheria. On her way, she saw many people carrying paper wrappers on their arms, big paper wrappers shaped like fish.

She smiled, knowing what it was.

Upon arriving at the business, she saw her three men at the entrance, saying goodbye to the last client of the day. Giulia stopped to appreciate the boys in their new clothes; Luca and Alberto genuinely seemed like humans; last night, they still looked a little out of place in their seaweed shorts, but now they blended in perfectly; they would fool anyone.

She even had to admit they looked great.

"Wow, looks like you had a pretty good day," Giulia said as she approached them.

Luca smiled while Alberto posed triumphantly.

"Your friends made all this possible," a proud Massimo mentioned, giving Alberto a playful pat on the shoulder. Alberto looked up at him, feeling flattered.

Giulia laughed.

"Buonissimo," she said.

"Go have fun. I will close," Massimo continued, not wanting them to spend more time apart.

"Really?" Luca asked.

Massimo nodded.

"Yes, you have earned it."

Giulia jumped for joy.

"Let me put on something more comfortable, and we'll go, okay?"

Everyone agreed; without wasting any more time, Giulia ran to her room, changing her outfit for one that consisted of jean pants, an orange and white striped sweater, a red scarf, and her traditional navy blue hat; when she finished, she met everyone on the ground floor.

"I'm ready; let's go!"

And so, the Underdogs began their new adventure.