This was originally going to be the final chapter, I was planning for ten chapters but now I have too many ideas so I'm now going for twelve chapters. That may increase again though, depending how things end up writing out.

Summary: Everything starts to look ... better?

The ceiling never changed. No matter how long she stared at it, it never changed. Nothing ever changed. She was honestly bored. She never really got bored, there was always something to do. Whether it was work, swimming, housework, making a potion of some kind, or even speaking to Poseidon she always had something, or could find something to do.

Not here though, not now. She couldn't do anything other than lie and stare up at the ceiling. The grotto had turned into a mess in however long it was she'd been out and looking at it stressed her out. The fact that she wasn't strong enough to get up and sort it out just stressed her out more.

Boredom just wasn't something Rita was used to. She hated it. She wanted to get up. She needed to get up. She had tried but her legs wouldn't cooperate with the rest of her.

She couldn't take one more minute lying here feeling her muscles wasting away and her skin slowly drying. How long had it been since she was actually in the water? It had to have been a few days at least.

Mermaids aren't designed to not be in the water. They're Mermaids. Mermaids need the Sea. It's just how it is.

Rita sighed and closed her eyes blocking out the ceiling. She wanted Veridia to come back down, or Nixie - they actually spoke to her properly. Lyla never came in and Sirena just kept apologising and crying over something. She guessed it was something to do with why she had been unconscious and why her side hurt so much but nothing anyone said made any sense.

Once Veridia came back she'd ask. Not right away, she needed to convince Veridia to let her move, let her go anywhere that wasn't this bench where all she could do was stare at the ceiling. Every time she asked she was just told she wasn't fit enough.

Something landed on her legs. Rita opened her eyes and Poseidon walked up over her and lay down on her chest. On the side that didn't hurt. Smart cat.

"Hi."

Poseidon purred and butted his head against her chin.

"Morning," Veridia breezed into the grotto, her curls bouncing lightly with each step and the light fabric of her dress floated like water around her.

Rita buried her face against Poseidon to hide her smile. It was a stupidly happy smile that no one needed to see. He purred even harder.

"How are you feeling?" Veridia asked as she descended the stairs to the grotto's lower level. Once she reached the bottom Poseidon stood up and jumped down, darting off into a far off corner.

"Bored."

Why waste words? Veridia hated unnecessary waffling. It was the thing she hated most about council meetings. The endless droning on by Mermaids who had very little to say but found the longest way to say it.

"I need to get out of here, I can't spend another second lying here doing nothing."

"It's not that bad," Veridia said. It was a half hearted, and frankly terrible attempt at appeasement and they both knew it.

"It's easy for you to say, you're not the one lying here the whole time. Did you know I can hear everything? I hear Lyla coming down and refusing to come in and every single conversation everyone has outside that door and I'm done with it."

Everyone knew Veridia for her chilling glare. What no one knew was that she learned it from Rita. She just never used it. Unlike Veridia.

"Alright, fine," Veridia relented, "but you're not fit to move far."

"Even just to the water then. I feel like I've not been in the water for ages, my skin is all dry and my hair feels disgusting. Please."

There was a look she knew Veridia always gave into. Pleading eyes and a slight smile. It worked every time, even now.

"Okay, but no swimming. You're - "

" - not fit. I know."

Veridia kept saying it. Every time. Every time she'd asked to do anything, no matter how slight she got the same answer.

"One condition," Veridia began, "you have to let me help you."

"Okay," Rita agreed. It wasn't that bad a term, she hated being coddled but it meant being close to Veridia.

There were times it felt like nothing had changed. A shared smile, touch of hands, she could almost trick herself that they were still together.

But they weren't. What they had was done. What she felt didn't matter. Veridia was leaving anyways. She hadn't actually come out at said but Rita knew it, Veridia had the Pod and she would have to go back.

"Sit up. Slowly," Veridia slipped her arm around Rita's back to help guide the Mermaid up.

"Okay, okay. One second."

Rita threw the corner of the blanket away from her. It landed uselessly at her knees. Rita threw the other corner, then slowly drew up her knees and the blanket slid off.

A small victory but the biggest achievement she'd made since waking up. Whenever that was. Time was fuzzy just now.

"See. I can do some things."

"No one's saying you can't."

"You are. Constantly."

Veridia met Rita's pointed stare before backing down.

"I just don't want you getting hurt."

Rita's face softened. This was the Veridia she had loved, the secret caring side she only permitted Rita to see.

"I'm already hurt, just don't smother me. Please."

Zac woke up to his skull pounding and the ground beneath him. He screwed up his face as a wave of nausea rose over him. Fuck he hurt.

"Zac?" A girl's voice spoke above him. His mind went straight to Evie. Evie who had put with so much shit recently.

"Zac, are you okay?"

That wasn't Evie. That was - Lyla?

Zac opened one eye. He was looking up at his ceiling. He moaned slightly as he moved. The action sent pain reverberating through his skull.

"Are you okay?" Lyla asked. She was crouched down beside him, her hand just hovering above his shoulder.

"I think I got hit by a train," Zac groaned as he sat up. His head spun. Maybe sitting was a bad idea.

"You fainted and hit your head."

"Huh."

Zac leaned back down on the ground and closed his eye. Then opened both eyes as a thought hit his mind. Even thinking hurt.

"Why did I faint? I never faint."

"I told you ... something and you fainted."

Something sounded ominous. Nothing was good when someone said something like that. He didn't like what his first thought was, he really didn't.

Zac's blood went cold.

"What did you tell me?" He had to know if he really was a killer or not.

"Rita woke up."

Zac relaxed into the ground. He felt better than he had in days. Ironic considering the absolute throbbing headache he had.

"Is she okay?"

"She will be. Everything's good now."

"Alright," Veridia gave in, "I'll stop. Unless you are being entirely unreasonable."

"Me? Unreasonable? Never."

That smile. The damn smile. Effortlessly teasing. She hated it. She loved it.

Rita eased her legs off the stone bench and rested her feet on the floor.

"I will help you stand up though because you haven't stood in days."

" I will let you help me. Also didn't we just agree on that condition."

"That we did."

Keeping an arm around Rita, Veridia slowly stood up, supporting Rita's weight against her until they were both standing.

"Standing feels weird."

Veridia laughed at that. Standing was weird anyways. It was the most unnatural thing to a Mermaid.

"Can you try walking?"

Rita took one uneasy step. Then another. And another. Veridia supporting her all the way.

Something was going on.

If she wasn't sure before she was completely convinced now. Something was going on and Zac and those weird nieces of Ms Santos' were involved.

Ever since that lunch at Zac's the weirdness had increased tenfold. Between all those loud noises, then the apparent dolphins, Ms Santos and Lyla leaving for a family emergency then all of a sudden Ms Santos is too ill to make it work or even phone in.

And Zac. Zac had been weird ever since that camping trip he and Cam took to Mako.

Evie knew there was something but no one would tell her everything. She wasn't crazy. She wasn't an idiot. She was smart and she saw more than people knew.

Whatever was going on Sirena was genuinely cut up about it. And Zac, Zac had been depressed ever since that lunch. He wouldn't talk to her, he barely spoke to Cam. She was worried about him.

Something was going on, and if anyone could figure it out. It was her.

It was slow progress moving from the grotto to the pool, but they made it. If it hadn't been for Veridia, Rita almost certainly would've collapsed before making it into the stairway. She was in worse shape than she thought. It was easy to think she could do this when she was lying in the grotto with nothing to do but look at the ceiling, but now actually up and moving - she was drained.

Veridia helped her sit down at the edge of the pool.

"I'll go in first and then - if you need it - I can help you," Veridia said.

"Okay," Rita nodded. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her lungs weren't quite filling with each breath. She just needed to be in the water. Then she'd feel better.

With each half breath her mind turned foggier.

She was only dimly aware of Veridia entering the water. The splashing of the water against the rock ledge snapped her out of her trance.

Veridia surfaced in front of her. Her hair was pinned back with an absurd amount of shells, signifying her status on the Council. She used to get Rita to help her tie it up like that.

"You ready?"

Rita nodded and dropped her feet into the water. To say it felt nice was an understatement. The water was so cool and smooth against her skin. She let herself slip into the water, closing her eyes as she went under.

The first embrace of water caused nothing but panic. It was dark. It felt like the water stretched endlessly in every direction. It felt like she was back in that place. That void of nothing but water where everything was … dead.

Then Veridia caught her hand and she opened her eyes. The water was still dark but she calmed enough to feel the water echoing back off the sides of the pool and the water lightened above her as Veridia pulled her to the surface.

"You okay?" Veridia held onto Rita's arms, the worry clearly evident all over her face.

"I just … panicked. I'm okay."

Veridia loosened her grip slightly but still didn't let go.

Rita's heart was still hammering in her chest and her breathing was still shallower than felt normal but the water made her feel so much better.

Mermaids need the sea, and no length of time on land can change that.

I hopefully won't be too long with the next chapter but as always college is upping the work load. Unlike last time though I have made a start on the next chapter so as long as I keep my motivation up, it shouldn't be too long.

Until next time!