Blood in the Water

The accident

Maggie's POV

I had been coming out to the ocean more often lately. Dualscar had warmed up to me quickly, and I did too. I taught him how to write in English and I could tell he enjoyed it. He told really cool stories too. I always left the house earlier than usual and came back later than usual and occasionally sopping wet. When my parents asked me where I'd been all day, I'd just give the same answer. "I was with some friends." It wasn't a lie. I had found my old sketchbook so that when I couldn't go I could draw them. It all worked out really well. Today I ran down to the beach to see just Eridan waiting for me. "Where's everyone else?" I asked. "Dad's on a business trip and Cronus is out wwith his boyfriend." I'd also met Kankri, who was pretty nice but he talked a lot. I sighed and sat down next to him  and put my head on his shoulder. "Flushed for you~" I told him. "Flushed for you too~" he answered back. I giggled and looked out at the water. It was a perfect day, not a cloud in the sky. The water glittered under the sun and I sighed again. "Somefin wwrong?" Eridan asked. "No, it's just that I've always wondered what it was like to be a mer. It sounds pretty fun." I told him. He was silent for a moment. "Lately I'vve been wwonderin wwhat it would be like to be a human. I'd nevver thought about it until I met you." He said. I looked at him. "Why would you want to be a human? Being a human can get boring after a while." I said and looked up at the sky. "If I wwere human I could spend more time wwith you." He said. My face lit up and I hugged him. He hugged back. We sat and talked for hours until I heard sirens coming from the beach. "I better go check that out. See you later?" I asked. "Sea you later." He answered. I climbed back over the rocks and ran along the beach until I got to the stairs that went over the dunes. Once I hit the sidewalk I ran towards the sound of the sirens and found a large crowd. I pushed my way through it and saw what all the fuss was about. I wish I hadn't. Everyone was crowded around a massive car wreck. And my parents' car was right in the middle of it. I went under the police tape and ignored the policeman who tried to stop me. I saw that their car was literally crushed to a pulp, and there was no way they could have survived. I fell to my knees as reality sank in. My parents were dead. I started crying hysterically and it took almost half an hour for me to calm down. "W-w-what w-was th-the c-c-cause of a-all this?" I managed to stutter out. One of the policemen told me what happened. Apparently one of the pipes under the road had burst, and it was so powerful that it sent a few cars flying backwards. It ended in a massive pile-up with my parents' car at the bottom. When he was done I ran back through the crowds and didn't stop running until I reached my house. I dashed through the door and up the stairs to my room. I leapt onto me bed and bawled my eyes out into one of my pillows. Eventually I fell asleep, hoping this was all one messed up nightmare.

Eridan's POV

When Maggie left I slid back into the water and swam home. When I went through the entrance I saw that Cronus was back. "Hey, chief." He said as I swam in. "Hey Cro." I sat next to him on the couch in silence for a while. "Hey Cro?" "Yeah?" "Is there a wway to make a human a mer?" It took him a moment to process my question. "I think there is. Vwhy?" "Maggie told me today that she's alwways wwondered wwhat it wwas like to be one." I told him. He sat in silence for a few seconds. "Vwell if I remember right to turn a human into a mer you hawve to kiss them. Like flush kiss them. You hawve to be flushed for them and they hawve to be flushed for you. Vwhy, you thinking about turning your flushcrush into a mer?" I shrugged. "I also think it's permanent." He added. My hopes went down a little. She probably just wanted it to be temporary, since she had her parents and all. "Awv, don't feel dowvn. She still lowves you." He said, trying to comfort me. "It's gettin kinda late. I think I'll go to bed." I told him. "Alright. I think I wvill too." He added. Maggie once told me that when you hear sirens, it probably meant something bad happened or is going to happen. I just hoped she was alright.