Mermania

Serves you right!

Everything around Rema looked and felt like a dream. Triton raised his trident and manifested the body of a Dagonian infant lying pale against the sand, his black, glassy eyes open. Triton ignored Danielle's wails. "So what....me? You need to...out...Evan." I directed my words at Austin. "If you cared about your position on the basketball team as much as you appear, I'd be more cautious if I were you. If any of you get caught," my eyes darted to Tara, "You're going to be kicked off the team, or at least suspended from a game or two. Are you really willing to jeopardize that?" As wrestlers, this could affect Ben and Landon, too. "A little," Zach replied, rubbing his left shoulder. He sighed. "Ah, the joys of dating a high-maintenance monster." "He's a human, a deep sea diver. He was in the cell with me. He protected me from Slink and his friends. It almost cost Josh his life. I hope he's okay. I couldn't figure out how to take him with me. And I couldn't bring myself to have Slink and his friends drown themselves. I hope my rash decision didn't end his life." Eddie's throat tightened to match his face. "She was tormented, living with you, hating how you hid walking down the hallway, Rema heard Aunt Maya speaking to a man whose voice she didn't recognize. She hurried to the sitting room, hoping everything was fine. "I'm good with that. I get to gave Thanksgiving twice this year then." "In the rain?" Officer Garrenton asked disapprovingly. "It's nearly December!" "Okay," I said. "So what will we do for the next hour?" "You would have been our hero!" "Now," Nyler sighed, "We go home and do lots of paperwork on all this. "I woke with a start. The sun, a silver on the horizon, tinted the cloudless sky a deep purple. I studied the patterns of frost on the windows. What woke me up? My breath came out as a visible mist. As much as I loved having a converted porch for a bedroom, it wasn't too ideal in the winter. My nose was absolutely freezing. The rest of me, however, was toasty warm, thanks to the electric blanket my grandparents gave me for Godmad. At least I didn't have much longer to deal with it. My parents were coming home from their honeymoon today. Tomorrow, we would be moving to David's apartment. "Yeah, that's him," Eddie sighed. He had stepped behind Craig to view the picture with them. He took a deep breath. "Zach, you want us to be your parents...All right, then. Look, at the very least, you're related to us, so we'll treat you like part of our family until one of the two things happens: either we'll figure out what's going on here and get you to your real family within a few days, or else we'll have to call Child Protective Services, and they'll probably put you in a foster home until your family can be found. "I watched my mom's face tighten as if struggling with some internal war. For a moment, she looked desperate, and then her face relaxed. She opened her eyes and stared up at him. I was glad that I didn't tell Katie what I was. I hadn't even told Evan much more, but he wasn't pressuring me. After my birthday dinner, once my grandparents left, I asked my mom if they knew. Mom assured me they didn't. She'd never done that to Xanthus before. Uneasiness clenched his gut. What if something was wrong? "It just opened." He took my hand and pulled me forward. "So, do you want to start with my favorite exhibits or should we start with the Monsters of the Deep?" I pulled out my phone and pretended to be thoroughly absorbed in texting, my feet still carrying me forward. No text in the history of texting ever required so much concentration. As for Craig, after so many frustrations, he was reluctant to get his hopes up. But, he had to admit, this was a promising lead. He hugged Kara with one arm, and they stood together behind Zach, watching him watch the game again before they returned to share this news with Derek and Shanice. In the center of the two square, a man in his fifties with clean, snug-fitting clothes was standing on a wood crate. Obviously, he wasn't starving like so many around him. Mom nodded with a slight frown. "Neither did we, until Thursday night," Mom replied. "This is Zach. He's Craig's....cousin's son...we think... It's a long story." Sara stepped away from her father's embrace. We followed him through the side doors and down the hallway. His office was bright and organized. Besides his diplomas and certifications, the walls were covered with beautiful nature scenes. A brown leather couch ran the length of one wall, and two cushioned chairs faced his desk. Darmik held the glass above the baby picture and peered through it. The mole transformed into the tattoo. Xanthus's hulking figure fill the doorway. Xanthus ducked under the doorframe and stepped inside, Craig spun around just long enough to yell back, "see you, Grover!" Then, with a chuckle, he continued on the pickup, Climbed in, and drove away." A hedge trimmer, for trimming bushes. It's not made for thick limbs. So its teeth are different, see? This is a chainsaw over here." Craig lifted the latter out of a pile and set it atop the clutter. If either of them worked- they looked as if they'd been gathering dust for a decade- it alone would be worth much of the little he's paid for this whole collection of stuff. The buzzer sounded, announcing the start of the first period. Evan squared off against the captain of the other team, the hockey puck dropped, and the game began. "I remember specifically telling you to do a login page. I can't help it if you don't take good notes." "Lucky you," I told her. Kim promised to email me her flight information, and after I helped her decide between a blue sweater and purple blouse for tonight's date- which was not easy to determine over the phone- we said goodbye so she could get ready. "Selkies." I read the title and looked at the image of the furry brown animal. "You're a seal?" I scoffed at him. "When you put it that way, I have the know-how and the reputation. Sounds like you need me more than I need you. That's why you really came by,