Coco

The Divers

I surfaced, letting the moonlight hit my face. My highlights were brighter than I expected, and nights like these made me happy. I looked over to pier 11 and saw a group of divers.

"She's got to be here. I've seen her surface before." One called out as they pointed to the part of the water I was in.

"Then why didn't we jump from the jet?" Another asked.

"Good point. We'll fly it out in stealth mode and jump into the water. She totally hasn't escaped us before when we've tried that." Another sarcastically answered.

They dove in, and I saw lights in the water. When I went back under, the lights were brighter. Be brave, Coco, I thought. I swam closer, and I saw a suit of armor practically flying through the water. They were here.

"I see something!" One called out.

I swam down, but they followed. I was only seventeen! Why were they after me!

Before I could swim any farther, the metal man had grabbed my tail.

"I got her!" He shouted.

I knew what to do. I focused, and slowly the water around him and the divers had separated, causing them to fall. Quickly, I wiggled my tail free, and brought the water back together.

I quickly surfaced, and changed back. By fins turned to feet and my tail became two legs. My top had become a dress, but it was soaking wet, my hair was wet, too. I knew that they probably knew what my voice sounded like, but I wanted to sing.

"How in the midst of all this sorrow, can so much hope and love endure? I was innocent and certain, now I'm wiser but unsure." I sang, "I can't go back into my childhood, one that I made secure. I can feel a change in me, I'm stronger now, but still not free."

I heard them surface a few yards behind me.

"Did you hear her voice? It was incredible." I heard one say.

"Yes, Steve. We all heard it. You should be more worried about detaining her." A woman said.

"Natasha, we need to hurry before she escapes again." Someone else said.

I dove under, letting my tail form as I swam. I resurfaced a few feet from them.

"I can hear everything you say, and you know that, right?" I seemed confused.

"Good, she talks, too. For a minute I thought she could only sing." One joked.

"You've been after me since I was three. Now why are you so interested? If I was really a Siren that could kill people by speaking, you would all be dead." I said with a tone of annoyance.

"You can also part water as if it were butter." Steve added.

"Oh, you poor Avengers. I have so many other powers that even I don't understand." I said with a mocking tone.

"Listen, we need you to answer some questions." The woman said.

"Don't make us hurt you." The metal man added.

"I thought I dropped your tin can to the bottom of the Atlantic." I snapped.

"I came back." He said.

"Do you want answers? Here are your answers. I've been on the run since I was seven, and I was only three when your employers first tried to take me. When I told people what happened, they just told me to walk away, and that it wasn't worth the fight." I explained, "I gave it my all. The only reason I stayed strong was to face the long and difficult future."

"Wow, that was depressing." The metal man said.

"Watch your mouth before I have to cause any more..." I paused, trying to find the right words, "water-related problems."

I dove back under, but by now, it was so dark that I could barely see. I knew where I was going, since I've gone there since I was twelve. I looked up and watched their lights get dimmer until I was too deep to see them. I parted the water to get into a cave made from pieces of sunken boats. I could hear the water rush over the boat I used as a door as I formed my tail back into legs and brought the water back together.

"Those divers, they mean trouble." I said to myself as I walked across the smooth sand.

The boat pieces slowly become rock, and I entered the cave. I had pulled eat piece of wreckage from further out in the water. I sat down on a rock, and put my head in my hands.

"They'll never stop. I bet they're working with some anti-mutant program. I could wipe out parts of the east coast if I wanted to, but I don't want to." I said to myself.

The ocean was where two worlds came to meet for me. I could always swim and be free, but stay grounded. I was proud of the scars I received from fishermen's hooks or jellyfish stings I got from when I swam far out enough in the Atlantic. The beach was a space between for me. I would be on the ground, but I could still have my tail.

I laid back on the stove and drifted off to sleep, letting my dreams drown out the sounds of the water.