The Mer

Chapter 1

Five Years Later

Arthur didn't understand why his father still went to the end of the pier every morning. Well, maybe that was a lie. He understood. It was because he had had hope. Maybe that was what Arthur didn't understand. He had told his dad what the Atlanteans did. Told him that it was no use waiting anymore. But his dad wouldn't hear it. He said he had a promise to keep. So Arthur didn't argue about it any further.

Now that he was of legal drinking age - aka now that he didn't have to bribe the bartender anymore - he often spent his time at the local bar. Tonight was no different. Finally, Arthur headed home, arriving just as his dad walked back inside the house. Sighing, he glanced down at the dock. Nothing. As per usual. But wait - just then, he saw something oddly familiar. No, it couldn't be... could it?

Arthur sprinted down towards the edge of the dock. He had been right. There she was, staring up at him. This time, she didn't swim away. She simply stared back at him as he essentially ogled her.

Water dripped from her hair, making it obvious that she had just surfaced a moment ago. Her sapphire eyes almost looked like normal human or Atlantean eyes, but it was like they had more depth and color to them. With a flick of her tail and a splash of water, she reached up and pulled herself onto the dock, as easily as one might hop up to sit on a low fence.

Arthur was caught off guard at first, because she wore no clothes, but it soon became apparent that there was no need. The deep navy scales of her tail continued up to her chest, blending into an iridescent flesh tone at her waist. He supposed it must be some way of helping her swim faster, like those Olympic athletes and their compressive suits. Her tail was wide and long - so long that it hung from the dock and the tips of the fin touched the water from where she sat at the edge - yet graceful, and it looked powerful enough to capsize a small boat if she so desired. Her hair fell over her shoulders, all the way down to the bottom of her rib cage, and the exact color of it was hard to put a name to. It almost seemed a shimmering black, like squid ink, but it glistened a sort of midnight blue in the light of the rising sun.

"I saw you," Arthur said, finally tearing his eyes away her tail. "Five years ago, at the beach." That day would never leave his mind.

The... mermaid? For lack of a better word, the mermaid nodded.

"You understand me?"

He didn't really know why he said that, but she seemed amused, not offended.

"Yes, I do."

Her voice was entrancing, and Arthur just knew it would be even more so under the water.

"So... Why are you here?"

She hadn't taken her eyes off of him for one moment. Normally, Arthur might find this unsettling, but instead, he felt rather calm about it. The soft sound of the water lapping at the shore filled the silence between them as she flicked the tip of her tail.

"The surface has always fascinated me," she finally replied. "Even more so when I saw an Atlantean who lives here..."

Arthur did bristle slightly at that, but it wasn't directed at her, just at the thought of the Atlanteans.

"I'm only half... that. My dad lives right up there."

The mermaid seemed even more intrigued. "You're half Surface Dweller?"

He merely nodded.

"What's your name?"

"Arthur."