H2O: Just Add Water | Season 5

Perfect Places

It's was after noon when Rikki and Evelyn finally made it to Mako. Despite planning to go in the morning, the café was busy and Rikki was needed there. As much as she hated it, she couldn't leave her own business behind. And so at 4 PM, tired and restless, Rikki finally jumped in the water and swam towards Mako Island, followed by Evelyn on a boat.

As much as they hoped to find anything, the girls were disappointed when they've searched for hours and met a dead-end each time. Evelyn was undoubtedly nervous, since she had no idea what to expect, a fact Rikki chose to roll her eyes at. After several hours, the girls decided to take a short break at a crossroad.
Evelyn sat down on a big rock, hoping to find any sort of connection or WiFi, which was a false hope on Mako. In the meantime, Rikki used her time in a more efficient way and examined the jungle around them.
"I say we split," She said turning to Evelyn, her hands on her waist. "One will go left and the other will go right."
"I don't know... That sounds like a bad idea," Evelyn stuttered.
"Aw, don't be a coward." Rikki said.
Evelyn stood up in protest. "I am not a coward!"
"Good." Rikki said and started walking down one of the paths. "Then I'll go left." She said and left Evelyn behind. She was happy to get some quiet finally. It wasn't a secret to Evelyn that Rikki did not like her, but she never planned to let it get in her way.
Behind, Evelyn remained on the start of the crossroad, staring at the path on her right. "I can do it... There's nothing to be afraid of..." She repeated to herself as she started walking confidently.

Within fifteen minutes the woods seemed to get darker, as the sun left the sky and the thin moon slowly rose up. Rikki blinked her eyes, as her vision became blurry from the lack of light. "Evelyn?" She called. No answer.
She waited a few moments before calling again. "Evelyn? Are you okay?"
Still nothing. "She must be fine," Rikki said to herself. Mako Island had nothing dangerous on it. No wild animals or weird plants. Even the snakes were small and unpoisonous. She probably just travelled too far, she thought.

Not so far from there, Nash was laying on the edge of the lake, watching the stars. The moon would soon be above him, which means he could go back on land, and he should suspect another visit from Aurora short after.
Then, he heard a distant sound. It was like it called someone. Then he realized: it was Rikki's.
His eyes widened to the sound of his friend and he looked around, looked for a way to get closer to her.
He couldn't drag himself on land - it would take hours, and would be hard to move on the jungle floor. Then Nash noticed a small stream of water leaving the lake. He dragged his long, blue tail on the soft mud and pushed himself into the stream. He swam in the shallow water, following what he hoped was the source of the voice.
He decided to call her back. "Rikki! RIKKI!" He yelled from the top of his lungs, as he swam the fast that he could towards her.
A respond was heard, and he could hear her legs running in his direction. Within a short moment that felt like hours, Rikki finally saw him. "Nash!" She said with excitement. She wanted to hug him, but he was in the water and so all she said was, "I knee you were alive!"
He smiled, with a single tear of joy ran on his cheek.
"I wish I could hug you," she said.
He looked up to the sky. "Just wait,"
In a few seconds the thin moon reflected on the shallow water, and Nash's tail started glowing. Within seconds his long tail turned into human legs, and he was standing in the shallow water.
He smiled at Rikki and rushed to her. He grabbed her and lifted her in the air, just like in one of those romantic comedies Cleo was watching. They were both very excited, so excited that they didn't notice when they're lips touched. It was only seconds later, when they realized, and pulled apart.
"I missed you," He said with a goofy smile on his face.
To say the truth, Rikki loved the kiss, but she had other things to focus on at the moment, and so she made sure to change the subject. "What was that?" She said, referring to the transformation.
"You have to help me, I'm under some sort of a spell," He said. "At day, I only have a tail, no matter how dry I am. But at night, when the moonlight hits my body, I turn into a human again. But only human, and I can't swim all this way with my legs."
"Well, you don't have to swim, we have a boat here, on the beach." She said and grabbed his hand. She tried to pull but he resisted.
"You don't understand, once the moon sets I'll grow my tail back. No matter where I'll be. But I have to be in the lake in order to grow my legs again."
Suddenly, they heard, from a far distance, the voice of Aurora, calling Nash's name.
"Who is it?" Rikki asked and walked closer to him. "Is this the one holding you here?" She said.
"She's a powerful mermaid and she wants my powers. She's the one who got me under a spell." He explained. "You have to go!" He said and pushed her, but she showed some fight.
"Where is she? I'm gonna kick her ass!" Rikki said angrily and started walking the direction where the voice came from.
"No!" Nash stopped her. "She's too powerful, all of us together won't stand a chance against her, trust me."
As Rikki was about to respond, Aurora's voice was heard again, calling Nash one more time, clearly more pissed now.
"There's have to be a way to break the spell," Rikki said.
"I thought about it," Nash said and looked around, to make sure Aurora isn't there. "A couple of weeks ago I saw a conch on Lewis's mermaids mythology book, and it says it could grant wishes. If you'd find this conch, we could wish this spell away!"
"We will, I promise. Tomorrow there's a birthday party for me, at the café. Come and we'll make the wish, I'll you a boat by the shore." She said and shoved her hand in her pocket. "Here you go," she said and handed his the crystal bracelet, the same one he lost on the night he got taken. "I kept it for you."
He smiled at her. "I'll come tomorrow."
Aurora called Nash again, and this time, she was definitely closer than earlier. "You have to go! Now!" Nash said and pushed Rikki away, and she disappeared in the bushy jungle.
It was only several moments later when Aurora finally showed up.
"Ugh, there you are. Didn't you hear me calling?" She said, removing plants and insects from her clothes. "What was all that noise?"
He hid the bracelet behind his back, and thought of an answer. "I was just... talking to myself," He said. "I decided to give you my powers." He said, trying to change the subject.
"Oh, finally!" She said with joy. "Finally you see the situation clearly and make the right decision," She smiled. For an evil mermaid, she was quite happy and joyful. "I'm getting so close to destroying all of mermen on these oceans!"
You know what, forget my last comment, she was evil as fuck.
Nash rolled his eyes. "So how is this gonna happen?" He asked.
"Well, it's gonna happen as soon as possible." She said, and started circling him. But then, out of nowhere, Nash felt her hand grabbing and twisting his hand behind his back, and in a moment of surprise, he dropped the bracelet to the ground.
"Ah uh!" She called and picked it up. "Do you think I'm some sort of fool?!" She said and waved the bracelet in his face.
"Oh Nash please come to my birthday party!" She mockingly repeated Rikki's words.
"I'm going, and there's nothing you can do to stop me!" He yelled.
Despite her short temper, Aurora was quite cool about the situation. Maybe because she knew she had the upper hand. "You're right, there's nothing I can do about it. But there's one flaw with your plan...." She said and looked to the sky, glowing in the light of the almost ending moon. "Tomorrow night there will be no moon." She said with a grin. She was right, the next night there's gonna be a new moon, which is basically invisible, and therefore, glowing no light at all. And let me refresh your memory: no moonlight = no legs.
Aurora laughed as she walked away, happy of herself. Nash was feeling so lost again, as his little spark of hope was burned completely. Of course, they could always they the next night, but he knew that Aurora won't let it pass by that easily, and it's not gonna be so easy the next time.