A New Environment

Blue: mother, I'm scared 

Ma'am Nina dropped her things on a rock and hugged Blue. 

Ma'am Nina : you don't have to be scared Blue, we'll be fine. Now let's get a safe place to stay, then focus on making a new home. 

Blue nodded and dropped her things on the same rock with her mother's things. 

Blue: mother this place looks lifeless. Why don't we swim further and check out the other places. I'm sure we could stay with some harmless fishes

Ma'am Nina : yes we can. Let's swim left towards that rocky path. 

She began to swim and Blue followed her, both carrying their things. 

They got to a place with lots of rocks but none could be used as a home. They swam to a different place but this time, the place lacked vegetation. They went further and found a place where there were rocks and vegetation but that was the stonefishes habitat

Blue: mother I'm tired. They just obviously left us here to die. 

Ma'am Nina : say positive things Blue. Be optimistic 

Just then a flock of yellow and black clown fishes swarm to their direction. 

Ma'am Nina :wow, clown fishes. They're different from the one's in the city. 

Blue and her mother shifted for them to pass but they dispersed and swam around them. 

Blue :wow, they're colorful. But why are they surrounding us, are we.... 

Ma'am Nina : sshh..... They're saying something 

Her voice was in a whisper, as if, if she spoke loud she wouldn't hear what they were telling her 

Blue:(in a whisper) what are they saying 

Her mother didn't reply but kept doing some pretty weird gestures. Making Blue wonder what exactly she was doing 

Ma'am Nina : oh my Neptune.... They're my friends 

Blue : huh? Friends? We just got here? How could there be your friends? 

Then the clown fishes began to leave them but going to another direction.

Her mother beckoned on her 

Ma'am Nina : let's follow them. They have a safe place for us in their habitat

They began to follow them until they reached their habitat which was quite peaceful. And really beautiful. The water there was bright blue and the reflection of light made it sparkle. Colorful fishes were there and lovely plants. 

Blue dropped her things and swam round. Swirling and giggling with the fishes who seemed to like her already. 

She loved the way her tail sparkled and kept turning around. 

Blue: I love here mother. Hahahaha. Wow, Blue fishes. We look good together. 

Her mother proceeded to check the rocks. It was more like a harmless cave. Very spacious and had lots of tiny rocks by the sides

Ma'am Nina : thank you so much Chloe. This place is nice 

The clown fish, which was the oldest among the flock swam round here. A gesture that she was welcome. 

Chloe as ma'am Nina called her was a nickname given to her by Kyl. When they were younger, they sometimes go out of the city to see sights, illegally of course. 

And they both became friends with Chloe's flock. 

Now she was older and had already gotten her own flock. She was leading them home when she got a familiar scent. She immediately recognized it to be Nina. 

Blue arrived and began to help her mother unpack their things and arrange them in suitable places. 

The place was quiet and peaceful and she loved it. 

Ma'am Nina : Blue, use that corner as your room. It's like a closet, or a little partition. 

She pointed to a space at the end of the cave that had a wall in front of it. But had a large opening, making it look like a room with a big door. 

She swam there and peeped. It was filled with sea shells and jewels. She swam there and looked at them. They looked rare. 

Blue: wow. They are shining. 

Mother come and see! 

Her mother came in

Ma'am Nina :wow, sea ornaments. They're beautiful. 

Chloe came in and gestured to ma'am Nina that Blue could have the ornaments since they were not of much use to the sea.

Blue thanked her. She emptied one of her boxes and put the ornaments in it. 

She arranged her room. Used rocks as tables and spread a wide and thick bed sheet made from leaves on the floor. 

Her new room was set. 

She swam out and met her mother arranging reddish round things on their light rocky plates.

Ma'am Nina : come and have a taste of these. They're delicious and satisfying. 

Blue : okay mother 

She swam to her and collected a plate of it and tasted it 

Ma'am Nina : how is it? 

Blue : I like it. So sweet and fleshy

Ma'am Nina : alryt finish up with it. I'm going to look behind the cave with Chloe. 

She got outside and swam to the back of the cave. 

Ma'am Nina : whoah, Blue is going to love this place 

The place was filled with beautiful fishes and had a brilliant shade of blue. 

The water there was cool and comfortable.

She sat down and began to relax. Everything that happened the last few days was to much and happened too fast. 

Blue: I better go and rest. I'm so exhausted.

She got up and swam to her new room. She wanted to lie down but decided to bring down the things in the box that she hasn't touched

That was when she caught sight of the pearls 

Blue: whoahh, these are still here. They're so pretty. 

She tried them on her wrist and looked at them. 

She suddenly felt sad

Blue: if only Rainbow was here. We both would have looked stunning with these on our hands. 

She looked through the box again and saw the book from ma'am Shell's library. 

Blue: oh my goodness. I didn't return this. Hmmm, I guess it's Now mine. Let me look through it.

She saw a song that caught her attention. 

She looked through the lyrics and found out they were pointing at her life. 

She became sad and depressed. Took the book and laid down, then began to sing the song. 

Soon her mother came in

Ma'am Nina : Blue, I've looked behind the cave and it's really beautiful. You should go and take a look and stop being depressed always 

Blue: hmmm, okay mother. I'll go there now 

She weakly got up and swam past her mother. 

Ma'am Nina : wait! What's these on your hands? 

She peered into the bracelets like someone who lost something precious but ended up seeing the exact thing in the hands of another person 

Blue : I'm sorry mother, for I forgot to tell you. I saw them in your room earlier. When we were packing. 

Ma'am Nina : {taking Blue's hands} oh my goodness. I thought they got missing back then

Let me have them for awhile. And they're still shiny

Blue released them, and swam to the back of the cave. 

Ma'am Nina sat down and looked at the pearls. They brought back all of her childhood memories with Kyl. These were the same magical pearls given to them by their periwinkle friends. 

She could still feel their magic in them and soon, tears that mixed with the water began to flow. 

Ma'am Nina : ohh Kyl. How could you be so thoughtless? Who brainwashed you Kyl? I wish none of this happen. Now my daughter and I have to live in isolation with no one to call upon. Blue doesn't deserve this. Except if....... 

She spent the rest of the evening in thoughts. Deliberating and trying to choose between two things. 

***

Blue really loved the place, so bluish and bright.

She decided to sing the song she's been learning in her room: 

Sometimes in life, they're questions that need answers 

You might ask why 

But you don't see why 

You try to soar high but things are going down 

When the ones you love starts backing off 

And your once bright life starts turning dark

But at this point in time, you have to get up 

Get up and fight the fight 

Of survival 

Cos it's all going to be okay soon 

Yes it's gonna be okay 

It's gonna be okay 

It's gonna be OK...aayy 

Ma'am Nina : you sing so perfectly well my child and yes it's gonna be okay 

Blue: ohh, I didn't see you there mother. 

Ma'am Nina : it's okay Blue. It's all gonna be okay, now that I've come to a conclusion 

Blue: what conclusion? 

Ma'am Nina : we're leaving 

Blue: huh? Leaving where 

Ma'am Nina : we're leaving this place 

Blue : but we just got here. 

Ma'am Nina : we're leaving the ocean Blue. We're leaving for the human world. The journey to the shore is going to be really risky. It's a do or die affair. If we get caught by the guards, then we accept our fate. But if we're not, then we'll be lucky. 

Blue was so perplexed and confused. 

How is that possible for mermaids with tails not legs are to live with the humans? 

If their fellow mer-beings could reject them, what more of humans? 

Her mother as if on cue, answered her questions

Ma'am Nina : the pearl bracelets Blue. They're magical. They can turn our tails into legs 

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