...nothing especially helpful. One comment that seemed to be spam, another saying that it looked like something she found in a hobby crafts store, and zilch otherwise. A sigh of frustration left her as she set her phone down, hands rubbing her face. Terrific. She was getting fishier by the minute it seemed like, and completely at a loss for what she was even dealing with. It wasn't even as if she disliked these changes - but she wasn't exactly thrilled at the idea that she was stuck inside this strange aquatic body without any way to go back. She loved the ocean, sure - but she loved having legs, too.
There was a hint of jealousy to the way she stared out at Valerie hitting the waves. Made you really start the ability to walk, or in that woman's case, surf. She was envious as she watched the short-haired surfer with her shapely legs cruise onto a wave, the woman's smirk almost seeming like an insult when she turned to look right at Marina. She was so focused on Valerie's face, in fact, wondering at how to interpet it, that she almost didn't notice something happening to those same long legs she'd been admiring earlier.
But she sure as hell noticed when the woman leaped right off her surfboard, and it wasn't legs that followed beind her. No, what was instead trailing made Marina's jaw drop. As the surfer crested out of a wave, flowing behind her was a long tail, not at all unlike Marina's own - a different color, gold and black in geometric patterns, but same sorts of fins. In fact, her whole body was covered in the shiny black and gold save for her face; her hair was still short, but now a radaiant golden color. Webbed hands were outstretched, and she could have sworn Valerie winked at her as she dove back into the water.
The shock lasted a few moments before Marina was rocketing out of the boat, flopping over herself to dive in and pursue this new development. The idea that she might be going completely fucking insane once more crossed her mind, but she pushed forward, figuring that, at this point, she might as well embrace insanity. Back in the water, she was like a dart, moving with all the speed she could muster as a sense of purpose surged her on. Before long she had spotted the figure of Valerie cutting her own path through the ocean, turning to smile and beckon Marina over. And when they finally drew close, a greeting.
"Finally. Was hoping you'd just come out and admit it."
Befuddled, Marina slowed down, shocked at how perfectly she'd heard Valerie's words. Some sort of magical adjustment, to be understood underwater? She squinted and tried to speak, finding her own words to be equally understandable. "You're a freaking mermaid?!"
Valerie tilted her head. "So are you."
It was a fair point, but not exactly what Marina was getting at. "Why didn't you tell me?!"
"I did, ya bimbo," Valerie joked back as she started circling Marina. "Figured when I mentioned your last fins coming in, you'd come clean. Buuuuut... I guess I can't blame you. Was kind of overwhelming for me too."
"You... too..." She blinked rapidly. "You... did you...?"
"Find a medallion that turned me into a rubbery fish woman?" Valerie nodded. "About two years ago. Found it on vacation, next thing I know, my divesuit is my skin and I've got a tail."
"But you had legs! So that means... that means I can get my legs back, right?!"
Valerie smirked. "Plus some extra. Didn't used to be this hot." Her smirk only deepened as Marina blushed - yeah, she had definitely noticed how the new mermaid was looking at her. "There's just one caveat."
She stopped in front of Marina, reaching out and taking one webbed hand in her own. "You have to let go. Stop fighting it... embrace it, embrace the ocean. The harder you fight, the tighter the sea's going to hold onto you..." She let out a small sigh. "So. You have to accept that you're not human anymore... and when you have, you'll be able to share in both worlds.
Marina's head felt like it was spinning. "That... that's insane, I... I'm supposed to just give up, and that's how I get my legs back?! What kind of fucking sense does that make?!"
"You're not giving up. You're just accepting." She put her other hand on Marina's cheek. "What were the words you heard, when the changes started?"
It seemed like years ago, but she quietly answered. "I uh... it said... what's outside, should match the inside."
"And now it does." She nodded to Marina's tail. "You were always a mermaid, on the inside. You're scared to admit, because it's so terrifying to admit that what you thought you were your whole life was wrong. And maybe it'll take time... but when you accept, when you're able to say, yes, this is what I am and I love myself... then you'll be free. Free to be in the ocean forever, free to go back to land knowing what you are, free to move between those worlds if you want. You just have to accept yourself for what you've always been."