...a mermaid. Jo was quite honestly surprised to see a real mermaid, especially one with a green tail, brown skin, long red hair, blue eyes and bare DD-cup breasts. With equal parts confusion and curiosity, Jo dived down towards the other mermaid. As she swam towards her, the other mermaid spoke, to Jo's surprise, in plain English: “Hello there! I don't think I have seen you around here before. What is your name?”
“Um, I'm Joella, but my friends call me Jo.”
“Hi Jo! I'm Coralie.” said the other mermaid.
Jo, uncertain about how to properly reply, extended a hand and said: “Well, nice to meet you, Coralie.”
Coralie quickly took Jo's hand, shook it and said: “Nice to meet you too, Jo.”
The two mermaids continued chatting, which left Jo lost for words. The conversation was not so much a conversation as an interrogation. It seemed that every time Jo tried to speak, Coralie would ask a question that required her to answer.
"Jo, what's your favorite color?”
"I like pink.”
"Why do you love pink?”
"Well... because it reminds me of bubbles...”
Coralie gave Jo a look filled with confusion and asked: "How did you get here? Tell me honestly because something tells me that you're holding something back.”
Jo looked at the mermaid in chock. She realized that that for some reason, Coralie was not affected by her wish that people would believe anything she said. Jo realized she could feel herself blushing. Feeling very self-conscious, Jo decided to tell the truth.
“Well, for starters, I wasn't born as a mermaid. I transformed myself with this ring on my finger. It can grant any and all wishes, or at least as far as I know.”
Coralie looked at the ring and then back to Jo.
“Wow, that's amazing! You must be really special. Do you mind granting a wish of mine?”
“Sure.”
“Well, it might sound weird, but ever since I was 16, I wanted to explore the human world up close and personal, but I don't want to transform into a human. All I wanna know is that it is possible.”
Jo was surprised to hear Coralie's wish, mostly because it was unusually specific. Then she smiled and said: “Believe it or not, it is possible. In fact, I've done it to myself. So, prepare your fins, because I wish that Coralie could walk on land on her tail and be able to breathe air for as long as she likes.”
When Jo finished her wish, Coralie felt the insides of her tail change. She could also feel something changing with her gills. It wasn't painful, but rather pleasant. But less than a minute later, it stopped. Coralie looked at her tail. It looked the same as it did before the wish. Coralie said: “I don't feel any different, but I know now how to use my tail on land. Is there any place where I can try it out?”
Jo nodded yes and took Coralie's left hand and led her to the portal to her remodeled bathroom.
Once both mermaids surfaced, Jo swam straight to the edge of the spring, gathered all her strength in her arms and pulled herself out of the spring. Coralie mimicked what Jo did and said: “Wow! What a nice cove you've got here!”
“Thanks.” Jo replied and wished them both dry and then “stood” up on her tail. Coralie looked at her in chock and asked:
“Is that what it looks like when your tail 'stands' up? It looks so weird, but you do it as if you've done it all your life.”
“I mean, it makes sense.” said Jo and continued: “I was human, so I do almost have a lifelong headstart.”
Then Coralie asked: “Would you mind helping me up? I know I can do what you are doing now, but I rather not trying it alone.”
“Sure.” replied Jo and grabbed both of Coralie's hands and pulled her upwards. When she had gotten enough height, Jo let go off Coralie's hands and let her stand up on her own.
“That was cool!” said Coralie after “standing” up on her tail.
Jo smiled and said: "Cool? Well, I guess it is. But trust me, you haven't even seen anything yet.”
Then Jo “walked” towards the bathroom door. Coralie was naturally nervous about taking her first “step”, but when she shifted her hip slightly to the left, she was amazed that she slid forward. All she could say was: “Whoa, this is really cool!”
She repeated the process by shifting her hip slightly to the right and her tail slid even further towards the bathroom door. But as Coralie “walked”, she could feel the dewy grass-blades of the cove tickle her tailfins. The pleasure of the sensation caused Coralie to giggle before saying: “Well, I guess that confirms that this isn't a weird dream I'm having.”
When Coralie reached the bathroom door, Jo opened it and insisted that Coralie should “step” through it first. Once Coralie did that, she got her first look at a human home.
“Wow, what a nice place you live in! It's obviously different from what merpeople call a home, but still.” Coralie said.
Jo was taken aback by her comment and asked: “Wait, merpeople have homes too?” Coralie just laughed and replied: "Of course we do! We actually have several types of homes, depending on our preferences. Of course, those can't be found by any human no matter how much of the ocean they explore because the sea witches has cast protection spells around our underwater cities.”
“You mean you have magic?” said Jo with a stunned look on her face.
“Well, yes. Only the sea witches can perform magic and brew magic potions. For example, they can brew a potion that can transform a mermaid into a human. But even they have limits. I've been searching for many years now for someone who could grant my wish, but I found none before I found you. And for that, I'd like to say thank you.”
Jo smiled and replied: “Don't mention it. I'm glad to help. And if I share the human world with you, you can tell me what it's like to live under water. Does that sound like a good deal?”
Then Coralie asked: “Sounds good to me. So, is there anything you'd like to show me first?”
Jo replied:...