Serenity was waiting impatiently at the airport for her flight to be called. By now, her hair was brown and the make-up like coloring was gone. She was admiring her normal human face in a compact mirror when when she heard a woman's voice. “Excuse me, have you seen my friend?” She said, taking out a photo. “Here’s a picture, though her hair might be a different color now.” The color drained from serenity’s face as she saw it was a photo of Melissa. She looked up aghast at the woman. “Hello, Serenity; I'm Emily, and you’re going to help me with a little problem my friend and my sister have.”
A smirk appeared on Serenity’s face. “So, Melissa ‘kissed de girl’, has she?” she said, doing a sketchy imitation of Sebastian.
“Are you going to cooperate, or do I have to make a scene, here.” Emily quietly demanded.
“What are you going to do, tell everyone I turned your friend into a mermaid?” Serenity said.
“More like tell them you stole my friend’s identity.” Emily replied. “So, here’s the deal; you tell me how to cure my friend and sister, and I’ll let you be on your merry way; or, I could have your ass hauled in. The credit card you used was monitored, so I have all the proof, I need on this. It’s your call.”
“How do I know you won’t turn me in anyway.”
Emily crossed her arms. “You’re in no position to try taking the moral high ground, here.”
Serenity thought for a moment; she winced, realizing she was beat. “Fine!” She growled. “Black pearls; swallowing a mystical black pearl can undo the mermaid’s kiss.” Her smirk reappeared. “Good luck finding them, though; they don’t exist in ‘our’ oceans.”
“What do you mean ‘our oceans’?”
“All the magical and mythical beings you’ve read about exist in a separate world from our own; a world ruled by magic. Portals can be found all over the world and the beings from the other side use them from time to time. Fairy rings for instance, but others exist. Your friends will want to look for a coral arch; that’s how mermaids come and go.”
“You best not be lying, because if you are, I can always drop the hammer on you.”
“In that case; in the interest of full disclosure, I should warn you, they won’t work on a pregnant mermaid.”
Emily knew what she was implying. “I trust my friend and my sister.”
Serenity chuckled. “You left two bonded mermaids alone together, and believe me when I say abstinence is most decidedly NOT a mermaid’s strong suit.