The Ocean is a vast place and a place you should never question. Tales and folklore tell strange tales about what's beneath it, and one of them is a very popular one though people may call them evil creatures, overall, they are people, and more often than not, their physical appearance is combined with various fishes beneath the sea, and they are call mermaids.

🌊

"Ah, the sea," laughed King Julius, who have set sails, looking back at his sons, "Trey? Riddle? Don't you feel it? The breeze?"

"I certainly have," Trey answered, helping the sailor tie some rope, "You always told me about it."

"Y-yeah," Riddle agreed, keeping his grip on the rails, trying to keep a clean face, but it was clear that he was becoming seasick, "L-like Trey has mentioned,"

"Riddle," Trey sighs, "I told you, you didn't have to come along, especially with your seasickness. I know this is an attempt to get along with Father, but please,"

"No, Trey," Riddle sighs, "I can handle this...I can."

Julius smiles at his sons getting along.

"Boys," he called out, "how about I tell you a tale?" He asked, gathering the sailors around.

"Oh no," Riddle moaned.

🌊

Julius:

I'll tell you a tale of the bottomless blue

And it's hey to the starboard, heave-ho

Heave-ho!

Brave sailor, beware, cause a big 'uns a-brewin'

In mysterious fathoms below

Heave-ho

I'll sing you a song of the king of the sea

Sailors:

And it's hey to the starboard, heave-ho

Julius:

The ruler of all of the oceans is he

Julius and Sailors:

In mysterious fathoms below

Fathoms below, below

From whence wayward westerlies blow

Where Triton is king

And his merpeople sing

In mysterious fathoms below

🌊

"Isn't this perfection, Riddle?"

Trey helped Riddle to the seat, "Out on the open sea, surrounded by nothing but water."

"Oh, yes, it's simply...," Riddle gulped, "delightful..."

🌊

Trey:

The salt on your skin

And the wind in your hair

And the waves as they ebb, and they flow

We're miles from the shore

And guess what, I don't care!

Riddle:

As for me, I'm about to heave ho!

Julius:

Back to work!

Julius and Sailors:

I'll sing you a song of the king of the sea

An' it's hey to the starboard, heave-ho

The ruler of all of the oceans is he

In mysterious fathoms below

🌊

"King of the sea? Why, that's nautical nonsense - nothing but a superstition!" Riddle scoffed, looking down at the moment and gasping as he saw a teal fin underneath the ship.

"Why must you be so gung ho about these tales, Riddle?" Julius asked, "You seem like you know something we don't."

Riddle rolls his eyes and moaned to himself again.

🌊

Julius:

The king of the ocean gets angry

An' when he gets angry, beware I'm tellin' ya, lad, when

King Triton is mad How the waves'll buck, rock to and fro

Julius and Sailors:

Hold on, good luck, as down you go

Aa-aa-aah, a-aa-aah

A-aa-aah, a-aa-aaa-aah

🌊

Trey's eyes widen as he heard someone singing from afar, and it entranced him, and he didn't really know why but he looks around. "What is that? Do you hear something?" Trey gasped, looking at everyone on the ship, awaiting an answer.

Riddle grabbed Trey's arm, "Trey, please. Enough sea-faring! Can we please go back? Mother has said that now that you are the oldest, you should marry and take the crown,"

Trey looks back at Riddle, "That's not the life for me, Riddle, and you know that."

🌊

Aa-aa-aah, a-aa-aah

Aa-aa-ahh, a-aa-aaa-aah

🌊

"There it is again!" Trey remarked and looks back at Riddle, "Tell me you heard it this time."

Riddle slowly nods, "I-I have." He clears his throat, "We ought to head back to shore.."

Trey sighs and nods, "You are right, we should get going. Maybe the sea salt in the air has gotten into my head."

Julius pats Trey's back, "Yeah, and we have a feast, waiting for us!" He turns to the sailors, "Turn back! Let's get back at the castle!" "Aye-aye, Captain!"

🌊

Julius and Sailors:

There's mermaids out there in the bottomless blue

An' it's hey to the starboard, heave-ho

Watch out for 'em, lad, or you'll go to your ruin In mysterious fathoms below

🌊

Riddle looks back and saw a pair of gold and brown eyes underneath the waves, and looking around, Riddle shushes the pair and mentions them to sink, trying to keep them hidden by the many people on the ship. The eyes disappear and Riddle sighs to himself. "Floyd, I told you not to come out when a ship approaches..."

He mutters to himself. Riddle looks back at the pirates laughing to themselves.

"Look at you, Trey," Julius laughed, "Getting more braver by the birthday! And you know, The Coral Moon's tonight and you know that's when the mermaids arise from the sea to, and don't quote me on this, lure sailors to their deaths."

"I don't see that happening," Riddle spoke up, "especially the luring. If merpeople do exists, why would they bother dealing with us?"

"Riddle, sweet child. Sea creatures are always aiming to harm us every chance they get," slurred a sailor, "They're the reason many were lost at sea!"

Riddle cringed at the words. He knows they weren't true, he has met one and they have been friends since. Not that the mermaid in question cared for his privacy, but they are still somewhat friends regardless, so Riddle knows firsthand Merpeople mythology as he likes to call it.

"I'm saying we shouldn't judge them based on small-minded myths about them," Riddle clarified, "I know better than to judge someone based on their background."

"Ah, Riddle, growing up so strong-minded," laughed a sailor, drinking his beer, "such a good lad." Riddle sighs and sits down and looks into the sea, seeing a small glimpse of teal disappearing into the sea below.

🌊

"Hmm," Killigan grunts, looking around, "Where is that godforsaken boy," he sighs to himself and swims back to his house, "Our meeting with the Ashengrottos is in a few minutes and Floyd hasn't shown up one bit."

"Maybe he's by the jellyfish bay again," Marigold laughs, "You know how he is."

"I know exactly how he is and that's why I'm annoyed." Killigan's eyes gaze to his other son, Jade, "jade, have you seen Floyd?"

"Not since this morning," Jade responded, "Do you need me to search for him?"

"Please do," Killiagn groans, "and make sure he's back before our meeting." He watched as Jade left, and rubs his temples in annoyance. "He'd better not be collecting that stupid human stuff," he grumbles.

"Killigan, Floyd may be reckless but we both know he isn't stupid," Marigold spoke, "Jade'll find him and we'll have a peaceful meeting, just as we planned."

Killigan's expression softens a little, "You're right, I should have more faith in Floyd."

Marigold grins and continues to set the table.

🌊

"Floyd!? Floyd!! Where is he..." Jade called out, swimming around but to no avail.

He has been searching for a few minutes but the search for his brother was becoming fruitless, but a sight of a sunken ship made him realize Floyd was. A few meters away, another eel was exploring an abandoned ship, bag in hand. That eel was Floyd Leech, Jade's easily amazed and easily distracted twin brother, and he was collecting. You see, Floyd was interested in humans. Humans used unusual items, such as a book and candles, but they also have legs, two long things that helped them walk, unlike his tail which makes him speedy. But he was generally interested in humans and has been collecting ever since he was 9 years old, but he never told anyone other than Jade.

"Ooo.." he murmurs, holding a 4-pointed object in his hand.

"This looks so...pointy! I'll ask Shore what this is when I see her." Floyd puts it in his bag and continues his search." And lucky me~! Jade or Azul hasn't found me so I can search whenever and however I want!" With a delighted laugh, he finally sinks to the inners of the sunken ship, looking at old paintings of people, very old people Floyd wouldn't care about, extra books, and something that he could only recall as a music box.

"Why did people need them? Was it for personal reasons? Or was it for something else?" He questioned, "Like something for their hair?"

He giggles and puts them in his bag. Where did it all start with humans? Well, it all started when he met a human boy, at the ripe age of 9, a kid named Riddle. He didn't know anything about humans or their existence until meeting the young Prince of the Kingdom on the surface, after being saved by him from a fishnet. After that day, Floyd always met up with Riddle, despite Riddle's many, many protests. Though Floyd knew Riddle didn't mind it at all, it was the exact opposite. It might as well become a small crush at that point, but Floyd couldn't think of love when it came to collecting.

"...what's it like being human?" Floyd wonders, looking up at the painting of a family in front of him."What exactly do they do up there? Goldfish always told me that humans just do what they want but..what do they do? They spend all day in the sun, feeling the sand between them...what are they called again..." he muttered, unaware of the angry eyes of a nearby octopus.

"Floyd Leech!"

The sound nearly made Floyd drop his bag of treasures in an instant till he sees who made such a noise.

"Oh. Hi Azul."

Floyd chuckles sheepishly, trying to hide his bag behind him. Azul Ashengrotto is Floyd and Jade's best friend, even though they tried to eat him years ago, eel instinct. Ever since then, they have been close with Azul being protective of them, mostly Floyd after he got caught in a fish net. Not to mention that their families had worked together for years, and today was supposed to be a special meeting between the Leeches and the Ashengrottos. Azul is very aware of the surface that Floyd was interested in but often tried to derail Floyd from his fantasy because of dangers that the younger Leech twin was oblivious to, such as fish traps and fish getting caught and eaten.

"What are you doing here exactly?" Azul asked in a cold tone, his tentacles immediately rising.

"And what's exactly in the bag of yours?" He looks behind Floyd.

"You know.... um..." Floyd started but words couldn't form out of his mouth until he grinned, "What are you doing here, Azul? Aren't you supposed to be in a boring meeting with my family?"

"I was," Azul muttered, "but I saw Jade swim by and I just knew that meant that you be here, looking for humans stuff once again. Floyd, how many times have we all told you that all of this," He looks back at the ship, "is dangerous for us? Humans are ruthless creatures, and they'll kill us if they see us."

"Oh boo hoo," Floyd mocked, "I'm sure all of that is just superstition, and not actually true and just mertales to scare us from ever going into the surface."

"My mother has been to the surface and she has told us that humans are ruthless and unforgiving towards our kind," Azul swims towards Floyd, "what makes these so exciting to you?"

"I don't know," Floyd shrugs, "but they're unique and different from anything I've seen before and I know it sounds stupid but it's just fun to do." Azul sighs to himself, "I can't understand you, Floyd,"

"Floyd!!!" Jade calls out again from a distance. "Over here, Jade!" Azul called out, ignoring Floyd's attempts to keep him quiet. Jade zoomed over and grabbed Floyd into a hug like he always does when Floyd goes missing for hours.

"There you are!" Jade sighs and looks at him, then saw his bag,"...you went collecting?" "Yep! And I found tons of new stuff, and I'm meeting Shore later about it! Wanna come?"

"Of course, you're meeting her," Azul mumbled. Jade went silent for a second. He knew he couldn't exactly say no to Floyd, however, the more Floyd has been collecting; the more worried Jade became about him.

"Floyd, "Jade started, "I'm glad that you started a personal hobby, but you need to tell me when you go exploring. Father is practicing breathing on my neck about your location, and I can't keep lying to father and mother about this."

"Oh, come on," Floyd groaned, "you two always warned me about this but look at me," He huffs, "I'm fine and not on a dinner plate," he smiles, and takes out an odd object, "these are the only things that we know about the world above."

"Floyd," Azul sighs, "We only say this because we care about you and your wellbeing, and besides, you can be very stubborn about it." Floyd frowns and folds his arms.

Suddenly, a small growl was heard in the distance, alerting all three of them. Right behind them, were glowing red eyes, glaring at Floyd. Suddenly, a shark emerges from within the shipwrecked walls, almost knawing on Floyd's tail, but all were quick to escape before the shark's nefarious bite.

"Why do you always attract sharks!?" Azul hollered.

Floyd didn't answer as he looks for an escape plan, keeping track of the shark's movements. To his luck, he saw a small curve, just enough to trap the shark, even for a small while. "Hey!" Floyd called out to the shark, angering it, "Catch me if you can!"

"Floyd," Jade gasped, "What are you doing?"

"Shark trapping!" Floyd laughs, and zooms down, ignoring the sounds of the bites and growls of the shark behind. Jade followed, "You can't just do that," Jade lectured but his frown turns into a smirk, "not without me!"

"You two are such troublemakers," Azul grumbled, joining the tweels, "Let's just hope this works, Floyd, or else..."

"It will! Just keep going straight!"

"The shark can't attack all three of us, so he has to choose one," Jade explained, "And that normally means that the mer in the middle gets to go through the hole!" Jade laughs.

"Me!?" Azul bellowed, "Oh no no-!" His cries were short-lived as he soon found himself stuck within the small hole Floyd mentioned, and the shark was coming by quickly. "Oh, just my luck,"

Floyd and Jade noticed quickly and swam back to his aid.

"Are you ok?" Jade asked, starting to pull Azul's arms.

"Noo! I am not ok!!" Azul screamed, "I'm about to be shark food if you two don't act quickly!!"

Floyd swam behind Azul and started to push as Jade pulls, "We know!!" Floyd swam back and launches himself forward, successfully pushing Azul out, causing both Azul and Jade to fall backward onto the sandy grounds beneath.

"Floyd!" Jade called, "The shark!" Floyd looks and swims past the curve, trapping the fish-hungry shark in its place. All said and done, all rested on the ground, panting and sighing in relief, but soon filled the sea with laughter.

"I can't believe that happened," Floyd laughs, "And I didn't think I could push Azul that far."

"You've gotten stronger," Jade added, trying to keep his laughter quiet.

"I can't," Azul breathed, "You two are such menaces," he then laughs happily, "I guess that's why we're best friends, huh?"

"Yep! You can't say no to us," Floyd grinned and looks up, "Shall we see Shore now? Please?"

"Well, since you two did just save me from becoming shark food," Azul sighs, "Sure, let's go but let's be quick!"

Floyd nods and quickly swims up to the surface world, and sighs as the warm sun hit his body. He looks over and sees some humans, walking on the beach, or children giggling among themselves. He goes by a nearby rock and watches from it, his heart filled with unknown happiness.

🌊

This is where I belong

Beneath the clear wide blue here

I feel completely new here in the world above

It's like my life was wrong

And somehow, now at last

I'm in

My own skin

Up here in the world above

🌊

"What does Floyd see when he's up here?" Azul asked, "Many mers have told us that this place is horrible. Why does it attract Floyd so much?"

"You must not paid attention to Floyd's grotto," Jade laughs. Floyd swims forward, ignoring the two and enjoying the sun.

🌊

There's so much light here Light and space

The sun's so bright here Upon my face

It feels so right here

Warm as love

Life seems to be

Almost calling to me

From this strange new world above

🌊

Floyd smiles and swims over to a rock, accompanied by a seagull, a seagull who had a lot of human stuff around her, once she collected herself. "Shore!" Floyd called out, waving towards her.

Shore gasped and looks over, grabbing the telescope, looking at Floyd, "Ah! Mermaids at the port!!" She called out and takes the telescope down, and jumped as she saw Floyd right in front of her. "Oh! You swim fast!" She laughs, setting her telescope down, "And you brought friends, Jade."

"It's Floyd, Shore," Floyd corrected, setting down his bag, "And i also have found some more stuff!"

"Excellent," Shore cheered, taking one of the items from Floyd's bag, "Wow - this is special...this very very unusual.." "What? What is it?" Floyd questioned, looking at Shore with interest. "It's a dinglehopper!"

"A dinglehopper?" Azul raised an eyebrow. 

"Oh these babies are fantabulous. Absolutely indispensary. When it comes to dingle hoppers, I'm a regular Encyclopoodia!"

"Doubt it," Azul mumbled, only to be hushed by Floyd.

🌊

Say that you wanna have a hairdo

Like the folks who live up there do

That'll flap their wings

Flop their wigs! Flap! Awwwk!

Well you'll look absolutely dandy

If you use one of these handy

Little thingamajigs

Thingmabobs Jigs! Bobs! Awwwk!

Pick up a dinglehopper just like so

Twirl it the way I'm twirling now

🌊

Floyd took the dinglehopper and starts to use it on Azul's hair, completely ignoring Azul's protest.

"Stop it!" Azul demanded, trying to take the dinglehopper away from Floyd.

🌊

Give it a little yank and there ya go

You're what they call the dog's meow

Wonderful stuff

Squawk

That human stuff

Can't get enough...

Squawk

Of human stuff!

And we are the authority

No need for us to bluff

Because we're great at explanating

Human stuff

🌊

"Are you sure?" Azul asked, "Because I'm confused how you would know how to use these items that these humans do everyday?"

"Im on land most of the time!" Shore spoke confidently, "So of course I know about this!"

Floyd took out something else and gives it to Shore, "And what's this?"

"A snarfblatt!"

"Seriously?" Jade asked, looking at it.

"You can be serious.." Azul muttered.

🌊

Back when the world was prehistorial

People sat as still as coral

Flat upon their bumps

On their runts! Bunks! Awwwk!

There they would be, not even thinkin'

Bored to death and barely blinkin'

Way down at the dumps

On the dumps! At! On! Awwwk!

Then they invented snarfblatts, just by chance

Suddenly life was la-di-da!

Snarfblatts're what you use to make folks dance

Give it a blow, and then - voila!

🌊

Jade take a blow, causing a squeaky noise from the snarfblatt, and seaweed, shells, and sand blew out of it.

"Might need a quick clean before playing." Shore laughed.

🌊

Wonderful stuff! Awwwk!

That human stuff! If you're a buff - Awwwk!

Of human stuff!

It's marvable!

Stupendible!

Completely A-OJ!

Which sounds absurd, but take my word -

That's what the humans say!

Sensible stuff That human stuff!

None of it fluff - Not human stuff!

And heaven knows

Since we're the pros From us, you'll get no guff

And once you've got a who's-ma-gig -

A thing-ma-what -

A watch-ma-gig -

That's all you need to bring you up to snuff!

Right up to snuff!

With proper dinglehopper groomin'

Rest assured...you'll look real human!

We know, 'cause we know

Human stuff!

🌊

"Can we please leave now?" Azul asked, "We are still late for our business meeting...or it has already ended!" Floyd shrugged it off as he looked off into the distance, at the castle in front of him.

"Hm."

"Floyd, you can't possibly be thinking about going over there?" Azul gasped, "That's a human castle!"

Jade swims over to Floyd, "Does he live in there? Your Goldfishie?"

Floyd giggles and nods, "Yep! Goldfishie goes here! He calls himself a prince and he lives right there. And I know the perfect way to get in undetected."

With that, Floyd dives down, zooming away from Azul and Jade. Jade lets out a sigh, "What am I going to tell Father? I know I can't lie to him for long but..look at Floyd, being so happy."

"I know," Azul agreed, "But Floyd's putting himself in danger if he keeps doing this. What if he does something he'll regret?"

"Floyd's smarter than that, Azul. We both know that he can handle himself."

🌊

"Yes, yes, trust that merman as he recklessly goes to a human castle." Hummed a voice, looking through her glass ball, "but look at him, full of joy and life." The figure growled at the sight, swimming down to a sea vanity, and fixing her makeup. "But me? Oh, no no no. No one cares about poor Winfred, oh no. How she's growing old due to the stress of being banished. While her sister runs free and safe?! I don't think so."

Winifred was once an immensely powerful being, of course sharing that title with her younger sister, Veronica. Along with them and King Triton, they would protect the sea together.

But of course, Winifred got immediately cruel and greedy with her magic. She would graciously help those but now she demanded reason or compensation for her supposed charitable deeds. This eventually became a fight between her and Veronica, leaving Veronica the victor, and with King Triton's word, she was banished to the bottom of the sea, only the power of the shell kept her magic.

Though she wasn't alone.

She was blessed with a young girl named Amphitrite, a daughter she was extremely proud of and taught her everything she knows about witchcraft.

Now they plot and plan together as Mother and Daughter, causing despair to both humans and mermaids and was partially the reason many ships have sunken and skeletons lay, and it was always a pleasure, to bring evil in the world of conflict and war. It brings a grin to their faces. A new plan was raised, one that came up after Amphitrite's journey to the land above, giddy with joy and love.

"Darling! Come here!" Winifred called her daughter over, "It is almost time for them to depart, my dear." Amphitrite grinned as she swam over to the crystal bubble, looking through it.

"Excellent, Mother! Oh, you're the best for doing this for me." Amphitrite embraces her mother with a big grin.

"Anything for my beautiful daughter," Winifred giggles, "just wait until I do that spell and zoom up there!"

"Oh of course!" "Now, let's watch this merman now...what has he been up to now?"

🌊

Floyd swam over to the kingdom in front of him, finding his way underneath the wall by the castle, easily removing the bars, loosened after Floyd's many years of visiting. He grinned as he saw the bright hair of Prince Riddle.

"Goldfishie!" He cheered, causing a jolt from Riddle.

"Shush," Riddle shushed, looking around, "I don't want my parents to hear, nah, see you."

"My bad," Floyd laughs, "I got excited, and I found so much stuff while I was exploring. Like these weird...people on the wall. They don't talk but you can see them."

"Oh," Riddle listened, sitting by the water, "Those are called portraits. A painting, to be more specific.."

"Oh, I know a lot about painting, we always paint in the sea."

"Then, portraits are paintings are humans just sitting in front of a painter."

"So...do you get portraits, Goldfishie?" Floyd asked, clearly interested in Riddle's lesson.

"Well," Riddle chuckles, "As part of the Royal family, yes, I do have a portrait, mostly people of the Royal family would have portraits to keep the essence of them, even when they die."

"Oh...die?" Floyd asked, tilting his head.

"Y-yeah," Riddle stammered, "Mother told me when you die, your soul, becomes the stars above, meaning you'll live on because souls never die." Riddle points up for Floyd to see the stars that slowly form as the sun sets, and watch his eyes shine with amazement.

"Never dies?"

"What about you?" Floyd looks back and sighs to himself, "Well, mermaids don't really have a soul. We can live for over 500 years, but we don't decrease slowly. Many...just turn into seafoam when they stop breathing, to become part of the ocean, but we don't..live on."

Riddle frowns as Floyd explained his side of biology. "So, you don't have a soul?"

"Not that I heard of, no," he answered, "I don't think mermaid school actually told us."

"How about the Coral Moon?"

"Hmm? What about the moon tonight?"

"Why is it so important to you and your kind?"

"Oh, I may not be accurate on it," Floyd spoke, "for the stuff that I can remember," Floyd looks up, "the Coral moon is here for an entire week, even more depending on the year. It was called that after a mermaid princess fell in love with a human, but only to lure him to his death and in retaliation he killed her, leaving her to transform into the sea foam you see when waves approach. But I am not sure if that's even true."

"How so?"

"I mean, that's the story but the whole premise is more of a...evil night for humans. We have voices that lure people to their death every time the Coral Moon's on the rise. It's not a good thing to celebrate."

"Celebrated?"

"Coral Moon is also a coming of age for young mermaids, a night of learning how to lure, and how to use their voice for bad things. Sirens,is what they are called." Riddle looks worried about the description, and Floyd's somber tone but Floyd's frown turns into a smile. "But it's a good day for me!" Floyd looks over and takes Riddle's hand, "Under the Coral Moon, I met you, Goldfishie! I met a nice human and we're friends now."

Riddle blushes a little and hides a shy smile. Floyd smiled as Riddle tried to talk about more positive topics. Not paying attention, he takes the pipe instrument out of his bag and starts to play with it, causing Riddle to jump and look back.

"Floyd!" Riddle gasped, "What are you doing with a smoking pipe? That's not healthy for you."

"I'm playing my new instrument, it's not a smoking pipe."

Floyd declared, still playing, "And it's called a snarfblatt!" Riddle almost tends to forget how Floyd's mind works as a merman who's never been on land. He doesn't know the common things that he, as a human, uses regularly, whether it be a music box or a smoking pipe. He does explain what they are from his perspective, but he knows that Floyd never listens, even if Riddle pushes that information into his skull.

"Sorry, Goldfishie, that I scared you," Floyd muttered, putting down. Riddle started to laugh. "It's fine, you were just having fun, and it just happen to startled me. Don't worry about it, Floyd." Floyd smiles and continues to look deep in his bag, finding all kinds of items that he has found, with Riddle explaining what they are, watching Floyd get excited, and asking questions.

"Riddle!" Called Queen Icabeth, "It is time to set sail for Trey's birthday!"

"I should get going, Floyd, you should as well, it's getting late," Riddle said, getting up, "and be careful, ok?"

"See you soon, Goldfishie!" He cheered and dives back underwater, leaving Riddle by himself. "What am I going to do with you, Floyd?"

Riddle laughs and walks inside the castle, meeting up with his mother, Queen Icabeth. "You have that look in your eyes again, Riddle," Icabeth snarled, "and you are late. No one shall ever be late to a birthday party."

"I apologize,"

"Oh, Icabeth," Julius chuckled, "Riddle's a good boy. I don't mind he's late for a minute or two!" Trey nods in agreement, looking at a paper he held in his hands.

"What are you holding?" Riddle asked, looking at Trey.

"Oh, it's nothing, Riddle," Trey chuckles, "..it's just a drawing I drew the other day. Father thought I should take it as a good luck charm."

Riddle took a peak and couldn't help but gasped. It was a hand-drawn photo of a mermaid, one with a striking similarity to Floyd, but for Riddle, it was different somehow, by a rock, looking at the moon, presumingly when both he and Trey heard random singing.

"Wow..that's amazing.." Riddle whispered, trying to hide his shock.

"I saw it only after we began to float away," Trey explained, "I can't help but be entranced by them. I mean, have you heard their voice? It was angelic.."

Riddle didn't know what to say, other than Trey was in love with a sea creature. Or he was now, who knows, but what Riddle does know is that this began to worry him. "Well, we should get going," Riddle spoke, "It is your birthday today, and we don't need to be more late than we already were." The royal family finally boarded the ship and sailed away.

🌊

Floyd and Jade quickly swam home, as they noticed how dark the sky have become. "I can't believe we missed the dinner," Jade groaned, "Father will kill us if he found out we snuck out again."

"I'm sorry! I lost track of time..again." Floyd chuckled sheepishly.

"Because you hang out with Goldfishie for so long," Jade teased, "What's with you two anyways?"

"Oh! It's just...I love him," Floyd admitted, "If you saw him, you would agree. He's so cute, his red hair always reminded me of a goldfish, and when he gets blushy, he looks like a goldfish more!"

"...I'm conflicted. Is it love or obsession?" Jade questioned.

"What!? I'm not obsessed with Goldfishie." Floyd huffed, "I mean, come on, Jade! He's actually pretty nice to me." "Oh really?"

"Yes!" Floyd rolls his eyes, "You don't get it, Jade. When you finally see someone that made your heart beat so intensely, that's how you know you are love."

"Never."

"What about love?"

The twins gasps as they spotted their father in front of their house, instantly glaring at them as they arrived.

"You two finally arrived," Killian hissed, "after the dinner's over! Where have you two been? Floyd, especially."

"Well, I was by that cave again." Floyd lied, "You know I always get distracted by the small fishes, and a lot more stuff.."

"So distracted that you have forgotten about this very important dinner? Floyd, this is unexceptionable," Killigan lectured, "And I bet you weren't even at that cave, but up at surface once again, even though I have told you many, many times about the dangers up there!"

"I wasn't exploring again," Floyd huffed.

"Boys!" Marigold called out, swimming over to the twins, "Where have you been!? I was worried."

"Floyd said he was at the supposed cave."

"Again? Floyd, I don't need you getting lost considering how easily distracted you are. You are lucky you don't have any scars or anything."

"..he almost got one dealing with that Angler Fish," Jade muttered.

"What!?" Marigold gasped as Floyd glared at his brother.

"Of course, he almost got hurt," Killigan groaned. "In my defense," Floyd pouted, "I was only 6 years old, and Jade saved me just in time, so no scar and no injuries."

"For now." "Dad, what's your problem?" Floyd asked, "I'm fine, I'm alive, and you always seem so.."

"Floyd, you are reckless, you always find a way to get you and Jade in trouble. You don't understand the consequences of your actions and my word, you will get yourself killed, don't you get it!?"

"Killigan, stop it!" Marigold yelled. It was too late, Floyd was already gone as if he was never there in the first place. Marigold sighed, "Jade, can you go after Floyd? Me and your father need to have a serious conversation." Jade sorrowfully nodded and swims away, leaving the parents by themselves.

"What were you thinking?!" Marigold lectured, "Floyd's only a teen and yet you treat him a damn delinquent. You don't have the right to treat him like that."

"God, Marigold, don't you see? If he continues to do what he does, he'll end up missing or killed! Look at you, my love, you lost an arm...I don't want that to happen to you."

"If I can handle myself when I'm in danger, so can Floyd. And he has Jade with him, so I know he'll be safe." Killigan sighs, ".....was I too harsh?"

"Absolutely. But let Floyd calm down for now, and then when they return, we'll have an extended conversation, ok? Especially about your attitude, Mr. Leech." Killigan nodded and holds Marigold close as they swim inside.