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Ch.8: Sailor Scout Melissa |
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Sorry it took so long. I've been busy in real life. Now then, on with the story.
I glanced up in the same direction as Melissa. Phantom was gone and suddenly my head was pinned to the ground. In that moment of distraction, I had left an opening in my defenses. A skinny sailor had knocked me down and was looming over me, harpoon poised to strike my heart.
I called out to Melissa to help me. Mat already had his hands full with crowd control; a crowd had gathered at the pier's edge, curious about all the noise on the docks below. "I don't have any powers. I can't help you," she called back, eyes back to their normal color again.
"Of course you can," I said. "All mermaids have powers. You just need to find yours."
I had just enough time to say those words before the sailor clamped a hand over my mouth saying, "Shut up, pond scum. Word is that a sea-witch's head is worth more than a live mermaid. Once you're dead, we'll sell your head to the highest bidder."
He laughed maniacally; I turned toward Melissa, eyes pleading for rescue. She had gone all white-eyed again. Even though the other sailors seemed to be taunting her to the point of distraction, she wasn't moving. Then all of a sudden, waves encircled her.
When the water receded, she had gone all Sailor Mercury with blue knee-high boots, a cool looking sailor suit, and a golden tiara with a sapphire and everything. "Mecury Bubbles!" she shouted, and suddenly the sailor who had pinned me down was thrown over the side of dock.
I got to my feet and together, Mat, Melissa, and I took care of the remaining sailors. (I'm still kind of envious of that Mercury Aqua Rhapsody attack Melissa did. I hear that once I master basic fighting magic, I'll be able to fight using music.) Melissa was ready for more, looking menacingly at a few sailors who had emerged from the pier above. "Enough," I told her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "They are not involved in this. Stop fighting. We've won the day."
Somewhere, a voice said, "She has awakened." I knew all too well who that voice belonged to and what the words meant. It meant that I was going to have a lot more encounters like this and soon, so I had best be prepared.
Melissa phased back to normal, but she looked shaky. I caught her in my arms. "What happened?" I asked Mat worriedly. (I didn't want her to fade away.)
"I think she's exhausted from all the energy she just used," he replied. "I didn't know she was capable of that sort of thing."
"That makes two of us," I said. "Come on. Let's take her back to my place."
Mat carried Melissa there faster than a speeding bullet by land. I followed him on the water. (It's funny really. I find I can swim faster than I can run, and for longer too, here and in real life.) We guided her past the still-sleeping Flotsam and Jetsam (Thank Poseidon those narcotics hadn't worn off.) and left her in my guest room where she slept for three whole days.
Three days later, Flotsam and Jetsam were on the mend thanks to my skills as a healer. Also, I was out of dried trout skin thanks to Jet's little experiment in my potion's lab. (Surprisingly though, he had made the exact potion for turning an animal back into its infant state. I had to admit I was impressed as well as pissed.)
I nipped off into town with the boys for some more trout skin, leaving Melissa at my grotto, still asleep. I figured she wouldn't cause any trouble when I was gone; boy was I ever wrong.
When I came back, her bed was empty, no note, no phone message, no nothing. 'What if those fishermen came and got her again?!' I thought. The boys and I frantically searched the grotto for signs of where she had gone. Then I thought, 'Duh! What do I have her number on my cellphone for?' (Thanks to my magic, my little cell is both water-proof and has really cool wallpapers.)
Thank Poseidon Melissa picked up. smile Curse Poseidon the things I yelled into the phone about how worried I was. sweatdrop It turns out that she had gone out with Mat and was just taking a trip around town. "Well, you'd better get back here," I said, glancing out of the window of my grotto. "It's getting late."
I saw Melissa and Mat on the beach near my grotto's entrance. They were talking about something or other, and then suddenly Melissa pulled Mat into a passionate kiss. I felt as if a dagger had been plunged into my heart, not because I had feelings for Mat but because I wanted that feeling too. (I had the strange, nagging notion that that feeling could be found with one of my boys too. But I'll get more into that later.)
P.S. "My boys" and "Flet and Jet" will be used from now on as an informal way to refer to Flotsam and Jetsam.
P.P.S. I'm a little worried about what Phantom said about Melissa's awakening. I can only hope he isn't doing what I think he is. *flinches*
 srs diva 2011 xxl · Fri Feb 06, 2009 @ 09:11pm · 1 Comments |
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