Chapter Text
"Everything's gone, Coco!! It's all gone!! And it's all my fault!!" Sara sobbed, laying face down on my clamshell bed. She'd arrived out of nowhere about fifteen minutes ago. Sara had said a brief hello, then immediately thrown herself onto my bed and began to cry. I hadn't the slightest idea what was wrong, but it broke my heart seeing her wailing away like this. I wondered if this had something to do with the human she'd been seeing. Tarou, I believe.
I swam over and sat next to her on the bed, putting a hand on her shoulder to try and calm her. "Sara, what's going on? What's wrong? You just showed up with no explanation and started crying. Did someone hurt you? Do I have to go fight another deep sea fish pervert who was spying on you?"
She looked up at me, eyes filled with tears. I wanted to pull her into a huge hug and just hold her until she stopped crying. "It's gone," she whispered, between sobs. "The Indian Ocean is gone, my relationship is over, everything's just RUINED!" She started to sob louder. My heart ached for her and her clearly-shattered heart.
Not knowing what else to do, I started stroking her hair gently. She and Tarou must have broken up and she thought it was the end of the world. It appeared as though the job of comforting her fell to me, which I didn't mind. I loved spending time with Sara. We were childhood friends, since our castles were so close. Lately, she'd been a bit more unpredictable due to her relationship with Tarou. She'd been having extreme mood swings lately, with one day her being perfectly happy and open, the next being sullen and closed-off. I'd had a bad feeling about their whole relationship from the start, quietly suspecting the two of them wouldn't last. I'd been correct after all. Not that Tarou was a bad guy, of course. I'd seen him once, from a distance. He seemed sweet enough. Just, those two weren't meant for each other. They were incompatible.
"So, I'm assuming you and Tarou broke up?" A massive mistake. I should not have asked that, as Sara began to cry even harder.
"He left me!! Baaya told him never to see me again because I was a princess, that I was 'too important' for him, so he LEFT!! I LOVED him, Coco! And there she is, telling him to get lost because I'm 'too important?' And he's telling me that we're not good for each other? He had the audacity to lie to me!" She continued to sob as I quietly ran my fingers through her hair. I figured it would be better to just let her cry this one out. "We were going to run away together and have a life together on the surface! But all of it's gone now!!" Sara looked up at me, tears & snot running down her face. "I don't even have a kingdom to go back to! It's been destroyed!!"
My eyes widened in shock. "What? You-your kingdom... the Indian Ocean is destroyed? How?"
Sara laid her head back down on the bed, not able to meet my eyes. "I-I destroyed it. My-my pearl went out of control when I realized what happened with Tarou." Her voice still had echoes of shock. She opened her necklace and showed me the Orange Pearl, still shining brightly from her extreme mood swings. "It created a tsunami and it wrecked everything in the kingdom. It even got the edges of the North Pacific, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was here too. Some princess I am, destroying my whole kingdom." I could hear the bitterness in her voice.
I couldn't take hearing her cry anymore. Softly, I pulled Sara into a hug. "It's going to be okay, Sara," She sniffled, but I continued, rubbing her back gently, "Kingdoms and palaces can always be rebuilt, but you can't recover from the shock of losing a leader very well. But you're here and you're physically fine. I can lend you the support of the South Pacific mermaids in rebuilding efforts and I'm sure if you ask Caren in the Antarctic or Lucia in the North Pacific, they would help too." I smiled at her. "And screw Tarou for dumping you. It's going to be okay. We've got each other, right?"
"Right." Sara echoed me. "Thank you, Coco. I don't know what I'd do without you."
"Probably fall into despair." I laughed. Perhaps it wasn't the best time to make that joke, though, as Sara immediately squeezed me tightly.
"Please don't leave me," I heard her whisper. Her tears showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. "Don't leave me like... like he did."
"Why would I?" I replied, holding her tightly. "We're best friends, until death."
Sara let go of me then. "I... can I stay here tonight? I... don't have a home right now. I promise I won't destroy your castle."
A sleepover? It was just like old times! "Of course!" I turned, ready to call one of my servants. "We can have one of the guest rooms fixed up for you in no time-"
Sara grabbed my hand suddenly. "If it's okay, can I stay in your room? With you?" Her cheeks seemed pinker than usual, was she blushing? "I'm, uh, worried about nightmares. I've been having a lot lately..."
"Y-yeah, that's no problem! I'll keep you safe from all the nightmares!" I smiled at her. I was secretly relieved she wanted to stay here with me. I'd been having my own nightmares lately; maybe with Sara being here, they'd stay away.
"Thank you, Coco." Sara suddenly pulled me into another hug, holding me tightly. I felt like I could barely breathe before she suddenly released me. She fell over onto the bed once more and curled into a ball, still sniffling, but she didn't seem to be crying anymore at least.
"Make yourself at home. I feel tired myself so we might as well both turn in for the night." I swam across the room and threw Sara an extra pair of pajamas. After a few seconds, she rolled over and grabbed them. Sara got up to change, but upon seeing her reflection in the mirror, she burst into fresh tears.
"I'm a wreck!! Have I looked like this all day? A blotchy, tear-stained mess?" She hid her face in her hands. I remained silent; I had no idea how to respond to her. She had been a mess all day, after all. "Stupid Tarou!!" Her tail seemed to give out and she sank to the ground. "I look like this because of him!!"
"Sara... forget what you look like. You're tired, you should go to sleep. You'll feel better in the morning. Crying tires you out and there's no way you'll feel better tonight." I swam over to her and took her hands, helping her get up. She sniffled and I wiped away a few stray tears falling from her eyes. Sara motioned towards the pajamas and I respectfully turned around as she changed into my spare yellow pajamas.
"Twinsies," I laughed, pointing towards my own pajamas. Sara said nothing, just tearfully looked down at the yellow fabric.
The two of us laid down together on my seashell bed, staring through the clear roof of my castle. Sometimes on clear nights you could see the murky images of stars shining high above the surface of the sea, but tonight was stormy. We watched the waves roll and lightning flash from deep below the sea. At one point, Sara suddenly rolled over until she was curled up against me. I said nothing, just put my arm around her, in another attempt to comfort her.
"Sometimes I wish I wasn't a Mermaid Princess," Sara whispered, after we'd laid there cuddling for a bit. "The surface is so pretty and I could be with Tarou. If I could leave the Indian Ocean in someone else's hands, I would go in a heartbeat." Her orange eyes seemed to reflect both the storm above. Her emotions must have been swirling inside of her like a whirlpool.
"Mmm, I'd miss you. You're my best friend," I mumbled into her hair. I didn't know what I'd do if I couldn't go see Sara whenever I wanted. I'm sure I would grow past it and find a new best friend... eventually.
She softly laughed. "I'd miss you too, Coco. I don't think I could turn my back on the ocean world, so long as you're in it." She took my hand and squeezed it suddenly. It was the last thing I remembered before I drifted off to sleep.
Tsunamis raged over the seven seas. A dark castle seemed to be rising from a deep sea ocean trench, causing even more distress in the water. I was standing on the shore of land, somewhere. All around me, everything seemed to be crumbling. Buildings were falling, trees were uprooted, and humans were getting swept up in the crashing waves. A man's evil laughter rang out over it all. It seemed to be coming from within the castle. It gave me the chills.
"Coco!" I heard an unfamiliar voice cry. I looked around for the source, but couldn't find anyone. "Coco!" It called again, more urgently.
"Who are you? Where are you?" I cried, desperately looking around me. I couldn't see anyone within talking distance on the beach. "What's happening?"
"Co-" the voice began again, before it was abruptly silenced. It clearly wasn't coming from land; time to check the raging waters. I murmured a silent thanks that I was a mermaid and that I couldn't die in a tsunami. I ran towards the waves, diving in and swimming furiously. Soon enough, I found the source of the voice! In front of me was a man with grey hair, holding a struggling orange mermaid. Not just any orange mermaid, but an orange Mermaid Princess! My heart jumped for a moment, before realizing... it wasn't Sara? She seemed a lot younger, probably about eight years old...
The man loudly cackled and I realized he was the source of the evil laughter. "Soon. Soon you'll meet your end, in your own kingdom." The young Mermaid Princess in his grip struggled to get free and elbowed him in the chest. He let go and she suddenly swam towards me.
"Help me, Coco! I can save you and Sara!" She launched herself into my arms. I held her tightly, intent on protecting her from thr man. The man cackled again, but his laugh was suddenly joined by a new one. A woman's laugh.
"What a pair, a yellow and an orange mermaid! Doomed, just as Coco and I were!" came the woman's voice from behind me. I spun around and gasped. The woman looked just like Sara, but with dark hair! No, it was her! She was just... older? She looked like she was in her 20s, rather than 14.
"Sara?" I cried, "Is that you?" The orange mermaid in my arms hugged me tightly all of a sudden. I looked down at her and saw fear in her orange eyes.
"Silence, yellow mermaid! Suffer the same fate as your ruler, eight years ago!" It was definitely Sara's voice! She opened her mouth and began to sing, and the words stung. I felt nothing but deep sadness in her song. What had happened to her?
"WAKE UP!!" cried the mermaid in my arms. She shook me gently. "OTHERWISE I WON'T EXIST!!"
Huh?
I shot up, wide awake in bed. I felt sweaty and my palms were clammy. My stomach was churning; I held back my urge to vomit. I'd never had a nightmare as dark or vivid as that. I wondered if this was one of the nightmares Sara had been having. I turned to her, ready to ask, but she was fast asleep. She was in rough shape herself, though. She was softly crying in her sleep.
"Tarou..." she whispered in her sleep. Tears silently dissolved into the water from her eyes. I debated waking her but ultimately decided against it. She'd been through enough; Sara needed her sleep.
My thoughts turned back to the nightmare I'd just had. I leaned against the headboard of my bed, silently thinking. Who was that orange Mermaid Princess in my dream? It wasn't Sara, obviously. I must have had a vision of the future; a future where something bad had happened to both Sara and myself. But... what would happen for her to turn dark like that? Sara hadn't recognized me either, saying I was just a yellow mermaid. What could have happened to me, then? Perhaps I was watching a vision of the future through my successor, if I had suffered a terrible fate like Sara implied? Which would make the orange Mermaid Princess Sara's successor! That would make sense, considering-
"Sometimes I wish I wasn't a Mermaid Princess," Sara's voice echoed in my mind. Of course, it had to be her successor! I looked over at her. She was still crying in her sleep and now she was hugging one of my pillows.
"Don't go! I love you!" she cried in her sleep. "Don't leave me here all alone, to fight by myself! I can't do this alone!" My heart was silently breaking for my best friend. She was a wreck in her current state. Maybe it would be best to grant her wish of no longer being a princess. There was clearly already a successor who was somewhat ready to be born. Does that mean I should call upon Aqua Regina? Sara had destroyed her entire kingdom; perhaps Aqua Regina wanted someone else to undo the damage she had caused? Furthermore, it would grant Sara's wish to be free of her duties as a Mermaid Princess. She'd always had a lot put on her; due to her being the oldest and therefore the leader. Being with Tarou had seemingly been her escape. Without him... she was bound to crash eventually.
I leaned over her, lightly tapping her shoulder to check if she was awake. She didn't stir. Carefully, I reached for her winged shell necklace, opened it, and removed the Orange Pearl that sat within the locket. I held it in my hand for a second, simply admiring it. It may have caused a destructive tsunami that destroyed a whole kingdom, but it was still pretty. Not as pretty as my own Yellow Pearl, but still pretty.
Sara then rolled over, startling me. "Come back! I'll leave it all behind if you just come back to me!" Her words hurt to hear. But, in that moment, I knew what had to be done. I had to let her be free to go to the human world to be with Tarou. No matter what my thoughts on him or their relationship were.
"I'll miss you," I whispered, caressing her hair. "But it seems to be for the best." And with that, I got up and left my room. I felt a few tears threatening to fall from my eyes, but ignored them. This was for the good of my best friend. I couldn't be selfish.
I swam down to the main throne room, where the Great Yellow Fountain was. In two years, when I turned thirteen and became an adult, I would do my coming of age ceremony here. It was the place where we could be closest to Aqua Regina, a place of life and rebirth. No one was around to see me at the fountain, as it was the dead of the night. Hastily removing my own Yellow Pearl from my winged shell necklace, I held both pearls in my hand for a moment. I then placed both Sara's pearl and my own into the fountain and quietly prayed to Aqua Regina.
"Please, Aqua Regina. Sara is suffering and doesn't want to be a Mermaid Princess anymore. I'm her best friend... but I fear she may make more bad decisions in the future, further jeopardizing the Indian Ocean kingdom. Or maybe even the ocean world as a whole. Please, allow her to be released from her duties and let the Indian Ocean have a new princess." I stared at the fountain, desperately praying. Nothing happened for a few moments. I was ready to give up and swim away when suddenly, the Great Fountain faintly glowed, along with the two pearls within the fountain. I heard a soft voice in my ear and knew it to be Aqua Regina's.
South Pacific Mermaid Princess Coco, your concern for your dear friend and fellow Mermaid Princess Sara has moved me. I cannot appear to you now, as you are not yet an adult princess, but I will grant your wish. Safeguard the Orange Pearl in Sara's place as to prevent more disasters. H er successor, Seira, will be born soon in the Indian Ocean's Great Orange Fountain. Beware, Coco, I feel an ancient evil growing in power. I believe your nightmare tonight reflects a future that may be. Take great caution in safeguarding both your own pearl and the Orange Pearl. Together, with Seira, I hope that you two may prevent the tragedies that may come to the ocean world.
Her voice faded away and both the pearls and the fountain stopped glowing. I opened my shell necklace and noticed that the slot for my pearl had become bigger, allowing me to put the orange one in first, then my yellow one. I swore there that I would let nothing come of either pearl, no matter what.
However, it was getting late. It felt like most of my strength was gone after calling on Aqua Regina. I knew that I should go back to bed. Hopefully Sara felt more at peace after having the duties of a Mermaie Princess lifted from her. At the very least, being a regular mermaid, without having to control the Orange Pearl, would lessen any destruction she may inadvertently cause through her emotions.
I sleepily swam through the castle, my eyelids getting heavier as I approached my room. I let out a huge yawn and entered my room. I got under the covers of my bed once more. Sara rolled over and suddenly put her arm around me. I glanced over at her, wondering if she had been woken up when I summoned Aqua Regina. Her eyes were still tightly closed, though.
"Love you," she mumbled in her sleep.
I said nothing in response and simply drifted off to sleep once again. It's not like her words were meant for me. I knew they weren't.