Mermaids of Xanadu
Chapter One: Homecoming
"It's time we left," said Alex.
"I agree. This very afternoon," I said. Alex was pushing me back to the hotel after our impromptu celebration at the Walkers' tent. All three siblings were now reunited with their parents. Of course the ordeal of learning to live with the changes wrought by the Xanadu effect was just beginning for them, for us and more than ten thousand others.
First, we spoke with my parents, who had arrived yesterday morning. This time, it was not a disaster. They gave us their prayers and wishes for my safe delivery and a healthy child, along with their unconditional love, be she Mer or biped. I knew this was how it would turn out, I was happy that it resolved as quickly as it did. They would head back to Ashville and come visit when we figured out where we would move to.
It took less than twenty minutes to pack and throw our stuff into the back of Alex's car. We would have to come back for mine, which had been damaged (I couldn't drive it now anyway). The real test was to come next. We decided to leave legitimately rather than 'Jedi' our way off the premises. This required waiting in line for thirty minutes (it was to get much worse in the next few days), being separated, then answering a twenty-minute questionaire read by a staff-sergent. I had to lay down on the floor for my 'height' to be measured, 7'10" from pate to fin. Finally, we were each issued a shiny new I.D. card with photo (I had to tie my hair back to show my Vulcan features), a verbal description of changes and a new Florida drivers' license (mine conditional to the use of hand-controls). Last but not least, we gave the National Guard their wheelchair back. They didn't demand it, but we felt it best if we got my own. Altogether, this took about an hour.
It was a great relief to be away from that place and headed home, but it was also frightening. I knew the 'home' I was headed for could never really be home anymore. It was too far from open water. Fortunately, we had only moved in last July, so our roots weren't deep.
We didn't talk much on the way, we were each lost in our own thoughts. I began to feel anxious, almost embarassed, like I felt that first evening after the change. Somehow, I didn't want the neighbors to see me crawl.
"You'll carry me into the house, won't you?"
"Sure, right across the threshold, just like on our wedding day." Alex grinned. When he looked at me and saw how I was sweating, however, he grew serious. "Are you OK?"
"Yes, just feeling a bit of anxiety."
"I know just what you need. There are no beaches around, maybe a pool? We could really freak the mundanes."
"It's more a social anxiety than water. I just didn't want the neighbors to see me crawling into the house."
"OK." He gave me a look that told me that though he didn't understand, he'd walk barefoot over broken glass to make me feel better.
I stayed silent for a few moments, then spoke, "You're perfect for me. You know that, don't you?"
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We pulled into the driveway, once more, everything looked just as it had when I left for Orlando last Thursday. Alex came around to the passenger side, opened the door and carried me into the house. The first thing I did, while Alex was unloading the car, was crawl from room to room, to check everything out. I looked in closets, under beds and behind furniture. I was like a bunny sniffing out a new burrow for dangerous scents. "Is this some sort of Vulcan or Mer maternal instinct? Or am I just going nuts?" I thought.
"Do you really want me to answer that?" responded Alex.
"No! And you left all the closets in a mess putting together your Jedi outfit!"
"Oops! I was counting on you being amused enough by my efforts to overlook that."
"You weren't counting on bringing home a cranky, pregnant mermaid, were you?" "Well," I said aloud. "She's also hungry. Go fetch something to eat and I'll forgive you and straighten out the closets myself, at least those parts of the mess I can reach."
"Chinese carryout?"
"Yes, but no seafood, please. I can't stand the stuff cooked anymore, and the Chinese don't do sashimi."
Alex left, and I began unpacking. I was done and starting to contemplate the closet, when the doorbell rang. "Crap! I'm betting that's not you yet, is it Alex?" No response. I crawled up to the livingroom door. The doorbell rang again. "Just a moment." I raised myself as high on my tail as I could, putting one hand on the wall for balance. I was wearing a sun dress, so, if someone didn't know better, or didn't look over my shoulder to see my fin splayed out behind me, they might think I was standing on my knees. I took a deep breath and opened the door.
It was Mrs. Linzky, one of our neighbors. She was a retired school teacher and a widow. Alex got along quite well with her, she always seemed a little intimidating to me, perhaps it's the teacher thing. She was a bit befuddled, probably because she was used to looking up at me.
"Hannah!" She looked down over her spectacles at me. "I heard you got caught in that terrible thing that happened in Orlando. Are you-all doing alright?"
"Uh, not too bad. Considering." I noticed she was carrying a covered dish. I was going to have to invite her in. This was going to be awkward (in more ways than one)no matter what I did, so I resigned myself to it. "Would you like to come in and sit a spell?"
"Sure, if you don't mind. I brought some eggs."
"That wouldn't happen to be your deviled eggs, the recipee with horseradish would it? Those are great!"
"Why yes, they would." she smiled.
"Just a moment." Mer bodies are not made to back up in. "Here goes," I thought. I leaned back, spun around, did a single hop crawl to the couch, then half turn/half flip onto the couch.