Miraculous Mermaid

Summary:In the Kingdom of Mer lives Princess Marinette. She's a rebellious 16 year old who lives to explore the beaches in her kingdom. At a young age she lost her mother to a shipwreck which caused her father to become overprotective and hates the sea. Marinette is forbidden to go into the sea, but she does so anyway. She loves to swim in the ocean. One night Marinette goes for a swim and gets swept away in a current. She is saved by a mysterious boy. Now Marinette is searching for him hoping she can befriend him. She eventually finds him and love blossoms between them. The boy is name is Adrien and he has a secret. He's actually a merman and is the prince of the merfolk. He is in love with the human world and wants to be apart of it. Adrien is able to become human thanks to a magical ring, but unfortunately it has a time limit. He can only stay human for a day. Will these two be able to stay together or will their worlds tare them apart?

It was a hot summer day in the Kingdom of Mer. Princess Marinette was on the beach with her best friend Alya. Marinette was sitting on a rock watching the waves go by while Alya was looking through a pair of binoculars. She let out a sigh. Marinette just laughed.

"You're not going to find any mermaids like that. You would have to get a boat and travel the world," she said to her friend.

"My parents would never let me do such a thing," Alya said back and sat down next to Marinette. She just waved the binoculars back and forth. 

"Even if you could you would be wasting your time. They're a myth."

"No they're real! I just know it! My grandfather said he was rescue by one once!" Alya a determined look on her face. Her grandfather was a fisherman.

"Your grandfather says a lot of things." Marinette stood up and pulled over her bathing suit cover. "Well it's hot so I'm going in. You coming?" She then smirked. "Maybe you'll be rescue by a handsome merman."

"Oh, shut up!" Alya said rolling her eyes.

Marinette just laughed and ran into the water. She swam around and eventually floated on her back staring up at the sky. The waves were gentle today. Alya swam beside her."Alya, I know I tease you, but it would be cool if they were real. I love to explore the bottom of the sea. They would probably have their own kingdoms like in the fairy tales."

"Then will you join me on my quest? I started a blog today."

Marinette shift her body in the water and now was facing her friend. "You did?"

"Yep! I have 5 subscribers already!"

"I guess it wouldn't hurt, but don't tell my dad. I already hear enough of dangers of the sea from him."

"Does he know you're here today?"

"Nope. I said we were hanging out at your house."

"I promise I won't tell."

Marinette smiled. "Thanks."

The two swam around in the ocean a bit before heading back to the beach. They walked along the shore with Alya looking for any signs of merfolk. Eventually they went home. Alya lived in the central part of the town. Both her parents own a very successful seafood restaurant. Marinette's palace was close by the sea. 

When she returned home, Marinette was able to make it to her room without being spotted. She went to her bathroom and took a quick shower and got ready for dinner. Marinette loved her room. It had a balcony that over looked the sea and her mother painted a mural of the sea on her wall. Her mother loved the sea. After Marinette got ready, she headed down to the dinning room. Her father was already there reading a newspaper.

"Good evening, Papa," Marinette said and took her seat. Dinner hasn't been served yet.

Her father looked up with her a smile. "Did you have fun with Alya today?"

"Yes. How was your day?"

"Busy as usual."

Marinette just nodded her head.

Her father put the newspaper down. "Marinette, there's something I have been meaning talk to you about."

"What is it?"

"You're almost 16 which means it will be time for you to start looking for a suitor."

Marinette was quiet. She started to fidget in her seat.

"So I was thinking we could invite eligible princes throughout the summer to see if any of them spark your interest. You should have say in it to."

"No.."

"What?"

Marinette stood up. "Papa, I don't want to marry someone because I have to. I want it to be natural! I'll eat my room." She stormed off.

"Marinette!" her father cried out, but it was too late Marinette already left the room.

She returned to her room and collapsed on her bed. Marinette then screamed into her pillows. Sometimes she hated being royal. It would be nice to be a normal teenager. She could do what she wanted like Alya. Also not have to worry about getting hitch and carry on the royal family. She sat up and stared out the balcony doors. There was a beautiful sunset over the sea. She wondered if life was easier for merfolk.

Sun filtered through the surface water, slowly fading as it reached deeper into the calm waters of the ocean. Green eyes admired the way the light moved over the water before Adrien Agreste, the prince of Atlantis and the surrounding sea, burst through the waves and let himself fall backwards to float on his back. The sun was nice and warm today, meaning humans would be crowding the beaches of their land. He smiled. Maybe he could go watch. Humans were so fascinating with their ability to move around on land and in the water (even if their swimming was weak compared to his).

He turned over and dove under the water. There was a beach not too far from here. He didn't make it far before he tried and failed to stop himself from ramming into his best friend, Nino. They tumbled through the water for a moment before regaining control and swimming upright. Nino laughed while Adrien gave him a small, not so serious glare. "What was that for? It's rude to swim in front of people," he said.  The laugh that followed dulled any seriousness left in his voice.

Nino laughed even harder before eventually finding the ability to make coherent sentences. "Sorry, man. I was looking for you. Nathalie is freaking out because you disappeared. She asked me to help find you."

He rolled his eyes.  "Of course she did. Poseidon forbid I get a day off from studying about our people and politics."

Nino shrugged, "Don't shoot the messenger, dude. I don't like being asked to screw you over, but you know Nathalie would tell your dad if I refused. Then I'd be banned from the palace again. Your old man has no sense of humor." He paused and looked in the direction Adrien was headed, raising an eyebrow as he realized what exactly what was over that way. "So, where were you headed?"

"Uh... Nowhere in particular. Just swimming around."

Nino crossed his arms and gave him a knowing look. "Come on. You know, I can tell you're lying. You're going human watching again, aren't you?"

Adrien sighed. "Alright. You got me. You're not going to tell my father, right? You know he doesn't trust humans..."

"Dude, I'd never snitch on you. You know that. But I'll also never understand your fascination with humans. They were terrible to our ancestors. It's a blessing most of them don't know anything about us now."

His eyes glimmered with excitement as Adrien tried to explain himself, "But they're fascinating. We're tied to the water, but they've mastered land, sea, and sky. They build cities like we do, have similar governments, and create so many amazing things to be able to survive in so many places. It's just amazing."

Nino rolled his eyes, "You're such a nerd. All that studying's gone to your head. Besides, didn't the human leaders cut ties with your father years ago? It's silly to be fascinated with a race you'll never come in contact with."

Adrien sighed, his eyes traveling to the sea below. "I wish I knew why they broke it off. We were kids at the time, so it wasn't that long ago. All my father ever tells me is we're better off without them anyway."

'Well, maybe he's right. It's not like they've ever done anything for us." Adrien didn't respond so Nino continued, "Let's go back before you get in too much trouble. You can human watch next time."

"Alright..." 

They dove deeper, to the ocean floor, where the glimmering city of Atlantis stood in all of its glory. It was the capital of the merfolk and the largest city in the kingdom. The swam toward the large building in the center: the palace. As they swam, Adrien worked hard on his excuse for skipping out on his studies.

The next morning Marinette got up and skipped breakfast. She was still mad at her father about last night. She grabbed an apple from the kitchen and was going to head to the beach. It was a nice morning for a stroll, but before she could make her way of the kitchen her father stopped her.

"Morning," he said.

"Morning, Papa," she replied and took a bite out of her apple.

"We need to talk."

"No we don't." She walked past him and left the kitchen. He followed right behind her.

"Yes we do. I wanted to apologize for bringing that up like that. But I hate to say it, but you do need to think about your future."

Marinette stopped and looked at him. "Can't this wait until I'm 18? I'm really not interested in finding love at the moment."

"But it's better to start now."

"I'm going, Papa," she said and walked away.

"Marinette, where are you going!"

"To see Alya!" she lied.

"Fine just be sure to be back before four! Tonight is the party!"

Marinette stopped walking for a moment. She held back a groan. She hated formal parties and whatnot. She just kept on walking and then ran out of one of the palace's backdoor. Marinette made it to the beach. She pulled off her shirt and shorts. Marinette was wearing her swimsuit underneath. She then sat down on a rock and continued eating her apple.

"Adrien, it's time to get up," Nathalie called from outside his door.  

Adrien yawned and sat up in his bed. Time for another day of mindless studying. "I'm up," he answered before swimming over to his mirror and looking over his reflection. Not that it mattered.  There wasn't much the merfolk did to get ready.

He exited his room and noticed Nathalie already left the hallway. Big mistake. It was a wonder she thought he was going to come straight to the library. Right now seemed like a great time for a morning swim. He just needed to make sure he wasn't caught. Shouldn't be too hard to slip out with all the activity in the palace focused on breakfast.

He slipped out of a nearby window and up to the ocean above. If only he didn't have to stay cooped up in the palace all the time. Book smarts were great, but there was nothing like a little experience to jump-start learning. And learning about humans was important. So...

He was already halfway to the coastline when his mind got to that point. He passed a group of sardines that frantically yelled different directions while somehow simultaneously moving in the same direction away from him. It always amazed him how schools of fish sounded so unorganized while being able to stay so close together. Most of them were too flighty to actually converse with. 

He passed a few other schools with a similar result before the sand below started a dramatic slope upward. He stopped and slowly swam upward. He didn't want to break the surface to quickly in case there were humans on shore. Secrecy was important no matter how much he wanted to know why. 

He used a wave as a cover and stuck his head out of the water. The shore was quiet; probably too early for most of the humans that showed up later in the day. He scanned the shoreline for a moment before his eyes landed on a girl sitting on a rock, eating some type of food.  She didn't seem to be looking his way, so he swam behind a few rocks and watched curiously. What was she doing out her so early?

When Marinette was finished with her apple, she found a trashcan to throw it away.  She turned back to the ocean and was about to go swimming, when she heard Alya calling out her name.  Marinette stopped and looked back.  She saw her friend running toward her.  Alya had something in her hand.
 
"Marinette!" her friend said in excitement "I was talking to my grandpa last night and he gave me these photographs." she help up the photos and handed them to Marinette. "They're pictures of mermaids!"
 
"Hmm" Marinette looked through them. "Are you sure these are real? They're all blurry."
 
"Of course they're real!  My grandpa just didn't have good camera.  I'm going to put these on the blog."
 
"Wonderful," Marinette said not amused and handed them back to her friend.
 
"Well aren't you in a good mood today."
 
"Sorry.  I'm mad at my dad."
 
"What did he do this time?  Did you caught yesterday?"
 
"No.  He brought up marriage."
 
"Already?  But you're not even 16 yet!"
 
"I will be next month."
 
"But still.."
 
"I know.  I told him no, but I don't think that will stop him.  At least I get to pick who I marry."
 
"Hmm," Alya thought for a second.  She then put her arm around her shoulders. "This is what you do.  Just keep saying no to all the guys he introduces to you until you're ready to date."
 
"Do you think that will work?"
 
"Of course!  Now come on!  We have work to do!" Alya ran off.
 
"Hey! Wait!" Marinette grabbed her stuff and ran after her friend. "Where are we going?"
 
"You'll see."
The two girls walked down the beach until they came across some rocks that went out into the sea.  Alya climb up on one and looked out at their surroundings.  Marinette climbed up next to her.  She looked around and looked confused.  She had no idea what they were doing.
 
"So are we looking for something?"
 
"Mermaids!"
 
"Oh right..."
 
"Marinette, you said you would help me!"
 
"I know I know."
 
She waved the pictures in her friend's face. "My grandpa took these pictures here.  Maybe mermaids like to hang out around here."
 
"Well, we're not going to see anything from here," Marinette said and pointed forward. "We'll have to go all the way out to that rock." she then started to climb across all the rocks in front of them.  She looked back at Alya.  She was still standing there. "You coming?"
 
"It's high tide the rocks will be slippery."
 
"Geez, Alya I didn't know you were a scaredy cat."
 
"I am not!"
 
"Well come on!  A true explorer isn't afraid of anything!"
 
Alya bit her lip and slowly approached Marinette.  Once she got to her, the girls made it to the final rock. "You're right this is a better spot."
 
"Yep.  If we're doing this you're going to have to take risks."
 
Alya grinned. "I'm glad I asked the right person."
 
Marinette let out a sigh. "I did use to believe in them."
 
Alya was quiet.
 
"She would want me to believe.."
 
Her friend hugged her by the shoulder. "Yes she would."
 
Marinette smiled. "Let's get started." she sat down on the rock. "We'll stake out here." Marinette jumped into the water since it was high tide the area was deeper. "I'll just swim around." She splashed her friend.
 
"Hey! My phone is on me!"
 
"Shouldn't have brought it here, doofus."
 
Alya just rolled her eyes.
 
Marinette dived under the water and swam around for a bit.  She eventually returned to the rock. "Nothing.  You know maybe we should come at night." she sat back down next to her friend.
 
"It's dangerous to swim at night."
 
Marinette laughed. "I've done it several times and I'm still here."
 
"Girl! You are nuts!"
 
Her friend just laughed. "It is, but it's so peaceful. Swimming the moonlight is so much fun." She then looked down into the sea and watched what was underneath. Alya went back to gazing at their surroundings. 

"Night time might be our best option," Alya trailed off.

"Ah!!" Marinette cried out.

"WHAT DID YOU SEE ONE!?"

"No a baby sea turtle."

Alya slapped her head.

"It was so cute. I wish I have gotten a better look to see what kind it was."

"Ugh," Alya stood up. "I'm going home. I'll see you later."

"Alright. Bye."

"You staying here?"

"Yep. I'm going to swim some more."

"Sometimes I wonder if you're a mermaid."

Marinette just laughed. "Gosh, Alya you figure out my secret! When the moon is full I transform into one!"

Alya just slashed water on her with her foot. "See you later, fish girl."

"See ya."

Adrien listened from afar, quietly following them to their new spot. His interest piqued when they started talking about mermaids. So there were still humans that wondered about his kind? The fact the one girl had pictures should have worried him, but he was more interested in the fact they were searching at all. His people didn't usually come this close to shore, nowadays.  Or, they weren't supposed to; not that he could talk.

He raised an eyebrow as the first girl (Marinette if he heard correctly) mentioned she swam at night.  If his human watching had taught him anything, humans were not very strong swimmers. Well, not compared to aquatic races anyway. She could easily drown if she was alone. Maybe...  Maybe he should come back at night an check on her. Was that a weird thing to do? He wasn't really sure, but it was better than letting her take the chance and drown, right?  Besides, no one would know.

He looked up at the sun's position in the sky. Breakfast would be over soon. He should probably head back.

Marinette stayed on the beach the whole day. She just kept on swimming and walked on the beach. She also collected seashells to add to her collection. When the sun was starting to set, Marinette realized she was late for the party. She grabbed her clothes and ran all the way home. When she got home, she could hear the party goers in the ballroom. Marinette quietly made it to her room and quickly got ready. She didn't bother to take a shower. It would take too long. She blow dried her hair hoping it would look okay.

Once she slipped into her dress, Marinette went back downstairs. She slowly walked into the ballroom and tried to act like she was there the whole time. Unfortunately her father saw her and pulled her out of the room.

"Where were you?" he asked. They were now in his study. 

"With Alya."

Her father frowned and crossed his arms. "You smell like salt."

Marinette was quiet.

"You were at the beach weren't you?"

"No.."

"Marinette, don't lie to me!"

"Okay, I was so what?"

"You know how I feel about you swimming in the sea."

"And you know I how feel about it." She folded her arms.

"Marinette, you're grounded. You can't leave the palace for a week."

Marinette just left the room and went back to her room. Her father was probably mad that she was skipping the party, but she didn't care. Being grounded for swimming in the sea was stupid. Her father needed to just let it go. Marinette entered her room, got into her PJs. She laid down in bed and fell asleep.

Around midnight Marinette found herself awake. She rolled around in bed trying to fall back asleep. She eventually sat up and decided to go take a walk on the beach. The moon was out so she wouldn't have to bring a flashlight. Marinette decided to change into her swimsuit in case she decided to go for a swim.

When she got to the beach, Marinette walked along the shore. She was trying hard not think about her mother. Her death was still affecting her father which made it hard for her to move on as well. Marinette stopped and looked out at the sea. It was so beautiful with the moonlight shinning down on it. She decided to go for a swim. Marinette ran into the sea and without realizing it she swam a little too far from the shore. Then suddenly a giant wave came by and knocked her under water and she trapped in current and she couldn't get swam up to get to air.

Adrien looked around the corner as he snuck away from the palace .  He knew the guard schedule by heart, but that didn't mean no one would be around.  The guards weren't the only ones who swam around this area.  Thankfully, no one was around tonight.

He sped off towards the shore once he was far enough from the city.  He wasn't sure why he was so interested in checking up on that human girl.  It wasn't like they would ever speak to each other.  But he was still worried about her swimming at night.  The ocean was a dangerous place, even for the merfolk. It was even worse for a race without fins.

He was just in sight of the shoreline when his worries were realized.  The ocean was a little rough tonight, and just as he surfaced he saw her being hit and pulled under.  The timing was perfect, or he may not have seen her at all.

He dove and propelled himself forward as quickly as he could.  She was already sinking, unable to get herself back to the surface.  He pushed himself even harder to get to her.  Humans were quick to drown. 

She was unconscious when he reached her and grabbed her in his arms.  He brought her to the surface and swam to a smooth, sloping rock that allowed him to gently pull her up beside him.  She didn't move, causing panic to flow through him.  Was she already dead?  What did humans do in this situation?

He vaguely remembered seeing a group of humans save another that was drowning a while ago.  It looked like they kissed (or maybe blew in air?), beat the person's chest, and kissed some more, repeating until the person woke up.  Well... It was worth a try... 

He leaned over her just as her body shook and she coughed, sputtering out some sea water.  Her eyes snapped open.  Emerald green met deep blue, and they held each other's gaze.  Such beautiful blue eyes, like a bright, cloudless sky.

He felt a blush creep across his cheeks, and suddenly pulled himself out of his thoughts.  He couldn't give her a chance to see his less human half.  He pushed off the rock, back into the water and dove out of sight and away from shore.  He didn't stop until he reached the safety of the palace.

Marinette felt herself lose conscious as she sank down in the water. Then all of the sudden she was gasping for air and saw a pair of bright emerald green eyes staring at her. They were gorgeous like the sea. Marinette couldn't help, but stare into them. The moon shine bright down on them after a couple of clouds moved. Marinette was now able to see that a boy rescued her. Before she could say anything to him she had another coughing fit. She snapped her eyes shut, when it was over she sat up and saw he was gone.

She looked around confused. Where could have he gone? Marinette gasped. What if? She looked down into the ocean and of course saw nothing. It was too dark to see anything under water. Marinette sat up and looked up at the moon. Whoever saved her she was greatful.

"Miss!" shouted a voice.

Marinette turned around saw a elderly man running toward her. He ran through the water and stopped at the rock. It was shallow from behind the rock to the shore.

"Are you alright?" he asked and for some reason he wasn't out of breath.

"Yes," Marinette replied. Then it dawn on her. "Did you see who rescused me?"

"Sadly not. I just came across you."

"Oh," Marinette looked sad.

"What happened?"

"I was drowning and then somehow I ended up here. A boy saved me. At least I think it was a boy. I bet sound crazy." She laughed a little.

The elderly man shook his head. "No you don't. It's highly possible you were saved by a merman."

"Yeah I guess so..." the more the she thought about it more it seem possible.

"You should home, miss and get some rest."

Marinette nodded her head. Sleep sounded good. She stood up and walked back to shore with elderly man. Marinette then said goodbye. She walked off and before she left the beach Marinette felt like she should thank the man. She turned around and saw that the elderly man was gone.

Adrien swished his tail back and forth in thought as he laid in bed with his eyes trained on the ceiling. He couldn't sleep. All he could think of were those deep blue eyes staring back at him. He shook his head. He needed to stop thinking about her. It wasn't like he'd ever see her again. They were from two different worlds. And yet...

He groaned. What was he thinking going to the shoreline and messing with human affairs? Sure, he was fascinated by them, but fascination should not be enough to almost let himself be seen. There were so many cautionary tales about humans knowing. And now that treaty they had was void. Who knew what modern day humans would do with the knowledge of his people's existence? 

An image of her face flashed through his mind and he pulled a pillow over his face. Maybe one more visit. Then he could swear off that beach for good. There were other, less tempting beaches he could go to. 


Adrien yawned as he swam to the breakfast table. The little bit of rest he had gotten was full of dreams of that girl. Marinette. Even her name was stuck in his head. He absentmindedly reached for some food without as much as a word to his parents.

"You seem tired," his father said, raising an eyebrow. "Did you get enough sleep?"

"Yeah. Plenty," he lied. He wasn't a good liar by any means.

"Did you go out again?" He asked, his eyes narrowing.

"For a short swim. Nothing more."

His father sighed in annoyance, "You need to stop sneaking out all the time. You have more important things to do. You will continue your studies today."

"I wouldn't sneak out so much if you'd give me a break every once in a while. I'm the only one that has to study all hours of the day."

"You need the knowledge of the past rulers. It will help you when it's your time to rule," his father said.

"Yeah, well I'm going to be a pretty poor ruler if all I have is book smarts. I need to interact with more people around the kingdom. I want to get to know them and what they need. Experience is important," he argued, his food forgotten. 

"You know plenty of our people."

"I know Nino, the Bourgeois, and Nathalie. That's barely anyone. Just give me a little time each day for myself, and I promise I'll apply myself better than I already do."

His father stared at him. He seemed even more annoyed. This wasn't going to end well. But, to his surprise, his father just sighed. "I'll give you a couple hours each day. Show me it's worth it, and I'll think about reworking your schedule more."

Adrien smiled, "Thank you!  You won't be disappointed."

Of course, his father probably would be disappointed. After breakfast, Adrien excused himself and headed straight out to the beach where he had saved Marinette the night before.

Marinette woke up the next morning. She sat up in bed and felt a gentle breeze from the balcony. She had the french doors opened. Marinette got out of bed an walked out to the balcony. She leaned over the rail and stared out at the sea. Her mind was buzzing. She couldn't get those eyes out of her head. Apart of her really believed she was rescued by a merman, but the other part was telling her he was a human. She let out a sigh and headed down to breakfast.

She was happy that she would be eating alone. The last person she wanted to see right now was her father. She was still upset that she got grounded for being at the beach yesterday. Once she was down eating, she decided to sneak out of the palace to go see Alya. She knew for a fact that Alya would love to hear about last night.

In the central part of town was a marshland. Alya's restaurant was by it and was right next to a ship yard. It was fun to eat outside and watch the boats go in and out of the water. Alya lived right above the restaurant. Marinette stopped and front of it and looked up. She saw Alya sitting on a balcony on her laptop. Marinette waved at her. Alya waved back and closed her laptop. She went inside and in minutes came outside to greet Marinette.

"Hey," she said. "What's up?"

"I have something to tell you!" Marinette said in excitedly. "But first are your parents home?"

No. Why?"

"I'm grounded for a week."

Alya put her hands on her hips. "And let me guess you lost track of time on the beach and your father noticed you been swimming?"

"Yep!"

Alya shook her head. "So what is it?"

"Last night I couldn't sleep so I went out for a swim. I got hit a by a wave and almost drowned."

Her friend just stared at her as her jaw slowly dropped.

"Then I was rescued by a mysterious emerald green eye boy."

"Marinette...." Alya's eye was twitching.

"They were gorgeous." She said in a dreamy voice. "Sadly he vanished before I could talk to him. So I was thinking..."

"That he may be merman!" Alya interrupted and grabbed her by the shoulders. "This is big, Mari!!"

"I know." She laughed at her friend's excitement and pushed her off. "But the thing is he could be human."

"But he vanished! You would have seen him running away if he was human!" Alya was trying to stay calm. "We need to go to the beach now!" She grabbed Marinette by the hand and ran off to the beach.

"Alya!!" Marinette cried, but her friend ignored her protesting. She almost tripped a few times because they were running so fast.

When the arrived at the beach, Alya finally let go of her hand. "Show me where it happened." Marinette just nodded her head and they walked down the shore it a bit until they came cross the rock. "Right here?"

"Yes, I was laying on the rock and when I opened my eyes there he was staring at me." Marinette's cheeks turned red, when she thought about his eyes.

"Did see the rest of him?"

"Um," Marinette thought for a second. "He had golden blond hair and...um...his chest was bare? I didn't see the rest of him...it was dark out after all."

"It's got to be a merman." Alya took off her flipflops and walked through the water to get to the rock. Marinette followed her. "I wonder if he comes around he often."

"Who knows?" Marinette crouched and stared down into the water. She saw something swim by and let out a gasp.

"DID YOU SEE HIM!?" Alya shouted in excitement and glanced around.

"No! I saw a baby sea turtle!" Marinette replied in excitement. She loved turtles.

"Again! Marinette, stop tricking me like that!"

"Sorry," she laughed sheepishly.

"Let's walk around."

"Why?" Marientte stood up.

"Don't you want to find him?"

Marinette thought about it for a second and smiled. "Yes actually. I would like to thank him."

Alya returned her smile. "Then let's go!" The girls hopped off the rock and began their search.

Adrien cautiously approached the beach, keeping an eye out for movement as he got closer. His mind told him he shouldn't be here, but he really wanted another glimpse of Marinette. He could stay hidden. He had done it multiple times before. But most humans weren't looking for merpeople...  Oh well. He was sure it would be fine.

He reached the rocks and pulled himself up just enough to look over their edges. His eyes landed on Marinette and her friend inspecting the rock he had pulled her to the night before. Did that mean they knew what exactly saved her the night before?  Alya confirmed his thoughts a moment later as she exclaimed that a merman had saved Marinette. Well, at least they didn't have any proof...

He smiled as he watched them. They seemed like good friends. His smile faded a moment later as they stood from the rock to begin searching. Now he'd have to be extremely careful or they might see him.

Alya and Marinette spent the whole morning searching. They covered much of the beach that they could seeing how they couldn't wonder too far from their town. They haven't found anything. Alya was getting frustrated. Marinette was beginning to doubt a merman saved her. It was possible for a human to get away that fast, right?

"I think we should call it quits, Alya," Marinette said.

"I guess. You know what I'll talk to my grandpa and see what he says," her friend replied.

"Alright. I'll see you later."

"Bye." Alya walked away while Marinette decided to stay on the beach.

She decided to sit on that rock and just watch the waves. Marinette put her legs into the water. It felt wonderful. She splashed some water around with her legs and then stretched out on the rock. Marinette looked up at the sky and wondered if she'll ever find that boy. A gentle breeze hit her and she closed her eyes.

Adrien watched, amused, as they searched around the beach. He was always just out of sight of them, watching but not letting himself be found. He'd be lying if he claimed it wasn't fun to avoid their gazes at just the right moment. Like a game of fish and seagull. He had to admit they were really determined.

Finally, they seemed to lose some steam and Alya left with the promise to ask her grandfather some questions. What kind of person was her grandfather?  He was someone Adrien wished he could meet, if only to see what he had to say about the merpeople who saved him. This had to have been a while ago, when they were still able to interact with humans without his father's anger.

Adrien watched curiously as Marinette laid down on the rock from the night before. He waited for a moment before realizing she'd fallen asleep. Cautiously, he swam up to the rock and pulled himself up enough to look her over. He shook his head.  What was he doing? He shouldn't be getting this close when she could wake up and see him again.

He looked at the sun and noticed it was getting close to noon. He should go back and start studying before his new freedom was taken from him. He slipped back into the sea as quietly as he could and swam off; back to his kingdom.