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The Human Fish 2

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Chapter 2: Life of a Mer Family



  The Sutherland Express being the small town it had become since we Mers had taken up residence there, it did not take long for the news of Diane's pregnancy to get around. Hannah, Tara, and Ana were all quick to offer their congratulations, Diane's unusual circumstances did not seem to bother them at all. They were also impressed when Diane told them that she was now 'eating for three' and not two as the other pregnant mermaids were.

  "Three? We might have to put you on a diet, or you might eat us out of house and home!" Tara joked as she hugged Diane.

  "Now, now, it's not like I am going to get THAT hungry!" Diane countered with a smile. "And think of all the 'trees' we have planted the last few months, and the fish living there now."

  We made sure Natalie was also among the first to know. Being the curious Mer that she is, she had her share of questions for Diane.

  [Will they have tails, or legs?] Natalie was now as conversant in sign as most of the rest of us, but if the talk got complicated, or we simply wanted to talk 'in private' for some reason, then we would link up to take advantage of my contact telepathy.

  [They will have legs. I'm not their biological mom, I'm just growing them for her] Diane answered.

  [But you are eating for them, right?]

  [Yes, that is true.]

  [Might that influence them somehow?]

  [I suppose that is possible, but not very much...well, they could grow up to be oceanographers or Olympic swimmers!]



  Ever since Diane and I had agreed to be Natalie's 'Mer parents,' we had been determined she should have as 'normal' a life as might be possible. Obviously her inability to breathe air anymore would always be a major limitation, but there still was much she could do. For example, as her command of sign language improved, her confidence and sense of independence improved as well. She enjoyed socializing with the mermaids near her age (there were plenty of them!), and was even fond of occasionally flirting with the mermen, though by now many of the comparatively few in residence did have a girlfriend (or two, or...). Everyone did take it in good humor however, we all appreciated that the male/female disparity was a challenge that defied easy solution.

  Natalie's favorite companions, though, were Diane, Jackie Blue, and me. When we were not busy with various tasks, such as helping at the research station or making the ship more of a home, the four of us were often swimming together. It was the sort of family togetherness that had been so important to her and her family, even when her illness had entered what appeared to be its terminal phase.

  Diane and I decided one way to maintain Natalie's closeness with her 'land' family would be to give her a waterproof digital camera as a belated birthday present. Marlon picked one out for her, and after testing it on our dive on the Drake (it survived the rough baptism of the ensuing battle unscathed), we presented it to her after our return.

  Natalie was absolutely delighted with her new camera, and was soon snapping away and e-mailing photos back to her parents and sister. Her fully webbed fingers proved to be no handicap at all for her.

  Some of her first photos were of me, Diane, and Jackie Blue ('my Mer family'), both swimming along and just hovering in place. She also got a few photos of all four of us together, another Mer taking those shots for us. We in turn got several early pictures of Natalie in various places in or outside the ship, including working at the research station, eating, or just swimming along.

  Natalie also proved to have a sense of humor. On the day after her arrival at the Sutherland she returned from an afternoon of frollicking and socializing with other Mers sporting one of those wide brimmed floppy women's hats and a broad smile on her face.

  [Where did you get that hat, Natalie?] Diane asked.

  [Oh, one of the other mermaids gave it to me] she said.

  [She said she found it in the water, probably lost from one of those cruise ships sailing out of Miami.]

  [Did your friends take any pictures of you wearing that hat?] I now asked.

  Natalie's smile broadened even more. [They did! Want to take a look?]

  [Sure, if you don't mind!]

  We ended up enjoying Natalie's hat photos almost as much as she did. In some she was swimming along, in others just floating as if posing for a portait. In some she was clearly hamming it up, including one where she was grabbing her tailfins with her hands and had a huge grin on her face.

  Like most mermaids, Diane, Jackie Blue, and Natalie were a sight as they swam, their tails gracefully undulating and their very long hair reaching past their waists. If anything, their hair was even more impressive when they simply floated, billowing around the three of them as if alive.



  {You're making me jealous} Natalie's sister Leanne joked in response after Natalie had sent a photo I had taken of her by the Sutherland's bow, her hair flowing voluminously around her head and upper body in a manner impossible in air.

  {Yeah} Natalie answered back {All those women into 'big hair' will be so jealous too!}

  {Sometimes I do wish I had hair as long as yours.} While their mother Toni as well as Natalie had worn their hair very long in the past, Leanne's own blonde tresses had never grown much below her shoulders, to her occasional frustration.

  {Have you ever thought of becoming a mermaid too?} Natalie asked her sister {Then you will be able to have hair as long as mine!}

  {Well...I don't think so. You know I like hiking too much!}

  In addition to being a diving enthusiast, Leanne was also an avid hiker. After graduating high school the previous spring, she had spent part of the summer hiking a portion of the Appalachian Trail, and hoped to eventually complete the trail all the way to its northern terminous in Maine.

  {That's OK. Maybe someday I'll swim the coast all the way from Key West to the Bay of Fundy!}

  Their parents were both also scuba certified, and Natalie's messages and photos soon had all three contemplating a diving trip to the Sutherland so they could glimpse Natalie's new home, and her in what was now her natural habitat.

  Diane and I both liked that idea, it was not unlike a child moving away from home and looking forward to their parents and siblings coming to visit from time to time.



  Due to their younger daughter's illness the May family had not taken any long vacation trips in several years, but shorter trips and day outings remained an important part of their lives. Natalie had loved these trips, she had not enjoyed in the least being increasingly confined to her home as her illness had progressed. Diane and I wanted to do what we could so she did not feel restricted to the Sutherland Express and its immediate environs.

  Our first 'day trip' with Natalie was just two days after her arrival at her new home in the sea. We three, plus Jackie Blue left soon after sunrise Sunday and began swimming eastward toward an islet a couple or so miles in the distance. Two of our Mer friends, Alex and Hannah, had visited it soon after their own arrival and called it just right for us Mers. Not only did it have a picture-perfect beach and a lagoon with access to the sea, it also had a small island in the middle and even an underwater cave or grotto where ten or more of us could take refuge. All we would need to be able to spend the night was some netting to keep sharks out as we slept. Needless to say, their report struck an immediate chord with their fellow Mers, and it was not long before the rest of us were swimming there regularly as well.

  We swam just above the ocean floor, as the bottom began sloping upward we angled upward as well. As the water became shallower and the penetrating sunlight brighter, the play of shadow and dappled light upon the bottom and the fish and plant life also changed. If the 'scenery' near the Sutherland was spectacular it became even more so as we swam steadily closer to the surface. When we reached shallow water only a few fathoms deep we paused to admire the view.

  [What do you think of this, Natalie?] Diane asked after we four had linked up.

  [This...is so beautiful!] Natalie answered, clearly in awe.

  [Can you say that in sign?]

  [Yes, I can!] Natalie thought back before letting go of Jackie's arm.

  <This...is so beautiful!>

  [And you do think it was worth it being changed the way you were?] Jackie found herself asking after we had linked up again.

  [Yes, I do. I could have been dead by now] Natalie answered, before adding that on the day of her transformation she had been in the hospital being treated for a recurring infection in her weakened lungs. Already she was becoming amazingly philisophical about her new situation.

  [I can't breathe air anymore of course, but at least I don't have to worry about lung infections either. Nothing ever scared me like feeling I was about to suffocate.]

  When we reached the islet's shore, out of deference to Natalie we did not crawl over the dunes to the lagoon. We were reluctant to do something she could not share in. Instead we turned and swam parallel to the shore until we reached what we were seeking: a channel leading from sea to lagoon. It was surprisingly deep, all four of us swam through fully submerged. We went a ways into the lagoon before surfacing and looking around. The beaches were a visual delight, and bushes and small trees offered privacy from passing boats and ships.

  "What do you think of this, Natalie?" I asked her.

  [It's so beautiful!] she said after taking hold of my arm so she could relay her thoughts. Like the Silent Sisters she lacked vocal chords, so she could not speak as the rest of us Mers could. Unlike some Mers she still had excellent vision above as well as below the surface.

  We swam a slow lap around the lagoon, taking in the sights above and below the surface as we went, before deciding it was time for lunch. Diving to the bottom, we were soon munching on some most delectable leaves, before partaking of some flounder that delighted our taste buds even more. Diane, Jackie Blue, and I had no particular preference, but Natalie absolutely loved the fish heads.

  [I wonder if...what is that fish that seems to be almost nothing but head?] she eventually wondered.

  [It's an ocean sunfish] Diane told her.

  [Might I be able to eat one?]

  [Well...I don't know...] Diane began.

  [Are they one of those fish we should not eat?]

  [They are OK to eat, you'd just need a pretty big mouth to eat them!]

  [How big can they get?]

  [Adults can weigh a ton, sometimes even a bit more.]

  [Wow...]

  Before heading back home to the Sutherland Express for the night, the four of us explored the underwater grotto Alex and Hannah had told the rest of us Mers about. Natalie was as impressed as the rest of us had been, and like us before found herself wondering if a shark 'exclosure fence' could be built in front of the entrance so groups of Mers could spend the night there and watch the sun rise and set.

  [That is already on our 'wish list' I told her. [We may even have it set up before the end of the month.]

  [Ooo...that would be cool...]



  Life at the Sutherland was hardly 'all play and no work' for Natalie, any more than the rest of us. She spent her share of time at the research station, and Diane made sure she got some schooling as well. She still was doubtful about returning to teaching, but after Tara and the R.B.O.S. asked, she did agree to do so on an informal and limited basis. Many of the youngest Xanadu Mers were living at home with their families (all presumably had wheelchairs by now, and hopefully water access as well), but some were living at the Sutherland, and began seeking Diane out after learning she had been a teacher.

  [Learn as much as you can when we do get computers and the internet set up down here] she would tell them. [There is so much you can learn here. The sea can be a great teacher!]

  One young mermaid confessed that she missed class with her favorite teacher, and Diane finally told her [If she gets enough good reports from you, maybe she will wish she could become a mermaid too.]

  Our underwater communication system was put into operation during Diane's and my mid-January absence, thus allowing us and our surface contacts to send messages of all kinds back and forth 24/7. The evening following my discharge Natalie's parents Jerry and Toni had called to tell us about the message she had emailed them, and which they had forwarded to her biology teacher.

  "What did he think?" Diane asked.

  "He liked it, and wishes she would send some photos in the future."

  "His wish may soon begin to come true" Diane said.

  "That does sound good" I added.

  "We thought so too" Toni now said. "We three gave Natalie some 'assignments' to do next."

  All four of us were sure she could easily meet that challenge. Perhaps due to her past physical limitations she had always been an above-average student. Dealing with her new limitations would be just another, perhaps lesser, challege for her to overcome. As she explained to a mermaid named Honey [Before, I couldn't breathe air without help from a machine. Now I can only breathe water, but I can breathe on my own and in some ways I have more freedom in the water than I ever could have had on land...] Honey was one of the Silent Sisters and had had the hardest time of the four coming to terms with her change, but on this occasion at least she swam away with a thoughtful look on her face.



  As February drew to an end and the calendar turned to March, Diane and I continued settling into our new roles as Natalie's Mer-parents, and parents-to-be (in a way) for Sherry and her husband. Natalie and Jackie Blue both pledged to support Diane any way they could, but I would be her primary helpmate, as I had promised her. The doctors had told both of us what to expect or anticipate as her pregnancy progressed, and what could happen. Mood swings and morning sickness, food cravings and aversions, were just a few of the changes she could experience over the next several months.

  "Don't be surprised if something happens that none of us anticipated" one of the doctors told us. "Chances are it will be nothing to worry about, but please do let us know. We don't have much more experience with pregnant mermaids than any of you do!"

  March proved to be an eventful month for Diane as her first trimester continued to run its course. On Saturday the third I woke up first, as I usually did, and gently squeezed her hand to wake her up.

  [Don't wake me up so soon! I want to sleep!]

  [It's morning dear. Time for breakfast.]

  [Just wait! I don't feel like getting up now!]

  Diane did sound rather irritated. The doctors had cautioned me about the possibility, so I did nor press her. Instead I simply waited, holding hands and letting her vent, until she was finally ready to get going.

  When she had a similar reaction the next morning I tried to cheer her up by gently brushing her tail with mine, but she was at least as cranky as she had been the day before.

  [Don't mess with me! I'm not in the mood!]

  Her hormone-driven emotions did start to swing back in a more positive direction a bit sooner than they had yesterday. After fifteen minutes or so we found ourselves hugging one another, although it was still a while before she was really in the mood for socializing with anyone else. No one pushed her - Fernando told us Ana had had her own bouts of early morning grumpiness, and sometimes the only thing that could be done was to simply wait for the emotional roller coaster to level out.

  [I felt a lot better after a couple weeks] Ana told me while Diane was enjoying an extra snack to sate her ravenous appetite. [It was so frustrating, that just is not me! Are you trying to figure how to help Diane?]

  [I'm trying, but I have not found a way yet...]

  Finding a solution to Diane's morning crankiness took a couple more days of trial and error. She still did not appreciate my brushing her tail with mine, or ticking her by gently rubbing her scales backward (afternoons and evenings were a different story!). Finally on Tuesday morning I came up with a solution. When I awoke I gently positioned myself so when Diane began stirring, she would brush the frilly fins on the side of my tail.

  The results were even better than I anticipated. Diane woke, yawned, then stretched her arms and tail. She briefly groaned about 'having to get up so early in the morning' then her tune changed abruptly when her tail brushed against mine, as I had hoped.

  [Ooo...I like that!] she giggled mentally. [Lets have some more!] In moments we were kissing and hugging, our tails intertwining. After a minute she let go and shot out the nearest exit, with me pumping my own tail hard in pursuit. Eventually she slowed, gills flaring, and I was able to catch up with her.

  [Thanks] she said [I needed that.]

  [You OK?] I asked [Are the little ones alright?]

  [We will be fine. I'll just have to remember to take it slower next time!]

  Other than an increased appetite, Diane never had the odd food cravings many pregnant women seem to have. She did gladly accept Ana's offer of raisins whenever one of our support ships came calling, her cravings having changed a bit since late January.

  The doctors had earlier told us to 'expect the unexpected' during Diane's pregnancy, but we were somewhat surprised by what happened a week into March. One of the research veesels that periodically visited us arrived with another team of divers, and Mers being the curious beings we are, many of us soon surfaced to greet them. Diane and I popped up together, then a nauseated look came over her face as she hastily ducked back under. When I ducked under to check on her I found her bent over and losing her breakfast. I touched her on the shoulder.

  [I can't believe I'm doing this! Why am I doing this?!] She sounded so miserable I decided not to say anything, which may have been a good idea. I could not be totally sure just then she was not second guessing her decision to become a surrogate mother rather than being upset at getting sick, but after all the hard work she had already put in (she emailed the Thomases regular updates) I very much hpoed it was the latter!

  When she was finally done vomiting I asked [Did you eat something bad, Diane?]

  [I don't think so...I felt fine till we came to the surface.]

  [Any idea what it could have been?]

  [I'm not sure...I did smell something peculiar in the air when we surfaced. You didn't notice any odd smells, did you?]

  [No, I didn't. Sorry.]

  [I guess they were not kidding when they say pregnant women have a sharper sense of smell!]

  [What do you want to do now?] I asked her.

  [I guess I'll give it another try] Diane thought to me as she looked up toward the surface. We swam upward, then she surfaced, tentatively this time, only to duck back under immediately.

  [Something in the air is making me queasy] she said [Sorry!]

  We met up with Fernando and Ana soon after, and asked her if she had noticed anything odd smelling in the air.

  [Not really. The diesel did smell a bit stronger, but so did the salt water, which masked it well enough for me.]

  [Did you feel at all nauseated?] Diane asked Ana.

  [No. I'm sorry you weren't as lucky.]

  Fernando, Ana, Diane, and me stayed below the surface until late afternoon, well after the divers and their vessel had departed. Ana said she noticed no odd smells in the air, but Diane again felt queasy.

  [Could the air itself be affecting you?] Ana asked Diane.

  [Maybe...I guess I'll have to stay below until one of those Trek doctors can scan me and try to figure what's happening...]



  'Bones' McCoy arrived on board the Merry Maid a couple days later, he had volunteered to make this trip as a change of pace from his usual work in Orlando. Since being 'stranded' on Earth in the early 21st century he had seen and heard enough weird things as to now be nonplussed by such matters as a pregnant mermaid being nauseated by breathing ordinary air. As bizarre as that was, at least it was far less so than seeing multiples of Spock, or Klingons serving on board United Federation of Planets starships.

  'Probably one of her pregnancy hormones gone into overdrive' he thought.

  There was only one way to know for sure.



  Diane and I were among the many Mers waiting at the surface when the Merry Maid hove to and dropped anchor. Even a whiff of air was enough to leave her feeling nauseous, so she kept her nose and mouth below the surface. Once the stairway had been deployed McCoy walked down to the bottom step, looked out over the water toward us, and asked "Diane Collins, are you out there?"

  "She's here" I answered and pointed to her upraised arm.

  "Thank you. Diane, please come up so I can scan you, I'd like to know what is ailing you. You can stay just below the surface if you wish."

  Diane gave the doctor a thumbs-up before ducking under and swimming to where McCoy was waiting.It only took him a few moments to complete his scan as she floated on her back a couple feet below the surface. When he signaled he was done she surfaced enough to hear what he had to say. I was with her so I could relay what she might have to say.

  "What did you find out?" I aked for the two of us.

  "Diane, your problem is pretty straightforward. One of your hormone levels is very high, much higher than your pregnant mermaid friends."

  "What can you do about it?"

  McCoy frowned for a moment before answering.

  "Believe it or not, we have nothing to treat elevated levels of that particular hormone. It seems to be unique to mermaids, and we have never had Mers in Starfleet. Sorry."

  "What can we do? How long might it last?"

  "For now the maybe the best thing for you to do is stay submerged and breathe water only. Your hormones will stay high for some time, but your body will adjust. Your nausea may cease then, but there will be only one way to know for sure."

  <What would that be?> Diane raised herself up long enough to ask McCoy directly.

  "Be patient and let events run their course."
 
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MensjeDeZeemeermin's avatar
Very nice development of some characters about whose fates I had been curious.  First generation having to figure out the life-cycle!