Have you ever felt a bond break? I don't recommend it. It's one thing when it's an emotional connection, it's another when it's a physical link bound by law.

"I don't need someone like you," were words that always haunted my nightmares. However, no matter how much I fret or worried about it, nothing prepared me for them actually being spoken.

It hurt.

It hurt that I was spurned, even though I never really had a choice.

It hurt.

So, I found myself on the edge.

Until I finally let go and fell into the cold ocean below.

Shouri awoke that morning and thought nothing of it. By his side was Holly, his sole Resonator. She probably stayed up late again, as his sudden rise failed to stir her. Her peaceful expression warmed his heart and he couldn't help reaching out and gently moving the grassy hair from her face. She smiled in her sleep, which earned the same from him.

He had expected worse from his parents, especially his dad, when they found out he had gotten himself a Resonator. Aura must have buttered them up, since they offered to let Shouri and Holly stay in the summer home about an hour south of their main home in Riva Solare.

It put enough distance between them and his parents that Shouri felt comfortable sharing the bed with Holly.

Truth be told, in their short time together, he had grown fond of the zalavan girl. She was funny, smart, and had a good, caring heart. He hadn't forgotten about Mila, he would never, but Holly was helping him heal. Plus, with her by his side, they could actually look for the missing cat.

The search hadn't turned up any conclusive leads, however, every little scrap of information they got brought them one step closer to the truth of that night.

Part of Shouri hated this, waking up in the lap of luxury on beach-front property, when he had no idea if Mila was somewhere hurting or suffering.

Their search had brought them this far south, but still they had yet to find a solid direction. They were just floating from goalpost to goalpost, and it felt like some sick person was taking pleasure in moving their target every time they got close.

He stepped out onto the deck and allowed the sea breeze to wash over him. Daylight was just cracking over the the horizon behind the house, so the crashing waves glittered in the golds of the rising sun.

Shouri took in a deep breath of the cold dawn air. He enjoyed brisk mornings like this one, not hot, but also not frosty. Just the right amount of chill in order to wake up in.

Perhaps that preference would change after this particular morning, however.

It wasn't uncommon for things to wash up on the beach--that was just the will of the currents. What was uncommon was for larger debris to appear on the humble little strip of sand.

Beached on the shore was a lump of black. It looked like it had been left there by the receding tides, so whatever it was had been there for a few hours already. The boy squinted, leaning forward on the wood deck rails in a vain attempt to get a better look.

As if guided by Sage Cielto himself, a stiff breeze tousled the object revealing blue hair that caught in the wind.

Shouri's heart sank. That was a person.

He jumped over the rail and landed hard in the sand. He ignored the protests of his leg muscles and darted over to the body. The Maestro dropped hard on his knees, sliding in the sand next to the unmoving mass.

The first thing that he did was turn the person over. She was pale, her complexion similar to Shouri's. Her navy blue locks surrounded her, though it appeared the inner layers of her hair were a lighter color, being closer to the daytime sky in terms of hue. Her black school uniform was damp, though in disarray.

This girl had been in the ocean for awhile.

Yet, she wasn't dead--she breathed without issue.

He brushed her bangs away and placed the back of his hand on her forehead. There was a warmth, but also from the touch, he could sense her rhythm.

It was faint, but not about to go out. She wasn't dying, but was definitely quite weak.

He allowed his hand to rest where he laid it, and that's when he sensed it.

"You're a Resonator?" he whispered.

The spiritual humidity was more like a spritz from a weak water bottle. He had seen water elements before. Being around them was more akin to standing in a rainstorm. This girl was more like the suggestion of water rather than being fully entrenched in it.

A new problem tugged on his mind. There were no MA Offices nearby. The cabin was all that was around for a long while, so carrying her to seek a professional's opinion was out of the question. Holly did get some strawberry seeds recently. Perhaps they could take care of this lost Resonator, at least enough to wake her up and figure out what happened to her.

With that in mind, Shouri scooped up the mystery girl and began the trek back to the home. She was quite lithe, maybe even underweight? She weighed as much as Holly did, or at least it was as easy to carry her as he did his loyal plant.

Either way, he hoped to find out what her story was.

Blue eyes returned to the waking world. For a moment she laid there, slowly blinking as her brain struggled to process what surrounded her. A wood roof, with the ocean waves crashing outside.

She sat up. The wall behind her was wood paneled, with a stone wall and fireplace her opposite. To her right were large glass windows that allowed her a gorgeous view of the beach. The glass door would even allow her to step out onto a patio complete with deck chairs for enjoying the ocean breeze in style.

Where had she ended up? This was possibly the nicest room she had ever been in.

The answer arrived when the door leading further into the building opened.

Red eyes met blue, as nature met water for the first time.

"Oh…" squeaked the green haired girl at the door. She took a deep breath and turned her head back. "Sho! She's awake!"

The bedded girl winced at the shout of the girl clad in pink and white.

Next arrived a boy. His green jacket matched the green of the other girl's hair. He approached the bed with worry on his brows.

"Good morning, how are you feeling?" he asked. His tone was kind, sincere, full of worry for her--a total stranger.

She lowered her head. "I dunno," she mumbled.

"I'm Holly," the other girl introduced herself. "This is Shouri, my Maestro," she added.

The unintroduced girl fidgeted, her gaze avoidant. "Linh," her voice was almost a whisper, as if speaking any louder would earn reprimand.

"What happened to you? Sho found you on the beach conked out," Holly quizzed.

Linh continued to refuse the concern of the two strangers. Even so, she answered truthfully. "I was abandoned." It needed to be said, for closure.

A sudden emotion hit her like a wave crashing over her. This boy, Shouri, was upset--on her behalf.

"Who? Why?" His questions were curt and quick, ire directed not at her, but a party unknown to him.

Linh shook her head. "It's not his fault. I was just weak. I'm not--"

"Okay and? He just left you out to die?" The explanation didn't stem the boy's rage. If anything, he burned brighter.

"No, I just--! I'm not a strong Resonator! I wish I could be but--"

Shouri put a finger on her lips. "I don't care what his excuse was. If he didn't want to take care of you anymore, that's one thing. He should have made sure you found another home first."

He had calmed and spoke more logically, why was that? That's when Linh spotted it; Holly's hand on his shoulder. Even as rhythmically weak as Linh was, she could feel the rhythm radiating from their contact. It was bright, blinding, brilliant.

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"You want breakfast?" Shouri asked. "I don't know where you came from, but if you washed up on a beach here, I imagine you're hungry," he added.

Linh lowered her gaze once more, pressing her hands against her gut. It was true, she didn't even get breakfast the day she was abandoned. She just ran for that inviting cliff and--

A hand suddenly invaded her's. It was that Resonator, Holly. She pulled Linh out of bed and onto her feet. "Come on, let's get you some food."

The blue haired girl surrendered to the pair graced by green. Shouri and Holly, what strange people.

Even more odd was the abode Linh found herself in. It was one of wealth and splendor. Not that she was unfamiliar with such luxuries, but she thought when she took that fall she'd never see such amenities again.

Linh was sat at a bar, with Holly by her side. Shouri took to the kitchen, pulling out various ingredients to make the two hungry Resonators breakfast.

"Sho started learning to cook for me," Holly told the other girl. "I'm a bit of a foodie," she admitted.

"He did that?" mumbled Linh, appraising the boy closer. Her gaze gradually drifted to the smaller girl who sat beside her. The gentle comfort of a wooded forest wafted from Holly. Her hair had a strange sort of sheen to it. Not something Linh could claim absolute familiarity with. The berries that graced her head was a dead giveaway, however.

"Zalavan," she mumbled.

Holly perked up at that. "Yeah, got it in one," smiled the plant girl. "What about you?"

Linh shirked at the question, reluctant to answer. "I uh--"

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to," said Shouri. He dropped a chocolate chip muffin and a glass of water on the counter for each of the two waiting girls.

Holly gladly accepted the treat and took a hearty chomp into it. Linh remained hesitant. It felt improper not to answer, especially after she sussed out what Holly was so easily. Truth be told, it was kind of rude to just blurt out the zalavan's species like that.

"I'm a mermaid."

Shouri stopped what he was doing. Holly blinked, her cheeks puffed out from being filled by muffin.

That tracked, who would want to associate with a--

The zalavan swallowed hard, nearly choking on her food. she grabbed her glass of water and began to chug it like her life depended on it. The grassy haired Resonator slammed the cup down and turned to the other Resonator. "That's so cool! A real mermaid?!" Holly exclaimed, not allowing the sting in her chest to dampen her mood.

Linh was taken aback, she looked to Shouri, who returned a warm smile. "I think she likes you," he pointed to Holly.

"Why?" Linh wondered, unable to keep up with the line of thought.

"Holly doesn't normally act like this around other people," he clarified.

The mermaid looked to the other Resonator, red eyes sparkling with curiosity as Holly took in every aspect of her fellow mirage.

"Where's your tail?" wondered the zalavan. "I always read that mermaids have beautiful tails."

Linh motioned to her legs, as if the two would understand from the gesture alone.

They did not, and stared at her, waiting for something to happen.

With a sigh, Linh grabbed the glass of water and dumped it on her lap. Before either Holly or Shouri could ask why, the water turned into a thick cloud of mist. It swirled around her legs and when it dissipated, where two human legs once were, a fishy tail had replaced the entire bottom half of her body.

Her scales simmered in brilliant blues and violets. Under her skirt were side fins that hung limp with red bands at the end. Finally, her caudal fin, at the end of her tail stretched out like a fan, bearing beautiful hues along with the rest of her tail.

"You--" Holly blinked a couple times, "--can just do that, huh..."

"Does it hurt?" asked Shouri. He noted the mermaid gripped the bar, desperately trying to keep herself balanced on the stool. Her tail wrapped around the legs of her seat as she attempted to center herself.

"N-no," she replied, clearly strained. Linh took a sharp breath and closed her eyes. Her scales glowed and popped off, twirling around her, and releasing her human legs as the mermaid tail vanished into the air.

"What happened?" wondered Holly.

"Too dry. My legs change back if they're not kept wet," said the mermaid.

Holly and Shouri exchanged a glance. To say they were both curious was an understatement. The two knowledge strong staves burned their wonder with bright yellow in their eyes.

"Can you swim for us?" Holly requested.

"E-eh...?"

Linh didn't know why she was humoring these people. She stood on the beach, the waves of low tide licking her feet. Thankfully, not enough to immediately change her legs. Her jacket, dress-shirt, footwear, and tie had been left in the house, and all that remained were her skirt and swim top, which was standard wear for her.

Shouri and Holly watched, a bit back from the waves, not wanting to get their shoes wet. As the mermaid looked back, she noted their eager, hopeful gazes. It was easy to forget what was mundane to her was extraordinary for them. Linh allowed herself a small sigh. Best to get it over with sooner rather than later.

SPLASH SPLASH SPLASH

Finally, she dove gracefully into an oncoming wave. When she emerged from the other side, gone were her legs, and she resumed having a tail.

Graced by water, she made it her servant. She easily glided through the ocean waves like they weren't even there. The mermaid zoomed back and forth near the shore, flicking her tail fin above the surface every so often so the land bound could track her. She spun around and launched herself out of the water, well into the air before diving back down into the sea.

Neither Shouri nor Holly had ever seen someone move that fast before. It was so quick only her playful slaps of the water were all that let them keep up with her.

After she frolicked among the waves for a spell, she returned to the beach, though needed some help to get away from the water. The effort beaching herself winded her far more than the actual act of swimming. It spoke to the ease at which traversing water came to her.

The trio sat on the beach, watching the tides leave. Linh's legs eventually returned to their human form after some time in the sea breeze.

"You're amazing, you know that?" Holly broke the silence.

"E-eh?" Linh blinked, her face reddening.

"You said your Maestro abandoned you, right?"

Linh turned her head away. "Uh... Yeah."

"Sho, let's take her with us," Holly said, turning to the Maestro.

"Huh?" Both Linh and Shouri gasped at the audacity of the plant.

"Think about it. When we find Mila, that'll be three of us," Holly pointed out. "Plus, she's a water element, that covers for my fire weakness, and I can get some seeds for earth magic to cover her."

Linh shook her head quickly. "Wait a minute! I can't use water magic while I'm like this! I have to have my tail to use it," she stammered out.

"Just carry a water bottle, douse yourself when needed to let Sho cast water spells with you and I can cover until you dry off and can run around again, easy," the audacious plant plotted.

"It's not that easy I--!"

Shouri reached over Holly and planted a finger on the mermaid's lips. "Do you want another Maestro?" he asked.

The conflict in her eyes was immediate and apparent. "I'm weak," she whispered.

"That's subjective. I think Holly's right. We'll make it work, together; but only if you want to," Shouri retorted gently.

His genuine smile only forced more blood through the mermaid's face. "I--" her words were lost on her lips. Holly nodded slowly, her welcoming grin too dazzling for the downtrodden fish. She shook her head, closed her eyes and leaned forward, her cheek resting in Shouri's hand. "Please..." she whispered.

Shouri let out a breath and a small smile. "So now I have two mirages I guess."

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