3am in the morning

Norman couldn't take this anymore: since he finished his degree with the highest grade ever, 20 out of 20 he gets calls everyday at any hour and he just wanted to sleep for god sake.

The top student goody in two shoes who choose, out of all that was open to him, to work on a top secret lap ruled by the government to investigate strange phenomena that should not be leaked to the public.

Now he regrets a little, that his big brains are the reason why he can't have any rest, he raises his sleepy hand to check the phone. He almost gets blinded by the light...life sure is hard for genius.

"A notification from the lab? But I finished all my reports yesterday..."

Norman widened his eyes: the notification was a bright red message and had large letters. When Norman looked closer...it said that it would auto destruct itself in...

TEN; NINE; EIGHT; SEVEN; SIX...

" JESUS MOTHER is my phone going to blow up?" - Now that was quite stupid of Norman...he stood there for some minutes waiting for his phone to blow up...but nothing happen...of course

" Ahh Thank god...I should know that my brain doesn't work in the morning after all..."

He took his phone and reached for his lamp. In his small apartment with only one room and a toilet, everything was quite empty...he had only one desk for this reports which were confidential and a save box to keep them where they here supposed to be. He stand there in his spot with his hand on this face as he whispered to himself...was it real?

Yes...he had seen a lot of weird stuff, actually that was the hole point of his job but that...was on other level... was he dreaming?

" I must hurry up to the lab! God I can't bealive this!"

Norman took his jacked and packed some paper on his desk. With tunder speed he left the apartment and rushed to his car, a old Peugeot 205 almost done for but dear to him, since it was a gift from his dad. He crossed roads and saw the nightlights. The city was sleeping, just a few more cars to keep him company...as he drove his mind was uneasy, like he was being over stimulated by that the spectacle of world shown to him.

He was so excited he couldn't barely contain himself. Maybe he was also afraid since he was going to meet the unknown. Still, something made his legs run, run strait to the lab, to hurry up to see that he never tought to be possible.

" Norman! Your late? Is that brilliant brain of yours turned off at the morning?"

Now that was enough - Is was not legit to be dying in 3 am?

" Well...Vincent...it's not even morning...and I need to sleep to keep this brain in check"

As he did all the tests to go trough the high security doors, Norman points with his pen to his head as he glimpses at inside of the lab. All he sees is Don and Gilda runing in circles, papers coming and going...that the well is going on? As he took his gown to proceed to the inner lab...

" What the hell is this? What are you doing to the test subject!?"

Ten men, all using black suits with enormous guns were all around as Don and Gilda tried to keep their calm while failing in doing so. Norman was speechless as Vincent approached him and placed a hand on his shoulder

" This is just how important this fish is Norman...do you know that this means? The fairy books were right...and do you know what will happen if this leaks to the outside?"

Norman waved. He tended to smile when he was nervous and ten guys pointing guns, heavily armored in the same room as him wasn't helping at all

" Yes indeed... people would start believing everything that we tought to be unreal and humanity would hunt us down to get it"

" That's right Norman...so now you understand the need for that is going on, right? I'm leaving this thing to you since I trust you more than anyone else in this facility"

Damn Norman hated when he did that...what did he think he was...his puppet? He did had a brain...a very good one! As soon as Vincent left to his office in central command, Norman grabed Don and Gilda and shouted as loud as he could:

" NOW I'm in charge of this case as boss said so please take your hands of that mermaid! Can't you see she is hurt?"

Don and Gilda almost had an heart attack. Norman the pure boy, who did everything he was asked of, who walked without making a sound, without raising his voice...that was indeed new

" Please Norman, sir this creature is dangerous! Our job is nothing more than to protect you scientist as you investigate"

Norman looked at the bodyguard's name as he read "Cislo" on it. Wasn't he the president's bodyguard?

" Well, thank you very much but I didn't ask for your protection! You are messing our investigation! You are ignoring the principle of the first lay of socialization organization and cultural theory..."

Don and Gilda smiled as they looked away. Norman, right here was dropping his secret weapon: The tedious un related speech. Yes because when Norman wanted to get that he wanted he was the master of trowing random fact that people can't relate too...making up a theory that didn't even existed.

Victory for his tedious speech. Don and Gilda almost clapped by now boring it was. Formidable by how their heads even hurt from all those...facts

" Norman, sir please excuse our ignorance! We will now retreat to headquarters! But if you need us please saw so!"

Cislo ordered his man to put the guns down as the mermaid showed herself at a corner, with an aggressive face and a evident will of hurting who tried to get close to her...she was scared.

" Go now! But don't have illusions! I'm not going to need your guns ever again pointed at her head like that! If you want to protect me...you will do as I say!"

When Norman closed the room's door, after Cislo and his man left, Don and Gilda were just to shocked to say anything at all...as they watched Norman take a bunch of bandages as he got closed to the mermaid.

When Norman got closer to her, he could take a proper look at her ginger, quite yellow rebellious hair, and her green fins that existed in the place of her ears. She looked so much human like that was hard to bealive that instead of legs, she had a quite shiny green tail, and bandages raped around her chest.

" Hi! I'm so sorry for all this mess...but now it's all right...we will take care of you so if you-"

Norman looked at his hand. Wasn't he able to see how she bit his hand with all her strength? Now his hand has bleeding and he was still looking at this hand...like a fool

" NORMAN! Jesus look what she did to you!Get away from her!"

" No Gilda, it's fine! Please stay back! Could you two go to the compliment samples room? Just to make her less scared..."

" You better know that you are doing Norman! Or at else I'm going to keep that fish in check!"

" Please don't call her that Don...let me talk to her trust me"

As Norman moved closer to the mermaid in a second attempt, he raised his hand and placed the bandages in his own arm as if he was the one hurt. Than he took it off his arm and pointed to the mermaid's bleeding arm without saying a word...was she able to understand?

" See...this is to help you not to hurt you! Can I place it in your arm?"

She did snarled at him first, which alerted Don and Gilda, but she did give Norman her arm for him to place the bandages on. Was this some sort of empathy? As he warped the gauze in her arm, she kept her rigid posture in order to show her lack of friendship. Still, there as some sadness in her eyes. 

In her vivid green eyes with shades of blue and yellow, she watched Norman as if he was the strange creature there. Well, in her point of view he was. What was that? What was the emotion that was filling up his heart as he took her arm?

Fear? Pity? Compassion? He couldn't tell at all. After all she was a test subject, just a lab rat to satisfy the selfish human need to break anything into piece to understand how it works.

He didn't want to break her...he wanted to know how she saw the world using her green vivid eyes that didn't trust him... Was it wrong? Trying to understand, tie that mermaid to the heaviness of being a human and having the need to be understood.

He smiled at the tought of being free, swim in the ocean untied by any values conventions, obligations... and there he was in a facility in the heart of the government with guards still guarding the door, living his life unconnected to everyone, hiding and dedicating his life to a bunch of politics what just wanted to use him for their own benefit. 

He finished warping her arm, and so did his hand...how convenient. When he raised his eyes to calm her down, to try the peaceful approach in the best way he could she looked at him with wonder.

Don and Gilda glimpsed at Norman. In the other side of the compliment door, Norman saw Gilda reach for the phone as he sighted.  He understood it was time to go, to leave her at that place and go back home as if nothing happen. 

He felt like he was going to wake up from the one dream he didn't want to...

" Don't worry I'm going to be fine! It seems like now they will put you on the water and I'll leave, all right? Trust me on this, will you?

As soon as Norman finished his phrase, Cislo and all the bodyguards took her to a water carrier that has used in the compliment room to work with fish...usually flashlight fish experiments and other odd fish that they used to study. Actually, Norman was glad...she made an ugly face to the guards but she didn't hurt anyone or herself.

" Norman! We must see that bit you got there! What if it is infected?" - Gilda was being such a mom today...

" Yeah man! You are always so careful but to approach her like that? She could have behead you!"

" Yeah you're right...that's how I feel when boss makes me dealing with the FMI and a mermaid...my head is dying"

" Are you leaving? She is secured down so we will just leave the software to monitor her behave and movement"

"Please do...thank you for your work! I'm leaving now!"

As Norman picked up his papers, bag and jacked and turned left to leave his gown in the compliment room here she was, he dropped everything at the sight...

Of her tail, green as grass shining with all the splendor and light he had even seen. And in the moment his eyes laid on her body float in the deep back water full of white particles from the bandages that she had, Norman knew that if the beautiful Northern Lights that he saw on TV, coloring the universe with shades of green and millions of stars were actually from this world, he was watching them right there.

As he went to his car and drove back to his little apartment, so tiered, so exhausted by the lack of sleep, he walked silently towards his bed...toward his rest. Just another day in his life, just a soundless night with a closed curtain to the world. 

Right before he closed bis eyes, he dared to open the curtain and glimpse at the stars up above.

 Why is my house so empty? Did I forget that dad told me... what a shame...it is really a shame that you-

As Norman fell asleep, a bright moonlight showed on his face in the darkness. As Cislo entered Vincent's room in central command with a gun behind his back like always, all the light vanished and a new day was born...a new day to everyone. 

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Thank you so much for reading this chapter! All the credits for the art , cape and AU ideia and comics of this fanfic are to @mika-hime on Tumblr, Twitter and Instagram! Please go check her fantastic art! 

Note: This chapter's title is a reference to the music "Fix you" from Coldplay 

Thank you so much and see you soon!