And there we have Skyler!

TRIGGERWARNING: This Chapter includes mentions of self-harm and su*cide

"I'm glad you're feeling better"

Vera was back at home. The doctors said she would be fine, but she should stay at home for a few days. Daya was sitting at the table trying to eat her breakfast. But she had no appetite at all, yesterday's shock still sat deep in her. Vera sat across from her. "I'll be alright. It's just....nearly dying is definetly an experience. Thank god to whoever that guy was." Daya had a definite suspicion on who her sister's secret savior was. Her whole body felt really tense. First the science lab, now her sister. "I....gotta go." She got up to get her stuff, almost fumbling from being so all over the place. Mr. Anderson came into the kitchen. "Until later, have fun darling!" He waved Daya goodbye. "And we, Vera, are gonna have a serious talk"

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Daya was walking through the school corridors deep in thought. She felt extremely tired and could barely hold it together.

Seeing Skyler at the stairs looking at his phone gave her some sort of reassurement. She knew what to do. "Hey" Daya said quietly when she arrived in front of him. Skyler let his phone sink. He seemed surprised but put his phone away and answered back "....hey" "Um....I don't know how to...thank you for yesterday." "For what?" Skyler tried to play it off, he was embarassed. "For saving my sister's life obviously. She didn't see anything don't worry" Skyler knew he couldn't keep on lying. "I just did what everybody would have done. No big deal" Daya tugged her hair behind her ear. "Still....thank you so much. If you wouldn't have been there she would have died. What were you doing out there?" Skyler immediatly tensed up. "Does it matter?" "No of course not, I just thought maybe you actually started liking it-" "NOOOO of course not!" Skyler sounded defensive. He quickly realized the tone he had put on "I'm- I'm sorry I didn't mean to scream...ah fuck" Daya seemed frozen in place. Like her feet were nailed into the ground. Skyler noticed it and asked a very unusual question for him

"Hey, are you okay?"

It was like a dam that broke. Daya tried to hold her tears back, but there was no stopping the emotional wave that was about to come. All she could do is shake her head and trying to wipe off the tears. "Let's go somewhere more private" Skyler suggested and quickly walked into an empty classroom with Daya.

There he proceeded to give Daya a somewhat hesitant hug. "Hey...it's alright" Daya didn't think twice and accepted the hug. She was so done with everything, she didn't care who she was hugging. "It's alright, it's alright. I'm....sorry" Daya was sniffing and crying like she had been holding it in for quite some time. "This is all just too fucking much. I turn into a mermaid through some weird shit, I almost get caught in front of the whole school and just barely escape and now my sister almost fucking dies. And I feel like it's just a lot for this short time. Maybe I'm too spoiled, maybe my complaints are not what-" "No" Skyler interrupted her. "No they're totally valid. I um.....sorry" Suddenly Skyler sprinted out of the classroom leaving Daya behind puzzled. She knew it was best to not run after him. What was up with him? Admittetly though, he really did make her feel better. Daya wiped off her tears and went back into the hallway.

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"Dennis!"

Elliot came running down the hallway, almost pushing over two girls. "Been looking for you. Or well anyone of your little group" "Friends with Water Benefits" "HAHA RIGHT" Elliot took a sip out of his bottle. "So what did you wanna talk about, Elliot? Finally confessing your love?" "Pfff, wish it was that unserious"

"Ok no for real, do you know what is tonight?" "Ummmm.....Friday I'd say. I don't know I can never remember dates" "Noooo, think more...you know mermanly?" "Adding that to my vocabulary. OHHH FULL MOON?" Elliot's face lit up. "You got it." "So what's so important about it, except that it turned us in to fish beasts the first time"
Dennis flicked his hair back, imitating a fish mouth.

"Ok Dennis listen to me, this is where it gets serious. Full moons after your transformation are not to be messed with. My sister's had many encounters. When you look at the full moon or even reflections of it, you enter some type of trance. Like you can't look away and you get drawn to Mako." "Oh so....like some I don't know...drug trip?" "In a sense yeah. The moon messes with your character, your powers, heck it varies. And when you go into the moonpool during the full moon there's always something happening too. This whole stuff ends when the moon is gone. Sometimes you remember what happend, sometimes you don't.

"Sounds.....creepy. So what should we do?" "Stay inside, darken your windows or tape them, go to sleep early, do NOT look at the moon and do NOT go into the water. Well it happend to them all the time, but you might end up doing some embarassing shit. You could also all do a sleepover" "A sleepover?" "Well so you could watch each other."

"I don't know...I mean I could get Daya or Elena convinced but like Skyler?" Elliot shrugged lightly. "Sorry, you know him better than me. I can only go off his bully moments." Dennis looked down. "This situation just sucks." "Which one?" "I'm not judging what someone is going through, but...fuck...oh my god" Dennis started tearing up, and quickly put a hand in front of his face. He was trying to keep it together. "Let it all out. It's not good keeping it in" Elliot said in a calm tone. He carressed Dennis' back, who had full om tears now rolling down his face.

"You know it just hurts...like alot. Yes I'm not as manly as other guys around here, but fuck. Being called a pussy and even the F slur at one point just HURTS. He just makes me feel like shit. Yes maybe he is changing, but I can't shake it off. Oh and don't forget him trying to splash me at school." Elliot had been silently listening and nodding. "Of course you can't. And you know Skyler is insecure, I don't think he hates you he just hates he can't be like you shamelessly. Which is no excuse, it doesn't make his behaviour more acceptable." Dennis smiled through the tears. "Damn you're putting my psychology ass out of business" Elliot laughed wholeheartedly. "And you know I'm brutually honest so here's my 2 cents about you: I think you're a great friend and I especially love your humour. I wish my tongue was as sharp as yours." Dennis, still having red eyes, gave his signature smirk "Well then you wouldn't know when to stop though." "You aren't the first bossy mercreature I've dealt with, trust!" Both laughed and Dennis wiped the tears of his face. "Thank you that feels much better" "Glad to hear! So like I said, don't forget the full moon thingy" Both made their way to class so the conversation shifted.

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"Nicolas?"

Elena wasn't sure if she was seeing right. Nicolas was talking to his bigger sister by the lockers. Upon hearing his name he turned around, looked for a second then spotted Elena. He nodded as a greeting. "I needed to go anyways. See you later Nicki." His sister teased him than vanished in the crowd.

"Hey Elena, how's it going? And also that's still Nick for you, like who calls me Nicolas" Elena nodded. "Sorry, hey Nick. And I'm alright I guess." "Why 'I guess'? Anything the matter? Of course only if you want to talk about it. Sorry, I don't mean to be intrusive." Nick almost fumbled over his words, but Elena cut him off "Don't worry it's fine, it's nice that you ask." She stopped and sighed. "Have you ever gotten the feeling that you are responsible for people that you aren't necessarily responsable for?" Nick didn't seem to quite follow, but gave her an intrigued look. "I don't know, what does it feel like to you?" "I feel like I'm supposed to keep Dennis, Daya and me together and care for them as friends. But they've been acting weird and I feel like maybe it's because I'm not there enough. Ugh I'm sorry" She started tearing up. "Don't be sorry, take a deep breath." Nick gave her a tissue. Gratefully, she accepted it and used it. Tears were running down her cheeks. "I'm just a bit....I feel like it's my duty to keep this group together. And Skyler, I don't know what to do with him, I can't get through."

"Hey you're not giving yourself enough credit. You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink." She looked up. That saying seemed to intrigue her. Nick continued "I know Dennis, he can be very moody, Daya as far as I know can be very stubborn and Skyler....well I don't know I only know him as an asshole. I mean you and him don't need to try be friends, your project is done. Like if you get me" Elena silently nodded, Nick had a little awkward thing with words but he tried his best. "I think you're being a great friend. Just know you can only do so much. If they are having issues on their own, that's their thing. Well unless it'd be your fault which I don't think here.....yea forget that that made it worse. Fact is I think you are more than enough" Elena had to laugh. She didn't laugh at Nick, but rather about his sweet attempt to cheer her up although he did overthink his words often.

"Maybe you're right" she said. "Thank you Nick" "The pleasure is all mine. Need another tissue?" "Yes please" Nick handed her one and she wiped off her tears. "Let's head to class"

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"Alright fishies, what's the plan?"

It was after class, the group gathered outside the classroom. Nobody had told each other about their emotional breakdowns. What was being told however, was what Dennis heard from Elliot about the full moon. Daya and Elena listened carefully, to fully grasp the seriousness of the situation.

"That does seem quite serious to me." Elena thought hard about what to do next. There was danger lurking behind this full moon, she could feel it. "Well before everything we'll need to get on more person on board" Elena sighed. "I guess I'll-"

"I'll get him"

Daya sounded assertive. Without looking at the other's surprised faces she went up to Skyler. He was about to start talking, but she cut him off. "Skyler, if you want it or not we need to have a talk with the others. You know a water thingy". Without another word she turned around walking back to the others. Skyler knew better than to have another on-edge moment and followed her. "So what's the matter?" Dennis explained it to him. "Damn ok, guess I'll just stay locked in my room all night."

"Here's the thing" Elena interrupted "We thought about having a sleepover" "What? Ehhh I'm not really the type of guy-" Dennis rolled his eyes "Whether you're that type of guy does not matter, it's our best option to keep everyone under control" "Guess I don't have a choice" Skyler rolled his eyes too and sighed audibly. In her thoughts, Daya wondered how this jerk and the guy who consoled her in the classroom were the same guy.

"My mom is not really a big fan of sleepovers at our own place, would be hard to convince her" Daya said quickly. "Oh my place should probably work." Dennis threw in. "Imma just call my dad real quick." He pulled out his phone and dialed his number. His dad answered after a few rings. "Hey um sorry if I'm bothering, just a quick question. Me and 3 friends wanna do a spontaneous sleepover, is it ok if we use my place? Oh you're out of town tonight? What a coincidence amazing- yes I promise no alcohol or anything dangerous. Yea I love you too *kiss* Byeee" Content he turned to the others. "Well that was easy, usually is a bad omen"

"Now I just hope nobody here has to sneak out" "Oh my parents are chill with it." Elena quickly responded. Daya nodded "Mine too, they just don't like sleepovers at our place" Everyone turned to Skyler "I'm stay out late anyway, my mom is used to it" he shrugged.

"Ok so, my place at 5? Bring your own money though, we might have to order pizza and I am not Bill Gates." "You got it boss" Elena smirked. "Umm" Skyler had an awkward tone. "What's your address, I don't think I know?" "Oh right" Dennis gave it to him. "Thanks man" A moment of awkward silence ensued. "Ok then, until 5" Daya grabbed her bag and started her way home to avoid the awkwardness. She knew this was gonna be an interesting night.

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"I'm always ahead of time."

Elena was first to arrive, 15 minutes before the said time. She wanted to help Dennis set up everything. Dennis acted jokingly surprised "Nice of you to visit, were you just in the area?" "PFFF" Elena went inside and closed the door. "I just thought I would come a little earlier to set up some preparations." She looked around. "Oh my god I love it here, your house is beautiful" "Thanks wasn't easy to build" Dennis smirked. "Let me show you my room, you can put your stuff there"

Dennis' room was quite big. Elena admired it before she commented "Gorgeous, but NOT what I expected." "Not as edgy?" Dennis laughed. His room was quite the opposite of Elena's. A little darker, posters of certain bands mostly rock, Elena recognized Kiss and Ladytron, were hanging on the walls. In the corner Elena could spot an E-Guitar. "WOAH YOU PLAY E-GUITAR?" She did not come off mocking at all, she was genuinely curious. Thankfully Dennis realized her intentions "Yessss, but don't ask me to play something right now" "Don't worry, I'm not going to. We got a full moon to tame" Elena put her stuff to one side of the room. Then she went to the window to check something. Dennis caught on. "Yup, we have lightproof blinds." "GOOD! Your place is really the best spot-"

*Ding Dong*

"Must be Daya" Dennis went to the front door. He opened it swingingly "Hey Da- oh Skyler hi" Dennis looked surprised at what greeted him to be Skyler's confused face. "Something wrong? I thought we said 5?" Skyler did not seem to realize that him being on time was extremely unusual. "No no, come in". Skyler came in and looked around, he rarely came to other people's places. "You got a nice house" "Thank you, Elena said the same thing" Before the awkwardness could ensue further Elena jumped in "Dennis, can I show Skyler to your room and you stay here in case Daya arrives right now?" "Eh sure!" On the inside Dennis thanked Elena a thousand times.

"Sorryyyyy I'm a bit late"

Daya arrived 15 minutes after the agreed time. She looked like she had been in a hurry. "I didn't watch the time" "Well now you gotta deal with the full moon yourself, bye!" Dennis joked and half-closed the door just to open it back up immediatly "Come in!" She smiled and came in, looking around. "Oh wow it's-" "Nice in here?" Dennis finished her sentence. Daya laughed "I feel like you've heard that before." Dennis showed her to his room.

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"There is still time left"

Daya remarked with a loook at her watch. Obviously she had done a bit of research to come prepared. Dennis noticed it was getting darker outside. He felt a shiver creeping down his spine. What would the full moon do? What if it hit him?
"Hey are you listening?" Daya gave Dennis a slight shove. "Oh yea- ok no I didn't sorry" Daya laughed "It's alright I'm nervous too. I said that the moon is what turned us into merpeople. I wonder what more power it wields." "Right. We might be merpeople, but according to Elliot we're gonna act like werewolves. We really got the whole fantasy pack." Daya only let out a small laugh. Dennis didn't even convince himself with his own joke.

"How do you feel about having Skyler here?" Daya said completely out of the blue. Dennis was taken aback by the sudden question. "Um....it's okay I guess? Ah fuck I don't know. I don't wanna cry again." "Oh again? You cried today too?" "Yea I actually did. It was just that Skyler's comments and actions so far have hurt me. We tried to include him but I don't think he wants to." "I'm so sorry" "Don't be, and besides Elliot consoled me" Daya cheered on the inside. This was another plus point for Elliot in her heart. "So um, what did you cry about?" Dennis took a sip of water and handed Daya a glass too. She took a big sip before awkwardly starting to tell her story. "Well.....that's kind of awkward to explain" "I'm open for everything you know me" Dennis smirked.

"So I was just overwhelmed. First me almost getting exposed in the science lab and then yesterday you remember the rainstorm?" "Yup" "My little sister almost died." "WHAT?" Dennis put a hand in front of his mouth. "She stole my boat but crashed at sea and almost drowned. Don't worry she is alright now." "How did she get saved?" "Guess." "The water Police?" "Pffff as if" Daya raised an eyebrow. Dennis thought hard. "You saved her?" "Nope." "........um Elena?" "Still nope." Daya gave a somewhat sarcastic smile. Dennis gave her a sideye. ".....no." "Yes" "Skyler saved your sister????" "He did and he did it very well."

Dennis mouth was gaping but she wasn't done yet. "Don't worry my sister saw nothing. So from her account it could have only been you or him, and she said brown short hair so Skyler. I went to thank him today and we had a somewhat arkward talk." Dennis silently nodded, not knowing where this was going. Daya sighed. "So I asked the dumb question if he actually enjoyed swimming and he kind of yelled." "OH HE-" "Don't get mad lemme finish. So he saw my reaction and immediatly apologized. And this is crazy. He asked me if I was okay." "....and then?" "Well I was already on the verge of tears so I started sobbing like a baby." "I'm so sorry love" Dennis gave Daya a hug. "What did he do? Run away?" He sounded actually genuine, he knew sarcasm was the wrong thing here.

"He....pulled me into an empty classroom and gave me a somewhat awkward hug." Dennis was speechless. "I know it sounds crazy. And he also kept saying 'It's alright. I'm sorry'. Believe it or not that hug really helped." Dennis thought about it for a second. Daya also didn't know what to say. "See this is what I don't get." she started "Skyler can be so nice but such a jerk at the same time." Dennis nodded "I think he does like us. I think he does want to be part of this, but can't admit it to himself. Insecurity is what Elliot said." "If somehow a miracle breaks the ice."

Once again silence ensued. "I'm fucking starving, let's grab Pizza." He handed her menu. "Imma close the blinds, you choose something. Can you get the other two as well when you're done?" Daya greatly appreciated the topic change "Sure! Let's see....."

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Meanwhile Skyler and Elena sat in Dennis' room, both on their phones. It was very silent, so Skyler starting a conversation made Elena shrug for a second.

"So um.......how have you been doing lately?"

Elena needed to process for a second what she just heard, because she wasn't sure if her brain wasn't tricking her. "Oh eh quite alright. I'm just a bit on edge about this whole full moon. I mean I do think it is somewhat beautiful, but we never know what could happen." "Is there something else? I mean I know I'm part of it." "It's.....oh my god keep it together Elena" Elena once again felt her throat closing up. "If it makes you feel better, let it out." Skyler rotated his phone in his hands. "It's okay, I already cried today. I don't know what to do. I feel like we all need to work together at some point but I just can't keep the group together. We need to work together but something always keeps happening." Skyler was silent for a few seconds. "It's not your responsibility......it's not you it's me" Elena was surprised by his statement. Trying to think of a suited question, she asked "What are you afraid of?" "I'm not afraid...or maybe I am...I- I don't know" Skyler stuttered. Nervously he rubbed his hands. "Ugh forget I asked, sorry" "You don't have to-" "No no forget I asked."

In that moment Daya came into the room. "Hey so um we're starving over here. Can y'all select a pizza from this menu?" Both Skyler and Elena internally thanked Daya for interrupting their conversation. They took the menu, having a good look through it.

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"Oh that was so good"

Dennis finished his last slice of pizza and cleaned his mouth with a napkin. Daya finished her bite before she gave up. "How is your stomach that big? Keeping this for later" She closed her pizza carton and laughed. Elena was a slower eater so she was still eating, while Skyler just finished his as well. "Honestly the best thing to be invented" he commented. "Very true. I don't know who invented it but legend." Elena took a big sip of water and cleaned her hands. Dennis put on a Lois Griffin voice "Whoever you are....thank you!" Daya laughed before putting her leftovers in the fridge.

"The full moon should be up by now" Elena remarked. "Sooooo, should we do anything to pass time? It's too early for sleeping." "Wanna watch a movie? I personally love the Saw Series" Daya turned around so dramatically fast that her chair almost flipped over "Dennis, love, I'VE JUST EATEN" Dennis giggled "Worth a shot"

"I'm not a big movie fan, I'll just stay on my phone in your room" Skyler stood up and threw away his carton. Daya made a somewhat unsatisfied face "You sure?" "Yes" Without another word he turned around and walked away.

Dennis sighed. "Anyways, Movie still? Saw was more or less a joke." Elena was down for it. "I'll go with anything you choose." Daya turned to Dennis "You got Mean Girls?" "Well I wouldn't call you mean but if that's what you think?" He laughed and so did Daya after giving a massive eyeroll. "No but sure I have it. Good choice."

The 3 made themselves comfortable in front of the TV. They were too full to have popcorn or chips. Mean Girls started and Dennis hoped this would be a peaceful evening with nothing special.

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"Can you pause real quick, I need to pee"

Halfway into the movie Elena stood up to visit the bathroom. "Of course!" Dennis stopped the movie and checked his phone for a few seconds.

Elena went to the bathroom to relieve herself. On the way back she walked by Dennis room. She stopped. From inside the room she could hear voices. No actually, only one. It seemed like Skyler was talking to himself.

"I hate this. Fucked it up again. I never wanted it to be this way" Slowly Elena creaked open the door. Skyler was sitting on the floor, phone next to him. He was staring at the wall across from him. "Skyler, you alright?" She said in a calm tone. "If you still wanna join us-" "Leave me alone. Go." Skyler started shaking. "This was all a mistake, I can't do it." Elena stayed calm. "I think you're having a panic attack. It's okay, try to breathe calmly. If-" "I'M N-NOT HAVING A P-PANIC ATTACK." Skyler stood up shakingly "I'M N-NOT AFRAID."

He walked straight by Elena into the living room. "I'LL SHOW Y-YOU I'M NOT A-AFRAID" He walked straight to the front door. Dennis jumped up looking petrified. "SKYLER NO! SKYLER-"

It was too late.

Skyler opened the front door and stopped in his tracks. His eyes only fixated one thing: the full moon. It was like the moon was grabbing his hand and pulling him towards him. His eyes moved from the moon away to the sea in the distance. Dennis didn't live far away from the water but it was a 10 minute walk. Skyler started walking without saying another word

Inside Elena, Dennis and Daya ducked into a hallway with no moonlight. "Would have been too good to be true." Dennis sighed audibly. "What do we do now? We have 2 possibilities. Go out there, get moonstruck but maybe catch Skyler. Or stay here, not get moonstruck and let him do god knows what." "We have no time to waste, I'm going after him." Daya stood up and started walking out of the hallway. She pulled her shirt over her eyes to not immediatly get moonstruck.

Dennis and Elena ran after her, covering their eyes. "Daya, stop. That's too dangerous!" Dennis yelled after her. "I DON'T CARE! This guy saved my sister and was there for me this morning. Asshole or not, I'm simply returning the favor."

Before her friends could say anything else, Daya stepped out the door. She pulled her shirt down. There the moon was. There she was.

"I know where you are." Daya started walking. She couldn't say where she was going. She just knew. "I'm with you"

Elena and Dennis mumbled to each other under their shirts. "So I guess we don't have a choice?" Elena started moving closer to the door, feeling her way along the walls. "We're in this together, no one gets left behind." Dennis followed her. He felt for the keys in his pocket, thankfully they were still there. Blindly he made sure, to follow Elena outside and lock the door behind him. "Ok go" she said without wasting another second. Simoultaneously Elena and Dennis pulled their shirts down.

Moonstruck. Immediatly moonstruck. The 2 teenagers stood in front of the house, looking up at the moon. They never felt so connected to anything ever before. "Let's go." Dennis knew exactly where to go. Elena stayed silent, she simply followed wherever Dennis was going.

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The beach? Yes of course. Water. That's the goal.

Skyler arrived at the beach. He was still breathing heavily despite walking slowly. It's like his panic attack had hit "Pause". He looked at the moon one more time? "Why are you leading me there" he said so quietly as if he was whispering in the moon's ear. Then Skyler ran into the water as fast as he could. He needed to be in the water.

He dove off.

Daya was not far behind. She saw Skyler running into the water from afar, yet even if she hadn't seen it she knew where to go. She felt her hands starting to shake. She fastened her pace, to the point where she was running faster than she ever knew she could. Her lungs were aching but her willpower numbed her pain. Daya ran right into the water, eager to swim after Skyler. She didn't feel like the moon was manipulating her to do this, moreso it was giving her the courage to do put it into action.

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Skyler swam like his life depended on it. His goal? Mako.

"It's all your fault" rushed through his head over and over again. His body was tense but he felt light in the water. Why was it feeling like home? It shouldn't.

Finally Skyler arived at the moonpool after what felt like hours, despite it being only a few minutes. His head peaked out the water. The moon was right above the vulcano's opening. It was like the first time, when everyone was transformed. Skyler fixated the moon. He was staring and staring his eyes started to burn. "Why? Why? Why?" he kept whispering. His breathing intensified again.

It was at that moment Daya came swimming into the moonpool. She turned around looking for Skyler, finally finding him between bubbling water and flowing particles. Daya didn't hesitate, she swam closer and grabbed Skyler's hands. Looking directly into his eyes she said "I'm here. You're not alone." She took a deep breath. "Are you alright?"

Some people might call it Deja Vu. Some people say history repeats itself.

"N-no."

It was like a dam broke lose. Skyler started tearing up, first one tear then two then a thousand. He started sobbing uncontrollably as he had been holding it in for ages. Daya didn't think but acted. She simply repayed the favor. Letting go of his hands, she pulled Skyler into a big hug. Skyler, who was crying heavingly, immediatly hugged back, careful as to not hurt Daya. "It's okay" she said "You're feelings are valid."

"We're here." Elena breathed heavily as she arrived in the whirlwind the moonpool was. Dennis came just a second later. They didn't feel the need to say anything, they understood what to do. The scene that unfolded in front of them said more than a thousand words.
Elena swam over to join the hug. She wanted to be there for everyone and wanted them to actively know it. Dennis felt his throat closing up. He found the courage to also participate in the hug.

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"I'm sorry"

The moon had passed by the vulcano's opening, so the water stopped bubbling. Skyler slowly caught his breath again. With red eyes and shaky hands he gently hinted at the others to loosen the hug. Awkwardly he leaned against the moon pool's wall. The others did the same.

"You held in for a long time, didn't you?" Daya said in a calm tone. Skyler was still sniffling so he gave a slight nod. "Do you wanna dry off and tell us what caused all that?" Daya made sure to not overwhelm Skyler. Skyler regained his voice "Yes.....but I'm staying in merman form. I um...I quite like it admittetly." Daya smiled. She was proud of Skyler for taking small steps to accept his new identity.

Skyler gathered all the courage in his body to start talking. "It's um not easy to talk about." "You take all the time you need" Dennis pulled a strain of hair out of his face. Skyler gave an awkward smile and took a deep breath

"I recently fought with my mom over something irrelevant and...she yelled at me saying I'm like my father. I know she apologized later on, she regrets saying it......but nonetheless it really stuck with me. Because she was right."

He felt his throat closing up again but he now knew better than to keep it in. Another tear ran down his face.
"I....lord....I grew up with a very abusive dad. And I'm not trying to exaggerate, he was really a huge fucking asshole. He was very much the spitting image of an insecure, toxic masculine man. He kept constantly calling me a pussy or a f*ggot whenever I did something that did not fit his image. He wanted me to be a buff guy, getting all the girls and carrying the honor of his bloodline. And well......I remember it very well....the evenings he would come in my room and just beat me up for the dumbest reasons. Mostly in an alcoholic rage."
Skyler laughed in a painful way. "He really loved to drink and tell his friends what a dissapointment I was. My mom was too intimiated to get divorced. I don't blame her, I wouldn't have had the courage either." He turned around to show scars at the bottom of his back, right above where his tail started. "You see these? Those are from the worst fight. I don't remember all. Think it was a broken glass bottle."

Everyone was too shocked to say something. Elena's gaze wandered from the back scars to some others at Skyler's shoulder and upper arm. He caught it and pointed his finger at the other scars. "Oh those? No they weren't him. Those were me." There was a few seconds of awkward silence while everyone tried to process. "I um....it was a mix of self-loath and frustration. I mean all of this ended up with....." He clearly struggled to say it. "Y'all remember a few years ago when I was missing from school for like 2 months?" Daya thought back. "Oh when you broke your leg? Yes" "I didn't break my leg. That was a lie by my dad. I.....I...the reality is...I attempted." "Oh my god" Elena whispered. "I attempted to off myself but failed. I'm gonna spare you the details on my dad refusing me to go to a mental hospital for longer than necessary. I wasn't even allowed to cry, so you can imagine a son of his actually letting something ridicolous as depression win." Skyler purposefully put alot of sarcasm in that last line.

Dennis slowly raised his hand. "Um...may I ask something if it's okay for you?" "Sure go ahead." "You keep talking about your dad in a past tense. Is-" "Yea he died 2 years ago. Went out with his friends, drank alot, ranted about me, and then crashed his car. I know, serves him right." Skyler sighed audibly. "I mean that should have been the end, but I only recently realized....how much I carried on what my dad did. These past 2 years I have been walking around trying to pretend to be someone I'm not. I've- yea I've been a really fucking asshole to put it nicely. So yea this merman thing messed with me. Badly. Because it's something I was told to hate. Like something that was even remotely feminine...or classed as such...you know what I mean. I simply refused to accept it.
So........I guess all of that past, all of this emotional merman distress stuff, what my mom said...it caught up to me right now. This full moon somehow allowed me to let it all out."

For a few seconds all that could be heard were the waves crashing outside. The weight of Skyler's story lied heavily on everyone in the moonpool. Dennis was shaken. "I had no idea, I am so sorry you-" he started but Skyler interrupted him.
"No. No. You're not the one who needs to be sorry. I am." He took a deep breath. "I'm.....not using this as an excuse. It does not excuse all the nasty shit, especially the homophobic and misogynistic comments, I have been saying. It comes from this deep place of insecurity and.......I'm really really sorry. I regret it and I know I can't change it back. But I will change. I'm gonna work on it." His gaze shifted to the side. "But....I understand that I really blew it with this group and....I understand if...no, that you don't wanna keep me around. That's what I'll have to deal with."

Daya was the first one to speak. "It's a good first step admitting though what is the issue." She gave him a genuine smile. "I know this is easier said than done, but....just be you. You don't need to pretend you're someone you're not. I know this is hard to do, but I know you can do it. And I'm there for you. I'm not speaking for the others....but I really don't want to waste this chance."

"Um...." Dennis was starting to speak, but you could tell he was trying hard not to cry. "I do....I do take your apology and I genuinely believe it's sincere. But um-" Dennis started to cry. "What you said really fucking hurt me, like it really stings." Skyler looked down "I know." Elena swam over to Dennis to give him a supporting hug. After Dennis took a minute to recollect himself he continued. "But I do get it.....if I'm honest with myself, I feel really fake. Like I come off as this very confident person with this sarcastic humour but at the end of the day it's also just a mask. And my mom she......I don't know she always gave me the feeling like I was a dissapointment. More in a distant way, less aggressive like your dad. I don't know what it was, I guess I just wasn't the son she imagined. And then she left and I've been blaming myself ever since." Dennis started crying again. "Ah shit sorry"

"No that's so valid" Skyler said calmly. "He's right. Let it out." Dennis started sobbing. "Y-you know, I-I've never told anyone this but....but I'm....AH FUCK....I'm actually-" He took all the courage in his body to say it out loud.

"I'm gay."

Once again, for a split second you could only hear the ocean waves. Elena smiled at him full of pride. "Dennis, I'm so so so proud of you. You're very brave for saying that out loud." Daya could not hide her happiness for Dennis. "We still love you, of course we do! You're our friend. We support you every step of this coming out process, I hope you know that" With her hands she formed a heart. Skyler didn't know what to say. He wanted Dennis to know, he supported him wholeheartedly but the words just wouldn't form.
"I know it sounds weird coming from me, but....I'm proud of you. That takes so much courage to say."

Dennis smiled through the tears. "I've known it for like 2 years now but it feels like an eternity. You're the first people I've ever told this. Yes I'm gay and.....I'm not gonna feel ashamed about it." "YES!" Elena almost cried out of joy. "Can I give you a hug?" "Of course you can." Said and done.
"Wait wait wait lemme join" Daya swam over to join. Skyler kept his respectful distance, but Dennis looked over his shoulder. With a smiling eyeroll he said "Come here you" Skyler seemed surprised "Are you sure? "Do it before I change my mind" Dennis said sarcastically but he couldn't keep his laughter. Skyler swam over to join the hug. It felt warm and much needed for everybody.

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After half a minute, everyone swam back to their places at the moonpool wall.

"Who's next to trauma dump?" Dennis felt like his old self again. Elena raised her hand. "Me since I'm already crying."

Elena was overcome by sudden emotion. Everyone understood that it was the full moon who brought out everyone's deepest feelings.
"This morning was kind of....tough on me. I didn't know how much this had been effecting me. This whole us as a group thing. I just want everyone to feel included and.....ugh I just feel like I'm not there enough for you guys." Daya shook her head. "No that's not true. Of course your feelings are valid, but these thoughts are telling you lies."

Elena smiled, she appreciated Daya's reassurance. "I didn't have a lot of friends growing up. Many excluded me because of my skintone, others just thought I was weird for having interests like this for example." She pointed around indicating her love for fantasy related things. "But there was this one girl: María. She was amazing, my best friend for so many years. Kind, compassionate and so wonderful to everyone. She also had similiar roots...so she really made me feel understood." Elena's tears were flowing non-stop. "But she did have problems. Mental issues. Nobody really understood her in her family and took her seriously, so.....so...fuck....I was all she had basically." Elena tried to breath calmly. "I let her down. I wasn't there enough for her, because I was too busy with other things. And then she.......she ended it all."

"I'm so sorry Elena" Dennis covered his mouth with his hand. He quickly swam over to her to console her, like she did with him earlier. Elena wiped her tears off. Skyler and Daya were frozen solid in shock. "And I've been blaming myself for it every single day, it's been haunting me. And that's why I can't handle more losses, I'm scared I'll lose you too." "Heyyy it's-" "Like if I had been there more-" "ELENA, look at me!" Dennis shocked himself with his tone. "It is not your fault. María, may she rest in peace, chose that, not you. It would have ended this way either way. It is not your fault. You hear me?" Elena hesitated before she silently nodded. Daya added to that. "and regarding us, you are doing more than enough. You're not responsible for the shit we do." "Exactly, you can only do so much, the rest is our responsibility" Skyler wiped a tear of his face.

Elena hesitated, for a second she wss frozen solid. The inner fear had crept up and rattled her. "Y-you're right. T-thank you." "No need to" Dennis smiled. "Give yourself breaks. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"Guess it's my turn" Daya pulled a strain of hair out of her face. "I've been emotional all day, I don't know if I can still cry." Just as she said that her eyes started tearing up. "Jinxed it."

"I just feel very overwhelmed. All of this has been scary, first I get turned into a mermaid, then I almost get revealed in front of the whole school and yesterday my sister almost died." She turned to Elena. "My sister got caught in the rainstorm at sea yesterday and almost drowned, Skyler saved her. I'm sorry....I haven't told you, I only just told Dennis earlier too." Elena gave Daya a calm smile "Don't apologize, it's alot for you. I understand." She thanked Skyler with a quick eye glance.

"I'm overall a very emotional person, like I am sensitive I admit it. And people just have been using it to their advantage and I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID. LIKE FUCK." She realized how loud she has gotten. "Sorry....see this is exactly what I mean." But Skyler didn't allow her to talk down on herself. "No, no. That's so valid, let that all out." "People never understood why I liked science as a girl....I thought we had moved on from that??? Like seriously? My whole life I've felt the need to defend myself for everything I do or justify everything I love. And they just found my anxiety attacks to be hillarious. People just loved to tease me about shit they know I'm sensitive about, they loved to push my buttons and it gets frustrating cuz then I look like this crazy girl with uncontrollable emotions. Which is why I held back when you did that comment with me driving the boat." She looked at Skyler. He seemed dissapointed in himself and was about to apologize again but Daya stopped him beforehand. "I already forgave you, it's fine. Just as an example. I do act alot by emotions and at some point it just makes me feel stupid." She sighed. "I know how stupid that sounds, like y'all talk about really traumatic stuff and I'm talking about hypersensitivity-"

"No Daya, what bothers you emotionally is just as important as ours." He looked her straight into the eyes. "Whether a person is drowning in 6 meter water or 30 meter water doesn't matter, they're drowning. If that makes sense, sorry I suck at this." Elena shook her head "No that's actually a really good analogy. That is so true."

"I don't know, I just wanna be taken seriously by people. See I'm overreacting again." "No you aren't" Skyler gave Daya a genuine smile. "Don't see being sensitive as a bad thing. It makes you really compassionate...and empathetic. I don't think we would be here if you didn't follow your heart. And overall....you've been so kind and compassionate to everyone here, I think we, or at least I, never tell you how much I appreciate that. You hear me?" Daya sniffled but then nodded. "I-I do."

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"I think we all needed this."

The group was finally done crying their hearts out and had calmed down. Everyone had an expression with a mix of happiness and relief. Elena was the one to refocus the conversation. "We needed to be really honest with not only each other but ourselves" "And I'm feeling so relieved, like a burden has been lifted." Dennis looked genuinely better and happier. Daya took a somewhat serious tone. "Let's not keep unncecessary secrets secret. If someone feels better sharing something, they should absolutely share it and not get judged for." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Skyler?" Elena turned around "Hm?" "I really still want you to be part of this." "As do I" Daya reassured as she was the one connecting the most to Skyler so far. "Yea me too, and I mean it" Dennis looked Skyler straight into the eyes so he knew it was genuine. "I'm....I'd love to" Skyler stuttered "I'm sorry I'm just surprised. I didn't expect to get one last chance." Dennis shook his head smiling "Don't see it as a last chance. See it as a fresh start. For you and for everyone else. Right guys?" "Right!" the others agreed unanimously.

"Ok now let's get out of here, I'm so fucking tired guys." Daya swam to the opening of the moonpool. "Yea, before we grow more scales" Dennis laughed.

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"Wake up sleepyheads, it's almost noon!"

Dennis' dad had returned from his overnight stay and found his son and 3 other teenagers still asleep in their beds. After last night's emotional bonding at Mako, the group had returned to Dennis house and immediatly crashed into bed. They were so drained and tired, no one stayed awake longer than 3 minutes.

Dennis awoke from his slumber and almost got a heart attack seeing his dad's face. "Morning....WAIT HOW LATE IS IT?" "Around 11:30 AM." His dad laughed and went to gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Did you have fun yesterday?" "Yes....yes we did." "Great! Admittetly I haven't had breakfast either, so let's do a late one."

Daya awoke second. "Good morning!" She sounded really refreshed, despite being so out of it just seconds earlier. Elena and Skyler woke up only moments later. They sat up, and after a short friendly greeting with Dennis' dad, Dennis continued "Oh right, you haven't met yet. Guys this is my dad. Dad, these are my friends Daya, Elena and Skyler. We're in the same class." "Pleasure to meet you all. I don't think much about formalities, you can call me Thomas" He stood up. "I haven't had breakfast either, anybody likes coffee? Or tea?" "Coffee black, you know me" Dennis grinned. "Yea me too if it's alright" Daya and Dennis looked at each other, laughing about having the same taste. "Do you have tea that has fruit-taste?" Elena pulled her hair out of her face. "Lots of them, what you think about a berry one?" "Sounds amazing" Skyler looked a bit awkward. "I'd also take coffee but I don't assume you have any vegan milk options?" "I do actually! I'm lactose intolerant." "Ayyy so am I!" Skyler's face lit up. Thomas gave a thumbs up went to the kitchen, while the others got ready for the day.

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"I'll be honest, this is NOT what I expected but....a win is a win."

After the group had breakfast and watched the rest of Mean Girls together, they had agreed to meet Elliot at the Café to tell him all about last night. Having Skyler in the group was new for him and unexpected but he was very glad the group had found a way to bond together.

"Indeed, I think we all urgently needed this yesterday." You could really tell sharing helped Daya become much happier. And not only her, everyone had a much more relieved aura. "I'm happy we got you Part of the group Skyler." "Please, you can call me Sky." "Well Sky, let's update you." Together the group shared their findings so far, Skyler took everything in. As he learned to slowly embrace his new form, his curiosity for the magic behind it had also awakened.

"Ok so, if I understand that right" he started. "If the moonpool or Mako or whatever controls this magic, is some sort of learning entity, does that mean...we were chosen of some sort?" Elliot looked confused "What do you mean by that?" "Well you said your sister and her friends acted all crazy. Like either out of control or drunk or similiar. But last night's full moon was weird. It had our emotions going into overload. Like, to the point we all cried, even me which nobody thought was possible." He still was very awkward talking about it. "Almost like we needed to be a group first. Like, ah that's hard to explain. Like the moonpool wanted us to find together before it could really test us. Sooo.....maybe us becoming merpeople was not a coincidence?"

Dennis tilted his head. "Oh my god...that does make sense. We really should become detectives." Elena laughed but became serious a second after. "But there is a flaw in there. Like it wasn't coincidence we were there like Elliot's sister. We had an assignment to do." Skyler snapped his fingers. "That's it!" "Wait that's what?" "Whose idea was the project?" "What do you mean? Mrs. Garca right?" "Who put us in a group together?" "Mrs. Garca." "Who chose the place?" "Mrs. Garca." "And who chose the timeframe?" "......also Mrs. Garca"

Daya's eyes widened. "You think....she is the key to this?" Dennis nodded "To be fair, what she said to me as a reasoning sounded sketchy. Like I'm not buying it."
Elliot looked proud. "See? Working together really does bring new hints. We have another lead" Elena nodded not without remarking though "But guys, we'll take it slow. Let's not go full force in right away" Daya put on an innocent face "Dunno what you're talking about" "Me neither" Skyler did his own version of an innocent face.

"Ok but before we go.....Sky I do have a question, an urgent one." Skyler's smile faded, he prepared for the absolute worst

"What do you think of green and purple in an Outfit?"

Skyler did not expect that. "I mean it looks amazing with Pastels-" "We're talking Neon" "EW, WHO COMBINES THAT?" "My sister AND I'VE BEEN TELLING HER THAT." Skyler's mouth was wide open. Everyone was laughing hard.

This really was a much needed fresh start.

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WOW WHAT A LONG CHAPTER! Very many tears, many breakdowns and some sensitive topics hence the Trigger Warning

I didn't realize it went on that long. This has to be my favourite chapter so far though.

We also have our image for Skyler! The guy in the picture is Fiachra Ó Corragáin, a very talented harpist and overall exactly how I imagined Skyler to be.

We have our first, quite unusual full moon.

A lot of things have been revealed about our characters: pasts, personal flaws, fears. What do you think of all that you found out?

Also our group is now complete, as Skyler finally accepted his new form. How will his further development go?

And what will the group find out about Mrs. Garca? Is she actually connected?

Stay tuned!