Chapter Text
“Alright, children. We're about to head into a section of the aquarium that houses two especially rare species. I want you all to be on your best behaviour and not to disturb the creatures. Alright?” A teacher by the name of Ms Mira addressed her students. A symphony of nods were returned as all the kindergarteners held onto the rope tightly, and were pulled along the halls of the building by their teacher.
Little Eijirou was excited to see what awaited in the next room. He hoped that it was sharks, as those were his favourite animals, yet his teacher had described it as something ‘rare’ which his Mama had told him meant that it was hard to come by and special. He followed his classmates staring down at their feet in thought, as their teacher opened the heavy doors.
“Tomo, whad'ya think it's gonna be?” He asked his taller friend loudly, earning a bunch of shushes his way. He silently apologized as Tomo turned to him. “Maybe a giant squid! Those are super cool.” He cheered quietly. Eijirou nodded, they were pretty cool, but not as cool as sharks, yet he kept that to himself.
“And here we are! Now, this tank is one of the largest here in any of Chiba's aquariums, and houses two species like no other. Any guesses as to what they may be?” Their teacher asked. Eijirou stared behind her at massive curtains, potentially covering the tank. squinting his eyes as if to try to find the creatures through a gap, that everyone was making such a fuss about.
“Is it manatees?” One girl put up her hand. “Not quite.” Their teacher laughed. “Sharks?” Eijirou joined in, tilting his head to the side. “I suppose they do have some shark qualities.” An unfamiliar voice sounded from behind them. In stepped a tall, well dressed lady, who gently closed the door behind her. “You all are actually the first public group to ever witness these magnificent creatures.”
The children let out a series of gasps. “Mhm. My name is Dr. Aiya, and I'm a marine biologist currently studying these fascinating creatures.” She smiled, soaking in all the attention. “I wanna be a mawine bi- biogist too when I grow up.” A little boy rasped out.
“I'll be rooting for ya then!” The woman smiled back.
“Can we stop chattering and see the creatures already!” Tetsu groaned out. He was actually Eijirou's cousin, yet was a lot more outgoing and blunt than him. “What's the magic word?” His teacher placed her hands on her hips with disapproval. The boy cowered and let out a quiet, “Please, Ms Mira?” That seemed to satisfy the teacher who turned to Dr. Aiya, both nodding in unison.
They told the children to take a seat on the bean bags whilst they drew back the curtains. A crowd of massive eyes grew even larger as the curtains were pulled away to expose a massive tank, true to their teacher's words. There were turtles, schools of fish, coral and so much happening yet the main attraction was clearly two mermaids that looked to be full grown. One brown-haired male with a greenish almost black tail, whilst the other was an ash-blond female with an orange and cream coloured tail.
The two didn't seem to be doing much, simply floating around the tank, or every now and then fiddling with rocks that lay on the sea bed. “Behold, creatures that were believed to be nothing but fairy tales, out in the flesh! This pair is the first to ever be seen and captured in public.” Aiya smiled, watching all the little faces watch in wonder.
“I always believed in mermaids.” Tomo whispered to Eijirou, who nodded in agreement. This was even better than sharks. He never thought he'd actually get to see human-fish hybrids with his own two eyes, yet here he was. He couldn't wait to tell his Mama about the day that they had at the aquarium and this highlight.
“Feel free to ask any questions about these two!” Aiya smiled, standing in front of the tank that dwarfed her in comparison. A wave of hands were lifted all at once. “Wow! A lot of questions… let's start off with you first.” She pointed at a ginger girl. “What do they eat?” She asked. “Ah, well here's where the similarities to sharks come in, as they mainly live off of a carnivorous diet which means meat, either from penguins, seals, shrimps, you name it!
Eijirou drowned out all the questions that followed, he was too focused on watching the pair of mermaids Lay together on the sand of the tank. Their expressions looked rather sad and distant, and the little black-haired boy did not like that one bit. He subconsciously put his hand up, the question sitting in the forefront of his mind.
“You with the cute haircut! Ask away.” She pointed at him. His cheeks turned a deep red colour, as embarrassment overtook him. He hated being the centre of attention, but this question was really important and he had to get answers and fast.
“Why do they look sad?” He frowned, pointing behind her. She turned around and saw the pair laying together with looks of melancholy, as they picked at rocks and shells. “Ah, well… it must be because they're still getting used to their jew environment and are not quite settled in yet.” She gave a half-assed answer. Eijirou was not buying it for a second.
All he could do, however, was nod, and try to ignore the way that the two saddened mermaids were dampening his own mood. Their field trip finally came to an end after another hour. Their teacher allowed them to pop into the gift shop and look around whilst they waited for the bus. “Look, Ei! It's a shark stuffie!” Tomo pointed at a shelf housing an array of toy sharks.
He was about to walk over and check them out, yet something else caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a barrel of mermaid stuffies. He walked over to them and got onto his tippy toes to look inside. In there, he found one that had blond hair and a red tail, he couldn't explain it, but holding it felt right.
“What’s in there, Ei?” Tomo walked over, he himself, had a giant squid plush in his hold. “I think imma get this mermaid.” He smiled, taking it out of the barrel to show his friend. “Ooo! She's pretty.” He awed. The two then linked hands and walked over to their teacher. “Ms Mira… can Tomo and I use our pocket money on these?” Eijirou asked their teacher, showing what they got.
“I don't see why not, as long as you have enough.” She smiled. The children could not yet reach the counter, so she took their coin purses and got the items for them. “Thank you!” She smiled at the lady at the cash register, handing the two boys their stuffies and coin purses. “Thank you, Ms Mira.” They smiled, hugging their new purchases. After a few minutes the bus finally arrived to fetch them.
Whilst in the bus, everyone fawned over Eijirou's mermaid and Tomo's squid. They all talked amongst themselves about their favourite exhibits. After about forty minutes they arrived back at school and awaited the arrival of their parents. “Bye, Ei! See ya next week.” His friend waved and climbed into his dad's car. Eijirou smiled and waved back, trying to find his mother's.
She arrived to pick him up five minutes later, which did cause Eijirou's anxiety to spike. “Hi, baby! How was it?” The black haired woman got out of her car to help fasten her son into his booster seat. “It was good, Mama. We saw real life mermaids!” He cheered. She paused what she was doing and looked down at him.
“Did you?” She asked in disbelief. “Mhm, they're brand new and rare. I even got a mermaid stuffy, look Mama!” He shoved it in her face with a giggle. “She looks very pretty, Baby. What are you going to name her?” The boy looked down at the mermaid and pondered for a second or so. “Mmm, Suki!” He smiled. “Ah, that's a fitting name.” She then walked around and got into thr driver's seat.
“The mermaids didn't look happy being there though…” Eijirou pouted. “Oh didn't they?” His mother asked. “No.”
“Oh well, maybe they're a little bored.” She reassured him, focusing back on the road. Once they arrived home, Eijirou immediately ran up to his room and pulled out his arts and crafts supplies. He didn't understand why, but he suddenly had an interest in mermaids and the urge to draw them.
He hoped that the two that he saw earlier, despite how cool it was seeing them in public, could be released at some point, back into the ocean where they belonged. And who knows, maybe he would come across some more in the future. Only time could tell.