Luna worried at her lip, her fin flicking up and back down to tap at the floor over and over as she hovered over a partially completed puzzle. She rolled the piece she was currently holding between her fingers as she mused over where it might go. The puzzle was old, with some of the picture starting to peel away from the edges of the pieces, but it was serving its purpose as a temporary distraction.

She finally made a decision and tested the piece against one edge of the puzzle. It did not fit until she turned it, but the beginnings of a smile pulled at her lips at the satisfaction of having found the correct spot. This puzzle was proving to be an interesting new challenge, as she did not know what it was meant to look like. All the puzzles she had done previously had come in boxes with displays on the front of what the finished product would look like. This puzzle had been in a clear bag, with no indicating picture. Lukshia had dug it up for her out of one of the cabin cupboards several days ago, but Luna had only just brought herself to open the bag and begin this morning.

She had felt too distressed for puzzles, but now desperately wanted to escape her thoughts. She shook her head to bat away the reminders and fished another piece out of the bag to ponder over.

The cabin was silent, save for the occasional eerie creak or groan of the old wood as a midmorning breeze drifting in from the ocean pressed against it. She was alone. She knew Lewis had not gone far, merely stepped out to sit in the sun with his feet in the water at the end of the dock. Initially, she had believed he only sat there when she went out to swim so that there was someone watching over her. She had learned that was not the case; that he would go out regardless. Whether it was simply to enjoy the sun or because he was waiting for something was a mystery to Luna, but she had declined his offer to join him. The water felt wonderful on her scales – especially because the cabin could be stifling in the afternoon, and sooner or later she would probably be driven outdoors by the heat – but it also was easier for her to become trapped by brooding thoughts when she swam alone. It was the cause of her reluctance to slip into the welcoming embrace of the ocean. It had become as much a cage as it had a liberation.

She missed Katie, and it felt wrong to swim without her. Luna sighed and set the piece she was holding aside. It did not yet fit the puzzle. Fishing out another, she studied it calmly, then found its place more quickly than the last few.

Beside her lay a small black device. When Lewis had first given it to her, it looked enough like the remotes that had controlled hers and Katie’s pain collars back at Lemuria, and she had cringed away until Lewis explained to her what it really was.

He never went far or left her alone for very long, but he did not like her being unattended. Short of keeping her in his sights constantly – which Luna appreciated that he was not doing; it made her antsy – it could not be helped. The remote had a single red button on it, and if anything happened to make her feel uncomfortable or threatened, all she had to do was push it and it would alert him.

She kept it with her – though it was sometimes more of a hassle to drag herself around when she also had to hold it loosely in a fist to avoid pressing the button on accident – and glanced at it occasionally as she lay there; just to make herself feel a little more secure that it had not disappeared. She shook herself again. She wished the paranoia would leave her be for a while, but she could not help the insecurities. Katie had always helped stave them off, but she was no longer here to comfort Luna with a smile or some kind words. Luna sniffled and wiped her nose on the bridge of her hand. She missed Katie desperately.

Luna bit her lip – hard – to fight back the tears stinging in her eyes and forced her gaze back down to the puzzle. Lewis would probably be back in soon, and she would feel less alone then.

Taking a breath, she picked up another piece and connected it to another loose one. They did not quite fit into the puzzle yet, but they would in time.

She continued working silently on the puzzle. It felt like a while had passed – she had completed a good chunk of the puzzle that was now beginning to take shape – though she had no idea how long it had actually been. She was interrupted from her task when the door opened, jerking her attention to it.

On instinct, Luna pulled her tail close and sunk low to the floor as a brace; just in case. Her fears eased and she relaxed as the door opened wider and Lewis poked his head in. His shaggy dark hair was slick with sweat, but his gaze was warm and his grin bright. Luna hesitantly returned the smile and waggled her fingers at him as he stepped through the threshold of the doorway.

Lewis walked over – leaving the door open so a warm gust blew through, tossing up some of Luna’s hair and blowing some sand in onto the floor – and crouched down beside her. “How’s the puzzle going?” he inquired.

“Alright,” Luna mumbled as she gazed back over it. She quite enjoyed Lewis’ company normally, but she had been covered by a particularly heavy cloud of gloom since Katie had fallen unconscious and not woken. She had cried a lot. She tried to hide her tears by retreating to a secluded spot, but she knew that everyone else in the house knew when she did. They left her be, and she appreciated that, but it did not make the situation any easier.

She continued to stare at the puzzle she was working on. It had still not been completed enough to know exactly what was, but she knew it had water, the glistening blues and blacks rippling across many of the pieces indicated that. She had been working on several trees with the pieces she had found places for, so it was not the ocean. She had never seen a forest, but she was guessing this puzzle was set in one.

“Feel like coming outside for a bit?” Lewis prompted.

Luna shook her head and drummed her fingers anxiously against the floor. “I will stay in here,” she decided. She loved the water, but she hated swimming alone. The reminders only sickened her now.

Lewis sighed and reached out to place a hand on her shoulder. He squeezed gently and Luna resisted the urge to shrug out of the comforting gesture. It was not that she minded; she just hated feeling so helpless and that everyone else felt they needed to console her all the time. “I think you should reconsider. It’s a beautiful day, Luna. Not too hot and the water is relatively calm; you’d enjoy a swim,” he insisted. Luna shrugged her shoulders in response. “Plus, Riley is back.”

Luna’s head shot up and she met his gaze with widened eyes as an all new anxiety ripped through her. She chewed her lip, biting a little too hard and wincing as the sharp tang of blood spread over her tongue. “I-” she broke off and hung her head. She was not ready. It felt too soon.

“It’s okay, Luna,” Lewis assured her. “They’re going to love you and be overjoyed that you’re alright.”

“It feels wrong,” Luna whispered. She desperately wanted Katie here. This felt like something she should be here for, and Luna always felt braver when Katie was with her.

Lewis sighed. “I know, Kiddo. I wish she was here too, but there’s nothing we can do about that right now. Maybe something happy is in order regardless. We could all use a reason to have our spirits lifted, don’t you think?”

“I guess so,” Luna mumbled. She sat up and tucked her fin underneath her as she set down the piece of the puzzle that she had been holding. She picked up the bag and pinched the top, sliding along to seal it up again so more pieces would not fall out. She knew she was stalling. Lewis was staring at her and it was making the back of her neck prickle. “I am scared,” she admitted finally.

Lewis nodded patiently. “I know, hon. And it is scary; it’s been a long time. But you have to go out there, you know that right? They’ve come an awful long way and you’ve waited for this for so long now. Swallow your fears and you’ll see that it’ll work out.”

She knew he was right. Still, she continued to hesitate.

“Or I could send Riley in here,” he suggested next.

Luna shook her head immediately and reluctantly raised her arms towards him. She did not feel ready, but she knew her cousin would be far less gentle about prodding her out. Riley would probably swat at her for making them wait in the first place. “Okay,” she whispered.

“That a girl,” Lewis encouraged. His hands were warm as he gripped her sides carefully and hauled her up off the floor into his arms.

Her tail flopped over the crook of his elbow and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Though it was still bleeding slightly from the last time she chewed at it, she continued to worry at her bottom lip. There was no changing her mind now. She suspected Lewis would not put her down even if she tried to hesitate again.

She bobbed slightly in his grip as he carried her towards the door and stepped through. Luna squinted at the bright sunlight – having been sitting with the curtains drawn to make the house dark – and blinked a few times until her eyes adjusted. She peered out down the dock and saw Riley bobbing in the water.

The other girl was watching for them too, because when she saw them, she raised an arm and waved it. Just as quickly though, she dove beneath the water and Luna’s heart seized. She choked slightly until it seemed to remember how to beat, and then it leaped into overdrive, pounding at her chest like a caged animal desperate to escape the bony bars holding it in.

Her grip on Lewis tightened and he chuckled softly. “It’s alright,” he reminded her. His footfalls turned from a near silent crunch to an echoing clomp as he hit the wood boards that made up the long dock.

On one side, the large ship that had been missing for a few days had pulled back in, and she could see a few people scrambling around on the deck trying to get it secured into place. She paid it little mind, however.

Her heart was pounding in her chest and she pressed her cheek to Lewis’ shoulder as she slumped low in his grip.

Riley reappeared above the skin of the water with a gleaming smile on her face. The water rippled on either side of her as two more Mer surfaced. The first was a man with grayish skin and dark brown hair. He had deep set eyes and brows that dipped forward into a weary frown. On Riley’s other side, a woman with coconut shaded hair slashed short around her shoulders surfaced and shook water droplets from her eyes. Her skin was paler than the male’s, and her eyes matched her dripping locks. Rippling rows of vibrant emerald scales glistened just beneath the water across her chest.

Luna’s heart squeezed again as Lewis approached the end of the dock. The faces were not familiar to her – and the realization fractured her inside, for that was all she wanted; to remember – but the gleam of the woman’s scales did spark recognition in her mind, however small.

The woman sighed softly next to Riley, but when she spoke, her voice was in a higher lilt than Luna was used to and it took her a moment to realize that she wasn’t speaking English. It was a strange notion to Luna, who had heard nothing but for so long now. “Alright Riley, enough now. What is it that you wanted us to see…Oh,” the woman broke off and raised a hand to cover her lips. Since they had both surfaced slightly behind Riley, she swayed slightly in the water and leaned against the other Mer. “Ixion,” she breathed. Her words confirmed that he was Luna’s father, and she had to fight to keep the stinging tears welling in her eyes from falling.

Lewis had now reached the end of the dock and was carefully lowering Luna down onto the wooden planks. Her heart was hammering in her chest and she bit her lip to resist the urge to twist into Lewis and beg him to take her back inside. She wanted this desperately, but she was terrified of how they would react to her lack of memories, her trauma, and her identity.

Her mother’s name was Rebecca, she reminded herself softly. Rebecca eyed Lewis warily and then shook her head as though the risk did not matter. She pressed her hands flat against the dock and – with rather impressive strength – boosted herself up onto the high deck in a single fluid motion before Lewis had even finished setting Luna down.

The Mer’s eyes sparkled as she stared into Luna’s face. Luna shuffled her fin nervously, but she found she could not look away. She was not sure how she looked, but some of her anxieties must have shown because Rebecca’s expression softened, and she reached out to tenderly cup Luna’s cheek.

The tears Luna had been fighting back finally began to spill free and slide down her cheeks as she leaned into the soft touch of her mother’s gentle hands. This felt vaguely familiar too.

“Kera,” Rebecca whispered. She lurched forward and wrapped her arms around Luna, dragging her closer into a desperate hug. “My poor little girl, all this time. I am so sorry. I would have come for you long ago if I had known.” There was a choking crack in her voice, and a similar knot of emotion was rising to clog Luna’s throat as well.

Hesitantly, Luna raised her arms and hugged her mother back. She shook her head. “You could not have known,” she murmured back. She felt her mother stiffen as she spoke in English, and Luna cringed. She hoped this would not upset her parents too much. It was the language she was most comfortable with now. “I…I am sorry too…I barely remember you; I do not remember a lot. These,” she paused to lightly touch where her mother’s chest scales started across her collarbone. “But nothing else. Only what Riley has told me.”

Rebecca nodded, and though her gaze was watery and filled with sorrow, her smile was gentle and wide. “It is alright,” she replied. Her words were slightly shaky, but Luna’s heart swelled that her mother switched to a rough English to match her comfort zone. She was not cross about it. “I cannot expect your memory to be intact after so long. There will be plenty of time to learn and remember and reconnect. I am only glad that you are alive.”

Her arms squeezed Luna tighter until the young Mer felt her bones creak. Her mother’s hugs were warm, but much more rigid than Sophie’s or Katie’s, or even Lewis’ burly bear hugs. But Luna did not mind. She hummed in content and nuzzled closer.

“Luna?” Luna twisted in her mother’s embrace as Lewis called her softly. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but Lukshia has to secure the boat properly. It’s going to get quite noisy and is probably going to stir up the water a bit. Maybe we should take this over to the shore?” he suggested.

Before Luna could respond, she felt her mother tense further, and a low growl began to rumble in her chest. “Her name is Kera,” she snapped in a low tone with such venom that even Luna wanted to recoil. “How dare you sit there and talk as if you know her, know any of us, or have any right to consider yourself a friend when you have kept her away from her family for so long. She is not a pet for your amusement.”

Luna whimpered softly as Lewis made to reply and was cut off by a sharp hiss. Rebecca pulled her closer and shifted as though she meant to dive from the deck and drag Luna with her.

“Aunt Becca,” Riley tried to pipe up next, but Rebecca did not seem to be listening as she continued to glower at a rather intimidated looking Lewis. Her fangs were bared, lips warped into an impressive snarl.

Though her heart was pounding in her chest, Luna knew that she needed to be the one to stand up for Lewis, and to tell her mother the truth – even though it terrified her – it was not fair to continue allowing others to fight her battles for her. “No,” she protested quietly as she placed a hand on her mother’s arm. Rebecca’s growl faltered for a moment and her stormy brown eyes fixated on Luna, who shrunk away at first. After a breath she straightened up again and shook her head. “Lewis has done me no wrongs. He has helped me so much. This family has done so much for me; offered me love and protection and comfort. They have never sought to keep me away from the ocean, and they did not take me from it,” she protested gently as fresh tears welled up in her eyes. “Please do not show Lewis anger and mistrust; he has done nothing ill to deserve it. I would still be a captive in a tank with no hope of ever seeing the open water if good people had not intervened. These are good people.”

Rebecca regarded her calmly for a moment and then, after closing her eyes and taking a breath, she seemed to relax and the tension left her. “You have grown,” she murmured sadly. Her gaze refixated on Lewis. “I apologize for my aggression. This journey has not been easy, and our two peoples’ have never interacted well; the situation has frayed at our nerves.”

Lewis waved a hand and shrugged. “It’s alright. I can understand all of that and there’s no harm done. Lewis, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet you; well anticipated.”

Luna’s mother hummed in agreement. “Rebecca,” she responded in kind. “And this is Ixion, my mate. Below, my son – Nero – and his mate – Karina – have travelled with us.”

“You’re all welcome as long as you like,” Lewis responded warmly.

“Nero,” Luna repeated the name and twisted to glance at Riley, who was lounging calmly on the dock with her fins trailing in the water. “But you said…”

Riley shrugged and her grin widened. “It seems none of my cousins wish to stay dead, and instead the ghosts of my past enjoy proving me wrong. Not that I have any complaints about it.”

Before Luna could ask more, she felt her mother tug gently on her arm. “You should come and meet your family,” she insisted softly. Luna gulped and then nodded. She knew it was time. Her mother had reacted well, and she hoped the rest of her family would be just as welcoming.

Rebecca pulled her close once more and kissed the crown of her head, but her gaze was fixated on Riley.

“I told you it would be worth it,” Riley taunted, though her voice seemed equally laced with hope and concern.

“You did,” Rebecca replied. “And you were right…” she broke off and clucked her tongue. “And I made you face your mother. I am sorry, Riley. You have done me nothing but favors and I have hassled you the entire way.”

“I am just glad it all worked out. She deserves her family and nothing else was more important,” Riley responded. She nodded at Luna and winked.

Luna felt her heart swell, and her lips pulled into a beaming smile. Riley, despite all her wild quirks and prickly distance at times, always made Luna feel so loved, and she appreciated her. Riley nodded. “Go,” she urged.

Before Luna was given a chance to respond, her mother placed a hand flat on her spine and shoved her. Luna lost her balance and careened into the water with a yelp and a splash. It was far from graceful, and Luna came up sputtering and disoriented, and was immediately swept into another powerful hug. Her father was a larger, strong Mer, and though it appeared he was trying to be delicate, he was practically squishing her against him. But his embrace was warm and he rubbed a hand down her back tenderly. He said nothing as he held her, but she could feel his breath hot on her shoulder and his heartbeat drumming in his chest. She could hear it too.

Luna closed her eyes and fell limp against him, content to simply be held. Her conscious mind did not remember him at all, but something buried deep down had been craving this comfort for a long time. She vaguely remembered how much she had once loved her mother, how safe and coddled she had felt. But her father, while a mystery, made her feel secure and protected, like nothing could ever go wrong again while he was there.

She hummed deep in her throat and felt a tear slip past the corner of her eye to slide down her cheek. She decided that his embraces were her favorite in all the world.