Light In the Universe DX

Chapter 17: Audrey

As the gems attempted to deal with the magic beings a world away, an orange-haired girl finished her day at school, bouncing in anticipation as she rode the bus home.

"Are you serious? Spirit Morph is nothing like Sunset!" Connie loudly ranted in the seat next to her. "Spirit Morph is all about adventure, action, and changing yourself for the better! Sunset is just supernatural romance with subpar vampires!"

"Hey." Audrey motioned to the book in her lap, Sunset: the second dusk.

"Sorry-." Connie calmed down. "I just- from someone like Beth- you know."

"You mean the bitch who's never read a book in her life? I get it." Audrey said, leaning back in her seat. "My stepmom tried to get me onto her swim team, 'having normal friends' and all that."

"That sounds like hell." Connie remarked, "Did she need floaties?"

"Actually-." The bus came to a halt "Oh, I'll tell you over text later."

Audrey waved to Connie as she ran towards the shore, the other girl none the wiser to what her not-so-human friend got up to without her.

Audrey Perkins was very much different from other girls. For starters, she was one of the few people in school who hung out with resident bookworm Connie Maheswaran regularly. Second, she was the only person in her English class to actually enjoy Vampire romance unironically, her proudest work lay in her creative narratives.

And then there was what happened when she found herself submerged in water. She didn't just get wet. Her skin didn't just wrinkle like most people after swimming for so long.

Her father and brother were out on a big trip for his birthday, so she snuck out onto the beach. Walking past the wreckage, she took one step after another into the crystal blue ocean.

As she did, little by little, her skin turned from a pale tone to a light shimmering blue, Her skin hardened into scales, as fins seemed to grow where her ears once were, and gills took the place of her lungs.

Audrey couldn't describe it, but she felt... free.

Moving underwater was so much more freeing than moving on dry land. While she averaged 15-minute miles during school she was faster than a speed boat under the waves. The sand under her glowed brighter as her eyes adjusted to her underwater playground, her tail swishing behind her as she approached her favorite coral bed.

She played in that bed for some time, when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. She looked over but couldn't see what it was. Suddenly she felt uneasy, as she wasn't sure what was watching her, be it some nature documentary crew members, predators, or something else.

She began to swim up, until she heard something behind her.

"Princess?"

Audrey turned around. A tiny, meek creature who looked just like her, except...smaller, and green. She held her hands close, her thin tail swishing slowly in the tide.

"Your mother has summoned you, she says it's a matter of great importance."

"I-I think your mistaken?" Audrey giggled, a touch flattered.

"No your majesty, I can tell your sheer elegance from anywhere."

"M-My mother?" She asked. It sounded ridiculous. "Elegance? Are you trying to sell me something? I'm not a princess, I guarantee you..."

"Please just follow me, the queen awaits you."

Audrey floated behind the messenger hesitantly, watching for any signs of poachers or fishermen. The whole thing felt suspicious, but then again she knew nothing about her undersea half of the family. As far as she knew until now, this was just a curse that had nothing to do with her mother.