Mermaid

Chapter 9

The next day Erika woke up feeling better than ever. Ever since she had gotten over that strange fever she had she felt like she could do anything. Even take over the world.

That's just how good she felt, it was strange though, in her feverish state she could have sworn she felt her mother's presents while she slept, but she knew very well that it was impossible for that to actually happen, even if Erika wished for it deeply in her heart, to see her mother again. Even though it never would.

Getting out of bed Erika began to get changed only to stop half way when her eyes locked onto her desk drawer. The same drawer where she placed those eye drops she never used and, ugh, those scales also. That drawer was starting to become her chest of secretes, but then didn't everyone have one somewhere in their house?

She decided to ignore it for now, not wanting to think about it, but then she stopped, realizing that's what she's been doing for the past few days. If something scared or frightened her she'd force it to the farthest part of her mind.

Just like what happened with her father and mother.

Erika knew for a while that she had suppressed it, suppressed whatever it was to retain some part of her sanity that day. But now it felt like that was starting to slip, with these dreams and her body. She knew the changes of a girl's body were normal as she got older but this, this was just insane.

She looked to the small little pouch that rested on the top of her desk and recalled Tim's words from before.

"One more thing, the thing I gave you has to be taken on the next full moon."

The full moon, why was it so important to take whatever this was on a certain night? She recalled her mother once telling her that she was born on the night of a full moon, so having a full moon right on the eve of her birthday was a luck of the draw right?

Maybe I should just tell them what's been happening to me... she thought to herself as she walked down the stairs to the kitchen as the sound of whispering she walked over to the kitchen and saw her grandfather. "Morning,"

He smiled at her. "Good morning Erika, you look like you've slept well, just give me a few more minutes and these pancakes will be done." Erika frowned slightly, her grandfather at the stove was a rarity in itself, and it made her wonder just what was going on.

"Where's grandma?" she asked as she looked around, and her grandpa visually stilled before continuing with the food. "I could have sworn I heard her, did she step out?"

"Yes, but only for a little bit, tell me though, why didn't you sleep in? It's summer after all; I don't think anyone would have complained if you did that."

"I didn't feel like I needed too." She said honestly. "Ever since that fever passed I felt a lot better, great even. It's a little strange for me; I haven't felt like this in a long time."

"What do you mean?"

"Ah... no nothing, forget about it, I'm better now so that's really all that matters I suppose." Both fell quite as her grandfather went back to cooking Erika went into her thoughts, she wanted to figure out what was going on with herself, though she was kind of iffy about telling others what was going on with her.

Her memories of when her father died and with what happened to her mother not long after words, she always felt like she was being pooled into a deep dark place that scared her.

I don't want to be in that place again. I don't want to feel like a walking corps... Mom...

"Erika... you love me don't you?" her mother asked, the memory grainy like an old television, she could never remember what happened in this for some reason. "If you do then you'll let me... ............ ...will you?"