Reunion

Mariana Pov

I can't believe that Mary is standing on the boat. After Neptune told me that she was missing when my parents and other sisters were imprisoned, I thought that I had lost her and will never see her again. The amount of relief and joy I am feeling right now is unbelievable. Even the ocean is in a disarray, the boat is swaying left and right the whole time. When I heard her yell my name my heart lept into my throat.

Ryan and the pirate came rushing out of the cabin and when I told them she was my sister their faces were just as shocked as mine. Ryan is also not hiding the fact that he is out right checking her out. His face then goes a shade redder and I look at him confused. He is hiding his face like a scolded child. "What's with you?" I ask him and he goes another shade darker.

I hear Logan snicker in the background and turn to him with a questioning gaze. "His thoughts are just getting the best of him." He says and I look back at Ryan who is mouthing to Logan to shut up. Just as I was going to ask what he meant the boat comes to a stop and we all notice that we have docked. "So where are going to go?" Ryan asks and it has me thinking about Maria and Papa but before I can suggest it Mary speaks up. "I know a place." I look at her with my brows furrowed. "What? You think after six years I wouldn't have made myself acquainted with someone who could give me a place to stay?" She says matter of factly. Here I was thinking she's been doing this for months and not years. "Who are you even? 'Cause it looks like your little sister doesn't even know you." Ryan say it like he knows her, clearly flirting. He's leaning on her with his hand on her shoulder.

Mary dips her head, looking at him through her lashes. She lifts her hand and picks Ryan's thumb up with her fingers with no effort at all and drops his hand almost making him fall when he loses his balance. "Look, I'm a twenty two year old mermaid with much bigger problems than dealing with an eighteen year old pretty boy trying and failing to seduce a girl. Now, are we going or not?"

Wow Mary, way to go. You had to put his heart in a blender with a hand grenade and put it on full speed. I think this is the meanest she has ever put a guy down. Logan just stands there not saying anything while Jack is desperately trying not to laugh. Who is he even? The pirate known as Jack is a bystander who knows way too much.

I clasp my hands together loudly and clear my throat, trying to divert the attention back to me. "Okay! Mary lead the way." It comes out a bit loud and the atmosphere is slightly awkward. Mary is the first to get off the boat. When we are all standing on the docks Mary yells, "Bye Jack!" Logan, Ryan and I stop in our tracks, we look at her like...'how the hell do you know him?'. "Are we going today or..." she doesn't finish the sentence but it is clue enough for us to know we should continue.

While we are walking on the road I notice that Mary is taking us to the old neighbourhood, where Maria and Papa lives. Logan nudges me to keep walking, I didn't even realise that I stopped. Ryan walks up to me and takes a place to my right. "Has your sister always been like this or does she just choose to be rude in the moment? And how did she know how old I am?" I gaze up at him, seeing the rejected look in his eyes.

"I don't know what's gotten into her. Maybe it's the whole deal with William and how he imprisoned our family. And as for how she knew your age, she has a mental ability to gain knowledge of someone by looking at their eyes. They are the windows to one's soul, y'know." I tell him and he looks at me with a thoughtful look. I can see that he is lost in his own mind again and so am I because Logan's question snaps me back to reality. "Who's William?" It catches me off guard. I was hoping we could have talked about everything a bit later but...that's not going to happen.

Mary has noticed that we are at a slower pace so she turns around and stops entirely. They all look at me expectantly, waiting for me to answer Logan's question. I'm scared to answer, because I have no idea how this would affect him. "My betrothed." I say simply and walk away. I'm probably a bad person, I tell a guy he's my mate but fail to mention that I have a betrothed...this is so messy. And guess what I do after dropping a bomb on the guy, I walk away!

I'm so lost in my self deprecating mind I don't notice Mary catching up to me and looks at me with expectant eyes. "What?" She rolls her eyes at me and makes an exasperated sigh, "So, who is he?" I look away, pretending that the steet is more interesting until she hits me on the back of my head. "Fine! He's my mate...". Her eyes light up and her mouth falls open like someone out of a cartoon, and yes, I have had the privilege of learning what a cartoon is. "That's like...jaw dropping news, sis. Why do you look so unhappy?"

"We kinda go in circles with getting to know each other." I don't know how to explain what is going on between us, not like much is happening anyway. When I look up again we are at the crossroads between the posh neighbourhood on the right and the working class neighbourhood on the left. Ryan and Logan has caught up to me and Mary by now and we all just look at Mary, waiting for her to continue leading the way.

She makes an unexpected turn which has my gut feeling a bit nervous. I also notice that my skin is turning an angry red again. Like the first time I came to the surface, I still haven't adjusted but it's not like I had much time either. The heat is starting to get to me and my nervousness makes me feel nauseous. Mary continues to walk in the direction I kind of anticipated. I guess we're going left.

I let out a defeated sigh. At least one good thing came out of all this, my sister found me and I know that she is okay. We have a lot to talk about, everything that had happened the last week to the both of us. Her story may just be a little more dramatic than mine though.

We walk for about fifteen more minutes before I facepalm right into Ryan's muscled back. Again, I didn't know that I had fallen behind or why they have stopped. "Mary, back so soon?" My head snaps up at the voice. I peek out from behind Ryan and my eyes nearly fall out of my head. "Maria!?" I yell my surprise, scaring Ryan in the process who didn't know I was behind him. "Anna?" Papa asks from behind Maria. His hands are covered in grease and his blue overalls is coated in oil spots. He was probably busy fixing an engin while Maria worked her way in the kitchen. By the position of the sun, she was possibly busy making lunch before we showed up.

Wait a minute! "You know my sister?" How much secrecy lies upon this island? I meet complete strangers who happen to know my ancestor and now I discover that my sister is also acquainted with them. There are a whole lot of things that needs to be explained. I have to talk to Logan and inform my sister of what had transpired in her absence, Mary has to tell me what happened with our family and how the hell she knows Maria and Papa and they have to explain how they know both of my family members, starting with Mary.

Oh, and then there is the fact that I have to clarify whether Ryan is the Keeper of History or not. Yeah...I have a lot on my plate and that is only with the people around me. "Looks like we all have a lot to talk about." I look at Mary with squinted eyes and my gaze is telling her 'no shit sherlock' while also being suspicious of her. This sister of mine has plenty of secrets, I see that now.

"Don't look at me like that, you manta." That has me snorting, if anyone here is the manta when they pull their face like that it's- "Mary?" We all turn and see Carlo standing on the sidewalk with his helmet in his hands. "Oh shit." Mary whispers and turns around real quick, she looks like someone who has been caught stealing. Okay! It's official. Mary is the most secretive person I have ever met. First with the pirate named Jack, then Maria and Papa and now Carlo. WTF?!

I look at the faces around me and Maria looks...uhm unimpressed, Papa is just eyeing everyone like me, Ryan is confused and Logan...he looks like he made a huge discovery. "Maybe we should go inside and eat before anything else happens." Ryan suggests. Well this sure is one big surprise reunion. Everyone here knows one another in some weird way. "I'm sensing tension." Logan say matter of factly and I have to agree with him. "Am I interrupting...something?" That has me snorting again. Nothing happened, yet. "I agree with Ryan. Lets go inside and have a good meal and a nice long chat afterwards shall we?" I gesture with my hands to the door of the house.

No one makes a move to go inside which has me sighing in frustration. I am the first to make a move into the house with only one thought in my overwhelmed head, 'this is going to be a long ass day'. We are all finally seated in the kitchen after it took the rest of them several minutes to get over the awkward moment outside. Maria has finished dishing up the food but no one is eating. Patsy comes flying into the kitchen and lands right on my head like the first time. "I swear, if you do your business on my head again, I am turning you into a piñata."

My comment earns me a round of laughter that lightens the mood and the atmosphere in the house is lighter. I feel like I can breath again. With all the secrecy and uncertainty whirling in my head...it's a miracle I haven't fainted yet. I realise that the nauseous feeling is gone and that all I needed was some shade and food. I am never starving myself again. While we all eat I look at the people sitting at the table. I can get used to this. My family rarely share a meal together and I want to change that.

I smile to myself. This is how I want things to be. No evil, no fighting, no secrets. Peace. The room is gradually filled with a comfortable silence, besides the sounds of utensils on plates. Maria has outdone herself again. I love this human's cooking. I'm almost done with my food and I feel a little tired now. I let out a big yawn when I finally finished my food. I think I'll take a nap before we get to business, because lord knows I'm going to need the rest. I help clear the table and wash the dishes with Maria, all in silence. Afterwards, I excuse myself and head to my room for a food-induced coma.