Introductions

"Listen up, class. Today we have two new transfer students joining us. Selena Silverly and Kai Yang. Why don't you tell us a bit about yourselves?"

I nodded at the teacher and stepped forward. "My name is Selena. Yang here is my boyfriend. We practice Chinese martial arts and qigong, and we are hoping to form a Kung Fu Club here at this school for students to join, if any of you are interested. I'm honored to be part of your class!"

Yang nodded, "Yes. We hope to get along well with all of you."

The girls in the class seemed disappointed that Yang was taken. The class applauded quietly yet enthusiastically for both of us, and then the teacher spoke.

"Thank you, Selena and …?"

"Call me Yang," he said. Yeah, it would get confusing if people didn't know what to call him.

I added, "Kai is his legal first name, but he's used to being called Yang."

"Well, thank you Selena and Yang. Please take a seat in one of the empty spots and we will start class."

Fortunately, there were two empty spots right across the aisle from Rikki and Emma. Cleo was sitting at the desk in front of them with Lewis.

When Lewis saw us enter the classroom, he understood what we wanted to do. He kept quiet when Cleo asked what was wrong, though. Seems like he silently agreed to what Yang and I asked of him earlier this morning.

'Pretend like you don't know us.'

We sat down in our seats and class started. Of course, we had already finished high school in our original world, so there wasn't any reason to actually pay attention. Yang and I almost simultaneously crossed our legs in our seats and closed our eyes.

"What are they doing?"

It hadn't been but a few minutes before the class started whispering suspiciously about our behavior.

The teacher also noticed and called us out on it.

"Yang? Selena? What are you two doing? We're in class right now."

I cracked an eyelid. Yang was more of a martial arts madman than I was, so I knew he wouldn't bother to answer her question right in the middle of his qigong.

"We already know all of the course material. Yang and I just thought that we should use our time more productively and efficiently. Rest assured, if there is something during class that we haven't learned yet, we will both pay full attention to what is being taught."

After a moment of hesitation, I added something else.

"Also, if we happen to be causing any distractions during your teaching, I wouldn't mind putting up a qi barrier to minimize any disruptions to your class."

The hidden implications in that statement were clear. She doesn't bother us, we don't bother anyone else. If she does bother us, we have a way to block it out and we won't hesitate to use it.

The teacher shook her head irritably. "No, that's fine. If there's something you haven't learned yet, I trust that you will pay attention to it of your own volition."

I smiled. "Thank you."

Cleo, Rikki, and Emma's curious and slightly wary gazes could be felt on me. They tried to keep their discussion to a whisper, but while Yang is the type to completely shut out the outside world while cultivating, I'm the opposite. All my senses are hyper-enhanced when I'm cultivating. Especially after becoming a mermaid queen; now I could sense anything within a 10-mile radius of myself when cultivating.

It's because of that that Yang doesn't mind immersing himself into cultivation even around other people. He knows that I can notice and neutralize any sneak attacks before they reach us.

"There's something weird about those two," Cleo whispered.

Rikki mumbled back, "You can say that again. They just told the teacher to back off in front of the entire class."

Emma pursed her lips and whispered back, "It's not just that. They don't feel… normal."

Cleo agreed quietly, "Emma's right. They feel… powerful, somehow."

Rikki shook her head slightly. "Whatever it is, we have to be careful of them. For all we know, their weird chi thing could be what gets us exposed."

The trio exchanged worried glances and turned their attention back to the teacher.

Of course, Lewis's lips quivered slightly. Oh, he wanted to tell them so bad. But he knew better than that. They'd find out the truth later on.

Of course, unbeknownst to any of them, he was secretly excited about something else as well.

'Qi? It's a pseudo-science, but there's next to nothing known about it outside of close-knit communities of qigong practitioners. I have got to find out if Yang is still interested in taking me as a student…'

The rest of the class passed peacefully, and the rest of the day uneventfully. Yang and I were getting ready to 'greet the mermaids'.

Our telepathy wasn't just limited to us two, so I used it to contact Lewis and let him know the plan.

'Lewis. It's Selena. I'm speaking to you telepathically, to let you know the plan.'

Lewis was stunned. He quickly got used to it, though. Yang was right about his adaptability and processing skills.

'So what is the plan?'

I smiled. 'You and the girls go to the JuiceNet Café a lot, right? I work there as a cover story. I have about 20 minutes left in my current shift, so I need you to get all three of them over there before it ends. Yang will be waiting at a corner table for you all. Just sit down with him and I'll be over as soon as I finish.'

Lewis understood my meaning. It was time to make some introductions.

'Got it. We'll be there in around 15.'

I had just about finished up when, right on cue, Lewis walked into the café with Cleo, Rikki, and Emma trailing closely.

Cleo seemed a bit uncomfortable with Lewis's clinginess, which gave me the impression that the story had already progressed to episode 2.

Lewis looked around and spotted Yang. He played the 'convenient coincidence' card and said, "Hey guys, umm… isn't that the new transfer student?"

Three pairs of eyes turned in Yang's direction. Yang felt it immediately, of course. A person's gaze could be easily sensed with training and experience, and he had both.

He pretended not to notice and just played the part.

"Where's the new girl? I thought they were… together-together?" Cleo mentioned inquisitively.

Emma frowned. "We should probably just keep our distance."

Lewis's quick thinking wasn't just a flower vase. He didn't think the girls would be so cautious of the new kids, but he quickly came up with a valid way to get them over to the corner table.

"Actually, it might be better to befriend them. Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer, right? If you hang out with them, you can keep an eye on them without seeming suspicious."

Rikki sighed. "I hate to say this, but Lewis has got a point. It'd be safer for us if we knew what they were up to."

Emma mentally weighed the matter before slowly nodding. Of course, Cleo had no objections either.

The group casually made their way to the corner table where Yang was waiting for them.

"Hey, you're the new transfer student. Yang, right? I'm Cleo, and this is Lewis, Rikki, and Emma. We're in the same class as you," Cleo explained with a friendly smile. Rikki nodded and Emma waved slightly. Lewis just grinned awkwardly.

"Hello," Yang said smilingly. "Please sit. Selena will be joining us shortly."

The trio were still a bit cautious, but Lewis didn't give them a chance to reconsider. He sat down in the booth seat and gestures for the girls to sit down as well.

I had already signed off of my shift and was making my way to the corner table. I snuggled comfortably next to Yang and he put his arm around me endearingly.

Then we turned our attention to Lewis and the mermaids.

"Hi, there. Cleo, Rikki, and Emma I presume? I'm Selena, Yang's girlfriend. We're so glad you could make it today."

The trio visibly tensed up.

Cleo's thoughts were spinning. 'They knew we were coming?'

Rikki glared cautiously at us.

Emma tried to play it off as she said, "Well, we couldn't help our curiosity about the new transfer students…"

Yang and I both smiled amusedly.

"It's a little crowded in here. Why don't we change the location to somewhere quieter?" Yang proposed.

Cleo opened her mouth to reject, but Lewis was one step ahead.

"Great! Let's go."

The trio glared at him, but it was already too late to renege.

Yang and I led the way to the 'quieter location' while Lewis and the girls dragged behind a bit.

Rikki was fuming.

"Why did you do that?! What if they're some sort of undercover criminals or something?"

Emma added, "Even worse, what if they know something and are leading us into a trap? Remember Denman?"

Cleo shivered. She didn't want to remember Denman.

Lewis rebutted simply, "We can trust them."

The trio were still upset, but all they could do now was follow them. They had to find out where the two people were taking them and why.

Soon, all of us came to the cove where the trio explained their secret to Lewis at the beginning of season 1. The girls were on guard, but Lewis didn't seem too worried.

Yang and I exchanged glances and sat down on a dry rock.

"Let's get straight to the point," I started. "We know you three are mermaids."

The trio squirmed uncomfortably, but kept silent.

Yang continued where I left off. "Stop squirming so much. We are also merpeople. We brought you here to prove it to you."

I nodded. "I know we started off a little awkwardly, but I hope that we can all become good friends."

The H2-Trio were initially shocked. More merpeople? And one is a male?

Then they realized that this meant they weren't alone.

Yang and I jumped off the rock we were sitting on and landed in the water.

10 seconds later, our tails appeared.

"They were telling the truth," Cleo said.

Rikki tilted her head a bit. "Why are their tails different from ours?"

Lewis explained excitedly, "These guys are royal merpeople. Apparently they have all kinds of different powers that we never knew about."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "So… you knew about all this?"

Rikki smirked darkly and Cleo grinned mischievously.

"Ohh, I think Lewis wants another few hours on top of a waterspout," Emma quipped sarcastically.

Rikki stared him down schemingly. "He must've really enjoyed it last time. Maybe we should make it last a little longer this time…"

Lewis sweatdropped.

'Uh-oh…'

Yang and I smiled as we watched them bicker.

"So, girls," I interjected. "How would you like to visit our Mako mansion?"

Rikki gaped. "There's a mansion on Mako Island? Since when?"

Yang grinned. "We built it about a month ago. It's made entirely out of water," he explained proudly.

Emma and Cleo widened their eyes. Rikki grinned with interest. "Ok, I have got to see that," she said excitedly.

"Race you," Emma smirked.

Rikki grinned, "You're on!"