It was becoming apparent that I hadn't planned this trip out very well.

The boat bounced up and down on the choppy waves, like a see-saw on fast-forward. My stomach had been flipping around like a pancake with each hop. Looking at my reflection in the water, I could see a pale green forming on my cheeks. I'd probably have been emptying my breakfast into the ocean if I'd had anything to eat.

I sprawled myself out on the floor of the boat, staring up at the looming grey clouds. You were supposed to conserve energy in times like this, right? As long as I kept drifting in the same direction, I'd hit dry land eventually. Probably.

"Uugh...Rin, you're such a moron..."

It had been a week since I'd started my long awaited Tour of Self-Discovery. I'd spent months saving up the pennies for the chance to explore the world with my own two hands. I sold off everything I owned, quit my job and brought as little as I thought I could get away with. I was going to travel as far as my legs would take me - China? Europe? Even America? It didn't matter, as long as it was far away from home.

"Mr. Hoshizora, are you sure about this?"

I remembered the face of the old man who sold me the boat to begin with. It was the usual expression old men wore, furrowed brows and mighty harrumphs about how reckless kids were these days. Thinking of it now, though, there'd been a tiny hint of concern in his eyes, even as he took the money out of my hands. Maybe I should have taken that as a sign.

After about a day of sailing, two very obvious problems had come to light. The first was that the compass I'd bought for guidance was broken, sometimes switching directions entirely at random. My map wasn't much use if I couldn't tell which way I was going. I'd been trying to use the stars instead, but to an untrained eye all the constellations looked the same after a while.

The second issue was food. I'd brought enough canned meals and snacks to last a few days, but not quite enough for the whole journey. The obvious solution was to go fishing, and sure enough the old man had thrown in a rod and bait along with the boat. But eating fish had never sat right with me, and watching the poor things flop about on dry land just made me feel guilty. So my breakfast this morning had been half a chocolate bar and what I could fish out from a tin of dried rice.

"Uuu..."

My stomach grumbled in rebellion during a brief pause in the tossing and turning. A low mewl hung at the bottom of my throat. What had I been thinking? This had been a stupid idea from the start. Maybe now was the time to give up and go home.

"...Oh, wait. I don't have a home anymore, do I?" I rolled onto my stomach and buried my face in my sleeve. "Man, I'm the dumbest dummy to ever dumb."

A chill down my neck stopped me before the self-pity party could begin in earnest. The first drops of rain pattered down against the wood as the threatening grey clouds evolved into an ominous black. The distant crack of thunder pressed my heart against my ribcage. What started as a shower quickly turned into an outright downpour.

"Well, of COURSE it picks now to start raining." Cuddling myself for warmth I picked up the empty can of rice off the floor, using it to scoop water out of the boat. It wasn't quite a bucket, but it'd have to do. "At least it can't get much worse than this, right?"

Rule number 1 of sailing - NEVER say that things can't possibly get any worse. The ocean will find new and exciting ways to ruin your day.

"Whoa!"

A wave hammered into the front of the boat, sending the bow two feet into the air. The rice can fell out of my hand as I fell backwards, holding onto the sides for support. If the weather had been unpleasant before, then it was verging on homocidal now.

"How am I supposed to-puhaaah!"

Huge waves clattered over the side, splashing salty water into my face and leaving me even more soaked then I was before. The wood creaked and heaved with the flow of the tides, threatening to snap underneath me at any moment.

This was bad. Really really really bad. Sheer pride had kept me going this long, but even I knew when I was out of my depth. I stumbled across the rocking hull towards the orange box locked away at the front. Scrambling it open with trembling fingers, I pulled out the flare gun inside and pointed it to the air. I just had to hope there was someone out there who'd see this before it was too late.

As I pulled the trigger, I saw the wave rising up beside me in slow motion. It was taller than I was, a wall of water that roared as it swallowed the boat whole. I felt the ground beneath me give way, and for an instant I felt like I was flying.

Then reality kicked in.

"Hyaaaa-"

My scream was cut off when I hit the water. The impact was like a baseball bat to my skull, turning my world into a mosaic of colour and sound. Which way was up? Where was the surface? I felt lost, confused, unable to fight back as the sea slowly pulled me in. By the time I'd gotten my bearings, I knew I was far too deep to make it back.

"Hmmmbrll-!"

I clasped both hands around my mouth, watching my last bubbles trickle through my fingers. Was this how I was going to die? Alone and helpless on the bottom of the ocean? I reached upwards towards the surface, tauntingly near but painfully far.

Someone, anyone...help me...

The strength ebbed from my muscles, replaced with an all-consuming cold. My eyelids grew heavy, and it took all I had to keep them from falling. The rest of my body went limp, beginning its slow descent to the seabed.

In my last moments, I swore I could make out a shape moving towards me. A green jewel, shining in the murky darkness, growing larger with every moment. Hands gripping at my shoulders, holding me upright. Then, finally, the warmth of something pressing against my lips.

Then nothing.

As a former college student, I've had a lot of unpleasant morning-afters. I've woken up with headaches that felt like my brain was melting inside my skull. I've spent whole mornings curled up over the toilet, throwing up last night's shots in rapid succession. In short, I know what a shitty hangover feels like.

This feeling was somehow worse than all of that.

"Uuurgh..."

Everything hurt, and I mean everything. I had aches in body parts I didn't know existed. None of my muscles felt like cooperating with me. Even my eyes refused to open. At least the bed I'd ended up in was comfy enough.

"What must've I been up to last night...?"

My memories were hazy at best. I remembered the boat, the hunger, the storm-no, that didn't make any sense. How could any of that have happened? Had the whole trip been a dream?

"Well, I guess that's a good thing. That would've been a pretty lame way to die." I heaved the covers over my face. They were wonderfully silky, better than anything I could have afforded. "Man, this bed is awesome. I need to get one of these sometime."

After a few minutes, the throbbing along my nerves was starting to die down. My hearing was the first sense to return, and the silence of the room was almost shocking. There were no cars starting the morning commute, no birds cawing to celebrate the rise of the sun. All I could hear was a faint rumbling, like the tides were echoing in my ear. A beach home, maybe? How did I end up this far out of town?

"Nngh. I guess I'd better get up." I rubbed at my eyes, finally convincing them to open. "Won't be good if I sleep in too long-"

The breath choked out of my throat. "Oh my god."

Water. Lots of it. Everywhere. Seaweed coming out of the floor. Fish swimming past the window. I could even see my hair bobbing up and down in the glass. This wasn't just a beach home - it was outright underwater.

"Hmmf!"

I puffed up my cheeks, trying to hold my breath on instinct. It was a natural human reaction - breathing air good, breathing water bad. But I couldn't hold it in for long, and only a few seconds later I felt a lungful of water run down my throat.

"Huh?"

It didn't hurt. It wasn't even uncomfortable.

"I...I can breathe?"

My chest rose and fell naturally like nothing was out of the ordinary. Now my brain was finding another reason to hurt, because the scenario it had been presented made no sense whatsoever. Either something was wrong, or I'd just tapped into my latent superhero powers. Probably the former, but hopefully the latter.

"Wait, of course!" I clicked my fingers as the revelation struck me. "I'm still dreaming. That's got to be it." I knocked on the side of my head. "Nice try, subconscious, but I'm not gonna fall for that one."

Still, it was a very pretty dream. The whole room had a mystical, almost occult feel to it, with seashells and precious gems built into the walls. There were candelabras on both sides of the bed, their candles burning with a pale blue light. The stony floor had patches of seaweed poking out from it, drifting to and fro in time with the current. A distant desk was covered in various trinkets, ranging from books to photographs to cassette tapes.

I nodded to myself in approval. My imagination was stronger than I'd given it credit for. Maybe I'd try to write all of this down when I woke up.

"...got to hurry..."

"Hm?" My eyes widened as a voice drifted through the wall. I could hear the sound of movement - swimming, not walking, of course. The speaker was stammering to herself in distress.

"He'll be waking up soon. Aah, what am I going to tell him? He's going to have a million questions to ask." The door between the two rooms creaked open. "Deep breaths, Hanayo. You've spent months practicing in front of the mirror. Just use your words, and-"

I caught sight of the girl's head poking out of the doorway. Her short brunette hair seemed to move naturally with the water, and there was a definite twinkle behind her violet eyes. Her face was chubby, but in a way that seemed cute rather than unhealthy.

"Eh?" The moment her eyes fell on me, the colour drained from her face. "Eeeeh!?"

The girl darted across the room, moving so quickly I barely saw her. She took refuge behind a large dresser, half her head poking out from one side as she looked at me with tear-laden eyes.

Holy crap, she's so cute~! I almost had to clutch at my chest. Thank you, brain. You're way too good to me.

The girl slowly started to wiggle forward from her hiding spot. Her body came into view piece by piece, starting with the rest of her head. Next was her torso, just as well-rounded as her cheeks had been. Finally, of course, was her tail, perfectly smooth, with the light bouncing off its bright green scales-

Wait. My brain did a double take. Tail?

I blinked once. Twice. Three times. The girl was human down to her waist, definitely. But where her legs should have been, there was only a long fish tail.

My reaction was...undignified, let's call it.

"Eeek!"

I jumped backwards, smacking my head into the back-board of the bed. The pain that struck me was a shock for two reasons; the obvious fact that it hurt like hell, and the fact that it proved I wasn't dreaming after all. At least I wasn't the only one freaking out.

"Kyaah!" The mermaid returned to her hiding spot behind the dresser. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm really really sorry!"

For maybe a minute the pair of us were cowering in our respective corners. It was not my finest hour, and I doubt it was hers either. It wasn't until the pain had subsided that I managed to come to my senses.

"You, um..." I still held a pillow up as a shield, just in case. "You're not going to eat me, are you?"

The girl shook her head.

"Alright. That's a start." I pulled myself out of the bed, floating awkwardly a few inches off of the floor. "Don't worry, miss. I've never eaten a fish in my life, and I don't plan to start now."

The mermaid spent a few seconds looking me over, checking me for any sign of dishonesty before finally revealing herself. Billowing green cloth danced around her tail, making even her anxious fidgeting look like a complicated dance. I had seen that shade before, I realised.

"Wait. You were the one who rescued me, weren't you?"

The girl blushed, forcing out a nod. I'd seen that bright green while I was drowning, just before I'd passed out. She must have been the one who carried me here. Wherever here happened to be, anyway.

"In that case, I guess I owe you my life. Thanks a ton." I held out a hand. "I'm Rin, by the way. Rin Hoshizora."

The mermaid backed off as I extended my hand, then cautiously drifted towards it. I could see her gulp as she returned the gesture, her hand squeezing a little too hard against mine.

"Hanayo," she said, in a voice that was barely a whisper. "Hanayo Koizumi."

"Hanayo, huh? Cute name." Goes well with your cute face, I thought to myself. "So if you don't mind me asking, how exactly am I alive right now? I didn't pay much attention in biology class, but I'm pretty sure water in your lungs is a really bad thing."

Hanayo seemed puzzled by the question for a moment, but the realisation eventually washed over her. "Oh, right. Of course you'd find that odd." She pointed to the window I'd been staring at. "Take a good look, and you'll understand."

"A good look...?"

I took another glance at my reflection. I was still me, for better or for worse. But now I was paying a little more attention, I could see a set of markings drawn along the sides of my neck. The lines shone faintly, growing and shrinking in time with my breaths.

"Are those gills?" I squinted as I ran one hand across my neck. "But how-"

Grrgrrgl...

My stomach growled again before I had time to finish the question. I'd been so caught up in my curiosity that I'd forgotten about my more basic instincts.

"Actually, hold off on the explanation for a bit." I gave my tummy a little pat. "Any chance I can get some grub? It's been a while since my last proper meal."

Hanayo looked down at me, and her awkward squirming gave way to a tiny giggle. She had a really pretty smile, now that I had the chance to see it.

"Okay," she said, nodding. "I was about to finish making breakfast, actually. There should be plenty for both of us."

"Good, because I'm a big eater." I rubbed my palms together. "What's on the menu?"

"Only the most beautiful foodstuff in the seven seas." Hanayo's eyes lit up. "A great big steaming bowl of rice~"