When Mera stepped into the pod the next day, her shoulders sagged and she let out a deep sigh. She had thought that the pod had been full yesterday, yet somehow, overnight, Ward had managed to fill the pod even more. There had already been enough dread of coming back to work as it was, Mera couldn't believe there was more in this room she would have to clean.

"As long as he keeps paying me for it," she grumbled to herself. Just as she started to clamber her way less than delicately through the mass of stuff toward the bathtub with her ammonia filled bag, the door squeaked open.

"Hey," Rafe said from behind her.

"Hello," she replied as she tiptoed around a dishwasher.

"Um, how are you?"

"Fine. You?"

"Good, good."

Mera glanced behind her to see Rafe still standing by the door with a bag in his hand. His lips were pressed into a fine line and he was staring at his shoes.

"What do you have there?" Mera asked once she reached the tub. Rafe lifted the bag.

"Oh, I just bought, uh, donuts," he said. "Thought you might be hungry."

"Why would I be hungry?" she laughed, hoisting the bag out of the tub. Rafe rolled and for a moment he looked like that arrogant boy she remembered the first time they met.

"Those pogues you live with barely have food to feed themselves. I doubt they have the supply to feed you too," he said. Mera scowled at him even as she lugged her bag back toward him.

"And you wonder why I punched you in the mouth when we first met," she scoffed. Rafe scowled at her as she dropped the bag onto the ground. The metal stove tops inside clattered to the ground, but she didn't flinch as she kept Rafe's gaze.

"If you have a lecture for me, save it," he snapped suddenly, crossing his arms.

"I don't lecture, Rafe," she said and broke eye contact. She leaned down to pick the bag off the ground again.

"Right, you just hit people you don't agree with."

"No, I hit entitled, arrogant assholes who think they're better than everyone else because their daddy has money," she snapped, sending him a hard glare. Rafe's mouth parted as he thought up something to say, but then he looked away from her, glaring at the ground. "You don't want a lecture? Fine, you won't get one from me. But don't expect to be making friends any time soon if you keep acting like you own the world."

"Who said I needed friends?" He asked as Mera pushed past him toward the door. Mera rolled her eyes, settling back into a scowl.

"Hmm, I don't know, maybe the fact that you keep following me around like a lost kitten," she said. She stepped outside and started toward the house, looking for a faucet of some kind.

"I don't follow you around!" he said as he followed her outside.

"Admit it. You're either madly in love with me or you just really, desperately need a friend. I'd prefer the latter."

Rafe spluttered for a bit, crossing and uncrossing his arms as he struggled to find something decent to say. Mera found a hose and set the bag down in the grass beside it.

"You wanna make yourself useful?" Mera snapped. "Find me a bucket or a tub or something I can use."

Rafe stormed away and Mera looked down at her trash bag.

"Hey, Mera!" Someone called from above. She looked up to see Sarah hanging out a window. "How's it going?"

"Your brother's a bilge rat."

"I don't know what that means, but if it's West Coast for 'asshole' then yeah, pretty much" Sarah said. "Anything I can do to help you?"

Mera shook her head and let out a sigh.

"No, I don't think so, Sarah. It's appreciated though," Mera said.

"So, uh, how's Kiara?" Sarah asked, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "And the others? Kiara and the others. You know, because you live with them you would know. At least, you live with John B and sometimes JJ so, of course."

Mera felt herself smile as she tore open the trash bag. She gagged momentarily at the smell of the ammonia, but then she looked back up at Sarah.

"They're all good."

"Good is good. Good is good." Sarah let out a sigh and Mera's smile grew.

"You and Kiara, are you-"

"No!" Sarah said quickly. "God, no. I like men. Men only. Only men. Kiara and I were...friends back in the day."

"Why aren't you friends now?"

"Hold on a sec," Sarah said before leaning back into the house. "Yeah, Dad?"

Mera waited patiently as she heard Ward and Sarah's muffled voices.

"Hey, Mera?" Sarah called down from above once again. "I've gotta go real quick, but I'll be back soon and maybe we can chat then, yeah?"

Mera smiled up and nodded her head.

"Catch ya later," the blonde said before ducking back inside. Despite how angry Mera had just been, Sarah had somehow managed to make her smile. That smile faltered when a tub was thrown at her feet.

"I'm not in love with you," Rafe said, standing behind Mera. She sighed and lowered her hands.

"I'll be your friend, Rafe, on one condition," she said, turning and standing. Rafe almost seemed to flinch at her. "Don't make jabs at my family."

Rafe cleared his throat.

"Right. No more jabs."

Mera gave her head a stiff nod.

"Also, one more thing," she said, holding up a finger.

"I thought you said only one condition."

"This isn't a condition. Just a favor."

"I bought you a donut, isn't that favor enough?"

"Listen, all I need is something to scrub these metal things down with. I'm not asking you to murder anyone or anything," Mera said, growing slightly more irritated.

"I think there's one in the kitchen," he said finally. Mera raised an eyebrow.

"You think?"

Rafe simply rolled his eyes, but there was a hint of a smile on his face as he walked toward the front of the house.

~~~

"You may not want to touch me," Mera said with a laugh, holding her hands out as Kie threw her arms around Mera's shoulders. "I'm gross."

"We're all gross," Kie laughed. Mera held up her hands, covered in grime and black muck. Kie grimaced and Mera gave her head a little nod.

"That's what I thought."

Mera started toward the house, Kie strolling along beside her.

"So, where are the boys?" Mera asked.

"They're getting snacks for movie night," Kie said, a smile on her face. "I'm so excited. We've gotta start with the Pirates movies, of course, but I think you're really gonna like Cinderella, so we're doing that one next, no matter what JJ says."

"So, no vampires in Santa Cruz?"

"No vampires, period. Not until you watch Cinderella, of course."

Mera laughed to herself, giving her head a little shake.

"I was given a movie suggestion today that we should add to the list," Mera said as she walked into the bathroom. Kie settled herself onto the toilet seat, watching Mera with a wide smile.

"Sure, what movie?"

"Pulp Fiction, I think it was called?" Kie rolled her eyes at the suggestion.

"That's John B's favorite movie," she said with a quiet huff. "Who suggested it?"

"Oh, uh, Sarah."

Kie was too immediately frazzled by the mention of Sarah's name to see the way Mera's eyes flicked back and forth at her own lie.

"Why were you talking to Sarah?" Kie asked, a scowl pinching her eyebrows. Mera shrugged, turning on the water and beginning to scrub at her hands.

"She's nice to me."

"She's a two faced bitch is what she is," Kie grumbled, pulling her knees up to her chest and scowling even harder. Mera glanced over and raised an eyebrow.

"I feel like I am missing a vital piece of information. What happened between the two of you?" Mera continued to scrub at her hands, remembering the way Sarah blushed and stuttered after asking about Kie. There was definitely something going on.

"She was my best friend." There was a deep sadness in Kie's voice that made Mera turn the water down and put more of her attention on her. "We did everything together. She was everything.... But she wasn't who I thought she was."

"What did she do?" Mera tried to remember the way her father used to talk to her when she was upset, how he would lower his voice and reach out to grab her hand to keep her from shaking, how sometimes he would pretend to be distracted with something else so she didn't feel like she was burdening him with all her troubles. Now, Mera tried to emulate that same feeling for her friend, for Kie.

Kie scoffed, but her eyes were full of tears.

"It sounds stupid," the girl grumbled. Mera was tempted to put a hand on Kie's shoulder and give her a reassuring squeeze, but her hands were still covered in filth.

"Your pain is anything but stupid."

Kie looked up at Mera, her deep brown eyes still full of tears, but there was a small smile on the girl's lips.

"It's movie night," Kie said suddenly, straightening her back and blinking away her tears. "There's no crying on movie night."

Mera watched as Kie shoved her feelings back down into the box she kept them in. It was a familiar sight. Mera had seen it in the mirror a million times before.

"Right. I just have to get this uck off of my hands and then I'll be ready."

~~~

Mera thought that movie night would have been at the Chateau, since it was where they had spent all of their time already. She was surprised when the boys pulled up in the van, the back stocked full of snacks that Mera had never seen before in her lives, but none of the boys got out.

"You sea lassies ready to go?" JJ asked from the back with a horrible pirate accent, holding the sliding door open with a smile. Mera was caught somewhere between mentioning the accent and asking where exactly they were going.

"Aren't we staying?" She asked finally while Kie climbed into the seat beside John B.

"Kie's the only one with a TV," John B said. Mera barely had time to scowl at the unusual name before Pope started to explain it.

"TV. It's short for television. It's like a flat box that displays the movie onto it," Pope said, popping a red fish-like food into his mouth. JJ offered Mera a hand to help her into the van, which she took even though she really didn't need to. When she felt her face flush, she pulled her hand from his and settled down across from him, beside Pope, who continued to prattle on about the long and exciting history of television.

"JJ, hand me the notebook," Kie said from the front seat. Mera, who had been watching Pope as he talked to her, glanced over at JJ when he didn't respond to his friend, only to find that his blue eyes were fixed on her. "JJ!"

The boy startled and seemed to snap back into reality. He pulled a notebook from one of his many pockets and handed it to Kie, not looking at Mera. Instead, he started to fiddle with the ring on his pointer finger. An unholy array of thoughts passed through Mera's mind before Pope elbowed her lightly in the arm and nodded toward John B.

"Kie says you're adding Pulp Fiction to the list?" John B said, looking in the rearview mirror with a large smile. Mera nodded her head.

"It was recommended."

"By who?"

"Um, Sarah," Mera said as she glanced at Kie, who had taken to picking aimlessly at her nails.

"Sarah Cameron suggested you watch Pulp Fiction?" Pope asked with a tone of disbelief. All Mera could do was smile and nod and pray that they wouldn't push her any further. Of course Sarah hadn't recommended Pulp Fiction. Rafe did, but there was no way that Mera was going to tell them that, especially when John B's smile was so big.

"What are these?" Mera asked, looking at all the different bags laying in front of her. JJ suddenly reentered the conversation as it turned onto food, a glimmer in his eyes.

"These are hot cheetos. They didn't have any takis, so we had to get these. Those over by Pope are Swedish Fish. They're disgusting-"

"No they aren't!" Pope protested, tossing two more of the red fish into his mouth.

"You're the only one who likes them. Anyway-" Mera reached over and put her hand in the Swedish fish bag, pulling out one of the oblong candies. Pope nodded his head enthusiastically for her to try it. "We got some Pringles and some Skittles and some chocolates for JB and some gummy worms and some raspberries for Kie."

"Really?" Kie turned around in her chair again, a huge smile on her face. "I didn't think they were in season."

"They aren't but Pope over here wanted to buy some for you anyway," JJ said with a huff. Mera still held the Swedish Fish in her hand, not sure if she was actually willing to try it.

"Thanks, Pope," Kie said, turning her smile to the boy sitting next to Mera. Instead of saying anything to Kie, Pope tried to hide his sheepish smile by turning and talking to Mera.

"Try it!" He said, motioning for the fish in her hand. "I promise it's good. JJ just has jacked up taste buds from all the weed he smokes."

JJ stuck out his tongue, but the joke was enough motivation for Mera to finally take a bite out of the candy. The outside was almost hard, but the inside was soft and gooey. Mera scowled, unsure of what to make of the sweet flavor at first.

"See?" JJ said, crossing his arms. "Disgusting."

"She hasn't said anything yet!" Pope protested.

"It's all over her face, Poe. She hates it."

"It's actually not the worst thing I've ever eaten," Mera said once she had chewed enough to swallow, which felt like forever.

"See?" Pope sneered at his blond friend in a mocking tone.

"She said not the worst, which doesn't mean it's any good."

"Well," Mera said with a smile. "When you've eaten gull legs, gruel, and barnacles, there isn't a lot that doesn't taste good."

"There, Pope, you happy?" Kie said from the front, her leg propped up on the dash. "Swedish Fish aren't as disgusting as seagull legs."

Pope scowled and threw another fish in his mouth as Mera chewed quietly on her own. Mera sat back and let them all talk to each other, passing insults and jokes that Mera didn't quite understand. But she laughed anyway because one day she would understand and one day those jokes would be funny to her too.

She wasn't sure what she expected Kie's house to be like, but the grandiose mansion was not it. For a moment, she felt her heart plummet. But when she glanced over at Kie and saw the same look of disappointment, Mera felt a warm feeling return.

"Your parents know we're coming, right Kie?" Pope asked as he looked up at the large, white house, carrying a bag of snacks in his arms.

"Of course they do," Kie said with a roll of her eyes. "Why wouldn't they?"

"Because last time you didn't tell them," JJ said. "And we got a nearly three hour lecture."

"Right. Well, I did tell them this time." Kie turned to Mera. "And they are so excited to meet you."

Kie's mom wasn't there when the five showed up, but her dad was more than happy to welcome them inside.

"Hey, Big Mike!" JJ said as they all walked inside, Kie taking the lead. Mike, Kie's dad, did not seem impressed by JJ or his toothy grin. Pope shook his hand, which made Mr. Carrera almost smile, but he ignored John B completely.

"You must be Mera," Mike said when he finally came to her. Mera forced herself to smile and she nodded. She shook his outstretched hand.

"That I am."

"And you're...John B's cousin?" Mike looked between Mera and John B for a few moments, eyebrow raised just like his daughter did.

"Why does no one believe that she's my cousin?" John B grumbled, crossing his arms. Mera simply laughed.

"Yes. He's my cousin."

"Well, I'm glad to finally meet you. You're always welcome here," he said, still smiling.

"I didn't get an always welcome invite," said JJ, to which Kie rolled her eyes.

"There's a very good reason for that, JJ."

~~~

There was only mild interrogation before Mike decided it was okay to leave them alone and lock himself away in his room. With the lights shut off, the popcorn popped, and candies in a wild array around them, all five teens wrapped themselves in blankets and settled down in front of the TV.

It took some getting used to for Mera. A lot of getting used to. At first, the lights from the screen hurt her eyes and the music was so loud. But by the time the movie actually started, she stopped cringing. Mera was settled near the edge of the couch between Kie and Pope so she could steal Swedish Fish from his bag but still reach the popcorn (which, she discovered, was heaven sent. Way better than gull feet).

She let her mind stop wondering how hard it must have been to invent the thing before, stop trying to figure out how it worked, stop lamenting over her lost centuries, and let herself just enjoy the movie placed before her.

It was part romance, part sea-faring adventure. Inaccurate as it was, Mera found herself enjoying it. She laughed with the jokes, shoved her face full of popcorn when things got tense, and exclaimed more than once about how cool Jack Sparrow was.

"Just wait till the next movies," Kie gushed. "You'll love them all even more."

There was no question as to whether they would put in the next movie. In the brief time it took Kie to slide out of her spot and put the next disk in, the boys were berating Mera with questions.

"How accurate was it?"

"Did you like it?"

"Did you notice when-"

"Did you ever meet Jack Sparrow?"

"Jack Sparrow's fake, you idiot."

"I'm pretty sure it was Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Right, right."

The second movie started and everyone went silent. Again, Mera was enthralled. There was no turning her head from the screen. If someone even opened their mouth to speak, she was shushing them instantly. She didn't want to miss a single second.

By half way through the third movie, Kie had fallen asleep on Mera's shoulder. Pope didn't last much longer before he too fell asleep, his empty bag of Swedish Fish fallen on the floor. John B stayed awake until the big battle started. Mera had no idea how he slept through all the cannon fire. She flinched almost every time one went off and every time, Kie would squeeze her hand in her sleep.

"He's not dead," Mera whispered into the darkness, the first time she had spoken since the post-second movie interrogation. She looked across the couch toward JJ, who was the only one left awake. He was shocked to see the light of the television illuminated the glimmer of a tear on her face. "He can't be."

JJ wished he was closer, just so he could reassure her that everything would be alright. Even though her worries were relieved just seconds later, he couldn't help but wish he was closer. He barely looked back at the screen the entire rest of the movie, watching the way her eyes lit up near the end with the scene at the beach, watching the way another tear slid down her cheek at the painful departure of the two lovers. He watched her smile at the final scenes with Jack and Barbossa and Gibbs, watched as her mouth fell open with shock when the credits started to roll.

"There's a little scene at the end," JJ whispered to her. She finally looked over at him and nodded, trusting that he was telling the truth. She read through all of the names, mentally thanking everyone of them for their contribution until, just like JJ said, there was a small scene at the end.

It was simple and it was short, but by the end of it, Mera had more than one tear rolling from her eyes. The movie ended completely and JJ shut the TV off, but Mera still stared at the now blank screen.

"What did you think?" He asked, giving her a few moments to process. At first, all she could do was nod her head.

"That was...." Mera let out a long sigh as she struggled to find the word that suited it best. "Epic."

"You really liked it?"

At the near giddiness in JJ's voice, Mera finally tore her eyes from the screen to look at him and nod.

"I'll probably have to watch it a million more times."

"We have to watch Lost Boys first," JJ said, slouching down farther in his chair. "And Interview With a Vampire."

Mera laughed quietly and Kie stirred beside her, groaning quietly in her sleep.

"Kie said that we have to watch Cinderella first," Mera told JJ as she looked down at the sleeping girl. JJ made a fake vomiting sound.

"That's a princess movie," he said with a disgusted look on his face.

"So?"

"Princesses are for girl's, Mera!"

"From my experience," Mera told him, crossing her arms gently. "Boys have been more infatuated with princesses than any other breed since the title was even thought up. More boys would give their right arm and leg to marry a princess than, say, a pirate."

"I'd marry a pirate," JJ said confidently. Mera felt her face grow hot and she was suddenly grateful for the darkness to cover her. "I, uh, I just mean that not every guy is looking for a princess to fall in love with. That's all."

"Right, of course."

The mood fell flat. JJ cleared his throat twice like he was going to say something else, but never did. Eventually, Mera gave up on the awkward silence.

"Goodnight, JJ," she said suddenly. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Night, Mera."

They fell silent again. Mera tried to squeeze her eyes shut and pray for sleep, but her mind was still racing at a thousand miles a minute. Not only were the movie scenes still bouncing around her head, but she was actively trying to convince herself that JJ hadn't just said he would marry a pirate...in the presence of a literal pirate.

Of course he didn't mean me, she thought to herself. I'm not really a pirate anymore, now am I?

Mera didn't realize that the movie scenes in her mindseye had shifted from what she had actually seen on the television, to something more fantastical until she was already asleep. Fiction morphed with reality until she was back on the sea once more, the taste of salt in the air as sea mist sprayed through the air.

She was on top of the Black Pearl, with two captains at the helm. At first, she thought it was Jack and Barbossa, like it was in the movies, but when they both turned around, she realized that they were strangers. She didn't recognize their faces because their features were blurred beyond comprehension. Despite not knowing what they looked like, Mera felt like she...knew them both.

Two captains of one ship. She couldn't tell who they were, but the feeling of familiarity was too real to pass up.

And then things got even weirder.

She heard her father call her name, but it wasn't the name she was used to hearing from his lips.

"Mera," he whispered to her from somewhere behind. When she turned, he wasn't there. "Mera."

From behind again. She spun, this time hoping to catch him standing there, but there was nothing but the sea mist. She scowled, confused as the two captains shouted contradictory orders. The boat tugged and it pulled, trying to obey the commands of both of her captains at once.

"Mera!" This was a different voice. The voice of a song, but strict and stern. This time, when Mera turned, she found herself standing face to face with her siren sister, Ira. Her deep brown skin glittered in the sunlight as water dripped down her nude body. Her lips were pursed, expertly covering the fangs that hid beneath. Her brown eyes sparkled, but in every way that made Mera shiver.

"You left us," Ira hissed. Mera heard her words inside her head, but her mouth did not move. "You abandoned your own family."

"No." Mera shook her head and took a step backward.

"Yes, Mera."

"Mera!" A third voice called. Mera spun around and the ship changed. No longer was she on the Black Pearl with it's two captains, but she was back on the Iron Anchor, her mother standing by the stern. Ira was gone.

"Mera!" Her mother cried out. "Look out!"

Mera spun around, ducking under the swing of a sword with milliseconds to spare. As she stumbled backward, still wearing the pajamas Kie had leant her, Mera realized what was happening.

Cannon fire echoed through the air, the smell of sea salt air replaced by gunpowder and burning wood. The mast of the Anchor lay toppled over, creating a wonderful walkway for the British ship that bobbed a few yards beside them. They were being attacked.

She fell back into the flow of fighting almost instantly. Without any protection and no weapon, Mera needed to think smart. She ducked and evaded until she could get a clean shot at a gut or the groin, waiting for the right moment to grab a weapon.

"Mera!" Her mother's voice called again, but from much closer. There was no time to look for her though. All Mera could do was fight to stay alive. It suddenly felt as if Mera was the only one left fighting the British, that they were all ganging up on her and she was nearly defenseless to stop them.

"Mera," her mother said from somewhere that she couldn't see. "None of this would have happened if you hadn't left me."

"I'm right here, Mother," Mera said, grinding her teeth as she fought to keep the sword of her opponent from running her through.

"You left us." Her mother's voice was weepy. "I lost your father and then I lost you. I am so alone."

"No!" Mera cried, shoving her opponent off of her and into another British soldier. "I'm right here."

She heard her mother scream, the same ear splitting cry Mera had heard the day her father had been run through. Turning slowly to face the other side of the boat, Mera saw the Commander of the British ship holding a sword that was deep in Amarylis Briarheart's gut. The same Commander that had killed her father.

"No!" Mera screamed. She ran across the suddenly empty deck, with no opposition in her path. She didn't hesitate to grab the Commander and pull him away from her mother. They fought, just as they had done once long, long before. And just like before, the Commander sunk his sword into Mera's side. For half a second, she felt the sting of metal tear through her flesh, and then she just felt numb. Clenching her jaw, Mera didn't even look back at her dying mother before wrapping her arms around the Commander's neck and leaning over the edge of the boat, toppling down deep, deep into the darkness below.

"Mera," a voice whispered like a lullaby. She wasn't sure if it was Ira or her mother or Kie, but the voice was quiet and calm, like a wave lapping against a quiet shore.

"Mera."

The ocean was cold and it was dark, but Mera could barely feel anything. She recognized the numbness. It faded quickly as her lungs began to burn and the salt of the water began to stab at her wound.

And Mera waited. She waited for Ira to come like she did before. She waited for the offer that she would accept so she wouldn't have to die. But Ira never came.

"You took immortality from me once," Ira's voice said, though she was nowhere to be seen. "And you gave it up for some boy!"

"He didn't deserve to die," Mera replied.

"Maybe not." There was a pause. "Then again, maybe you did."

In one swift motion, Mera felt something tug harshly against her neck, dragging her down, down, down, away from the light of the sun and into the depths of the sea. Mera screamed, or she tried to, at least. One arm around her neck became a dozen hands across her entire body, pulling at her flesh, tearing out her hair, yanking her down to the sea floor.

"You have blood on your hands," an unfamiliar voice boomed throughout the ocean. "It's time for you to pay for it, Mera."

Her screams never stopped as the sirens she once called her brothers and sisters tore into her skin as she had done so many times, shrieking her new name as they did so as if it was an insult on their lips.

"Mera! Mera!" They cried.

"Mera!" The booming voice echoed.

"Mera!" Ira hissed in her ear.

"Mera!" Her mother shrieked for her as she fell over the side of the boat.

"Mera!" Her dad breathed as he died.

"Mera!" the two mysterious captains yelled, both vying for her attention.

"Mera!"

With a gasp, she shot upward, her eyes snapping open.

"Mera, are you okay?" Mike Carrera knelt in front of her, holding her wrists in his strong grip. Beside him sat Kie, eyes full of worry and fear. She looked around. To Pope, who was sitting next to her still, a hand on her shoulder. To John B, who was standing behind Mike and Kie with a fist pressed to his lips. To JJ, who sat on his knees beside her, fear etched into every feature.

"What...?" She gasped for breath, noticing how hoarse her voice was. "What happened?"

"You were screaming," Kie told her quietly. "And shaking."

"It must have been a nightmare," Mike said, dropping his hands from her wrist back to his side. Once his grip was gone from her, Mera realized how badly she was shaking. Sweat beaded down her neck and spine, her muscles refused to relax as she tried not to look at the worried faces that surrounded her.

"Yeah," Mera murmured. "A nightmare."

"Are you okay?" Pope asked, his hand not leaving her shoulder despite how damp it was. Mera nodded her head slowly, not really trusting herself to speak.

"I'll get you some water," John B said. Mera didn't even have the strength to thank him.

"Why don't you sleep in my bed?" Kie asked, leaning forward and putting a hand on Mera's knee. She just shook her head.

"I would rather stay out here," she said. "If that's okay with you guys."

She glanced at Pope and JJ, almost worried they would kick her out for waking them up.

"Of course that's okay," Pope said and gave her his best reassuring smile. John B returned with a cup of water that Mera took with trembling hands.

"K, can I talk to you?" Mike asked, pushing himself to his feet. Kie nodded, following after him once she had given Mera's hand a tight squeeze.

"Here," John B said, "We can sleep on the floor. You and Kie take the couch. It will be more comfortable that way."

Mera couldn't find the strength to protest. Pope and JJ almost silently moved off of the couch, dragging their blankets and pillows with them onto the floor. She flattened herself just as quietly, straining to her ears to hear what Mike and Kie were talking about. Being a siren had left her with three unchanged physical characteristics; the unnaturally sea green eyes, an unbeating heart, and ears that were very tuned in for hushed conversations. This was one of the rare moments that Mera was grateful for it.

"...anything happen at home?" Mike asked Kie.

"Not...not that I know of. She's had a tough life, though," Kie replied. Mera felt the all too familiar weight of embarrassment press down against her. She wanted nothing more than to sink into the holes of this far too comfortable couch and stay there forever.

"I might not know much, but I know those kinds of nightmares aren't good for a kid," Mike said. Mera could imagine him with his hands on his hips, a concerned dad look on his face. In the brief moments Mera had met him, he almost reminded her of her own father. It made her sad.

"She'll be fine, Dad," Kie said. The confidence in her voice gave Mera a little bit of hope.

"You don't need to fix her, K." These words were spoken even quieter than the other ones. The silence was deafening. "I know you want to fix that boy and you can't, but that doesn't mean you should take on another charity case."

"That's not what this is, Dad!" Kie's anger was evident even through her hushed tone. "JJ and Mera don't need to be fixed. They're not broken. They're people who are hurt and they just need something stable and safe."

"And that has to be you?"

"Not necessarily."

"But it is." Kie was silent. "Look, baby, I know why you want to help them, but you have to take care of yourself too. They have to take care of you too."

"They do! I-"

Mera couldn't stand to listen to any more. She rolled off the couch and tiptoed toward the sliding glass door that led to an outdoor patio. She didn't even care to look and see if the boys were asleep yet.

The fresh air felt good against her hot face and skin. Out in the open, she felt like she could breathe again. Lifting her head and she breathed deeply through her nose, Mera looked out toward the horizon, gazing at the glittering ocean set before her. The moon shone bright in the sky, reflecting off of the surface of the water. The stars twinkled above and shimmered below. If Mera could look past the trees and the buildings and the streetlamps, she could almost convince herself that she was back on the sea, with the wind in her hair, and the smell of the salt covering the musk of the men.

But her moment of bliss was interrupted by the ever present ocean call. Her brothers and sisters sang to her from under the wave, luring her back to the water so she could pay the price for her sins. She had gotten a taste of what that might look like tonight in her dream and the thought scared her more than anything. The lullaby made her knees weak and she felt her breath go ragged again. It was too hot to go back inside, but she couldn't stand being out here much longer.

Luckily, her break came when the sliding glass door opened again.

"Hey."

It was JJ.

Mera brushed away a stray tear or two that managed to squeeze it's way out of her eyes before half turning her head toward him.

"Hey."

He walked forward, joining her at the railing. He leaned up against it just like she did, looking out over the water. For a moment he was silent and she wasn't sure he was going to say anything else. His presence was enough to drown out the siren call a little, but she knew that if he spoke, she wouldn't be able to hear it at all. She just wanted to be rid of it.

"What were you dreaming about?" He asked finally.

"Nothing pleasant," she told him with a sigh.

"Mmm." He looked down at his hands. "We triggered something, didn't we? Watching those movies?"

Mera shrugged her shoulders. It was possible. Probable, actually. But she had enjoyed herself. It was fun, until she fell asleep.

"We'll take a break from pirates and the undead for our next movie night," JJ told her. "We'll watch Cinderella."

Mera felt herself smile.

"That sounds good to me."

When she looked over at JJ and saw the deep blue of the sea in his eyes, she felt the ocean call once again. But this was different. This wasn't luring her to her death, but pulling her closer to something else, to him. And it wasn't just a quiet song in the back of her mind. It was a roaring choir, a thousand times louder and a thousand times stronger.

And a thousand times harder to resist.