Different Worlds

Shelly sighed and flipped her tail wistfully, staring at the sky while she languished in the pool. She had it bad. There was no denying it. Why did it have to be him though, of all people? It just wasn't fair. Not fair at all. Her golden yellow hair fanned out all around her in the water like a net, catching the sun's rays and reflecting them in her seafoam green irises. It had to be his eyes. That's what she'd been drawn to right off the bat: those deep, smoldering purple orbs with orange flecks, like embers floating up through a wall of smoke. Just thinking about them made her scales simmer in the water.

With a groan, she let her head slip under the saltwater surface and huffed out a frustrated breath through her gills. The worst part of all wasn't his species being so vastly different from hers. It was the fact that he most likely didn't even know she existed. Sea People and Sky People had vastly different courseloads that rarely overlapped. Particularly Sky People with different elemental attributes. Water and Fire didn't mix after all, no better than Earth and Sky. She had a centaur friend once who tried dating a venti, which ended about as good as expected. It was just as well: Clyde deserved better than a flaky airhead like him anyway.

As if summoned by her thoughts, she heard the familiar clip-clop of his hooves on the concrete pavers surrounding the pool. She wasn't in the mood to talk though, and kept pouting underwater in the hopes that he'd go away on his own.

"Shell, I know you're in there." His voice carried through the water, the sound muffled but no less understandable. "C'mon, talk to me. I'm worried about you."

Shelly blew out another plume of bubbles through her gills, then surfaced slowly. Clyde's ebony legs and hooves were right next to the pool's edge, which she followed all the way up with her eyes to his hoodie-clad human torso and his burnt umber face beyond it. "Not in the mood," she said, her words mingling with bubbles as half her face was still underwater.

Clyde snorted irritatedly and stamped his left front hoof. "Girl, if you don't get out of that pool and tell me what's going on with you right now, I swear I'll jump in there and drag you out myself!"

His nostrils were flaring. There was no arguing with him if he was that annoyed. She spat out a jet of water at the center of his human chest defiantly anyway, but glided over to the side of the pool as she was told and hoisted herself out. Her bright pink scales shone in the powerful sunlight beating down overhead, casting tiny rainbows in all directions. As soon as she was out of the pool - keeping the end of her tail submerged to keep it from drying out - her head listed over until it was resting on Clyde's powerful foreleg. "It's Ash," she muttered. "What else?"

Clyde softened, then rolled his eyes as he bent his hind legs under to sit on the warm concrete beside her. "Boo, we've talked about this: it just wouldn't work. He's Sky People, you're Sea People. Besides that, he's a literal phoenix! You know what happens when fire and water mix, right?"

Shelly swooned and sighed. "Yeah: it makes steam. Also, technically I'm only half Sea People. My mom's a freshwater fish, remember?"

"That doesn't-!" Clyde huffed sharply then took a deep breath in, clearly trying to keep his chill. "Shell, you can't be with him no matter how bad you want to. It might be fun at first, but inevitably..." he looked at a small scar on his flank, and his jaw tightened. "...somebody's gonna get hurt. There are rules about this stuff for a reason. Trust me."

Shelly followed his gaze, biting her lip at the small bare patch in his ebony fur. Clyde never told her exactly how he got the jagged, vaguely circular wound, except by saying it was a freezer burn. All she knew was that one day he didn't have it, and the next he did... which was the same day Clyde informed her he'd officially broken things off with Zephyr. She gave the scar a gentle pat, which made Clyde's withers twitch, but before she could say anything a honk got her attention.

She whipped her head around to the pool entrance, then groaned at the handful of girls waving at her from the gaudy red convertible beyond it. "Oh great: The Gorgons here. Do me a favor and cave my skull in for me, will you?"

An angry snort left Clyde as he passed her the towel draped across his back. "Just ignore them. Here: hurry and dry off so we can bounce."

Shelly snatched the towel from him and started rubbing it on her scales, moving quickly but also gently to prevent shedding them. Unfortunately, her tail had yet to separate into legs by the time the leaders of the group sashayed in perfect synch up to them.

They were identical triplets, and by far the meanest, cruelest, and most heartless bitches in the history of Mythos High. All three had on matching jean shorts and bikini tops, each in a color that matched their scaly skin and the writhing mass of venomous snakes that made up their hair. Each wore a smile more twisted and sickly sweet than the last, and a pair of lead-lined sunglasses to hide their cursed gaze. As usual, the two younger sisters in yellow and green stood back and let their older sister in baby blue do the talking. "Hi, Shelly," she said in her hissing sing-song voice. "What a pleasant suprise. I thought you saltwater freaks kept to the bay during daylight hours?"

Shelly glowered up at the prissy, serpent-haired prima donna. "Hi, Edie, it's nice to see you too. Don't worry, it's all yours. I'm on my way out."

"Aww, leaving so soon?" Edie wore an exaggerated frown. "Pity: and here I was about to ask who you were going with to the party Saturday night. You are going, aren't you?"

Shelly stopped trying to rub her scales off with the towel, doing her best not to sound as intrigued as she was. "Party? Which one is that?"

"Uh, only the biggest social event of the year!" Edie's youngest sister spat, her snakes hissing madly and struggling to get free of the oversized banana yellow scrunchie they were bound in.

"Yeah, the one at Russ's place," Greenie chimed in with a fanged grin. "It's gonna be lit! Anyone who's anyone will be there!"

"Aly, Thea," Edie chided. "Be nice. I'm sure she's playing stupid and knows exactly what we're talking about." She leaned in close to Shelly with a grin. "So: who are you going with? Assuming you are going?"

Shelly puffed up her chest and dried herself off harder, moving from her tail to her arms and chest. "Of... o-of course I am! Yeah! Clyde's taking me, as a friend. Aren't you, Clyde?!"

"Hey, whoa, time out!" Clyde held his hands up in a 'T' shape, then yanked Shelly a few feet away from the triplets. "Have you lost your mind?!" He muttered, his voice going up an octave with every word. "Russell Oxford throws some of the wildest parties this side of the River Styx! You're not going, and neither am I!"

Shelly frowned, trying to balance on her half-formed legs. "Yes, you are! It'll be social suicide not to go! Besides... Ash might be there." An instant later, her legs fully solidified and snapped into place. Shelly winced in discomfort - growing legs was always unpleasant - but couldn't voice her malaise. Whoever invented the rule that mermaids lost their voices when they grew legs was an idiot. Shelly looked up at Clyde with a pout, begging desperately with her eyes.

Clyde never could resist that look. "Fine," he groaned. "We'll go... but we're splitting before ten!" Shelly jumped up and down on the balls of her feet and clapped, then threw her arms around his trunk with a grin. "Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "I know, I'm a big fluffy pushover. You better not make me regret this, Shell. I'm serious!"

"Glad to hear it," Edie called over. Damn her freakish hearing. "Make sure you both wear something appropriate. We wouldn't want you embarrasing yourselves... like now." Her head tilted downward with a snicker, reminding Shelly that her lower half was completely bare.

Shelly turned bright red and tugged the hem of her oversized t-shirt down, mouthing every nasty word she could think of at Edie while Clyde hurriedly tied the towel around her waist before anything important could be seen. Edie put a hand to her ear with an innocent smile. "What'd you say? I didn't quite catch that. Could you repeat it?"

Shelly charged toward the three guffawing gorgons but didn't make it far before Clyde grabbed her around the waist and tossed her onto his back. "Whoa, Girl!" he warned. "Chill! They're not worth it. C'mon, I'll get you a fish taco... but first, we should find you some pants."

***

Three nights later, Shelly was fidgeting nervously with the hem of her dress at the gates of the Oxford estate. Clyde was running late. He was supposed to meet her there a half hour ago. She looked up at the massive white-pillared house on the hilltop behind her, where loud music was already pouring from the windows. It wasn't that she was scared to go in by herself. That wasn't it at all. She was still relatively new to Mythos High though, and didn't have much in the way of friends. Going into that kind of environment without a wingman, especially considering she was temporarily mute, was not a smart idea. Besides, she couldn't bear the idea of running into Ash without Clyde to back her up. The mere thought made her knees quiver and her throat run dry.

Nervously, she popped open the water bottle hanging from her wrist and took a few big gulps. The cool, slightly salty water calmed her greatly, but she frowned when she gave the metal canister a gentle slosh. It was already half empty and she hadn't even gotten into the party. She'd have to be more careful about how much she drank. It wasn't a good idea for her to suddenly run dry in front of everyone. When she was fumbling with the bottle's stopper, a loud, low roar echoed from up the street. The noise was so unexpected that it made her jump and turn around, just in time to see an electric purple motorcycle with flames painted on it park in front of the gate.

The boy astride it cut the engine and kicked out the stand, then popped off his helmet with a deep exhale. A crest of bright orange, red, and yellow feathers covered his head, one of which bent and hung in his face rakishly no matter how he tried to comb it back with the others. His features were sharp and deeply tanned, but it was those eyes that turned Shelly into goo. Those laughing, deep purple orbs fixed on her in a heartbeat, and he flashed his perfect smile at her. "Hey," he greeted. "You're cute. You go to Mythos High?"

Shelly nodded, tugging on the hem of her flowy aqua blue mini-dress shyly.

"Cool," he said, getting off his bike and offering her his taloned hand. "I'm Ash Birdsong. Nice to meet you. What's your name?"

Shelly opened her mouth to speak, horrified when she remembered she couldn't. Still, she tried to stay calm, hoping he'd think she was being coy and mysterious, and took his hand with a nervous smile. Ash's hand was a lot hotter than she bargained for, though. As soon as his palm touched hers, her skin sizzled audibly and she pulled it away with a silent yelp.

"Sorry," Ash winced. "I didn't mean to do that. Are you okay?" He shook out his own wrist with a frown while Shelly nodded. "Damn: that kinda hurt me, too. You must be a different elemental type, right? It's no wonder we haven't met before."

Shelly nodded again, holding her hand under her arm to try and hide how much Ash's touch had really hurt. When she couldn't stand it anymore, she turned her back and poured water on her palm until the scales on it rehydrated. Afterwards, she flexed her hand with a noiseless sigh. It still twinged a little, but the pain was manageable now. Didn't even look like it would scar. When she turned back to Ash again, she startled to find he was right behind her.

"I'm supposed to be metting friends here," he said, giving her a crooked grin that made her stomach flutter. "...but I could walk you up if you like. I mean, it's the least I can do after burning you like that. Whaddaya say?" He offered his arm, which Shelly was hesitant to take. Upon curling her fingers around his powerful bicep, she was relieved to find out the thick leather sleeve surrounding it sheilded her skin from the searing heat of his. All she felt was a pleasant warmth, that she thought for sure she could get used to.

They walked up to the house together, chatting the entire way. Well, Ash did all of the talking, but Shelly tried her best to communicate nonverbally and to seem interested, hanging on his every word. She must've been overdoing it though, because he laughed when they reached the front door. "You're not much of a talker," he observed. "That's okay, though; I don't mind. Y'know, I think I like you. I just wish you'd tell me your name."

Before Shelly could figure out how to pantomime or write out her name, the front door burst open. A boy head and shoulders taller than Ash was standing in the doorway, his hulking frame squeezed into a letterman jacket, jeans, and a t-shirt that was bursting at the seams. His furry snout split in a wide grin and he embraced Ash with a whoop, making the assortment of glow necklaces looped over his enormous horns jangle. "Ash! Dude, you made it! Come on in, Bro!" When his large, brown eyes locked on Shelly, his glistening black nose twitched curiously. "Yo... who's the chick? She's hot!"

Ash just shrugged and grinned. "Dude, I wish I knew. She, uh, doesn't say much. She's cool though. Aren't you?"

Shelly Tidewater? Cool? She never would have imagined anything of the sort. She nodded anyway, trying her best to look as cool as they seemed to think she was, which earned a bellowing laugh from the half-bull half-boy. "Far out," he patted her on the shoulder a little too roughly to usher her inside. "Welcome to Casa de Oxford: home of yours truly! There's only one rule here, and that is to rock the house!"

A deafening cheer echoed throughout the packed living room at Russ's declaration, and the music cranked even louder. Shelly had to cover her ears with a wince on instinct. Being a creature accustomed to life underwater, she was much more sensitive to sound than she cared to admit. Ash seemed to pick up on her discomfort, but instead of teasing her about it like she thought he led her through the house to the back patio where the music wasn't as intense. "You must not like parties much," he guessed. "That's okay. I'm not a big party guy either. I only come to these because the Oxfords ask me to. If you know Russ, he's prone to going a little overboard with these things."

An earth-shattering crash from inside and a deep bovine bellow earned a full body cringe from Ash. "Speaking of which... I think that's my cue. Back in a sec, okay?"

Shelly nodded, and watched him go back inside. She'd only just heard him say something that sounded like "put that mattress back" when someone tapped her on the shoulder. To her dismay, it was Edie Gorgon.

"Hi, Shelly," she said, her tone much less pleasant than it usually was. "Could you be the biggest sweetheart in the world and tell me what the actual hell you think you're doing walking in here with my boyfriend?!"

Shelly froze solid. Of course, Ash had a girlfriend. It make no sense for him not to... but why did it have to be her? He deserved so much better. Even if Shelly could speak, she was too nervous and frankly crushed to even think of a response, especially when Aly and Thea appeared on either side of their sister. They pushed in on Shelly slowly, backing her further and further away from the door until she was standing at the edge of the Oxford's olympic-sized swimming pool.

Edie frowned, her eyes glowing behind her lead-lined shades. "What's wrong? Cat got your tongue? Here: let me fix that." An instant later her hands shot out. Shelly flinched, thinking she was going to be shoved into the water, but instead the gorgon grabbed the front of her dress. The other two triplets followed suit, and the horrible sound of tearing fabric echoed around the pool. The next moment, Shelly tumbled backward into the pool in just her underwear.

She made a teriffic splash as she fell in, which seemed to delight all the other partygoers. The second her skin hit the water, Shelly's legs joined together and grew into a tail. She surfaced again, coughing until her gills finished sprouting, and glared at the triplets. "What the hell, Edie?! You could've killed me just now!"

Edie shrugged. "As if. You're a mermaid, Doofus. You can breathe underwater, right?"

It was then Shelly saw the shreds of aqua blue organza in all three Gorgon sisters' hands. Her dress was in peices, and she was currently bobbing in the pool in just her lacy pink bra. She ducked under again, covering her chest, and felt hot tears of shame sting her eyes. Even from beneath the surface, she could hear the laughter echoing all around. She wanted to stay under forever and never come up, but she knew that wouldn't be possible. The Oxford's pool had chlorinated water, which she had trouble breathing for long periods of time. Even now, the harsh chemicals were irritating her gills, requiring her to come back up for a quick breath. She couldn't very well get out of the pool either, having nothing but a bra to wear. That, and it was fairly hard to get around without legs. So, there she was, stuck with half her head out of the water, trying to find some form of escape from all of the mythical creatures laughing at her like hyenas. Well... all but one.

Ash had come back out of the house, and when he saw Shelly in the pool he freaked. "What the hell's going on out here?! Somebody help her! Hey, do you know how to swim?!"

"She's fine, Babe," Edie cooed, wrapping her scaly arms around his neck. "She likes the water. Don't you, Shelly?"

Ash relaxed a little, but still looked worried. He brushed Edie's arms off with a frown, then grabbed a towel from the cabana cart by the door. "Not cool, Edie! This is why we broke up! Shelly, right? It's okay, c'mon over here."

Even though she felt she might die of shame, Shelly slowly glided over to Ash with her eyes downcast. She had almost made it over - it was taking awhile due to her crippling embarrassment - when a ruckus in the house made her look up. Clyde was galloping over to the pool, knocking over people he brushed past. He had Shelly's gym bag slung over his shoulder, and at once she saw why he was late. He'd obviously taken extra time to fix his hair and makeup, which was now starting to run a little with sweat. "Out of the way," he bellowed. "Shell, Honey, I told you not to come here alone! It's okay, Boo, I got you."

He used his equestrian half to block everyone else's view, which she climbed onto as soon she she was close enough to wrap her arms around him. Ash had just enough time to toss the towel over her back before Clyde whisked her as far away from the party as his legs would carry him.

He didn't stop running until they reached Mythos High's exercise pool. By then, he'd sweated almost all his makeup off, and his perfectly coifed pompadour was hanging in damp strands in his face. Shelly slipped off his back into the water with a sniffle, and didn't resurface again. Still huffing and puffing for breath, Clyde laid down beside the pool. "Shell," he murmured. "I'm so sorry I was late. I tried to message you, but my phone died. This is all my fault."

Shelly poked her head back above the water level. "No," she sniffed. "It's not. You're right, I should've waited... but when Ash started talking to me, I-... I dunno." She managed a weak smile and swiped the shimmering tears off her cheeks. "H-He said I was cute... and he likes me. He likes me, Clyde! If Edie hadn't humiliated me, we might've-"

"No," Clyde insisted. "Uh-uh; don't even think about it!" After a moment's pause, he leaned forward onto his elbow and splashed her lightly. "He really said you were cute?" A small smile played on his full lips.

Shelly giggled. "Yeah... even though I couldn't say a word, we just... clicked. It was amazing. Best night of my life, until... until it wasn't."

The sound of fluttering wings overhead drew both their attentions. A bright light from the sky illuminated the entire pool area, so searingly hot and blinding that Shelly had to duck back under the water to keep from getting fried. When the light dimished and she poked her head up again, Ash was standing at the far end of the pool. His warm purple eyes darted nervously from the water to Shelly as he carefully skirted the edge and made his way over.

"Hey," he mumbled. "I... I just wanted to say I'm sorry... for everything. Edie is a good person deep down, really. She just... gets carried away sometimes. Are... A-Are you okay?"

Shelly moved to the edge of the pool, stopping just in front of him. "No," she admitted, "but I will be. I think. Thanks for trying to help at least. It meant a lot."

Ash managed a nervous smile. "So, you can talk. I'm glad. You've got such a pretty voice. I'll bet you can sing really good too."

Shelly giggled and tucked a wet strand behind her ear. "Not above water, unfortunately. I might shatter your eardrums. That's sweet of you to say though." She reached up to touch him, but he backpedaled swiftly. His eyes were filled with fear at the water dripping off her webbed fingers.

"Sorry," he gulped. "I... I'm aquaphobic. Fire and water, y'know?"

Shelly nodded her understanding, then glanced over at Clyde. The centaur just shook his head in exhaustion and rose, leaving to give the duo some space.

"I've never met anyone like you," Ash continued. "Seriously. I know we've only just gotten to know each other, but... I think I might really, really like you." He knelt down, still keeping a comfortable distance between himself and the water. "Do... Do you think we could maybe make this work? I mean, it won't be easy, for sure... but, what do you think? I'm willing to give this a try... if you are."

Shelly's tail quivered under the water. "Yes," she bubbled. "I mean, of course! I've had a crush on you for so long... I can't believe this is happening!"

Ash grinned. "A crush? On me? Wow: that's so funny."

Shelly's face fell. "It is? Why? And... is that a bad thing?"

Ash smoothed his feathers with a chuckle that sent a tingle down to the tip of Shelly's fins. "Nah, it's just... I might've not been entirely honest when I said I haven't seen you around school before. The truth is... I've had a bit of a crush on you, too. I had no idea you were a mermaid though. That's so cool... and slightly terrifying."

After a moment's hesitation, he pulled a lip balm tube from his jacket pocket and applied it to his lips. A soft hiss filled the air between them, and Shelly saw a trail of steam leave his lips. "Fireproof gel," he explained. "Edie always used to complain that I gave her chapped lips. It's worth a shot, right?"

Shelly's heart was pounding. both she and Ash inched closer and closer to each other, her steadily rising up and him easing ever lower, until their faces were level. His breath smelled strongly of cinnamon candies and spices, and was steamy hot on her cheeks. She was nervous, but honestly she didn't care. Moments later, his warm, gel-slick lips pressed against hers lightly. The softest sizzle passed between them, but instead of the intense burn she felt earlier from his hand now it was more of a strong tingle. When the kiss broke, both she and Ash were breathing steam.

"Wow," Ash panted. "That was... Wow..."

Shelly let out a giggle, drunk with euphoria. "I'll say. That old adage holds true then: when fire and water mixes... you get steam." Both of them laughed softly together, then after Ash quickly reapplied his lip balm, they kissed again... and again.