<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #4080FF">"I couldn't have asked ya to come with me,"</span> Alannah stated as she continued to float around him, her tail beating steadily from side to side. <span style="color: #4080FF">"I even told ya I would take ya underwater if I could. But how was I supposed to know ya wouldn't be mildly freaked when I suddenly grew fins?"</span> She turned her gaze from him and upwards instead. To her sensitive eyes, the vague moonlight that filtered through the choppy water was quite enough to illuminate her surroundings. She sighed, letting out a short stream of bubbles. <span style="color: #4080FF">"No fancy coral domes, Dimitri. You've watched too much Disney."</span> She crossed her arms, grasping her elbows tightly. "Ya see, the thing about being a mermaid is that ya kinda need to be neah watah. All I need to do is just stay on land for a week, and then it's my turn to kick it." She had lost count of the times her mother had warned her about the horrific and hasty punishment that awaited her if she didn't follow this one requirement for her species. <br/><br/>All it took to pull her out of these grim thoughts was one look back at Dimitri, who was excitedly showing her how he was able to manipulate water. Alannah grinned back at him. He was definitely in his right element at the moment. She counted herself extremely lucky to not only have found a person tied to the element of water, like her, but one that was just so <span style="font-style: italic">likable.</span> She let him take her hand, and left the breathing to her lungs. As she was no longer moving, her gills were not much more than a few slits behind her ears. She gave Dimitri's hand a squeeze, snickering at all his questions. <br/><br/><span style="color: #4080FF">"Being a mermaid is - interesting, I s'pose. Nevah really tried anything else! I grow the tail out whenevah I'm undah the sea."</span> She grinned. <span style="color: #4080FF">"Nevah met a merperson I wasn't related to, and I haven't swam with them for a while now. So I guess it's just me here now. Just you and me."</span> She pulled herself closer, reaching out with her free hand to brush away his hair, which seemed to be the only part of him that acted as it should underwater. It flowed freely through her fingers. <span style="font-style: italic"><span style="color: #4080FF">Oh, no, he is beautiful.</span></span> Her bright blue eyes sought his hazel ones, and watched as her hand glided down his face to cup his cheek, his skin strangely warm and dry compared to hers. <span style="color: #4080FF">"Yes, just you and me..."</span> She mumbled. <span style="color: #4080FF">"And I've actually nevah tried the kissing. But there's a first time for everything, don't ya agree?"</span> Without waiting for any response, she placed her hand on the back of his neck and pressed her lips to his.</div>