Jon opened her eyes to a vast, beautiful expanse of kelp forests of amber and verdant green, woven around and between piles of boulders that formed makeshift caves. She blinked and slowly descended to the sea floor of fine white sands. It was staggeringly gorgeous and pushed out all her qualms of being a mermaid and being female out of her mind -- at least for now.
And after several seconds of absorbing the beauty of it all, Jon kicked her tail and was off, a tan and silver streak weaving through the kelp forest like a race car. Water rushing over her skin and scales, fish darting out of her way. It was heaven. But then she took a sharp turn and stopped suddenly, her heart jumping up into her throat and eyes growing five sizes too wide at what she saw: a plexiglass window and on the other side, a woman in a blue shirt and khaki pants and a whole array of school children and parents around her.
Jon suddenly realized she was an attraction at an aquarium.
The woman on the other side of the glass turned and saw Jon and smiled brightly, even as all the kids eyes lit up in joy at seeing a mermaid.
"There she is!" The woman said, her voice coming through loud and clear on account of a pair of underwater speakers set above the plexiglass. "Everyone wave to Princess the Mermaid!" And all the children and parents happily waved.
Jon, or Princess, as she had been called, wondered how to get out of this. She looked down and reached for the stone -- it had been in her hand to make the wish. But it wasn't there now. And she had no idea if it was transported her with her, if it had fallen to the bottom of Jon's tank. She had no idea what to do next, and the class of kids looked like they were wanting to see a show . . .
