All right everyone! Here's chapter one: Cleo (and Lewis). Enjoy!

•••

Creak!

A gust of wind rattled the shutters, waking Cleo from yet another dream in which she had transformed into a mermaid during her dolphin show. After waiting for her heart rate to calm back down, she rolled over and squinted at the green alarm clock numbers beside the wedding pictures of her and Lewis on the nightstand. They had to get up in three minutes; there was no point in going back to sleep.

Bang! Creak!

With a sigh, Cleo rolled out of bed and tiptoed to the window to fasten the shutter. It looked stormy outside. That wasn't good. Lewis had volunteered them both to play tour guides for a group of incoming interns at the California Marine Biology Institute where they worked. Which meant she couldn't just hide inside if it was raining.

The alarm clock went off and Lewis groaned and hit snooze, as was usual. Cleo was wide awake though. She had escape routes to plan.

"Lewis, do you think it's going to rain?" She sat back down on the bed and poked her husband in the side until he responded.

"Most likely." He yawned groggily. "At some point or another it has to rain. The probability of it never raining...well, it's ridiculous."

"Helpful, Lewis." Cleo glanced back at the window, then at her husband of five years, his head buried in the pillow, already asleep again.

She didn't need to be worrying; she'd coped with rainy days for over ten years now. Lewis too. It was just a group of interns anyway. What could go wrong?

•••

"All right, everyone, I'm Lewis McCartney-"

"Doctor," Cleo couldn't resist adding with a proud smile. He had done far too many research papers for months on end to simply leave off his rightful title.

"Right, Dr. McCartney. My lovely fellow tour guide here happens to be my wife, Cleo." Lewis motioned to her and then winked as she gave a mock bow. "She's the best in the business when it comes to the sea creatures here. Cleo does research, and training with the show animals, and-"

"You're in charge of the dolphin shows here, right?" A dark-haired intern about their age interrupted, his eyes darting to Cleo excitedly. "I read a paper about you."

"That's...nice? Hopefully it was a good article?" Cleo's gaze darted to Lewis, who shrugged. She was interviewed occasionally, but when did they have time to look up every newspaper article about the Institute? There were probably plenty of references to her of which she was unaware.

"It was excellent. Pleasure to meet you. I'm Samuel Parker." He stepped to the front of the tour group and shook Cleo's hand.

Lewis raised his eyebrows toward Samuel and his perfectly manicured hair. Cleo was mainly trying not to laugh.

"Okay, well, let's get started." Lewis rubbed his hands together, looking slightly like a mad scientist- especially since he was still wearing his lab coat. At least she had changed into a nice dress. The outfit felt more professional- and since most of the interns were her age or older, a sense of authority came with the dressier attire. "First off, we have the laboratories: my haven."

Lewis launched into a spiel about the lab- mentioning everything from microscope rules to Bunsen burners to the various experiments the interns were allowed to do. Cleo injected comments occasionally, but her eyes kept darting to the windows. She could see the coast. It was certainly dark and stormy. But no rain. So far so good.

"And so basically, no experimenting in here without your manager's permission. This lab had been set on fire too many times. Mainly by me, but that's beside the point. Any questions?" Lewis folded his hands and grinned at Cleo. She smiled back, knowing that despite all Lewis's complaints about having to take interns on tours, it was secretly one of his favorite tasks. He was proud of the Institute. She was too. It was like when she had been in elementary school, and she got to give a friend a tour of her house for the first time. There was an aspect of pride in it.

"Um, I have a question," said Samuel Parker. "When do we get to go see the Marine animals? That's really all I'm here for." He turned to glance at Cleo and winked.

Cleo watched Lewis purse his lips, slightly miffed. "Well, good to know your interests. We'll head there as soon as we go through the supply warehouse."

"The supply warehouse is important," interjected Cleo when she noticed her fancy-haired but rather rude admirer was looking like he wanted to comment some more. "At least a couple of you all will be working during hours when we have dolphin shows. Everything we need for setup is in the supply closets."

Lewis walked over to stand beside Cleo. She was honestly quite thankful. Samuel Parker was still gazing at her shamelessly. Had he not heard Lewis mention that she was already taken, or was he just a creep? She bit the inside of her mouth and grabbed her husband's hand, hoping to discourage stalker Sam.

"And the locations of the supply closets themselves are quite handy to know," Cleo said, still holding onto Lewis. "If you ever need a hiding spot..."

"Ha, um, forget we told you that," said Lewis, giving Cleo a sideways glance while the interns laughed at his flustered expression. She just gave him a grin and started for the door, once more checking to make sure she wouldn't be walking into a torrential downpour. The buildings were disconnected; their next stop was halfway across a parking lot which lined the pier. However, it was quite a walk between the warehouse and the water's edge. They were in for several minutes of outdoor time in the danger zone.

"So, um, Cleo?" An intern asked as they all started walking across the parking lot. She turned to see who was talking and wasn't surprised it was Samuel Parker. He was quickly starting to get annoying.

"So, have long have you been working with dolphins? From what I've heard, it sounds like you have a real connection with all the animals?" He spoke like it was a question and Cleo felt her heart skip. A connection. He didn't mean anything by it. She had to remind herself that most normal people wouldn't automatically assume she got along with the sea creatures so well because she was a fellow sea creature- straight from mythology. She glanced at Lewis, who was staring at her expectantly, waiting for her to respond to Samuel Parker's question. Right.

"Well, I've been working with dolphins about ten years, but you could say all of the trainers here have connections with the animals. That's part of the reason we do what we do. We love our dolphin friends," said Cleo casually. "I'm certainly not the only-"

A raindrop landed on her wrist and she quickly dried it off with her sleeve.

"Uh..." Cleo looked at Lewis frantically, while her brain completely lost whatever words she had been planning to say. "It's um, raining! We should probably walk quicker!" she told the group of interns.

"But would you say it takes a certain personality type to work with dolphins?" Samuel was still talking. "I read an article once, that suggested..."

Cleo wasn't paying him any attention. Another raindrop had landed on her forehead and she had been forced to quickly wipe it with her sleeve inconspicuously, all while speed walking toward the supply buildings. Everyone was practically jogging to keep up with her.

There was a pinging noise as the rain began falling harder, striking the tin roofs of the buildings in front of them. A millisecond later, Cleo was struck by a plethora of water droplets- far too many to dry off. The downpour was beginning. And she was still in the parking lot!

"Cleo! Run!" hissed Lewis. "The pier!"

She was already sprinting, immensely grateful she was wearing flats, not heels. Lewis was going to have to do some crazy fibbing to cover for her this time. She could practically feel Samuel Parker's confusion. But she didn't have time to worry over any of that. She had six seconds to make it off the pier. Five seconds. Four. Three.

Cleo had never ran so fast in her life. She had to make it to safety. Rain pelted her hair and face. Two seconds remained. She reached the railing along the wooden walk between the Marine buildings. One second.

Cleo put her hands on the top of the railing and leaped over it, feeling somewhat like a stunt actor on TV. She felt herself start to transform as she freefell toward the ocean.

Splash!

Cleo hit the water at an odd angle, but quickly straightened out beneath the surface. Sure enough, she had a tail. Ughh. She sighed underwater then began swimming under the pier, planning to head back to the opposite side of the Institute. She only hoped she had been out of sight before she transformed. And that Lewis could come up with a convincing explanation for her sudden exit.

•••

"Wait! Where's she going?" Samuel Parker asked as Cleo sprinted across the parking lot.

"She must really not like rain," another intern commented as everyone stopped to simply stare at Cleo.

Lewis winced. He needed a distraction. "Hey, everyone! Uh, let's just continue the tour, she'll catch up later." He started walking, watching out of the corner of his eye as Cleo vaulted the railing. He thought he caught sight of a quick shimmer- which meant she had developed a tail in midair -but it was so quick it was hardly noticeable to anyone not expecting a mermaid.

"Really everyone, come along. As I said, she'll catch back up later." Lewis felt his voice was drained out by the heavy rain- and the whispers that had erupted the instant Cleo dived off the pier.

"Did you see that?"

"Why on earth would she jump like that?"

"Is this part of the tour?"

Lewis rubbed his forehead, and tried to push his wet hair out of his eyes in a dignified manner. Ever since high school, when Cleo had become a mermaid, he had constantly worried about her secret being exposed. When she had moved to America to be with him, the concern had doubled. He felt responsible for her secret- it was up to him to protect her. However, desperation only made him worse of a liar than ever before. But he needed some sort of explanation. Grown women didn't just dive off piers as soon as they got wet. At least not sane women.

"Okay, everyone. Everything is perfectly fine. You haven't been around Cleo as long as I have. I've known her since we were five. This is completely normal behavior for her. She...just fancied a swim. Really bad." Lewis rubbed his nose, feeling quite transparent as the entire group of interns blinked at him wordlessly.

Well, not quite wordlessly. Samuel Parker started running toward the pier. "What if she needs help?!"

"No, no, she doesn't!" Lewis took off after the dolphin enthusiast. The rest of the group followed like spectators at a parade.

"She just...dived?!" Samuel seemed to be in shock. "Something must have been wrong! Really wrong!"

"Trust me, she's fine," said Lewis as he caught up to the intern at the pier. Both men stared into the undulating water. Cleo was- thankfully -no where in sight.

"No. She wouldn't just jump like that. Even if you say she likes swimming." Samuel was shaking his head at the ocean.

Lewis crossed his arms. "She is my wife. I know Cleo better than anyone and I say this is normal. Come on, just trust me and we'll finish the tour."

"But she wasn't dressed for a dive in the ocean! Come on, man! She was wearing a skirt and a blazer, not a swim suit!"

"That's because she gave up swimsuits." Lewis didn't miss a beat. "For Lent."

"What? Who does that?"

"I know. It was a sad day. But really. We're all going to be soaked. Let's go inside."

"But where is she?!" Samuel Parker gestured to the water and to the shore behind them. "She should have made it to the beach by now! What if she got swept out to sea?!"

"She's a good swimmer," said Lewis somewhat tersely. To his own ears he sounded like a very indifferent husband, but Samuel Parker really needed to give it up.

"What if she hurt herself? You might not care, but I'm going after her!" The intern kicked off his shoes and leaped over the railing, completely ignoring Lewis's complaints.

Splash! Samuel hit the water and began swimming under the pier, shouting for Cleo when he surfaced. Lewis pulled at his hair and groaned. Samuel would be searching for quite some time. Cleo knew better than to stick around. She was probably at the other side of the Institute, drying off.

A couple interns had their phones out, recording Samuel splashing around like a kid playing Marco Polo. "Cleo? Cleo, are you okay?" The wind started to pick up, making the waves bigger and sending even heavier rain into Lewis's face. It was cold. He really didn't want to go for a swim. But Samuel needed to get out from under the pier. He was going to get dragged out by the rip current.

"All right everyone!" Lewis turned back to the tour group. "I'll get Samuel and you all head inside the supply warehouse and get dried off. Don't go anywhere and don't touch anything. Understood?"

Most of the interns were only a couple years younger than he was, but they all nodded respectfully and hurried to shelter, out of the storm. Lewis kicked off his shoes, still grumbling to himself, and then hopped the railing, diving into the tossing waves.

"Cleo? Cleo!" Samuel was still shouting as Lewis swam up behind him. "Cleo! There you ar- No! It's just you."

"Good to see you too, mate." Lewis grabbed one of Samuel's arms. "While you were underwater I saw Cleo make it to safety. She's fine." Lewis held his breath as a wave rolled over them. "We need...to go."

Samuel was hit in the face by another wave, and he coughed up saltwater before simply nodding- too tired to argue. Lewis helped steer the intern to shore, half-carrying Samuel by the time they reached the sandy outcropping. Even though the intern was bigger than Lewis was, the young man clearly wasn't as much of a swimmer. Which made Lewis smile. Good swimming skills were kind of a requirement for being married to a mermaid.

"Uh...Thanks," panted Samuel as he collapsed on the beach and tipped his face toward the rainy sky. Lewis nearly did a double take.

"You're thanking me? Well, this is exciting. You're quite welcome." Lewis gave a little bow and began wringing the water from his lab coat.

The intern sat up and frowned at Lewis. "You're weird."

That seemed more normal. In fact, it was normal. Lewis just shrugged and motioned toward the Marine Biology Institute. "Come on. It's still raining. We better get dry."

"And find Cleo? You did see her, right?" Samuel stood and narrowed his eyes.

Lewis spread his hands and tried to look innocent. "Of course! You think I don't know what my wife looks like? Well, mate, let me tell you that-"

"Fine. It's freezing. Let's just hurry." The intern's teeth were chattering. In truth, the guy's concern for Cleo was nice, albeit unnecessary, Lewis thought. Though if Samuel started working with the dolphins, Cleo was going to have to be much more careful. Maybe they could put in a word with the managers and have Samuel start on the fish tanks. Or at least on Cleo's off-hours.

By the time they made it back to the warehouse with the rest of the group, Lewis and Samuel were both shivering as if they'd jumped into icy Arctic water. It was true, California was often cooler than Australia, but still...Lewis had never been so cold in years. However, when he caught sight of a dark haired lady in a blazer jacket and skirt, he felt vastly better.

"Cleo!" Samuel Parker started toward her, still dripping from head to toe, and Cleo backed up nervously, even putting out a hand to keep him at arm's length. He got the signal and stopped, looking a little hurt, but Lewis was relieved. The last thing they needed was for Cleo to turn into a mermaid again.

"How...? How are you already dry?" The garrulous intern was once more in shock.

"I, um, keep a blow-drier with my things. As I explained to the others, I like...um, spontaneous swims."

"See! Just as I said!" Lewis waved a hand for emphasis and Cleo looked like she wanted to laugh. He realized he was still utterly soaked. He sighed.

"Cleo, you continue the tour. I'm going to show Samuel where we keep some of the Institute's most important commodities: the towels."

•••

Lewis rinsed another plate and set it in the dishwasher while Cleo cleared the table. She couldn't keep from replaying the morning's escapades in her mind every few minutes. It had been a very close call. Too close.

"Aw, it's fine, Cleo," said Lewis as if he had been reading her thoughts. "You escaped. Samuel was a bit confused and slightly put out because you didn't even hug him after he risked his life to save you, but he'll get over it. If he had listened to me in the first place, we wouldn't have had to play drowned rats. But it's all good. It was just an exciting tour."

"Lewis, we were all stuck inside the supply warehouse for an hour before the rain stopped! The interns were bored out of their minds, wondering why we couldn't just move on to the next building! They'll probably all quit." Cleo bit her bottom lip as she placed the loaf of bread on the counter.

"Nonsense. They seemed interested. Maybe because they were just staring at you, but I doubt they'll quit."

"Ughh." Cleo sat at the table and rubbed her hands through her hair. "And I feel terrible that you had to jump in the water too!"

"Ha, I do that all the time."

"But not in your lab coat. It'll smell like salt for days."

"Cleo. Really. I'm fine. No one saw you. That's what matters." He dunked another cup in the sink and smiled at her from across the kitchen. Cleo looked up and met his gaze, and then suddenly she was laughing hysterically.

"Oh, Lewis, I love being a mermaid! I love you! What a day!" She had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from snorting. Lewis stared at her for a moment, as if waiting to see whether she'd gone entirely insane, but then he started laughing too.

"Boy was I thankful when you showed up. I had to trick Samuel to get him out of the water. He didn't seem to believe me for a while. I think he just didn't trust me after the bathing-suits-for-Lent thing."

"Yeah! Now what am I supposed to wear when we have staff pool parties every summer?! Way to go, Lewis."

"You can always wear a heavy coat. Say you've got a cold."

"Oh Lewis, don't even remind me..." Cleo nearly doubled over laughing remembering the day he had found out she was a mermaid. "Aw well. I guess you said what you had to. And no one saw me transform. That's what's important."

"Well, I saw you- just barely." Lewis measured the air with two of his fingers. Cleo rolled her eyes.

"You don't count."

"Oh do I?" He set down the glass he had been rinsing and moved toward Cleo, who was still sitting at the table. "Let's see about that." He moved to kiss her, but the moment he touched her face she jumped away, half-yelling, half-laughing.

"Lewis! You didn't dry your hands!"

He made no effort to help her, and Cleo didn't care enough to run for a towel. A few seconds later, there was a mermaid reclining at the kitchen table. She shook her head at Lewis and they both starting laughing again.

It had been a weird day, but that was their life. And it was good.