Greetings everyone! Welcome!

I'm not exactly sure what to say about this story, beyond that after watching the anime, this was another of those "The ending just wasn't satisfying enough, I wish there was more" moments. This one I was a little hesitant to put up on my first profile, but I got a lot of people saying it was well done, and even suggested putting it up here.

Now, I will warn you ahead of time, at points where there are songs sung, I may or may not have the lyrics along with it just yet. Mostly because subs haven't been completely reliable. If anyone reads and knows the lyrics, I would very much like to ask for help so I can make the story more like the anime.

I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights belong to their respective owners.

Well, enough from me. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: The Mermaid Prophecy

On the beaches of East Japan, not too far from a small hotel called Pearl Piari, there sat a girl of about 14-years of age. As she sat on the beach, with her blond hair being blown by the coastal breeze, she gazed at the waves as a spiky, orange haired surfer continued to ride the rough crests of sea water. The surfer, more commonly known as Kaito Doumoto, glanced back to the girl on the beach, smirked, and gave her a thumbs up. The girl, also known as Luchia Nanami, smiled very cheerfully and waved back.

After a few more minutes of surfing and practicing, Kaito and Luchia hung out on a picnic blanket as Kaito chowed down on the bento (Japanese-packed lunch) Luchia made for him.
"Ah. Doesn't this feel great Luchia?" Kaito sighed, staring out to sea.
"Yeah. It really does feel wonderful." Luchia replied, "It almost feels too good to be true." What the two were referring to was the peace of the seas. A couple times in the paast year, certain forces had tried to disturb that peace and destroy her homes. But each time, the threat was stopped by Luchia and her friends.
But this particular afternoon wasn't going to be as enjoyable as Luchia would like it to be. True, she was hanging out with Kaito and everything. It was just that there was a bit of bad news that she needed to share with Kaito. And it involved her other self.
Finding the courage to speak, Luchia told Kaito, "Actually, Kaito, there's something I need to tell you."
Intrigued, Kaito asked what it was. Before Luchia could say anything, he said, "It has something to do with you being a Mermaid Princess, right?" Luchia was caught somewhat by surprise, but it didn't startle her that much. Luchia was, in truth, a mermaid. And a special one at that: a Mermaid Princess. They were basically rulers who lived in the seven ocean palaces around the world, keeping the peace from sea demons or other evil and malefic beings that threatened it. Their pearls gave them the power to use their songs to weaken enemies or sometimes re-invigorate their friends.

When Luchia was young, she rescued Kaito from an accident at sea, and immediately fell in love with him. When she got older, she returned to the surface and encountered Kaito while searching for her pearl. When Kaito found out that Luchia was the mermaid who rescued him, he returned the pearl to her to help combat some sea demons that sought to capture her. However, at that time, Kaito only knew about her mermaid form, not her human form. But over time, he began to discover the link between her two sides, and realized that they were the same person. And they became closer afterwards

Back to the present, Luchia let her head hang in dismay as she shared what she dreaded to share with Kaito.
"I got a letter from my kingdom in the North Pacific." she explained, "I have to return home tomorrow. Now that the Indian Ocean Mermaid Princess is born, I have to teach her how to be one." This information puzzled Kaito quite a bit.
"How come you can't teach her here? Is something wrong?" KAito questioned. But honestly, he already had an idea of why she had to return home.
"Onee-chan says that as long as I'm here on the surface, I would be distracted. And that it would be bad for Seira to become too involved in the human world like I have."
"So you have to go back to remind yourself of where you come from?" Kaito surmised. all Luchia did in response was nod. Both of them knew that Luchia couldn't stay on land forever. At some point, she would have to return to the sea, her home.
Still, Kaito smirked and replied "Well, you know what I'll be doing. Living life on the waves and such."
"Aw, Kaito!" Luchia exclaimed, slightly offended, "Don't you care that I might never see you again."
Kaito chuckled a little and told her, "I'll be thinking of you with each passing day." That was the thing with Kaito: sometimes he joked a little too much and Luchia would take it the wrong way and overreact. But even so, he meant well and cared about Luchia just as much as she cared about him. Then, the two gazed into each others eyes, and shared a kiss.

After that, Luchia returned to Pearl Piari. As she entered the foyer, a girl with agua-colored hair [aquamarine] leaped in front of her and bombarded her with questions.
"Luchia, how did it go? Is Kaito going to miss you when you leave? Have you told him yet?"
"Oi, Hanon. Let me come in first."
Hanon, like Luchia, was also a Mermaid Princess. But, she did have a habit of getting into Luchia's love life with Kaito, especially when it did not necessarily involve her.
So bypassing her, Luchia sat down and recounted what had happened at the beach.
"That's it?" Hanon quizzed when she finished, "i would've thought Kaito would be more concerned about you leaving than how he was." Luchia thought so too, and the thought continued to depress her. She and Kaito had only recently just gotten back together after Kaito overcame some amnesia he had developed while surfing in Hawaii. That fact that they were splitting up so soon saddened her.
Picking up on the mood, Hanon urgently preked back up and assured, "But I'm sure Kaito meant more than what he said. And besides, you won't be away forever. You could sneak back here with Seira whenever you can."
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Luchia replied glumly.
"Don't let it get to you Luchia." came Rina, the Green Pearl Mermaid Princess, "No matter what, you and Kaito will always be thinking of each other." As Rina came down from the staircase, she was accompanied by a younger girl with bright, orange hair.
"If you want, we can say that something came up and we have to stay on land, Luchia." Seira suggested. The thought did cross her mind at some point, until a certain penguin in sailor's clothes jumped on the table and chastised,
"Absolutely not! You will not shirk your responsibilities as a Mermaid Princess for some human boy! I simply will not allow it!"
"Hippo, I was only kidding." Seira assured.
"A mermaid princess must not become so fixated on the human world. you must learn to take matters seriously like Luchia does, Seira-san. Right, Luchia-san?" But Hippo's interference only caused Luchia to dwell on the thoughts of never seeing Kaito again even more. Luchia wasn't even sure how much more heartache she could take.
To counter this, Hanon grabbed Hippo, muzzled him with her hand, and told Luchia, "Don't worry Luchia. What Hippo meant to say was that you won't be apart for long. You'll teach Seira how to be a Mermaid Princess and be back before you know it. Right, Hippo?" And she glared into Hippo to make sure he got the message.
Pressured by the stare, Hippo replied while still muffled, "Right. What Hanon-san said." Even though she knew her friends meant well, it hurt even more for her friends to comfort her. Without another word, Luchia headed up to hr room for the night.
When she left, Rina told Hippo, "You really ran your mouth today. Luchia's already hurt because she has to leave. The least you could do is help her during this time."
"And encourage her engagement with Kaito?!" Hippo retaliated, "Absolutely unthinkable! I will not allow it!" But the stares from Rina and Hanon caused him to rethink his position. When it came to Luchia, Hippo always lost. However, Seira just gazed up to where Luchia went, feeling empathetic towards her predicament.

As Luchia was in the bath, her thoughts continued to swirl around her and Kaito. Looking at her tail, she recounted all the times she spent with him. When they went to school together, when they discovered the haunted house and it's secret, the play they were a part of, when Kaito rescued her during a blizzard, even the times when Luchia had to compete with another girl who fought for Kaito's affection. All the experiences they had shared, mermaid and human, were priceless to her. But at the same time, she was afraid. Last time they separated, Kaito ended up forgetting her almost completely. What would happen this time?
Once Luchia was done in the bath, she started to finish packing her things away. In the midst of it, she couldn't help looking at the twin-heart ring Kaito gave her when he first went to Hawaii.
"Kaito." Luchia muttered to herself. But then, a tap on the window caught her attention. When she looked outside, she saw Kaito below trying to get her attention.
She opened the window to her balcony, and Kaito called out, "Luchia, come with me."

Not long after that were Kaito and Luchia sitting on an inlet looking out to sea, a little away from the main shore. Kaito was dressed in his usual white shirt and jeans, however Luchia was in her mermaid form. Her blond hair was longer and tied in two, long pigtails, and her tail was pink.
The sudden meeting surprised Luchia quite a bit. What was Kaito up to right now?
"Luchia. I may not know everything that's going on." Kaito spoke, "But I don't want you to forget that I love you. No matter where you are, I want you to remember that.
"Kaito." Luchia responded in admiration, but she quickly turned sullen and replied, "But what if I never see you again? What should I do then?"
To answer, Kaito gripped Luchia's hand and told her, "Whenever you feel lonely, just look at this to remember me." Then he pulled out his pendant that he used to carry her pearl in and continued, "And I'll always wear this to remember you. No matter where we are or what we are doing, we'll always remember each other." Luchia looked to Kaito, tears swelling up in her eyes. then she flung herself onto him and began to cry. Kaito hugged her back to comfort her.
"If anything should happen to you," he whispered in her ear, "I'll come find you." And they held in each others embrace while the night wore on.

Early the next morning, Luchia, Hanon, Rina, and Seira stood on the beach to see Luchia and Seira off. But they were also waiting for Kaito to come see Luchia off. But he was late.
"Geez. How long does Kaito expect us to wait for him?" Hanon complained.
"Be patient. Kaito will show up." Rina assured her.
"That's what you said a few minutes ago." Hanon moaned, "And Luchia is already late." Luchia was also worried. Kaito had promised to see her off, but he wasn't showing up.
"Luchia." Seira spoke to her mentor. Then Hippo arrived, which meant that they couldn't wait any longer.
"Alright, Luchia-san, Seira-san." Hippo proclaimed, "Let us return to the North Pacific palace.
"Yeah." Luchia replied.
But before she and Seira started walking to the sea, they heard Kaito cry out, "Luchia!" Turning back around, Luchia and the others spotted Kaito running towards them.
Her sense of joy returning to her, Luchia ran to him and called back, "Kaito!"
"Luchia-san, wait! We need to-" Hippo started. But he was quickly stopped by Hanon and Rina, who kept him from saying anymore. Once the two met up, Kaito took a little time to catch his breath.
"Kaito. You really came." Luchia beamed.
"Well, yeah. You didn't think I was going to let you leave without saying good-bye, right?" Kaito replied. Luchia immediately felt overjoyed. Once Kaito caught his breath, he picked up Luchia and carried her to the water.
"Uh, Kaito?" Luchia said, puzzled.
"Just one more time." was all he would say in reply. Once he was far enough, Kaito dove underwater with Luchia in tow. Once under, he let her go as they gazed at each other one last time. And for the last time then, they kissed.
Until, "Luchia-san, we must go." Hippo urged the mermaid princess.
"Farewell, Kaito." Luchia whispered to him. And then she followed Seira and hippo home.
After they had gone some distance, Kaito swam for the surface.
Once his head broke through, he muttered, "Farewell, Luchia."

The days rolled by in their usual fashion. Hanon and Rina spent some time with their boyfriends when they could. Kaito continued to surf to train himself for upcoming surf tournaments. But each time he did, Kaito would glance back at the shore for Luchia, only to remember that she had gone home to the sea. School was no different. During class, Kaito would glance back at her desk, but he found it empty each time.

The weekend after Luchia's departure, Kaito visited a huge mansion on the coastline. The residents of the mansion were friends of his from his accident in Hawaii. When he rang the doorbell, a man with salty-grey hair answered.
"Ah Kaito. A pleasure to see you again." the man greeted warmly.
"Hello, Rihito-san." KAito returned, "Is Mikaru home?"
Instead of answering, a young girl's voice rang out, "Onii-sama, who is it?" Then, a child no older than four appeared next to Rihito.
"Hello Mikaru." Kaito greeted the child.
"Hello, Kaito-san." the young Mikaru returned cheerfully. Even though Kaito became used to this, he still remembered the Mikaru he knew before.

After Kaito's accident in Hawaii, he was rescued by the girl Mikaru. Only thing was that then, she was close to his own age. Because of his resulting amnesia, Mikaru became affectionate of Kaito and practically clung to him. This created a huge obstacle for him and Luchia with the new force attacking the Mermaid Princesses. And even when it was overcome, Mikaru fell into despair from the pain she felt from Kaito leaving her. Some complicated matters arose, and Maikaru became reborn into the little girl she was now. All of this ran through Kaito's mind, but failed to affect him as he visited Mikaru and Rihito.

After Kaito spent some time with Mikaru, Rihito took her up to bed to rest as night approached. When he came back, he noticed how distracted Kaito was.
"You're still feeling guilty about what happened with Mikaru and Luchia?" he quizzed.
"Huh?" Kaito quizzed, "Oh no, that's not it. Not entirely."
"It's alright." Rihito assured, "We can't change what happened. What's done is done. Besides, it might be better this way." Kaito knew he meant Mikaru, but that wasn't on his mind right now. "I guess Luchia went home for something important?" Rihito asked. Kaito didn't respond. But he didn't need to.
"It's hard, letting someone go even for a little while." Rihito continued, "I know for a fact that Luchia felt the same way when you were gone. It's only natural."
Still facing out the window, Kaito inquired, "Rihito-san, what should I do? I've never felt like this before. What can I do?"
Rihito got up, rested a hand on Kaito's shoulder, and replied, "Never lose faith."

Once Kaito's visit with Rihito was finished, Kaito returned to his home. This place also reminded him of Luchia. One time, when he fell ill, Luchia had come over to care for Kaito, and went somewhat out of control with her emotions. Then another time, during his amnesia period, he found her in his house while she had been cleaning it up. Once he entered, Kaito looked out towards the sea again as he continued to remember Luchia.
"Luchia." he muttered softly.

But then, without warning, Kaito found himself at the bottom of the ocean. In front of him stood the North Pacific Palace.
"What the-? What's going on?!" he exclaimed.
Then Luchia's voice cried out, "Kaito!" And the scene shifted again. Above Kaito was a giant robot. In it's claws was some kind of person. It was Luchia!
"Luchia!" Kaito called out to her.
"Kaito! Save me!" Luchia pleaded. Then the claw retracted to a row of capsules in its chest, and placed Luchia in one of them. Then it sealed it up, and disappeared.

"LUCHIA!" Kaito yelled. In the impulse, he banged his hand on the window. As he reeled from the shock, Kaito pondered what he had just seen. Somehow, he knew it connected to Luchia and that she was somehow in trouble. He figured it was partly because of his being a Panterrassa, a clan of sorcerers linked to a dark past. So for some reason, Kaito knew he had to do something. And he knew two mermaids who could help.

As the phone rang on, Kaito tapped his foot nervously while waiting for the other end.
"Hello. Pearl Piari." Rina's voice came on the receiver.
"Rina, it's me." Kaito replied urgently.
"Kaito?" Rina questioned, startled by Kaito's urgency, "What is it? What's wrong?"
"Luchia's in trouble. Bring Hanon, and meet me in front of Pearl Piari." Kaito told her.
"Okay. But what's wrong?"
"I'll tell you then. But hurry." And Kaito hung up. Then he ran out of the house to meet with them.

In the meantime, Luchia was in her room, staring at her reflection in her mirrors. Several days had gone by, and the one thing on the forefront of Luchia's thoughts was Kaito. Even when she was teaching Seira, her mind wandered more often than not back to him. Thankfully, Seira understood Luchia's predicament and helped her avoid a riot among the other mermaids. In reality, Luchia only needed to teach her one thing: how to love. that was a task given to her by the original Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess, Sara. For Seira already knew about being a Mermaid Princess.
But in her mind's wanderings, one of the mermaids entered the room.
"Luchia-sama," she started, "It is tie for tonight's session."
"Very well. I'll meet with Seira by the fountain." Luchia responded. So she drifted off for another teaching session.

Waiting for her by the fountain, Seira immediately perked up as Luchia approached.
"Luchia." she greeted. And although Luchia knew her responsibility came first, she still could not help feeling down about missing Kaito.
"Are you ready for tonight's lesson, Seira?" she inquired.
"I'm ready. But, are you sure that you're ready?" The question struck Luchia like a bee sting. She figured Seira would pick up on her lack of dedication to teach. But she was still unprepared for how to respond.
As she looked to her ring, Luchia sank to the ground as she replied, "I don't believe I am."
Seira knelt down next to her, and comforted, "Luchia, maybe we should skip today's lesson. We could sneak back to the surface and visit Kaito again. We don't have to keep doing this."
But Luchia shook her head and told Seira, "The sooner I am able to teach you everything about being a mermaid princess, the sooner we can return to the surface. Back to Hanon, Rina, and...Kaito."
But then, Hippo came rushing over to the two mermaid princesses, looking frantic. "Luchia-san, Seira-san, We're in trouble!"
"Trouble?" Luchia wondered, "What kind of trouble?"
"Some huge object was spotted approaching the palace." he informed frantically, "It must be human because we don't know what it is." After hearing this, Luchia and Seira swam out of the palace to investigate.

What they saw puzzled them. Several feet above them, dropping like a stone, was a mammoth-sized robot. The contraption had various claws on its body, and massive treads on the bottom for feet. The head looked like an old-fashioned diver's helmet from colonial times. Once it crashed down near the palace, the two figured that it was trouble.
"Finally!" boomed a mechanical voice from the giant, "After all my years of research, I've found it. One of the legendary mermaid kingdoms."
Finding her courage, Luchia called back, "Who are you? And what do you intend to do here?"
"Nothing that is of your concern. As you are about to become property of Dr. Hishki." Suddenly, one of its claws shot out for the mermaid princesses. Luchia managed to dodge it, but then more of them tried to catch them. So the two dodged and avoided the onslaught as much as they could. But in the midst of it, one of the claws torpedoed its way towards Seira at high speed.
"Seira!" Luchia cried out as she raced to her. She shoved her out of the way as the claw caught its new target.
"Luchia!" Seira gasped. Luchia tried breaking out of the robot's grip, but it was too strong.
"What an excellent specimen. I'd wager that you will provide valuable data in my research." the robot said maliciously, "And soon, I'll reveal the truth about you mermaids to the world."
"Kaito! Save me!" Luchia screamed out in agony, "KAITO!"

Not too far away, Hanon and Rina were leading Kaito to the North Pacific Palace. As they apporached, they spotted the giant robot standing next to the palace.
"Wha-What is that?!" Hanon exclaimed.
"is that supposed to be a machine?" Rina questioned. But Kaito recognized what it was. It was the same robot from his vision. As they got closer, the mermaids and Kaito saw two other mermaids in the midst of the action. The sight caused Kaito to gasp, for Luchia was one of the mermaids the robot caught, and Seira was trying to free her.
"Luchia!" Kaito cried out. Then he sped off past Hanon and Rina to rescue Luchia.
As he approached, Seira displayed much surprise to his arrival.
"Kaito! What are you doing here?" Seira asked urgently. The question caught Luchia's attention, and she too spotted Kaito. But rather than answer, Kaito went to work trying to free Luchia.
"Well what do we have here?" the robot inquired, "How can someone find such a place as this? Who are you boy?" Again, Kaito put his focus on the task at hand. But still, the claw refused to open.
"Seira, go get Hippo." Luchia requested. understanding the order, Seira swam back to the palace. But both Kaito and Luchia feared it may be too late. For the claw began retracting back towards the mech's torso, towards a row of capsules. Frantic to prevent his vision from coming true, Kaito struggled even more to free Luchia.
"I've had just about enough of you boy." the robot furiously spoke, "Begone!" And it swung another claw to swat Kaito towards the palace.
"KAITO!" Luchia cried out. And her feelings caused her pearl to radiate a strong glow, which shattered the robot's claw. the effort caught the robot off-guard and in surprise. But once free, Luchia joined Hanon and Rina a little bit out of its reach.
"Luchia, are you okay?" Hanon inquired. But Luchia wasn't thinking of herself right now. instead, she felt enraged that the robot would hurt Kaito.
Still, she kept calm and replied, "I'm fine. Let's do it. Hanon, Rina." Both mermaids agreed, and the transformation began.

To use their songs against foes, the mermaid princesses underwent a transformation into their Pichi Pichi forms. With it, their pearls also transformed into special mics they used to strengthen their singing. When the mermaids transform, they do gain legs. However, much of their appearance is the same as their mermaid forms.
So now, the mermaid's pendants opened and enabled their pearls to transform into microphones.
"Pink Pearl Voice!" Luchia gained lacy-pink gloves, boots, and a small dress.
"Agua pearl Voice!" Hanon's costume looked a lot like Luchia's, but was aquamarine in color.
"Green Pearl Voice!" Rina's outfit, however, was different. She wore long gloves that almost reached her shoulders and were green in color, and she had on a long dress of the same color.
This was the Mermaid Princesses Pichi Pichi forms.

Once the transformation was complete, the thee figures stood inside their Live Stage, a glowing orb that housed their power, ready to be sung. Then, a strong tune began to play in the area.

"Alright! Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" the three proclaimed.
And they began to sing a most notable song: "Legend of Mermaid."

Nanairo no kaze fukarete
tooi misaki wo mezashiteta

Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII
Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta

Hisashi no sora he to habutaku toritachi
Saa takarajima ni nukera chikamichi

Nanatsu no umi no rakuen
Arasho no yoru no ato ni wa tsutaeru
tame inochi ga mat umareru

Nanatsu no kumi no MERODIA
Darerno ga itsuka wa koko wo
Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo
Watashi wa wasurenai

As the three sung, cracks began to develop on the mechs arms and the capsules in its chest. So many crack appeared that the machine neared breaking.
Once the mermaids were done singing, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch!" And the arms and capsules finally shattered. "How about an encore?" the three asked their sole audience member.

"I must admit, I am surprised by your power." was what it said in reply, "But I've got a trick or two up my sleeve too." One last claw shot out at the three, threatening to capture them in one fell swoop. But then, a hippocampus charged into the claw, and shattered it with his power.
"Are you alright? Luchia-san? Hanon-san? Rina-san?" Hippo inquired of the mermaid princesses.
"Hippo! We're alright." Luchia answered.
"Great timing, Hippo." Rina thanked. But the celebration had to be cut short. For just then, a larger claw dropped down and clung to the severely damaged machine.
"You've won this round." the robot threatened, "But I will return, and bring you into view with the world. Then your power, and fame, will be mine." And it was quickly lifted away, leaving everyone to wonder what would happen now.

"Kaito. Kaito!" came Luchia's voice, though somewhat distant. Finally regaining consciousness, Kaito awoke to her calling him. And he was glad to discover it was not a trick of his mind. Luchia, now in mermaid form, floated over him with a worried expression that quickly changed to relief as he awoke. Then he remembered, and immediately bolted upright.
"The machine! it didn't-" he recalled frantically. But Luchia shook her head and told him, "It's gone. It didn't take anyone." With that, Kaito let out a sigh of relief. He intervened just in time. As Luchia helped him up, Hanon and Rina arrived with Seira and Hippo (penguin).
"Phew! We were lucky." Hanon sighed.
"Yeah. Who knows what would have happened if you didn't have that vision Kaito." Rina added.
"Vision?" Luchia quizzed.
"The reason we rushed here was because i had a vision of you being captured by that robot." Kaito admitted sheepishly.
"At first, Rina and I didn't believe him." Hanon inputted, "But he was so dedicated to preventing it that we decided to bring him here. And it was a good thing too, considering you acted rather rashly." That last sentence was spoken to tease Luchia.
"Hanon!" Luchia grumbled.
But that matter was left hanging when Rina brought up, "But now that we know that that robot knows where this place is, it's no longer safe to stay. And if we go to any of the other kingdoms, we'll only be putting them in danger too." Everyone pondered this for a moment, troubled by the fact that they were no longer safe at home anymore.
And much to everyone's surprise, Seira broke the mood by suggesting, "Well, if we can't stay hidden in the sea, why don't we hide on land? No one would think to look for us there." Hippo was about to protest, but Hanon kept his beak shut as she agreed to the suggestion. Pretty soon, everyone agreed that hiding on land was a better method with that robot around. And after winning Hippo over to their side, and after many farewells, the gang swam for the surface.

And here we have the first chapter of Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo. And boy does it start off with a very foreboding feeling. A machine attacking the mermaids? A human? That's new. But what's his angle? Stay tuned to find out. Follow and review.