A/N: Okay, confession time. Part of the reason I've been absent is that I recently got a Switch and have been playing Animal Crossing. Now! Those of you reading this who also own AC:NH, I have a surprise for you. I've made and shared a few The Deep inspired designs at the Able Sisters kiosk. My creator ID is MA-5566-2144-2026. I have Fontaine's wetsuit, a Nekton cap, and a page of Lemurian runes shared, and I plan on adding more soon.

This chapter prompted two Reject stories, as I had to cut a concept and an entire chapter. The -non-canon- names of Will's parents are Thomas and Katherine, or Tom and Kat.

Warning: There is a lot of throwing up going on here.

Response to guest reviews:

Guest: Well, I haven't seen that, so I don't really know... I sometimes turn Nereus into Iroh, though. Perfect timing on the hugs, because everyone needs one this time around. -gives cookie to Finn and Jeffrey-

Random Fan: Even Nereus has his moments. XD I'm working on a theory about him. Yepper-do, her name is Aly! 0w0 -hugs Finn-

Fontaine woke up running. She bolted out of her room, barely avoided Kaiko in the hall, and rushed into the bathroom. She dropped to her knees in front of the toilet just in time to throw up.

Between heaves, Fontaine heard Kaiko enter. Kaiko rubbed soothing circles on Fontaine's back while the girl threw up everything in her stomach. Even then, Fontaine couldn't stop dry-heaving for what felt like forever.

Eventually, Fontaine was able to wipe her mouth and sit back. Her eyes were shut tight and felt gummy. She couldn't stop shaking.

A hand touched her forehead, then Kaiko said, "She's got a fever, too."

Fontaine clenched her jaw while her parents talked. Her stomach was aching and empty. She felt awful, worse than any time she could remember. And her mouth tasted disgusting.

Fontaine inched her eyes open. She groaned at the brightness of the bathroom, and felt Kaiko resume rubbing her back.

Eyes wandering for a distraction, Fontaine found her reflection. The first and only thing she noticed was her eyes.

Her eyes were glowing again.

Fontaine swallowed, then felt saliva flood her mouth. "Mum-"

Fontaine leaned over the toilet for another round of dry-heaving.

Elsewhere, Finn pressed his sweating forehead against the bathroom floor. His body was wracked with shivers.

After several minutes, Finn forced himself to his feet. He flushed the toilet and turned to lean on the sink. He turned the water on and splashed cold water against his face.

Finn lifted his head and stared into the mirror over the sink. His blue-glowing eyes stared wearily back.

"What is this?" Finn murmured.

Finn's ears began to ring. The bathroom suddenly felt too bright, the intense light pressing in on his vision. Finn watched the glow in his eyes fade, then his legs grew weak and everything went blank.

At some point, Fontaine found herself in bed. She had a vague memory of Will carrying her to her room, but couldn't remember how long it had been.

"Fontaine?" Kaiko said, leaning into sight. "How do you feel now?"

Fontaine groaned. She wasn't throwing up, so she guessed it was an improvement.

"Here, see if you can sit up," Kaiko urged.

Fontaine groaned. "Mum, it hurts…"

"I know," Kaiko soothed. "I just need you to try and get some water down."

Fontaine shook her head.

"Getting dehydrated will only make you feel worse," Kaiko said firmly. "It's been half an hour since you threw up."

Fontaine sighed, but tried to push herself up. With Kaiko's help, Fontaine rose to a semi-seated position against her pillows.

Fontaine groaned, mainly in annoyance that she felt so weak. Kaiko even had to hold the glass of water for her! Still, she was glad when her stomach twisted at the first sip.

Kaiko quickly swapped the glass for a bowl. Fontaine choked, then the little bit of water she'd managed came back up.

"That will be enough for now," Kaiko said, helping Fontaine lay down. "Your dad is finding ginger. That will help."

"I don't wanna put anythin' in my mouth," Fontaine mumbled, feeling tired.

Kaiko said something, but Fontaine didn't hear her as she drifted to sleep.

One hour later…

Ant felt sick. Not throwing-up-sick, but worried-sick.

Fontaine had been just fine the previous day. The only time she'd groaned was when Jeffrey had followed her for two hours. She'd been her normal self, running from the bridge to the study every couple of minutes.

Well… she'd been quiet when evening came. Ant hadn't thought about it, but now…

Now Fontaine was groaning and thrashing in bed, and Ant couldn't help her. Not even Kaiko knew how to help her, and she could fix anything!

Right?

"Fontaine's going to be okay, right?" Ant asked when Will picked up Fontaine and hurried from the room.

"Yes. Yes, Fontaine's going to be fine. I just need to run some tests." Kaiko absently rubbed Ant's head. "Go find yourself some breakfast and wait on the bridge, okay?"

"Okay," Ant said, but Kaiko was already leaving.

Ant didn't move for a long time. He just stood in the empty room, hugging the Jorange to his chest.

A bit later…

Will never liked to see his kids sick or hurt, but this… this was worse than any other time he could recall. Kaiko was at a loss at what could have caused Fontaine to become so violently ill overnight, but there were so many things that could go wrong under the ocean.

Will glanced at Kaiko, running tests across the infirmary in uncharacteristic silence, then back to Fontaine.

Fontaine had woken in starts a couple more times since passing out, but she was so confused every time. She'd usually stared past her family, whispering to herself. She hadn't reacted to her parents, though she'd drank a bit when urged.

Will would have been more encouraged if she'd managed to keep any of the water down.

Now, while Will's attention was on her, Fontaine flinched. She writhed and groaned, then settled when Will put a hand on her arm.

Will waited to see what she would do next. He leaned down when Fontaine's lips moved.

"I'm sorry," Fontaine whispered. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Fontaine." Will's words made Kaiko turn. He shrugged, and went on, "Don't apologize."

"I can't…" Fontaine's face scrunched and she writhed onto her side. "I can't…"

Will waited, but Fontaine only sighed and stilled again. Will lifted his eyes to meet Kaiko's worried gaze, then Kaiko turned back to her work.

One hour later…

Finn startled awake with a gasp. He blinked at the ceiling, confused as to where he was and tension twisting his stomach. It took several minutes, but Finn managed to recall where he was and why.

Finn cautiously sat up. He groaned a bit when his stiff body protested and his stomach was still in knots, but the urge to throw up was gone. Frowning, Finn put a hand to his forehead. He wasn't sweating and he was thinking too clearly for his fever to have gone beyond the sweating stage.

The sickness was just… gone?

Finn tried to stand, but his limbs were shaking too much. He finally managed to stand using the sink, which he leaned heavily on. He glanced at himself in the mirror.

Despite his feeling better, Finn had definitely looked better. His hair was a flattened mess from sweat and thrashing, his face was pale, and dark shadows hung under his eyes.

Most interesting, though, was Finn's eyes. He hadn't really noticed before, but the pupil, iris, and white glowed different shades of blue. The pupil was a dark, dark blue, the iris an ocean blue, and the white was midday sky blue.

Finn stared at his eyes for some time, then blinked himself back to the present. He turned his gaze from his lightly pulsing eyes.

"This is… weird," Finn decided aloud. "Now, do I dare go back to my room…"

It was so rare for Fontaine or Ant to come down with something, Kaiko was always at a bit of a loss. Toxins from plants and animals she could handle. They had a source to be neutralized or to be gotten rid of altogether.

Sudden stomach bugs with no discernible source, though, were considered cause for concern.

Kaiko took blood and saliva samples from Fontaine. She studied them under her own microscope and sent her results to a former WOA colleague who specialized in diseases.

However, neither of them could find any reason for Fontaine's illness.

"Still nothing," Kaiko said in frustration after an hour of tests. "All of Fontaine's levels are normal."

"Have you run tests on the girl?" asked her friend, Dr. Alison Cuth.

"I've done everything, Aly," Kaiko said. She turned to where Fontaine laid on an infirmary bed under Will's watch. "But the only abnormality I'm finding is her fever."

"And she hasn't come in contact with anyone sick?"

"She hasn't left the submarine in over a week," Kaiko said, turning back to her friend. "And everyone else is fine."

"It could be an allergy," Aly suggested.

"So suddenly?"

"Has she been suffering reactions before now?"

"Maybe a couple days ago. She was looking peaked, but she's been insisting she's fine."

"Could be something in your supplies," Aly checked something on her side, then shook her head. "I'm going to have to look at it more."

"Kaiko," came Will's voice.

Kaiko turned quickly, relaxing at Will's smile. She smiled as well when Will leaned back, and Kaiko could see Fontaine sitting up.

"Fontaine," Kaiko said, standing. "How are you feeling now?"

"I'm… fine." Fontaine looked at herself, frowning as though she was confused. "What happened?"

"You got sick." Kaiko went to Fontaine's bedside and put a hand on her forehead. "Feels like your fever is gone."

In fact, if Kaiko hadn't known any better, she would have said that Fontaine hadn't been sick. Not only was her fever gone, but she was fully coherent and not showing any signs of nausea. At most, she was slightly pale.

Fontaine shrugged. "I feel fine now."

Kaiko hummed in thought. "Let's not push it, though. Try a little water, then we'll go from there. Are you hungry?"

Fontaine nodded. Kaiko relaxed more. If Fontaine was hungry, it was a very good sign.

"I'll get some crackers," Will said, standing. "And check on Ant. He must be frantic by now."

"Fontaine's okay?" Ant suddenly said, poking his head into the infirmary and making everyone jump. "Oh, uh… I was worried."

"You were worried about me?" Fontaine teased.

Ant hesitated, then grinned. "Who else is going to help me clean the Rover?"

Fontaine groaned dramatically. "Of course you'd be worried about chores."

Kaiko shook her head and went back to her tablet. "Well, Aly, Fontaine's awake and feeling fine."

"That's good," Aly said. She leaned out of view, then returned with papers in her hand. "Keep an eye on Fontaine, though, and keep running tests. If it's recurring, we'll need to know why."

"Definitely." Kaiko glanced back with a smile. "But I think the worst is over."

Far off, Kaiko's words echoed over the ocean.

"I think the worst is over."

Nereus shook his head in frustration as he set his staff aside. While he didn't like eavesdropping on the Nekton family, things had taken a… strange turn in the last week.

Nereus touched the scroll tucked into his belt. The scroll was ancient and moth-eaten from ages shoved to the wayside, but it was currently Nereus' only reliable source of information on the Atlantean curse besides the Chronicle.

"Nereus, where are you?" came another voice from the Lemurian staff.

Nereus rolled his eyes at Proteus' annoyed tone. "I am right where I need to be, Proteus."

"Glaucus is at the site. You are not. What is keeping you?"

Nereus adopted a jovial tone. "I'm in a rowboat, Proteus. These things take time."

"We don't have time. You should have taken the chopper."

"And how would I explain a helicopter to the Nektons, hm?"

"How are you explaining your rowboat?"

"Believe me, a rowboat is a lot easier to explain than a helicopter."

"You're in the middle of-" Proteus broke off with a huff. Nereus heard a muffled mutter of, "Crazy old man," then Proteus went on, "How much longer until you are there?"

"I can be there by morning," Nereus said, wishing for silence again.

"Make sure you are," Proteus said.

Nereus shook his head as Proteus ended the conversation without even a good-bye. Normally, Nereus would plan to give Proteus grief over his abrupt ending, but he currently had more serious issues at hand.

Nereus grabbed his staff and stood. He peered into the water, just barely able to make out the glow of the Aronnax. Luckily for Nereus, it was stationary. Unfortunately, it was also rather out of reach.

Nereus sighed to himself as he crouched to open the rowboat storage. He pulled out an old, bulky tablet. He wasn't a big fan of technology, but he did also prefer speaking face-to-face to people, even if it was just to ask them to surface.

Tapping into the Aronnax communications was an easy matter, and Nereus soon had a line open the bridge. He started to greet the Nektons, then paused.

Nobody was on the bridge. Right.

Nereus wondered how long he'd have to wait for someone to show up, then realized that there was someone on the bridge.

Jeffrey floated in his giant tank on the bridge. He'd clearly noticed Nereus, as he was outright glaring at the screen.

"What? I'm working on it," Nereus said. "I don't suppose you could bring someone to the bridge?"

Jeffrey continued to glare.

"I have something that will help Fontaine," Nereus assured the fish. "If you could just bring William to the bridge, I will explain."

Jeffrey turned his tail to Nereus.

"Spirits, you're as stubborn as… as…"

Nereus blinked. What had he been saying? Ah, right, he was getting aboard. Except, he was still many feet above the Aronnax.

"Jeffrey, where was I?" Nereus asked.

Jeffrey turned. He stared at Nereus, then rolled his eyes and swam out of sight.

Nereus sat back. Yes, the expressive little fish so reminded him of his… older…

"Ah, there you are," Nereus said, startled from his distracted thoughts when a faintly glowing head of a giant seahorse rose beside his rowboat. "You've caused nothing but trouble, you know?"

The seahorse lowered her head a bit, somehow managing to look ashamed. Nereus chuckled and patted her neck.

"It's okay, little one." Nereus touched the scroll again. "I know now it's not your fault. But I do wish you'd do your job better."

The seahorse groaned and dropped beneath the water. Nereus turned back to his tablet as Ant stepped onto the bridge.

"Ah, Antaeus, there you are!" Nereus said.

Ant jumped. "Mr. Nereus?"

"Indeed." Nereus smiled as Will came up behind Ant. "William."

Will also started. "How did you open a line with the Aronnax?"

"Hello to you, as well," Nereus said wryly.

"Er, hello," Will said, clearly flustered. "But, how? It's a secure line."

"You must have left it unlocked," Nereus said.

"That's not how-" Will started.

"Now," Nereus interrupted, "I have something you need to see."

Will sighed and gave Nereus a fondly exasperated smile. For a second, he looked just like Thomas, his father.

"Can it wait?" Will asked. "We just had something come up, and Kaiko thinks we should head back to home base."

"Ah, how is Fontaine?" Nereus asked, as though the thought just occurred to him.

"How'd you know it had to do with Fontaine?" Will asked in a resigned tone.

"It was only a matter of time." Nereus sobered and pulled the scroll from his belt. "I found some information about the curse that Fontaine needs to hear."

Will tensed. "What about the curse?"

Nereus tapped the scroll. "It's a protection curse."

"That sounds counterproductive," Ant said.

"Ant has a point," Will said.

"The curse only takes effect if there is danger. Your daughter and the spirit are frightened. We must remedy the situation before it gets worse."

"I don't really think it could get worse," Will sighed, moving the pilot's seat. "Where are you?"

"Look up," Nereus said. "And, William?"

Will paused. "Yes?"

"I don't believe the worst is over yet."

Will frowned. "I don't understand."

Nereus shook his head. "The curse is complicated. I must explain it to Fontaine, and she will decide what to tell you."

"Why?"

"The curse can become worse when the cursed feels they have lost control," Nereus said. "By simply giving Fontaine this choice, you will do more for her than you realize."

As Nereus had hoped, Will accepted the explanation with a simple nod. Nereus knew he brought worrying news that Will and Kaiko might not want Fontaine to know, but there was simply no choice. The lives of two kids were on the line, and it was only fair that they knew the entire story.

A/N: AshyGurl101 mentioned Jeffrey glaring at Nereus, so I had to include it. XD

I've been toying with an idea about why Nereus is the way he is for awhile now. Now, it's possible that he does just like to be mysterious, but when have I ever done anything the easy way? ;)

Finn passing out was written from personal experience, so I can assure you that 1. Finn got himself safely to the floor (for me, after everything went blank, I opened a door and was halfway down the hall before my body decided it needed to be on the ground) and 2. I don't know when everything went from white to black, but that's how it happened.