It was a beautiful afternoon around the summertime that year. The sunlights shone through the water surface to the bottom of the water where a few sea denizens were having a pleasant conversation with each other. A few fishes were swimming around them, some are hiding in the corals surrounding their sitting—or floating—place.

The oldest of the group was talking to one of the five youths in front of her, which is also the youngest and the only male in that group, though the one she’s been giving her cautious words seems a bit impatient.

“...and remember Lys, don’t stray away from the path. Don’t let any humans see you. Don’t even try to get too close. And also, don’t-“

“Yes, yes, yes, I got it!” He said exasperatedly, “You’ve been saying the same things for... some months? Years? I got it, grandma, I really do. But honestly, when you warn me that intensely, you made me tempted to do it more.”

The time the blond haired youth finished the sentences, he felt a slap on the back of his head. He glared at the one whom lunged the attack behind him and met with another attack on both of his cheeks by the attacker.

“Bhe shel-het ee goo!” he said while trying to peel the other’s palms from his face, but the lady doesn’t want to let go that easily.

She glared at her little brother handsome face that’s looked at her with the same expression she made and said, “Fish head! When you still have the nerve to cut off grandmamma words like you always do is a proof that you’re still a child. Listen for once will ya!” she said with pouting lips.

The blondie she lectured also pouted in return, mimicking her and successfully freeing his face from the pissed looking lady in front of him. She fold her arms, floating in front of him. The black scales that covering her tail simmering with her movements.

Lys wasn’t happy with her attitude—as she also does—, so he huffed with disdain and knitted his eyebrows at his third older sister to see. He flicked his hair that has grown longer than his shoulder swiftly, making the beautiful blond hair swaying slowly as he moves.

“I am listening. In fact I’ve been hearing the same words over and over again for a long time and I’m not complaining even once!”

“Until now,” she add.

“...”

Lys have no words to say to his sister and glared at her again, making the other raised her chin and staring back at the youth with narrowed eyes.

When the two of them seemed ready to flap their bottom at each other, the second youngest of the sibling patted their shoulder respectively. She looked at her sister face and said slowly, “Sort, there’s no need of violence, does it?” then she turned to her brother’s direction, “Lys, you know that we’re doing this for you, right? We just don’t want anything bad happens to you because we love you.”

Her words take the two attention to her. She smiled and her ruby red eyes looked at the two earnestly.

Lys still knitted his eyebrows, but no longer have the murdering intent on his eyes when he looked at his other sister.

Seeing that he still doesn’t plan to give up, Lysegrøn, the oldest of the five sibling chip in, “Lys, we all worried because we know your personality and how you feel about this coming of age ritual. There’s no day when you doesn’t said you want to go and see the Surface—ah... I miss our ‘Lil Lys—, but of course we know how you want to immediately explore the Surface, and looking at you, you might immediately forgotten that the Land up there is a dangerous place and you may get in trouble later when you get mesmerized by the beautiful landscape—that does made me miss the beautiful Land...—but Rød is right, we did this because we love you, so you can at least listen to our words.”

Lys sighed when she finished her sentences. Her sometimes off point words was distracting, but he know she’s right when she said he would lose his attention of the surrounding area once he got fixated with something. It’s not the first time after all.

He said, “I know, sis, I know. But come on now. I know the rules alright? In fact, the words had been engraved into my brain I could say it words by words without messing with the sentences. Don’t do this, don’t do that, I. GOT. IT. Give me a break already!”

“Really, you’re such a kid!” Sort said.

“But today is my birthday! Ain’t I supposed to be treated like a king and be able to do whatever I want? And I’ve been waiting to be able to see the Land for like—forever? Cut me some slack!”

“Speaking of that, you’re a prince by default and you’ve been doing whatever you want from the moment you were born, so it’s mean everyday is already your birthday and also, you’ll be seeing the Surface sometime around today anyway, so why not wait a little longer?” the other lady with wavy brown hair reasoned. Lilla is the second oldest from the five, and when she smiled sweetly at the youth, he arch up one his eyebrows.

“Seriously, sis?” he said it with a jeering tone.

“Yup, I’m serious,” she giggled, “as serious as a dolphin can be.”

He huffed some bubbles of water for her words. A look of disdain showed clearly on his face, which made the lady giggled more. Even thought she is the most rational of the five followed by the oldest. She loves to make jokes and fangirling over his brother too often; making Lys losing his respect for her moral integrity over the years.

Seeing this, Lysegrøn shakes her head and grabbed both of her brother hands and make him look at her in the process.

“Lyseblå, look at me,” she said commandingly.

Lys obviously wanted to look away, but her sharp and at the same time soft emerald eyes made the youth unable to look away from her. A sense of nostalgia always fills him whenever she did this, and she has always manage to made Lys listen to her words every time she pulls this little act.

Lys could only stared at her helplessly. She then started taking with a serious tone at him after she’s sure he won’t look away.

“Lys, listen to me. You’re free to think that this one week journey as a fun trip and all, but seriously, it’s not that simple. All of us had waited for twenty five years to finally be able to see the Land too. You must remember that I told you guys that I almost had a heart attack when a human child looked at my direction that time. But since he’s cute and think that I’m just an ordinary fish, it’s fine.”

“That ‘cute' part is unnecessary.”

She ignored him.

“And it is awesomely beautiful and amazing, magnificent and majestic at the same time I don’t even have any words to describe them.” She sighed, “I want to see the Land again...”

“...Sis, you’re literally saying that you want to go up again...”

She ignored him again and continued, “But even so, there’s a lot of dangers lurking at every corner and you do remember why we don’t openly go to observe the Land anymore, don’t you? Hence why you can’t get too close or they might harm you, and if they do, there’s always a consequence to pay. I do not need to remind you about that, no?”

Lys didn’t answer her question. It is clear that the ‘consequences’ she mentioned mean ‘death, war and more death’.

The story he know stated that in order to make an harmonious relationship with the humans, the coming of age mers will come to see the land and made contact with them in a friendly manner, exchanging information and goods of the Sea with knowledge and culture of the Land, a long, long time ago.

Two different race live harmoniously for decades, until the humans stared to become greedy and wants more.

The humans saw the mers who’s brought the goods from the Sea with envy, and apart from the ability to live underwater and find the things the humans founds as high value items at ease, the mers can easily live over three hundred years and one of the king at that time wants to know the secret of the longevity of the mers. That’s the theory anyway.

It all started by the kidnapping of the mers. It was a subtle action, they will lure the inexperienced and curious young mers with a carriage with a big tub filled with water, saying that it will be easier to learn the culture of the humans if they were to be carried around the city by them.

No one really knew what happened after that. But they never came back.

After finding out the disappearing young mers were the humans evil works, the mer-king at the time issues emergency to the others Sea Kingdoms and declared war to the humans.

The next thing that happen is a blood bath.

Lys doesn’t remember what happened exactly since he’s not that interested in history and skipped his study time whenever possible, but he recall his teacher said that after the war, the two races never contacted each other again, and the merfolks made the one week journey as a coming of age ritual as a reminder of the ugliness of humans heart and doubles as a test for the young mers, though the purpose has shifted from its original purpose after some centuries.

Nowadays the young mers treated the ritual as a fun trip for the brave and curious while the other treated it as a pain in the fin because it require a long distance swimming to reach the closest Land.

When Lysegrøn saw that he got distracted with his thought, she said, “Lys, come on, you need to be prepared for everything that might happens the time you go up there.”

The others nodded in agreement. Lys glanced at them one by one and then closes his eyes and blew out some air bubbles.

“I know, sis, but still...” Lys suddenly feeling tired of this conversation.

Lysegrøn smiled softly and hugged her little brother. Seeing that Lys did not resist the hug, the other three sister following suit and wrapping their arms around the youth’s body, though there’s a pout in one of the sister’s face. Lys feels suffocated by their bone crushing hugs, but didn’t push them away and sighed.

“Alright, I promise you guys I wouldn’t stray away from the path and be extra cautious around the humans habitat. It’s not like I’m allowed to go to the Land on my own though,” he said after the sisters letting go of him a long seconds after.

“Well, Dad most likely going to send one or two royal guards with you. He never really trust your-ah, ‘carefree’ self, wasn’t he?” said Sort, still pouting, but there’s a clear playfulness on her black eyes.

“Not like it could be helped, just make sure you don’t bully the guards too much,” Rød said softly.

“I’m not a bully. You guys are the real bully here.”

“Like what? Example please,” said Lysegrøn with a soft smile. But despite the warm looking smile, Lys feels a chill on his back scales.

“...forget it, pretend I never said anything.”

“Aww...” she sighed regretfully.

Lys rubbed his arms unconsciously, feeling that a cold tide passes silently just now.

“Oh, but I wonder if there would come a time where we ever see you act mature, fall in love, and have a family on your own... with little Lys...” she said solemnly.

“Well, that’s something that might happen a long long time in the future, but we probably gonna became an old ladies first before that time come... I mean, who can stands a kid like him?” Sort commented mercilessly.

“None, obviously. Except if they’re not sane or blind or only after the throne or forced into marrying you or just bat shit crazy-“

“Lysegrøn, language please,” their forgotten grandmother that has been silently listening to their argument and showcase of affection to their little brother on the sideline suddenly blocking the oldest words, but there’s an obvious fondness and amusement on her face when she said the sentence.

“Oops, excuse my rudeness, grandmother,” she said, her tail that full with light green scales swiping the ocean floor swiftly, and she’s back at her usual graceful (pretended) manner.

“It’s fine, don’t be that formal to me. And you already said the last probability the first time around,” the older lady said with a smile on her aging face.

“Really? Well, anyone can add more?” she asked nonchalantly at the others, and they’re more than eager to give their piece of thought.

“How about... ugly?”

“Has nasty personalities?”

“Sickly?”

“Oh, and if the person is... a... male?!” the other three ‘Ooh’-ing when the word is spoken. The corner of Lys’s eye twitched.

“That’s very plausible, Lilla. I never thought of the possibility before, you opened my eyes.” Lysegøn rubbed her chin, acting as if she is thinking deeply.

“It might happen, don’t you think?” Lilla grinning proudly.

“I’ll give him my blessings if it happens.” Sort raise her hand in a vowing manner.

“It would be wonderful if it’s true,” Rød smiled at her brother. The corner of Lys’s eye twitched vigorously at their comments.

“Oh for crabs sake,” Lys cursed, “can you guys not making fun of me every time?!” remembering that his grandmother is still there, he used a curse word that’s a little harmless, albeit wanting to use a more colorful fishes.

“Well, do you have anything to add why someone might want to marry you?” Sort asked.

“How about they just love me sincerely and I love them back equally? Isn’t that a better answer?”

“Hmm... that’s reasonable.”

“That’s true. You somehow gotten smarter. Bless Mother Sea for that.”

“But... Lys, did you eat something bad? A long dead clam, maybe?” Lilla asked suddenly.

“Huh? Where did that question came from?” Lys asked confusedly.

“Well, you see, you’ve been acting like an idiot for the longest time, so this kind of good answer is unexpected,” she answered. The other three ‘Ooh’-ing for the second time, while the corner of Lys’s eye began to twitch again.

“I knew it! It’s strange for him to be that smart so suddenly!” Lysegrøn seemed to be having the second revelation of the day.

“Does your stomach feels okay?” Rød pat his stomach worriedly, but she’s smiling.

“You got a point. Lys, spew it out.” Sort patted his back not that softly.

Lys was at loss, rubbed his forehead and showed a sullen expression.

“...I hate you all.”

“Nope. You love me.”

“And me too.”

“ME ME ME!”

“You love the four of us. Stop pretending like you’re not, our precious, cute, sweety sea little brother.”

Lys looked at his sisters with disgusted face and sighed with disdain.

“...Alright, I gave up. All of you is as disgusting as a dead fish. Now I’m gonna go get my blessings and off to the Surface. Goodbye.”

“If the fish just dead recently then its called lunch. Plus, you seemed to forget the fact that you need to go back here in a week time.”

“Shuddup, you deflated blowfish.”