Song Of The Sea, A Narry Fanfiction Chapter 2

Niall entered a beachside cottage marked "Marine Research Center". He walked in and found an elderly man at the front desk.
"Hello, sir. May I use a phone?"
"Yes. Please wait a moment."
The man disappeared into the back room and Niall looked around the room. On the walls, there were pictures of sea monsters, Cthulhu, and mermaids. He walked up to a fuzzy picture of a mermaid. It had been taken from quite a distance, but he could almost make out a bright red tail...
"Here you are, boy."
"...Thank you," Niall replied slowly, tearing his eyes from the unfocused picture. He shakily dialed his father's number, and he picked up quickly.
"Hello, Horan residence."
"Dad?"
"Niall? You're alive? I thought you died in the shipwreck."
"N...no dad. I'm still alive. I'm at the beach. Could you come get me?"
"Walk."
"Dad, it's, um, twenty miles."
"Fine. I'll get there when I feel like driving there."
"A...alright dad. See you then. Bye."
His dad hung up without saying goodbye. Niall looked at the man at the counter, who raised his eyebrow. Niall quickly thanked him and walked out of the store, head down. He sat next to the cliffs, looking out at the vast ocean. He squinted, trying to catch a glimpse of a red tail, but all he saw were seagulls and more water.

It was late at night when Niall's dad came to pick him up. Niall was quite scared at what his father would do, seeing Niall had cause so much trouble. He climbed into the car, expecting insults or yelling. But there wasn't. It was silent. Actually, his father didn't speak for the whole ride. Niall found it quite frightening. If his father wasn't speaking, he knew something horrible was waiting for
him at home. 

When they walked in the door, Niall tried to escape to his room. It didn't work. His dad grabbed him by the back of the shirt and threw him carelessly against the wall. He held his arm, making finger-shaped bruises on his pale skin. Niall inwardly winced. His father leaned closer, hot breath in his face.
"You were trying to run away weren't you ? You were trying to find your worthless, scumbag mum, WEREN"T YOU?!!
Niall gasped and tried to pry his dad's fingers off his arm. He could barley feel his hand anymore.
"No, dad! The ship crashed, and I just woke up today!"
"DON'T FUCKING LIE TO ME, BOY!"
Niall's father slapped him across the face, the sound penetrating the tense air. A patch of red bloomed on Niall's creamy cheek, and he struggled to hold in tears. His dad kneed him in the stomach and Niall fell to the ground in a heap. His dad continued to kick him, and blood spurted from every available opening on his face. His father spat on him and walked away, leaving Niall to slip into darkness and oblivion.

When Niall woke, the first thing he noticed was that his eye hurt like hell. He sat up, and looked around him. He saw rocks piled on top of each other, forming different caves and tunnels. In from of him, a big archway was constructed of gems and seaweed. The big thing he noticed, though, was that he was submerged in water. It sparkled and shimmered around him, and he saw a strip of sunlight slip through a hole in the cave. He tried to swim up, but he noticed he no longer had two human legs. He looked down and saw... A tail. A mermaid's tail. It was blue, studded with jade and amethyst, and it was elegant, and beautiful, and everything he could've ever wished for. Across the cave, he saw the boy from the beach. He was perched on a boulder, arms crossed and fins flipping lazily. He smiled a sweet, crooked smile, showing perfectly white teeth. His curly brown hair was held strangely in place, despite the water. His tail was bright red, embedded with orange gems and golden specks. He swam over smoothly and gracefully, and sat on a rock next to Niall.
"Hello, love what's your name?" he said in a slow, almost dreamlike voice.
"Niall," Niall replied.
"Welcome, Niall. I'm Harry. Long time, no see. You sure do get hurt a lot, don't you?"
Niall laughed
"Not until recently. How'd I get here?"
"Well, two men was carrying you to the beach, and I hear one say you were dead. I guessed they were trying to... Hide the evidence. So they tossed you off the cliff into the ocean. I swam over, and found you still alive, but just barley. I turned you into a mermaid to save your life."
"Wow. I guess a thank you is definitely owed."
Harry visibly blushed.
"It was my pleasure. Just like it was saving you from the shipwreck."
Niall grinned and Harry rubbed the back of his neck shyly.
"So, have you been a mermaid all your life?"
"No. About 5 years, give or take a few months."
"How'd you become one?"
"My best friend, Louis, is a mermaid. I fell off a shipwreck. I was passed saving as a human, so he changed me."
"Oh, ok. By the way, your voice is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard in my life."
"Thank you. Most mermaids have the best voices. The ones that don't mostly get ignored."
Niall gulped. He had never sung before.
"Niall, it's getting late. We should swim home."
"Home?"
"We live in the Kingdom of Diretopia."
"We?"
"Me, my family, my friends, and now you."
Harry took off at speeds unknown to boats or land vehicles. Niall followed, but he was still a bit clumsy and awkward, seeing he had just gotten his tail. Harry took the hint and slowed down. Soon enough, a gold castle inlaid with precious gems and pearls came into view. Mermen and women swam about in a whirl of rainbow colored tails. Merchildren play ball with rocks and built watery sand castles. It was gorgeous, and harmonious, and everything Niall had ever dreamed about.
"Niall," Harry said, spreading his arms, gesturing to the bustling square.
"Welcome home."