by Nikki Andrade
Chapter 2
A Soul Reunion
"Not You Again,"
The mermaid strains her eyes from beneath the ocean's surface to find four tiny reindeer-like feet barely supporting their weight in the middle of the grand ocean. She pops her head above water and flips her tail around to stop the boats momentum.
"Esmeralda! Finally, I nearly caught a current and drowned myself out here waiting for you," the antelope says. "Where have you been my love?"
"What are you doing in Neptune's forsaken ocean Hercules? You have no idea the lengths I've had to go through to save your rear end, again. Again and again and again. Can't you find another more useful physicality to circumvent in this gazillionth of a lifetime. ¡Ah, qué putas! You haven't figured it out yet Hercules, really?"
"And that's why I love you Esmeralda," the antelope softening his gaze and his eyes melting away at the sight of Esmeralda's soul once again, but this time in the form of a breath-taking mermaid. How mystical, how magical she is, to simply exist out of the minds and into the imagination of all things in all ways in all times.
"You've always been the intelligent one. You still look as beautiful as ever, Esmeralda," Hercules begins caressing the bow with his left cheek, as he settles in on the head to finally retreat.
"I will cut you, I will eat you alive. Just like in our last life."
Hercules, fighting back laughter, apologizes, "you have every right. I am so sorry."
Esmerealda releases the horns. Hercules goes on, :"it was incredibly selfish of me to cross the Atlantic, in flee, for my life!"
"you know how to manage hungry lions and greedy men Hercules, don't start with that victim, oh woe is me, all over again.
"Easy for you to say, you've been at the bottom of the ocean drowning in Stacy's plastic this whole time, haven't you?"
A goldfish flops on deck, in her high pitched morally correct righteousness, "you know we've actually implemented a lot of recycling programs down there that seem to be really helping. There are skater fish now eating shrimpy shrimp because there were so many shrimpy shrimp eating everything except the plastic, can you imagine that? And well now, we have....yea well, we still have a lot of plastic but a lot less shrimpy shrimp which makes things much more bearable. Because the majority of beings down there never really liked the shrimpy shrimp in the first place. So that's progress. Everything is progress when you look at it the right way.
Hercules and Esmeralda stare at her, precariously, the air begins to hotten with unresolved tension. Anger boils in the silence until its rotten and forgotten. Hercules and Esmeralda turn to one another, almost as if they could share each others pain. At least they can agree on their mutual dislike for Stacy, the little goldfish thats always talking about change.
"Alright. I need a moment," Esmeralda flops down to the deck. Hercules wraps around the other side of the boat to meet her.
"Yea so, what's my plan....I mean the plan, my love," Hercules turns to Esmeralda, but his slip of the tounge unveils him.
"You don't remember anything, do you," Esmeralda squeamishly rolls her eyes.
"What?"
Esmeralda sighs crawling to the back of the boat.
"What?" Hercules follows. "¡This is going to be fun you and me, tu y yo, ortra vez! ¡Hey Whasss Up!
Esmeralda mutters to herself, "I can't believe I'm stuck with this nonsense again. Again and again. again and again. Does this ever end?"
She dives off the boat in contemplation of swimming far, far away into the abyss. And just when that thought is about to overcome her, her gaze drops down to the neatly fasted rope, now along her wrists. She can't leave the boat like this. And as the grief of duty begins to set in, she now realizes that, perhaps she is the one who doesn't remember a darn thing.
She lifts her chest to the rising moon, her hair swaying in song - "sing song, I see...ding dong, 'll be, waiting for thee. waiting like a clown i'll be. Thanking the ocean for me."
Hercules takes his rest at the seat of the boat, closing his eyes until the sun meets them again. While Esmeralda floats, letting the ocean come back in.