Robert swam as fast as he could, breaking the surface of the water and climbing up on the shores of the tiny Island Farhee. As he pulled his long tail onto the bank after him, his purple gills quivering in the cold night air, he searched the waters between Farhee and Shainghelm for the fiery, red-tailed Nicole. Nicole, his baby sister, had married and moved to Shainghelm to be with her husband’s clan, as all Merwomen do, and they had not seen each other in a decade. As he peered into the dark, calm waters he saw a flash of red and with joy filling his eyes he dove into the water, eager to be reunited with his little ‘Nicky’. As he spotted her and gleefully embraced her in his arms, his heart saddened slightly to know that they would only have a short four weeks together, if only he could go with her.