Scroll down to read the full “Unusual Night” Mermay 2020 recap!
The unusual night
Once every other weekend, ten year old Noah joins his younger brother Isaiah at their father’s very unusual house. These weekends are always special for the brothers, seeing as Noah spends most of his time two hours inland with his mother while Isaiah lives always with his parents in the house beneath the sea. However, in the hours just past midnight one weekend like any other, the boys stir suddenly in their beds to find a sight more unusual than ever before...
The sea creatures that drift quietly all day and all night outside the thick glass have gathered quite abruptly in a very strange crowd. Stranger yet, little lights like distant stars sparkle on their shadowed bodies in the salty sea beyond the windows. The brothers creep from their beds, and as the chill from the floor sends shivers up their backs they spot a strange shape by the tail of a hammerhead shark. Is it... a mermaid? But before they’ve even turned their heads, the shape has vanished into the cloudy depths.
With the mermaid off deep in the darkness and out of sight, the next logical step of course is to make a research outpost. They decide together on the living room due to its expansive windows and ample research material. Luckily, these brothers are extremely adept in the art of fort-making. Isaiah’s mom is something of a connoisseur of pillow forts, and keeps a chest of fort materials stocked for the boys next to the couch in case of emergencies. This certainly seems to qualify. Does fort-construction take a considerable amount of time away from observation and research? Yes. Is it necessary? Also yes.
With their outpost established, the brothers take to their individual duties. Isaiah stands posted on the couch, trusty binoculars in hand, and Noah tears through all available texts on the topics of mermaids and bioluminescence.
After a very long and arduous ten-minutes-or-so of research, the boys realize that snacks will almost certainly clear their minds and improve the quality of their science. Isaiah runs down the hall to grab crackers and peanut butter from the kitchen, but a sight above the greenhouse window stops him in his tracks.
A mother whale and her tender child sing softly as they pass like drifting clouds above the house. Isaiah, whom in all other circumstances is single-minded when it comes to snacks, cannot help but stand rooted in awe and reverence.
Just before the whales pass out of sight, something else catches his eye too… it’s the mermaid! She’s headed for the study!
The brothers run together toward the study with a flashlight in hand, ready to wield it like a shining signal. They wait, silent, watching the eagle rays drift gently by, until the perfect moment arises... and then... they switch on the light.
The boys stand frozen in time, face to face with the mermaid, and as they look at her she looks at them too. Though they are young, they feel the weight of this moment as two worlds join from separate sides of glass.
Without knowing why, Noah finds himself moved to put his small hand up against the icy window. And then…
Isaiah tears after the mermaid as she disappears to the east, and Noah can barely keep up despite his longer legs. Somehow, as they cross the landing, they catch up with her for just an instant before she disappears into the murky darkness yet again.
But... how? Noah wonders… how could they possibly have caught up to a creature that could vanish in the blink of an eye?
The brothers chase the mermaid through the hollow glass tunnel toward the eastern wing, and while Noah is distracted by the glowing great whites, Isaiah notices something strange... the mermaid is swimming against the current, west for once... could she be doubling back for them?
As the brothers run through the game room and up the stairs, they can't help but pause. A massive jellyfish, two stories tall, floats in the water and pulses with shining light. The screens and lights in the game room seem to be responding as well, flickering and dancing in rhythm. And the mermaid... she certainly is waiting for them, swimming soft circles in the starry water. They pause, both silent, and the only sound is the distant thunder of the waves against the shore above.
The mermaid leads them in silence as far as the house will allow.
the final ascent
As they climb the stairs at the end of the walkway and approach the final room, furthest to the east, light suddenly explodes like fireworks in the water just outside the window.
Noah and Isaiah’s underwater adventure returns May of 2021!
