This is a pretty lengthy start to an idea of my rendition of A Little Mermaid.
All characters are eighteen or older.
Also, the excerpt in the beginning is a throwback to other fiction I've written. A little explanation of how I do my mythical creatures is sometimes needed, but footnotes aren't an option, sadly.
***
Though a well-known creature, merperson anatomy is commonly misrepresented due to centuries of misinformation.
Since they mate and possess gonads like humans, the trademark scales of a merperson begin to form beneath their buttocks and a few inches below their genitals. Their bottom halves are not one veritable fin. This mistaken assumption is due to the fact that, though mer-people do in fact have two separate "legs", they commonly swim with the appendages pressed tightly together. Their scaly limbs do end in luxurious "tailfins", however, which are composed of flimsy membranes. This makes it impossible for them to traverse to land, but they serve as beautiful props in mer mating rituals.
-- Excerpt from Mythic Observations by Aspen Leroux, p. 67, chapter III
***
Zelda burst through the surface of the ocean into chilly twilight air. After waiting a second for her gills to close - an initial reaction to air- and for her lungs to take over, the mermaid inhaled deeply, enjoying the scent of salt and fresh air. Nearby, lightly silhouetted against the setting sun, a galleon bobbed on the water. It wasn't the shadow that caught Zelda's attention, though, it was the indiscernible shrieking.
Zelda cautiously swam closer to the ship. Her father's warnings about humans flared in her mind, but they were ignored in favor of curiosity as the screams became louder. It took her a minute to realize the ruckus was originating from an open window that, presumably, led to the officers' quarters.
With the help of an opportune wave, the mermaid made short work of climbing the stern of the ship. Zelda perched herself onto a decorative ledge and peeked into the open window; she felt her heart twist and her lower stomach prickle in a mix of shock and excitement at the scene.
"Let go of me!" a blonde woman, adorned in a dingy dishwater brown dress, pounded her open hands against her attacker's chest. He had her trapped against a desk, his hips grinded unabashedly against hers. Chuckling, the man further pinned the woman against the desk by snatching her wrists.