The Great Barrier

Chapter

: The Recovery

Nova looked over at all of the mermaids gathered in front of her. Some time had passed since she ran into the two humans in the coral reef. The mermaids standing before her were healthy, thriving, and, for the first time in thirty years, finally happy. Not only had the students used the paintbrushes to save the entire reef, but the massive outpouring of support had convinced the government to enact urgent climate control laws. Slowly, but surely, they got to see the reef, the desolate place that they had lived for years, start to come back to life and bloom into a beautiful environment. She remembered the moment that her mother apologised to her for doubting the humans after seeing the massive crowd of students painting the reef. She looked out at the bright coral, which had been grey and decaying just months ago, and spoke. “There was a point in time where we were in a terrible situation that wasn’t our fault in the slightest and we had no control over. We felt like there was no hope. And we felt like no one else would understand how we felt even a tiny bit, and never would. To be honest, no one can ever really feel what someone else feels. That’s just how life is; we all have different lives, different experiences. But there were plenty of good people in the world, who even if they didn’t feel our pain, would empathise with us and stand with us. All it took was two people who believed in us to get us to where we are today.” With that, Ophelia and Owen swam out in front of her, in scuba suits. Nova had taught all of the mermaids what clapping was and how to do it. It was a human symbol of appreciation that they would love, she said. And it that moment, the mermaids showered the two humans with thunderous applause. Nova caught a quick glance at Ophelia; even in her suit, she could see that she was overwhelmed, but proud. In that moment it didn’t matter that they were humans; all that mattered was that they had done the right thing. Finally, there was harmony.