The Thirteenth Year II: Arianne's story

By Andrea Young

*Note: This story takes place a year after the original movie, The Thirteenth Year. *

Cody returned from the sea on the day before school was due to start for the year. At age fourteen, Cody was a mer-boy. Yes, with scales and a tail, and all. He had accepted that being a mer-boy was about as unusual as life was going to get. Boy, was he in for a surprise.

Arianne-nickname Arrow-was a girl about age twelve. She had never known her parents, or had anyone adopt her. All that was about to change. She would find out that day something so strange and mysterious that it would mystify her for the rest of her life. That was the day she met Cody Griffin. Cody said that he'd been looking for her for a week. He'd been told by his mom that Arianne had been coming to the beach for some time, because she loved the water. His mom also revealed what Cody now told Arianne-that she was in fact his sister!

Cody found out that Arianne had lived her whole life as an orphan-never knowing her real parents. He managed to convince his parents to adopt Arianne, after convincing her to come home with him and meet them. Arianne grew to like the Griffins. Eventually she also grew to accept Cody as her brother. In time Arianne became like one of the family.

Then, things started to happen the year Arianne turned thirteen. Cody, who had already suspected what was going on, was ready for it. Arianne, on the other hand, wasn't. She got out of bed that morning and shocked her alarm clock when she tried to turn it off! She told the family about it at the breakfast table, and Cody's suspicions were confirmed. He told Arrow he had something important to tell her, and asked her to meet him in his room after breakfast.

When she came in the room, she asked Cody what he wanted to tell her. "You may want to sit down for this," Cody told her. She did. "Okay, I don't know how to tell you this without springing it on you, but, you're a mermaid," Cody told her. "I'm a what?" she asked. "A mermaid," Cody replied. "And I suppose you're a mer-boy," Arrow said sarcastically. "Actually-despite your sarcastic tone-I am," Cody said. She still didn't believe him, so he showed her several ways that she was a mermaid-climbing walls and ceilings, shocking things, etc-to prove his point. When she didn't believe after all that, he took her into the bathroom and showed her how he grew scales when he got wet-and then proved that the same thing happened with her. Finally she asked her parents and they confirmed what Cody had told her. Things didn't end there though.

After that she had several near-crises. During a race at a swim team competition, Arrow sprouted scales, as did Cody. They escaped people seeing what was going on by -together-shorting out the scoreboard from the water, and then running for it. When their parents found out that they'd gone to the meet they were furious. They had expressly forbid Cody and Arrow from going to that meet, and they had sneaked out. Eventually Sam followed Cody and Arrow home and found out that Arrow was a mermaid like Cody.

Finally, though, when Cody took Arrow out in the water to meet their biological mom, the biggest change happened for both of them. They suddenly fell over in pain. The worst had happened. Arrow watched as her foot slowly morphed into a fin right before her eyes. Cody was used to it, but that didn't make it any less painful. Finally Cody signaled Mr. Wheatly-Jess's dad-telepathically to come help them like last time. Soon enough Mr. Wheatly showed up and helped them onto the boat. Soon they were at the pier. Cody told Jess what was going on so that he could see them off. Finally Cody and Arrow were in the water with their mom. Cody said goodbye to Jess and then splashed Arrow with his tail. Arrow was after him in an instant yelling, "You're gonna pay for that Cody!" "You've gotta catch me first!" Cody called, and with that she chased him off into the distance not to return until next year. That was the one thing Cody and Arrow's mom always promised-to have them back in time for school. But next year they would have an even bigger surprise.