The Boy Who Loved a Mermaid — Part 1

 is the twenty-third chapter of Natsumi Mukai's +Anima manga.

Synopsis
November 23rd, being spied on by Marca Brighton, Cooro and friends arrive in Polly Port. Since it is the first time Cooro, Nana Alba and Senri have seen the ocean they are excited. They go to the shoreline but end up being hit by a wave, and grimace at the saltiness. Husky wanders off by himself down the Blue Cove and almost sees Marca, but she gets away. Soon after, Husky comes across a boy, Kevin, who is drowning; there is no one else around, so Husky uses his Anima to save the boy. After pulling him onto land, Husky hears some other boys coming so he flees. The other boys find Kevin lying on the ground, mumbling about a mermaid.

Later, looking for a place to sleep, the +Anima children come across a seemingly disused hut. The hut's owner soon comes along and interrogates them; after they explain, he takes them back to his home. To Husky's surprise, Kevin is the man's son, so he uses his scarf to hide his face. Kevin is teased by his father for having nearly drowned despite being a "man of the sea", so Kevin recounts his rescue by a mermaid. While Nana is enamored by his story, Husky tries to keep out of Kevin's eyeline, but he sneezes, bringing attention to himself. Kevin's father goes to fetch some blankets for the children to use in the hut.

In the hut, Nana laughs about Husky being Kevin's mermaid. Husky blames the situation on Kevin's poor eyesight. Cooro compares it to Husky's role as the Mermaid Princess in the circus, which he explains to Nana. She continues to tease Husky, but he snaps at her; Husky doesn't agree with her joking about someone drowning, but shortly into his rebuke he finds himself at a loss for words and goes straight to bed.

The next day, the Kevin's friends are discussing the mermaid. They decide to catch it and make money off of it. Nana is able to convince them that mermaids like shiny things, so they throw money and other objects into the ocean, which Husky is able to collect. After three days they run out of mermaid bait, then one of them remembers something shiny in Kevin's father's hut.

The cold air and the repeated swimming sessions have made Husky sicker. While sitting on a cliff, Kevin brings him some medicine. Feeling Kevin's gaze, Husky feels the need to make clear that he is a boy. Kevin laughs, but also compares his blue eyes to the mermaid's. Husky questions why Kevin is so obsessed with the mermaid, and Kevin tells him that he is descended from one.

Cooro, Nana and Senri are cleaning the hut before they leave, wondering where Husky is. Cooro finds a mermaid tail tucked away in a corner.