Cora had been skeptical when Mason had arrived at the inlet with a wheelchair and a blanket, but she had to admit that it was going rather well so far. It had taken a bit of effort to get her into the chair in the first place, and she had felt awkward when she kept slipping out of his grasp, although she hadn't minded being so close to him. Now they were slowly making their way through Neverland, with Mason pushing her as well as he could while also trying to manage his crutch.
"Excuse us," he called out as they came to a large group looking at the Weather Tree. The crowd parted so they could pass through. "Thank you so much," Mason said affably, hobbling over the rough ground. "It's like the blind leading the blind here and this terrain isn't very friendly!"
Cora was wearing a shirt Mason had brought and clutching the blanket that concealed her tail. She was afraid that it would snag on something and reveal her bottom half. Finally they reached the elevator that would take them out of Neverland and into London. Cora was practically shaking with excitement as they waited in line to leave. She hadn't been outside of Neverland since she was a very young girl, and she couldn't wait to see the city.
When they reached the front of the line, the elevator doors opened and Jack Baker stepped out. Cora's breath caught in her throat. If there was anyone that would keep her from leaving Neverland, it would be him. His eyes grew wide as he looked at Cora, then at Mason, then back at Cora. He opened his mouth to say something, then shook his head and walked away. Cora released her breath as Mason wheeled her into the elevator. She was excessively grateful that for once Jack Baker had left her alone.
*****
"That is the most glorious tail I have ever seen! Look at the pattern of the scales! Magnificent!"
The only thing that kept Cora from slapping Doctor Glasser in the face was the fact that he might be able to help her. She was also still in a good mood from everything she had seen on the way to Doctor Glasser's facility. She had been amazed at the enormity of London. The buildings were awe-inspiring, the energy was palpable, the people were so interesting, and there were so many of them. She'd gotten used to the sparse population of Neverland, so being in the midst of all the crowds was a little overwhelming.
They had wound though numerous streets until they came to Doctor Glasser's facility, which seemed rather removed from everything else. The Doctor himself appeared nice enough, if not a bit eccentric and tactless. He was tall and thin with large eyes and wispy grey hair that stuck out at odd angles.
"So, is there any way to get it off?" Cora asked. She was beginning to feel uncomfortable with the way the doctor was stroking her fin as she sat on the operating table.
"Off, my dear? Why, if I had something as glorious as your tail, I'd never want to part with it! Don't you agree, Mason?"
Mason had been observing the initial examination while leaning against the wall, but now he straightened and quirked an eyebrow. "It is a beautiful tail," he said, "but I imagine it would make getting around town rather difficult."
"Not if she lived in Venice," Doctor Glasser commented.
Mason inclined his head. "True, but those canals are notoriously filthy."
Doctor Glasser nodded. "Excellent point." He turned back to Cora. "Well, we won't know anything for sure until we do some scans."
He went to the corner of the room and wheeled over a large, clunky contraption that looked like it hadn't been used in decades. He instructed Cora to lie down on the table, then detached a long apparatus from the main machine and positioned it over the top of her tail. The doctor was about to turn it on when he looked abruptly over at Mason.
"Maybe you'd better leave," Doctor Glasser said. "I don't know what I'm going to find under here, and it's best to give the young lady some privacy."
Mason sighed and secured his crutch. "I suppose you're right, but I hate to miss all the fun." He winked at Cora and left the room.
Cora wasn't thrilled to be alone with the doctor, but she was very glad that Mason wouldn't be there to see whatever freakish elements made up her tail. She knew that Mason liked her, but she didn't want all the gory details of her body to challenge those feelings.
Doctor Glasser powered on the machine, then guided the apparatus down the length of her tail. Then he pushed a few buttons and ran the instrument over her entire body all the way up to her neck. Then he pushed a few more buttons and disappeared to the other side of the machine.
"Oh my."
Cora flinched at the doctor's response, almost dreading what he had found. Doctor Glasser laboriously rotated the machine and directed Cora's attention to a small screen that displayed the internal structure of her body.
"Do you notice anything interesting?" Doctor Glasser asked.
Cora's mouth fell open. "I have legs!"
"That you do, my dear! And quite nice ones, it appears."
Cora ignored the inappropriate compliment and instead stared at the image of the two legs encased in her tail. She tried to move them one at a time, but the action seemed strange.
"And look at this!" Doctor Glasser exclaimed, pointing to a tube running down the length of the tail. "You have one of the most highly developed excretion systems I've ever seen! What a marvelous feat of engineering!"
Cora shifted uncomfortably. Talking about one's personal sewage arrangement was nothing to get excited about.
"Your tail is completely synthetic," the doctor continued, "and it's only attached at your waist. It seems to be grafted into your skin there, but we could cut it off and remove the remaining fibers quite easily, leaving only minimal scarring."
"Really?"
"Yes. With the right tools we could make a few snips, slip it off, frame it, and put it on the wall."
Cora frowned. The thought of mounting her tail on the wall was absurd and sickening. "Can you remove it right now?"
"Oh, no dear. I don't have the proper instruments at the moment. And then there's the matter of detaching that tube..."
"But you could do it, right?"
"Of course. I'd just need a few days to gather the tools."
Cora sighed in relief. It was possible. She could be normal. She had legs, so she was human. Although, there were other parts of her that still didn't make sense.
"If my tail is something someone just stuck on my body, then how can I live and breathe in the water?"
"Ah, this is the most fascinating part," Doctor Glasser replied, pointing to her full body scan and enlarging a spot on her neck. "I believe these tiny incisions are meant to replicate gills."
Cora felt the small bumps below her ear. They'd been there for so long that she'd forgotten that they were out of the ordinary.
"But a few cuts are not enough to enable a person to live in the water," he added. "We'd need more sophisticated equipment to know for sure, but I suspect that your genes are enhanced with the DNA of aquatic creatures."
Cora gulped. "Excuse me?"
"Like I said, it's just a hypothesis at this point, but it's likely that your body taking on the characteristics of fish is through absorbing their DNA. I've seen experiments like this before in the military. It would be incredibly useful for them to have soldiers that could swim abnormally fast, breathe underwater, withstand the pressure of extreme depths, and feel the approach of enemy ships. However, those experiments were never particularly successful. Perhaps the method of your implementation was more advanced."
Cora took a deep breath, trying to process what the doctor had just said. "Will these... characteristics ever go away?"
"I don't see why they would," Doctor Glasser responded with a wide smile. "You'll probably have these skills for the rest of your life."
Cora nodded. So she'd always be abnormal, but at least she could get rid of the most obvious part. "If I come back in a few days, would you remove my tail?"
"If that's what you want, I'd be happy to."
"Thank you," Cora said, already feeling a huge weight being lifted from her shoulders. "I'll find a way to pay you."
The doctor waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about it, my dear. Just come back in a week and I'll take care of everything."
*****
"It's been quite a day, hasn't it?" Mason remarked as he helped Cora out of the wheelchair and back into the lagoon by the inlet.
Cora met Mason's eyes and her heart began to pound in her chest. He was kneeling on the ground and he still had his arms around her. "It's been incredible," she replied, trying to keep her voice steady. "Life changing, actually."
She had told Mason what Doctor Glasser had discovered on the way back to Neverland, leaving out some of the more intricate parts, like how she relieved herself and how her genes were probably injected with fish DNA. She had arranged for Mason to take her back the next week so she could have her tail removed.
"So, are you excited to leave this lagoon?" Mason asked, bending down so that his face was even closer to hers.
"More than you could imagine."
Mason smiled. "Well, Cora, you should know that with or without your tail, you are lovely." And then he pressed his fingers against the back of her neck and kissed her. Cora felt like she could melt right there in the water, but she forced herself to hold her ground as she returned his kiss. She said a reluctant goodbye and could still imagine the feel of his lips long after he had disappeared into the jungle.