A Mermaid Christmas

"Look down."

"Hey, dude, kinda hard, with, um, these...," Rachel deadpanned but each woman leaned their torsos forward and at a slight lean.

"What the—," Sarah started.

"Fuck!?!" Rachel completed.

In the still water it was clear that from the navel down Rachel's body was a single shape, blue, the deep blue of the ocean water just at the edge of sunlight's penetration. Sarah's form was the red of a ripe apple. They stared at their own and then the other's shape.

"Picture in your minds the tip lifting," Bezerg said, they looked at him, "please, trust me."

First the top of Sarah's then Rachel's 'tail' rose a bit. They lowered, then repeated as the expressions of strain lessened. They both managed a ripple the length of their new forms.

"I promised everyone the big reveal tomorrow. The two of you are the centrepiece. But not all of it. I'll also announce the start of our effort to legalise body modification."

"But, we're already working on approval for your tech for regrowing limbs," Rachel said, "but, but, this..."

"Is so much more."

"The Anastasias," Sarah said, "our tits, their tits. Oh. The video..."

"Yes. But, they're almost nothing. Just the perfection of breast implants. You'll find that like them yours feel natural—"

"Already noticed," Rachel said, not caring that she'd interrupted the man who was not only her boss but probably the most powerful man on earth. He smiled and clicked his control and the water bubbled anew.

"And your nipples are incredibly sensitive. I dialed that as high as I could, a gift for your efforts. You need about another hour of the water. Then we'll get you out and you'll find what your tails can do. Tomorrow you'll show off for everyone in the big pool."

"Tails," Rachel said.

"Tails. You'll find they're quite nice and very functional."

"Our legs," Sarah said a bit sharply, "our legs? Are they in there?"

"In a manner of speaking, but you'll find the tails have as much sensitivity, they're part of you."

"Do we get our legs back?"

"We'll be going through Christmas, everyone will be back tomorrow for the mermaid reveal and our announcement. This is what will allow humans to inherit the planets, the stars. And to make themselves into almost anything they want."

"But—"

"Now, Sarah, Rachel, work with me these next few days and all will be taken care of."

The two women looked at each other then both sighed and nodded at Bezerg.

"Okay then. I'm thinking," Rachel said, "I might keep these tits even after. Although, lose a couple of cup sizes. It's going to be challenge enough to learn to run with tits like that, much less what we've got now."

Sarah exhaled slowly, but then she chuckled and nodded. Bezerg's expression was one of calm determination.

"Challenge enough indeed," Bezerg said as he emptied his pitcher into their glasses, "finish these and I'll come back in an hour and we'll get to the lessons."

Sarah watched him walk for a bit then turned and caught Rachel's eyes. They both took deep breaths and drank the delicious smoothies, the liquid seemed to flow through their bodies like blood. It really was one of those glorious December days that caused Sarah to hope that whatever exactly Bezerg had in mind for her it didn't involve leaving LA. She smiled as she thought of her family shoveling snow.

Unwrapping the Christmas Gifts

The Anastasias weren't clones. Rachel didn't know what they were, but they weren't clones.

Sure, every last one of them had the most magnificent tits on earth. Well, except for hers and Sarah's. Huge, round, but with the slight jiggle of real flesh, not the unmoving overfilled ballon aspect of traditional fake tits. Perfectly round areolas. Nipples seemingly permanently erect and quite well proportioned. Had they been on B, C, even DD breasts, they'd have seemed overly large. But for the Anastasias? Perfect.

Just like those on the two mermaids.

If you'd seen an Anastasia only once, maybe even a few times, but never in a group, you'd likely think they WERE clones. Or there was only one of them very adept at changing wigs. But with experience you learned that their faces offered subtle differences, as if the template used to create them had a random number generator set between one and two percent of facial differences for each. That didn't answer what they really were but they and Bezerg were disinclined to answer questions not related to the task at hand, which was training Sarah and Rachel in how to use their temporary bodies.

But it was clear now that just as Sarah and Rachel were mermaids the Anastasias were, well, Anastasias. They all seemed to answer to that name. There were two of them now in the pool with the mermaids, one blonde, one brunette, both treading water with their charms hidden behind tiny colorful bikinis. Four of them in one-piece swimsuits very low cut at the breasts and very highly cut above each broad hip had accompanied Bezerg the day before to assist the mermaids out of the whirlpool after their allotted therapy time. They'd ferried them on low wheeled carts to the big pool and had jumped in alongside. A fifth Anastasia, the older blonde one who'd welcomed them to the party, and Bezerg had remained on the deck and both offered instructions and hints at controlling their tails.

It had taken practice but it was clear whatever Bezerg's transformation had done it had worked with their existing anatomies. The 'tails' were not the tails of the video nor of any number of animated or CGI mermaids. They were muscular but stiff. They offered movement at their existing joints, hips, knees, ankles, they could shimmy the rest.

Bezerg had been apologetic. They were beta versions, he admitted, but the technology was advancing. They couldn't swim freely like mermaids of lore, but unlike their pre-transformation bodies they were neutrally buoyant. Neither young woman had been overly fond of swimming despite their athletic natures and even in salt water their previous lack of body fat had meant floating wasn't an option. A couple of hours of encouragement from Bezerg and the Anastasias had shown them how to use their 'ankle' flexibility to propel themselves as they more or less 'stood' vertically in the water with the tops of the now-enormous breasts and heads exposed. By twisting the finned tip of the tail they could turn. They could flex the tails at the 'knees' to gain a bit more speed. This technique also allowed them to exit from the pool by moving toward the deck and use perfectly timed lifts with their arms and a twist to land on their asses. Lithe, already strong arms had been slightly enhanced. They could 'sit' on their 'asses' or 'kneel' on solid ground. On their knees they could move slowly, on their asses they needed to lift and pull with their arms.

They weren't creatures of the land. But they weren't fully creatures of water either.

"Gills are hard, really hard," Bezerg had admitted, "way too preliminary to risk for now. But eventually. And more flexible tails."

After a period of pure frustration it had almost become fun. The buoyancy of the tails combined with fine tuned muscle movements and the young women's natural competitiveness had eventually won out as they raced from one end of the pool to the other. As with her slightly earlier awakening, Sarah had shown the early lead but Rachel's bloody-minded determination soon had them neck and neck. But it was clear this generation of tails wouldn't beat even a mediocre human-form swimmer.

Finally an opaque panel had been opened to allow them to swim into a roofed area that turned out to be their mermaid lair, Bezerg called it the pavilion. Panels could be extended to separate the deck from the interior in cases of extreme weather or to provide privacy.

Rain in Los Angeles was an occasional occurrence. And the winter nighttime temperatures on top of Bezerg's mountain would be uncomfortable even if not near freezing. But the pavilion and the temperature-controlled pool offered comfort for their essentially naked forms. They'd been introduced to low lounges that they could pull and flop themselves onto. They'd found these surprisingly comfortable.

As to privacy, neither mermaid was certain what that meant. What the internet had taken to calling 'Bezerg's distraction field' that surrounded his home had fallen from the rife speculation as to its nature to an accepted and mostly ignored fact. Sarah and Rachel were aware that it was a focus of another department in their building but like many such projects technical details were quarantined. Just that an eventual reveal was planned. Their obedience in not having told a single coworker about their Christmas plans was a common attribute for their fellow employees. The rare blabbermouth that made it through the interviews didn't last long at Bezerg Industries.

Thus the barrier wasn't to block distant electronic eyes, the only ones with possible viewing lines to this pool and deck. Another little point of mystery about their situation.

They'd also been surprised that the 'smoothie' that Bezerg had offered them upon waking up was their only nutrition while in mermaid form. Fortunately it came in any number of flavours and they had handhelds to use to order up whatever flavour they wanted at that time.

And now it neared one p.m. on Christmas Eve. They were in a second pool around the corner of the expansive deck that wrapped three sides of the house. A fence-like barrier had been lowered and they'd been wheeled over by their bikini-clad attendants who'd joined them in the water and had fine-tuned the hair and subtle makeup on the mermaids. The Anastasias treaded water in front of the plexiglass wall. Beyond that was a set of shutters that in a few moments would be opened for Bezerg's reveal. Each mermaid wore a tiny wireless microphone and earpiece so they could answer questions about the project.

The time had been chosen so the low winter sun would illuminate the mermaids and their pool but be behind the house to allow the Bezerg's guests a clear view. Spotlights above and below the waterline come on as the dusk loomed.

Rachel's and Sarah's hands met under the water and they squeezed as the female voice in their ear counted down. They knew it was an Anastasia, the blonde one who appeared older and more 'individual' than most and other than Bezerg had done most of the speaking during their training.

"Five, four, three, two, one... go!"

One last squeeze at one and they released and put on broad but not overdone smiles. The shade on the other side of the plexiglass split in the middle and slowly opened, the Anastasias trailed each side so they were just visible.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Bezerg's voice in their earpieces, "I promised a revelation today. And here it is."

The mermaids each lifted a hand and waved, they could see the front row of people's heads and shoulders above the waterline, as were theirs. The slight ripples of the pool alternately hid and exposed the erect red nipples on their large breasts. A few eyes wandered between them and the Anastasias, the color of their erect nipples hidden but the cloth conformed to the shapes.

"Allow me to introduce the beautiful blonde 'S' and the equally lovely brunette 'R'," Bezerg continued, "while the view now is impressive, just wait."

They saw their audience move downward, a few faces showed surprise as their eyes went down, as the floor was lowered to put their sight lines below the water.

"Showtime," the female's voice in their ear, their signal to start a languid swim backward with just the tips of their tails.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Bezerg's voice now, "what you're seeing are not costumes."

Both mermaids could hear voices, gasps, other sounds of confused thought through the open mic. They glanced at each other and winked before they regained their stoic poise as they reached the far wall of the pool and stopped.

"You're all aware that our technology for regrowing lost limbs is in an advanced state of testing and will hopefully be approved for general use before next Christmas. But that is only the first step."

"Going great, come forward," Anastasia's direction. They bent their 'knees' and kicked off and rather than the languid float they sped toward the audience they couldn't see with the now-disturbed surface of the pool.

"You are seeing two beautiful women transformed, truly transformed, into mermaids."

The background voices were louder as they approached the clear barrier before they shifted their tails and braked. Neither needed the assistance of the red headed Anastasias who'd been placed there to prevent them from colliding with the front wall. Instead they both came to a float a yard from the wall and used subtle tail movements to rotate completely.

"I will admit, they aren't, yet, the mermaids of lore. But as you can see, they have excellent control of their tails. Everyone please rotate a bit and let the others get a front row look. S, how does your tail feel?"

There was a momentary pause, then Sarah spoke.

"Still getting used to it, but you all saw us, Melon, you hearing me okay?"

"All good on the speakers, S! R?"

"What she said, although you'll notice I let her win that race."

A snort from the blonde. Bezerg must've opened his mic as they heard soft laughter.

"Rematch?" Sarah's voice, Rachel's turn to snort. A cheer in their ears as they used just their tips to slowly push themselves to the far end of the pool.

"Someone give us the signal," Rachel said. Bezerg introduced the Minister for Science, Technology and Innovative Production of Argentina before a female's accented English started.

"Ready... set... go!"

Both young women flexed their tails hard at their 'knees' and pushed as hard as they could, just short of the barrier they both twisted and braked hard but allowed their now broad 'asses' to contact the barrier firmly but without significant force. The water splashed around them and the walls of the pool as some jumped onto the deck.

"Whoa, ladies," Bezerg's voice and cheers, "you got us there."

Rachel's smile at Sarah was returned with a wink, that hadn't been in the script. She saw animated smiles on the two Anastasias in the pool and soft laughter in their earpieces.

"Oh, wow...," Rachel said slowly she and Sarah paddled past the edge of their pavilion's roof at the end of the day. All of the Anastasias had left prior to the news conference the mermaids had done with Bezerg.

"That wasn't here this morning," Sarah's voice was choppy.

At the far wall, the 'back' of the pavilion, stood a fully decorated Christmas tree that just touched the ceiling. The pavilion's ceiling wasn't much higher than one in a room in a regular house so the tree made up for its limited height by its lowest row of branches being as broad as it was high. Underneath the tree were small and large ribbon wrapped and bow topped packages sheathed in gaily colored wrapping paper. Motion sensors had flipped on a couple of soft lights but most of the illumination came from the lights on the tree. They paddled to the far end of the pool and put their hands on the deck and did the lift and twist move to each sit slightly side wise on the deck near the tree.

Sarah leaned and snagged the ribbon on the nearest box with her finger and pulled.

"Hey, Rachel, this is from your family!"

She pushed it to her friend who did what every child had done from the beginning of time.

She picked it up and shook it, heard nothing. They both rose to their knees and shuffled closer. Rachel looked at a box and nudged it to her left.

"For you, blondie."

The double doors in the wall to their left opened slowly and they looked.

"Margaret," Sarah beat Rachel to the statement, "what... are..."

"Merry Christmas, my lovely mermaids," the older woman's voice was bright, "we're here for all of us to have a nice Christmas dinner!"

Eight Anastasias followed her into the room, two pairs pushed rolling tables and turned them to the right on the deck alongside the pool. The others had closed rolling service carts. Red, brown and blonde hair swirled around glittery reindeer antlers and each had a figure-hugging brown dress that barely covered their round asses and as they bustled at the table it was clear their pussies matched their heads and all were trimmed into nice landing strips.

Last in was their director, the blonde Anastasia who seemed most 'human,' in the short green frock of one of Santa's elves. A green felt cap with a white cotton ball on its end was perched on her head and book ended by pointed ears. She carried a large cake, decorated in reds and greens and set it at the middle of the tables.

"It's a special cake, Sarah, Rachel," Anastasia said, "you'll be able to have a piece."

"But it'll go straight to my hips," Sarah wailed before she broke down laughing and everyone else quickly joined in.

"Oh, hell," Rachel said, "Margaret, when did you marry Santa Claus? Is that how these packages got here?"

Her grey-highlighted brunette hair was as ever stylish under the red cap, her cleavage well-displayed by the short red jacket that fit tightly around her torso. The white fur that lined the bottom of the jacket was even with the waistband of the short red skirt that covered her legs only to mid-thighs, those legs and her feet bare just like her retinue.

"I told you two you couldn't tell your families where you'd be, but that didn't mean I couldn't call them up and offer to get a couple of gifts to your secret hideaway!"

"A couple? There's like—-," Sarah started.

"Don't get greedy, they're not all for you two!"

She waved her arm in a partial arc to indicate the reindeers and her elven assistant. They all smiled and laughed lightly.

Sarah's eyes ranged across them and she laughed lightly along as Rachel looked at Margaret.

"Our families," Rachel said softly, "but, what about your—-."

Margaret's hazel eyes looked directly into Rachel's and the younger woman went silent at the stare. But the older woman's eyes softened.

"I'm always where I want to be," she said in a low but firm voice before she took her gaze from Rachel and turned to her reindeer.

"These two need a nice massage while we get dinner ready, I'm sure they're sore after their showing off today."

She turned back to the mermaids as a blonde and brunette reindeer stepped quickly to move the lounges closer.

"You two, get on your lounges. Your muscles are still settling, bit different than the whirlpool but I think you'll enjoy it."

"Still trying to work out the feelings here," Sarah said, "but yeah, not quite like when I ran too hard but..."

"Yup," Rachel said as they knee-shuffled and the Anastasias helped them onto their lounges.

"Ohh, ahh," the dark-haired mermaid said as she lay on her stomach and the blonde woman worked on her 'ass.'

"Need this, yup," the blonde one agreed.

"Ok, ladies," Margaret said to her crew, "let's get dinner on and pop some corks!"

Santa Claus

Two specially-shaped chairs had been brought in that allowed Sarah and Rachel to join Margaret and the Anastasias and they sat at the far end of the table. Their dinner was a variety of Bezerg's smoothies. Their hostess offered them flavours to match the various courses of the meal and it was clear no one at the table was vegetarian. A standing beef rib roast and a large ham emerged from the service carts along with salads, green beans, mashed potatoes, gravy and and freshly-baked bread rolls.

"Where's Bezerg? Does he have—-," Rachel quietly asked Margaret, seated to her right, Sarah spoke with their director across the table with plenty of shared laughter. The other Anastasias spoke very little, beyond barely vocal requests to pass food but they seemed to communicate amongst each other because their faces were smiles and laughs broke out up now and again.