The beautiful blue-and-purple scales caught the light from the bright Arizona sun streaming through her living room window, but right now their shimmer only highlighted her frustration. She'd finally found this professional-grade tail on Ebay, and while she already loved it dearly, getting into it remained a challenge.
"Come on," she muttered to herself, twisting awkwardly to reach the zipper's pull tab. "You can do this."
A soft laugh made her look up. Jacinth lounged on the sofa nearby, watching her with an odd air of tolerant patience, like a parent waiting for their child to figure something out.
"What?!" Mandy demanded, blowing a stray strand of hair from her face.
Jacinth's musical laugh filled the room as she slid gracefully to the floor, folding her legs beneath her to sit cross-legged before Mandy. "You're a Djinn now."
"I know that!" Mandy huffed, still wrestling with the zipper. Then she froze, her eyes widening as realization struck. A grin spread across her face as she met Jacinth's amused gaze. "There's a magical way to get this zipper up?"
"It's lesson time!" Jacinth announced, her dark eyes sparkling with mischief.
A delighted shiver ran through Mandy. "I love lesson time!"
Jacinth pointed across the room to the hook mounted on the bathroom door, partially visible from where she sat on the floor in the living room. "Close your eyes," she instructed, her musical voice carrying that familiar note of patient amusement. "Now visualize the tail hanging there in its place."
Mandy closed her eyes, picturing the beautiful silicone tail suspended from its hook, the blue and purple scales catching the afternoon sunlight streaming through her window. The visualization came easily - she'd already pictured it hanging there countless times before in her mind.
"Good," Jacinth said softly. "Now gather up your magic, just like we've been practicing."
Mandy drew a deep breath, reaching for that warm well of power that still felt so new and strange. It responded eagerly to her call, flowing through her like liquid sunshine. She could feel it building, waiting for direction.
"Perfect," Jacinth's voice encouraged. "Now give it a push."
Mandy focused on her visualization of the tail hanging on its hook, channeling her magic toward that single purpose. She felt the power surge through her, followed by an odd tingling sensation.
Her eyes flew open as the weight of the silicone tail suddenly vanished from her legs. "Oh my gosh, I did it!" she exclaimed,staring across the room where her tail now hung perfectly arranged on its hook. "It's on the wall!"
She looked down at her bare, damp legs, wiggling her toes in delight at her success. The simple act of magical transportation still felt utterly surreal, even after weeks of practicing.
Jacinth's dark eyes sparkled with approval. "Excellent! Now, do the same thing again, but this time picture yourself wearing the tail."
Mandy closed her eyes, drawing another deep breath as she visualized herself in the tail. She pictured the way the silicone hugged her hips and legs, how the scales caught the light with every movement. The magic responded more readily this time, flowing through her with growing confidence.
The familiar weight and pressure of the tail suddenly wrapped around her legs, hugging her hips perfectly. Her eyes flew open in surprise - not only was the tail on, but the zipper was completely done up.
Mandy shifted experimentally, watching in delight as the tail swished across her living room floor. The blue and purple scales sparkled in the afternoon sunlight, creating mesmerizing patterns on the walls.
"This is amazing!" she exclaimed, running her hands over the smooth scales. "Do you know how much work it is to get into these things? Watching all the videos of live mermaids, this seemed like it was always the worst part!"
Jacinth leaned forward, her dark eyes twinkling. "You can make it lighter too. Just imagine it weighing less, and push your magic into it."
"Oh thank goodness!" She'd been struggling with the tail's weight, these darned things were heavy! She closed her eyes, visualizing the tail becoming lighter while maintaining its perfect fit. The magic responded instantly, flowing through her and into the silicone.
She swished her tail experimentally, delighting in how much easier it moved. "This is so much better!" The beautiful scales still caught the light with each movement, but now she could maneuver without straining.
"I can add more weight once I'm in the water," Mandy observed, already planning how to adjust it for different conditions. "That way it'll move more powerfully when I'm swimming." The possibilities made her grin in absolute delight.
Jacinth's dark eyes sparkled with approval. "Now you're getting the idea!"
"Does this work with regular clothes too?" Mandy asked, still marveling at how easily she'd managed the tail transformation.
"Of course! Just picture yourself wearing whatever you want, and..." Jacinth snapped her fingers with a flourish. "Voilà!"
Suddenly Jacinth got to her feet, and took a step back. Mandy caught the wicked glint in Jacinth's dark eyes, and she narrowed her gaze on her friend - she'd learned to recognize when the playful Djinn was up to something.
"We can change how we look, too." Jacinth's musical voice was filled with mischief.
