"Were they pretty?"

<You would find them so.>

"I wanna see them."

So she modulates her song in order to inform the mer of this.

A dozen mer children surface. Maurice is having happiness spasms. 

"Um, I don't want to be rude, but could you two go underwater so I can show my mums?"

She goes underwater and pulls her brother with.

"Mums, mermaids!" 

There is much fussing and photo taking. They are sensible enough not to offer fish. 

She will patiently wait.

Levi will wait less patiently.

And if that half-mer boy that speaks English starts thinking about talking about them she'll pull him under.

"So, is that boy your brother or something?" says a suddenly underwater Michael.

<Yes.>

"The brother or the something?"

<Yes.>

He remembers the protocol. "Is he your brother?"

<Yes.>

Levi is surprised by this. Maurice is nice and all, but he doesn't remember him in the tubes. 

She does not elaborate.

"Wait, if he's your brother, how come his mums don't know about you?"

<They do not know he is our brother yet.>

"How does that work?"

<We will adopt him.>

"Won't his mums mind?"

<No.>