Mermaid 27

Cordelia swam out into the river’s current. She swam upstream, looking for Drake. She didn’t find him again before she felt the water change again.
The tingling from the switch to mountain water had faded in time, and now she felt the weight of the water instead. She still had the current to fight, but now she also had to work harder if she didn’t want to swim along the bottom.
One benefit of moving into the fresher water was the increase in plants, those that floated up to the surface and those that grew along the shores. In the ocean, most of her food was algae, but here she had a wider variety of food, from straw-like reeds to the large flat lily pads. She didn’t eat while fighting the current, but had two handfuls by the time she found another break to rest in. Even more plants grew in the break.
Cordelia tasted what she had brought, not finishing any of it. The plants growing in the break were different from those in the river. They tasted different too.