Laura

**Laura** (ローラ *Rōra***?**) is one of the main characters from *Tropical Rouge! Pretty Cure*. She is a mermaid from Grand Ocean, who comes to Aozora City in search of the Pretty Cure so they can save her home. Her full name is **Laura Apollodoros Hyginus La Mer** (ローラ・アボロドーロス・ヒューギヌス・ラメール *Rōra Aporodōrosu Hyugīnusu Ramēru***?**) and also known as **Laura La Mer** (ローラ・ラメール *Rōra* *Ramēru***?**) in school.

Her alter ego is **Cure La Mer** (キュアラメール *Kyua Ramēru***?**) and her charm point is her nails.

## Info

* Season:Tropical Rouge! Pretty Cure
* Age:13
* Gender:Female
* Eyes Color:Blue
* Hair Color:Pink
* Homeland:Grand Ocean
* Theme Color:Blue (Main), Pink (Sub)
* First Appearance:Episode 1, Episode 17 (Cure La Mer)
* Alias:Cure La Mer, Laura La Mer (Human)
* Voice Actor:Rina Hidaka
* Image Song:Aqua Prism, Song of Friendship

## Appearance

As a mermaid, she has long bright pink hair that reaches her waist, and has blue eyes. On her bangs, she has pearl clips, and her ears are cyan otoliths. Her top is cyan and white with pink pearls on the front. On her elbows are cyan fins, and she wears gold bracelets on her wrists. Her tail is blue with a pale pink and yellow fin. Around her tail is a pink ribbon tied by a yellow star with pearls. After becoming queen, she now has a blue tiara with a teal gem and white embroideries on her head.

As a child, she had shorter hair, and wore a green bead necklace. She doesn't have her arm bracelets and the ribbon with the pearled star around her tail.

As a human, she gains legs in place of her tail and her otoliths become human ears. Her hair remains the same but she wears a sky blue headband. Her outfit bears a slight resemblance to her mermaid form. The top is white and light blue with a cerulean stripe on top and a matching collar with white pearls on it. The skirt is light blue with cerulean and white petal-shaped layers at the bottom and a thin pink belt with a yellow star on the left. Her sandals are light blue with some pink pearls and light blue ruffles on top. She wears gold seashell-shaped earrings. During winter, she wears a lavender blouse with long ruffled sleeves, a light blue pearl choker on light purple fabric, cerulean tight skirt that opens in the front with sea blue ruffles, and white high-heels. Her forelocks are tied into ponytails on each side of her head.

In the movie, she wears a light blue blouse with ruffles near her shoulders, a cerulean skirt with straps around her shoulders and a chain of pearls at the middle, and brown-red boots.

As Cure La Mer, her eyes turn pink with blue heart-shaped flecks, and she gains small pearls on her eyelashes. She also gains cyan nail polish on her fingernails, and hot pink polish on her toes. Her hair grows thicker and longer and becomes sky-blue with a pink ombré at the head and ends. Two pearls lay on the sides of her head, coated in hair, and she also has a small headdress on her bangs and pink pearls around her hair. She wears a light blue off-the-shoulder top with pink and golden accents and a white gem with long puffy sleeves that have fitted wristbands. A blue crystal shell lays on her chest with a pink bow and golden orb just below it. She also gains a short skirt with layers of purple, violet and cyan, and long white pants. She also gains white platform open-toed sandals pink pearls and blue soles. Her accessories include a blue and white choker, pale blue pearl earrings, blue straps on her wrists and a pale-pink train resembling a mermaid tail hanging from her skirt.

In her **Excellent-Tropical Style**, her hair lengthens and thickens, gaining an additional blue ombre at the bottom. The two pearls in her hair turn bright blue while the pearls on her bangs become a small gold tiara. The blue part of her top turns white, becoming a long dress that opens in the front with a light pink, green, and blue gradient inside. Her skirt is blue with a scaly design like a mermaid's tail with a golden band at the top and a longer light pink train at the bottom. Her sleeves shorten and are mint green at the top and white at the bottom with pink pearl bands at the middle. Her choker is white and blue with a blue gem hanging from it. She now wears white frilly wristbands with blue bands around the wrists and is barefoot with light blue pearls around her ankles.

In her Snow Crystal Tropical Style, her outfit contains some elements of the Super Silhouette form. Her hair grows longer and has a golden sheen to it. She gains a small gold tiara with a blue heart in the middle. Her outfit lightens in color with her miniskirt growing longer and the tail in the back lengthening and becoming bigger. She gains light blue sleeves with sharp wing-like ends on them. On her chest is an ocean blue bow. Light blue butterfly-like ribbons appear at the ends of her pant legs. On her back is a pair of rainbow heart-shaped wings.

## Personality

She is very self confident, and is the type of person who will honestly say whatever is on her mind. She wants to become the next queen of Grand Ocean. She loves to sing. She tends to have a short temper, usually when things don't go her way or someone claims mermaids don't exist. Before becoming a human, she would feel left out when the rest of the Tropical Club did their activities. She can't keep secrets.

## History

### Childhood

As a child, she came across Minamino Island and decided to explore it, but was then found by Manatsu without revealing she is a mermaid. They soon promised to meet again the next day, but after returning to Grand Ocean, Laura had her memories erased and therefore did not fulfill the promise or remember Manatsu.

### Meeting Manatsu

Due to the Grand Ocean being attacked by the Witch of Delays, She is sent by the Mermaid Queen to the human world in hopes of finding the legendary Pretty Cure. She later meets Manatsu Natsumi, who discovers her when passing by and is grateful that Laura helped her found her lipstick. Initially, Laura only thinks of Manatsu as a stepping stone to her goal of becoming the next queen, but then she watches Manatsu become Cure Summer just to rescue her when she is captured by Chongire. She slowly warms up to Manatsu after being saved by her.

### Argument and Reconciliation with Manatsu

When Manatsu begins attending school, she gets upset. She later requests Manatsu to bring her to school in hopes of searching for a Pretty Cure candidate, but gets bored rather quickly. She leaves the Mermaid Aqua Pot to search for a candidate herself, only to be noticed by the students. After Manatsu finds her, they have an argument. Upset by what Manatsu had said to her, she angrily swims away. When she is almost attacked by Chongire's Yaraneeda, however, she realizes that Manatsu, who rushes to her aid, still cares for her as a friend. Afterwards, they make up with each other.

### Finding and Returning Manatsu's Motivation Power

After a difficult battle against the more powerful Zenzen Yaraneeda, Manatsu has her Motivation Power stolen by it. Laura quickly retrieves it with the Mermaid Aqua Pot, but the Zenzen Yaraneeda startles her and knocks the pot into a nearby canal. While the other Cures try to get Manatsu's motivation back, Laura goes to search for the pot. Desperate to return Manatsu's motivation, Laura even swims through the dirty section of the canal. Eventually, she meets up with Kururun, who was able to find the Mermaid Aqua Pot themselves. When Laura returns, she finds that Manatsu was able to regain her motivation on her own. She then releases Manatsu's stolen Motivation from the pot, which restores the Cures' strength and allows them to perform their new group attack, Mix Tropical, to purify the Zenzen Yaraneeda.

### Getting Suspected and Retrieving the Aqua Pot

Sometime later, she becomes the subject of a ridiculous rumor about a mermaid, much to her annoyance. When swimming in the canal of the school, she is offended and blurts out after hearing Masami Kakuta saying that mermaids don't exist, therefore exposing herself, though she manages to swim away before being further noticed. After the Mermaid Aqua Pot gets confiscated by Masami, Laura sneaks into the room that stores the confiscated items and pretends to be one of the students by using a banned uniform to get past Masami, and manages to retrieve the Aqua Pot. She later brags about her act of pretending to be a student is ingenious enough to not get herself suspected, only to be told by her friends that she should be returning the uniform, much to her dismay.

### Body Swapped with Minori

When the Tropical Club is preparing for cheerleading for the upcoming softball competition, Laura watches Minori preparing the banner, but has to help Minori who gets sucked into the Mermaid Aqua Pot. This results in their bodies getting swapped. Realizing she is in Minori's body, Laura gets excited and decides to experience what it is like to be a human, but they are unable to switch back, so Minori lets Laura stays at her home for the night.

The next day, when a croissant Zenzen Yaraneeda is on the loose, Laura tries to transform in Minori's body, but fails as the ring and compact do not react. But they end up switching their bodies back after Minnori's ring reacts to Minori's determination to help her friends. Although she is glad that they have switched bodies back and says she prefers being a mermaid, she actually misses the experience of being a human.

### Desire of Becoming Human and Being Captured by the Witch

As time passes, She begins to spend more time with her human friends, but her wish of wanting to become a human grows stronger. Her friends also finds her acting strangely, and Minori is the first one to figure out that she wants to become human, and tells Laura that she has to give up something precious in order to fulfill a wish. After meeting Aoi Natsumi, her eagerness to become human grows, but she wonders what Minori meant.

The next day, when the Cures are fighting Chongire’s Zenzen Yaraneeda, Laura tries to retrieve the Motivation Power from it, only to be shocked that the Mermaid Aqua Pot has been swapped for a fake, and she ends up getting captured when she is in a desperate attempt to find it back. Her friends later find out that there are bubble pictures and believes that they are from Laura and are to hint them the location of the Witch, so they follow the bubbles by diving underwater without considering that as a possibility of it being a trap. As for Laura herself, she refuses to say anything to the Witch of Delays, but the Witch has figured out that she yearns to become a human, and coerces Laura to work for her and says she will grant her wish. When Laura refuses to be tempted by the Witch, the Witch decides to send her to the dungeon.

### Becoming Cure Le Mar and Turning Human

After failing to escape from the dungeon, she is discouraged until she recalls memories with her friends. She notices and reunites with Kururun, and tells the sea fairy to get the keys. After saving Kururun from Elda, she tells them to go ahead first while she decides to retrieve the Mermaid Aqua Pot by herself. She is caught by the Witch's grasp when she accidentally wakes up the Witch, but escapes with the Pot after biting the Witch's hands. After being rescued by Kururun when she is attacked by Butler, she meets up with the Mermaid Queen who asks her what does she really want to do next, and she decides to return to her friends. The Queen is delighted to hear her decision and hands her a pact.

On her way however, Laura realizes that her friends are in trouble when she sees how Chongire has easily defeated Summer. Determined to rescue her friends, she tells Chongire that she won't allow anyone to injure her friends, thus gaining her Heart Kuru Ring and the pact becomes her Mermaid Aqua Pact, which allows her to transform into Cure La Mer for the first time.

After retrieving the Motivation Power and purifying one of the Zenzen Yaraneeda, Laura is reunited with her friends, and is overjoyed when she realizes that she has gotten legs and thus has become a human as she wished. She later decides to stay at Manatsu and Aoi's home and attend Aozora Middle School, much to Manatsu's joy.

### Going to School

Not long after staying at Manatsu's home, Laura later begins her school life. She introduces herself as a new student at the assembly, but brags about Grand Ocean and how she wants to try everything so that she can succeed in being queen one day, surprising and confusing the other students. Although she appears to be knowledgeable in her studies, she later gets bored and irritated with it. She joins the swimming club later on, but fails to swim properly due to not adapted to using her legs to swim. She nearly exposes her identity as a mermaid until her friends stop her. She then decides to join the Tropical Club instead and enjoy her school life.

### Running for Student Council President

When the Tropical Club knows that Yuriko is going to resign and handover her position soon, she decides to run for the president election, though she isn't the most supported by the other students. She then takes her friends' suggestions into account for the preparation of her last speech, but during the speech she abruptly leaves to help her friends who are overwhelmed by Chongire's Chou Zettai Yaraneeda. Of course, her leave is considered as a forfeit and Ichijo Riko, who is the vice president of the council, ends up winning. At first, Laura is irritated by her loss, but soon regains her optimism and believes that this experience is a good practice for her way to become queen of her kingdom.

### The Lost Memories

After seeing the damage of Grand Ocean during their visit, she and her friends venture to save the Queen, but after finding out the room that stores the memories that mermaids had with humans, including the one the Witch had with the Legendary Cure, she discovers her own childhood memories with Manatsu that is contained inside a conch shell.

Upon saving the Queen who inform them that the Witch wants to use the Casket to gain immortality, Laura reveals that she has found her shell, so the Queen admits that the memory erasure is a law that cannot be changed. After meeting the Legendary Cure who saves them and helps them regain the Marine Ring, La Mer is assured by Summer that she'll always cherish their friendship with each other. Later that same night, Manatsu fulfills her promise of giving a flower crown to Laura, which makes Laura happy. Laura had also decided to keep the shell that contains her memories.

### Learning The Mermaid Queen's Past

When visiting the Mermaid Queen to repair the damaged Aqua Pot, she appears before her as La Mer for the first time. The Queen then tells La Mer about how she attempted to become a Pretty Cure herself in hopes of retrieving a cup of Motivation Power from a villain that appeared after centuries of peace. She failed to become a Cure, but she was able to get the cup back anyway, hiding it away on Minamino Island along with the Perfume Shiny Brace, confirming that she was the mermaid La Mer learned about with the others. After the Queen mentioned that her memories might have been erased despite her not coming into contact with humans, she tells La Mer that she might have no choice but to follow the law and have her memories erased soon too, upsetting La Mer. The Queen then also tells her about Oasis's secret. Soon after that, La Mer comes to the Cures' aid while battling the blue whale Yaraneeda and they purify it before entering the Witch of Delay's mansion. There, she tries to convince the Witch to find her heart, but to little avail.

### The Final Battle

After the Witch and Cure Oasis have gone to heaven together, she is happy for the both of them, until Butler turns himself into a dangerous Yaraneeda who is able to overpower her and the others, causing them to de-transform. Despite re-transforming and being aided by the defected villains, La Mer and her friends still end up falling into a dark pit by Butler. However, with La Mer and her friends vowing to do what's important for themselves, they manage to escape from the pit, purify Butler with Super Tropical Paradise. She later takes back, and distributes the Motivation Power from the Fool's Casket with the repaired Mermaid Aqua Pot with some help from her friends, despite Butler's last ditch effort to destroy the world.
Afterwards, she and her friends return to school to resume preparing for the graduation festival. But during the Tropical Club's slumber party, Laura wakes up as she receives a message from the Mermaid Queen. She learns that the Queen is going to relocate Grand Ocean on the day of the festival. Despite the Queen's respect for her choices, she is soon offered by the Queen two tough options: return to Grand Ocean to inherit the throne, or stay with her friends/

### Epilogue

On the day of the graduation festival, she tries to get herself prepared although Sango, Minori and Asuka feel that she is acting differently. But after Manatsu retruns from collecting the cushion she won, she knows Manatsu is skirting around and decides it's time for her to explain. Although her friends plead her to delay her decision, Laura still believes that it is better for her to do what's the most important to her right now, and after being encouraged by Manatsu, she states that it is best for her role of the princess to return to her country to become queen. She also finally gets to reveal to the school about her identity as a mermaid.
That evening, she and her friends gather at the seaside as she prepares her leave. After congratulating Asuka for graduation as compensation for not being able to attend the ceremony, she starts getting saddened and tells them that they might have gone after a long time, and finally reveals that the memory erasing machine in Grand Ocean was created by another mermaid who got lonely after leaving her human friends behind. After being reassured by her friends, Laura musters up the courage to leave them behind after leaping in front of them for the last time. With Laura's memories being erased, everyone and everything that bears her memories also disappears. She later tells Chongire, Numeri and Elda to remind her once she lost her memories.
Soon, she begins studying after she becomes queen, though she tries remembering things with difficulty. After being permitted by the Mermaid Queen, she gets to see the human world again. At first, both her and Manatsu have difficulty recognizing each other, but after she takes out the lipstick, both of them suddenly remember each other again, and with the Aqua Pot's help, both of them fully regain their memories as the machine gets overloaded. In the end, Laura starts teaching other mermaids about humans and finally gets to reunite with her friends again.

## Relationships

### Manatsu Natsumi

She originally treated Manatsu with contempt, and only saw her as a stepping stone to her goal, but gradually warms up to Manatsu after she saves her.

### Sango Suzumura

She met Sango when she got separated from Manatsu and her classmates. At first, she does not really have much faith in Sango, but gradually starts to like her.

### Minori Ichinose

She initially considers Minori unreliable, but begins to view her differently once she becomes Cure Papaya.

### Asuka Takizawa

After she and Manatsu are defended by Asuka,she becomes interested in Asuka and considers her as a desirable Pretty Cure candidate, though Asuka, who finds her annoying, did not return the favor. However, Asuka grows to appreciate her more after spending time with her.

### Kururun

Kururun's caretaker, and they are good friends. However, there are instances where Laura has trouble understanding Kururun.

## Powers

She transforms into Cure La Mer by using Mermaid Aqua Pot and Heart Kuru Ring.

### Other Powers

* **Kurukuru La Mer Stream** (くるくるラメールストリーム *Kurukuru Ramēru Sutorīmu*?)

Her solo attack. Required Mermaid Aqua Pot to perform it.

* **Ocean Bubble Shower** (オーシャンバブルシャワー *Ōshan Baburu Shawā*?)

Her solo attack. Required Mermaid Aqua Pot to perform it in her Bubble Form.

* **Land Beat Dynamic** (ランドビートダイナミック *Rando Bīto Dainamikku*?)

Her group attack with the other Cures. Required Tropical Heart Dresser and Land Kuru Ring to perform it while in Excellent-Tropical Style.

* **Marine Beat Dynamic** (マリンビートダイナミック?)

Her group attack with the other Cures. Required Tropical Heart Dresser and Land Kuru Ring to perform it while in Excellent-Tropical Style.

* **Heart Shining Orchestra** (ハートシャイニングオーケストラ?)

Her group attack with the other Cures. Required Tropical Heart Dresser and Snow Heart Kuru Ring to perform it while in Snow Crystal Tropical Style.

## Etymology

The name Laura is the feminized form of laurus, Latin for "bay laurel plant", which in the Greco-Roman era was used as a symbol of victory, honor or fame. The name represents the embodiment of victory and strength. The name Daphne, derived from Ancient Greek, carries the same meaning.

Apollodoros means "gift of Apollo" from the name of the god Apollo combined with Greek δῶρον (doron) meaning "gift".

Hyginus: This name derives from the Ancient Greek “ygieinós (υγιεινός)”, from “ygeía (υγεία)” meaning “healthy, hygienic, healthful, sanitary”. In turn the name means “prosperous, healthy, auspicious one”.

La Mer means "the sea" in French.

## Song

Her voice actor**, Rina Hidaka** has participated in several image songs for the character she voices. Many of them include songs with **Ai Fairouz**, who voices Manatsu Natsumi, **Yumiri** **Hanamori**, who voices Sango Suzumura, **Yui** **Ishikawa**, who voices Minori Ichinose, and **Asami** **Seto** who voices Asuka Takizawa.

* **Aqua Prism**
* **Song of Friendship**

### Group Song

* **Viva! Spark! Tropical-Rouge! Pretty Cure Tropical Club Ver.** (*Along with Ai Fairouz, Yumiri Hanamori, Yui Ishikawa, and Asami Seto*)
* **Pretty Rouge Days!** (*Along with Ai Fairouz*)
* **Let's Tropical To Our Heart's Content!** (*Along with Ai Fairouz, Yumiri Hanamori, Yui Ishikawa, and Asami Seto*)
* **Shantia ~Land of Happiness~ Ending Ver.** (*Along with Ai Fairouz, Yumiri Hanamori, Yui Ishikawa, Asami Seto, Mizuki Nana, Fumie Mizusawa, Houko Kuwashima, and Aya Hisakawa*)

## Trivia

* An interview from *Animage* revealed that in the first draft of the story, Laura had a more typical role and was a gentle girl to tone down Manatsu's outlandishness. But Yutaka Tsuchida was concerned that she was going to get completely overshadowed by the other girls, so they changed her into a character with a strong personality and with a big presence in the story.
	+ In the *Animage January 2022* issue, it was revealed that "La Mer" was Laura's Cure name before it also became her surname, but it was added because trying to be "Laura Hyginus" would've been difficult to pronounce once she started attending school.
		- The same issue also revealed that her ails were originally going to be multiple colored, but the staff eventually scrapped this idea as the end result did not satisfy them.
			* It was also revealed that Laura's role as the queen candidate is intentional. Yutaka Tsuchida believed the idea of becoming a queen by succession is a similar message to becoming a princess by falling in love with a prince, as it relies too much on someone else.
* Her birthday is on June 30th, making her Zodiac sign Cancer.
* As stated by herself in episode 36, she does not have any parents, due to the fact that she and the other mermaids from Grand Ocean are all born from a giant pearl shellfish.