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Eridan Ampora, the prince of nothing and yet still heir to his father's business, was sneaking out of the back of his family's vacation house. He just really needed to get away from everything, specifically his dad and older brother who seemed to be fighting again, as per usual. They were so loud that he could hear them yelling as he walked down the sandy hill and to the beach where he knew he could get some peace and quiet. He was already able to hear their voices fading out in the distance.
The minute he was close enough to the water, Eridan kicked off his sandals, and more than eagerly stepped into the water. The water was cold but it was warm enough for him to enjoy it as it lapped at his legs and calmed down his nerves. The sound and feeling of the ocean all around him always helped to soothe any worries he had, especially when it was so hot out. Perfect weather for shorts and just sitting on the beach.
Speaking of sitting on the beach, Eridan turned back to the shore and headed to the dry sand where he sat down with a sigh of relief. He decided to lay down and maybe just suntan a little, cooling off his nerves even more under the warm sun.
That was until he heard an awful, ear-splitting shriek which left him cringing as the sound pierced his ears. Eridan shot up like a rocket, a lock of blond hair falling into his face as he looked around frantically. What in all of the seven hells was that? After recollecting himself he stopped and listened, still able to hear the slight murmur of arguing. Well that ruled out his worries of his family killing each other.
Eridan listened, peering out over the ocean. Soon, he heard a noise like a wounded animal. . It took him all of a millisecond to start heading in the direction of the pitiful noise, making his way further down the beach towards a secluded rocky area. He hesitated once he got to the large rocks and actually started to think about what could have possibly made such a horrid sound.
The longer Eridan stood there, the more he realised he probably just got him himself into a big load of bullshit. Well he was only gonna live once.
And with that thought in mind, Eridan clambered up the rocks and came face to face with his doom. Or, well... Just a weird sea creature.
Eridan crouched down and peered over, staying quiet as he took in what had happened. The thing had got stuck in a trap. The trap seemed to be a raccoon trap, someone was probably trying to get a crab or something. It looked like it had been trying to get some food out of the cage trap, which was now clamped down around an oddly human-like arm. Eridan couldn't help but let out a small gasp in shock as he put together what he was looking at.
Of course whatever it was heard him and snapped its head up, looking up at Eridan with wide, fear filled eyes. Then as quick as it had looked up, its entire tone changed to defense. Fins on either side of its slightly scaled face snapped up, spread wide as it bared its fangs and hissed viciously at Eridan -- the perceived threat in front of it.
Of course, the logical thing would be to give it its space, right? Not in Eridan's mind. He really wanted to make sure it was okay, the trapped arm looked bruised and sore from the trap snapping closed. He took a second to check for any ways that the mermaid could attack him, the large claws it had making him more than a little nervous. It didn’t help that it was busy freaking out and switching from hissing at Eridan through large fangs to trying to pry open the trap.
There had to be some way to calm this asshole down without getting hurt in the process, but Eridan found himself wondering how he could do that?
"Hey hey, calm down. I'm not going t'hurt ya." Eridan tried to speak in a more relaxing tone but it was obvious he was nervous. Did the thing even speak english? It seemed to pause before looking up at Eridan, it's harsh demeanor faltering. Maybe it did understand?
The mermaid scowled and let out a huff, understanding that it's best option might be to let the placating, weak land mammal help.
Eridan waited until the mermaid looked mostly settled before he finally hopped down from the rocks, landing in a crouched position nearby. He held up his hands to show he didn't have any weapons, and that seemed to help calm it down.
God, Eridan thought, This could be the worst or best decision of his life. Time to find out.
He shifted closer to test the waters just in case the mermaid was still feeling violent. Once Eridan was able to approach, he got to work on opening the trap. It was one of those weird raccoon traps? He doubted that was the intended use, someone was probably using it to catch something else. Luckily he knew how to open them, his father’s hunting lessons were actually being useful for once. It only took him about a minute to get the trap open.
The second its arm was free, the mermaid yanked it away from the trap and shot back into the water, leaving Eridan standing there with the trap in hand.
"You're fuckin' welcome!" He shouted out to nothing before he huffed and put the trap back down. Eridan just hoped the mermaid wasn't dumb enough to get its arm stuck again.
After a moment of waiting for... Anything really, Eridan turned to the rocks and started to climb back up. He didn't make it very far up before he was stopped in his tracks by an odd chirpy noise. Looking back, he saw the mermaid peeking out from further in the water. Only its eyes and the top of its head poked above the water.. It seemed to move a bit closer and Eridan couldn't help himself. He climbed back down.
Well, the mermaid wasn't moving now but damn it, he was curious. So, Eridan decided to take matters into his own hands, and walk out into the water.
The closer he got, the better it was to see how beautiful it really was, having been too worried earlier about getting the trap open. The creature looked to obviously be a mermaid, either that or he was having an hallucination due to the hot sun beating down on him. Mermaid or not, it was gorgeous. It's eyes were one of the best features, one being a vibrant blue while the other was a striking red. Those colours seemed to be down it's body in bits and pieces, shifts of it's tail making it almost look blue or red in the light. The tail seemed to be more from.. an Eel family. It's skin had a light tan with odd patterns across it, tattoos maybe? Who could say. The mermaid probably.
Once Eridan was close enough, around two feet away from it, he stopped. The mermaid lifted its head up further, its black hair sticking to its face. Now it was like a super awkward Mexican standoff, both of them just staring at each other. Until the mermaid slipped under the water, the ocean clear enough for Eridan to watch as it got closer to him. Eridan tensed the closer it got before it suddenly swerved and went around him in a circle. The mermaid was getting a good look of his legs, or he assumed so. It was hard to tell what an undiscovered species might be thinking about. The touch to his legs gave him an idea on what it was doing though. He thought it was only fair if he got to touch too so he reached a hand into the water, his fingertips brushing down it's back and tail. It's tail was kind of slimy like any fish, and felt like it had an odd dull electric charge to it. Weird.
Even weirder was when the mermaid brushed up against his legs before going farther out into the ocean, looking back at him at some point. Did it want him to follow? Most stories of mermaids were about them killing sailors but Eridan was a stubborn ass, and he was still curious, so he dove right in, instead of listening to the little voice in the back of his head. Eridan followed right behind. The water was soaking his shorts, and by the time they both stopped again it was up to his waist.
Eridan hesitated before finally saying anything. "..Do you speak english? Do you even understand me?" He asked curiously, watching the mermaid as it looked up at him with its beautiful eyes.
"Thome and yeth" The mermaid surprisingly answered, although it’s speech was a bit lispy due to its large fangs.
"Oh! well that's good I suppose." Eridan sounded a bit surprised for a moment before deciding to ask something else. " So do ya have a name? I'm Eridan by the way."
There was a pause before it finally responded, it almost seemed nervous to share its name.
"Thollux"
With a small hum, Eridan nods and tries it out. "Sollux, huh? It's nice." Eridan smiles at him and decides to let himself sink deeper into the water. Eridan didn't care if his clothes got wet, they could always be washed. What difference did it make? The water helped him cool off and it just meant he could be level with his new … friend?
Speaking of new friend, Sollux seemed to be swimming around again. Maybe it would feel nice to dunk his head under, Eridan thought. It was rather hot today, after all.
Eridan quickly dunked his head under water, watching Sollux swim around him as his glasses tried to float away. He grabbed onto them and stuffed them in his pocket, hoping that they wouldn’t float out.
Xxxxxxxxx
Some time had passed, an hour or two at least. The two of them had spent the whole time swimming together and talking,. Or trying to. It turned out that Eridan’s fishy buddy only knew how to speak in broken english. Eridan learned that the only reason Sollux knew any at all was from observing humans and having a friend who spoke english when he was younger.
Eridan also learned that Sollux had ended up here by total coincidence. A violent storm and harsh waves had forced the mermaid to be wherever mother nature wanted him to be. Eridan, however, came here every year in the summer.
The two of them were just trying to pass time now, playing games by splashing water and pulling each other under the water.. At some point, Eridan even tried to teach Sollux some new words.
At some point, Eridan even checked the mermaid’s arm, the bruising was dark and sore and there were a few cuts and scratches from the panicked struggle, but luckily nothing terrible.
Now, Eridan was just floating in the water on his back, his eyes closed as he listened to the waves and the odd shifts from Sollux swimming around. Eventually he opened his eyes and moved to stand, looking down into the water. The sun was setting, the sky slowly getting darker and showing something entirely new about his aquatic friend. Those markings Eridan had noticed earlier seemed to be glowing, the theme of blue and red once again being continued. It took his breath away.
Just like he had earlier, he reached out and brushed his hand down his back. He successfully got the attention of Sollux who lifted his head out of the water with confusion written all over his face. Eridan couldn't help himself. He sunk down so they were level with each other, hesitating before he cupped his face in his hands. He was so pretty.. How was he not supposed to fall in love? There was no willpower in him to hold back and so, finally, Eridan kissed him. Sollux’s lips were soft and uncertain, but he didn't pull away. Instead, Sollux kissed back and seemed to press closer, tangling a hand in Eridan’s hair. It made Eridan’s heart skip a beat and he smiled warmly.
A holler of Eridan's name made them both jump, quickly moving away from each other. It was hard for him to see without his glasses, so he patted his pockets. They were long gone. All he could see was an outline of what looked to be his dad, too tall to be his brother. He gave a quick wave before looking at the other. After what had just happened, He really didn't want to leave, but he had to. If he didn't he would get yelled at.
"I have to go." Eridan practically whispered, looking pretty disappointed.
"You'll come back?" Sollux asked quickly, seeming nervous that he wouldn't.
That was sweet. It made Eridan smile again. Once again, Eridan couldn't help but give Sullux a kiss, keeping it brief this time.
"Of course I will, same time tomorrow. I promise." And with that he swam back to the shore, Sollux following close behind for as long as he could.
Eridan finally got to the sandy beach after a few minutes, stepping out with his clothes heavy and clinging onto him. With a little wave to the other, he went to grab his sandals and go home.
Eridan’s heart was going a mile a minute, his mind racing. He was totally coming back tomorrow.