The Deep Blue |Closed RP|

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily sat at the bottom of the salt pool looking up through the glass ceiling at the intense start night. It was like someone put out all the lights in the town and the stars glowed for it. She could feel the strain of the journey to get here taking it's tole on her tail. Cecily ran her hand down her irritated scales over her whitening tail. Normally it was a pale lavender, the most beautiful violet but not now. Her nearly black hair sat floating around her in the stagnant water reminding her that she wasn't in the ocean. Her hazel blue eyes tracked over the sky as if trying too map were she was ow relative to where she had been. Cecily was just proud she hadn't lead them to her home, that she had gotten far enough away that they would never be able to find the hidden treasure were she rested her tail. The memories of the pirates that caught her still stung her eyes.

Cecily was swimming with as much speed as she could gather, swimming away from the approaching net. Her tail was not built for speed but this boat was. The mesh of skin cutting fabric rushed in behind her tangling her tail and slicing it up as it slowly began to drag her up. Cecily twisted and dug her fingers into the holes both trying to free her tail and relieve the pain that the net caused by dragging her up onto the boat. She whimpered as the men reached out pulling her into the boat before the net finally released. The men laughed as she thrashed. She flicked her tail causing several men to fall and one even to fall over. They stopped laughing then before forcing her into a tiny box that just barely fit her tail. "Look at the tail on this one boys!" One pirate called. "What a price we will get for it too." Said another older man. He rapped on the glass and she snarled at him. He laughed and closed the lid sound blocking her in. Her voice was a weapon and they knew it with became the problem because then they could protect themselves against her hypnotizing songs. Cecily's own blood slipped into the water which she would be kept in until they reached land. The filthy land pigs were going to sell her to the highest paying freak, or medicine woman that wanted to use her in one horrible way or another. She spent three weeks in that container her water only being refreshed once a week. It was awful and inhuman but what did they care.

Cecily was in her new captive cage, a small pool where she would stay until she was sold. She overheard the men and knew it would be soon. She watched them and knew they were constantly guarding her outside the room. They kept all their "merchandise" separate for fear of their complained abilities and they had a right to be fearful, enough mermaids and you were facing a cosmic power that could control the oceans, a natural force that would destroy anything that they desired. Cecily was desperate and she had one last ace up her sleeve. As the moon rose over her little pool of water Cecily began to her song. The water started the music lifting and dropping like strings on a violin before she began to sing. This song that was crying out for the purest soul to come to her. Anyone on the docks or near the water would hear her song and be convinced they had to see her at any cost. This song would tare at the heart inspiring courage, desire even revenge. It spoke to the darkest and deepest of desires any heart but a greedy heart could hear.

---

Billy was on the ship laying in his hammock and eating with his eyes closed his breathing even until he could hear the even breathing of all his crew. It was the zenith of the night when he slowly rose from his hammock and creeped around the creaking boards of the ship. He crept past the captains quarters up onto the deck of the ship and hopped off the ship onto the dock. Billy moved quickly and quietly up to were they kept her. He had never been so completely captured by anything in his life as he was the mermaid that his captain and the crew had brought up from the depths of the sea on their last voyage. They were going to be selling her in the morning to a group of shady people at first light. Billy had been trying to seem apathetic about the entire ordeal but would wince when no one was looking and he knew she had caught him staring on his watches.

Billy snuck past old Joe and into the mermaid's holding container. He had com without his protection gear knowing she would kill him with even a little pool of water if she choose to. Billy closed the door behind him pressing his back to the door in the dark room letting his eyes adjust to the starlight. He moved slowly to the side of the pool and lowered himself so he sat beside the water looking into the inky election of the sky above. "I wouldn't blame you for not coming out but I had to come. They had caught her a few weeks ago and ever since she had been the only thing on his mind with her angelic face and dark hair over her pale skin all the way down to the scales on her tail that made her as dangerous as it did beautiful. He wondered if she had anything to say. She had to know that her time was coming soon that her entire life would change.

"I would help you if I could but what can I do?" he asked the silent room. There was no way he saw this working out. How in the world would he get her out without having to kill his crew and challenge his captain? Not to mention he was just a pirate, no one would help him even if he did get her out by some miracle, he would be a wanted dead man. It was true in more noble circles mermaids were still a myth but how could he get out of the life he had always known? Billy sighed. "I am sorry to have bothered you at all." he admitted feeling like it might be time to leave and he began to rise but leaned over and just touched the water hoping she would understand the struggling war inside him and how he wished he could save her from this fate.

@ Jinx...
Gavin was trying his best to get the thought of that mermaid they had caught earlier out of his mind. The guys were stilling trying to bandage their wounds from her. They were commenting on how mermaids were always like that especially the young ones. He rolled his eyes. He hadn't know just how cruel they were to the poor creatures. The most recent one's face kept popping up in his head. He couldn't help the worry about where she would end up. He couldn't think about how much they would get hurt and how bad they were treated when in their care.

He got up, wandering to the tanks. He ignored the looke the captain was giving him. He had grown up on the ships, and his captain had thought that he would be a good soldier when he had took over his old ship. Ever since then the captain has kept a close eye on him. He went past the old guard and went to the tank with the mermaid in it that he was getting stuck in his head.

He could hear her singing, and it called to him even more. "I know that you probably don't want to see me," Gavin said aloud. He wished that there was a way to get her out, but he couldn't think of a way. "I wish that there was way to get you out of this place."



Lorelei was still sulking about getting caught. She had been so determined to get away, but she wasn't fast enough. Then there was a fact that she wasn't strong enough to free herself from the net. The one thing that she prided herself in was the fact that she was able to shove two people off the ship when they had first caught her. She would have smiled if she wasn't completely pissed at the poor conditions. Her once beautiful black tail was gathering salt and turning it white.

Lorelei had tried to pick it off, but she had nothing that could truly scrape it off. This water was stagnant, and she couldn't really move around in the small tank that she was given. She was cramped, and it didn't help that she was trying her best to stay in the furthest corner away from them. She didn't know who they were going to sell her to and what that person was going to do to her.

Lorelei looked up when she heard someone come up to her tank. She saw the one man who had looked at her with kindness every time she had seen him. He was the only one who did. She came out, trying to find a way to convince him to get her out of here. Lorelei came out of her poor excuse of a hiding place. She came to the surface. "Could you please get me out of here?" she begged. She knew that this chance was slim, but she had to try.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily looked up at the man that peered into her little pool. She bit her lip as the cry of her song faded. She looked up at him and decided she was just desperate enough. Cecily rose from the depths of the pool shocking the pirate as she pressed herself up so she was face to face with him. She looked into his stunning eyes like the moon pool at home. "You can save me." she said knowing he was shocked that she could speak as well.

The pirates liked to tell tales of Mermaids and often times they were far from the truth like their lack of actual speech, they said mermaids could sing and imitate sounds but not speak. They also said that they never saw a mermaid with legs. That was only because mermaids only revealed their legs to those they trusted. Cecily looked round speaking quietly as she looked back at the man. "Listen closely to me. When your ship is asleep before the rays of first light come to me and I will reveal to you my secret that with your help can save me. Bring with you a shirt and a knife." she cupped his cheek. "You are my only hope." she whispered.

Cecily bit her lip. "Tell me your name." she pleaded with him her multicolored eyes holding the fire of the night as she looked into this man's face with the urgency that came from the knowledge that she would be loosing her freedom on an entirely different level in a very short time. Cecily's only hope rested in the bravery in this pirate. She knew he wouldn't have heard her song and felt so inclined to come to her if he didn't have the ability inside of him to do this.

---

Billy frowned as he looked into the mermaid's face. She was so sweet looking but the panic in her eyes made his bones quake. Billy bit his lip. How could he say no to her. But how was he suppose to get her out. He frowned and looked down. "I will see what I can do." he bit his lip. "I have no idea how but I will try." he said and stood looking back at her then slipped out of the room and looked at old Joe. He went back to his cabin grabbing his things and a bottle of port wine. He took the port to old Joe. "Hey." he said watching the old man jerk awake. He yawned. "Oh Billy." he sighed relaxing against the chair again. Billy handed the old man the port he had spiked. "Something to help with the long night." he said. Joe grinned. "Have a seat Billy." Joe said.

Billy sat drinking with Joe. He had built up a tolerance for many different things that his drink could be laced with. That was the price he paid for living with pirates. Joe was wobbling and snoozing between his words. Billy was really hoping that this was going to be enough for him to be able to get the mermaid out of here. He realized that this was all he had planned and if he had to fight his way out he wasn't sure if they would make it alive. Billy was suddenly very determined to get her out of here.

@ Jinx...
Gavin looked at the mermaid in shock. He had never heard them speak. Sing, yes. But talk was something that he hadn’t heard. He didn’t know how to react at first. It made sense that they could talk, and he just had to accept it and comprehend what she was saying. “I’m Gavin,” he said, answering her question. That was the first thing that he could respond to. His name was the easiest thing to think of.

“How do you know that I can save you?” Gavin asked, doubting himself. He knew that if he really tried, he could do it. He just wanted to know why she was choosing him to help her. There were several others on the ship that could have been convinced to help her, but they weren’t in here were they. They were still out in the shop avoiding this area at all cost. Yet, he still wanted to know why she would trust him of all people. “Tell me why me, and I will happily do as you say,” he told her. He knew that he would do it happily even if she doesn’t tell him.



Lorelei met his eyes when he told her that he would try. It was more than she had expected. She had expected a little of a fight, but she wasn’t going to deny it. She knew that she may have to show him her legs even though she was taught to only show those you trust with your life. Which was pretty much she was doing. She was trusting this man with her life. If he failed to save her, she was going to be sold to some stranger for them to do whatever they want with her. She knew that there had to be humans who would want to save her and her kind if they knew they were more than a myth, but there would also be more people that would want to do her harm.

Lorelei watched him leave, and she hoped that he succeeded to get her out of this tank and back into the ocean. She would owe him everything if he got her out of here. And she didn’t think that there would be anything or anyway to return the favor. It was something that would weigh in heart, but she couldn’t think like that. She would thank him and do her best to save him when she gets the chance.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily smiled softly. "Gavin." she said his name back it sounding like magic upon her tongue. He started to ask a bunch of questions and she cupped his cheek so his eyes looked into hers. He had magical eyes, the kind that revealed there was magic in his heart. "You came to help me because of a call in your heart. My song only brought it to the surface but it is your heart that leads you to help me. I know you can help me because you have a strong heart and somewhere inside of that heart there is a desire to help and the capability for great and true kindness." Cecily realized she was still touching him and let her hand drop. "Please come back to me Gavin in the quiet of the night." she said and looked over at the door hearing a loud laughing coming closer. She looked back at Gavin and pressed her lips against his touch cheek before returning to he bottom of the pool holding her tail as the door opened and a couple of the crew walked in obviously coming to make some bad drunk decisions that could harm Cecily and she refused to look up afraid someone would see the sympathy from Gavin or the hopeful plea from Cecily.

Cecily was so tired from the long journey and it was not over. There was so much yet to be done if she was going to make this out a live. Cecily could hear the pirates from under the water. "Gavin! Is the siren entrancing you?" the pirate laughed. "Don't lean over the water she will drag you down with a watery kiss of death!" there was laughing and crude jokes and inappropriate comments. "Doesn't matter if there isn't anything between her legs right? She still has a usable mouth!" the man laughed gyrating his hips suggestively, they were obviously very drunk but they couldn't reach her without a net if they wanted to and in their condition they could hardly stand let alone catch her. These fools were no risk to her right now.

---

The more drunk Billy became the more he realized how much of a wild crazy thought this all was. A talking mermaid was begging him to help set her free under the bosses of all the crew who would soon wake and come to sell her. Finally old Joe passed out snoring. Billy sighed and stood pulling him into the corner and then opened the door and looked at the beautiful mermaid. He was completely bewitched he decided as he knelt down. "We have to go now or we are not getting out of here." he said and offered her his hand. He had no guarantee that once she was returned tot he ocean that she would not use that same sanctuary to destroy him. Billy helped the mermaids up and onto the floor while he tried to decide how he was going to get her out of here. He could carry her but with her tail weight they would be going slow and that brought more risk for bing caught. Right now there was no choice. "We have to go so I am going to pick you up and carry you." he said warning her before he scooped her up into his arms. "Hold onto me." he said and started out of the little building.

There were heading down the dock and he was really starting to worry because it was nearly day break and the shift chance would be happening soon. Not to mention that the risk of being seen was so much greater the closer to the ship they got. "If you have any powers of concealment now would be the time to use them." he whispered to her hoping that he would not have to fight. He was just about to pass the ship when there was a shout and he cursed. They ad been spotted. "Stop traitor!" the crew member shouted in a voice loud enough to wake the crew below in the hull.

@ Jinx...
Gavin looked at the guys, resisting the urge to punch them. “Come on, guys. There is nothing to do in here,” he said, trying to get them out of here and back in their bunks. “She’s just hiding in that corner and not coming out, no matter what I say.” He knew it was a lie, but he hoped it would make them loose interest in her. The faster they fell asleep, the quicker he could get her out of here. As much as he felt like he was betraying the crew, he felt worse thinking that she was going to be sold to someone even crueler than this crew was. They didn’t immediately leave and continued to taunt the mermaid in the tank longer. He groaned, wishing that these guys would just leave her alone. He knew what they were trying to do. They were drunk, and they were going to anger her to the point that she would surface where they could get her. They have done it to the ones before, and he had never had the courage to get them to leave the poor female alone.

Gavin watched them leave before turning back to the mermaid and giving her a small smile. He was going to do his best to get her out of here. He shut the door behind him and watched the guys wonder down into the hull of the ship. He walked slower, wanting to stay close to the mermaid. He didn’t want others coming up, and he also wanted to make sure the route out off the ship was completely clear. He was dead if he was caught, and she would be stuck in the same position as she was in now if they deem her too dangerous to sale alive. He knew that they could sale her to a shaman if they kept her body fresh. After several long hours, he finally made his way back up the tank she was in. He had made sure that everyone else was asleep. He opened the door and saw her waiting for him.



Lorelei held onto to Billy as tightly as she could. She was scared that they weren’t going to get away and that they were going to get caught. As much as she knew that she needed to get away, she knew that this crew would hurt her savior, and she didn’t want that. He didn’t deserve that with his kind heart. He didn’t seem that he had much of a plan, but he was trying his best it seemed like. When someone called out to him, she let out a whimper. They were caught. She was going to be sold, and he was going to be killed. Lorelei clung to him wanting him to keep going and ignore them, hoping that maybe they would loose him.

“You know what’s going to happen now, don’t you?” the man said, almost yelling. His voice demanded obedience, and she recognized the voice. This man had come to her tank to taunt her and terrify her. He seemed to get off on it. “Now, if you give her back to us without a fight, we may consider going easy on you. But if you put up a fight, then you are going to die here and now. Don’t be stupid.” Lorelei looked up at Billy, begging him to ignore the man and just run and fight only if they followed after them.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily waited out the men to leave showing no interest watching them get bored and moving on. She looked at Gavin once more as he walked out looking back at her with longing and worry. She smiled gently and then rested her head back no the wall closing her eyes. She knew it would be a while. When she heard foot steps she rose tot he surface. It had been so long since she head anything she knew it had to be Gavin. Cecily saw Gavin open the door and she pulled herself up and took her tail out of the water. "Did you bring the shirt?" she asked. Cecily rubbed her tail and reached for the shirt he handed to her using it to pat her tail dry. She pulled on the shirt as her tail turned to legs. She looked up at Gavin and reached for his hand pulling herself up on wobbly legs. Cecily stood and collapsed into his arms. She huffed. "It will just take a moment before I can walk." she admitted and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I will still need help though." she said and looked up at him scared. She was revealing the biggest secrete she had.

Once she could keep her legs under her she, with Gavin's help, took a few tentative steps and nodded to him. "Okay it's time we need to leave. I just need to get to the ocean and from there I can swim home and will be safe." she looked up at Gavin. "I can't express how much this means to me." she said as they started other way out. She was so very glad this ordeal was almost over and she couldn't wait to be in the ocean again were the waters would help to heal her tail and her body. Cecily hated the way that the harsh wood felt on her bare feet. She was so use to sand or grass on her feet that this was rough and hurt in a way she did not expect.

---

Billy looked at Lorelei. "Don't worry." he whispered and removed his sword. "Come and get me Cane!" he yelled and tossed Lorelei over his shoulder so he could better fight and run. Billy turned and started to run only to be met up with a group from the ship. A small one thankfully but still would be a challenge. Billy stopped and smiled. "You didn't tell the captain you know did you Cane?" he said turning to see the man coming up behind him with another man. Five to one, this was going to be rough, and he was at a severe disadvantage. On the other hand they wanted something from Lorelei and would be less likely to harm her. Billy smiled. "You're planning a revolt and you need the mermaid to do it." he laughed. "You just condemned yourself." he said and lunged at the man. If he could take down Cane the others would back down. His blade met Cane's and the fight began as they traveled down the dock. Billy only had to get close enough to the edge of the water to toss Lorelei in and he would be able to win this battle.

Billy looked at the dock. They were so close. But it was going to take a lot to get there. Billy needed all the skill he had learned to pull this off and survive. If he defeated Cane the others would be too afraid of him to go to the captain and tell him what he had done. Billy knew that if he made it through this he wasn't going to stay on that ship anyways. He would need to find a new living to make fore himself but he could no longer help capture or hurt mermaids. It wasn't right.

@ Jinx...
Gavin gave her a sweet smile. He walked with her, listening for to what was around them. He had a fear that they would get caught but everything stayed silent and just the normal sound of the boat swaying in the water. He helped her further and down the ramp off the boat and onto the ramp. The wood let out a groan, and he held his breathe, waiting for someone to come up and see them. He didn’t slow, but he kept looking over his back. He didn’t understand why he had waited this long to try to find away to save her. She had every right to be free and not caught and sold.

“Just a little bit further,” he whispered. “I just hope you get home and stay safe.” He hated the thought of her being caught again. He didn’t know how she would be able to get a way the second time. They weren’t done yet and there was still time to get caught. Just because they were off the boat doesn’t mean one of the other pirates can’t see them. Or someone else from another ship could see him walking down with a girl. They could easily go to his captain. His eyes darted everywhere, making sure that the coast was clear.



Lorelei held onto to Billy. She feared that he would drop her and then these men would grab ahold of her. She felt him move, fighting the leader of the group. She had wished that they weren’t caught. She didn’t want Billy to loose his life just to rescue hers. She wouldn’t ever repay her debt to him if he died for her. She hummed softly trying to think about what she could do to help. She noticed a few men starting to sway slightly to her humming. She never had the strong ability of being a siren, but she wondered if it would be enough to help Billy without it causing him to succumb to it as well.

Billy jerked forward under her, and she was jerked out of her thoughts. He was fighting the leader a little more seriously now. She tightened her grip on her rescuer and hoped that she didn’t get stabbed and that Billy didn’t as well. He was the first guy here who had showed her any form of kindness, and Lorelei wasn’t going to forget that.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily could feel his feel like a wet blanket and it gave her hope that he cared so much and truly wanted to set her free. They were nearly there in her eyes. All they had to do was walk down the beach to the water and would be in the clear. Cecily smiled as he whispered to her. "I will." she said and smiled at him. His concern touched her and she would never forget his sacrifice. She heard someone yell Gavin's name and she didn't look back. "Stay cool." she whispered. "Who's the luck lady Gavin!? You going to share?" his shipmate joked and Cecily wrapped her arms around him. "Just play along." she ran a hand into his hair pressing herself to him and kissing him. She could feel him tense in surprise but the kiss of a mermaid was a powerful thing. She really leaned into it making it look like they were just sneaking away to go have sex for his shipmate. His shipmate howled with laughter. "Well then have a good night Gavin." he said and walked away.

Cecily pulled away shaking like mad. She didn't think her legs were going to carry her much longer. "It's okay he bought it. I don't think I can walk anymore right now. Please sweep me up. When we get to the ocean it will all be over and I think you now have an alibi for when they find the tank empty in the morning." She grinned and was thankful when he pulled her off her feet. She rested her head on his shoulder and could feel when he hit sand. They walked down the beach and to the ocean. When she was set back on her feet a little ways from the rolling tides she turned towards the ocean. She was free and it was nearly over. It was simply getting home now. Cecily turned again to Gavin and cupped his cheek. "Thank you. If ever you are on the sea and your life is in need drop this into the water." she said and handed him a gleaming pink pearl. She smiled and kissed his cheek. Cecily ran out into the ocean making it just far enough into the water before her tail took over her legs. She could feel her tale stinging with the fresh salt water as she swam off into the deeper water turning back and looking at Gavin. She bit her lip and dived down into the deep planning to keep close to the bottom of the ocean until she made it home.

---

Billy was nearly there to the edge of the pier where he could drop Lorelei into the water. He stepped back and then plunged again at Cale and sliced his side really good making him drop his guard to reach for the bleeding wound. In return though he received a slice on his arm, a flesh wound but would sting like hell and scar. Billy used the opportunity to run to he end of the pier. "See you fellas." He jumped off with Lorelei into the water far below them without hesitation. This was going to hurt just a little but they would be safe.

Billy felt the water surround them and he let them sink into the water and turned to her smiling as she took to the water. He didn't win the way he was hoping so he would never be able to go back but he would be alright. Billy swam with her a little under the water but his lungs started to burn before long. Billy figured they were far enough away from he pier he could surface so he shit up to the surface. He swam forward not looking back. He was glad that he would not be followed by a very injured Cale. An injury that would likely take his life. Billy was glad he had done it none the less and now had so many options in front of him now. He had saved Lorelei and that was something he would be proud of for all his life.

@ Jinx...
Gavin took the the pearl that she had given him and tucked it safely into his pocket. He knew that he wasn’t about to give to anyone, and he didn’t know if he would ever see her again. He watched as she dived into the water and disappeared. He felt a little lost, unsure what he was going to do now. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to go back to the ship, so he walked in the opposite direction. Taking his time, he carefully made his way into the port city. He didn’t know who was lurking around, and he didn’t know if there would be anyone who could point him out. In the morning the crew will see that the mermaid was gone along with him. They would put two and two together and hunt him down. At first, they will only think about hunting him down. If he can stay hidden for a few months, maybe they will slowly forget about him and move on.

He smiled. He did right by Cecily. He helped her get away from those pirates. He was proud of that. He knew it was wrong for them to continue to catch mermaids, and he doubted that there were many others like him. But he saved her and got her out. He was proud and happy to know that she was back in the ocean.



Lorelei looked back and saw that Billy had went to the surface. She was thankful that he had saved her. She went back and put a black pearl in his pockets whispering a spell under her breath that her mother had taught her. It was old, but she had seen it work. It would tell her when he was in trouble, and she hold be able to find him. She swam off before he registered what happened. She went to the bottom of the ocean and swam as fast as her tail would allow her.

Lorelei could feel the ocean healing her tail and give her the currents to get to her home. She stayed near the bottom of the ocean avoiding the surface. Afraid of another pirate ship trying to catch her. The ocean may be healing her, but she had a long way to go to be normal again. She was afraid that she would be thrown into another tank. She was still very thankful for Billy rescuing her and getting her back to the ocean even though it may have cost him his life.

@ Shadow Moon;


Cecily had returned home. She followed the underwater cavern into the lagoon and came up on one of the coral wedges and sat up looking around. She was home and yet all that was on her mind was the pirate with a heart of a gold, the most valuable item in all the land. She sighed and rubbed her tail. It was healing nicely. It had taken her a while to get home. She was only able to take the deepest routes home because she didn't want to be caught again. The underwater caverns had nice accommodations but she missed the sunrises and sunsets. She missed the moon and how it turned the ocean into a jewel. Cecily knew that she would most likely never see Gavin again and it put an ache somewhere in her chest that she didn't understand.

Cecily settled into her home taking care of the things that had been neglected in her months of absence. She was doing her best to ignore the feeling that now there was something missing, that her little slice of perfection was now just lonely and empty. Mermaids were to often loners, pods were just easier to catch and they moved around to much for her. Cecily realized she would either have to join a pod and never stop running or to just get use to the silence of the island again. The birds chirped and the wildlife of the jungle on the island were her only company and it gave her some comfort.

---

Billy had spent months running rom his past crew when a merciful captain took him him. His captain now said it was a recruitment tactic and it was not mercy but Billy know hiring a man who's past was being a pirate could be treason. Still Billy was determined to prove to his captain that he was worthy of that trust and risk. He quickly raised through the ranks of the ship at each stop having the cunning and the loyalty. He was currently the sailing master making the carts and setting the corse but the captain was looking into making him the Quartermaster once their's retired. It was an honor to be even considered for the position. Billy sat up late most nights looking up at the starts his fingers rubbing the black pearl in his pocket. He never knew his life would lead to this. His childhood had lead him down a dark and dangerous path but one action, one magical mermaid changed his life. Some nights the crew would join him on the deck with their drink and listen to him tell tales of mermaids. All true, some embellished of course but he said it as a precautionary tale in case one ever did show the crew would steer far to the other direction. It was important to Billy to spin his tales to protect the mermaids, after all he failed to do for all the other mermaids his old crew captured and killed or sold it was the least he could do.

@ Jinx...
Gavin had joined a new crew it was a military ship for the most part. It did ship a few goods, but they never went after mermaids. Most of the crew thought that they were just a myth which he carefully never confirmed. He was afraid that they would find out that they were the truth and become like the pirates that went after mermaids. If someone tried say they were true, he would say that it was just a sign of going crazy. He couldn’t see another one tortured. He is mind went back to the mermaid that he had saved. She had been on his mind every day since he had saved her. He felt his heart ache when he thought of her. The only thing that gave him any kind of peace was the fact that she wasn’t on that ship anymore, and she hadn’t been sold at the auction. He didn’t know why he missed her like this. He barely knew her and yet he didn’t think that anyone would compare to her. His hand had went to the pink pearl. It was his only connection to her.



Lorelei was at the island that she was born. She had stayed her hiding out, avoiding the bigger ocean while she healed. She didn’t know what she was going to do. She was never one to join a pod. Pods were attracted more attention from pirates. There was always one at the top of the pod, and she didn’t much care for taking orders from others. She had been on her own when she was allowed to leave her mother. She swam through the coral reef making sure that the reef was back to the way she liked it. It had been dying out when she came back. It was still needing more time and care but it was coming back. Fish were coming back in. There were the cleaner fish that have finally returned and went to work on her tail. It was a blessing to have her tail almost completely healed.

She came up to the surface, and looked around. There weren’t any boats. It had taken a long time for her to have the courage to come to the surface. Leaving the safety of her island was another story. She never left. She didn’t know if she ever would. Her mind went to the man that had saved her. Her heart ached. She missed him and didn’t understand the other feeling that had started to feel her heart. She doubted that she would ever see him again which was probably for the best, but she still wanted to see him again. She wanted to have him around because he had been so kind and fierce. He was a fighter that saved her. She felt like that he was a warrior as odd as that sounded, but she admired warriors.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily could sense the incoming storm. There was going to be a storm so violent it was going to cause many things to join the bottom of the sea and many things to be expelled from it. She hesitated but swam out of the cove of her island swimming around it checking on things. The cove protected the coral and the fish but still the outside of the island was just as important. Cecily carefully prepared for the storm. This was the kind of storm that Cecily hoped that Gavin was on the other side of the ocean far away from it. If he ever used the old trade routes that his last ship did then he would be in danger. She hoped that he had found something that took him far away from all this. The wind was picking up as Cecily surfaced looking out onto the horizon. She hoped he would be safe but she knew that if he did become in danger she would have to go to him and hope that she was in time to wherever he was. Cecily bit her bottom lip feeling the eery calm of the ocean preparing and frightened of the storm to come. It would be a storm greater than any in their lifetime, she could feel the pressure of it like a warning inside of her.

---

Sometimes Billy considered trying to find the mermaid who's name he never got. He would sit with the pedal that had appeared soon after rescuing her, or maybe it had happened at the same time, he couldn't be sure. When he had found it later he had instantly connected it to her though, it had the same feel as her presence caused inside of him. It was a magical stirring he could not explain. Just then his captain shouted. "Pirates!" Billy pulled up onto the deck and looked out seeing the pirate flag waving in the wind as the sun was starting to set behind them. A red sky. It unsettled him. It meant good weather but it still felt like a bad omen with the pirates on their way. His worry was which pirates it was. "Men to the guns!" the captain yelled and the entire boat came to life with men running about to begin their jobs and prepare for war. The pirates were sailing closer having the advantage with their size as the ship below Billy was weighed down with the gold of the king and goods meant for trade with a formidable ally.

The ships drew together and their was an eery silence before a sound and an instant later the sound of a cannon shot out. The cannon hit the ship and the caption yelled for return fire. Pirates swung over to their ship and Billy pulled the sword at his waist and met a sword with his own. The insignia on the pirate's arm looked familiar and his stomach flipped with the unease. His old crew had found him and were here for their revenge. Around Billy swords crashed against the sounds of firing cannon and gun shots. The crews were evenly matched, to evenly. Billy watched as a cannon shot out and hit the mast on the pirate's ship. The crew yelled in triumph but then the mast started to fall and was coming towards them. There were screams as the mast fell upon soldiers and pirate a like. Billy was just trying to concentrate on the fight in front of him but even he could feel the sinking of the ships around him.

Billy jumped onto the side of the ship and stabbed the man that came after him before he looked around seeing the pirates were winning. His captain dead and Billy knew the ships were going to take everyone down with them. Billy jumped and dived into the water just as the pull of the ships sinking started to pull everyone in with it. It was dragging him down and before he knew it his lungs were burning. There was no way he was going to survive this.

@ Jinx...
Gavin looked into the sky and groaned. It wasn’t the first time he had been on a ship during a storm, but this looked like it was going to be a bad one. It didn’t help that he knew that the ship was in need of repairs when they reach shore. He had to hope that it would get him there before falling completely apart. He glanced over at one of the other men nearby. He was new to ships, and the man was shaking in his boots. Gavin shook his head, trying to get the ship as ready as he can get it to be for this coming storm.

It wasn’t long before he was hit. He groaned and braces himself the best he could. The ship creaked under him, making him let out a string of curses under his breathe. He had to make up for the new men who were either too scared to be out in the storm or just plain didn’t know what to do. He felt another wave hit the ship, causing more water to come over the railings. He was drench head to toe with water. He looked over to see the quartermaster of the ship too close to the edge as another wave was about to hit.

Gavin ran as fast as he could and tried to push the quartermaster back into safety. He had succeeded, but when the wave hit, he wasn’t quite ready for it and was thrown over the edge from the force of his. He was sucked under the dark ocean water and tried his best to get back to the surface, fearing that he wasn’t going to make it.

***

Lorelei felt a pulse. It took her a second to recognize it for what it was. It was the man that had rescued her. He had to be in danger for her to feel this. She rushed from her island and swam through the water trying to get to him as fast as she could. Lorelei has always been thankful that she was a powerful swimmer. Though this was the most she had ever exerted herself in the past months. When she got to the scene, she almost turned back. She could hear pirates, but she wasn’t going to back down just because of her fear. She had to return the favor to the man. Lorelei’s eyes searched the water, stopping only when she saw him. She couldn’t tell if he had passed out or if he was caught on something.

She went right up to him and wrapped her arms around him. She used all of her strength to pull him to the surface. As much as she knew that she shouldn’t take him back to her island, she didn’t have a choice. That was the closest piece of land, and she figured that he had given her enough to reason to trust him after he had saved her. She continued to drag him through the water. It was hard, given that he weighed a lot more than she did. He had more muscle. She made sure that his head was above the surface, hoping that he was in fact breathing.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily felt the instant that he hit the water. She looked over the ocean and let the all drive her to him. He was surprisingly closer than he should be to her island. The trading companies were getting closer to her but she couldn't focus on that now when Gavin needed her. It was a good swim but she made it seeing he had passed out and was being dragged down by the currents. Cecily took him into her arms and pressed her lips to him breathing air into him. She carefully got him to the surface as she saw the ocean picking up. His ship was not going to last much longer anyways. There was only one option then. As he coughed up the water and took in air she sighed and started the long journey towards her home. She took him into the safety of the cove and dragged him up onto land.

Cecily knew she had to get him into shelter as the rain started to pour sideways. She pulled him into a nearby cave. It was the best they were going to get. she had not been expecting to need to keep warm in a cave. Cecily waited for her tail to dry out and her legs to form before she gathered the driftwood that was dried out in the cave from the tide that had pushed it into here. She made sure Gavin was puled out of the way of the water and set a fire. She pulled off his shirt as he started to shiver and wring it out drying it over the fire sitting close to him to give him some of her heat. Once his shirt was dried she pulled it over him drying his shoes and socks. Cecily worked into the night and ended up curling up with him as the night broke into day. The storm was not letting up outside the cave and it likely wouldn't for many days.

---

The ships sank with all the people upon them both behind them. He would not have survived either if not for Lorelei. Billy woke up in the morning on a sandy beach. He hummed the sun blaring down on him. His mouth was so dry and the past nights events were far from his mind. He groaned and tossed an arm over his face. He sighed and sat up blinking and looking out upon the beach in confusion. He looked around as the memory of the night came back to him. There wasn't a ship in sight and he had no idea how he got to this island. The last he remembered there wasn't land for weeks on his carts. Billy stood and looked around before patting his pockets for the pearl. Could it have been? Was it possible that the mermaid had saved him from an impossible watery death?

Billy ran a hand through his hair and looked over the island wondering how long a hike it would take to get to fresh water. Billy turned back to the ocean and bit his lip. "Was it you mermaid? Is that how I ended up here?" he asked the sea and touched the tide as it came up to meet him.

@ Jinx...
Gavin woke up. He shot up surprised at his surroundings. He didn’t know how he got here until he looked over to see Cecily the mermaid that he never thought he would see again. Here she was, but why? It wasn’t long before he remembered falling off the side of the ship and being carried to the bottom of the ocean. She must have saved him. He sat up, noticed that most of his clothes were off of him. She must have taken his clothes off to dry them. He looked over at her and smiled. She had rescued him.

He walked around the cave, trying to get a bearing on his surroundings. He saw the storm was still raging on outside, once he got to the mouth of the cave. He didn’t want to get soaked again, so he stayed far enough away from the entrance to the cave. He turned back to where he had woken up and saw that the mermaid was waking up. “Thank you for saving me,” he said, smiling at her.

***

Lorelei came to the surface. She had been hoping that she would be back up on the surface before he woke up. She smiled at him. “Yeah, I brought you here,” she said. She came up to the beach and let her tail dry out, allowing her legs to make an appearance. She hadn’t walked in land in a long time, but she wasn’t going to let him starve. She had a couple of fish in her hands. “I got us some food. Just gotta cook it,” she said. She looked over at Billy. She was glad that he was okay and happy that she had got to him in time.

She went over to the little fire pit she had made last night. She quickly started the fire and went to cooking the fish. She hated when she fed on her reef fish, but she didn’t want to wonder too far from him in fear that he was hurt. She sat down in front of the fire and started to cook. “Come and sit,” she said, patting the ground next to her.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily woke the moment that Gavin shot up. She lay there watching him look around and she yawned stretching out as he noticed her. She had ended up taking his shirt for herself. Been on land was a lot colder than being in the ocean. She stood and smiled as he thanked her. "No need. We're even now." she said standing. "You're going to need to hide out here until the storm passes. "I was going to take you farther into the jungle on land but there really was no time." she said and then stepped farther into the back of the cave and came back with a coconut shell full of fresh water. Cecily handed it to him. "I'll go get us some food after I restart the fire." she said and set to work on it.

Cecily was quiet as she worked. She finished and turned to him. "So what did you do after releasing me into the wild?" she asked and smirked at her own pun. Cecily didn't have many conversations so she felt a little weird trying to figure out were to begin. She bit her lip looking him over with his barefoot and naked chest. He was so very handsome. She wondered what it was that drew her to him.

---

Billy smiled. He hadn't thought that would work but it had and he watched her sit in the sun her tail drying out as he spoke. "Well thank you for saving me... I never did catch your name." he said and then gasped as her legs formed. The rumors were true, she did have legs. "I didn't know you had legs." he admitted. He guess it made sense though somehow. Billy moved over next to her staring at her legs then thought i might be rude and turned towards the fire. "So this island, is this your place? Cause it's not on any maps I know about." he said and looked over at her beautiful face.

Once the fish was ready he dug in and started to eat. "Mmm this is good." he said and looked over at her. "You know I have so many questions. I guess it would be rude to just start peppering you with questions. "Do you have questions for me?" he asked. Billy felt like he was in a dream. Or maybe he was just dead and this was his own personal heaven on a beach with the mermaid of his dreams, literally.

@ Jinx...
Gavin watched her work. He felt bad that he didn’t know what to do to help her. “I had joined a military crew that transported important people from one place to another. I never had much success on land,” he admitted. “Those guys were good people. He saw her look him over, and he did the same to her. He noticed that she was wearing his shirt. He wasn’t about to ask for it back. If anything, there was something in him that liked seeing her wearing his clothes. He didn’t think that he would ever admit that aloud.

Gavin moved back to her side and sat down next to her. “So what about you? What have you been doing since you were freed?” he asked. He didn’t know if she had joined up with other mermaids or if she had been alone. He kind of didn’t like that thought. He had worried about her and felt things towards her that he didn’t understand at all.

***

Lorelei smiled at him, noticing him staring at her legs. “I’m Lorelei. I can’t remember if I had caught your name either. There is no need to thank me; you saved my life. It was only right that I return the favor,” she said. She let out a laugh. “It’s rare that I come on land. And if they get wet even a little bit, they will go back to the tail. It’s safer to stay hidden in the water than risk the surface world. And yeah, this is my island, and it would be best if it never went on a map.” She gave him a look, hoping that he would understand. She needed to keep this place a secret from the rest of the world.

She looked at him as she took a bit. “I’m glad that you like it,” she responded. She had never cooked for anyone else. She didn’t know if he would have liked it or if he would have faked it. “Don’t be afraid to ask me anything. But I do want to know what have you been doing since you rescued me,” she said, looking at him. She kind of couldn’t believe that he was here with her. This man had been her thoughts and he was here now.

@ Shadow Moon;
Cecily listened as he talked about what he had been doing all this time. The sea called to him like it did to her, she needed to be a part of it and it seemed so did he. He sat next to her and she smiled softly at his question. "I have been nurturing the island and the reef." she said and looked down. "I guess it doesn't seem all that inspiring but it is a lot of work." she looked back at him. "This is my home, you are safe here, no one else knows about it." she said and stood moving towards the entrance. "I'll go get us some food." she said and stripped off his shirt her back towards him. She dropped it on the dry sand and then dove into the tides at the mouth of the cave.

Cecily was gone a while before she came back with clams and mollusks and fish and seaweed. They could do pretty much anything with these. She also had a couple big leaves. Cecily waited for her legs to dry off then stood, only her hair to cover her nakedness. She pulled on the shirt and came over to clean off the catch with the freshwater before she set to work. Once the fish where ready to cook she handed them to Gavin. "Don't put them in the flame, just over, the smoke will be good flavor." she said and started to prepare everything else. She could feel his eyes on her and she looked over at him. "My legs are unique." she stated suddenly. "It's only salt water that turns my legs to a tail. It makes caring for the island much easier during the rainy season." Cecily came over to the fire joining him and pulling her long hair over to one shoulder.

---

"My name is Billy." he smiled. "Nice to officially meet you." he said and chuckled as she said she was returning the favor of saving him. "Well I will save you anytime no charge." he teased. He listened about her legs and nodded. It was amazing she had legs at all. "I bet rain is a tough one on land for you then." he grinned. She told him that her island needed to stay hidden and he nodded. "Yes I could see why that is so important. You have nothing to worry about from me." he said and kept eating his food.

"Do you have any freshwater near by? I could really use a drink." he admitted after finishing his food. Billy nodded and smiled. "Well after fighting with the first mate I didn't think it was safe to go back to the pirate ship and honestly I couldn't take it anymore anyways. So when I came up to the next port city I started looking for a new crew which is were I ran into Louie." he said and frowned looking down in sadness knowing his friend was dead now. "He was a captain with the royal navy and took me on even though I am sure he knew I was a pirate. I spent all this time rising in the ranks and keeping my nose down. I spread some cautionary tales of mermaids as well..." he looked at her. "Nothing to get you in danger, more to make people want to avoid you if they did meet you so you would not be in danger." he said and ran a hand through his hair.