Uncharted Waters

Shoukoku no Altair

Original Character

Summary: Life is like the ocean. You navigate your way using everything in your disposal. When challenges are thrown your way, you must keep going. But the ocean is endless. Eventually, you will come upon wholly unfamiliar territory. One have no choice but to brave through it. L'isolani sailors are the best seafarers out there. But their womenfolk are not to be underestimated either.

Disclaimer: I do not own Shoukoku no Altair. All OCs in this story belong to me

Warnings: OCs, typos, grammar errors

IF YOU DON'T LIKE CANON CHARACTER X ORIGINAL CHARACTER PAIRING, TURN BACK NOW

Once in awhile, Amadeo wants to be alone.

Sailing through the Centro Sea with his Oro is more than fine. But weeks with smelly men? No matter how much trust Amadeo put in his crew, even he needs his privacy at times. His face is quite well known on land, due to his reputation as a genius. Occasionally, a few people would try to suck up to him. They want to curry his favour in order to improve their standings or be allowed to join him. Amadeo understands, to an extent. Thanks to his Sight, none of the ships belonged to the Boccanegra family ever sunk. Working for him means that you are guaranteed to come back home alive. Unfortunately for these aspiring sailors, Amadeo is a picky person.

What Amadeo dislike the most, among other things, is incompetence.

He would only let a select few to even touch Oro. Amadeo have to get to know these men first, to figure out their aptitude, and ensure of their loyalty. Because a sailor's true worth only shows during a storm. One may have the 'sight' but it doesn't mean they can control nature. If a sailor is unable to keep his calm during a bad weather, he shouldn't call himself a sailor at all. Amadeo is first rate. He don't settle for third rates.

Oh, don't get him wrong. Amadeo enjoys the attention he gets. It's only natural if someone as brilliant as he receive attention from others. He've proven himself from time to time that he is a force to be reckoned with. Everyone have acknowledged him. All he need to do now is to bring that acknowledgement up a notch. Or a few. To become the undisputed no. 1 in L'isolani and Centro.

It gets annoying from time to time. Words are words. It can be easily carried away by the wind. If they want him to pay attention, they should prove themselves first.

Uncle Roni recommend him to take some time off. Just by himself. They already finished with paperwork and their next trip is scheduled not for another two weeks. Amadeo have no desire to go to town so he decided to explore the coast. There is a small gulf not far from the city, but the tides make it difficult to go there. Seldom people come to the gulf. Amadeo is in luck. The tide is low today. A path have opened up before him.

Today really is a beautiful day. There isn't a single cloud sighted in the sky. The sea glitters from the sunlight. Gentle breeze wash over him. Ippocampis are frolicking around. He can hear the seagulls' cry from the distance. A few ships can be spotted on the horizon. His heels dug into the sand instead of the hard wood of Oro. It's so peaceful here. Amadeo start to relax. This is exactly the break he's needed. By being near his element. The ocean. It's a fact that L'isolani people are drawn to it. The connection varies from person to person but it's definitely there. Amadeo bet that no one feel stronger pull towards the ocean than he does.

Amadeo about to take a walk when his ear catches a sound. It doesn't sound like an animal… It sounded like… Someone singing?

Amadeo scanned the area. His eyes fell upon a figure sitting on a rock islet not far from the gulf. Someone else is here? The figure have their back on him. The long blonde hair cascading down their back suggest female.

A sea nymph. It has to be a sea nymph. Amadeo never see one before.

She's singing. Amadeo couldn't make out the words but it sounded beautiful.

He want to take a closer look. But before he can take another step, the sea nymph stopped singing. She stood up. Amadeo stills. If she spot him now, she would flee for sure. Amadeo is not a bad swimmer but he doubt he can catch up. The sea nymph leap into the water. His eyes followed her form. She is swimming towards the other side of the gulf, hidden behind the cliffs. Amadeo followed her. He walk around the cliff, careful not to make any noise.

The sea nymph is heading towards the coast. Huh, that's weird. Aren't sea nymphs supposed to live in the sea? Weren't they part of Triton's court? Perhaps her sisters are waiting nearby? That would be a sight to behold. Few people in the history of L'isolani have seen Triton. But sea nymphs are barely mentioned. Amadeo never thought much about the sea nymphs on the fresco. The images of Triton, ventis and Ippocampis are much more interesting. Let's see if the real thing if anything like the stories described…

The sea nymph have reached the land. And she is naked. Amadeo hastily hide behind a boulder. Dear Triton, she's naked. Paintings and sculptures always depict them as naked. But seeing the real thing is a whole other matter. Amadeo feel like a pervert now. Yet he can't resist to take another peek. The sea nymph is bringing her arms behind her neck. To flip her wet hair maybe? The movement draw his eyes to her torso. Amadeo feel his face getting hotter. This lovely creature before him is quite blessed in the chest department. He watch her wring her hair. Once she's satisfied, the sea nymph walk towards a tree. Something is hanging on one of its branches. It appears to be a white clothing. She wrapped it around her. Sure enough, the material become see-through after it absorbed water. The cloth clings onto her body, accentuating her curves.

He want to take a closer look…

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. At that exact moment, she look up and their gazes met.

Amadeo's breath hitched. The noises at the background dimmed. He no longer pay attention at his surroundings. Time just seem to slow down around him. All he can focus on is the sea nymph. The sea nymph look back at him with a stunned expression. Like she didn't expect anyone to be here. Her lips parted slightly.

There is distance stretching between them. Around 20 feet, give or take. Amadeo is not close enough to figure out her eye colour but he couldn't look away. It's like he was being pulled in by those eyes. It felt weird. Intense, actually. Like when Oro brave through a storm or when they get closer to a whirlpool. But this is different. It felt foreign, confusing and all around overwhelming. He never feel anything like this before. Amadeo can't quite put a finger on it. This is completely new.

Amadeo step away from the boulder, wanting to get a better look. Maybe attempt to strike a conversation with her even.

The motion seems to snap her back to reality. The sea nymph tear her gaze away. She turned her back on him and run. "Wait!" He runs after her. The sea nymph didn't return to the water. She just kept running.

'She's fast,' Amadeo thought.

The sea nymph disappear behind the cliffs. She vanished from his line of sight. Amadeo pick up his pace. Why is he chasing her? What merit does he get if he catch her? She could put a curse on him for all he knows. Yet his curiosity won over. When Amadeo reach the other side, he is greeted by… No one. No sign of anyone. Wait, there are footprints. Amadeo follows them. It lead him to a rocky path. The prints stopped there. The sea nymph probably jumped back to the water. Amadeo have no chance of pursuing her if that is the case. His eyes scanned the area, hoping to get a glimpse of golden hair.

Nothing.

Amadeo is disappointed. He is absolutely certain that the sea nymph is not a mirage. She is as real as the ipppocampis and the ventis. What an interesting turn of his day. Perhaps he will get another glimpse of her in the future. The teen turns around and start walking back to the city.

Amadeo promptly ignore the intense feeling in his chest.

She was seen. She was seen. She was seen. She was seen. She was seen! She was seen!

Someone saw her!

Worst of all, she was seen by the Boccanegra heir. They never really exchange any words before. They never even properly met. This definitely qualify as 'improper'. The boy was peeking at her!

Orelia let out a tired sigh. Now she have to find a new swimming spot. Just peachy. She waited until the boy left before stepping out from her hiding spot. She is dry for the most part now. Orelia put on her clothes. As she did so, her mind play back the encounter.

Amadeo Boccanegra looked like he stumbled upon her spot on accident. He was probably taking a walk or something. Gosh, that was embarrassing. Orelia wish the earth or the ocean would swallow her up whole. How much have he seen exactly? How long have he been standing there? She don't want to find out.

Orelia made the mistake to linger. She should have bolted the instant she noticed his presence. Instead, she stuck around, locking gazes with him. She could excuse her slow reaction because of shock, but it still doesn't explain why she waste precious seconds to play staring contest. Why did she do that? Is she that desperate to put the blame on his eyes? Orelia is drawn to his eyes. She know that he have blue eyes. All Boccanegras do, her father said. Amadeo's eyes is blue. The color of the sea and sky. Orelia feel weird looking into his eyes. She felt a pull. Drawn into them. They were endless, like the sea and sky. Orelia can no longer tell if she's looking at him or he looking at her. It felt like he's looking past her defenses.

It's scary.

It make her feel vulnerable. It felt like she could drown, sinking deeper and deeper. And she's a really good swimmer. The myriad of emotions she felt back then is not comforting at all. The intensity is unexplainable.

Orelia shakes her head. Best not to think about it too deeply. Life would be easier if she just forget that it ever happened. Bury it in her mind. Don't look back. She make her way further down, where her boat is waiting. If she leave now, she can reach home before anyone noticed her absence. Her brother can only cover for her for so long. She don't want to get him in trouble.

The tightness in her chest won't go away.

This story is also posted in AO3. My username there is Little_Lady_Otaku

I guess at this point you all realise that OC fanfics is my jam.

And I know, the meeting is super cliche but this is my fic I call the shots here.

AND I'M SALTY WITH THE FACT THAT THEY CUT OFF AMADEO AND L'ISOLANI IN THE NEWEST EPISODE. MAPPA YOU HAVE ONE JOB

Thank you for reading

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