Damn writers block:P But ahh well it happens to us all at one stage or another… Well since my other story is sort of at a stand still, I thought I'd start another story to get back into the way of things. I've had this fic in my head for a while so I decided to write it down on paper and see what others think. Hope you enjoy :)

A Merman's Tale

Chapter 1

The last few rays of the setting sun shone down onto the aqua blue sea, causing the ripples on the surface to dance and shimmer. The under water kingdom of 'Atlantica' was preparing itself for another night's slumber. Several young merpeople rushed back to their coral houses to settle down for the night as shoals of brightly coloured fish hid within the tall seaweed. A merman with tri-coloured spiky hair lay on his back with his hands behind his head lay on a flat rock, watching the last glimpse of the light before it was engulfed by darkness. It had been a long day of exploring and watching the party of humans board one of their many wooden ships. He sighed to himself as he thought about all the amazing things above the surface in the other world.

"I wonder if the humans know about our world… Do they know we exist down here?" he muttered.

"Yami!? Fuck sake! Where the hell are you!?"

"We've been searching for hours…"

"This is beyond hide and seek man!!" Yami rolled over onto his front and looked over the side of the rock. He saw his friends Tristan, Joey and Ryou searching through the seaweed below.

"Just stay hidden… they don't need to know that I'm here…" he whispered, as he began to lye back down on the rock. Instead of meeting the smooth surface, he landed on a prickly… "STONE CRAB!!" he yelped, as he quickly swam above the rock. The others looked up when they heard his voice and began to snigger as they watched him swim around in circles. "Ha-ha-ha! This is so funny!" he scowled, as he tried to take out one of the several spines sticking into his skin.

"God sake Yami!!" sighed Ryou, "…hold still…" Ryou began to gently take out the spines making Yami hiss in pain each time.

"You've been up here all this time!? Why the fuck didn't we find you!!??" asked Joey. Yami bit his lip,

"Well… I haven't been hiding exactly… ouch! Watch it!"

"Well I'm sorry but I wasn't the ass wipe who leant on a stone crab!! Jeezo thank fuck it wasn't poisonous!!" he replied, pulling out one of the spines painfully from Yami's back on purpose.

"Fuck! Do you want me to tell you where I was? Or are you just here to torture me??! As I was saying… I was away exploring…"

"Shit not at the surface again??!" breathed Tristan, "What will your father say!?"

"What he doesn't know can't hurt him…" shrugged Yami. Joey crossed his arms,

"If you don't watch yourself you'll be caught…"

"In a net… I know-I know Joey! I've heard it all before, caught in a net and dragged onto one of their whales…"

"But you're the bloody prince!!" said Tristan angrily, "You can't just be going up to the surface as if it can't happen to you!"

"But I don't think that!" he growled.

"Well that's what your moth… erm… I…" Ryou pulled out the final spine and hesitated at his mistake.

"Yeah just finish your bloody line of thought. That's what my mum thought hmm!? She wasn't…"

"But she was taken by the humans on your first birthday. You're 17 now Yami… If she was alive you'd think she would be here… You have to admit it, she's not here with us anymore…"

"She is! I know it! Sure I don't remember what the hell she was like, but she was… no wait… she IS my mother. She's out there… somewhere… I can feel it in my heart," glittering silver tears rolled down his face. "Why is it that I can heal other people's pain but not my own?!" he sighed slightly before swimming away from his friends as fast as his tail could carry him. His pack stung a little from where Ryou had taken out the spines but he didn't care. He wanted to get as far away from his friends as possible. Finally he slowed down and stopped slightly out of the breath from how fast he swam. He looked above him at the white reflection of the moon in the water and began to ascend until he broke the surface.

OOOOOoooooOOOOOoooooOOOOOoooooOOOOOoooooOOOOOoooooOOOOOoooooOOOOOooooo

A gigantic ship sailed towards the beach. It was the prince's 17th birthday and for that evening he had had a party on one of his father's many ships. The prince leant on one of the railings as he looked out at the ocean. He heard a voice from behind him and quickly turned round.

"C…common Yuuuuug!" slurred his friend which made Yugi roll his eyes.

"Erm… no I'm fine… one beer was enough for me Joey…" he sighed, before turning back to the ocean.

"Suityourselfff…" he laughed, as he began to slop beer from his tankard onto the deck when he walked away. Yugi shook his head in embarrassment as he focused on the reflection of the moon in the water.

"Happy bloody 17th… another year when my parents can't be here to celebrate with me…" he whispered sadly with a frown. It was very rare that Yugi's parents were around, with all their royal duties they were always busy. Even on their son's birthday. Most of the time Yugi was left in the hands of royal attendants, with his close friends and their trusted house keeper. As he gave another depressed sigh he caught glimpse of something shimmering in the water. "Is that… no… it's a tail…" he murmured as he leant over the side of the ship. He began to run along the deck as he continued to glance at the sea. He eventually reached the back of the boat and leant over the side. "I'm positive that I saw something… it was right… he…he…HERE!!" he toppled over the railing and fell a great distance before plunging into the ocean below. The icy water hit his body like a thousand knives piercing his skin as he felt his lungs fail to expand due to the lack of air. Yugi began to flap and kick in panic to try and bring himself to the surface but it was no use. His attempts only made things worse as his breath began to run out. Was this it? Was he going to die without anyone knowing!? Yugi screwed up his eyes as the urge to breathe became unbearable as he continued to flap his arms. What felt like an eternity of the icy cold pain, Yugi gulped in the water and the feeling of light headedness crossed his brain. His eyes were gradually becoming heavier as they blurred in and out of focus. He frowned slightly as he saw something drawing nearer… something that shimmered like what he saw from the ship.

"Don't worry, I'll save you…" said a deep echoing voice. He felt someone wrap their arms around his body and he began to feel the heavy weight lifting off his chest. He could breathe again… but how was that possible? Wasn't he just drowning? He felt himself drifting through the water. His vision was still blurry but he was able to take deep breaths now. Was this how it felt to die? This thought continued to ring in his mind as he finally slipped into the unconscious world…

TBC??...

What did you think? It's a bit short this time but it's just a trial chapter to see if anyone likes it. Please leave your comments so I know whether to carry on with this fic too. Thanks again.