His Treasure, her Captain

A new Fanfic to add for all those who enjoy BlastFromThePastShipping! (CrowxKiryu) It had to be done, since there aren't that many fics of them on this site. *Nods* However, Crow is technically going to be a girl so would it count? Hmmmmm? Ah well, my fic, I do what I want with it. Anyway, thanks to all of you who clicked on this story. I'm so honored and glad! Oh yeah, and just to let you guys know, other characters will probably be gender swapped so prepare yourself, OK? And also, the main couple is Fem!CrowxKiryu but there will be some side pairings as well. So please, hang on, sit tight, and lets get this chapter rolling!

Dedication: I could not have had this wonderful idea without the help of Sakural7865! This idea was thought up by her and I took it with pride and stride! Here's to you, my friend!

Disclaimer: I have no rights over Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. I also do not own Get Along by Hayashibara Megumi and Okui Masami.

Chapter One: The Kingdoms of Land and Sea

The sea was always quiet and clear after a storm. It would ripple from time to time, whenever a wind blew or when a seagull made a swoop for tuna. But other than that, everything was alright. The seaweed swayed, both above and below the surface. Fish and all other sea creatures would swim from here to there, almost in perfect synchronization. The wind blew with a sweet yet salty smell. Yes, everything was normal in Domino Sea.

". . . Haaaarrraaa. . . Man, when's the sun coming up?"

A lone swimmer swam star-fish style above a dark blue patch of Domino seat, floating and staring at the faint color of the sky with her light grey eyes. Her feathery and bright orange hair pooled around her head and the golden markings upon her face gave her a somewhat dangerous look. Two jagged marks were on both of her cheeks along with an M-shaped one on her forehead, a circle-shaped one there as well. Around one of her arms was a chain of pucca shells held and tied by strong seaweed. Her tanned and smooth chest was hidden with long parts of her hair, hiding her breasts. (AN: I'm being realistic here. We all know that mermaids don't wear bikinis. That only happens in Disney -_-#) Tied around her neck was pale orange pearl held by a silver chain.

She yawned again and swayed her hands, her fingers playing with the water and tapping away small fish that tried to nibble at her fingers. Her eyes lit up when she caught the smallest glimpse of light come from the horizon. Eagerly, she gave a sigh of content as the sun finally rose into the sky, welcoming morning.

"Yes! Now it's time to get Jack and get going to the coast! Oh yeah!" she cheered, suddenly springing into the air. As she went air born for a few seconds, her lower-half revealed to be a black scaled fish tail with streaks of golden scales running down it, the fins of her tail wispy and curved as an angel fish's. This girl was like no other. She was one of the fabled mermaids of Domino Sea.

Only a few rumors were heard of such creatures. Sailors would tell stories to their little ones about seeing fair maidens and young men with fish tails upon the rocks of a few shores, basking in the sun and singing with such beauty and grace. There were also rumors going between foreigners that they made trades and had trading spots with mermaids in secret. But of course, those who said that were dubbed as crazed lunatics. Of course, who said that all rumors were lies?

Anyway, the mermaid with bright orange hair gave a laugh as dove into the water and swam her way past patches of coral, valleys of multi-colored rocks, and sand while waving merrily at schools of fish and herds of dolphins. Kicking up some speed, she swam all the way over to a large series of caves that were decorated with colorful types of coral and different types of stones and sea flowers. The mermaid smiled at her home, the place called Domino Reefs. Swimming past the lower caves, the girl went to the biggest one and swam in.

"Hey, Merissa. Where were you this morning?" The bright-haired sea-woman turned and stuck her tongue out playfully at a green-haired, grey-eyed mermaid, who had a pale blue tail and slightly broken glasses. Tied on her wrist was a regular pearl.

"I was just greeting the morning, Carly. And please, don't call me 'Merissa'. As of today, I am going to change my name." she said confidently. Carly tilted her head with a thoughtful look.

"Why are you going to change your name?" she asked. The now nameless mermaid wiggled her tail a bit as she looked at the dark blue ceiling of the cave.

"Well. . . I can't tell you that, exactly. Sorry, I just can't, y'know? It's like. . . I don't want to tell ya since it's something personal but at the same time, I want the whole sea and above to know me. It's kind of hard to explain." she said. She then snapped her fingers. "Damn! I nearly forgot what I was doing. Hey Carly, have you seen Jack anywhere?" she asked.

"I think he went by the Dolphin Caves to practice riding and herding. Though, I'd be careful if I were you. He seemed pretty mad when I saw him." said the green-haired girl. The orange-haired mermaid waved her hand carelessly.

"Aw, don't worry. It always seems like he has a ten-foot pole up his blow-hole. And he's my half-brother. I've been dealing with his for the past eighteen-years, haven't I?" she asked, flashing an impish-grin before racing out of the cave. Giving a light laugh, she looked over the small and various little caves that made up her home and she swam all the way over to the caves that were a little away from Domino Reefs. She stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted a tall and lean merman that was riding a bottle-nosed dolphin while chasing after two pink dolphins, a lasso made of seaweed in one of his hand. She gave a small grin as the merman caught the two dolphins easily, petting them on their noses before letting them and the bottle-nosed dolphin go.

"Nice catch there, bro." said the grey-eyed mermaid as she swam over, the merman turning around to greet her, his amethyst-purple eyes rather cold and his hand running through his pale-gold hair. Coral armbands were around his biceps and silver-colored studs pierced his ears.

"Merissa," he muttered, tying his lasso around his hand and casting his eyes away from the mermaid.

"What's up with you? And ya mind not calling me 'Merissa'? I'm gonna be getting a new name soon." said the black-tailed mermaid, following the blonde-haired merman. The male crossed his arms and muttered something under his breath.

"Come again?"

"Father wants me to marry Sherry, OK!" snapped her half-brother, fisting the dark blue pearl around his neck. The mermaid gave a soft look, her head nodding with understanding. From what they had heard of the caves that were a sea away, Sherry, the daughter of the leader of the caves across the sea, was said to be very cynical and as cold as a dead fish. The both of them had met her once and one visit was enough for them.

"Man, I'm sorry to hear that. Can't ya just tell pops that you don't want to marry her?" asked the golden-streaked-tailed mermaid. Jack gave a look that said, 'You're shitting with me, right?'

"Listen to me carefully, Merissa." said the male ("Hey! I said enough with 'Merissa' already, Jack!") "Look at who our father is; Rex Goodwin, the esteemed leader of the Domino Reef clan and the holder of the red pearl of the seven Guardians of Aroura. You and I are apart of that as well, since we hold the blue and orange pearls. And then there is Sherry's father, the powerful leader of the East sea, with Sherry as the holder of the green pearl. By forming a merger between the two clans, they can rule over Domino Sea with an iron fist as well with the power couple being two holders of the pearls of the Guardians of Aroura. And since I am the eldest of our family of seven, I have to marry first," Jack then sighed and clenched his fists. "The thing is-"

"You don't want to marry Sherry because you're not in love with her. I mean, how could you be? We may have met her only once but I know she isn't the type I want as a half-sister-in-law." said his half-sister, tapping her fist to the palm of her hand. Jack sighed again and looked down.

"Doesn't matter. Father will see this marriage through, whether I like it or not." he said. "Oh yeah, why did you come here anyway?" he asked.

"Oh yeah! Thanks for reminding me! I wanted to see if you wanted to come with me to the surface and get some stuff to trade at Neo Domino Kingdom! Saiga and I wanted to trade a few things at his shop this morning, ten 'o clock sharp!" she said with a firm nod of her head. Jack gave a small hum of thinking.

"I suppose. It could get my mind off this whole marriage." he muttered. His sister grinned and she grabbed his hand as the two swam to the nearby shores of Neo Domino Kingdom, the morning sun already in the sky and small ships passing every now and then across the shallow reefs. The girl and Jack swam to a small cove and the girl turned to her brother, winking.

"No peaking~" she warned, the blonde scoffing and grumbling under his breath.

"Please, you're my sister, for crying out loud. Like I would like to see you like that." he chide, nonetheless turning his back with crossed arms. The mermaid let out a giggle and she crawled her way to the sand, flapping her tail to get some water off it before she fisted the pearl around her neck. Tiny glows of orange shined through the cracks of fingers as the girl closed her eyes, an orange glow skimmed across her tail and the black and gold scales were replaced by tanned skin. Her tail morphed into a pair of human legs that were skinny yet good-looking. The girl smiled as she got to her feet, wobbling slightly before walking forward and getting use to standing. She gave a small laugh as she twirled on her feet before walking over to a boulder and grabbing a pile of clothes she had kept hidden there. She quickly changed into a bright yellow sweater with a long green skirt and a pair of white boots. She got to her knees and she dug the sand away, bringing out a brown package she buried there and chucking it to Jack.

"I packed ya some male human clothes. You haven't been up here with me since we were seven or something." She said, walking to the entrance of the cove and waiting by a few bushes. Lightly kicking one of the bushes, the now-human girl felt something at the toe of her foot and she reached over, pulling a light colored satchel from under the bushes and checking to make sure the items she kept in there were still in the bag. Her hand shifted and felt through different types of coins, jewels, coral, stones, everyday knick knacks, books, and all sorts of other things. She pulled out a dark blue-green headband that had two silver hoops clung onto it. She smiled at it before she tied it around her forehead, tucking the two long pieces of her hair under her headband so that they framed her face. She then pulled out an odd black and wooden object that held a glass lens and small knobs.

'I wonder why Saiga would want this. It looks pretty weird.' she thought to herself, shrugging before tucking the object back in her bag.

"Ouch! Damnit, how can humans use these things?" Jack grumbled as he stumbled before walking out of the cove's cave, awkwardly walking on his now human legs. He was now dressed in a white dress shirt with a grey vest, dark blue trousers, and black boots and he was scowling at his feet.

"Humans been born with them for their whole lives. We only become human for a while. That's just how it goes, bro." said Crow, shrugging before tucking her hair behind her ears and slinging her satchel over her shoulder. "Come on. It's going to be ten 'o clock soon and Saiga might have some awesome stuff in his shop today." she said, grabbing her half-brother's hand and leading him down a dirt road.

"Why did you even tell him who you really are? Father would cause tsunamis if he ever found out that a human knew that we existed." chide the blonde. The orangette rolled her eyes as she led Jack past a stone gate and into the streets of the Neo Domino Bazaar. From everywhere, the two siblings could see people selling different objects. From food, to jewelry, to deeds to lands, somewhere in that Bazaar, a sale was being made. Crow looked excitedly around the different stalls, loving the sites and laughing at the different trading and bargains going by. Jack looked around from here to there, a bored look on his face.

He really didn't see what was so interesting about the surface. He had only been above the waters for a few number of times and every visit was the same. But to his little sister, every visit and exploration to Neo Domino was simply amazing. All the new people who came to trade, every single story told around the town square, the newest items to be traded. The young nameless mermaid loved this.

The two of them walked over to a stall that was just being opened up by a man with dark brown hair, browns eyes, and a small goatee. He smiled at the two adolescents that walked by.

"Good morning, Marissa. Good morning, Jack. Looks like you two just made it in time for the trade, yeah?" he asked.

"Yep! And I got that thingy you wanted me to get, Saiga. And also, this 'Marissa' you speak of is now changing her name, thank you very much." said the human girl with a nod. Saiga laughed and he guided the two into his shop.

"I see. And nice, I'm glad you found the sextant I needed. A customer of mine has been looking for one for quite some time." said Saiga. The girl smiled and she pulled out the item, the sextant, Saiga wanted. Saiga looked over the small device, testing out it's different knobs and looking through it's lens before nodding.

"Yeah, this is in good shape. Himuro said he needed one of these for his next exploration. Oh yeah, let me just get you that book you wanted." said the brown-haired man, looking through different sorts of parts and miss-matched items he had. Jack looked at his sister with a confused face.

"You're trading that. . . Thing for a book?" he asked. His half-sister nodded and grinned as Saiga handed her the red leather book.

"Yep! I found it a few days back and I wanted to get it since it tells a lot about these cool and far away places I want to go to some day. I asked Saiga here to hold it for me." she said, opening the book and flicking the different sorts of pages. She stopped when she spotted a picture of a sleek and slender bird of prey with soft black feathers and obsidian-black eyes.

"What's this creature? It looks a lot different from a seagull." she said, tilting her head.

"Hm? Oh, that's a bird of prey. It's called a crow." said Saiga. The girl looked over the bird's picture, reading the small passages about the crow's impish and scavenger-like behavior. She suddenly smiled and nodded to herself.

"Alright, then that's my new name. Crow." she said, grinning from ear to ear. Saiga held his stomach as he laughed it up and Jack rolled his eyes.

"Merissa, Crow, I personally don't give a damn. You're still going to be my little sister either way." he muttered. Crow gave a laugh herself and she continued flipping through the different pages, her grey eyes dancing with excitement.

"Cheers to the Captain!"

"TO CAPTAIN KIRYU!"

Kiryu Kyosuke, a tall and pale man with sky-blue hair and the whites of his eyes shadowed in a dark black surrounding his golden-colored irises, smirked and raised his goblet of rum as the hundreds of men of his crew raised a toast to him before they all dug into their feast like wild animals. The captain himself was dressed in a black dress shirt with a black coat designed with dark maroon stripes done in different jagged lines, dark trousers, dark brown boots, and a dark blue musketeer hat with a large, maroon-colored feather pinned to it. Burned from the bottom of his right eye to the bottom of his chin was a dark red and crocked stripe, almost resembling a tattoo.

Kiryu gave a dark chuckle before standing up and making his way out of his ship's mess hall, slipping past the drunken crewmen that laughed and cursed and walking outside to the sky deck. He walked over to the railing and he suddenly doubled over as an intense pain filled his head.

'Let me out! Let me out! You promised I could have my body for tonight! You gave me your word!' Kiryu muttered under his struggling breath and he closed his eyes, glaring at a man who was now in front of him, who looked exactly like himself, who also lived in the recesses of his mind. His other self was chained to a black crucifix and his eyes were normal. He looked tired and weary but he was struggling against the chains that held him. The first Kiryu gave a smirk.

'Try not to move, master. That sword that pieced us from that Captain Stout is still trying to heal.' The double pulled up the front of his shirt a little, revealing the bandaged area that had a few spots of red seeping through it. Kiryu gave a tired sigh and he hung his head.

'I'll heal it when I get to shore. Just let me have my body for tonight. You gave me your word.' he muttered desperately, his breath ragged and his skin sullen. The free Kiryu scowled and snapped his fingers, the bounded Kiryu's chains disappearing and suddenly bounding the dark eyed double to the black cross.

'Fine. You may have a few hours of freedom. But afterwards-'

'I know, I know. I won't get it back until another night. I just need tonight to get some air.' sighed the light-eyed Kiryu, closing his eyes as he now saw the dark blue seas and darkening skies. He sighed tiredly, removing his large hat and touching his right cheek, feeling the smooth pale skin and sighing with relief, glad that the dark red burn on his cheek was gone for now. He looked at the wound that his darker self had shown and he shook his head. He had to get this fixed and redressed soon or else it would get infected.

He looked around the upper-deck, checking to see if any of the crewmen were there as well. Nodding to himself, he removed his boots and coat and quickly dived into the water, shuddering as he rose back to the surface and looked around, wincing as the salt water stung his wound. He spotted the shore line the boat was near. He had heard his darker self bragging about raiding a town that had been one of the several kingdoms on that island. Without a moment's hesitation, Kiryu swam all the way to the shore, fighting against the pain in his torso.

Once he got there, he panted and gasped, slowly regaining his strength before he got to his feet. Wringing water from his waist-length hair, he steadily began to walk across the beach. He pulled off his dress shirt and he gave a curse as his bandage fell off his wound, the air chilling around the torn skin and a pus-like substance already forming around the wound. He shook his head and gritted his teeth, pressing his shirt to his wound to stop the bleeding and infecting area. As he walked, he looked to the setting sun and he shook his head.

'Seeing the sun now. . . I wonder if I'll ever be lucky enough to see it again when he comes back and takes over.'

"All I'm asking is why do you like to trade with humans?"

"It's fun, Jack! Saiga has the best stuff to trade with when it comes to stuff like that."

Jack and Crow were now walking back to their cove just as the sun was disappearing behind the water's horizon. Crow was smiling eagerly, her satchel a little heavier than before with the new items she gained while trading with Saiga. If there was anything she knew, it was trading. Crow had been trading and bargaining all sorts of items with humans for as long as she could remember. Whenever she had the chance, she would sneak away from Domino Reefs and transform into her human form, sneaking into Neo Domino Kingdom's Bazaar and trading and bargaining to her heart's content. It was her favorite past time.

Unlike all of her other six brothers and sisters, Crow loved to journey up to the surface. The will of adventure interested her and she often wished she could stay in her human form forever. But she knew that was not to be. Her step-father, Rex Goodwin, though kind and good to his people, was a strict man with all his children and he was very against any of them changing into their human forms and interacting with humans. Of course, Crow never really felt connected with him since she was one of the youngest and her mother had only married Rex because of an arrange marriage.

Crow sighed softly as she remembered her late mother. Crow could only remember the few details about her, since she died when Crow was no more than five-years-old. What she could remember was that her mother had bright orange hair like her and that her voice was as joyful and happy as a song bird's. It was her mother that had given Crow the headband that she was wearing. It was one of the first things her mother had found when she had changed into a human. She was the one who inspired Crow to trade amongst the humans. Rex didn't even talk about her at all. That was one of the reasons Crow didn't like him.

As the two of them neared the cove, Crow stopped and looked to the beach's rocks that littered across the shore line, a few tide pools swirling around them.

"Hey, Jack. I'll meet you back at home in a bit. I kind of wanna stay on the beach for awhile." she said. Jack opened his mouth to protest but he saw the distant look in his half-sister's grey eyes. He knew that even Crow could have her own lonely moments.

"Sure. . . Just make sure to come back soon. Father will throw a fit if you're not home before the tide rises." said the blonde before walking to the cove's cave. Crow gave a half smile before she walked over to the tide pools and took a seat on one of them, resting her bag on her side. She took off her boots and skirt and she grabbed a hold of her pearl and closed her eyes as her legs changed back into her gold and black tail. She dipped her fins into the water and she pulled off her sweater, also taking off her headband and shivering as a cold wind blew. She looked at the now darkening sky, twilight slowly approaching. She sighed tiredly and her tail flicked tiny waves as it swirled in the water.

"Man. . . I can't believe all that's happening. Pops got really mad when he found out I got another Criminal Mark from stealing those gold coins for those orphans and now he's getting on Jack's case about marriage." she muttered to herself, her fingers lightly feeling the golden marks on her cheeks and forehead. Rex didn't like those marks. Around Domino Reefs, any form of law broken would end up in receiving a Criminal Mark to prove they had done wrong. The punishment for receiving one was harsh enough, since the marks were branded to their skins by electric eels. Crow had already gained four of them, each from stealing and giving stolen goods to the poor. The guards of her step father's reef did not take too kindly to that kind of business.

Rex always told Crow that any Criminal Marks she gained would lead her one step closer to her becoming banished. Crow would always scoff at that. She didn't care that Rex would do that. He hardly cared for her as a step-daughter, let alone a mermaid of Domino Reefs. She sighed again and she stroked the smooth material of her headband.

'Mother. . . Is everything suppose to happen like this? What ever happen to those stories about good endings? What ever happen to 'happily ever after'?' she wondered. She caught the sight of dolphins playing and small whales breaching just a little away. She gave a light laugh and she began humming a little tune, laughing again as small fishes began swimming and almost dancing around the surface.

"Oh, you guys like that, yeah?" she asked, the fishes hopping out of the water. Crow laughed again. "Cool. Say, how about a little of this?" she asked, harmonizing a few notes and causing a few dolphins to chirp and neigh in agreement. Crow gave another giggle.

"Wow, you guys are a good audience. Hmm. . . Oh! You guys wanna hear a song my mother told me when I was a kid? She told me it's about a heroine." she asked. The fishes hopped again and Crow smiled. "Alright. Gotta warn ya though; it's been awhile since I actually sang. My pops said that it's natural for mermaids to sing at least a few nights so that their subconscious can be clear, but I never believed him. Anyway, ya ready?" she asked, the dolphins calling and giving cries of agreement. Crow laughed again before humming and starting off with a low and calm, "Ahhhhhh~. . ."

Kiryu gave a raspy cough, the blood and pus from his wound staining and being infected by the wool of his shirt. His stomach gave a sudden lurch and his knees buckled under him. He fell to his knees and threw up his lunch. He coughed and dry heaved until his head began spinning like a toy top. His head fell to the sand as his head felt as if it were being beaten by a hammer.

'Don't you die, you bastard! If you die, I swear I will drag you from Hell and kill you again!' snapped his darker self, causing the cursed man to roll to his stomach and clutch his head.

'If I am about to die. . . At least this curse I had suffered for so long will be taken to the grave. . . '

~Tachi mukau saki ni kawaita kaze,~

(No matter how hard this wind,)

~Hageshiku fuki aretemo~,

(Tries to push me back,)

~Jumon no hitotsu mo tonaetanara~,

(I recite a single spell and,)

~Watashi no PEESU ni naru!~

(I set the pace my own way!)

Kiryu's eyes widen as he heard that voice. It was powerful, happy, and unique. It was. . . Beyond anything else he had heard in his life. He propped himself to his elbows and he wobbly got to his feet, holding his wounded side before following that enchanting voice.

~Dare mo ga urayamu kono PAWAA to,~

(Anyone who gets jealous of my power,)

~Bibou ga yurusanai wa,~

(And my beauty won't get in my way,)

~Donna aite demo hirumanai de. . .~

(I won't flinch from any opponent. . .)

~MANTO o nabikaseru no. . .~

(As my cape flaps in the breeze. . .)

Kiryu staggered and struggled with his steps until he collapsed by a huge rock. He leaned against it and looked over it, his eyes widening as he caught sight of the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in his life.

~Are mo shitai,~

(I want to do that,)

~Kore mo shitai,~

(I want to do this,)

~Onna, no ko ni mietatte,~

(Hey, that's just how girls are,)

~Yudan shitara jigoku iki yo,~

(One slip and it's to Hell you go,)

~Jama wa sasenaikara. . . !~

(So you better not get in my way. . . !)

Crow threw her head back and smiled at the sky. Kiryu stared at her arched figure. Her wavy and bright orange hair glowed in the sunlight as her tan skin glistened with water droplets. The young man's breath was caught in his throat as he saw Crow's tail that looked made of obsidian and gold.

'A. . . A mermaid?'

~Far away!~

~Omou mama wa ga mama ni,~

(Going where I want to,)

~Tabi o tsuzukete yukitai,~

(Don't want this journey to ever end,)

~Tsurai hibi mo egao, de PIRIODO yo!~

(Even the worst of days, I'll finish with a smile!)

~Far away!~

~Ikutsu mo no maryoku daite,~

(Embracing all the magic,)

~Kyou o koete yukitai no,~

(I wanna go beyond this day,)

~Yume ni mukai aruki tsuzukete yuku,~

(With my eyes on my dreams,)

~Kagirinai hodo. . .~

(As far as I can. . .)

~Get along, Try again. . .~

Crow smiled as the sea creatures around her dove and jumped from the water, showing their appreciation. She jumped when she heard something heavy fall into the ground. She turned and nearly screamed as she saw a pale and blue-haired man sprawled on the floor, a pool of blood and pus gathering around his side. Frightened, she made a move to dive into the water when Kiryu gave a cough. She tilted her head.

'He's alive?. . . Dear God, he's alive!'

She quickly transformed into her human form and she grabbed her bag and headband and she ran over to the human, falling to her knees and carefully rolling him over to his side, gasping as she saw his infected gash, the deep cut running from his chest to his hip. Blood and a yellow substance was coming from the wound. She felt the skin around the cut and Kiryu hissed in pain.

"I-I'm sorry! I was just making sure it wasn't too deep f-for me to heal it." she apologized. Kiryu's expression of pain died away a little as he heard Crow's voice.

"You're. . . ah. .. Ah!. . . You're going to. . . To heal it?" he asked, gritting his teeth as the shore's winds blew and caused his wound to sting. Crow nodded and she pulled out a small pouch of an odd, blue-colored jelly. She gathered some in her palm and she applied it on his wounds, wincing as she saw that the man's eyes crinkle at the icy-touch of the medicine.

"What. . . What is that?" asked Kiryu, gasping again as the jelly molded and caked around his injury.

"It's a mixture of purple coral, jellyfish essences, a few sea flowers, and a little bit of my power. Within a hour, you're wound should be healed." replied Crow, applying a little more jelly before smoothing it over the cut. Kiryu wanted to open his eyes to this person who was healing him, but he felt too weak and tired to do so.

"What if this does not heal? What if I die?" he asked. Crow smiled and gave a giggle.

"Trust me. You'll be better in no time. I promise." she said, slipping the pouch back into her bag and pulling out a long roll of smooth cloth and a white sheet. She placed the sheet over her lower body and she eased Kiryu on to her lap, his head resting on the crook of her shoulder as she began winding the cloth around his torso. Kiryu tilted his head and he breathed in Crow's scent. It smelt of sea salt and fresh wild flowers. Though he couldn't see it, he would bet all the treasure he had that this girl was beautiful.

"Why are you helping me?" he asked. Crow gave a small shrug as she began tying a knot.

"I can't leave you here for death. That's terrible. I just couldn't let you die." she said. Kiryu gave a forced chuckle.

"I've been waiting to be dead for a long time." he muttered, his nose dragging along Crow's neck. The orangette gave a shiver and she finished dressing Kiryu's wound. She looked at his relaxed face, smiling as she saw he was content and getting better already. She felt sad for him. She couldn't believe that he was saying that he wanted to die. She didn't want him to die. She just didn't. Swiftly and somewhat shyly, she brushed away the bangs that covered his forehead and she kissed the corner of his eye.

"Don't say such things. Everyone has the right to live, no matter what evil they have caused." she whispered. Kiryu's eyebrows raised and his pale cheeks gained more pigment at the feel of those soft lips. His eyes opened a crack and all he could see was the burly outline of orange hair and the faint color of two grey eyes. His heart skipped a beat.

Crow felt herself flush as she saw how handsome the stranger's eyes were. The color of gold matched the coloring of his soft, long blue hair. Crow felt the need to run her fingers through it. She suddenly looked at the sky and cursed as she saw it was already filling with the stars and the moon.

"I-I have to go. Just please, rest here for awhile and go back to wherever you came from." she said, easing Kiryu to the sand and covering his naked chest with the sheet she had. Kiryu suddenly grabbed her wrist, causing the grey-eyed girl to flinch and blush as she saw that his gold-colored eyes were trying to see her better.

"Just. . . Just who are you? Please. . . Won't you give me your name? . . . Will we see each other again?" he asked, almost desperately. Crow smiled sadly, running her thumb over his knuckles. It was against the laws of the sea for a human to fall in love with a mermaid or merman. And right now, Crow could see that the man she had helped was captivated by her.

"I'm sorry. . . I wish we could, but we can't. . . I-I really have to go now. Goodbye." she said, releasing his hand before running into the tides and diving into the water, her legs morphing to her tail as she swam away, her tears of sadness being submerged by the sea's water. An empty feeling made her heart drop and she gave a sniffle, never feeling anymore sadder in her life.

Kiryu laid on the beach for a long time. For how long, he did not know. All he wanted to do right now was to close his eyes and remember the faint outline of what he had saw. At one point, he had saw a mermaid. The rumored sea creature of Neo Domino. At another point, he had saw a human girl, who had healed his wound in a few minutes. He wondered if both girls were the same. If the mermaid he saw was real. And if he would ever see that human girl again. His hand suddenly felt soft material and he opened his eyes slowly, looking at the dark headband in his hand. His expression softened.

"Perhaps. . . Our paths will cross again. . ."

To Be Continued. . .

And that there is the first chapter! Well, what to do you think? Did you like it? Do you have an honest opinion? Let me know! Send in those reviews, please! The next chapter will come as soon as it can! Once again, thanks for clicking on this story and make sure to read and review! Well, I'll be seeing you guys! See ya!

This is me saying, Peace!