Written for the OPscifiandfantasy 2016, in a collab with the wonderful Ooonara, who has made some amazing drawings. To see them, please check my blog on Tumblr or look up the story on AO3 (both same username)
Thanks MyLadyDay for beta'ing
This story is part of a series of stories, which are all indepenibly readable. For chronological order of events, read in the following order:
- Uncharted Waters (Thatch/Izo)
- Head of the Herd (Shanks/Benn Beckman)
- Afraid This Time (Marco/Ace)
- What I've Done chapter 59 (Marco/Ace)
The water around him was silent, but that didn't mean that Izo was feeling at ease. At any moment, the rest of the merfolk could show up and once more try to kill him. He may have shaken them for the moment, but he was by no means safe.
Peering over the edge of the rock he was hiding behind, Izo looked if the coast was clear. It seemed to be, but his nerves left him and he dove back into his hiding place.
It had not always been like this. For most of his life, Izo had lived among his own kind without a care in the world. At least as long as his tail was dyed. For a long time ago, there had been a seer who had prophesised that when a mermaid was born with a red tail the lake they called their home would be doomed. Species not native to it would come and take over the water, killing everything and everyone who lived in it.
Because of this, Izo's mother had started dyeing Izo's red tail from the moment he was born, so he could have a normal life. Only later she had told him why she made his red tail deep purple, and after she had died, he continued to do it himself. Every few months, he had to find a solitary place on the beach on the edge of the lake where he could wash off the dye and apply new.
Only when he did it this time, someone had followed him and told the others his secret. A new kind of algae had been introduced to the lake and was busy covering the whole surface. Because of this, the merfolk had become more and more suspicious of one another, so it had been only a matter of time before Izo was discovered, or so he told himself. The truth was, he should have been more careful.
Now he found himself being chased and when he was captured, he would be sacrificed in order to get the lake back. At first, he hadn't noticed his secret was out, until several of his kind had shown up, which left him beaten and bruised. He had managed to get away, but only barely. If they found him again, he wouldn't be so lucky.
Voices came closer, and Izo dove further down in his hiding place. The lake was big, but would it be big enough to hide in forever? What else could he do? He had no friends left. The ones he once had, were now out for his blood. He was alone.
Suddenly, a face appeared in front of him. Izo didn't know their name, but he wasn't going to stay to find out either. He dashed off, not daring to look behind him as his pursuers were staring to come closer.
Izo heard the tell-tale sound of a harpoon being fired, but even though he tried to evade it, the weapon grazed his tail. Izo winced, but tried to ignore the pain. He had to escape, or he would die here. Fighting the urge to look back, he forced himself to swim faster. Another harpoon hit him, this time catching him in the tail, but with a swift motion, he cut the rope that tried to pull him back with the knife he had at hand.
The pain was killing him, but he forced himself to swim faster. He had always been a fast swimmer, faster than most of his kind. For once, winning all those races when he was a child would pay off.
Slowly, the voices died away in the distance, and Izo chanced a peek over his shoulder. Aside from some fish, he appeared to be alone. But where was he? He had never been here before. Judging by the lack of water pressure, he had to be close to the shore. Perhaps that was why the others had stopped the chase. Shallow water meant humans and fishing nets, and no one would want to risk that. Izo, on the other hand, had nothing to lose.
Swimming carefully, with his arms stretched out to feel if there were fishing nets nearby, Izo swam closer to the shore. A fish with sharp teeth was drawn to him by the trail of blood he left, but before it could attack him, Izo hit it with his tail, ignoring the pain that it caused. The fish wanted to attack again, but it appeared to be stuck.
Wide eyed, Izo watched the fish, along with many others, being pulled up by fishers. That could have been him. Humans loved mermaids, but not in a good way. They were traded like cattle, or placed in ponds in someone's yard until they fulfilled a wish. Of course, no mermaid could do such a thing, but that didn't help the rumour from dying out.
Izo turned around and swam away, to deeper water, but then stopped. If he went further down, the chances of being found by his own kind would increase dramatically. If he stayed in shallow water, humans might spot him.
He needed to think, but now wasn't the time nor the place. The fact that he was still losing blood didn't help with the decision making.
Suddenly, he heard someone yell. It came from outside the water. Izo could see a fisherman pointing in his general direction. He had been spotted! Frightened, Izo used the last of his strength to push away. The lake was big, and humans could not be everywhere, could they? Izo just needed to get far enough that they wouldn't find him.
Black spots danced for his eyes, and Izo shook his head. He couldn't slip into unconsciousness, not now. If he did, he would be dead. If he…
Thatch loved his family, even if the fact that he was in charge of cooking meant that he had little time every day for himself. While he mostly decided the menu for the day and delegated the tasks of gathering the food and cooking itself to others, he had to oversee everything to make sure it all went smoothly and that there was enough food for everyone.
Today, however, he had decided to flee the hectic kitchen and was busy gathering herbs to dry. His spice rack was getting empty anyway. His father, the giant Whitebeard, owned a lot of land, which was necessary to be able to maintain their family. It had always been Pops' dream to have a big family, and he had taken in every orphan that crossed his path, no matter their species. Most of Thatch's siblings were half elves, as they were hated by society, but from pretty much any conceivable species there was at least one under Pops' care.
Thatch was the only faun in the family, but he didn't mind. He loved his brothers and sisters just as much as if they would have been all fauns.
Whistling a cheerful song, Thatch bent down to pick some herbs and put them in his bag. He had already gathered a lot, probably enough to last for a while, but he didn't feel like going back yet. As much as he loved his siblings, it was rare for him to get some time for himself. Maybe he was getting old. His oldest brother, Marco, an elf, often retreated into the forest to be alone, saying he needed some time away from the bustle. Until now, Thatch had laughed at him and called him old. To be honest, he had no idea how old Marco actually was, only that he was younger than Whitebeard, but elves could get very old.
Without realising it, Thatch had reached one of the rivers flowing out of the giant lake they lived nearby. He didn't come here often, as it was on the edge of their territory. Moreover, Thatch wasn't a fan of water, as he couldn't swim. He preferred to bathe in the caves they had altered into a bathhouse.
He was about to turn around, when a glimpse of red caught his eye. Frowning, Thatch searched the narrow beach on the edge of the river. His eyes widened when he saw a figure lying, unmoving. They had the upper body of a human, but attached to their torso was a long red fishtail instead of legs.
Thatch had never seen a mermaid before. They were one of the few species Pops didn't have under his care. Namur, a fishman, was the closest to a mermaid Thatch had ever seen.
Forgetting about his herbs, Thatch ran towards the mermaid, his hooves leaving deep prints in the sand. "Oi!" he called out before he reached the creature. "Are you okay?"
Now that he was closer, he could see that the mermaid was most definitely not okay. Their back, that was facing Thatch, was battered and bruised, and their tail had several gashes from which blood was still flowing into the water. From one of them a harpoon was still sticking out. Their long, black hair was sticking to their body and the sand.
"Shit," Thatch muttered under his breath as he kneeled by the figure. It wasn't looking good. Carefully, he reached out his hand, touching a part of the skin that didn't contain bruises. It felt cold under his skin, and Thatch feared the worst. As gently as possible, he turned the mermaid over. It was a merman, he saw now, and the most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on. His pale skin contrasted sharply against his black hair and red fishtail.
"Oi," Thatch whispered, softly touching the merman's cheek. "Please wake up." He felt for a pulse, which he, much to his relief, found, though it was faint. "Good, you're still alive," he muttered. But while he was happy the merman was still alive, it did mean he had to do something, and fast. The merman's wounds were still bleeding, and while Thatch knew something about herbs, he was no doctor.
He was starting to panic. How could he help the merman? Mermen needed water, but this merman also needed a doctor. If he went back to fetch one, would the merman still be alive? What if someone else found him, who didn't have good intentions? Something bad had already happened to him, that much was clear. Had humans done this to him? They usually treated merfolk very carefully not to damage the goods. Maybe this one put up a fight?
Whatever had happened, though, Thatch was happy the man had managed to escape.
It still left him with the problem of what he should do. There was only one solution; he would have to take the man with him to see a doctor.
From his bag, Thatch retrieved some herbs he knew were good for healing of wounds. Then, he took off his shirt and drenched in the water. After carefully placing the herbs on the deepest gashes in the man's tail, Thatch gently wrapped his wet shirt around the tail, both to staunch the bleeding and to keep the man moist. He didn't dare to touch the harpoon, as he feared it would only make it worse if he pulled it out. After that, he hoisted the bag of herbs on his shoulder and lifted the merman up bridal style.
He had underestimated the weight of the tail, and his hooves sank even further away in the sand, but he managed to reach the field of grass from which he had come. As fast as his legs could carry him, he ran back to area where they lived. On his way, he had to go through the forest where Marco liked to retreat in. Thatch saw him from far already, an arrow in his bow aimed at an unsuspecting deer.
"Marco!" Thatch yelled.
Marco's arrow shot into the air, and the deer ran away, startled.
Marco turned around, his eyebrow twitching in a tell-tale way. "Thanks a lot, that was supposed to be dinner. That's a large fish you have there," he added somewhat surprised.
"It's a merman!" Thatch called, coming to a halt in front of Marco. "He's hurt! We have to help him."
Marco studied the merman's face and nodded grimly. "Let me carry him for a while."
A little reluctant, though he wasn't sure why, Thatch handed Marco the merman. For someone as lean and light as Marco, he was surprisingly strong. Not to mention fast, and Thatch had to hurry to keep up with him.
As they ran through the forest, Thatch couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the merman that he was beaten up so badly. How dare someone do that to a magnificent creature like that! Thatch would like to have a little word with the culprit.
Lost in his thoughts of vengeance, he barely noticed that Marco had increased his speed and had already reached the end of the forest. Thatch doubled his speed to try to catch up with him, but instead, the distance only seemed to become bigger between them.
Out of breath, he reached the caves, which not only featured their bathhouse, but also the small hospital. However, Thatch didn't find Marco nor the merman in the doctor's office. A nurse pointed him to the bathhouse, and Thatch could hit himself against the forehead. Of course, a merman needed water!
He found Marco indeed standing next to one of the single baths, in which the merman was lain, still unconscious, while the doctor examined him. There was a small layer of water in the bath.
"Will he be okay?" Thatch asked, still panting. He wasn't used to run for long amounts of time. He could deal with short sprints or leaping from rock to rock on steep mountain sides, but running a marathon was not his thing.
The doctor took out his stethoscope. "It's too early to tell. Go outside and wait until I'm done."
"But–" Thatch started to protest, but Marco took him by the arm.
"Let's leave the good doctor in peace."
"Alright," Thatch muttered and allowed himself to be pulled along. Still, he couldn't help but look back to the beautiful face of the merman. "He is really pretty, don't you think?" Thatch asked when they were outside again.
Marco hummed. "I suppose so."
"It would be great if he decided to stay," Thatch continued, a dreamy look on his face. "Pops doesn't have a merman yet."
"You do realise we're his family, not his collection, right?" Marco asked with a snort. "It's unusual to see you smitten, though."
"I'm not smitten," Thatch protested, but the goofy smile on his face indicated otherwise.
"You know I'm all for interspecies romance, but don't you think it would prove to be a problem in this case, since you live on land and he lives in the water?" Marco asked carefully.
"I could live on the shore and he close by," Thatch protested.
Marco shrugged. "Alright. But first, let's hope he wakes up."
Everything hurt when Izo tried to open his eyes. His senses told him that he was not underwater, as he couldn't feel the comforting pressure against him. There was only a little water lapping against the back of his tail.
When he finally managed to open his eyes, he saw it was quite dark around him. For a moment, he thought it was night, but the light that was there was not that of the moon. Looking up, he realised he was in a cave, but he wasn't in the lake or the river anymore. Instead, he was lying in what appeared to be a bath carved out of stone. His battered body and tail were covered in damp bandages to keep his skin from drying out.
Panicking, Izo looked around him, but because he was lying in a bath, there was no way to escape. He would have to crawl over the ground to get out of the cave, and who knew how far he was from the river?
He tried to calm himself by taking deep breaths, but a clacking sound of hooves on stone made him panic again. He made himself as small as possible. What if he was captured by humans? What if they treated his wounds only so he would heal nicely and could be sold for a higher price?
A cheery looking human face appeared into the light. The man had brown hair worked in a pompadour hairstyle, but for some reason a black goatee. He was bare chested aside from an apron and was holding what appeared to be a tray.
"I'm glad to see you're awake," he said, sounding genuinely happy, and took a step forward. However, he made the mistake of coming within reach of Izo's tail. Without thinking of the consequences, Izo lashed out with his tail, hitting the man in the face. The tray and everything on it was launched through the air and landed on the floor. The man grabbed at his face.
"Ouch! What the hell did you do that for?" He looked at Izo angrily, but when Izo hid away, his face expression softened. "There's no reason to be afraid. We mean you no harm."
"We", that mean there were more people around. But something was not right. This man, he didn't seem as mean as humans were often depicted by his fellow merfolk. Izo peered over the edge of the bath. Instead of human legs, the man had those of a goat. Izo had never seen a faun before, only heard stories about them. They were supposed to be gentle creatures, caring about nature, but that didn't mean Izo instantly trusted him.
Meanwhile, the faun was picking up the shards of the plate that had been on the tray, while he continued talking. "I can see why you'd be suspicious. I mean, I would be too if I was pretty much locked up away from my home. I found you washed up on the bank of the river and wounded badly, so I took you here so our doctors could take a look at you."
Izo listened, but didn't reply. His webbed hand rested on the edge of the bath, so he could brace himself should he have to attack once again. He hoped he wouldn't have, though. The first smack had opened some of the wounds on his tail again and they hurt like hell.
"I'll get you some more food," the faun said as he had gathered all the shards on the tray. Halfway through the cave, he scratched the back of his head and turned around. Izo could see his cheek had turned red where Izo had hit him. That was going to swell up. "I'm Thatch, by the way," the faun said. "What is your name?"
Izo didn't reply, but only stared back.
Thatch waited for a moment, but then nodded with pursed lips. "That's okay, you don't have to tell me anything. Just wait here while I get you some food. Ah…" He seemed to realise that Izo couldn't go anywhere even if he wanted to and smiled sheepishly. "I'll be right back."
After Thatch had left, Izo sighted and tried to lie comfortable in the bath. It appeared he was stuck here and would have to rely on the kindness of the faun. Or fauns, as Thatch had said there were more of them. All he could do was wait, since escaping wasn't an option. He would only tear open his tail more if he tried to drag himself across the rough floor. Perhaps he could try when his wounds had healed. At least he could assume that he would be safe until then.
Fortunately, Thatch was true to his promise and was back really soon, a wet towel pressed against his painful cheek. He approached more cautiously this time, keeping an eye on Izo's tail, but when he was confident Izo wasn't going to hit him again, he proudly presented the plate.
Izo looked at the content warily. The smell reminded him of fish, but not in a way he had ever smelled before. It didn't look much like fish either. The substance on the plate had a reddish brown colour and pieces of things were floating in it. And the oddest of all, it was warm. "What is it?" he asked, a disgusted look on his face.
"Fish stew," Thatch replied, sounding mildly surprised he had to explain, but pleased that Izo finally talked. "I figured you'd like something familiar."
"There is nothing familiar about this! You've ruined perfectly good fish!" Izo crossed his arms before his chest and looked away.
"I know you're used to raw fish, but you could at least try it," Thatch said, sounding disappointed.
"I don't want it."
Maybe Izo should be more careful, but Thatch had assured him he wasn't a prisoner, so Izo wasn´t going to let himself be treated as one. He had heard that land creatures 'cooked' their food above a fire, but Izo had never understood why. Fish tasted great uncooked, so why ruin it? Especially by throwing it in some kind of sauce and adding other things Izo didn't know.
"Well, fine! Then I'll eat it." Thatch sat down on the ground almost demonstratively and started to eat the stew, making exaggerated noises like he was eating something very good. Izo huffed and let himself slide further down in the bath. He had to admit, the stew did smell good, and his stomach rumbled.
Just when his pride started to crumble to ask for a bite, soft footsteps approached. These didn't come from a faun, Izo was sure of that. They were too light to be of a human as well.
The man who entered the cave was tall, and Izo was excited to discover he was an elf. Elves he had seen before, but unlike humans, they were kind to merfolk and didn't pose a threat. This elf had the sides of his head shaven, but in the middle was a long blond braid. From his ears dangles several earrings. There was something calming about him, and Izo relaxed a little.
The elf smiled when he saw Izo. "It's good to see you're awake. I'm Marco."
"Izo," Izo blurted out before he knew it.
Thatch looked up from his stew. "When I asked it, you didn't want to say," he said indignantly.
"Thatch," Marco said sternly. He then held up a freshly caught fish. "I figured Thatch's stew would be too much right now."
Izo's stomach grumbled again and he nodded eagerly. Marco came closer until Izo could grab the fish. He started to devour it immediately.
Thatch looked at him with mild disgust, but he mostly seemed to be insulted. Izo wondered if he had made the stew himself.
"Do you mind if I sit here?" Marco asked and pointed to the edge of the bath.
Izo shook his head, but didn't stop eating.
Marco took a seat. "I assume Thatch has told you how he found you washed up?" When Izo nodded, he continued, "I won't pry as to what happened, but please know you're free to leave when you want. Say the word and we'll bring you back. However, I urge you to stay until your wounds are healed."
Izo licked the last bits of fish from the bones before wiping his mouth. He thought for a moment, but then nodded. At least he would be safe here from his own people.
Marco smiled. "Good."
"A-are there humans nearby?" he asked.
"A few, but they are part of our family, so they won't harm you," Marco said.
Izo looked up. "Family?"
Marco smiled again. "Ah, Thatch didn't explain? You see, we're all adopted by the giant Whitebeard."
Izo's eyes widened. He had heard stories about giants, and about Whitebeard as well. They were fearsome creatures that likes to make flour out of bones and decorate their walls with skulls. The fact that Whitebeard would adopt an elf and a faun, and humans as well, apparently, didn't fit into that picture.
Marco laughed. "He is not what you might expect of a giant. He wanted a big family, so he adopted all the orphans that crossed his path, from all species. Most of us are half elves, but there are humans, nymphs, centaurs and dwarfs as well. Really everything you can think of. Thatch is our only faun." He looked teasingly over his shoulder.
Thatch was finished with the stew and rose to his feet. "So you don't have to fear us." He took a step closer, but when Izo raised his tail threateningly, he stepped back again.
Marco looked amused from one to the other. "I see you're good friends already. Well done, Thatch."
"He just needs to warm up to me," Thatch muttered.
"He hit you in the face, didn't he?" Marco said mockingly.
Thatch turned his red cheek away from him and hid the towel behind his back.
Meanwhile, Izo looked on intrigued. Marco and Thatch behaved like brothers, even though they weren't even the same species. If it was true what they said, there were a lot of other species as well in their 'family'.
Marco rose from his seat on the edge of the bath. "We should leave you now, Izo, so you can rest. Just call us if you need anything. The doctor will come to check up on you soon."
Izo nodded, and Marco turned around. Thatch, however, seemed to hesitate.
Marco stopped and looked around. "Are you coming?"
"Yeah, I'll be right there. You just go ahead."
Marco shrugged and walked away. Thatch scratched the back of his head, while Izo looked at him warily. He held the muscles in his tail tensed just in case.
"I'm sorry about the stew," Thatch finally said. "I should have realised that you wouldn't be used to eating cooked food, like Marco did."
He seemed miserable, and something inside Izo urged him to say something nice. "It did smell good," he finally admitted. "But I still prefer uncooked," he hastily added when Thatch's face lit up, before he would get ideas.
"I can do that! I'll get you the best raw fish you've ever tasted," Thatch said, suddenly sounding excited. "You just wait!"
A few days passed, and Thatch could see Izo was miserable. He couldn't blame him, really, as Izo was still lying in the bath with only enough water to keep him moist, so that the bandages wouldn't get drenched. When the bandages and the water needed to be changed, the doctors and nurses took that upon themselves, and Thatch was kicked out every time, much to his chagrin. Izo, on the other hand, didn't seem to care one way or the other.
Some of their siblings had snuck in to see the merman, but after Marco sternly forbade them to do that, they stopped, albeit reluctantly. Marco had been with Pops the longest and was a big brother to everyone else, and they all looked up to him.
As promised, Thatch only brought Izo uncooked fish, but he did fillet them and tried to present them nicely on a plate, even though Izo apparently wasn't picky whether he ate the entrails or not. His efforts were in vain, however, as Izo never showed any gratitude and just ate what was being served to him, as if it was only expected that Thatch did as he demanded. Thatch wasn't too happy about Izo's attitude problems, but there wasn't much he could do. Unfortunately, it seemed to be personal, as Izo was always more enthusiastic when Marco came to visit him. Thatch couldn't help but feel jealous about that. He still liked Izo, even if he hardly deigned to look at Thatch.
However, that didn't mean Thatch was going to give up trying to win him over. Today he had outdone himself by making sushi, and he hoped Izo would like it. A book under his arm, to give Izo something to do, he brought the food to the cave.
Izo looked like he was bored out of his mind, idly splashing some water around. There was a bucket of water next to the bath, in case Izo needed to moisten himself some more, that was now half empty.
Thatch presented the food proudly. Izo eyed it for a moment before taking it, almost invisibly nodding his head in thanks. It was more than Thatch had gotten before, so he was already feeling pleased. "I brought you a book," he said, placing it on the edge of the bath.
Izo put the plate to the side and careful touched the leather binding, before opening it. He leafed through the pages, but suddenly shut the book. "I don't like reading," he said and turned away.
Surprised, Thatch looked up. If the roles were reversed, he would have been glad to get a book to kill some time, even if he didn't like reading. Then, suddenly, he realised something. Of course there were no books underwater, so it would make sense if Izo couldn't read. He was probably just too proud to admit it.
"If you don't like reading, I could read to you," he offered.
Izo perked up at that, but he seemed to realise that had had shown interest, and his shoulder slumped again as he huffed. "If you must."
"I'll just finish handing everyone their food and then I'll be back," Thatch promised. "You should eat too while I'm away."
When he returned, the plate he left was empty, which made him happy. Maybe Izo did liked cooked things, if he had enjoyed the rice. However, when he was to sit down on the edge of the bath, he caught a glimpse of a small mountain of rice in the bucket of water, before Izo covered it with his tail. Despite his slight disappointment, Thatch was still happy. The first time Izo had plainly stated how he didn't like the food, uncaring of Thatch's feelings. This time, he had at least tried to pretend that he liked it.
Pretending he hadn't seen a thing, Thatch made himself comfortable on the edge of the bath and started reading to Izo. It was a children's book full of fairy tales, but since it was so worn already, it wouldn't be a disaster if it got a little wet.
After a while, Thatch suddenly felt something by his leg, but when he looked, Izo hastily retreated his hand.
"What?" he snapped when he saw Thatch looking. "I just never felt a goat before."
"I'm not a goat," Thatch said, slightly irritated. "How would you like it if I called you a fish?"
Izo's eyes glistened dangerously. "You wouldn't dare."
Thatch huffed. "You'd be a weird fish, anyway. I've never seen anything like your tail."
Suddenly, Izo's eyes widened and all the fighting spirit seemed to drain from him. Thatch immediately regretted his words. It would seem that Izo's tail was a sensitive subject for some reason. Was it the reason he was attacked?
Izo turned his back to Thatch. "Just leave me alone."
Thatch opened his mouth, but couldn't think of anything to say. Disappointed, he walked out of the cave, the book under his arm and the empty plate in his hand. He had finally seemed to make progress with Izo, but then he had to ruin it.
He found Marco sitting under a tree and he let himself fall on the ground, face first in the grass. Marco ignored him, so he groaned exaggeratedly.
Marco sighed and put away his book. "Trouble in paradise?"
"Don't mock me," Thatch said sulking. "I was making progress."
"But then you opened your mouth and ruined it again?" Marco asked innocently.
Thatch stared at him from a moment. "Shut up," he then muttered and put his face in the grass again.
Marco sighed again. "What happened?"
"He called me a goat," Thatch said, sulking. "I don't like it when people do that. So I called him a fish, but when I started to talk about his tail, he suddenly told me to leave him alone."
"It does have an unusual colour," Marco said musing.
"What do you mean?" Thatch asked.
"Well, I haven't seen many merpeople, but I've read a lot about them. Apparently, green or blue are the most common colours. I've never heard of a red tail. Maybe he was hunted for it. That could explain the bruises."
"Why don't you ask him?"
But Marco shook his head. "He is under no obligation to tell us anything. If he does, it should be out of his own choice. It's none of our business."
Thatch hummed and turned around so that he was lying on his back. "Do you think he'll ever like me?" he asked dejected.
Marco patted his shoulder. "Of course he will. He'll think you're an idiot, but he'll love you like the rest of us."
After Thatch had left, Izo was starting to get bored again. It was nice of Thatch to read to him, and it had been even nicer not to think about his situation for a while. By now, he had understood that these people didn't have bad intentions, at least not until he was fully healed. Aside from the doctors and nurses, Marco, and Thatch, Izo still hadn't seen more of the rest of the family aside from occasional glimpses when they tried to sneak a peek at him. Those attempts had stopped, however.
Izo still wasn't sure what to make of Thatch. He seemed to want to impress Izo, though why, Izo didn't understand. He had not been particularly nice to him, though, lately, a nagging feeling of guilt welled up whenever Thatch had that dejected look on his face when Izo had told him off. So this time, he had pretended to eat all the food that Thatch had brought him, even though the white sticky stuff seemed hardly tasteful. Thatch had seemed happy when he saw Izo's empty plate, making Izo feel strangely pleased as well.
When Thatch had been reading to him, Izo hadn't been able control his curiosity and touched the goat hair on Thatch's legs. It hadn't been as soft as he expected, but still not unpleasant. Calling Thatch a goat had perhaps not been the best move, as it had made him angry. In turn, Thatch had made him remember his situation, but in hindsight Izo regretted sending him away. It was lonely in the cave when the only other people he saw were just poking and prodding at him to see if he was healing well.
In his own opinion, he was. The bruises on his chest were starting to fade and the wounds on his tail were starting to heal as well, though the scales might never fully grow back. However, he wasn't sure how happy he was about the healing. Marco had assured him that he could go back to the lake at any time, but they would definitely bring him back once he was fully healed. What then? Would he live alone for the rest of his life? Could he wait until the algae had cleared off so that everything returned back to normal? Would everything ever return to normal now that the merfolk knew who he really was?
A few more days passed, but Thatch didn't show himself again, making Izo feel strange, as if he missed him. Thatch had been nice to him since the beginning. It were the nurses who brought him his food now.
Soft footsteps that Izo recognised as Marco's came nearer, and he sat up as Marco came closer.
"How are you feeling?" Marco asked.
Izo shrugged. "Bored. And stiff from lying in this bath all day."
"I figured that would be the case. The doctors have just cleared you to swim, but in order to keep an eye on you, we have prepared a pool. Of course, if you wish, we'll bring you back to the lake."
"A pool sounds fine," Izo said a little too fast. At least then he would have some more time to decide what to do.
Marco smiled as if he had known Izo would say that. "Good. I can bring you there. But first, Pops would like to finally see you, if that's okay. Of course, since he's a giant, he can't come into these caves, so I'll have to bring you to him."
Izo realised that either way, Marco was going to lift him up. While he wasn't too fond of that prospect, he could hardly creep to the pool himself. Besides, he was kind of curious about Whitebeard. Maybe he could persuade him to let Izo stay?
Did he want to stay, though, he wondered as Marco gently wrapped his tail in damp cloths and lifted him up. At least these people didn't seem to want him dead, but he still did not know for sure they would not just sell him to humans once he was fully recovered.
Outside the cave, several creatures flocked around Marco to see Izo. Izo could see it were mostly youngsters, but he was as curious about them as they were about him. He didn't know all the names of their species, as he had never seen them before – he may have heard about them, though – but some he did recognise. Judging from their slightly pointy ears, most of the children were half elves, and a few small ones he recognised as being dwarves, but he couldn't identify the ones with animal legs. They weren't fauns like Thatch, as they had four legs. He had the feeling he should know, but the word wouldn't come to him. He would ask Marco later.
Marco allowed a few questions from either side, but then told his smaller siblings sternly that Izo had to go to Whitebeard. He had barely taken a few steps, though, when Thatch came running up to them. Once he had reached them, he stopped and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"So, I could take Izo to Pops, if you want," he suggested.
"I'm perfectly fine with Marco," Izo said haughtily and wrapped his arms tighter around Marco's neck. He felt a little abandoned because Thatch hadn't visited him anymore, so he wasn't about to be nice to him. "Why would I want to be carried by a stupid goat?"
Thatch's eyebrows furrowed as he started to sulk.
Marco sighed. "I'm sure he doesn't mean it that way, Thatch."
"That is exactly how I mean it," Izo said, huffing.
Thatch made a gesture with his hand as if to say, "See?"
Marco sighed again, tiredly this time. "I'll just bring you to Pops then."
Thatch stayed behind, pouting.
"You could be nice to him, you know," Marco said to Izo once they were out of earshot. "After all, he did save your life. Besides, he likes you."
Izo's eyebrows rose. "What do you mean?" he asked confusedly. He had noticed that Thatch liked it when Izo complimented him or was nice to him, but other than that, he wouldn't see why Thatch would like him.
"You know, 'cause of the birds and the bees." Marco seemed to be a bit uncomfortable.
"What do they have to do with it?" Izo was even more confused.
Marco sighed once more. "Never mind. Anyway, I thought it was pretty obvious how he felt, but if it isn't, forget I said anything."
Izo wanted to ask him some more, but it seemed they had reached the place where Whitebeard was. It was an enormous cave, but from the stories Izo had heard, Whitebeard was a giant man and would need a lot of space. Marco carried him inside without another word.
Inside, on an almost throne-like chair carved from stone, was a man sitting. He was even larger than Izo had imagined, with a weird white crescent shaped moustache. He was bare chested and many scars adorned his skin. Around his head a bandana was tied, from under which blonde hairs poked out. He smiled when he saw Marco and Izo. "Welcome," he said with a booming voice.
Marco smiled back with a childlike grin and gently placed Izo in the round tub filled with water that was put ready for him. It was standing directly across the throne. Marco left immediately after.
Looking up at the giant Whitebeard, Izo tried to meet his stare head on, but in the end, he cast his eyes downwards.
Whitebeard studied him curiously. "Are you afraid of me?"
Izo shrugged. "Everyone has ensured me that you're not like the stories say you are. I have no reason to doubt them."
"Yet you do not fully trust them."
Izo looked up, wondering if Whitebeard could read his mind or if he was just a good guesser. "I will once I'm sure they won't try to sell me to humans," he replied.
"I doubt anyone is planning on it, but even if they were, Thatch would never allow it," Whitebeard said and started to laugh so loud that Izo could feel his tub vibrate.
Once Whitebeard had calmed down again, he continued on a more serious tone. "So how do you like it here?"
"The bathtub is a bit cramped, but Marco said that a pool was made ready for me," Izo said.
"There is, and I'm sure you'll like it. At least you'll be safe there for the time being."
Izo's head snapped up at Whitebeard's words. He couldn't know, could he? But how? Uncomfortably, he shifted in his tub.
Whitebeard looked down at him with a warm look in his eyes, something Izo hadn't seen directed at him since his mother had died. "You are under no obligation to confirm or deny anything I suspect. Just know that you're welcome to stay as long as you like, in the pool or in the river nearby. Even if that becomes permanent."
Izo remained silent and played with the water, splashing it over his upper body, as he looked down. "You might regret those words," he said almost inaudibly. After all, he was a jinx. If his existence meant the end of the water life as they knew it, Whitebeard's family would feel the consequences as well. Perhaps Izo was just doomed to bring down everyone who took care of him.
"Son, I've said those words a lot of times before, and I have never regretted them," Whitebeard said firmly. "I never shall, either."
Izo bit his lip to prevent himself from crying, but he still felt a single tear roll down his cheek. It was a strange feeling, one he hadn't had often, as he usually cried underwater. But the warm words spoken to him with such conviction were a little overwhelming, especially since Whitebeard seemed to know all his thoughts.
A large shadow loomed over him, and Izo was surprised that he hadn't noticed that Whitebeard had gotten up and walked over to him.
"There, there," Whitebeard said and lifted him up, tub and all, in the palm of his hand. "Let's get you to your pool, shall we? I think some exercise would do you good."
Izo nodded and wiped away the tear, taking a shaky breath. Carefully, he peered over the edge of the tub. He was at a dizzy height, higher than he had ever been before, and frightened, he clung himself to the edge of the tub.
Whitebeard laughed, causing the water to ripple. "Don't tell me you're afraid of heights. Oh well, I suppose someone else should take you to your new home. Thatch!" he called, causing birds to fly up from the trees.
Thatch came running up to them, looking at his father expectantly. Whitebeard brought his hand down and placed Izo on the ground again. "Could you take him to the pool?"
Thatch leaned down to do as he was told, but halfway changed his mind and crossed his arms before his chest. "He doesn't want to be carried by me. He only wants Marco." He said Marco's name in a singsong voice.
"Well, Marco's not here right now," Whitebeard reasoned. "You can't leave the poor guy here."
Thatch huffed. "Fine." He lifted Izo up more gently than his brusque movements implied, though. Exchanging a look with Whitebeard, he turned around and started to walk back to the cave Izo had been in before. "Excuse me if it isn't comfortable," he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "After all, goats aren't considered beasts of burden."
"Are you still on that?" Izo said and made himself comfortable against Thatch's chest, wrapping his arms tightly around his neck. When he glanced up, he saw to his delight that Thatch's cheeks were bright red. Perhaps Marco had been on to something when he said that Thatch liked him. Oddly enough, he couldn't say that he minded much. Thatch had his good sides. He was kind and a good cook, even if Izo hadn't actually tasted anything cooked. But he was great at filleting fish, in any case.
A smile appeared on Izo's lips as he rested his chin on Thach's shoulder. It was strange, his own kind had always warned him against romances with humans, as there were a lot of legends of mermaids marrying them, but none of those had a happy ending. Most ended with the death of the mermaid. Fauns, however, were not considered a threat, or perhaps no one had ever fallen in love with one. Izo couldn't see why not, though. Thatch was handsome, even if his legs were a little silly, but in Izo's opinion, all legs were silly. A tail made so much more sense.
They arrived at the cave and Thatch brought him to where the pool was. It was situated deep in the cave, though a crack in the ceiling provided some daylight and a view at the sky. The rest of the cave was lit by torches, like the other room Izo had stayed in.
Of course, the pool wasn't as large as the lake Izo was used to, but it was deep and broad enough that Izo could at least swim around a bit. The water was clear, but showed no signs of fish. Though, Izo to admit to himself, he had gotten a little spoiled as Thatch always filleted his fish, instead of eating it whole, so Izo wondered if he could ever go back.
"Well, here we are," Thatch said and brought Izo to the edge of the pool, where he slowly lowered him. To tease, Izo held his arms wrapped around Thatch's neck as long as possible, so their faces were only barely apart. Once again, Izo was pleased to see Thatch turn red.
However, the feeling of freedom called him, and Izo couldn't resist the urge to stretch himself for long. He flashed Thatch a grin before flapping his tail. He loved the feeling of water rushing past him once again, even though he wasn't at his full strength yet. However, the stroke of his tail had still been powerful enough to send him to the other side of the pool, and he could barely in time make a curve to avoid hitting his head.
Still, being able to swim after several days of being completely immobile was amazing. He surfaced and grinned broadly at Thatch, who was staring at him dumbfounded. Confused, Izo cocked his head to the side, but Thatch seemed to snap out of it and smile almost shyly back at him.
Izo swam back towards him. "Thank you," he said earnestly.
"Y-you're welcome," Thatch sputtered. "I mean, I know it's not as great as the lake and all, but at least you can swim, right?"
"I can." Izo beamed at him.
"W-well, you should enjoy it. I-I have some stuff to take care of."
Izo was surprised to see him all but flee the cave, but then he shrugged it off and started to enjoy the space he had.
He wasn't sure how much time had passed – quite a lot, judging by the position of the sun through the crack and the soreness of his muscles – when Thatch returned. Izo was floating on his back, his hair spread out like a fan when he heard the hoof steps on the stone floor, and a smile appeared on his face. He turned around to face Thatch, who once again stood looking at him like he had been doing something weird, his mouth hanging open slightly.
When Izo looked at him curiously, he seemed to wake from his trance. Only then Izo noticed that he was holding something behind his back.
Thatch cleared his throat. "I, ehm, have something for you," he said and showed what he had behind his back. It was a small vase with deep red flowers. They weren't any kind Izo had ever seen, and he studied them curiously when Thatch held them in front of him. They smelled nice.
"They're roses," Thatch said, his blush deepening. "They reminded me of you because they're p-p-pretty too, and they m-match your tail."
"Thank you," Izo said surprised as he took the vase. Thatch was right, the roses were very pretty and they did have the same colour as his tail. Perhaps that colour wasn't so bad after all.
"I just thought you might like some plants around you. To make it more homey," Thatch continued.
"I would, yes. So thank you." Carefully, Izo placed the vase on the edge of the pool. It was a very small vase compared to the large room, so it did hardly anything to brighten it, but still Izo was happy with the flowers. Especially since Thatch had said that they reminded him of Izo.
"I'll get you some more," Thatch suddenly blurted out, and before Izo could say anything, he had run off again.
Surprised and slightly confused, Izo shook his head and gently touched the roses again. He wondered what had made Thatch stare at him like that, when he had come in, and, more importantly, how he could make him do it again. Izo had decided he liked it to make Thatch at loss for words when he saw Izo.
The first time it happened, it was when Izo had been swimming, so it might just be that Thatch was impressed with his speed. Though, if that was the case, Thatch was in for a surprise when Izo was fully recovered.
The second time, however, Izo had done nothing but float on the water. Had Thatch liked to see that? Maybe it was the way his hair spread out? Musing, Izo looked at the roses, when suddenly a thought struck him, and a mischievous grin appeared on his face. He would make Thatch's jaw connect with the floor.
Carefully, he pulled off some pedals from each of the roses. When he heard Thatch approaching again, he started to float on the water again and let the rose pedals flutter down, so they became entangled with his hair. Closing his eyes with a serene look on his face – one he had trouble maintaining – Izo waited.
The sound of a pot breaking on the ground made Izo smile, and he forced himself to elegantly turn around. Thatch was blinking as if he had just woken up from a dream and stared at the mess at his feet. The pot had contained earth and some kind of plant, but was now lying as a pile of shards on the floor.
Izo chuckled and swam up to him as Thatch tried to clean up the mess a bit.
"I have more," Thatch muttered. "It'll be fine."
Amused, Izo watched him scatter off again, only to return a few seconds later with two more flowerpots. He repeated this a few times, until the ground in front of the pool was littered with plants.
"There," Thatch said, sounding pleased as he looked around with his hands on his hips. "That should do it."
"So it's true that fauns have green thumbs," Izo said with a smile.
Thatch shrugged. "Some stereotypes are correct." He walked closer to the pool, but seemed to hesitate.
"Do you want to join me?" Izo asked.
"Ah, no, I can't swim." Thatch scratched the back of his head.
"I suppose you're not made for swimming," Izo said.
"'Cause I'm a goat?" Thatch asked surly.
"Because you're a faun."
His answer seemed to surprise Thatch, and he sat down, dangling his hooves carefully in the water. "So, do you like your pool?" he asked.
"I do, especially now that it's decorated," Izo said with a smile.
Thatch smiled back, but then his face became more serious again, almost sad. "Don't you miss your home?" he asked softly. He suddenly reached to the side of Izo's head, but when he pulled back his hand, he was holding a pedal.
Izo smiled wistfully, taking the pedal from him. "I do miss the lake."
"I know you need water and all, but I'd like it if you stayed here. Not in the pool, I mean," he hastily clarified, "but with our family. We could dig a channel or something, or a pond, a big one I mean, or a–"
He immediately stopped talking when Izo hoisted himself out of the water and pressed a kiss on his cheek. Izo lowered into the water again with barely a splash. "Thank you for trying to make me feel at home," he said.
"Y-you're welcome," Thatch sputtered.
Izo smiled and with his tail, he pushed himself away from the edge, floating on his back. "Maybe I will stay," he said, more to himself than to Thatch, but his voice still echoed through the cave.
Thatch perked up. "Really?" he asked, sounding excitedly. "That's great! I mean, the lake is not that great anymore, anyway, with the infestation of that algae."
Izo flipped himself upright. "What did you say?"
Thatch looked slightly surprised by his sudden outburst. "I thought you knew. I heard from a fisherman that the lake is being overgrown by algae. It's a real problem. I mean, it's a big lake, so it'll probably be okay, but…"
Izo stopped listening and slowly let himself sink underwater. At the bottom, he sat down, wrapping his arms around his tail. He had thought the lake would be safe once he was gone, but it seemed he really was cursed, and only his death could save the lake. Had he been selfish? After all, what was one life compared to thousands, if not millions? If the lake was lost, so many would die, both in and outside the water. The ecosystem depended on it.
Melancholically, Izo touched his tail. Why did he had to be born with this colour? Why couldn't he be like the others? He looked up to the surface. He thought he heard Thatch's voice calling his name. Poor Thatch. Just now that Izo had decided he was okay with liking a faun, it turned out there was no time.
Izo touched his cheek, but he couldn't be sure if he was crying.
Izo didn't show himself for a few days, and Thatch couldn't help but worry. The change in attitude had been so sudden. Izo had finally decided to be nice to Thatch, apparently, and if Thatch wasn't wrong, he might even be trying to get his attention. When Izo had looked so happy at being able to swim again, Thatch had been happy too, and he had been amazed with the speed by which Izo reached the other side of the pool in the blink of an eye.
When he had floated on the water, looking so content, his beautiful long hair spread around him, Thatch had thought he could die a happy man. The second time, however, Thatch suspected it might have been on purpose, as there were rose pedals floating all around Izo, indicating that he wanted Thatch to look at him.
But after Thatch's remark about the lake, Izo had disappeared underwater and hadn't shown himself since, no matter how many times Thatch had called him. The only thing that assured him a little was that the food he put next to the pool had disappeared when he returned. So at least Izo ate.
Thatch had tried to make the pool more like the lake by introducing different kinds of water plants in addition to the plants he had brought before, but nothing seemed to lure Izo out. Thatch couldn't help but wonder why. Izo had seemed inclined to stay with their family, so why did he care about the lake? Did he still have friends or family there whom he was worried about? If so, why had he never mentioned them? Was he homesick? Why had he been hurt in the first place?
Yet, despite his worries, Thatch's mind seemed to be determined to remind him of the kiss Izo had given him. It had been nothing more than a chaste peck on his cheek, but only minutes before, their faces had been so close… Thatch desperately wanted to kiss Izo, but now that Izo had decided to stay at the bottom of the lake, that wouldn't happen anytime soon.
Marco had told Thatch to leave Izo alone, but Thatch still went back every time to see if Izo was okay.
He was surprised to see that Izo had actually surfaced one night, resting with his head on his arms, which were lying on the edge of the pool. When he saw Thatch, he looked up.
"You're here," Thatch said, trying to suppress the excitement that was bubbling up, as not to scare Izo away again.
"Yes," Izo replied. "I was hoping you would come."
"Of course, I was worried." Thatch sat down next to Izo on the edge of the pool.
"Yeah…" Izo averted his eyes. "Sorry about that."
Thatch wanted to ask why he had decided to stay underwater all this time, but the words died on his tongue when he saw Izo's sad face. Instead, he reached out and combed through Izo's hair. Izo didn't stop him.
Finally, he looked up. "Could you do something for me?"
"Of course," Thatch replied immediately.
"Could you take me to the river where you found me? I know you've been trying to make me feel at home here, but I guess I'm just a little homesick."
"Are you going to leave?" Thatch asked sadly.
Izo looked away. "I just want to be in my natural habitat for a bit."
Thatch nodded and carefully lifted Izo out of the water. Izo wrapped his arms around Thatch's neck and pressed his nose against his cheek.
Outside, it was dark, the sky littered with stars. In silence, they made their way to the place where Thatch had found Izo washed up on the bank. He had looked so fragile then. Thatch was happy that most of the wounds had healed by now.
He waded into the water, careful not to fall, as the bottom was full of small stones that made him lose his balance. When the water reached to his hips, he lowered Izo into the river.
"Thank you," Izo said softly, but didn't let go of Thatch's neck. Instead, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Thatch's.
Thatch was too stunned to respond at first, but then he slowly melted against Izo. It felt amazing to kiss him, and Izo didn't taste as fishy as Thatch might have imagined. Izo was no doubt leaning on his tail, as he didn't hang with his full weight on Thatch. That was about the extent of Thatch's thoughts as his hands wandered down Izo's back and down his tail.
Izo pulled back, but didn't let go of Thatch. Thatch's heart was beating loudly as he pulled Izo close against him. For a while, they just stood there, their arms wrapped around each other and enjoying the feeling of being close.
However, when Thatch moved his hoof a little, the flow of the river caused him to become imbalanced and the gravel at the bottom of the river started to roll. Falling backwards, the impact when hitting the water knocked the air out of his lungs. He reached upwards to grab hold of something, but found nothing.
Suddenly, he felt lips press against him once more, and only a second later, he was above water again. Izo wrapped his arms around his torso and brought him safely back to the riverbank.
"You really should learn how to swim," he said, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"I won't when I have my own personal life guard," Thatch replied, but was surprised to see that Izo didn't answer his smile.
"I'm sorry, Thatch," he said softly.
Thatch looked at him confused. "What for?"
"For this." Izo pressed their lips together, but before Thatch could respond to it, he had let go again. With a powerful stroke of his tail, he turned and swam away, in the direction of the lake.
Confused and sad, Thatch scrambled to his feet. "Izo!" he called. He waded into the water until he didn't dare to go further, calling Izo's name over and over, but to no avail.
Thatch wasn't sure how long he had been standing in the icy water when he realised Izo wasn't going to come back. He should have been prepared for this, after the days of sulking Izo had done, that he would go back to the lake. But he had so hoped that Izo would stay, especially after he kissed Thatch. He could still feel the warmth of his lips against his own.
It took him a lot of effort to wade against the stream back to the bank. When he had pulled himself from the water, he turned around once more, in vain hoping that Izo might have changed his mind.
His legs felt heavy as he dragged himself back home, and it wasn't just because of the water that still clung to his hairy legs. He wondered if he shouldn't have brought Izo back, but then he would have held Izo prisoner and that thought made him feel even sicker than he did now. Izo had made his choice. He felt he belonged in the lake, and who was Thatch to tell him otherwise? They hadn't known each other for long, they weren't even the same species. Perhaps it was for the best that Izo was gone.
It hurt, the thought of leaving Thatch behind. Izo could imagine how lost he must have looked when Izo swam away, the desperation clear in his voice. But Izo had made his decision. To save the lake, he must be sacrificed. He should have accepted his fate a long time ago. Then the algae wouldn't have come, and Thatch would have never met him.
Thinking of Thatch made his chest tighten. He already missed him, his warm smile and kind eyes, or that pout on his face that Izo would never admit looked adorable. The fact that he was never going to see any of those anymore made him tear up, even though the tears were immediately washed away.
However firmly his resolution to be sacrificed was, though, to actually hand himself over to the merfolk was a different story entirely. Instead, he stayed in shallow waters, near the cursed algae that started this whole thing, as fishermen didn't come near it. There were hardly any fish there.
Izo spent several days debating between going to the merfolk or going back to Thatch. Especially at night, the latter was an almost irresistible temptation. Lying in his arms was so much better than being alone here, with a continuous threat that he would be found.
It wasn't going to do him any good to wait here, though. Either he would be found by his own kind or he would be caught by fishermen. The latter wouldn't do anyone good, so he had to prevent that from happening. Which meant he had to give himself up.
His heart beating loudly in his chest, he made his way to the centre of the lake. He had been washed away further than he had thought, as it took him longer than he had expected to find his home.
Suddenly, he saw two mermen swim, and hastily, he dove away behind a rock. He wasn't sure why, but it would seem that his nerves had left him. As the mermen swam past, Izo overheard part of their conversation.
"The fishmen should be here soon," one of them said, "so the lake will be back to normal in no time."
"Are we certain it is wise to declare war on Whitebeard?" his companion asked.
"He is hiding the cursed one, so it's the only way. I don't expect them to fight us fairly in the water, so what choice do we have but to ask our cousins?" the first replied. "Once we have the cursed one, we'll sacrifice him and the algae will disappear."
The rest of their conversation happened too far away for Izo to hear, but he had heard enough. While he had never seen a fishman, he knew they were related to each other, as they were to mermaids who lived in the sea. Fishmen had the advantage over mermaids that they often had legs in some form, so they could walk on land. Another thing Izo knew of the fishmen was that they were ruthless. If they attacked Whitebeard without a warning, would they be able to win? With all those children…
Izo made a decision. As fast as he could, he turned around and swam back in the direction he came from. If only he were on time…
From the lake, he swam back downstream into the river where Thatch had found him. He remembered the place where he had washed ashore, but when he arrived, Thatch wasn't there. Of course, why would he be? He thought Izo had abandoned him, so why would he stay?
However, when Izo was just about to leave to swim farther down the river, in case Thatch would be close by, his eye caught a flash of blond. Marco sat up from where he had been lying in the grass near the river and smiled when he saw Izo.
"I knew you'd come back. Thatch has been depressed ever since you left, you know."
Izo chewed his lip. "I need to warn you–"
"Just hold on a sec," Marco interrupted him. "Thatch!" he called over his shoulder. "I told you I was right!"
The sound of hooves on the soft ground came closer, and Thatch stopped panting next to Marco. "I-Izo!"
"I told you he'd be back." Marco patted him on the back. "I'll leave you guys to it."
"Where did you go?" Thatch asked after Marco had gone. "And… why did you come back?"
"Listen, Thatch, please," Izo pleaded. "I need to warn you. An army of fishmen is coming this way to attack Whitebeard!"
"Why would they do that?" Thatch asked confusedly.
Izo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Because of me."
"Why you?"
"Because…" Izo grit his teeth and took a shaky breath. "Because I'm a jinx. It's because of me that those algae are here and that they're destroying the lake and everything that depends on it. There was a prophecy that a merman with a red tail would cause it and…" His voice faltered. "My mother disguised my tail with dye, but I was recently discovered. They're out for my blood ever since. The reason I returned to the lake was to fulfil that prophecy." He looked down. "I just wanted you to be safe. You and your family."
From the corner of his eye, he saw that Thatch moved towards him and he yelped when Thatch suddenly lifted him up. "What the hell are you doing? Put me back!" he exclaimed, struggling to get free. "If I don't go back, they'll have the army attack you for sure! Put me down!"
Thatch didn't reply and just started walking back towards the place where his family lived.
"Put me down, you stupid goat!" Izo exclaimed, but Thatch hadn't as much as loosened his grip. Suddenly, however, he stopped abruptly, his face a hard mask.
"Do you really think I'd let you sacrifice yourself?" he all but spat.
Izo was taken aback about the change of character and stopped struggling.
A wry smile appeared on Thatch's face. "I don't think you do. I think you came here so I would stop you."
"T-that's not true!" Izo sputtered.
"No? You could have gone to your people right away, but instead you came here."
"To warn–" Izo started, but Thatch interrupted him.
"You could have prevented them from coming for you by going to them."
"I–" Izo started, but then he looked down defeated. Thatch was right. Why was he such a coward?
A smile broke through on Thatch's face, and he beamed at Izo. "I'm glad you did. You don't have to worry about being sacrificed anymore."
Izo let himself be dragged along, not knowing what to say. Thatch had guessed his true intentions, even if they hadn't been clear to Izo himself until now. Marco joined them and was brought up to speed. When they arrived at the Whitebeard home, Marco quickly ran off to make preparations.
Meanwhile, Thatch brought Izo to the pool and lowered him into the water.
"You can't leave me here," Izo said when Thatch made ready to go.
"I'm not leaving you there, that's for sure. You'll be safe here."
"I want to help! This is about me. Thatch, come back!" he yelled when Thatch turned around and left the cave. "Thatch!"
The longer he was alone, the more anxious Izo became. He couldn't leave the pool of course, no doubt that was the reason Thatch put him here. The only thing he could do was swim in circles to try to get rid of his restlessness. The flowers and plants Thatch had brought him were still there, and Izo was pretty sure that was the only thing keeping him sane, as they reminded him of Thatch and what he meant to Izo.
Fragments of voices outside could be heard every now and then, as well as a clattering sound that could very well be weapons clashing. It did nothing to ease Izo's nerves.
Every once in a while, he took one of the roses and smelled them, trying to convince himself that everything was going to be okay and that Thatch would come back, a triumphant smile on his face.
When he finally heard footsteps approaching, however, he couldn't delude himself into thinking it was Thatch. They didn't sound like hooves on stone, they were much too soft for that. These footsteps belonged to Marco. It felt like his chest tightened when Izo swam to the surface. Did anything happen to Thatch? Was that why Marco had come? Izo would never forgive himself if that was the case.
Marco stopped at the edge of the pool and smiled tiredly when he crouched down.
"What happened?" Izo asked immediately. "Did you fight? Are you still fighting? Where is Thatch?"
"We started fighting," Marco said in a soothing tone, "but then Pops and the leader of your group talked. Namur – our brother and a fishman, I don't think you've met him yet – has mediated between them and they have come to an agreement. We will help to clean the lake from the algae. In exchange, they will spare your life. However, you are never to return to the lake again."
Izo bit his lip and nodded.
"I know Thatch has invited you many times to stay. We can dig canals and a new lake where you can live in, or we can take you anywhere you want. The choice is up to you."
"Where is Thatch?" Izo asked.
Marco hesitated.
"Where. Is. He?" Izo demanded sharply. "If anything happened to him…"
"He got hurt in the fight. He is in the infirmary now… What are you doing?" Marco asked when Izo hoisted himself out of the water.
"Take me to him. Now!" When Marco hesitated again, Izo threatened, "If you don't, I swear I will drag myself there! Take me to him!"
Sighing in defeat, Marco took off his shirt to make it wet and wrap it around Izo's tail. Not even trying to hide his triumphant smirk, Izo let himself be lifted up, but on the way to the infirmary, he started to become anxious again. What if Thatch died? Izo wouldn't be able to live with himself.
"He'll be fine, you know," Marco said. "They're just a flesh wounds."
Izo nodded, but he knew he wouldn't stop worrying until he saw Thatch with his own eyes. The walk to the infirmary took a lot longer than he remembered, but that was probably just because he wanted to be there so badly.
Finally, they arrived, and Izo immediately spotted Thatch lying on a bed with his eyes closed. His torso was wrapped in bandages, and there was one next to his left eye as well. Izo started to squirm in Marco's arms even before they had reached the bed and he slipped from Marco's grip, landing inelegantly next to Thatch's bed. With his arms, he pushed himself up on the mattress and lay down next to him, caressing the side of his face lovingly. He barely noticed Marco leaving.
Thatch's eyes fluttered open and he smiled when he saw Izo. "You're here."
"Of course I am, you stupid goat! But you almost weren't! What happened?"
"Well, we prepared for a fight and one fishman cut me near the eye," he pointed at the bandage, "and another stabbed me in the back. It's nothing serious, I promise." Despite his reassurance, he winced when he moved his arm too much. He laughed sourly.
"Idiot," Izo muttered, but still snuggled closer to him. Marco's shirt, that was still keeping him moist, also drenched Thatch's sheets and bandages, but neither of them cared.
Thatch turned his head and kissed Izo's cheek. "Has Marco told you what's been decided?" he asked softly.
Izo nodded.
"Good." Thatch hesitated. "So, will you stay?"
Izo hummed and popped himself up on his elbow. "I suppose I have to. Who else will point out that you're an idiot?"
Thatch snorted. "Marco, probably. But I prefer it if you do it," he added hastily.
Izo chuckled and took Thatch's face between his hands as he leaned down to kiss him. In all his life, he had never imagined to fall in love with a faun, yet here he was. Then again, he had never thought he would leave the lake either, not alive, anyway.
Their relationship might be difficult at times as they didn't live both in the water or on land, but Izo was confident they would make it work somehow. He was willing to try in any case, and, judging by the way Thatch pulled him tightly against him, Thatch felt the same way.
"Say, Thatch," he said, waiting to Thatch hummed in reply. "When you get better, I'd love to try your fish stew."