Elliot was loath to admit it, but he did just as he was told, and didn't do much of anything. What he did do constituted rhythmically tapping on the pot. He was thinking of a song he was composing, and was attempting to tap out the melody as best he could. Singing would be ideal, but there was no way he was going to go that far at this point. Despite his best efforts not to do much of anything at all -he was starting to develop some sort of appreciation for how weak he was in comparison to the mer, who was strong, and seemed very sturdy- he found his situation deteriorating. It wasn't hot in the cave, and it wasn't cold either. It was a comfortable temperature, still cold for him, but definitely reasonable. Despite that, he found himself getting cold and hot at the same time, and things started to ache that didn't have any right acting up.

He knew the feeling instinctively; it was the signs of an oncoming fever, if he didn't already have one. After the fall that had ruined his wings, he'd spent days hot, achey and delirious: bedridden and helpless. It scared him to think that he might return to that state. He didn't want it to get that bad, so he fumbled over to where his clothes were still hanging, taking care not to use his injured foot as much as possible, and hurriedly put on his dried clothes. There had been a lot of layers, and he piled them on as much as he could. If he could stay warm enough, maybe the fever would go away on its own, before getting too bad. The last thing he needed right now, was to be sick.

A loud "Elliot!" rang out from the top of the cave, and as the avian looked up, he could see a head of black hair looking down at him, scowling. "I said not to move!"

Elliot had enough good sense to look sheepish at not following the command, but there was already heat in his cheeks, so he wasn't sure if it showed or not. But once the mer saw that his clothes were back on, he seemed to brighten up for some reason. Elliot angled himself right under the cave's opening, and signaled for the mer to send down the rope, to which the mer complied. Once it was down, Elliot gripped the rope tightly, and then took a good look at the pot, thinking long and hard about how exactly he should tie the rope to it. It took him longer than it probably should have, and he happened to notice the mer on top of the cave looking very bored. Even still, when he wrapped the rope around the pot and tied a few different knots so that it would be stable going up and going down, he felt pleased with himself. The mer, did not seem impressed, and actually seemed far more interested in something outside of the cave, so Elliot tugged on the rope a few times to let the mer know that it was time to pull it back up. To Elliot's surprise, the mer was very careful with the pot on the way up, taking extra care to make sure it didn't bang on anything on its way.

Then the pot was up, and the mer reached out and grabbed it, before looking down into the cave, and frowning down again. "Elliot, stay put!" Elliot sheepishly nodded, glaring at the cave floor and noted the huff the mer gave in response, before the black haired creature was gone.

With all of his clothes back on, Elliot found himself much warmer, but it didn't seem to be helping much. The aching hadn't gone away, he was getting tired, and he found himself very irritated about it. It wasn't fair, now was the worst time for something like this. He was already relying on the mer for just about everything, he didn't want to get sick on him too. He didn't know if he could pass his sickness onto the mer, but that was definitely something he couldn't allow, if it was possible.

His anger bubbled and simmered, and simply would not go away. Eventually, Elliot settled for laying down and curling up into a ball, trying to keep all of his confounded germs to himself. He'd just started to fitfully drift off, when he heard an exaggerated "Ellllliooooooot" come from above him. The avian hoisted himself off of the cave floor, and turned his head up to look at the mer, who smiled back down at him, before starting to send the pot down.

Elliot paid close attention to the item on its way down, remembering how much care the mer had put into pulling the pot up, and mirroring that for the way down. When the pot was securely in his hands, the mer tossed down the rest of the rope. "Drink now, we're talking when I get back." Elliot nodded in acknowledgement, and the mer was once again gone.

Elliot didn't need to be told twice, and he eagerly licked at the snow in little bits. It was nice to have the water, even if it wasn't exactly how he'd like it. He could feel the chill of it as it passed down his throat, easily easing the pain that resided there. Elliot quickly finished off the whole pot, which, in and of itself, did not surprise him. He'd been incredibly thirsty, and looking at the sun, he likely hadn't had any water since the day before. That was a long time for him to go without water. It was only after he'd finished that he thought he probably should have saved some, but it was done now, and he thought there was no use worrying about it. Now that he thought on it, avian vocal cords were very delicate too, and that made him just as angry as everything else. It just wasn't fair.

Once the pot was empty -and licked clean- Elliot tried out some vocal exercises, and some tongue twisters. Whereas his voice was still on the raspy side, he could speak without it hurting, and it certainly didn't sound as bad as it had. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. Or, at least it would have to, the mer obviously wanted to have a decent conversation, and thinking on it, Elliot wanted to give it to him. It might have been the fever talking, but he felt that he'd gone stir-crazy in the weeks and months of isolation, even if in actuality he'd dealt with it as well as could be expected. He hadn't dwelt on his solitude, reading his books, and far more concerned about staying warm and eating, but now with the promise of active conversation, those months of silence seemed more painful than they had actually been.

It was probably the fever talking.

Besides, he had a bone to pick with that mer. Sure, he hadn't been eaten, he wasn't starving, -though some food would be nice- he was rested, and he'd gotten something to wet his palate, but besides all of that, he was still quite drained, and though that wasn't entirely the mer's fault, he also hadn't helped. Feeling a little better, Elliot felt his temper getting the better of him. He'd had to be level headed this whole time, because grumping and yelling at nothing was a huge waste of time. He'd even tried it a few times in the first few weeks, but it only served to make him feel even more miserable, and that had led him away from his typically aggressive temperament. The mer had a sharp tongue though, so in some ways, Elliot thought that perhaps this could work out.

He'd never been good with overly nice people, he always came off too abrasive, and perhaps a little on the violent side. Maybe a bigger creature could deal with how aggressive he usually was. Or maybe the mer would just get tired of it and eat him. The thought was entirely unwarranted, but Elliot supposed that if he was a big powerful meat eating predator, he might consider it.

Elliot placed the jar to his side, and then went for the rope, still coiled around on the floor of the cave. He patiently unknotted the rope from the jar, and wrapped it up so that it was more easily managed, then placed it down next to the jar. Elliot hated to admit it, but he'd probably need the mer to get him water again soon. Perhaps he should have asked for a second jar, but the mer hadn't offered, and Elliot had been too busy devouring the first one to really notice. He couldn't help scowling. This wasn't fair, he was being entirely taken care of, and he hated that, even when his siblings had to, it had been almost unbearable, let alone something he'd only known for less than a week. At this rate, he really would become a pet.

If he just sat there, he'd get more angry about the situation, so instead, Elliot preened. And once he'd started, he realized that his wings really needed it. They'd taken a beating, and it was obvious to anyone who knew what wings were suppose to look like. There was even still dried blood on his wing tips, and Elliot had to methodically clean them off using the salt water from the cave's entrance. It stung, and he hissed and cursed about it, but it would do him good in the end, so he kept at it. Once he was confident that the blood was gone, and that the bite marks on his wings would probably heal on their own, or at least scab over, Elliot went about straightening out his feathers, and running his fingers over them to take off anything that might have gotten stuck in them.

Preening always seemed to take a very long time, and though Elliot usually didn't have the patience for long activities where he wasn't doing a whole lot, preening was a glaring exception. He was more thorough than most avian, even now after everything, and the whole process actually helped to calm his temper. Preening was just one of those things he could do for hours and not get pensive, or irritated; music seemed to be the only other one he could think of.

He was close to the water that time, so when the mer popped out of it, Elliot noticed without being spooked, like he had been previously. The preening had helped to calm him down, and at that moment, he didn't even feel like being irritated with the mer. But oddly, the look on the mer's face looked more concerned than anything else. Elliot hobbled backwards as the mer hoisted himself up into a sitting position on the cave floor, with his tail still in the ocean, and water tumbling off of him.

"What are you doing?" The mer's voice was oddly concerned, and his mouth was turned down into a light frown.

Elliot found that to be a very dumb question, but rationalized that the mer likely hadn't ever spent any time around something with wings, so it probably wasn't that strange. "Preening. Wings take a lot of maintenance."

The instant reaction from the mer was a smile. He was obviously happy that Elliot was speaking again. But then mer seemed to take that statement in, cocking his head, and a small frown shifted to a more neutral expression. "Even wings that don't work?"

Elliot scowled at that, his face likely looking rather silly, and giving the mer an indignant look. "Feathers are sort of like hair. Hair doesn't feel, so if there's something in it, or it's matted you may not notice. But feathers are more important than hair, and mine are big. If you had bugs in your hair, you could probably live with it, though it might annoy you, but if I had bugs in my wings, that would be very bad for me." Elliot surprised himself with his even tone. He thought that the moment he'd start talking, he'd be griping and combative, but when faced with what seemed like honest curiosity, none of those things had surfaced. The mer just didn't know, and Elliot felt the need to tell him. It really felt that simple.

The mer seemed to accept the answer, nodding and thinking on it a few seconds. His hand idly went to his long mane of black hair, curling one finger around a long lock. "I think I understand." The mer then turned his gaze -or what Elliot thought would be his gaze, at this distance, he couldn't see the mer's eyes out of the mop of hair- back to Elliot. "You're very red. And your voice sounds different than it did before." The mer thought on that for a bit, before scrunching up his face. "You should have said so if you needed more water."

Taking note of where he stopped preening so that he could continue later, Elliot turned towards the mer, and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I'm fine. My voice will get better on its own." His voice was still scratchy, and sounded bad, but it didn't hurt, and Elliot was sure given the proper time that it would right itself.

The mer looked concerned for a few minutes, before a smirk came to his face, and he softly shook his head. "You are fine, then. That scowl looks right at home on your face." Elliot gaped in frustration, and was about to retort back when the mer cut him off, and started talking again. "My name is Leo. So don't call me fish, or mer. And don't look so indignant, I can see it right on your face. You were going to call me a slimy fish again."

At the tone -both playful and chiding- Elliot snapped his mouth shut, and narrowed his eyes. To which the mer - Leo - only smirked back. "Red looks amusing on you, by the way. So just remember, that every time you get angry, all I want to do is laugh at your face. Loudly."

Elliot definitely wanted to be angry about that one, but instead settled for bringing his hand over his mouth, as if he was contemplating something, and looking away. He was sure his face was red, and not only from the fever. He happened to get a sideways view at the mer, only to see the most irritating smile plastered on his face.

"Stop grinning as if you've won some prize!" Elliot couldn't help but squawk back at Leo. To which the mer only seemed to smile brighter, and Elliot realized he was losing whatever footing he had. He needed a quick change of subject, before he became too engrossed in trying to get the mer to stop harassing him so. "W-what is this place?" Elliot motioned with his hand to the cave itself, trying to ignore the lingering heat on his face. "Is this where you live?"

In response, Leo cocked his head, and scrunched up his lips in thought, before shaking his head. "No. I don't live here. I just keep things here. Things I find." The mer looked around, likely taking in some of the various clutter that populated the cave. "It's a good place for hiding things, and no one else knows about it. I come here often."

Elliot didn't like the thought of just being another thing that the mer had stashed away in his little hideaway cave, but he was alive, so Elliot decided to let it slide. For just that one time. "You do have, a lot of...things." 'Things', taking the place of the word 'junk', which is what he really wanted to say. Even if he was bad at it, Elliot was trying to be polite.

Leo sighed contentedly, looking over his various things, and then seemed to remember something. He turned back to Elliot. "Which reminds me. You owe me a new book." It was only as Leo said it, that Elliot remembered the book at all. He'd been so absorbed with his situation that their agreement, and the tome had been entirely forgotten. But, he was sure that if he had seen it, he would have remembered it. The book either must have been well hidden in the cave, or gone, and with the thought Elliot started looking around for it without even realizing it.

An exaggerated sigh came from Leo, and Elliot angled a look over at him, to see the mer looking away, his face as close to pouting as Elliot had ever seen it. "You needed the fire, so you owe me a new book."

The statement hung in the air for a long time, before it actually occurred to Elliot what exactly it meant. But when he did realize it, Elliot found himself completely blank, eyes wide and mouth agape in shock. The mer didn't meet his gaze, or even look at him, just twirled a long finger around a black strand of hair, and puffed out his lips in that pouty way. Elliot's eyes shifted from Leo, to where the ashes of the small fire remained, then back to Leo, again to the ashes, and finally once more to Leo.

"You did what!?" Elliot all but bellowed, in anger and disbelief.

Leo outright flinched at the statement, and his pout turned into an outright frown. Elliot could feel a glare leveled at him. "Do I have to spell it out for you, moron. I burnt it! The whole damn thing!" The finger twirling around a strand of hair, instead moved, and fisted at the mer's side. His shoulders jumped higher and his neck pulled in, instead of extending out, but Elliot was far too absorbed in the fact that the book was gone to really notice.

He looked at the ashes that remained from the small fire, trying to keep his bottom lip from twitching. "T-t-that was priceless! It was hand written! I've never even heard of another copy, and you burnt it!?"

"What was I suppose to do!? I couldn't find anything else dry enough to burn! It snowed before you came, and things were melting. Everything else I could get my hands on was wet!" Leo bellowed back, obviously just as angry as Elliot was. Now that Elliot thought on it, this was the first time he'd really seen the mer angry. It was very unnerving, to have upset something almost twice his size, and Elliot knew instinctively that he needed to stop being unhappy and overly emotional, or the situation would escalate. Whereas, normally, Elliot was not someone who would back down from an argument, Leo was almost twice his size, and Elliot had to keep that in mind.

Despite that fact, it was hard for Elliot to just let the situation go altogether. "I can't believe it's gone. You really burnt it..." He settled for sullen and dejected instead of angry screaming. Ideally, he should have just changed the subject altogether, but the sad little pile of ashes was something he just couldn't ignore.

"You were freezing to death! Of course I burnt it!" At that point, what Elliot could see of Leo's face was a darker shade than it had been before, and to Elliot's eye, it almost looked purplish, instead of the very mild blue that the mer's skin tone usually was.

He was wondering if that was just how mer looked when they were angry, or blushing, when Leo reached for something next to him. It wasn't anything large, just a green glass bottle, with a few chips on the side, but as Leo raised it over his head, Elliot panicked. Leo was going to throw it at him, and with the amount of strength the mer had, it could really hurt him. Elliot felt the blood drain out of his face, and backed up instinctively. "Leo, calm down!" Elliot flinched at the sound of it. He'd wanted the statement to seem softer, more convincing than anything else, but it had come out harsher and more demanding than he had wanted.

Leo's anger appeared to boil, and then simmer, his mouth contorting into something Elliot couldn't place. The mer then tossed the bottle in the opposite direction from Elliot, and turned his back on the avian all together. Before Elliot could really think to respond, Leo had dived into the water, and was gone.

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From here on out, we're unbetaed. I like constructive criticism. Just putting that out there.