14AmyChan: Okay, this just had to be done

Helena: I'm the mother of the Luck twins!

Bicker 'n Blood: And I'm a father?! *faints*

14AmyChan: lol, I don't own Arch. XD

Prompt 14: Cook-outs

Her sister's new husband sure did love to be extravagant. This was the thought that ran through Helena's mind as she escaped the rather large party from within the castle. Well, her new brother-in-law called it a cook-out, as everyone in the castle was now roasting some food or another over a fire, but the loud antics of the party were driving her quite insane.

This was how she found herself to be in the middle of the refreshing cool air, staring out over the sea she loved so much with nothing but a lantern to light her path. Would she ever get to journey into its depths? Would the sea be as kind to her as she tried her best to be kind towards it? Would its deep blue waters reveal to her some mystery never before solved by mankind? Or perhaps…?

Helena sighed wistfully, allowing her daydreams to whisk her away. Though usually the more practical between her and her sister, she too carried a sense of whimsical fantasy. And while her sister had dreamed of castles and royalty—a wish come true for her—Helena had always longed for the ocean. Always yearned for the sea air.

A strange purring caught the woman's attention on this midsummer's night, and she found herself peering into the darkness for its source. As she leaned forward, the purring seemed to draw back, further into the ocean that she held so near and dear to her heart. Whenever she ventured closer to the light, the purring followed.

That's so curious, the new royal mused. Hesitantly, she took a step forwards, being careful to light only her path and not what was making the sound, almost frightened that the purring would leave her. She was pleased when the sound did not move.

She took another step forward. Then another. Still unaware of the source of the noise.

With each footfall, the purr came closer, and Helena could feel herself smile. She had always gotten into a bit of a knack for getting into trouble, even if she were the more careful of the twins, she was also the most curious. With one final footfall to the nape of the sea, the purring stopped. Frowning, Helena steadily dropped to her knees, thinking she might have scared the gentle noise back into the ocean from whence it came.

"Don't," a male voice whispered from within the dark. By now, the dark was a thin veil between the two, and Helena was positively dying to see what secrets the shadows kept from her. "Don't come near."

"Why?" she inquired, most likely pushing her luck. She took a leaned forward slightly and heard the voice's sharp intake of breath, but was pleased when she heard indicating splash of her companion swimming away. She reached her free hand forward. "It's all right, you shouldn't be afraid."

"No, but you should be," the voice returned. Though if it thought such a warning was going to deter such a curious Quillotia girl, it was sadly mistaken. "Even I'm afraid…"

"Afraid of what?" she asked gently. A damp hand gently placed itself over her own, exerting little to no pressure whatsoever. Almost as though it—he—were afraid of breaking her should he be careless. Helena turned her hand over gently, feeling the hand that now had her own.

Strange, that such a creature with a kind touch would speak to her as though he were dangerous. She wanted so badly to see the face to which the voice belonged.

"Can I see your face?" she asked. The lantern was just behind her, and she could easily move it so she could see, but she felt it necessary to warn the person before doing so. A long silence was permitted between the new acquaintances before the grip on her hand began to slacken.

Instinctually, she held on a little tighter.

"Once you see, you'll scream," he warned. Helena's face drew into a frown. Was he deformed? Did he think that whoever would look upon him would cry out in horror and disgust?

"I won't," she promised, her voice hard. No matter what, she vowed she would not scream. The man tried to release his hand from hers, and she felt conflicted. She did not want to force this man to allow her to see her, but nor did she want him to feel like she was okay with letting him go. So she simply kept an even pressure on his hand.

He finally sighed.

"You may look," he whispered, and he almost sounded ashamed to say it. Gingerly, Helena reached behind her and grabbed her lantern. She shifted it to the side, just a tiny amount, so she could look upon his face. Once she did, a gentle smile broke out across hers.

"You had me worried that I wouldn't like you or something," she said to the sharkman, whose flame-red hair was damp from the ocean water and whose shark-skinned hand was still within her grasp. She searched his entire face—from his snout to his razor sharp teeth to his eyes.

She searched those eyes. She found fear. She found hope. She found kindness.

"Most would have run away by now," he stated, his sharky accent coming into focus for Helena for the first time. She smiled at the revelation.

"I'm not running away," she said as she made herself comfortable. She removed her shoes and dipped her feet into the water while the sharkman hesitantly offered his other arm to the land. They sat there—hand in hand—for a little while, taking in the lull of the ocean's crashing waves upon a shoreline that was not but a mile away. Watching the moon and its evanescent glow in the sky, surrounded by miles worth of beautiful twinkling lights. Tasting the salt on the wondrous ocean air.

"What is your name?" the sharkman asked after a few moments of silence. Helena could tell that he was getting used to the presence of one who did not obviously fear him, and she could tell it was a change he happily welcomed.

"I'm Helena," she answered, smile never leaving her face. "How about you? Got a name?"

"I am called Bicker 'n Blood," he introduced himself. Helena raised a brow in confusion, but let the name pass. However, it still was strange to her. After another moment, she heard something from her new friend, a sniffing sound. At first, she thought that perhaps she had offended or upset him somehow by not commenting on his name.

Then she realized he was sniffing the air.

"What is that?" he inquired, his eyes wide and looking in the direction of the castle. Though she herself could not smell what he obviously had, there was almost no doubt of the new scent that he had caught on the wind.

"That, my friend, is a cook-out," she informed, and was a little shocked to find his head turn around at an alarming rate to look her in the eye. Those kind eyes searched hers for a moment, and she had no idea what he was looking for or even if he would find it.

"Friend?" he asked, obviously not used to the term.

"Yup, you're my friend from now on," she said. Then backtracked. "I mean, you are if you want to be…"

"No, I would like to be your friend," the wereshark said with a smile. A true smile that made Helena so very, very glad that she had skipped out on the cook-out.

14AmyChan: And that's how I envision Helena's and Bicker 'n Blood's meeting~! *^_^*

Helena: I don't think the comic ever mentioned my sister and I being twins…

14AmyChan: Didn't mention Bicker 'n Blood's name either, so I had to do a bit of digging. XDD

Bicker 'n Blood: Read and review, and thank you!

14AmyChan: Next prompt!

Next—Red, White, and Blue