Klaus stood at the end of the peer, holding onto a post as he leaned out over the crashing waves, the stolen bottle of whiskey dangling in his free hand. He wasn't really sure what he was doing. Testing fate, maybe; daring the storm to sweep him off his feet and carry him out to sea. Maybe he wanted that. Maybe that would be better than having to go back to his life.
He got tired of that, though, and slumped down to sit on the edge, feeling the ocean spray on his face each time a wave came crashing in. He took a swig of the whiskey, tasting just as much salt from the sea. Or maybe tears. He didn't want to think about that, though. He didn't want to admit to crying.
He looked out over the waves as he drank, wondering if he might pass out, fall into the sea and finally get some peace. But he knew that wouldn't work. It had happened before, maybe more than once, he couldn't really remember. But no matter how often he passed out here, he always seemed to wake back up safely on the peer. Maybe even the ocean didn't want him.
No, that didn't seem right. There was something about it that drew him in, made him feel wanted, like he could belong. The waves were brutal, they could bash him against the rocks easily, but he couldn't bring himself to be afraid of it. If it did drown him, it wouldn't be out of malice, it would be his own fault. After all, if there was one thing Klaus knew about, it was cruelty.
And that wasn't what he felt here, with the life it held hidden safely under its surface, or the way it enveloped him so securely whenever he went for a swim. It was peaceful when he dunked his head under the waves, even when it was storming like this, and it made him feel a calmness he didn't get anywhere else. Maybe it really had saved him, maybe it wanted him to live. Or maybe it had all been a drug-induced dream and the rest was just wishful thinking.
Movement caught his eye, distracting him from his dark thoughts. He smiled despite himself as he recognized the dolphins, playing in the waves. Somehow, the ocean and the marine life always put him at ease. It was like entering another world, giving him at least a brief respite from the horrors that threatened to crush him. They always looked so free and alive.
He thought he saw something bigger among the dolphins today and sat up a bit straighter, trying to make out what it was. He was beginning to think he had just imagined it, a trick of the moonlight maybe, at least whatever little light managed to make it through the heavy clouds. But then he saw it again. It was hard to tell, everything storm-grey, but he thought it might be more colorful than the dolphins, scales flashing gold when they caught the light just so. It was mesmerizing, whatever it was, dancing in the storm.
And then it lept out of the water, spinning through the air before crashing back into another wave, and Klaus' mouth fell open. It was a person. No, that wasn't right, it was only a man until half way down when it became fins and tail.
Merfolk.
He nearly laughed out loud at the thought. Maybe he really had taken too many pills and was starting to see things. They weren't real. This couldn't be real. It was still pretty, though, so maybe he couldn't be blamed for watching for a while longer. Maybe he could have something nice before returning to the hell that was his life, even if it was just a hallucination.