Vash is confused about his feelings towards Roderich, and that might be a problem.

...xXx...

Roderich kept his word.

The elegant, eel-tailed merman arrived in the morning with his sister in tow, and the three made a day of swimming around the Great Alcazar.

Vash hadn't quite realized how large the domed sanctuary was. The last time he'd been there he'd been too small to care, and to a pup everything was big. There were the dozen or so tall coral and granite towers that reached up towards the distant surface; ranging in colors from bright red to green, yellow to pink, blue to violet. They were built around the amphitheatre in the center, where food was stored and most of the merfolk gathered daily.

A central spire was carved grander than the rest, with twisting pathways circling around the outside and lean columns holding up the higher tiers. That was the main tower where the Great Alcazar pod stayed in. One of the other taller towers, a dark blue one, was given to the Sapphire Cavern pod to claim.

Vash wondered briefly if his own pod were bigger if they'd be given their own tower. He shook that silly thought from his mind almost immediately. It's not like he wanted to stay in one of the towers. The little cubby settled on the edge of the Alcazar was perfect, secluded and hidden enough to be absolutely perfect.

As the trio swam together they circled around the edge of the magical space. All the other merfolk kept towards the center of the Alcazar, aside from the occasional patrol and hunting party. No one seemed to mind the cloudy waters outside the dome as the space within was vibrant with sea life and color and sunlight from the far off surface. Surely some sort of magic was to blame for how the sanctuary could hold so much light and life so deep beneath the surface compared to the surrounding waters.

The leopard-tailed male had a feeling that Roderich choose to lead them closer to the barrier on purpose. Perhaps it was to avoid the other merfolk. He didn't object.

Roderich was more than accommodating the entire time. He'd brought some extra cloth bags for Lilli to store her ever increasing shell collection into, and whenever they took a break he had a satchel of food for them to snack on. Mostly small fish, shrimp, and tender shoots of seagrass.

Vash was touched by his thoughtfulness.

The speckled siblings swam along with the iridescent merman for most of the day. Vash laid himself across the other's back, perching on silver shoulders. The languid pace that Roderich set was easy for him to swim to and he would rest whenever his wound burned too badly.

It was . . . odd how comfortable he'd become with being so close to the male at all, or how his sister was already acting as if Roderich was a part of the family.

That idea made his pulse quicken, and he stopped that line of thought before his heart escaped its cage.

The spotted merman could admit to being glad that there hadn't been any more aggression towards them from any of the other merfolk. His sister seemed excited to play around the other younglings and, if he were honest with himself, he was excited for her. Hearing the little mermaid chatter on about what her new friends were up to was enough to assuage any fears he might have, even if it made his nerves taut.

The first day they didn't swim too far, and Vash had to take many breaks. The next they were able to swim a bit farther. With every subsequent day of practice, Vash found his stiff tail muscles loosening and the ache in his side dulling. The wound was still healing and usually burned at the end of the day's activities, but the emerald merman could definitely feel his strength returning to him.

On this day Lilli wanted to stay with the other pups, eager to play around and ask the older mermaids for help braiding with seashells. Roderich brought her to say as much and to share a very early morning breakfast between the three of them. The little pup gave her big brother many hugs and he made sure to cover her rosy cheeks in sweet kisses before sending her back off with Roderich, the male promising to return to him soon.

Vash watched them go with a mix of emotions that he couldn't quite grasp. It reminded him of—

'I'll be home soon, my little sunspot.'

Vash clutched at the weave around him, his heart pounding. He sank back through the cubby tunnel and settled himself into the sand. The cold morning waters attempted to cling to him, chilling his skin and scales, and suddenly he felt small, too small, too helpless.

Memories flashed behind his eyelids. Blood, and bones, and anger. Arms aching in the dark. Keep digging. Digging deep, deeper into the sand. Wailing echoed in his ears and he covered them, squeezing his head tightly.

The leopard male didn't realize he was shaking until a hand fell upon his shoulder, stilling the tremors. Vash snapped his head up from where he'd buried it under the weave, gasping at the face before him.

He's back.

"Are you all right?" Roderich whispered, violet eyes glowing brightly in the darkness. The merman's handsome face looked openly troubled.

After Vash reigned in his heartbeat from being startled, he found himself reaching out towards the other and pulling him into an embrace. The pair laid together in the nest, and Roderich hardly hesitated a moment before holding him back.

Vash couldn't help the nostalgic gloom that had enveloped him that morning. Something in the sight of his sister and the eel-tailed merman swimming away from the cubby after coming to greet him for the day, smiling and waving, made him hurt with . . . something. And now that Roderich had returned he didn't want to let go.

Vash. The voice in his head was smooth, tender. So alike to the real thing. What happened?

Nothing. Not really. Vash swallowed the lump in his throat and hid his face under the other male's jaw, umber locks tickling his nose.

The arms around him were firm, holding him steady. Warm. A deep rumble roused from Roderich's chest and reverberated through the blond, and the gentle purring soothed him further.

Are you still tired? Roderich asked.

Maybe. Vash felt the tension in his body loosen and he sighed between them. His cheeks flushed hot from their tangled position. This is so embarrassing.

We could lay around. It is rather early.

Vash considered the idea. It was early—the dawn hardly greying the waters of the Alcazar. The light was barely strong enough to filter through the small tunnel entrance of the rocky den. Not only was he feeling guilty for having Roderich escort him and his sister around the sanctuary the past week, but now he was making the gracious male comfort him. He should pull away and tell the brunet that he was fine, that nothing was wrong.

But the heat in his throat hadn't faded quite yet and Vash thought that maybe, just this once, he could be selfish.

"That sounds nice," he murmured aloud. Roderich's purr increased, and he could definitely feel the delight rumbling through him.

Roderich pulled back slightly and leaned his head on an elbow, smiling down at the spotted male. "I have an idea, then."

"Oh?"

"Yes, but," the brunet paused a moment, tilting his head a bit sheepishly, "it does require a small amount of swimming."

Vash raised his eyebrows, glancing around as he fiddled with his weave. "I would have thought that you'd want to stay with me . . . here." His cheeks absolutely burned at that, and he swore he felt the other merman shudder.

"Well," Roderich's voice turned low and gravelly from his purring, and he leaned down to press their foreheads together. "We can certainly do that later." That? "But, if we don't leave now—" The handsome male pushed upwards and reached out to pull Vash up with him towards the tunnel, all the while purring reassuringly at him. "—we'll miss it!"

"Miss what?" Vash asked after the other. The eely merman winked and dashed out of the cubby, giving no answer. The blond followed to the edge of the tunnel and peeked out to see the other looking back expectantly at him, tail twirling excitedly.

What is he planning? Vash rolled his eyes, having to bite down the beginnings of his own smile. He pushed through the rough rock and followed.

The sanctuary was still very dark, aside from the wandering lanterns, and the faintest of grey lights could be seen far up on the surface. None of the other merfolk had stirred yet, and even Lilli had been laid back to sleep before her day of fun activities. Once Vash was out in the open darkness, he felt more than saw Roderich's webbed hands touch his shoulders. Thin fingers brushed along the silk until they reached the hooked bone holding the cloak around him and removed it, lifting the material off of him.

"What are you doing?" The chilly waters instantly settled upon his skin and Vash hugged his arms around himself as Roderich placed the weave inside the cubby.

"You won't need that where we're going."

Vash huffed, no longer open to the spontaneous idea of the male's now that he was freezing his tail off.

"Let's go," Roderich purled, wrapping his arms around the blond's waist. Vash reached around his neck, quickly pressing flush to the other for warmth, and felt the rumble against his chest intensify. When the emerald male tried to wave his tail along with his, though, the other nuzzled his temple and hummed over their bond, Let me.

Vash ducked his head and went still, his face the only part of him that wasn't suffering the cold. He very much appreciated the other's earnestness, even though they both knew that he could swim almost regularly now.

Right. Selfish. Today he was going to be selfish, so there was no reason for him not to allow the violaceous male to carry him like he had done dozens of times before.

Except now he was pressed against his belly and not his back.

Green eyes sprang open and Vash tried to adjust his grip so he could move around the other. "Um, Roderich." Shells, were his ears on fire?! "Let me swim behind you, ah . . ."

"No need," Roderich said, and those long arms only embraced him more firmly. "I've got you just fine like this."

Vash could feel the male's velvety underbelly moving against his own and, fuck, a thrill shot up his spine. Like a thousand tiny shrimp were crawling across the vertebrae. The leopard merman did his best to ignore the sensual press and sway of the sensitive spots as he clung to Roderich.

The eel-tailed male adjusted his arms to make sure his grip on the blond was secure, then kicked off.

His own arms tightened at the burst of speed. Roderich's long, slim tail curled and coiled in a flash, propelling the two of them swiftly through the water. Vash hadn't seen the other merman swim like this since their encounter with the shark, and frankly didn't think that Roderich could even swim this fast.

When he'd said 'a bit' of swimming, this wasn't at all what he had expected.

The cold rushed by and through him, and Vash only held his companion even closer to stop himself from shivering. The grey landscape whipped by them and he ended up closing his eyes, trusting that Roderich wouldn't crash them into a wall of granite.

He felt the merman twirl, curl, and spring with a burst of vibrant energy, changing direction. Vash peeked over his arm to see that they were heading up. The shadows of the spiraling towers around them growing taller, much taller; the tops disappearing farther beneath them, like fingers of a giant hand reaching through the depths to snag the pair.

Holding onto the iridescent male, the muscles in his arms and those around him suddenly contracted, tightening instinctively around each other as the waters surrounding them thickened into almost a glistening slush. Roderich's purr halted as he drew in a deep breath. His flowing tail coiled, and Vash swore sparks licked across his scales.

With a snap of fins, they shot upwards with a loud crack!

The emerald male gasped as they rushed through the shimmering slush, and before he knew it the radiant dome of the Great Alcazar was far, far behind them.

"You—!" Vash caught himself gaping as he leaned back to scrutinize the one carrying him. "How the fuck did you do that?!"

A faint sparkle of white electricity lingered in Roderich's violet eyes as he met his gaze, a few strands still crackling off his silver ears. The merman appeared meek, his cheeks splashed with red as his tail slowed its violent rhythm.

"I apologize if I startled you," Roderich said, glancing over the blond's shoulder.

"'Startled' me?" Vash scoffed. He shook his head and caught the other's eye, of which no longer sparked. A poignant green finger pointed downward. "Just how did we get from there to-to—" He exhaled, at a loss for words as he looked around.

The spotted merman watched as the dark waters around them, void of anything but floating specs and distant silhouettes of broken ships, brightened and warmed.

"I'm sorry." Roderich nudged his chin with his nose. Vash was still too shocked to really mind the touch. "I wanted to get us to the surface as fast as possible, so . . ." He shrugged. "I used some magic."

"Magic?" Vash tried to shake out of his daze, blinking in disbelief. Really? Was that what that was? The rest of what the other said sank in then and he looked down at the small orb of light and safety underneath them. "Wait, why are we going to the surface? Why did we leave the Alcazar?"

Open! His mind began to panic. We're out in the open!

The purr in Roderich's chest started again, rougher this time. That's when Vash noticed that the male was breathing quite heavily, his gills flaring and chest moving quickly against his own.

The brunet only smiled affectionately at him despite the apparent strain as they approached the surface. The water above them was an expansive glimmering sway of pink and pale yellow. Roderich slowed his tail flicks enough that by the time they floated through the splash of colors the pair only just breached the threshold.

The ocean surface was calm, still. Salty air cooled their skin and hair, plastering the locks to their heads like strands of heavy seaweed.

Vash sucked in a deep breath. The air mixing into his lungs helped him become more buoyant as the mermen treaded in place. He loosened his grip from around the violet male's shoulders and rested his palms against the other's rumbling chest.

They were alone in the center of an aquatic mirror as the dawn admired its reflection.

Roderich freed a hand to push back his dark hair from his eyes, slicking it back from his face. "It's been awhile since we left the shallows," he murmured, voice sounding thinner as it travelled through the air, but still just as sonorous. "I figured you'd like to see the sun."

Silver fingers brushed golden hair behind Vash's ears, thumbs petting over his cheeks, and he was speechless.

He really— The leopard-tailed male felt an acute heat in his face. For me, he . . .

"Come on, darling," Roderich lilted, eyes flashing. He sighed melodramatically as he tipped to the side, taking Vash with him. The blond perched atop the other's chest as the sweetheart of a merman floated along the surface on his back. "Now we can relax."

He's so selfless.

The fluttering of his heart could rival a gull's wings during a storm.

Vash laid his cheek on the male's chest, hiding his reddening blush from sight as he adjusted himself to get more comfortable. They were stomach to stomach, underbelly to underbelly, and the majority of his tail rested in the water beside its eel-like companion. The miniscule wind drying the water along his back made him shiver, grass green scales rippling with the breeze.

Roderich's arms enveloped his waist once more. Vash grew satisfied with riding on the waves, on a cozy chest, quicker than he realized he ever could. Safe. Whether it was the insistence in his heart or the rise of unsaid feelings tickling the back of his mind, the emerald male settled himself. He felt safe.

A purr of his own began its soothing song as a rosy, golden halo crested over the horizon.

...xXx...

Not quite sure when exactly he'd dozed off, Vash awoke feeling sun-warmed and content. The speckled male yawned as he perched up on the merman beneath him, and inhaled a deep breath of air.

The sun was high in the cloudless sky, casting its glowing rays down upon them and the big, blue ocean. The coolness of the water lapping at the green merman's sundried skin and scales contrasted pleasantly, and he couldn't recall the last time he'd sunbathed on the surface.

Yawning again to clear the sleep from his throat, Vash looked down at Roderich. The violet male was asleep, apparently having dozed off as well, comfortably drifting on his back. The eel-tailed merman supported him with hardly any effort.

Vash felt his heart do a lazy twirl in his chest, and he laid down again on his arms. The top half of his face peeked over the verdant appendages and he watched his sleeping male with new appreciation.

He's really too kind to me, he thought. A small breeze picked up his dried hair and the strands tickled the back of his neck. A green fingertip idly traced along a silver collarbone. And Lilli. All the moments where Roderich had been too accommodating, too generous, too at odds with his own pod just for the sake of the leopard siblings made something in his heart and stomach take flight. He scrutinized the merman even more as he dozed under him, eyes ghosting over a terrible grey mark. He's even letting me use him as a raft.

Vash snorted quietly at the thought of Roderich being one of those inflatable boats the humans used to sometimes paddle along his shallows. Unbidden, a soft purr started in his chest.

The blond thought, quietly, tentatively, to himself, I could get used to this.

A rumbling beneath him caught his attention. Both of their purring increased, the joint sounds resonating with one another. An amethyst eye opened.

Roderich hummed deep in his throat, the noise making the blond feel even warmer. His smooth voice spoke up, "Good morning."

Vash rolled his eyes. "It's midday."

Neither of them spoke louder than a whisper.

"Midday, hmm?" Roderich blinked against the sunlight and Vash could feel the tail beneath him wave side to side. Silver hands rubbed up and down the blond's back idly as he asked, "Hungry?"

Flicking his fins, Vash nodded. He lifted his head up as the iridescent male fully stretched beneath him with his arms above his head and a big yawn. He thought he'd nearly go blind from watching purple and silver scales dazzled under the blazing sun, melting like a beam of light against the dark water.

Roderich carefully leaned up then as Vash slid off of him. More difficult than he thought it would be as their dry scales caught on each other. After an awkward moment, the two of them were treading upright in the water. Vash shuddered heavily at the temperature difference as they sank beneath the waves.

"Ugh, it's even colder than it was earlier," he grumbled, rubbing his arms furiously.

Roderich chuckled and attached himself to the emerald male once again. Vash couldn't deny his growing adoration for the other's warm embrace. The two of them took a moment to fully breath out streams of bubbles, removing the last of the air within their lungs. Doing so would allow them to swim like normal and not have to fight against rising to the surface.

The blond wanted to be back in the Great Alcazar as quickly as possible, and was growing increasingly more uncomfortable the longer they stayed out in the open. The domed area was truly the only safe place in the wide expanse of nothing where they were. The leopard merman pulled back and began to swim downward, not realizing at first that he had grabbed the other's hand. Roderich would have followed him with or without it, right?

Vash ignored the violet merman silently tempting him to return to holding onto him as much as the flush on his cheeks would allow. I'm fine, he told him. I want to swim.

Roderich hummed after a moment and swam beside him, their hands intertwined. Their pace was steady, not too fast or slow, and the blond tried to focus on the growing bulb of light before them in the far depths. The sanctuary was so far!

A thought popped in his head. "Hey, Roderich."

"Yes?" The male looked at him.

"Your magic," Vash said slowly. "You can heal and swim really fast, yeah?"

"It's mostly the swimming, among other things. The healing is just a minor trick I picked up from my brother." Roderich waved his hand through the water. "It's not my specialty, so I'm not very good at it."

"Everyone has their own kind of magic, right?" Vash asked, and the merman nodded. He thought over the other's words for a moment. "Wait, what other things?"

"Ah." Roderich glanced around them, looking abashed for some reason.

Vash was about to tell him that it didn't matter, that he didn't have to tell him—he didn't want to pry into something so personal. From what he was taught, outright asking another merfolk about their magic was akin to swimming right up to them and petting their underbelly. Incredibly rude and intimate. If they decided to flaunt it, that was a different matter, but he should never ask.

The blond felt Roderich tug him closer by his hand, the long length of him bumping against his side. Vash looked over to see that the male's smile hadn't faded from the question. Instead, he appeared . . . excited?

"When I, ah," the dark-haired merman began, pausing to search for his words, "propelled us up here earlier, you saw the sparks around me, didn't you?" Vash nodded and Roderich laughed a little, running his free hand over his pelvic fin. "You did have eels in the Verdant Shallows, yes?"

"Of course we had—"

Vash halted his swimming and stared.

"You can control lightning?!"

A dark pink was blooming across Roderich's cheeks and the male intently studied Vash's hand instead of looking at him.

"Electricity," Roderich corrected lightly.

Vash was still floored. "So you can shock yourself?"

"Others," the mauve male said. "Mostly others." Roderich finally glanced up as he pulled his green palm against the center of his chest, eyes anxious. "I'd show you, Vash, but I don't know what I'd do with myself if I hurt you."

A wave of tingling sensations assaulted him all over, and Vash had to doubly make sure that Roderich hadn't electrified the water around him. The heat in his face and ears were only a side effect of floating upside down for so long now. The sincere sentiment in Roderich's words made him . . . They made him—

Ugh! I don't know!

Vash waved his tail quite forcefully and began swimming again, pulling the other along at a swifter pace. "It's fine," he said quickly, glad that he was ahead of him so the other couldn't see his face. "There's no reason for you to show off to me, you know."

A thumb stroked the back of his hand, and another tingle climbed up his arm. Vash debated cutting the damned limb off.

The pair made their way closer to the Great Alcazar in somewhat-shy silence, their shoulders and tails brushing together with every stroke. The dome radiated light within and quite far without, and as they drew nearer Vash could pick out the individual granite towers, the colorful expanses of coral, and even the spot where his tiny cubby rested on the outskirts. The barrier shone brightly, ripples of light cascading over the surface of the protective magic.

As they approached the edge of the barrier, Roderich lifted his free hand and placed it against the oscillating display. With a push, the barrier held its own for a moment, before giving in and letting the hand through. With that, the brunet lead the way back inside the sanctuary, easing Vash through the slush-like dome.

Once they were both safely back inside, albeit at the very top of the Alcazar, Vash breathed a sigh of relief. The waters within were much warmer than they were in the surrounding depths, but he shivered again despite the alleviation from the cold.

"How about you pick us out something to eat, and I'll go fetch your shawl?" Roderich offered while they languidly swam forward.

Vash agreed and tried not to feel too disappointed as the shimmering male let go of his hand. Roderich darted away with a thought of, Be back in a flash. The emerald merman snorted and fought the urge to nip at the other's tail as it passed him by.

He's always flashy, he mused.

The stiffness in his own tail had nearly gone by the time he passed by the top of the main grandiose tower, and he was thankful for the return of his freedom. Vash made his way towards the center coliseum, viridian eyes tracking each colorful tail as the other merfolk darted about the open space. He adjusted his strokes to be longer, smoother, unwilling to show any sort of pain or weakness as he entered the amphitheatre.

He disliked the thought of the others assuming he was easy prey.

Vash paddled downward until he reached the center bowl, grateful none of the others were around it. The large granite piece was filled to the brim with fish and crustaceans, and he figured that a hunting party must have just returned in time for lunch. It felt odd, taking and eating food that he himself had not caught.

As he looked over the pieces of kill, debating which he thought the eel-tailed merman would like the best, a nearby swell of water brushed against him. Vash glanced over, perking up, before seeing who it was and immediately stiffening.

"What do you want?" Vash kept his gaze and tone firm.

The silver and black striped merman grinned at him, incisors and ruby red irises glinting in the light. "Getting food, same as you."

Vash huffed at the other's jovial words. Gilbert was the male's name, if he remembered correctly. Roderich's brother, the one mated to the beautiful fuschia mermaid. The silver-haired merman appeared calm enough, even if that grin unsettled him.

"It's nice to see you up and about," Gilbert said. He sniffed and began to look over the bowl of fresh kill. "You even went on a little trip, it seems."

Vash had his hands on the edge of the cool granite, fingers tightening their hold at the other's tone. "That's none of your business."

"No, no, of course not!" Gilbert gave a raspy laugh. "That's between you and Roddy."

Vash's lip curled. He turned his gaze towards the bowl and ignored the exasperating male. A few seconds of silence toddled by. He spied a few choice looking pieces and mulled them over.

"He likes the goby kind."

Vash found himself reaching for a particularly large rock goby before he caught himself. He glared over at Gilbert as the merman snickered at him.

"Or he likes grouper. Anything fat, really," Gilbert went on, waving towards a few. "The rounder the better."

The white-speckled male huffed, his voice low. "Is that so?"

"Just thought you'd like to know."

An infernal grin met its match in a jaded glare.

Vash plucked out a few choices for himself and pulled them to the side of the bowl to ponder further, purposefully not looking at the other male.

What's his game? he wondered. To annoy me into leaving? Vash spotted a rather lengthy and plump brown eel and inspected it. The creature was more than enough to feed two merfolk. Does he like eel? He considered sharing the creature with Roderich. Is it too weird? Would he eat it with me if I picked it?

Muffled sniggering distracted him from his goal once again. Vash's frown deepened as he glanced up to see the silver-black male watching him with barely concealed mirth. "What's so funny?"

"I don't understand it, I guess."

"What's there to understand?"

Gilbert barked another laugh and spun in a roll. "I just can't figure out why my brother is absolutely twisting his tail over you."

Vash quickly becomes angry that he can feel his cheeks burning in front of the other male. He attempted to cover up his fluster with a biting sneer, "Yeah, well, it's not my fault that he's a fool."

Water displaced next to him and a warmth fell across his back. A silver hand dipped down beside his in the bowl. Vash's pulse spiked and he whipped his head around to see Roderich idling next to him.

Violet eyes were focused on the fish as he murmured, "Good to know I'm being foolish." Roderich then picked up a morsel and swam away without another word or glance.

Vash felt his chest collapse, and he couldn't help his hand as it reached out towards the violet male after the fact.

Wait! his heart cried. I didn't mean—

Roderich!

Only silence echoed back to him in the corners of his mind.

"Ooo, bad luck, that is." Gilbert whistled, a smile's edge still in his voice. "He's gonna sulk for days."

Vash's hand clenched into a fist. Like the crack of a whip, the leopard merman spun around to hiss at the infuriating male, putting all of his instant malice into the seething sound. It seemed to have his desired effect of shutting the other up. Not that it lasted long.

"Hey, now, no need to get pissy at me," Gilbert said, holding his hands up innocently. "I wasn't the one calling names."

His teeth were clenched so hard his jaw ached. "If it weren't for you—!"

"Is everything all right?"

Vash spied the fuschia and aquamarine mermaid as she sidled over from one of the tunnel openings. Her lovely face was open with concern. He felt his mood sour even further at the presence of the graceful female, and he didn't want to speak with her at all.

He had to go after Roderich. Explain to him that he hadn't meant it. That, of course, the other wasn't being foolish, or had the wrong idea, or—

A light blue hand caught his arm, and the blond had had enough.

Vash rounded on the mermaid so fast that Elizabeta recoiled. Gilbert instantly leapt up with a loud hiss, ruby eyes narrowed into slits and no longer holding any form of amusement.

"Leave me alone!" Vash snarled, ripping his arm away from the mermaid's grasp.

Gilbert growled and curled his tail, making to spring at him. But then the male suddenly stopped and looked over at the mermaid with wide eyes. Elizabeta never once looked away from Vash's scathing glare, the both of them keeping their gazes severely locked. Gilbert opened his mouth, closed it, and dashed off with a growl. Vash was sure that the mermaid had communicated privately with him, and that made him even more uneasy. His shoulders were hunched, tail ready to snap, fully expecting the silver merman to sneak up behind him as soon as he let his guard down.

The weave that had been placed overtop him slid down to his waist, and he wanted to cry out in frustration.

The day had been going so well, so well! Until that wicked male had tormented him into saying things that he didn't mean. Now this had happened! Roderich had fled from him, and he probably wanted nothing to do with him anymore, and—shells, he was so bullheaded!

Vash had ruined it. Ruined everything.

Elizabeta placed her hands over her stomach, drifting to the side to appear more nonthreatening. Vash didn't care. He was too busy sinking onto the sandy, stone floor, all the fight having left him at once.

"What happened?" the mermaid asked, her tone too gentle.

Vash didn't want to hear it. He pressed his forehead to the side of the granite bowl as he pulled up the shawl around his shoulders. He couldn't even feel the warmth the sea silk provided, nor the comfort. He heard the female 'ah' quietly to herself and imagined that she'd gotten an explanation from her mate rather than him.

"It was an accident, then," she said, ducking down to his level. Vash flinched further away from her. Elizabeta was quiet for a moment and then warbled, "Why don't we go after him, hmm?"

"No." Vash felt shame at how rough his voice sounded. "What's the point?"

"I could swim ahead and calm him a bit," Elizabeta said, light green eyes seeming sincere. "Then you go over and talk to him. I'm sure Roderich isn't angry with you."

As if. Vash snorted and scoffed, pushing himself away from the bowl and up. He no longer had an appetite.

"It's only a misunderstanding," the mermaid pressed. Her oval fins waved in front of him as she arced around his side, not letting him escape like he wanted. She held out one of her glittering hands. "I'll go with you and help."

The blond only glared at that hand, nearly tearing the silk in his hands from clutching his weave. "And just why would you help me?" He was growing tired of speaking with the mermaid.

"Because I don't want to see him break again."

Vash blinked. What does that mean? The leopard-spotted male stared at Elizabeta, seeing how her vibrancy dulled after that statement.

The alluring femme gave him a soft smile and gestured to the side. "I'll go on ahead, then." She turned and paddled a few tail lengths in the direction of where Roderich had gone, then paused. She glanced back, fins wavering imploringly. "Please follow."

With that, Elizabeta darted away.

Vash watched her go, still confused over what she'd meant about Roderich breaking. Even though he hadn't outright agreed to go with her—in fact, all he wanted to do was disappear inside his cubby and never surface again—the emerald male found himself slowly making his way in the same direction. If anything, it was more out of his own want to apologize to the sweet, beautiful, kind-hearted iridescent merman than any sort of trust towards the mermaid.

After all, Vash wasn't one to hide from his mistakes.

On a whim, he picked up the brown eel before dashing after his broken heart.

...xXx...

A bit of fluff, a bit of drama...ah, it's good to be back.

Hope you all enjoy this Halloween update! :)