Day 3: July 14
Prompt: "Jewels"
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"Sails, Tails, and Other Shiny Things"
summary: Bakura is a sailor who lives alone... well, aside from his faithful companion, the merman Ryou, that is. Ryou likes bringing shiny things to Bakura, and Bakura likes collecting them. But, when Ryou brings Bakura a wedding ring, he realizes that he has an important question to ask the human sailor.
rating: T
warnings: there's an age gap but they're both adults, canon compliant character deaths, probably secondhand embarrassment, probably secondhand frustration, Bakura is useless at processing his feelings or articulating them
tags: Tendershipping Week 2020, Yami Bakura/Ryou Bakura, Thief King Bakura/Ryou Bakura, mermaid au, merman au, Ryou is a merman, monstrous merman, merman x sailor, mermaid x sailor, Bakura is a sailor, Ryou just wants to propose, Ryou doesn't speak but communicates through hand gestures and similar actions
word count: 3,527
written on: July 8—9, 2020
originally published on: July 14, 2020 (on AO3)
Bakura floated alone on the sea, the hull of his boat bobbing beneath him, rising and falling with the waves of the current. The sailor lay stretched out on his back against his boat's floorboards, his own chest rising and falling with his even breaths, his good eye looking up at the stars in the night sky above.
It was a clear, warm night, and one that Bakura was determined to take advantage of.
A soft padding and thumping sound from beside him got his attention, like something hitting the side of his boat. Turning his head to the side, he could see two, light blue hands wrapped over the side of the boat, fish scales glistening in the light of the stars. Two curious blue eyes looked back at him, only slightly obscured by a mop of white hair, dripping wet with sea water.
"Hello, Ryou," Bakura greeted simply, and he heard the merman's tail splash against the water in a returned greeting.
The sound brought a half-smile out of Bakura, and the sailor pulled himself up into a sitting position, gently patting the space beside him. "You can come on up, if you like."
The merman beamed up at him, blue lips stretching to reveal many rows of pointed teeth. The lovely creature gripped the side of the boat and, in one powerful move, pulled itself up over the side, landing beside Bakura with a wet sort of 'flop.' Still, he smiled up at Bakura, and the human couldn't help but smile back.
The pair had made for a set of unlikely friends when they were young. When Bakura was a teenager, he had found Ryou lying injured on a beach, alone and frightened. The little fish creature hadn't been much more than a child at the time, and Bakura, as hardened as he was already by life, couldn't help but feel bad for it.
He'd nursed the little merboy back to health, dressing his injuries and catching fish for his dinner. Although the creature didn't speak a human language, Bakura had come to understand that it was alone, and that its entire family had been wiped out by cruel, greedy humans. Bakura had remembered how cruel, greedy humans had been responsible for the destruction of his own family, as well as the rest of his village, and he'd recognized the merboy as being something like him.
Unable to understand all of the shrill clicks and squeaks that the merboy used to communicate, Bakura had begun to call him 'Ryou,' feeling that he needed to call him something.
Eventually, the merboy healed and returned to the water, but never went very far. He always came back to Bakura, even if he was sometimes gone for weeks at a time, and he almost always brought something back with him. Pieces of rare coral, are oysters full of pearls, or even coins and pieces of jewelry that had been lost at sea. Bakura didn't know if they were gifts or a form of payment for taking care of the fish creature, but he'd be lying to say he didn't appreciate them.
Ryou reached a hand up from the boat deck, reaching for Bakura's face. He ran his webbed fingers over the sailor's beard, his face puckering in confusion.
"It's just hair, Ry," Bakura said. "It comes with age."
Ryou made a face, letting it be known that he did not approve of the human's new facial growth.
"Hey, now! I'm not as young as I used to be! I can't go around looking like some clean-faced whelp forever!"
He was just over thirty years old, now that he realized it. He'd stopped keeping such close count long ago, and had easily settled into looking the part of a grizzled sailor with a beard, scars and tattoos across his body, and a patch to cover his dead eye.
Ryou was probably in his twenties, although Bakura had a hard time determining the merman's physiology. His lithe body was covered with blue-green scales, with fins down his back and a long tail where two legs could have been. Gils pulsed gently along the sides of his ribcage, while his face was almost flat, lacking in anything resembling a nose. Two decorative fins fanned out on either side of his face in place of ears, and long feelers like those of a catfish poked out at different points around his face. His blue eyes and white hair were the only parts of him that looked remotely human, and even they looked a little off.
Tonight, Ryou was wearing a bag around his body, made from pieces of sail canvas and fishermen's netting.
Bakura poked at the bag. "Hey. What did you find for me this time, eh?"
That put a smile back on the merman's face, and he began fumbling with his bag, eager to show off his wares. Reaching in with his webbed hands, Ryou brought forth a handful of old, silver coins, a brass hair pin, an empty sheath with jewels embedded in it but no dagger, strands of glass beads, many oysters, and a necklace with both a locket and a wedding ring hanging from it, a large gem sparkling off of the ring.
"Lots of nice stuff," Bakura remarked, sweeping a glance over the pile. Reaching into a nearby bucket, he pulled out a large fish, which he handed to Ryou in return. He imagined the merman could hunt for himself, but he didn't know what else to give him.
It didn't matter, since Ryou's eyes lit up hungrily, and he snatched up the fish, ripping into it with his teeth with a ravenous delight.
Bakura turned back to appraising the pile of things the merman had found. He began to separate them into categories – some things he could sell, while others he may decide to keep. He was developing quite a collection room for shiny things back on the deserted island he called 'home,' and he was always interested in adding anything else that caught his eye.
Picking up the necklace in one hand and a knife in the other, the sailor began working on the locket, eventually getting it open. The tiny hinges had rusted, but there was a small picture inside, damaged by the water but still recognizable of two people, a man and a woman. Probably married, if the attached ring was anything to go by. Bakura assumed something tragic must have happened for these things to have ended up in the water, but he didn't have any compassion to spare for strangers.
Ryou began making his clicking sounds, gesturing at the picture and looking at Bakura in a clear question. His fingers had fish blood on them now, and his breathe smelled disgustingly like fish guts, and Bakura was quick to move the objects he held out of the merman's reach.
"Hey! No touching while you're eating, fish face! It's just a picture."
Ryou tilted his head quizzically, not understanding.
"It's a married couple." When the questioning look remained, Bakura tried again. "Marriage, you know, like... When a man and a woman, or I guess a merman and a merwoman, too, decide they love each other very much and want to stay together forever."
So maybe that was an oversimplified explanation, but he could see the light of comprehension dawning on Ryou's face.
Satisfied, Bakura then held up the ring for Ryou to see. "This is a wedding ring, made of gold with a diamond in it. The man gave it to the woman, as a gift but also as a promise that he could take care of her, and that he would always be there for her."
Clearly, that last part hadn't worked out for the couple in the picture.
Ryou frowned, seemingly deep in thought. Then, brightening, he looked up, tugging at Bakura's arm with a sense of urgent curiosity.
The merman gestured to himself before holding up two of his fingers, signaling for two of something, and then gesturing to himself again.
Even with years of practice reading Ryou's unique form of sign language, it still took Bakura a moment to understand what he was trying to say. Finally, he got it. "Well, yes, I suppose two mermen or two human men could be together like that, too."
Ryou made an interesting face then, somewhere between shy and hopeful, and made another gesture. This time, he pointed at himself, and then at Bakura.
"... Are you asking if a human could marry a merman?"
A nod.
"... Are you... Are you asking if you and I could marry?"
Another nod, this one smaller, shier. The merman was looking away now, busying himself with untangling his hair and pulling fish guts out of his teeth.
Bakura didn't answer the question. He didn't really know how. He'd never thought of Ryou in that sort of way before, and now... he didn't really know what to think.
After several long minutes, the silence became unbearable. Bakura knew he would have to say something.
"Ryou, I... I don't... I never..." His voice faltered and failed him. The silver tongue of his youth was gone, and he didn't know what he should say.
The merman gaped at him, sad eyes wet with something that wasn't sea water. A strangled sound escaped Ryou's throat, one that Bakura hadn't heard since he'd found the merboy sobbing on the beach years ago.
Before Bakura could stop him, the merman had flipped himself over the side of the boat, escaping into the ocean. The creature's figure disappeared under the water, leaving both his bag and his wares behind.
Bakura sighed and put his head in his hands, still trying to process what had happened.
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Days passed. Then weeks. Then months.
Ryou never returned.
Bakura had never realized how lonely he really was before; he'd always had Ryou to talk to, and, when Ryou had gone for days or weeks at a time, there was always the unspoken promise that he would be back again, giving Bakura someone and something to strive for. He would always try to catch Ryou's favorite fish for whenever the merman next came around, or he would have some little thing set aside specially to show Ryou later, or something that he planned to tell Ryou about.
He'd never realized how much of his otherwise lonely life was centered around the merman's visits.
'Could we marry?'
The question had been clear, and innocent, and nothing but hopeful. And honestly, it was endearing, even if it came from the toothy mouth of the sea monster, even if he had blood on his lips and fish guts in his teeth.
And, if Bakura were honest with himself... it was exactly the kind of question his heart wanted to say 'yes' to.
But, none of these thoughts were going to do him any good. Ryou wasn't coming back.
Bakura would never get a second chance.
He made port at a bustling town. He gathered up everything he could from the stores of his boat and headed into the busy market area, soon finding buyers for everything. The pearls, the brass pin, the dagger-less sheath... even the locket with the damaged picture inside got him a few coins.
And, after a moment's hesitation, he sold the wedding ring, too. It earned him more than everything else had combined. He wished he could get rid of the memory attached to it as easily.
The sailor sighed to himself, purchased what provisions he needed, and clambered back into his boat.
His soul was tired in a way it hadn't been in years, and he needed to rest.
It was time to go home.
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'Home' really wasn't much. It was just a small island, too small for most to even notice it, and too small for anyone to bother with it. But it was just the right size for a single man to live comfortably, with his lean-to and his hammock and his secret cave in which he stored his collection of treasures and shiny things.
There was a little cave that led to the ocean as well, where Ryou had frequently entered through or slept in during the night. Bakura had never asked if Ryou thought of the island as his home too, but had always assumed he had. Now, he supposed he would never know.
Bakura glanced at the mouth of Ryou's cave. The water was fairly still, lapping gently at the sides of the cave with the rise and fall of the current. He couldn't tell if the merman had been in there recently or not.
Frowning, Bakura tied off his boat, and then began to head up his little strip of beach. He removed all of his unnecessary pieces of clothing as he went, with boots, coat, shirt, hat, and breeches all hitting the ground behind him as he walked. By the time he reached his hammock, he was only wearing his knee length pants and a necklace made from shark teeth. Heaving a sigh, the sailor collapsed onto his hammock, covering his eyes with one arm as he prepared to sleep, hoping the world would look better when he awoke again.
Scritch scritch.
There was some sort of soft scratching sound nearby. Perhaps a crab or something.
Scritch scritch.
… It wasn't stopping.
CRASH!
Bakura jolted to a sitting position, looking around for the source of the sound. Reaching down for where he had discarded it, he picked up his knife, brandishing the blade formidably as he began to search. He was supposed to be alone on his island, and he would not appreciate an unwanted guest encroaching on his private sanctum.
He followed the sounds to the mouth of his cave, and he became filled with anger. Someone was rifling through his treasures, all of the gems and coins and other shiny things that he and Ryou had collected over the years, his special collection that was not for prying eyes or pawing hands. With a warcry, the man clambered down into his treasure cave, preparing to end the life of whoever was inside it.
"Alright! Who's down here?!"
It was dark in the cave, and Bakura had failed to bring a light down with him, so he couldn't see much. But he could see the small river of water that flowed along the deepest part of the cave, with crates and fishing net constructs and wooden chests full of treasures lining the walls around it, and he could see the shape of a man sitting in the water. A wooden chest sat open on the floor, and the man was peering deep into it, as though looking for something.
Hearing Bakura's outburst, the man lifted his head suddenly, staring up at Bakura with wide, blue, bio luminescent eyes. Fins and feelers and rows of sharp teeth and strands of white hair were visible against the soft glow of the merman's eyes.
Bakura's arms went lax, throwing his knife to the cave floor. "... Ryou? What are you doing in here?"
Ryou ducked down shyly, hiding his face behind the open chest. He made anxious little clicking sounds with his teeth.
Several questions flew through Bakura's head. 'How long have you been here?' 'Why did you come back?' 'Where did you go?' 'What did you do while you were gone?' But he didn't voice any of them.
Instead, he motioned for Ryou to stay put, then turned to leave the cave, returning moments later with a lantern. He walked around to sit beside Ryou, setting the lantern down on top of a covered crate. But, even settled beside his longtime friend, the sailor still had a hard time finding the right words to say.
… Had Ryou always been this pretty, and he'd just never noticed? Or had he missed the fish creature just that much?
Bakura wet his lips awkwardly. Ryou just looked at him, watching him quietly, waiting for him to speak.
"I'm... sorry," the human finally managed. "I didn't mean – well, I guess I hurt you, and I – What I mean is – " His point, what was his point? "I should have said 'yes' but I didn't, because you make me feel things when I'm afraid to feel anything, and I don't talk well, and – "
Ryou silenced him, first pressing blue, webbed fingers to the human's lips, and then by pressing his own blue lips to the human's.
Rows of sharp teeth scraped against Bakura's mouth, trying so hard to be gentle but still leaving small injuries in their wake, but he didn't mind so much. If it was Ryou, he decided it was okay. The merman could draw a little blood, here and there.
Bakura raised his hands, pressing them into the back of Ryou's head, fisting them into Ryou's hair, holding the merman even closer. He deepened the kiss, and didn't mind when Ryou accidentally nipped at him, puncturing him with his teeth.
They should have done this a long time ago – kissing was worlds easier than talking!
They both pulled away, eventually, breathing deeply, nostrils and gills flaring alike. One drew in air while the other drew in water, while the jewels and treasures around them gleamed in the flickering light of the lantern.
Eyes widening like a man who's just remembered something important, Ryou reached into the bag he wore around his body. It was a new bag, made of some poor soul's shirt and sewn together with thin strands of kelp. Discarding the fish bones and coral and other trinkets he pulled out of the depths of his bag, Ryou finally found what he was looking for.
Turning back to the human sailor, Ryou held up a peculiar object, pressing it into Bakura's hand. Puzzled, Bakura stared at it, turning it around in the light.
It was a ring, carefully carved from a fish vertebrae, with a hole cut into the side of it. A large pearl had been wedged into the hole, glistening in the light. It wasn't a gold band with a diamond set into it, but it's meaning was clear enough.
"This is... your gift to me?"
A nod, and gesture for Bakura to continue.
"A gift, and..." Understanding dawned on him. "And your promise to take care of me, and to always be there for me?"
Another nod and a very shy smile.
A chuckle came up from Bakura's throat, emerging as a cough and finally ending as a full laugh. All this time he'd been assuming that Ryou hated him, and had run away forever, and that he would never see him again, when really the merman had gone to regroup, and now here he was starting his marriage proposal anew.
Unable to keep the grin from his face, Bakura slipped the ring over his finger, showing Ryou how it looked. The merman took hold of his hand, turning it this way and that, making sure that the ring he'd made looked good in the light. Finally satisfied, he gave a nod and smiled up at Bakura, moving closer to lay his head on the human's knee.
"I got something for you, too." Bakura reached into a small pocket on the side of his pants, pulling out a item he'd been keeping in there for over a week.
Ryou stared quizzically, wide eyes following the movements of the human's hand.
Bakura held up his object – a silver necklace, with one small ring dangling from it, surrounded by glass beads and shark teeth. The ring was a simple, silver band, with a single piece of lapis lazuli set into it.
"I bought the ring at a market," the sailor admitted after a moment of silence. "It, uh, made me think of you. And I made the necklace to match the one I wear, since, you know, you made this one for me and I think it looks good and – "
Ryou caught the necklace up in his webbed hands, eagerly putting it on over his neck, admiring the small ring. He couldn't wear a ring on his finger like Bakura could, but that didn't mean he didn't like it.
After admiring the blue gem, Ryou looked up at Bakura, gesturing between the two of them questioningly.
It took Bakura a minute, but he finally realized what Ryou was asking.
"Yeah," he answered, nodding. "I guess you and I are married, now."
Ryou's face split into a wide, toothy grin, and he reached up for another kiss.
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That night found Bakura asleep on his treasure cave floor, surrounded by all his little treasures and with his greatest treasure Ryou curled up beside him, the gentle rivulet of water ebbing beneath them. The water rose and fell with the current, just as their chests rose and fell with every breathe.
Far above, in the night sky, the stars shone down on one small union of land and sea, shining like gems in the great blackness overhead.