A/N: Drama warning ahead!
This was originally part of Roles and the upcoming Broken Melody, but then the theme went dramatic and half the characters are OOC. However, I put too much work into this to delete it, so... this is now an AU that takes Fontaine playing decoy to the extreme (Kaiko and Will are smarter than this). Read at your own risk.
Once upon a time, Finn had believed the Nektons to be geniuses. Their submarine, their Knights, their plans, and their nearly infallible ability to stumble across the Dark Orca when the pirates had treasure couldn't be natural.
Now, however, Finn believed there couldn't be a group of larger idiots in the entire ocean.
"You know, unless I'm a decoy again."
It took more time to convince Hammerhead of Fontaine's decoy status, the event a few weeks prior still a source of embarrassment for Hammerhead. He'd decided that Fontaine had snuck inside to let the others aboard, so surely this time was the same.
Fontaine and Finn played their little charade of "capture the Nekton," then Fontaine escaped on her own. Finn locked himself in her cell afterward. It was better than trying to explain his confusion to his dad.
Finn wondered how long he'd missed the decoy act. The Nektons so often had elaborate schemes, it had never occurred to him that one of their roles was to simply show up and get captured!
As far as Finn could tell, Fontaine was simply a decoy. The rest of her family was already inside and usually hiding. Fontaine would let herself get caught to distract the pirates into searching the wrong end of the submarine.
Finn was slightly proud that he was a big enough threat for the Nektons to plan to keep him occupied on most missions, but also miffed about his feelings for Fontaine being played in such a way. Did the Nektons have no pride?
In an attempt to break the Nektons' habit, Finn pretended to not care. Fontaine looked genuinely concerned when an entire mission passed without a single flirty comment, but Finn didn't explain.
Still, it went on. Whether or not Finn acted interested in Fontaine, Fontaine's role as decoy and distraction seemed to be permanent.
"I don't see why ya care," Pete drawled when Finn finally admitted his worry.
"Fontaine's parents are wasting her abilities," Finn said, pacing his small room.
"Which is good for us," Pete said.
"Except they still get away with our treasure," Finn said.
Pete shrugged. Really, it was all either knew: steal treasure, then the Nektons usually stole it back.
"Why do ya care?" Pete repeated.
"You don't think she's the decoy on all their missions, do you?" Finn asked.
"Does it matter?"
Finn ran a hand down his face. "For just a second, pretend the Nektons aren't our enemies. Imagine Will and Kaiko sending Fontaine on her own against… well, against literally anyone but me."
Pete nodded, understanding dawning in his eyes. Dropping the accent, he said, "Nobody else would be as careful as you. Maddie's more likely to hurt Fontaine than you."
Finn gave him an unimpressed look, but nodded as well. "Suppose she gets hurt by another pirate?"
"I don't think Fontaine would appreciate yorr concern," Pete said. "She can take care of herself."
"So can Maddie, but it's not like we send her against a crew of pirates all by herself!"
Pete was quiet for a long moment. "What if someone else was to guard Fontaine next time she plays decoy?"
"Can we leave her with anyone else?" Finn fretted. "The whole crew doesn't take her seriously anymore. She's bound to get hurt just because they'll be careless."
"Finn," Pete interrupted. "I was talking about me."
Contrary to his typical show of disinterest and sleepiness, Pete made an excellent guard. He was almost as good at guarding as Fontaine was at escaping.
Fontaine did escape on her own the first time, but only because Pete put her in a room with a big enough duct to use to escape. The fact that she was cuffed and the duct was locked only slowed her down.
Pete learned from his mistakes, though, and was more careful the next time. She only escaped the second time because dealing with the Nektons somehow fractured the hull and Pete had to help with repairs.
The third time, Pete straight up cuffed himself to Fontaine. This maneuver forced her family to have to rescue her themselves. The next couple times had similar results as Pete tried different things to trap Fontaine.
And he was successful, to a point. Unfortunately, Finn didn't think it was enough. Despite Fontaine's capture, the rest of her family always ensured the treasure or artifacts were secured before wondering where Fontaine was if she somehow hadn't joined them.
And that… that just wasn't okay.
The next time the Nektons showed up, the pirates had just made a huge haul. The treasure was scattered through many rooms of the Dark Orca, ensuring the Nektons wouldn't have an easy time of retrieving the treasure.
Finn had largely been avoiding the raids, leaving Pete to deal with Fontaine, but Hammerhead needed all the hands he could to move the treasure to more secure areas. So it was just Finn's luck to crash right into Fontaine on his way to the Moon Pool room.
Finn staggered into the wall, exclaiming, "Already?!"
Fontaine stumbled back a few steps, but stayed on her feet. "I move fast."
"If you really moved that fast, we wouldn't catch you every single time," Finn said, too done with the Nektons' methods to even pretend to be surprised.
Fontaine shrugged, eyes blank. "It works, doesn't it?"
"How about I leave you here and pretend I never saw you?" Finn suggested.
"I'm just going to come after you. Or maybe sabotage something while I'm free to roam." Fontaine smiled a bit.
Finn's mind flashed back to his and Pete's conversations. Really, part of the reason Hammerhead always had Finn guard Fontaine was because he didn't trust the crew to not hurt Fontaine, either.
No, leaving Fontaine alone wasn't an option. And considering the amount of treasure the Nektons had to recover and how scattered said treasure was, Fontaine would be on her own for a long time, even if Finn "captured" her.
Finn was getting sick of watching Fontaine, and he knew Pete was, too. If the Nektons so desperately needed Finn distracted, there had to be a better way. Did they really think Fontaine was so useless, that she could only act as a decoy? How long before she played decoy with another crew? Did she already?
Finn took a deep breath. "Fontaine, answer me honestly. You're really just a decoy?"
"Now whatever makes you think that?"
Finn shook his head. "Be serious!"
"Okay, okay, yes, I'm just a decoy," Fontaine said, rolling her eyes. "You should be used to this by now, I'd think."
"Are you ever the decoy during other missions?" Finn asked.
Fontaine cocked her head. "Why does it matter?"
"Just answer me!"
Fontaine shrugged. "Sure, sometimes. Nothing ever happens and I'm good at escaping on my own."
Good at… Finn ran a hand through his hair. Seas, he'd been hoping Fontaine's parents were more sensible than this. It was pure luck that Fontaine hadn't been hurt before, but how long would that luck hold?
Fontaine was with Finn, halfway across the sub from where Finn guessed her parents would be. If Fontaine had run into anyone but Finn or Pete, she'd be in deep trouble, and Will and Kaiko would be too far away to help her. How did they not see that? If she was hurt…
Finn's breath caught. "Come with me."
"What if I don't-"
Finn cut off her halfhearted protest by grabbing her arm and running down the hall. Fontaine was forced to follow or get pulled off her feet.
"Hey, where are we going?" Fontaine asked. "And what's the rush?"
Finn didn't answer. His mind was racing with an insane plan. What was he thinking? He couldn't follow through, but at the same time, this had to stop.
Finn ran through corridor after corridor, ignoring startled yells from pirates and Ant poking his head from a duct; he just ran. He spotted Pete a few turns from the Moon Pool room, closer than Finn wanted but it was also perfect.
"Pete!" Finn yelled ahead, making the older pirate turn. "Freeze!"
Pete stiffened. Finn ground to a halt at his side and shoved Fontaine ahead. Fontaine stumbled into the hall, then turned and looked at Finn in confusion.
"This isn't a cell," Fontaine said.
"I know," Finn choked through the lump in his throat. "I'm sorry."
Before anyone could react, Finn grabbed Pete's sword and lunged.
There was an unspoken rule between the Nektons and Dark Orca pirates. Mock and capture all you want, but none of the children were to be hurt. The occasional bumps or bruises were inevitable, but never intentionally. And never, ever draw blood.
Finn broke this rule exactly once.
Fontaine's scream broke through the buzzing in Finn's ears. He didn't know how long had passed, only that Fontaine was on her kness and blood was on Pete's sword, drip-dripping to the rusted floor.
Kaiko appeared then, taking in the scene in a second, then charging Finn with murder in her gaze. Finn was unresistant to the sword being slapped away and Kaiko's arm slamming him into the wall. She was yelling, but Finn wasn't listening.
Finn's eyes were over Kaiko's shoulder, to Fontaine holding her arm and Will rushing onto the scene. Will's mouth made an "O" at the sight of the bloody sword and his daughter hunched in on herself, sobbing.
"Do you hear me?!" Kaiko demanded, shoving her arm harder across Finn's shoulders.
Finn dragged his eyes to Kaiko's. His mouth stretched in a habitual grin, well aware it didn't reach his eyes. He twisted his shaking voice into a taunt.
"I didn't think you cared about her."
Horror flashed in Kaiko's eyes and she literally flinched away. Finn leaned against the wall, not trusting his legs to hold him.
"This? This is nothing. I barely nicked her," Finn said, jutting his chin at Fontaine. "If there's a next time, it'll be much worse."
"How can you talk like that?" Kaiko spat.
"Kaiko," Will hissed. "Come on!"
Will scooped up Fontaine and ran the way they'd come. Kaiko glared at Finn, then ran after Will, calling to Ant as she did.
A weird, strangled laugh bubbled from Finn's throat. He shouted after the Nektons, "This was just a warning! You hear me?! A warning!"
Finn's yell echoed back into his ears. The odd laugh went on and on, mocking and too loud to Finn's own ears, drowning everything out until Finn couldn't think, couldn't register when his laughter turned to sobs and he fell into Pete's arms.
Finn's actions left more questions than anything. Once everyone was on the Aronnax and able to think clearly, they realized Fontaine hadn't been hurt as badly as they'd feared. The cut on her arm was long, but shallow. It was simply the shock that had dropped Fontaine.
Mild or not, though, everyone wondered why. What had driven Finn into cutting Fontaine? It had definitely been deliberate; Finn had never even held a sword to their knowledge. And it was pretty obvious that Finn could have hurt Fontaine much worse if he'd wanted.
The answer hit Kaiko and Will like a panicked orca.
Could. Finn could have hurt Fontaine worse. He could have done it any time, because heavens know they'd given him plenty of opportunities.
Adding to their confusion, Ant had seen Finn crying to Pete on his way to the Aronnax. Had Finn not meant to actually hurt Fontaine? Even if he hadn't, though, it didn't explain his fierce act with Kaiko.
Their confusion opened the door for Fontaine to reveal her real thoughts on playing the decoy. Between Fontaine's reveal and Finn's out-of-character actions, Will and Kaiko pieced together both the danger Fontaine was in on too regular a basis and thought they understood Finn's intent.
Just in case, they planned on seeking out Finn and asking him what had happened. If there was something else going on, they needed to know before anyone got really hurt.
Unfortunately, their realization had come too late.
The Nektons sought out the Dark Orca, sneaking to the dark sub at night and slipping into the Moon Pool. There, they were faced with Pete, who glared with eyes sharper than a blade he never drew.
Pete coldly ordered the Nektons off the sub, but of course they couldn't leave without answers. Pete's expression never changed, his voice never rose, and he never answered a single question.
Kaiko's temper finally snapped, and she climbed onto the deck to get face-to-face with the young man. Pete's blank expression finally flickered to anger at Kaiko's defiance, and it was then he began to shout. What he said shut Kaiko right up, and would linger with the Nektons for the rest of their lives.
"He's gone, alright?!" Pete screamed. "Gone! You've driven him from the ocean, his home, his life! Finn never wanted to leave the sea, never! But after your stupidity, he had no choice but to show you what he wanted to protect you idiotic lot from! Because of you-" Pete's gaze, fierce, wild, and flooding with tears, swept over them all- "Finn is never coming back!"
The world never heard the full story. All anyone knew was that the Dark Orca pirates went on a sudden rampage, sinking ships like they hadn't in years.
In weeks, however, the attacks lessened until they stopped, as if they'd run out of energy. Soon, word spread that the Dark Orca was now being led by a man named Pete. By all accounts, Hammerhead simply… retired.
The Nektons, well-known to be the biggest defenders against the Dark Orca, were credited with the pirates' giving up for several weeks before Kaiko heatedly told a reporter that they did nothing and to stop spouting their foolishness.
Several months later, the Nektons disbanded. Will and Kaiko took to the ocean floor in the Aronnax, conducting deep-sea research that took them out of most human reach. Ant remained public, leading research teams and tracking migrations.
A year later, the Guardians vanished, though almost nobody knew or noticed. People of a tiny shoreline village noticed when the odd young man with a chattery little robot disappeared.
Under the waves, a glowing city was meticulously cleaned and modernized to allow their new inhabitants to live apart. Will, Kiako, and Guardians came together, silently accepting they needed to leave the world behind, though everyone's reasoning was different.
Which just leaves Fontaine. The last anyone saw of her, she was walking along the same beach where a stranger boy had appeared from the waves three months prior.
A/N: Every now and again, I write something that makes me question my sanity. This is one of those times. But I think you'd rather I got my theatrics out in a throwaway story than a story proper, eh?
Because I like to be vague, the "odd young man" near the end is Alpheus. Man, I wish we knew what canonly happened to him next.