Disclaimer: I own neither "K-On!" nor "The Little Mermaid."
So someone left to be unnamed PMed me, asking me to continue this story. I responded to it, but it ignored me. It also did not review. I was a little annoyed for a while, so I didn't want to post anything. However, that's sort of petty, ne?
Otherwise, those were some great reviews, so the show must go on! Oh sorry, but I don't know who Ichigo is. Is she from the manga? Hope you won't be too displeased with my odd choice for Ursula. There is reason!
-.-
"The Little Mio"
Chapter II: Caught
Mio swam as fast as she could to the ceremony, only to find that no one was left.
"It's over."
Mio jumped in fright as her father's glowing eyes and hairs pierced through the shadows, followed by his massive frame and a sniveling Nodoka. Mugi hid behind Mio.
"'Tou-san, I—"
"Mio. You missed your own debutante ceremony. That is a sacred ritual for our folk, and you disgraced it by not appearing! Where were you do—" King Akiyama leaned forward intimidatingly.
"Ano, I was, I…uh…mm—" Mio was about to freeze and float upside down in fear.
"We found stolen goods!" Mugi began, nabbing the King's attention.
"Stolen goods?" King Akiyama's brow shot up incredulously.
"And we felt the need to report it, but no one was around in their usual abodes—"
"They were at the ceremony," King Akiyama answered for the sputtering flounder.
"Yes, of course! However, in our panic and sense of duty, we forgot about the ceremony. We immediately went to the next source of authority, Yui. She was on her per—"
"You went to the PERCH! ?" King Akiyama roared. "You know our folk are forbidden to lift their heads above water, but you disobeyed my law! ?"
Mugi cried out at her mistake and returned behind the shelter of Mio.
"But Otou-s—!"
"A human could have seen you," King Akiyama said severely. Nodoka clicked her claws in agreement.
"What's so bad about humans?" Mio challenged, but immediately took it back when she witnessed her father's violent shade of red. "No one saw us," Mio tried. King Akiyama lunged forward.
"That doesn't matter, young lady, no, girl! If I ever hear of you returning to forbidden territories, I will personally lock you in a clam chamber until you understand your folly! !" He yelled with a force that sent Mio into tears.
She promptly swam away with Mugi.
King Akiyama sighed, looking over at his small advisor. "Was I too harsh?"
"On the contrary, sir, I found you to have been too lenient. You allowed her to escape without her fully comprehending the consequences of her actions," Nodoka said matter-of-factly.
"But she was crying," King Akiyama said, his voice uncharacteristically small for his reputation.
"What teenager isn't overly emotional? We can't enable her weakness."
"Aren't you technically a teenager, Nodoka?" The King smirked at his young advisor.
"Personally, I detest people my own age. I do much better with older, more established generations."
"Incredible! A teenager who is in line with the values of adults!" King Akiyama said playfully.
"Precisely, sir," Nodoka missed the facetious tone in her King's voice.
"Someone who will enforce my law without challenge."
"Indeed."
"Someone of Mio's age to sympathize with her needs—"
"Yes. Wait, well I—"
"And put Mio in her place when she needs to be disciplined," King Akiyama nodded.
"That would be for the best," Nodoka nodded hesitantly along.
"My dear advisor Nodoka, I decree you be my youngest daughter's personal escort from here on," King Akiyama decreed.
"Sir! ?" Nodoka's jaw clanked on the rocky ocean floor.
-.-
"I wanted to be promoted to high advisor, not to nanny of rebellious youth," Nodoka muttered to herself while searching for the princess. Mio had ruined her direction of the epic concert, and now Mio was ruining her mood. Nodoka was feeling a "take no prisoners" attitude sweep over her. There couldn't possibly be any sympathy for the selfish mermaid.
She spotted Mio and Mugi sneaking into a cave awfully close to the shore. Nodoka was certain that this area was forbidden by her good King's laws, so she was ready to assert her new…power.
Unfortunately, by the time the crafty crab managed to sneak in after her charge, the young princess had already launched into some emo show tune:
"Mugi-chan, maybe I'm right," Mio flicked her hair coquettishly. "Maybe there is something the matter with him. I just don't understand how a world with relaxatives and vertebral tubes…could be bad." Mio's dialogue took a melody,
"Look at this swag
Isn't it hip?
Wouldn't you think my collection's the shi—"
No, Nodoka really couldn't stand any more of this trashy angst, and she had half a mind to respond with a calypso carnival in a Jamaican accent.
"Ojou-sama, put a fin in it, and follow me this instant. You know well that this is forbidden territory," Nodoka said.
"Ahhh!" Mio's and Mugi's catchy singing and dancing came to a halt. "Ho-how did you find this place, Nodoka-san?" Mio said.
"Magic."
"You…" Mio lifted a brow suspiciously, "—used otou-san's trident?" That was high treason! Magic could only be wielded by King Akiyama. Mio was hoping to shave her crime by finding one in Nodoka.
"Even more powerful. He gave me his duty over you, Mio-hime," Nodoka said proudly.
"Ah, so you're here to babysit us?" Mugi asked in what seemed to be sincerity. Her knitted expression was too cute to question.
Mio looked a little annoyed that they had been followed.
"Quiet, you fish…" Nodoka said condescendingly with which Mugi responded with a dreamy smile.
"Nodoka-san, aren't you ever curious as to what goes on above water?" Mio murmured, looking fondly at all her human swag, placed on the shelves of the cave.
"Absolutely not; I know what goes on up there," Nodoka said.
"Really! ?" Mio and Mugi rushed in excitedly for more.
"Ah-ahem," Nodoka was taken aback by their sudden enthusiasm, "—it's nothing to clink your clamshell top over. We get eaten."
"Humans eat merfolk?" Mio said incredulously.
"—and flounder?" Mugi gulped.
Nodoka lifted an eye at Mugi, "Yes, you dolt." Mio was temporarily forgotten.
"Mou, I thought we were pets!" Mugi pouted.
"Is that any better! ? You can be both," Nodoka had the facts on this, as Mugi murmured something about how being a pet sounded like great fun… "Ojou-sama, could you stand having to eat your own companions?"
"I just wouldn't eat anything from the sea!" Mio answered hotly, sensitive to the idea.
"Which means you'd be a meat-eater. Mio-hime, I believe those humans are considered to be boorish," Nodoka quipped.
"You're a boor!" Mio shot back, true to her age.
"No, I'm crabby."
A current went between the advisor crab and the mermaid.
"Ara ara ara, we're all friends here," Mugi said jovially.
"That's what I've been trying to say my whole life!" Mio began emotionally. "Otou-san has brainwashed the whole Mer kingdom into believing it's 'us versus them!'"
"Are you calling your father Constantinian! ?" Nodoka shrieked.
"I don't even know what that means!" Mio cried. By the mermaid's side, Mugi nodded in agreement, confusion apparent.
"It means…" Nodoka pinched the bridge of her eyes, trying to defend her king in laymen's terms, "—it's not easy to rule. In order to lead a large number of merfolk, King Akiyama must take a stance. Since humans harm our kind, he must naturally fight against them. Come now, let's return to the palace, and I won't even mention this to your father. I'm getting too soft-shelled—"
"No, Nodoka. That's, that's…still too black and white! 'It isn't easy being a king' is like me saying, 'It isn't easy being a teenager!'" Mio said.
"Poseidon, here we go…" Nodoka said.
"No, I'm not giving up on this! I won't follow you, but I know you'll follow me," Mio took off with Mugi in tow.
"Mio-hime! Where are you going! ?" Nodoka stalked frantically.
"It's time for an experiment. I'm going to observe them. I'll prove that I can find one good human." And maybe he'll be handsome too, and we'll fall in love…Mio giggled to herself.
I hope Mio-chan is thinking about a girl~~, Mugi cooed.
"What if you are seen! ?" Nodoka crowed.
"It's okay Nodoka-san; I'm fast. Not one human will catch me," Mio gave one of her rare, bold smiles.
-.-
So far…the human specimens had been bleak.
The four teenage creatures were currently situated all about a small rock a hundred meters from land. It was an overcast day, so there were hardly any humans on the sand, and even less in the raging water.
Yui had spotted the trio immediately when they had emerged, so she took command on the peak of the rock. Mio had briefly explained to Yui what her mission was, but Yui—as with most things—absorbed only what she wanted. Her wing was tucked under her beak as she scrutinized how long it would take before one of those men dropped their burgers or sausages.
It was not a pretty first sight of humans for Princess Mio.
There was a group of five men, ages ranging anywhere from 20-40 years old. That alone should have been a good sample for a heroic personality, but all they had done so far was crack jokes about "hoochies and fags," smashed beer cans into their foreheads, and barbequed enough meat to collapse the earth's atmosphere.
Their body shapes shocked Mio, too. Mermen were all broad-shouldered with plate-like pectorals and valleys of abdominals. They were built for swimming all distances at any speeds. Her father was a large example, something akin to a leopard seal.
These men…their stomachs were filled with whatever was in those cans, their intestines clogged with undigested meat…they weren't all overweight, but they were clearly unhealthy. And Poseidon, they had hair everywhere. On their bulbous stomachs, their flabby chests, their hands, their dry faces…Mio couldn't look anymore.
There was nothing special about their legs. They appeared like thick plants covered in algae. She wanted to gag. Merfolk had very little hair, sleek bodies in accordance with aerodynamics. She imagined hugging one of those human men and suddenly felt very itchy. Did merfolk tradition have it right?—Were they truly the superior, beautiful species?
"HOOOO, HOOOOOO! !" A couple of the men called out. They were alerting the pack for hoochies.
A couple of young women in two-pieces were entering the picture. Mio could understand these girls. Their bodies were very similar to her fellow mermaids, generously curvy. While Mio had the mermaid trait of a large bust, she was small-framed for a mermaid. It added to her delicate, youngest princess sort of aura.
Since these two women were so similar to what Mio was accustomed to, she grew bored with them, especially when they actually received the attention of the men.
Yui was long gone, fitting seamlessly in with the group of humans, pecking at their remains. Mio frowned at the pleased look on Nodoka. Even Mugi was losing interest, taking less jumps out of the water.
"Shall we call it a day, ojou-sama?" Nodoka sang.
"I'm not giving up. We've just had bad luck up until now. I'm going south along the shore until—"
"It gets dark. That's all I'll permit before I report you to your father," Nodoka reminded Mio. The princess nodded determinedly.
-.-
Somewhere a few miles down, Mio had been amused by the antics of a human baby falling more than walking. It was inspiring, though, to observe that the baby always got back up, no matter how many times he fell. His older sister, not too far off, was keeping a relative eye on him, far more engaged in her sand castle masterpiece. The merfolk and human condition seemed to share many similarities, but Mio couldn't just grab one of these children. She needed an autonomous, thinking adult to exchange and communicate her cause…OH who was she fooling? She wasn't planning on bringing a representative back to her father. Mio was looking for love, the kind of love that freed her instead of boxing her into a fate of being the King's daughter and only that.
An elderly married couple inched down Mio's view. They were doing nothing but being, but Mio eyes watered at the bond shared between them. That's what she wanted. Not some role, arranged marriage that would be clockwork. She just wanted to be with her chosen love.
Nodoka sighed for an entirely different reason than Mio, and Mugi's sympathetic nature adapted to their sober moods.
"The sun is still peaking out. Just a little farther," Mio asserted, voice betraying her.
-.-
Mio came upon a part of the beach that she liked immediately. There were large docks spaced out in random intervals, and she later deduced why from the sizes of the buildings. Onshore there were several human domiciles down the line. They were each unique and spacious enough to house more than three families. The architecture was something to behold, and Mio felt safe weaving in and out of the docks.
It didn't appear that any of the residents were out and about this evening. Mio felt her hopes sink with the sun. Nodoka had an expression which left no argument. Mio had to admit defeat. She had let her intuitive feelings drive her on this wild lobster chase, and they had produced nothing.
Mugi nudged against Mio's cheek comfortingly, and the three turned back the other way until they heard,
"Where the hell is that punk…?"
All three shot alarmed glances at a long-haired woman staring out into the ocean. The woman was standing on the property of the last house. They hadn't noticed her before, because she had been lying down and was wearing a nude-coloured bikini.
Mio bolted before the other two could even react in their polar ways.
"I fall asleep for twenty, tops, and this happens," the woman muttered under her breath.
Mio was at the property's dock, evaluating her newest subject. The young woman looked fine enough, but Mio was waiting for more behavioral quirks. Mugi and Nodoka caught up with Mio, both tired from the sprint. Nodoka opened her mouth—
But something was approaching dangerously fast from outland. The three creatures of the water could sense it, but the human woman could not pick up such movement in the turbulent waves. It appeared to be as large as Mio, so it was most likely a predator. All three got into a defensive position.
Suddenly a figure shot from the shallows like a deadly arrow, a proud dolphin of show.
The long-haired woman fell on her bottom in outraged surprise, and the mysterious swimmer was laughing. Laughing as if laughing for all the beings who wouldn't in the world, land and water. Laughing without politeness, without a plan for the future.
This human's legs, gods of the universe, his legs were an everlasting candy of straight and sinewy goodness. These were the fairytale legs that Mio had dreamed of—sturdy but graceful. Even though the sun had gone, Mio could clearly bask in the golden glow of his smooth skin. Working up, his examined thighs were covered in the beginnings of a sort of black body suit. Mio wasn't too sure what it was, but it seemed logical for swimming. The man's bottom was nicely snug in his suit, working up to his slim waist and his small pectorals. His arms were similar to his legs, and his fingers were short but spindly like a flower coral. His shoulders were diminutive for a man, but that was all the more appealing for Mio. She had never seen such a man or any creature for that sake! Used to being called by as a "little princess," Mio found him to be a perfect "little prince."
His warm-clay hair was messy from the impressive swim, so Mio could only catch the defined angle of his jaw. He shook his hair savagely of the water, and Mio felt her pulse speed up. Catching colour from his skin and any sort of lingering sunlight, Mio was invaded by the most luminescent and merry golden eyes in all of earth.
Mio felt like a fish on a line, biting harder into this bait-less hook, enduring the pain and embarrassing dance before she was eaten whole.
-.-
So yeah, crabs don't have jaws? Tell that to Disney.
If I came across as a vegetarian, I must admit I contribute to unhealthy, carnivorous habits.