Disclaimer: I don't own Free!

Chapter 2

Seven

In his dreams, he has a tail. Nothing like the little mermaid's tail- it hasn't got any scales, for one. It's matt brown with darker specks scattered all over, leathery and slimy to the touch. It doesn't feel gross, though. Perhaps it had to do with his tougher skin or the webs between his fingers. The fins resemble flat shells.

He's been dreaming of that tail far longer than he can remember.

So when he sits up after snoozing in the shallow part of the bay, raises his hand to protect his eyes from the sun and sees a long, green tail, his only thought is: Oh. That's new.

His eyes follow the slow, lazy movements of the tail through the crystalline water. It swings from side to side and breaks the surface, green scales reflecting the light of the sun with a metallic sheen. The water flows off it, and a drop splashes onto Haru's chest.

He yelps. It's hot outside today, unbearable outside the sea or the pool, but somehow the water is still cold enough to shock Haru out of his dream like state.

His breath catches when he realizes it: the tail isn't attached to him. And he's not dreaming either.

There's a face in front of his, way too close for comfort, and eyes as red as the setting sun are peering up at him. ''Hi!''

Haru startles and accidentally gulps some sea water in. It tastes like salt and gets into his air pipe. He tries to back away, but the cliff is too close by and he hasn't scrambled backward for more than a meter before he bumps his head against the rocks, still coughing loudly. The impact is hard, and his head pounds for a moment or two.

Calm down. He tries to slow down his heartbeat by controlling his breathing and cards his fingers through his wet hair. There's a slight bump underneath his fingertips. Wincing, he looks up at the face that surprised him so.

''Are you okay?'' The boy (is it a boy?) asks, furrowing his brow. He leans forward.

Haru doesn't know what to say and the boy is way too close. He doesn't like it at all. He squints and leans forward too, hand raised.

The green tail. The translucent fins along the sides are raggedy. It reminds Haru of seaweed. His hand glides along the scales, reveling in the slimy and bumpy texture. A hand closes over his own. There's webbing between the fingers.

Haru raises his head and catches sight of the boy (yes, definitely a boy. Haru's certain now) cradling his tail in his arms, sizing him up with wide eyes. Haru doesn't care.

This is far too intriguing to let go of without even attempting to discover more.

''What species are you?''

Haru knows it's the kind of question his mother would scold him for, but that's never stopped him before. Besides, he hasn't seen her in years. Grandma gets him, even though she did say not everyone would see his queries for what they are.

The boy isn't deterred by the question at all. On the contrary, it breaks the slight hesitance that had crept into his eyes. He simply tilts his head towards the sun and beams. "My name's Rin! What's yours?"

Twelve

"It's funny, don'tcha think?" Rin says, laying on his back and raising his hand above his head, fingers spread to led the sunshine through.

It creates interesting shadows on his face, and Haruka thinks he should take his pencils with him next time- maybe even his watercolor set. He doesn't think he can capture Rin in black and white- he's too colorful and vibrant for shades of gray.

"What?" he asks.

Rin lets his hand fall down and shifts to his side. "That you have blue eyes, like the water, but mine are red like fire." He says, putting his cheek on his hand. He gazes softly at Haru, but somehow, neither of them feels the need to smile.

Rin's tail brushes against his legs, but it seems to be an accident, so Haru doesn't say anything.

Thirteen

''Race me underwater,'' Rin says, as he turns to lay on his stomach, smiling brightly as the sand tickles against his skin. His eyes follow Haru's form. He's gliding through the water with practiced ease.

''No,''

Rin raises his upper body by pushing himself up and tries to drag himself into the water. He loves how strange and new everything is in the world above the water, but as much as he likes the beach, getting back into the water is hard. Next time, he thinks to himself, I'll stay in the sea.

But that is kind of what he told himself the last time too. And the time before that. And Adventures (with a capital A!) are supposed to have obstacles to overcome, right? And the human world is definitely an Adventure.

He when he finally reaches the water, he looks up to Haru again. ''Why not?''

Haru doesn't stop swimming, but there's a small pause in his stroke.

''Don't feel like it.''

''Come on, Haru!'' Rin whines, splashing his tail around. ''I know you want to! Swim with me, and I'll show you a sight you've never seen before!''

Haru stops abruptly and stands up, fists balling and clenching his teeth. His glare is so intense that Rin wants to flinch. But he doesn't. This is Haru. He will meet every challenge Haru issues. He doesn't care that Haru is stalking towards him- okay, he does, because he wants Haru to be his friend, but if he is going to be like this, he could just go stuff himself with his stupid: ''I don't feel like it!''

So Rin glares back just as intensely and doesn't give when Haru jabs a finger in his face.

''I can't breathe underwater, jerk!''

…

Oh.

All the fight leaves Rin in an instant. He averts his eyes. Sinking to the ocean bottom doesn't sound too bad right now… The sea floor, where Haru can't follow him.

''I didn't know that.''

Haru crosses his arms. ''Well, now you do.'' He snaps, ''So stop trying to convince me to swim with you!''

It hurts.

But Rin doesn't even know the meaning of pain yet.

Fourteen

''When a siren has fallen in love, and they reach the age of majority, they will feel the call. Then the hunt starts.''

Haru simply stares at him.

''You don't get it, do you, Nanase!'' Rin hisses in Haru's face. ''They find their mate, drag them to the bottom of the ocean and mark them.''

That, at least, got a raised eyebrow. ''And?''

Rin flushes redder than a fire engine and begins to splutter. ''Well… they…'' He can feel the blush creeping down his neck to his chest. Haru's eyes follow it curiously. What is he thinking? Rin crosses his arms self-consciously, shifting uneasily.

''Stop being such a loser! I'm trying to have a serious conversation here!''

Shit. That didn't even sound convincing in his own head. Haru doesn't appear to be impressed either. His deadpan expression says it all.

''Anyway,'' Rin says quickly, looking away, ''That's the reason we're not supposed to talk to humans. They can't exactly breathe down there, and if they die… Well, let's say that nobody likes a feral siren.''

''You'll come back,'' Haru says a bit crabby, crossing his arms and looking anywhere but Rin. Rin gets it, though- he knows Haru. He can hear the please and the promise me, even though the human boy doesn't say them out loud.

He feels a smile creeping up on his face, and he surges forward. Haru squeaks when Rin throws his arms around his neck- and Rin can't help but giggle. Haru may be a complete introvert, but he's not stoic. It's cute, actually, the siren muses, resting his cheek on Haru's shoulder.

What's even cuter, though, is the slight blush on Haru's face when he pulls back. It does funny things to his stomach.

Rin bites his lip. Should he… His heartbeat sounds like a hummingbird in his ears, but Haru's eyes are on him, and his breath catches in his throat.

The water feels strange against his skin, and he shivers, even though he isn't cold. I can do this, he tells himself, I can do this.

So he takes a deep breath, snatches Haru's hand and bites down on the middle finger with his razor sharp shark teeth. Haru startles and would have fallen over if he'd actually been standing, but Rin's tail is behind him and prevents his fall. Blood wells up from the tiny puncture on his finger, and Rin smiles.

Haru, however, isn't happy at all as he clutches his wounded hand. "That hurt!''

Rin frowns. ''Of course it does. That's part of the process.'' At Haru's glare, he suddenly understands. ''This is a human quirk again, isn't it? You call the most ordinary matters strange,'' he giggles. ''It's a blood promise.''

Suddenly, he frowns and tilts his head as if he hears a voice in the distance. It's the last thing he does before his eyes glaze over. He smiles at Haru one last time, disoriented, and swims towards the open ocean.

He blinks, and Rin is gone.

The wind yanks at Haru's hair and the waves rise, higher and higher, until collides with the cliff, scattering the water and drenching his clothes.

He remembers what Rin once said: ''Swim with me and I'll show you a sight you've never seen before!'' To his distress, he realizes that parting from Rin is going to strike him even harder. His heart clenches, but he keeps staring at the spot where he saw the last of Rin.

Not for the first time, Haru curses his lungs with all his might- but he damns the true curse resting upon him more. Because deep down in the sea, there is a boy he loves but cannot follow.

Authors note

The blood promise was partially inspired by Rin's grandmother, who was an ama, a woman that dives for pearls. Somehow, this turned into a courtship ritual in my head, where, if a woman gave a man (or another woman), a single pearl as a promise of marriage (or the local merpeople equivalent). As only a woman can be an ama, I wanted a similar ritual for men. So that, and Rin's shark teeth, let me to the blood promise. These two rituals symbolize something that I think marriage is supposed to be: The pearl says: You are my treasure. The blood says: You are my family.

I wrote the last scene while listening to ''Holding On and Letting Go'' by Ross Copperman.

Also- Did anyone ever think of the name ''Mermatsuoka''? It sounds so funny XD