Prompt: heropulchure mermaid au
His gills were flared and his fins extended and she could only look at him paralyzed in fear. She was a diver. She had a flimsy suit and an easily breakable oxygen tank. He was a merman. He had sharp claws and sharp teeth made for puncturing scales and sharkskin.
She knew a threat display when she saw one. She'd gotten too close for comfort, hadn't noticed him until he was right upon her. She knew if he decided to attack she was done for.
She knew it was a miracle when he decided to swim away.
—
His gills were flared and his fins extended and she almost had a heart attack when she saw him idly floating in the waters next to her home. How on earth could he have known where she lived? Or had he just come here without knowing?
She gave him a wide berth and made a note not to go into the water again for a few weeks. She could still remember the terror she'd felt when she first saw him. She didn't want to repeat that.
—
His gills were flared and his fins extended and she decided that she'd seen him enough times that she might as well give him a name.
She sat on the rocks that separated the land her house rested on from the sea it neighbored, alternating between watching him and looking up various names on her tablet. She supposed he must have been bored—she could see him twisting himself in various ways. It was fun to look at but seemed a bit painful at times.
Still.
His scales and hair were red, a deep red, even his eyes seemed red on the few occasions she'd dared to get close enough to look. Everything about him was sharp, from his claws, to his features, to the shape of his fins. Like a series of spikes decorating his tail.
She decided a death themed name would suit him best.
She hoped she wasn't tempting fate when she gave it to him.
—
His gills were flared and his fins extended and he hadn't noticed her so she wasn't too worried. There was another merman in the area, his scales a deep black and blue and his hair a pale blond. His fins were a different shape, but she could tell that they were probably still the same species of fish. For the first time she wondered what sort of fish he was, and went inside to fetch her tablet.
When she returned she found him lounging on the rocks next to her home, a few gashes littering his shoulders and a clump of pale blond hair in his hand.
He smiled wide at her when he spotted her. A quick glance at the redness of his teeth told her she didn't want to know.
—
His gills were flared and his fins extended and she looked at him curiously. She'd seen as much as she could and compared it to what she'd found in her googling, and deduced that her merman was a Siamese Fighting Fish.
Or more commonly, a betta.
As in the kind found in pet stores.
She supposed it fit him, he did seem a bit fighty, but that wasn't what intrigued her.
Further down in the article were the mating habits of the betta.
Males and females flare or puff out their gill covers (opercula) to appear more impressive, either to intimidate other rivals or as an act of courtship
In fact, the fish flare their fins and gill covers as a sign of aggression or flirting with other fish.
She looked at him and could almost swear he knew what was on her mind.
He smiled—and swam away.
NOTE: For the person that requested Heropulchure, I've said more than once that the drabbles are from prompt requests I get on tumblr, not in the comments. That being said, you have good taste in ships.