The Gift
By: Verin Mystal
Summary: Modern AU. A re-imagining of the Little Mermaid tale.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except for the original ideas in this D:
Ivan walked down a dirt road lined with flower bushes. Small farms and fishing cottages dotted the rolling hills as the land gradually met with the sea. The sun glistened off distant ocean waves that crested and crashed onto the shore. Clouds gathered in the east, but Ivan knew they would not cover the valley until sundown. Smiling, he looked back down at the scarf his sister crocheted him for his birthday. Made from pure wool, it repelled water and kept him warm. Grasped in his hand was a small fishing pole and in his pocket, a tin box with hooks and lures, all gifts from Grandfather. Natalia gave him a piece of paper full of colorful scribbles, smiling with pride at her hard work after a loud "no!" was declared.
The fish grandfather caught on Ivan's birthday sold at a high price, so his family was able to eat well for the next week. Katyusha and Natalia went shopping to replace their old clothes, as they were growing thin and coming apart at the seams, and Ivan had just managed to escape before they dragged him along as well. Assuring his elder sister that "yes Katen'ka, I'll be fine, stop worrying!", he walked down the dirt road towards a local, albeit remote, beach.
Maybe I'll get to see that boy again, too.
The pearl weighed heavy in his left coat pocket, a priceless gift from 'the boy'in thanks for preventing him from being captured by Grandfather. Never had someone given him something so beautiful. Its surface was smooth and as white as the clouds in the sky. Ivan found himself cradling it in his hands and rubbing it with his thumbs, liking the feel of it against his skin.
The day following the traumatic accident, Ivan walked down to the local beach and waded in the shallows - being mindful of not stepping out to far or else the current might carry him out to sea - and searched for the boy. Three hours later, Ivan had nearly given up when the boy appeared after a wave crashed on shore, the salty white water fizzing like soda-pop as it moved up the sandy beach only to sink back down. The two greeted each other with excitement, but a lack of common language became apparent after Ivan tried speaking to the boy. The rest of the morning was spent telling the boy what words associated with what - your home is called the Океан, this stick is from a Деревоwhich lives in a Лес- and showing him the wonderful things about his home. The boy smiled and hung on every word, seeming fascinated with his manner of speaking, but only managed a croak when he attempted to speak. Soon the sun was setting and his Grandfather was shouting his name from up the road. He had suffered a stern lecture that evening from playing at the beach all day, but Ivan took his punishment and went back the very next day.
Ivan quickened his pace and saw the line of thick bushes ahead, signaling the end of the road. Beyond the green barrier was the hidden beach. Smiling, Ivan rushed ahead and exploded through the bushes. The boy was already down on the beach, lying flat on his belly and letting the foaming surf wash over his tail before receding, keeping it from drying out. A tiny crab stood between his arms and snapped its claws at him, annoyed at the invasion of his territory. The boy grinned and wiggled his finger at its claws, yanking it away when they snapped at him.
"Privet!" Ivan greeted as he stepped down the rocky incline to the sandy beach below. "You are here early."
The boy looked up in surprise, which gave the crab the opportunity to snap its claws shut on his finger. Hissing in surprise, the boy shook his hand until the crab leg go, and rolled away from it, frowning and clutching his finger to his chest. Ivan peered at him in concern as he walked over, but after a moment Alfred recovered and stuck the pinched finger in his mouth. Toeing out of his shoes, Ivan set his belongings down and rolled his pant legs up to his knees. Ever so gently, Ivan unraveled the scarf from around his neck and placed it on the dry sand.
"It is warm today, so I will wade in the shallows." Ivan exclaimed despite the merboy not understanding a word he said. "I…I hope you will keep the waves from pulling me out to sea?"
The boy smiled as he stepped into the water. Wriggling into the deeper part of the cove, he swam lazily on his back, moving back and forth.
"I wish you could talk." Ivan complained, watching the boy swim with ease. "You could tell me about your family and where you come from. I wish I knew what your name was."
This last phrase caught the boy's attention as he sunk below the surface, glided through the water and resurfaced beside him. His blonde hair clung to his skin, his blue eyes shining in the sunlight.
"My name is Ivan." He pressed a palm flat to his chest and repeated his name. "Ivan."
Alfred blinked and opened his mouth. "EE…ee…han?" The boy struggled with the 'v'sound in his name. "EE-an?"
"Close but…nyet." Ivan shook his head and repeated his name, enunciating it clearly. "Ivan." He pressed his front teeth to his lower lip. "Ivan."
"EE…fhan?" The boy's face screwed together in frustration. "EE-fan?"
"vvv~…" Ivan produced the 'v' sound more clearly before repeating his name. "Ivan."
"EE…van." The boy smiled when Ivan nodded positively. "Eevan!" He slapped the water with his tail, a triumphant grin spreading across his face."Eevan!"
Still needs some work but…that is close enough.Ivan smiled at him and pointed at the boy. "What is your name?"
The boy paused in his celebrating and frowned. He opened his mouth, closed, and opened it again. A squeak and a series of clicks came out, but he shook his head with a frown. Turning back to Ivan, he frowned and pouted.
Ivan peered at him. "Was that your name?" Realization dawned. "You speak differently underwater, don't you?" He smiled and motioned at the boy in what he hoped was reassuring. "That is alright. Don't worry."
The boy continued to frown, seeming upset at the language barrier between them. Heaving a frustrated sigh, the boy dove under water and disappeared.
"Wait, don't go!" Ivan called, but it was too late. "I shouldn't have asked for his name…"
Disappointed, he stepped back onto the beach and lay on the warm sand. Once his feet and calves were dry, he unfurled his pant legs and put his socks and shoes back on. Returning to his belongings, he picked them up – re-wrapped the scarf back around his neck – and started back up the road for home with a heavy heart.
"Alfred!" Arthur turned on the boy the minute he came into range. "Why did you not return at my first call?"
Alfred bowed his head and stared at the endless abyssal plain stretched out before them. "I was playing." It wasn't a complete lie, as he really wasplaying…
"You were playing." Arthur repeated, not sounding convinced in the least. "And just whowere you playing with?"
Matthew floated behind Arthur and stared at his twin with worry.
"The…sea lions." Alfred lied. "I wanted to visit them, but then they asked me to stay for a while so we could swim together and-!"
Arthur swam forward and plucked a strand of kelp from Alfred's hair. "You got this from playing with sea lions? In the open ocean?"
"I…I…" Alfred trembled, eyes wide with guilt. "I just-"
"You went to see that boy again, didn't you?"
Alfred frowned and looked away. Arthur glared at him.
"How many times must I repeat myself?" Arthur growled. "He is a human-!"
"So!" Alfred shot back, anger growing within him. "He's nice! He's my friend!"
"Until he grows up, until he forgets about you, until-"
"Francis used to be human!" Alfred countered desperately. "But now he stays with us!"
"That is different, and something you won't understand until you're older." Arthur admitted, a light pink dusting his cheeks before he shook the feeling away with a glare. "Listen to me, Alfred. I am only trying to protect you! The human world is a dangerous place. Many of them are not good people, and if they find out about you…or about our kind…they will treat you terribly." Arthur warned, clasping his hands on his adoptive son's shoulders. "They will take you away from us and lock you away in a tank."
Alfred swallowed. "Like…like the big aquariums that Francis told us about?"
"Yes. They will lock you away and keep you in there, never letting you leave." Arthur explained savagely. "You will stay in that invisible prison, live your life in monotony and die."
"But…but…Eevan wouldn't do that." Alfred trembled softly, his eyes turning red as invisible tears gathered in his eyes. "Eevan was nice…he's my friend."
"He is young. A mere child, like you." Arthur curled his arms around Alfred and hugged him. "But when he grows up, he will change. He will forget about you and worry about other things…"
"No…" Alfred shoved away at Arthur. "No! He's not like that! He'd never do that!"
Twisting around, Alfred shot forward and swam with all his strength back to the cove, but Arthur grabbed him by the arm and jerked him back to him.
"You're not going back to that boy!"
"But Arthur-!"
"We're going home!"
"No!" Alfred cried tears of frustration. "It's not fair! I just-"
"Just what? To meet that boy? To become friends with him?" Arthur snapped, his voice cold as ice. "So he can betray you? So they can take you away from me? You're not going back!"
Matthew followed in silence, frowning deeply.
"Arthur!" Alfred cried, and kicked his fins, flailed his arms, but Arthur held tight. "He'll think I abandoned him! Just let me say goodbye-"
"All the better." Arthur stated, not giving an inch despite the guilt flickering in his emerald green gaze.
Alfred whimpered, the first sob escaping his lips. The guilt becoming too much, Arthur finally turned around and wrapped his arms around the boy. Alfred stood rigid against him, but cried into his adoptive father's chest regardless, the familiar warmth a soothing comfort.
"Alfred…I'm only doing this because I love you." Arthur admitted, smiling awkwardly. "The human world is a dangerous place, and I am only protecting you."
Alfred peered at the abyss below them, remaining silent for a long moment. Clenching his fingers, he crossed his arms over his chest.
"That's okay." Alfred turned up to look at Arthur, glaring defiantly. "I gave him my irispearl."
"You…you what?" Arthur hissed, anger flooding him. "You gave him your iris pearl?"
Matthew's mouth dropped open in shock. Alfred moved back and stared at Arthur.
"I did." Alfred stated. "And there's nothing you can do about it. I gaveit to him. So he will always have it, and you can't force it to return back to me."
"Wha-wha-" Arthur seethed, so infuriated with the boy that he was unable to speak coherently. "Why you….you little…!" Giving up, Arthur grabbed Alfred once more and started in the direction towards home. "Matthew!" Arthur yelled, calling for the other twin to follow.
"C-coming."
Matthew followed, glancing back once more before flipping his stormy-blue tail and rushing after them. Alfred smiled and gazed up to the ocean surface, the sunlight piercing through the waves.
When I'm old enough to be on my own, I'll find you and we can be friends again. He let his gaze fall, sadness filling him. I just hope you can forgive me for leaving…and not saying goodbye.
Notes:
Russian Language– Privet = Hello/greetings, etc. (Special thanks to atrocity13 for the translations and general information about Russia! All the translations for this fill will be done by atrocity13, so I thank you for putting up with all of my questions ) (The following words I got off of a Russian language vocab-help website. I added them in at the last second.) Океан – Ocean, Дерево – Tree, Лес – Forest.
Abyssal Plain– [Wiki] "An abyssal plain is an underwater plain on the deep ocean floor, usually found at depths between 3000 and 6000 meters. Lying generally between the foot of a continental rise and a mid-ocean ridge, abyssal plains cover more than 50% of the Earth's surface. They are among the flattest, smoothest and least explored regions on Earth."
Iris Pearl – This is something I came up with, by mixing some greek mythology with some ideas I had. Iris is a greek goddess of rainbows and is also a messenger of the gods (Hermes wasn't the only messenger, something I didn't know until I read about her o.o;). I mixed this idea with the pearl. Basically, the pearl is used as a means of communication and identity for merfolk. A mermaid/merman is given an iris pearl at birth, and it serves as a way for them to communicate with other merfolk across great distances. It also serves as a kind of location device, allowing them to find each other.