He was cold, but not from the lack of a shirt before the sun was even up. The cold spread through his insides as dread filled his chest. What if the merman really came back for him? His deed would have been for nothing, the other's freedom taken from him once again and they would both have to live with the regret; if they were even allowed to live.
With the last ounces of strength he managed to muster, Ace ran through the compound hoping no one would find him before he reached the doors. The sun had yet to rise, but he knew it wouldn't be long before the first rays lit up over the horizon and the crew woke up; if they weren't under alert already. He couldn't find it in himself to care as he ran towards the pier as fast as he could wanting nothing more than to find it empty. In the state he was in, there was no way he could protect the merman again. Only then did he notice he was shivering, whether from the cold or the anticipation of who knows what, he didn't know. He was still barefoot and shirtless, his shorts in a state that could hardly be called wearable and he could see the scratches and rope burns on his chest. Imagining what his face must have looked like was out of the question.
Finally reaching the door, Ace did his best to open it as soundlessly as possible, but he was still in a hurry. His destination wasn't that far away, anyway, so he decided not to bother with the bit of noise he made.
He reached the pier with the first rays of the sun peeking over the horizon and was instantly struck by warmth and relief; the blond wasn't there. Everything could still be salvageable, they only needed to get Zoro's merman to safety. In hindsight, leaving the two of them to their own devices wasn't the best decision Ace ever made, but he could find them.
The stress he went through up until then was slowly weighing on him, the physical strain finally becoming more noticeable as he stood on the pier, watching as the sun slowly rose, the light still not reaching his face. Ace knew he should move, run and get as far as he could without ever looking back at that place if possible. But he couldn't. That would mean leaving the pier behind, which was the only place where the merman could find him. It shouldn't have been so important, more important than surviving, but somehow it was; Ace couldn't walk away. His legs felt like they were made from lead, keeping him in place and he could do nothing more than to watch the ocean. One thing he knew for certain was that he would never look at the ocean in the same way he did before. An unexplained longing swelled up inside him and Ace could swear it felt like his heart would burst from the sudden pressure. The immense loss that was taking over him left him standing there with his mouth agape and a stinging sensation in the back of his eyes. He felt empty.
With a bitter chuckle, Ace remembered his grandfather's stories about the mermaids and couldn't help but think they were absolutely true: that one blond merman enchanted him, drew him in and now he felt like he was drowning. He was breathing hard, trying his best not to drown in the whirlwind of whatever it was that even caused that feeling. The relief he had felt only moments before was overwhelmed by the disappointment that the merman wasn't there. He didn't even know the man's name! It seemed foolish to be torn apart bit by agonizing bit because of a person he had only met once and didn't even learn his name, but he could hardly help it.
As the shouts from his former fellow hunters reached him, he couldn't find it in himself to care. He was doomed either way, whether by the hunters or by the mess of feelings bubbling in his chest, it didn't matter; he would most likely die either way.
They were closing in on the pier and Ace, taking their time seeing as he had no possible means of escape surrounded by the band of men and the ocean. It gave little comfort knowing he had the ocean in front, but he still remained facing it. He would rather die looking at the sunrise than the group of vicious, hateful men.
The sunlight was spilling over the water in the distance it's warmth almost touching the pier, but not quite yet. It would most likely be a matter of minutes and knowing that made him close his eyes; they should reach him before that. He hadn't felt the sunlight on his face for what felt like an eternity, knowing that he might not even get that in his final moments made everything that much worse. He knew they wouldn't keep him alive this time, not after everything, and he tried to make peace with it, but it just didn't happen. In the midst of the jumble of sensations he had felt since releasing the blond, with all the pain the others put him through and the sleepless night above the tank, the guilt pressing on him for even helping those people before; even with all of that, Ace hadn't realized he still longed to see the merman.
Ace's eyes snapped open at the first heavy footstep landing on the wooden pier, soon followed by at least half a dozen others. Their numbers didn't matter anyway, he was still outnumbered and too weak to fight. They were loud, completely ruining the silence he was engulfed in. The footsteps thundered towards him and he sighed, wishing everything could have been different. He enjoyed the sight in front of him, tuning out the men behind him. It was just him and the ocean he came to love tremendously in such a short amount of time.
Ace was ready for the first blow; not quite at peace with how his life might come to an end, but he was prepared. However, instead of a it to the head, he was hit by a faint melody. It sounded like humming, still quiet and far away, but it grew stronger and louder, slowly bringing the thrumming of footsteps on the pier to a stop. Ace was hit by an urge to move and he did, he walked forward to the end of the pier, draining the last of his energy as his knees hit the wooden planks. The humming was growing ever stronger and closer, but he saw nothing except the sunlight reflecting off the surface of the ocean. He had yet to turn around and look at the men that only second before wanted him dead, now only mumbling in confusion as the humming surrounded them. It was coming from everywhere, as it seemed.
Kneeling at the edge of the pier at the same spot he released the blond merman, Ace was the first to notice said merman's head emerge from the water. Ace heard the merman humming, but before he could yell for the other to go away before he was notice by the others, the humming intensified and the hunters ran as close to the water as they could. Several other mermaids emerged from the water, almost a dozen of them as far as Ace could see, and they were all absolutely breathtaking, both male and female alike.
His attention snapped back to the blond merman, however, as he started to sing. The blond's voice was deep and steady, seeping into Ace's tired body and mind, lulling him into a sense of security. Other voices joined in on the song, creating a harmonious melody Ace could only describe as angelic. He didn't turn his head, though, he wouldn't be able to even if he had tried as a pair of blue eyes locked onto his, rendering every movement impossible.
The song filled the air around them, leaving all other sounds unimportant or unnoticeable. Ace was left staring straight into the merman's eyes, his mind battling between the relief the blond came back or the utter horror of it. Soft swishing of water sounded through the song, but instead of disturbing it, it only blended in and added a note to the voices; the other mermaids were coming closer to the pier. Ace was horrified that they would come closer to armed men who literally lived off of hunting and selling the rare creatures, but he still couldn't break away from the mesmerizing gaze and the song directed towards him. The merman was singing to him, he realized, the depths of the blue eyes keeping him in place.
They were singing louder and louder as moments passed, but it barely registered with Ace; he was too busy fighting the urge to lean over the water and reach out to the man lifting himself out of the water until only his tail remained submerged while his arms leaned on the pier. Resting his head onto his folded arms, the merman continued the song, leading with his deep voice and guiding the others as they continued.
Ace was deaf to everything but the merman's voice, his eyes only seeing blue; whether it was the water or the other's eyes, it was hard to say. All he knew was that he wanted to touch the blond and make sure he was actually there. Reluctantly and with a lot of effort to actually make his limbs listen, Ace reach out his hand only far enough to trace the tips of his fingers across the merman's cheek. The blond smiled at the caress, never stopping the singing, but the smile looked sad.
Ace's haze was partially broken by a first splash of water, but his attention remained on the smiling face before him. The sun was up in the sky, shining right at him and blinding him, making the merman glow in a way that suited the magic of the song. The merman's rope burns were no longer visible and Ace felt strangely inadequate with his bruises and scratches.
A second splash sounded somewhere behind him, the sound barely grazing his consciousness. By the third splash, however, he realized the song was losing voices; for a brief second, panic took over as the fear of the mermaids breaking the spell and simply leaving entered his mind. Deep down, though, he knew what it was and why the voices disappeared one by one. The song remained as strong as it was, despite decreasing in volume as another mermaid went under the surface taking another of the hunters into the water, if he was judging from the splash.
One by one, voices were disappearing replaced by splashes of water for several seconds before the ocean went silent again. They were alone. The blond continued his song, smiling brighter for a moment before lifting himself towards Ace. Before he could even think, Ace leaned forward, his face meeting the open palm stretched out towards him. He couldn't help but smile back, despite knowing what was most likely in store for him. Still, the thought of dying was easier to think of with the beautiful face of a merman to focus on.
The blond kept singing, his tone more gentle and quiet as he sang to Ace and Ace alone. He lifted himself as far as he could, his face mere inches from Ace's. His breath tickled Ace's lips for a moment before the blond leaned back far enough for him not to have to hold onto the pier and Ace followed, leaning forward as far as he could. His both of his hands free, the merman cupped Ace's face for a fleeting moment, looking into his eyes as if searching for something and breathing out the last notes of his song.
Ace had no time to do anything before a pair of lips pressed against his, the eye contact between them still strong. Their lips moved slowly and Ace tasted the seawater off the other, the salt barely bothering him. He was enjoying every second of the kiss, completely content with the way things turned out. With the way his employment with the hunters ended and half of them being drowned for their deeds, Ace had nothing keeping him above the surface. There was Zoro, but he would only be a nuisance for his green haired friend; after all, he was officially a traitor.
Gently guiding Ace towards the surface, the merman parted his lips and Ace followed suit. He was past questioning the other's actions. Instead of a warm tongue, though, a cold smooth object entered his mouth and he tried to pull away, but the merman's grip on his cheeks tightened. Ace's hands flew up and gripped the merman's wrists, only momentarily distracted by the soft, warm scales he hadn't notice before. He had no way of loosening the other's iron grip while he was still weakened as he was and he quickly stopped the futile struggle, letting the blond's tongue slip the unknown round object further into his mouth. The merman's blue eyes seemed to plead with Ace and he relented, swallowing whatever it was the other gave him.
As he was lost in thoughts of what it could have possibly been, Ace found himself being slowly guided towards the water once again. The blond kissed him again, this time less innocent as it seemed he was trying to distract Ace. The freckled man watched for the briefest moment how the blond's head disappeared in the water, their eyes never straying from each other as Ace touched the water for the first time.
His face was submerged first, his neck, shoulders as well as the rest of him followed soon after and he shuddered at the cold enveloping him. The blond's tongue and lips offered comfort while Ace realized this was how he would die. He would drown, pulled to his death by a beautiful face and a pair of lips giving him more comfort than he had ever felt before. The salty water started to burn his eyes, but the merman's gaze never wavered from his and Ace wouldn't be the first to break the eye contact. It was the only thing keeping his mind straight as they sunk further into the water, their surroundings growing darker as they descended deeper. He would drown, Ace realized. He would drown, his body would sink and disappear. No one would know and no one would care. But neither did he. He had finally made peace with the end, no longer bothered by the way his life would come to an end. Ace had no qualms about dying by the hands of someone like the blond currently dragging him towards the ocean's floor.
Only, he wasn't drowning. His hands were still firmly holding onto the merman's scale covered wrists and his eyes still remained locked onto the other's, but his lungs didn't burn. His consciousness was as present as ever, he felt himself glide thought the water that didn't seem as cold anymore. Ace's own wrists itched as well as his legs and for a brief moment, he felt his shorts, or whatever was left of them, rip completely and slide from his body. He was left bare and at the mercy of a stranger he couldn't even observe as a stranger anymore. The blond got under his skin and into his every waking thought, kissing him into death.
Except he wasn't dying and his legs itched, the cold water doing little to soothe the sensation. The tongue still moving against his own helped more, but the feeling became too much. He tried to break free once again, he tried to move his legs, but nothing worked. There was concern in the merman's eyes and Ace's heart broke at the look; causing the other pain was the one thing he didn't want to do. In an attempt to soothe the other, Ace slid his hands down the blond's arms and placed them on his shoulders.
Out of the corner of his eyes, Ace saw red and for the first time since the blond appeared, Ace looked away. Instead of blood as he expected, he was met by a flurry of red scales spreading from the back of his hand, over his wrist and half way up his forearm. His first instinct was to panic, yet his hands started shaking and only then did the merman break their kiss after too long and not long enough, removing his hands from Ace's face, but still looking into his eyes. Ace looked back at the blond as the merman gently gripped his hands and brought them both to his face, kissing the back of one hand then the other.
The blue of his eyes only seemed to intensify the deeper they dove, shining like a light that pulled Ace further more than the actual physical grip the blond had on him. Warmth that strongly contrasted the cold of the water spread through him, from the tips of his fingers all the way to his toes. Or where his toes were supposed to be, he noticed, as he realized he couldn't feel them anymore.
With a tug on his arm, Ace was pulled closer then swiftly turned so his back faced the blond. He was startled by the sudden action, surprise making way for confusion for a fleeting moment before he glanced at his legs. He looked just in time to see his calves and feet disappear under a layer of bright scales, blossoming into a fire colored fin sparkling in the dark waters. He was mesmerized as he slowly lifted his free hand, tracing the edges of gills on his neck and he finally came to terms that he wasn't dead.
Instead of in death, he found himself in a warm embrace by a man he didn't even know the name of. The arms holding him moved around his waist, settling on the almost transparent trail of scales under his navel as he was pressed closer to the blond's chest. Only then did he notice he was trembling; maybe from the cold water or the shock, he couldn't be sure. It subsided, however, when he felt a chin settle on his shoulder, the grip around him tightening a bit more as the other's hair tickled his neck.
Ace knew he was supposed to feel fear because of the transformation or regret for no longer having legs, yet he only felt relief. The blond wanted him there in his arms, that much he could tell from the possessive grip and the fact the other even bothered coming back just to give him whatever it was to turn him into a merman. And he was perfectly content with that. The apprehension that he wouldn't live the rest of his life alone make him smile; something the other seemed to pick up on as he too smiled against Ace's neck, lacing their fingers together before whispering into his ear with the utmost intimacy.
"Red is a good color on you."
As Ace observed their joined hands, his new red scales contrasting with the other's blue ones, he had to admit that it really did look good.
Written by MyLadyDay