"Captain? Where ya' goin'?" A small voice asked. Person in question blinked and turned around to see none other than Alfred. The boy stood in the door way, eyes following the older male. One hand held an apple with a couple small bites taken out of it while the other held a small piece of bread; this being his breakfast. The reason the young Alfred had asked such a question was mainly because Arthur had changed out his pirate uniform and into something more relaxed. He also took note in the small map in his back pocket.

"Oh..." Arthur paused, not expecting Alfred to be there. "I'm just goin' out for a bit to look around this here island." Arthur patted the map in his back pocket, making sure it was still there. He light sighed when he felt it. Turning his head back up to Alfred the older watched the younger's eyes widened while a large smile grew on his face.

"Can I come?! I wanna explore!" He jumped a bit, quickly stuffing the bread into his mouth, causing crumbs to fall to the ground. Arthur's eyes widened. Quickly, he relaxed and shook his head.

"No, Alfred. You need to stay here." Alfred's smiled quickly faded to a frown instantly upon hearing the no. "I'm just goin' to look around. It's also dangerous out there and I don'y need Francis nipping at my arse that I let you hurt yourself, or worse." Alfred narrowed his eyes slightly, wanting to explore with the captain.

"But-"

"No buts. Clean up the mess on the floor you made as well. I'll be back in a bit and we can head back out at sea, hm?" Arthur tried to convince the young boy to stay. Alfred went silent for a bit, before sighing.

"Fine... You win..." Alfred lightly marched out of the room and back into the kitchen, taking another bit of his apple. Sighing, Arthur rolled his eye and walked out of the room, as well as out of the house.

The sky was a bright blue and small white clouds rolling overhead. They should be good to sail later tonight when he gets back. Where exactly is he going? Well, to find the grove. Taking a deep breath, Arthur walked over to the wooded area of the island and began his exploration. Throughout the whole night, he couldn't stop thinking about it. What if it was real? The grove, the curse, the creature. In all honesty, it was this creature that got Arthur looking. A humanoid creature that, seemed to be, part fish...? What exactly would it look like? How would it act? Would it see humans as an enemy for turning them into fish? The more Arthur thought about it, the more he wanted to see this creature.

After about a good 2 or 3 hours, Arthur was about to give up. He had probably covered about half of this damn forest and he couldn't find anything! There was nothing indicating a grove, there was nothing like a grove, there was nothing! Just damn trees with large roots that he tripped over a couple of times! Growling lightly, Arthur walked over to a large rock and slid down to the ground for a brake. Maybe this grove things was just a wild goose chase. He's been tricked by that godforsaken old witch. There is no creature and there is no curse. Nothing. Arthur had given up.

"I guess I can head back an' we can leave earlier than planned. That's fine though. Being out at sea is better than bein' tricked..." Arthur sighed. He relaxed his shoulder and laid fully against the rock, allowing his back to rest. Almost instantly though, his body fell back causing his eyes to widen. It was like the rock was no longer there. Arthur closed his eye and curled up his body, trying to protect himself. His body rolled down a hill, coming to a painful stop as he hit the hard ground. Groaning in pain, Arthur slowly opened his eye only to blink then widen. Quickly, he turned his body around from his back to his butt, having his eye widen as he looked around. The area was beautiful. Even more than the main island. Green grass grew everywhere and large, bright, healthy trees surrounded the area. In the back of this small area was a decently sized pool of water with a large rock wall behind it. There was a couple of rock stick up out of the water as well as the sandy and grassy ground before it. Bright and pretty flowers were blooming all over the place and what seemed to be fireflies flew around the area. Was this… the grove…? One of the lights flowed over to him, making Arthur bring his hand up. Lightly, the light landed on his hand, but didn't die down. It did blink its light like a firefly, but it wasn't one… It was magical… This was a magical creature that emitted light.

A loud splashing sound caused the light to disappear from his hand and the male to look up. The splashing came from the small pond. Something was getting ready to emerge. Arthur's eye widen before quickly running behind one of the trees. Slowly, Arthur moved to look past the tree to see what was going to come out from the once calm water. The pirate watched as a creature's head pop out of the water, splashing water away. Arthur watched this creature with wide eyes. It didn't make sense... this thing that emerged from the water... it looked... human... Arthur watched as the man's head fully came out of the water, letting Arthur watch 3 large slits on neck collapse over top of each other. That allowed the man to take a deep breath, filling its lungs up with air. It eyes slowly pealed open and looked around its surroundings, making sure everything looked clear before swimming closer to the land and climbing up on one of the rocks, placing its back towards Arthur. Once the man seemed preoccupied with what he was doing Arthur slowly walked out from behind the tree, trying to get a better look.

Slowly, Arthur began to make his way over to the man. Who is this man and what exactly was he...? It was clear he wasn't human, from the gill-like slits that were in his neck. Every step Arthur took, his heartbeat increase. Was the man going to attack him? Could he hold his own against a creature he couldn't even identify? Slowly, but surely, Arthur made his way over. As soon as he was about 15 feet away there was a sudden snapping of a twig that made both him and the creature freeze. Very slowly, the man turned his head around as Arthur was frozen in place, took scared to do anything. The two met eye to eye only for both of them to widen. The man quickly jumped back into the water before Arthur could say a thing. The splash brought Arthur back into his senses, making the pirate run over. The man was scared of him...?

"W-Wait!" Arthur called out. Running over to the edge of the water Arthur fell to his knees, looking into the water. The water was unbelievably clear. It let him see all the way down to the bottom. It was only rippling from the man jumping in, causing the picture to waver slightly. Under the water, the man had retreated down to the very bottom, wanting to be as far away from the man as possible. His body was as close to the dirt ground and rocky wall as it would allow him. Yet... he did not run away. He stayed exactly where he was. He wasn't swimming out of the area, never to be seen again. No. He stayed. Watching. Wondering. The sides of his neck peeled back apart, allowing bubble of air to escape and float to the surface. "I-I wasn't goin' to hurt ye… Promise..." Arthur explained, hoping the man would emerge from the water. He looked so interesting, having such unique features... He just wanted to chat with him... Though, the man didn't move. He stayed under the water, afraid of what the 'strange man' might do to him. Slowly, Arthur slipped his fingers into the water, trying not to rustle up the still topped water. The man backed up farther, making Arthur stop. When the man seemed to relax a bit, Arthur slowly slipped his hand fully under the water and placed it out, wanting the man to grab it. Though, the man didn't move. He stayed exactly where he was.

Sighing, Arthur slowly removed his hand from the water and sat back, so he was out of view from the man. He backed up and waited, hoping that the man would chase after him. After a little bit, the black hair of the man slowly peeked his head through the water, just enough for his deep brown eyes to look out. Instantly, his eyes laid upon Arthur just sitting far off from the bank, waiting. He wasn't going to hurt him? Arthur waited and didn't move, in fear of the man swimming back under the water. Though, to his surprise, the man came farther out from under the water so his shoulder just barely brushed the water surface. The slits on his neck closed back up as he began breathing air once more. The two stayed quiet, just looking at each other. Neither wanted to move out of fear that the other was going to do something in response. Arthur's eyes scanned the male, wanted to see as much as he could. Sitting up on a little incline he was able to peer down into the water, seeing all of him. Instantly, Arthur took note in the fin like ears and sections of white scale looking things along his bare shoulders and chest. He could also see fin like things on the ends of the man's elbows as well as some sort of white and red tail instead of legs. Was it...? Was this the creature Mary was talking about...? A creature of the sea...?

Glancing back up at the man's face, his eyes never left Arthur. He was watching his every movement. Every breath he took, every eye movement, every single muscle that moved. Watching him, just in case he needed to retreat back under the water. After a couple minutes of silence, Arthur cleared his throat lightly. The man flinched in response, but didn't move away. So, Arthur continued.

"H-Hello." Arthur spoe quietly, trying to not frighten the creature. The man slowly nodded back.

"Konnichiwa." That made Arthur blink. What was that? The man blinked as well. Quickly thought, he seemed to realize his mistake. He cleared his throat and tried again. "H-Herro to you, as werr." The man's thick heavily accented voice explained. Arthur has never heard that kind of accent before in his life. Where was he from? Quickly, silence loomed over the two once more.

"My name is Arthur." Arthur explained. Arthur crawled closer, reaching his hand out to shake. The man flinched back a bit, relaxing slightly when he realized Arthur wasn't going to do anything. Slowly, the man reached his hand out of the water and placed it in Arthur's. Instantly, Arthur took note in the large amount of skin in between the man's fingers. Almost like webbing the frogs have.

"Kiku." The man explained as the two shook hands. Kiku retreated his hand back under water after they finished. Arthur sat back up and moved his body to sit comfortably as well. When Arthur didn't try anything, the creature blinked in confusion. "You are not... going to… hurt me?" Arthur blinked, but shook his head.

"No. Of course not. Why would I do such a thing? You have done nothing wrong." Arthur began to change his speech away from his pirate speak, trying to make sure the creature could understand him.

"Two-reggers rike you arways try to hurt me..." He sighed, relaxing slightly, believing Arthur wasn't going to hurt him.

"Two-legger?" Arthur questioned, picking up on Kiku's accent the more he spoke. Kiku looked back up at him and nodded.

"Hai. You have two regs. You are a two-regger."

"Does that mean you are a sea-creature?" Kiku blinked. "A creature of the sea?" Arthur repeated. Kiku thought about it only to nod slightly.

"You could say..." Kiku looked back up at Arthur, taking note of his features, Arthur was very different from the creature like him. He had golden blond hair and a bright green eye, like the sun had kissed his features to make him light. Creatures like him only rarely breached the surface, so most of their characteristics were the same. Darker hair, darker eye, paler skin. Though, Kiku was drawn to the his clothing and the cloth on Arthur's eye. Why would he cover up his eye? What was he wearing? But, Kiku knew better than to ask. He would be invading their privacy.

"Is that a tail then?" Arthur's voice brought Kiku back to reality. "Like a dolphin's? You use your tail to swim?" Kiku nodded lightly.

"Hai. We swim with our tairs. How erse do you expect us to move around?" The creature cocked his head to the side.

"I've just never seen someone like you. I was just wondering." Arthur sighed lightly, taking note that he was being a bit rude to the creature. Arthur eyed the tail under the water, wanting to see it fully. But... He shouldn't really ask... Right? Of course, his curiosity got the better of him. "D-Do you mind if I... well... saw your tail?" Kiku blinked at this, as a light blush covered his face. His tail? Of course... As a two-legger, he had no clue what it meant... Slowly, though, Kiku nodded only for Arthur to smile slightly. The black haired man rotated his body lightly and brought his tail out of the water allowing Arthur to look in amazement. The main base of the tail was a pure snowy white while the tip, the actual fin part of the tail, was a bright, vibrant red. Arthur had to stop himself from touching the tail, knowing that would be going too far. "Wow... You tail is, of course, something I've never seen before..." Kiku brought his tail back under the water and turned back to look at Arthur. "It's really a beautiful thing." Arthur lightly smiled. Kiku's eyes widened slightly as a faint blush covered his cheeks. He quickly looked down, not wanting to chose his blush.

"A-Arigatō..." Arthur chuckled lightly, taking that as a thank you. Arthur sat back, giving Kiku some space to relax, which he took happily. After he had calmed down a bit, he turned back to look at Arthur, wanting to ask him something. "I hope you do not mind me asking, but this area is heaviry conceared. And, the onry way in is from the way I came in. So... How did you get here?" Arthur blinked.

"Well, this area isn't as concealed as you think. I was walking around when I stumbled over to a rock. When I leaned up against it, it just... well... disappeared. I fell backwards and landed down in here. Meaning, there's another way to get into this area. But, don't worry, I won't tell a soul about this place, I promise." Arthur smiled. Kiku blinked, but nodded a thank you. "So... Do you live in this grove or...?" Arthur asked as he looked away, wanting to know more about this creature's life.

"Iie. I do not rive here. I rive with my famiry far out into the ocean." Kiku looked behind him, back in the direction he had come from. "Where do you rive? I have never seen you around here."

"That's because I don't live here either. My family lived back in England, on land." Of course, Kiku didn't know what England was, but he rolled along with it.

"Then, why are you not in Engrand?"

"Well... I am currently watching over a friend of mine's child. He's dropped off at my place every once an a while, as he likes to spend time with me." Arthur smiled lightly. "But, I'm on a journey to take him back to his family all the way across the ocean." Kiku blinked, but nodded.

"So, are you just visiting this island?" Arthur nodded. "I see." Once again, it grew quiet around the two, unknown what to say to each other. Arthur glanced around at the area once again. Maybe the reason Mary couldn't find this area was because she didn't have a high enough magical ability... When he fell down here, he could feel a strong magical aura around the place... It must be guarded with magic and Arthur had just enough to get past it...

After the long silence, the two began to talk again; making small conversation. Quickly though, they grew into a full on conversation, talking about anything and everything. Smiling and laughing here and there, Kiku grew to understand Arthur. He may be a two-legger, but he had no intentions on hurting him. No intentions of kidnapping him. No intention of telling others. He was one of the only nice human, as he learned they were called, that Kiku had ever seen.

Though, Arthur couldn't stay forever. He had to go back to make sure Alfred was alright. He had left him alone far too long for the same reason he didn't allow Alfred to come with him. He really didn't need Francis yelling at him because something happened to his child. Of course, Kiku had asked if Arthur was going to come back. He had met a human that wasn't going to hurt him. He wanted to become friends with the 'land-creature'. Arthur just smiled and agreed; he too wanted to befriend the sea-creature. Arthur made his way back to the village just as the sun was setting and a small rain storm started up. It took him by surprise that he had spent the whole day with Kiku, but it didn't really bother him that much. Kiku was a nice guy to hang around. Unlike half of his crew, who, all they do is complain. Getting home turned into storm of questions from Alfred. Where was he? What did he do? Are they going home yet? Non-stop. The crew was going to stay on the island or a bit, as heavy rain began to pick up. Going out at sea would cause for, yet again, another trip with mountainous waves. Of course, Alfred ran to 'his room' to pout, as he wanted to go back out at sea once more.

Days past as the group was forced to stay upon the island. Rain continued its dangerous downpour, but that didn't stop Arthur. Every day he always left early in the day and arrived back late at night just to go talk to Kiku. They would talk about anything that came up. Anything they wanted to know. As a response, the two grew to love each other's company and enjoyed hanging around one another. All they could hope was that this rain storm never ended.

~Japanese~

Konnichiwa-Hello
Hai-Yes
Arigatō-Thank you
Iie-No

Oh My God. It's been such a long time! I'm so sorry! ;-; I had a lot to catch up on in my life when I posted the last chapter I just didn't get around to actually writing this one. I promise to continue this story! I'm not dropping it! I had time to think and create an almost solid idea on where this story is going, so hopefully I'll be able to post more. I'm really sorry!
Another reason is I started another story so I would really appreciate it if you would check it out and tell me what you think~ I'll be trying to alternate between those two the best I can.
Thank you for waiting and I hope you guys are enjoying this story. I thank the ones who are still committed to this story to stay with me as I take what feels like years to update XD All I ask is that you leave a review to tell me what you think and if you're still enjoying this story. It would be helpful ^-^