A/N: Hey! *wave* This is the last advance chapter I have for this one, so after this we'll dial back to an as-written basis.
Thank you to newby6320, Lena-luvs-cats, Shadow Spears, and jy24 for reviewing!
Title: Sunlit Scales
Author: liketolaugh
Rating: T
Pairings: Link/Allen
Genre: Romance/Drama
Warnings: None
Summary: Link didn't expect his net to catch a merman. He definitely didn't expect the merman to come back. And he never would have imagined that this would lead to an attack that threatened to put the merpeople under Leverrier's control for the rest of their lives.
Disclaimer: Like hell I own D. Gray-man.
Merpeople were not made for moving on land. They were, ultimately, sea creatures, not land creatures. Allen didn't have legs, and he couldn't even bend his tail enough to prop himself up on it when he was uninjured, let alone now.
That meant that he mostly had to prop himself up on his elbows and flop. He made a mental note not to do this while Link was home.
Which was not the case at the moment; Link was out fishing, since he couldn't abandon his work just because he had a merman at his home. He'd been a bit at a loss as to what to do with Allen while he was gone, and had eventually given him a book to read before he left.
A book Allen couldn't get wet, so he was stuck he waiting to dry off.
Allen, plopped on his stomach, laid his cheek on his left palm and blew absently on the other, feeling the warm air flow over his drying skin. His tail, behind him, flopped in boredom, thumping lightly against the ground and causing him to wince only a little this time, bandaged as it was.
He reached up and ran his fingers through his damp hair, and then placed his webbed hands on the ground and pushed himself up a little to look around. Nothing he could reach without going to an awful lot of trouble, he decided, and flopped back down. He twisted around and rubbed at his tail gingerly, wincing again at the sting.
Then he registered the fact that the bandages hadn't gotten wet and grinned. "Great!" he said aloud to no one in particular, and abandoned his bandaged tail to turn to the only potential release from boredom at his disposal.
Link had asked him not to leave the room, given that Allen wasn't supposed to be here at all, and Allen supposed that that was fair. He didn't know how often people came in while Link was gone, or how easy it was to see inside. And Allen didn't really want to be seen, either.
Allen, now dry enough to keep from damaging the book, reached for it and flipped it open.
Merpeople didn't have much written media. Materials for waterproof paper and ink were hard to come by, and they had plenty of other things to do. Most of their stories, for example, went by word of mouth.
But Mana had taught Allen how to read anyway, and he still remembered.
Allen settled in with his cheek back on his palm and scanned the page absently.
The first time Allen had been unable to escape from an abandoned net had resulted in the permanent discoloration and temporary paralysis of his left arm. He'd resented humans for a long time after that.
The second time, he had met Mana.
Mana had been a human, a village man, who'd lived some ways away from the others, almost on the other side of the bay. He'd cut the net off of Allen, same as Link had, and nursed him to health, ignoring how snappish Allen had been then.
And when he let Allen go, Allen, with nowhere else to go, had kept coming back. Until-
Allen shut the book and rolled over, staring at the ceiling.
He'd forgotten, for a while, that Mana couldn't swim, that he wasn't a merperson like Allen was. Even with his legs and the towering height that resulted from them, it had been easy to forget.
Until Allen found his drowned body in the bay. And then he'd remembered.
Allen flailed his tail in the air, watching the fin flap pathetically in the air, and then accidentally thumped it against the wall and grimaced. He pushed himself back and reached forward to examine the site gingerly, but it seemed fine, it just stung.
Allen sighed. And it had only been a few hours.
He set the book aside, a safe distance from the tub, and rolled back over onto his belly, pushed himself up, and grabbed the edge of the tub to haul himself up and wriggle back in. He splashed the ground a little, but Link had assured him that that was alright.
This, he recalled, was why he hated recovery. It was a little better in the open water, but not much. Allen liked moving too much to be confined.
Allen grimaced. Well, at least he'd be able to talk to Link when the man returned.
Link returned from the market somewhat later than he'd expected, and made a beeline straight for the bathroom, half-worried that the merm- Allen would have vanished while he was gone.
He needn't have worried; Allen was still in the tub, leaning over the edge to draw water pictures on the wood with one finger of a spread hand. For a moment, Link tracked the hand with interest, watching the stretch and relaxation of the webbing between the merman's fingers.
Then Allen looked up and smiled at him. "Link!" he greeted cheerfully. "You're back."
Link nodded, coming the rest of the way in and closing the door behind him. "I am," he acknowledged, and then hesitated briefly before continuing, somewhat haltingly, "What did you do today?"
Allen's smile faded slightly, and he glanced down at the already-fading pictures before shrugging. "I read a little," he said. "Thank you for the book."
Link glanced at the book, placed carefully aside, and back to Allen's current position. Then he felt somewhat stupid and had to work hard not to flush. "Can you read?" he asked, more bluntly than he'd meant to.
"I just said I read," Allen protested, leaning against the side of the tub. "I… knew someone, and he taught me when I was younger." Shrug. "I just… don't read much."
Link made a mental note that the book had been a stupid idea.
He blew out a frustrated breath and asked, "What do you like to do?"
Allen reached up and bit his thumb, giving Link an apologetic look. Link took that to mean 'nothing I can do on land' and suppressed a grimace.
"Sorry," Allen mumbled, and Link waved one hand dismissively, shaking his head.
"No, it's not your fault," he assured Allen absently, frowning to himself. It was actually Link's fault, to an undeniable extent. And then, after a moment, "Would you like to come to the main room while I cook? I could close the blinds."
Allen blinked, and then he beamed at Link, who started, surprised, before hesitantly smiling back.
"I would love to, thank you," Allen replied, clearly pleased, and then nearly gave Link a heart attack as he hauled himself up over the edge and flopped onto the ground unceremoniously.
He saw Allen wince as he landed, and then the boy rolled over onto his stomach and pushed himself up onto his elbows, glanced back, and gave Link a distinctly bashful look.
Link took a moment before he understood the issue, and then looked Allen over again and suddenly had a renewed understanding of the phrase 'fish out of water'.
"Do you need help?" Link asked, more rueful than anything.
Allen dropped his chin onto his intertwined fingers and gave Link an embarrassed smile, tilting his head to look at him. "I am not built for dry land," Allen said ruefully, and then, "If you really don't mind."
Link nodded thoughtfully, and then took a few steps forward, knelt down, and picked Allen up. Water soaked into Link's clothing, and Allen, only slightly less stiff than he had been last time Link had picked him up, winced.
"Sorry," he apologized. "You're all wet now."
Link shrugged uncomfortably. "I'll dry," he assured the merman, turning around. Allen reached out before Link could register the problem at hand, wrapping a webbed hand around the doorknob to turn it and push it open. Link nodded in thanks and walked through, letting it stay open when Allen couldn't quite catch the doorknob in time to close it behind them; actually, the attempt resulted in an episode of squirming that nearly caused Link to lose his grip on the merman, but he didn't think Allen had noticed.
Link's house was fairly ordinary, with a small but well-stocked kitchen and a living room with one couch, a chair, and a coffee table. There was a bookshelf off to one side, and a window with plain curtains that he closed after depositing Allen gingerly on the couch.
He turned around to see Allen looking around with interest, but somewhat less confusion than expected.
"The colors above water are different from the ones in it," Allen commented unexpectedly, smiling at Link, who blinked.
"How so?" Link inquired, turning away to the icebox – he'd kept a couple fish for Allen. Then, dryly, "I've never been underwater before, you see."
Allen laughed. "There are more browns and greens. Not as many blues and turquoises." Consider. "Or oranges."
"It sounds beautiful," Link said without thinking, still turned away.
Allen beamed. "It is! It's wonderful. Not that it isn't above water, of course, but underwater will always be home to me." Laugh. "The different colors just make everything look a little… unreal, up here."
Link turned around with a couple of fish in hand, finding Allen smiling at him still, silver eyes sparkling. Link felt his cheeks flush, and Allen's smile turned a little sheepish.
"I imagine I'd feel similarly if I went underwater," Link replied, crossing the room again with his houseguest's meal. "Though that's not exactly an option for me."
Allen laughed. "That's too bad." Then, "Thank you," as Link gave him the fish.
"You're welcome," Link answered briskly, and turned away quickly to get to work on his own dinner. After a moment, he asked, "Are you able to tell when someone is approaching?"
Allen hummed in confirmation.
Link hesitated. And then he said, "You can occupy yourself in the rest of the house, while I'm gone. Just keep clear of my room and hide if someone approaches, please."
Behind him, Allen started. "Really? Are you sure?"
Link nodded, even if he wasn't quite as certain as he'd like to be.
"Thank you very much!" Allen exclaimed, and Link half-smiled at the delight in his voice.
"You're welcome," he repeated.
*smile* This one was fun - I really have to get back on this story soon, because I'm really looking forward to the plot of it. *snicker* It's a rare thing for me to want to push through the fluff to get to the plot, instead of the other way around, but here we are. Thanks for reading, and please review!