Several minutes pass in relative silence as the young merman continues to stare at the town. But, realizing that he is indeed hungry for breakfast, he finally slides his eyes closed and, with a sigh, sinks under the waves. He glides downward, tentacles propelling him as he feels along the rocks with outstretched hands. A boulder is pushed out of the way with some difficulty, revealing a back entrance to his home. He slides through and pulls the cumbersome rock back in place; the grimace on his face is half from exertion, half from annoyance. As he makes his way down through the short corridor, he clicks his tongue and wishes his scrawny self would start getting stronger already so he could move the damn thing as easily as his younger brother. Although, he can always go around a ways and use the front entrance, but breakfast calls for shortcuts. And besides, the reason the younger brother can move it with ease is because–
"I'm sorry, please don't hurt me!"
His eyes widen as he hurriedly enters the main part of his home, looking immediately towards his brother. "Feli–?" But there is another, larger figure in the room. The grey and teal colours of the armoured uniform mark the 'visitor' as a patrolman, clenching his short spear and hovering in the small living area, looking just as intimidating as Feliciano looks terrified.
"Lovino!" The younger brother has all four arms stiffly raised towards the ceiling, craning his neck to look back, too terrified to actually turn his body around. "He's gonna lock me up!"
"Calm down already," the patrolman says, looking annoyed. "I told you, this is just a random inspection. Part of protocol. Nobody's going to jail." The tip of his spear lifts the lid off a jar, and he peeks inside before glancing back at the two brothers. "Well, unless you two are breaking the law. Then I'd have to lock you up. Hey–hands where I can see them. I don't want you pulling any tricks."
Glaring at the intruder, Lovino has his arms crossed. "I'm thirteen, what the fuck am I going to do?"
"Hands where I can see them," the patrolman repeats more sternly.
Lovino shrinks back a little and slowly raises his arms, but not to the extent of his brother's panicked pose. He discontentedly watches the older merman swim around their home, searching over and under to find any evidence of lawbreaking, leaving items sloppily scattered about in his wake. Unfortunately, the brothers know that this occurrence is commonplace. There is nothing out of the ordinary for the king's men to drop by at random and make sure everyone is in line. The law gives them permission. But that doesn't stop Lovino from being pissed about it each time it happens, especially after hearing rumors from the adults that they search 'normal' folk's homes less often. Far less often, in fact.
Lovino glances down at the tentacles comprising the lower part of his body.
And he already knows, without having to look, that Feliciano is visibly shaking with fear, hazel eyes watching the patrolman's every move. He knows that it's taking every ounce of bravery for his little brother to keep quiet and not freak out. Because the situation is a thousand times more dangerous for the two of them.
Relief finally washes over Lovino as the patrolman emerges from their small bedroom, looking like the search is finished. More importantly, he's not holding anything potentially incriminating. The young merman starts to lower his arms, frowning at the disarray of the house.
"Everything seems to be in order," the patrolman says, casually spinning his spear as he makes his way between the brothers and towards the entrance, still left ajar from the sudden arrival.
"Good riddance," Lovino mutters.
The patrolman slows his pace, giving the youth a harsh look. "You're being a little too snappy for someone in your position."
"And what is my position, exactly? Being an octo?" He inches back when the intimidating patrolman swims closer, towering over the youth. But his defiant glare doesn't waver, even as his skin involuntarily grows a shade darker to blend with the floor.
"You'd better watch your mouth. The king allows random inspections to make sure ungrateful brats like you are safe."
"Vino!" Feliciano whispers desperately.
Lovino keeps his eyes locked with the older merman, defiance bubbling up in his throat and overpowering his fear.
"The only thing the king cares about is stamping out magic-users."
The room is silent for a moment before the patrolman gives a sardonic smirk. "And he will. Even that filth over there." He gestures over to Feliciano, who gasps.
Dark green eyes widen with rage as Lovino throws himself forward, fists hitting cold armour. "Don't threaten my brother!" he yells.
A loud crack sounds.
He finds himself on the floor, holding his cheek as a cloud of blood swirls in front of his face.
The morning light was barely starting to creep into the windows before Gilbert was already up and tossing on his clothes. Waking up early had been his normal routine for years, but this morning was a little different. He couldn't be late.
Pulling the ends of his sash tight, the prince opened a nearby window and darted out of it, swiftly swimming over the city. Workers tended to the gardens of the palace below, and the faint sound of chatter made its way to Gilbert's ears as he quickly glided over the shops outside the walls. A guard silently hovered nearby, and Gilbert turned on the charm as he slowed down.
"What's up?" He smiled as he passed the guard, stopping to slowly circle in front of the armoured figure.
Oh. This was a mistake. It was Berwald, easily the most stern creature in existence.
"Your highness," Berwald said, his icy blue eyes boring into the prince's red ones. "What are you doing so early?"
"Just out for a stroll!" Gilbert grinned, idly swaying his tail. "I want to beat my speed record, you know?"
"Your father wants you inside today." Shit.
"W-Well, he never told me himself. Don't you think that's a little unfair? Let me go for a bit, I'll be back in a few hours, I promise! It's still really early!"
A terrifying silence filled the water between them, Berwald's eyes unreadable as always. Or maybe it was because he was a foreigner. Where was he from again? The Norwegian Sea? Gilbert never knew, but wherever he was from, it was probably a really weird place. A place where no one had any emotions or sympathy.
"Fine. I will give you three hours."
Or maybe Berwald really did have a heart under all that armour!
"Thanks! I'll be back soon!" He grinned and quickly darted off again, leaving the stoic guard behind. Today might be his lucky day.
Far in the distance, through the deep blue and faintly lit by filtered sunlight, he could see a massive watchtower reaching high above the area. It was the first of many scattered throughout the kingdom's territory, and one of four surrounding the capital city. The watchers would be much harder to convince than Berwald if he wanted to leave the city, regardless of circumstances. But, as Gilbert steadied his pace and started to swim downward, he knew he didn't have to go through them at all. There was an easier route, one that he had shown the visiting princess yesterday.
He made his way around scattered homes and through archways, nodding awkwardly to anyone who bowed as he passed by. Soon, he reached a small area of the city that was seemingly abandoned. Broken buildings stood empty and silent, blending in with the rocky area as plant life and mosses started to take over. Gilbert stopped in front of a patch of seaweed, moving it aside to reveal a small hole in the ground. This was the ticket out. He had stumbled upon it a few years ago while aimlessly exploring, and to his knowledge, nobody else knew about it. Glancing around, he made sure no one had tailed him, then dove into the hole that led into a series of narrow, pitch black caverns.
It wasn't the easiest way to leave the city, nor was it the most comfortable. He had gotten his clothes snagged on the rough walls on multiple occasions, sometimes leading to him tearing a few garments. Those were tough to explain to his father. But after dozens of nights memorizing the ins and outs of the caverns, Gilbert was able to confidently push his way through them without running into any dead ends or scraping himself on anything. He had tried showing Heracles before, but since the younger merman lived in another town in the kingdom, he decided it was much more convenient to A: go through the watchtowers or B: just have Gilbert come to him. Lazy punk.
After about fifteen minutes of twisting his way through the crevices, Gilbert spotted a small spot of light. Within moments, he emerged out into the open sea again, rubbing his eyes. It had definitely gotten brighter out while he was in the caverns. He looked back towards the city and the tower, staying low so the watchers didn't notice him; it would be a pain if anyone official found out about his secret exit. The area remained quiet, so he quickly brushed at his vest and continued on.
From here on out, it would be easy to go around the other towers, considering he knew exactly where each one was. And it was absolutely necessary to avoid them. If anyone spotted him, he would never be able to make this trip again.
He was heading to the edge of the territory, where the humans were.
"Good morning, Gilbert."
That was the first thing he heard when he broke through the surface of the water. At least, he thought that's what Heracles said. Everything sounded kind of different above water―more crisp and sharp, like needles in his ears. The second thing he heard was the cry of seagulls overhead, no doubt circling the skies in search of food, especially marooned clams.
"Morning," he replied after he had gulped down a breath of air. Ew, even his voice sounded different. He would never get used to that. Neither would he get used to the brighter sun, as his eyes squinted painfully against the light. Where were all the clouds, dammit? "Is Kiku here yet?"
"No." Heracles leaned on the shore of the tiny island, chest pressed against the sloping sand as he reached for a stick not too far away. His tail swished a little under the water to give him a boost. "He should...be here any moment, though...Got it." He held the stick between his webbed fingers and relaxed against the warm sand again, stripping off a bit of rotten bark.
"I hurried for no reason?"
"Any moment," Heracles calmly repeated, flicking the stray bark behind him.
Gilbert sunk a little lower in the water, letting his tail rest in the muddy sand as air bubbled up from his submerged mouth. His squinted eyes traced the tree in front of them, the only mark of green on the island. Honestly it wasn't so much an island but a big rock. He lifted up his submerged chin and spat out a stream of water, watching it paint the sand darker. Despite all its drawbacks, land was always fascinating to him. Everything worked subtly different.
A flutter of black feathers came in from the nearby coastline, settling itself onto the branches above. Gilbert perked up and slammed his palms against the shore. "Kiku!"
The carrion crow above them nodded. "Gilbert-san. Heracles-san. Good morning." He itched his back with his beak, then glided to the ground where the two mermen were half-submerged. "It appears you have memorized my schedule."
"Nah, we just know you like coming to this island in the morning." Gilbert flashed the bird a grin.
"It's more like a big rock." Heracles mumbled.
"Agreed." Kiku added.
"Well―anyway!" Gilbert excitedly patted the sand with both hands. "Kiku, do you have anything cool to show us?"
"You would like to know if I have any more human items?" Gilbert nodded eagerly. "As a matter of fact, I do." Kiku quickly hopped over to the base of the tree and began scratching at the gravelly ground with his claws, uncovering a damp cloth bag. He pulled it out with his beak and picked around inside for a moment.
Gilbert and Heracles looked on, the prince craning his head to get a better view while the younger merman blinked slowly.
"Here it is." Kiku took out a small, silver instrument that gleamed in the sun; he held it in his beak as he made his way back to the two.
"Whoa..." Gilbert gently took it, examining it with furrowed brows and poking the pronged end. "What is it?"
The crow's feathers ruffled proudly. "After extensive research, I have determined that this specimen is known as a dingeru hopa."
"...Din-ger...hoe-puh?"
Kiku nodded, not bothering to correct him.
"Dinglehopper," Heracles said quietly, staring at the object.
"No, that's not it."
The crow tilted his head. "I am still unsure as to its purpose, but I am fairly certain it is for hair."
Gilbert scratched at his head with the instrument. "Hey, you might be right. This feels good." He held it out to Heracles. "Hey Hera, maybe it'll get all that sand out of your hair."
The younger merman reflexively moved to touch his matted brown hair. "My hair's fine."
Gilbert laughed and tried to poke Heracles with the metal tool, turning towards Kiku. "Don't you think it would work perfectly for him?"
"I, uh...I am not inclined to give an answer."
Gilbert's smile dropped, and he flopped onto the beach, pouting. "Why are all my friends so serious..." The heat of the day felt like it was drying his grey skin, so he sunk lower in the water, sighing contently.
"By the way," Kiku straightened himself again. "I have received information that may benefit you. There is talk of a ship that will be sitting in port tonight. It contains mysterious cargo for a celebration. The local birds warn that the items are a commonly known danger to anything that flies, so I will not be joining you on your investigation"
Gilbert blinked and lifted his head up. "Dangerous? What do they do?"
"Apparently they are thrown into the air and become temporary replacement suns, and they also produce sudden loud noises."
"That's amazing!" He jolted up so fast that his tail splashed out of the water for a moment, and he grabbed his friend by the shoulder. "Heracles, we have to go see that!"
"Please let me know how it goes." Kiku nodded once to them.
"We definitely will!"
"We will?" Heracles arched a brow. "I'm not really fond of things that...turn into suns, Gil."
"Hey, if the humans are brave enough to launch them while being on land, then we can go see them, too. We'll just stay in water. Come on, it'll be great!"
Heracles averted his eyes, instead focusing on a fragment of shell stuck in the sand. "...As long as we stay in water."
"Woohoo!" The prince threw his fist into the air, then realized he was still holding the foreign metal object. "Oh, right. Catch!" Gilbert tossed it towards Kiku, who flapped his wings out of shock and managed to catch it in his beak. He side-eyed the merman and strode back to his bag, dropping it inside.
"Unfortunately, I must leave and catch lunch now," the crow said, kicking sand over the cloth bag. "My sincerest apologies for leaving so soon. A local taccola stole my food stash earlier, so I must hunt for more. And then plot vengeance."
"Good luck!" Gilbert waved to the crow, who nodded at the two mermen.
"Have fun this evening. Stay safe."
Gilbert winced and shaded his eyes as he watched the crow fly into the bright blue sky. He realized a moment later that Kiku had probably come to the island in search of lunch, but he and Heracles most definitely scared everything off with their arrival. He'd be feeling guilty if he wasn't so damn excited.
"Fake suns!" He threw his hands in the air theatrically, grinning wide. "Can you imagine it? Bright things in the sky that make loud noises? Like those bombs the humans invented! BOOM!" He spread his arms wide as he shouted, falling backwards into the water with a splash. Heracles followed behind as the prince swam lower, away from the island and into the cooler depths of the sea. "I can't wait for tonight!"