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Captivity - 11 -

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The picture is a collection of the styles I've been working with as of late. So far most of the chapter covers have been a means of testing out different tools in SAI, etc. I must say I do quite enjoy this one.

As well, this chapter is far longer than most, so I hope you enjoy!

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Chapter 11

 

Are You Really There?

 

 

 

             Sam heaved a sigh as she pulled her luggage off the carousel, turning to leave the airport like all the others returning home from the holidays. It had been a long few weeks, from having to scramble together college midterms, to putting up with her parents fussing when she came to visit for the season. Overall it had been a stressful ordeal and she was just grateful to have finally caught a breather, deciding to skip down and head home a few days early. It would be a much needed break from everything until classes started up again.

             The air was still brisk when she stepped out onto the curb, flagging down a taxi to chauffeur her the rest of the way back to her dorm. She watched the scenery lazily as it passed by, half lost in her thoughts. She hadn’t been able to spend much time at the aquarium since the incident, and with everything that followed, she hadn’t the time to do much more than stop by to feed Danny, and with the holidays, she hadn’t even been able to accomplish that.  The poor mer was probably downtrodden with the lack of activity, let alone that she had been unable to console the creature since the fight.

             Her phone buzzing pulled her attention from the window, browsing through the new texts on screen. It was another update from her uncle on the mer’s condition and so far it wasn’t looking so good. Danny was refusing to eat again and it appeared that during her absence the poor beast had slipped into a state of depression. She couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty for it.

             She could still hear those broken words echoing in her mind; the scared expression across his blood streaked features. Those were the first words he’d spoken, and they’d been in pleading askance for forgiveness she hadn’t reciprocated from a mix of shock and loss of time. It still wasn’t an excuse, whether or not life had kicked her feet out from under her with everything coming up at once. She hadn’t taken the time, and now she was left picking up the pieces. She could only hope that her aquatic friend would forgive her in turn.

             From what her uncle had explained, since he’d picked up feeding the mer again it had been a rather strained interaction. Danny remained skittish and apprehensive whenever he’d walked into the enclosure and would all but cower at the sight of his injured hand. Even though it was healing fine and the damage wasn’t completely permanent, it seemed there were more than just physical scars to heal on the mer’s part. Sam could only hope that she could set things right and get the mer to feel safe around them once again.

             The cab eventually stopped and she paid the driver his dues before getting out and heading for her room. Closing the door behind her, she let out a tired breath she didn’t know she’d been holding while taking in the sight of the silent tranquility that was her space. From the looks of things her roommate had yet to return, and she was fine with that, she’d come back early in order to get away from her clingy parents and have a moment to breathe before she was forced to dive back down into the tangle mess of stress.

             Setting her things aside to unpack later, she flopped down upon the bed, taking in the scent of her pillow in the hopes of getting some well needed rest. Perhaps after a good nap she’d go check up on Danny; the mer was becoming almost as needy as her parents, but at least he was fine with her being who she was rather than trying to doll her up as something she wasn’t. A sigh escaped her as she snuggled into her sheets, deciding to put those thoughts away for another time, letting her mind drift away into dreamland.

 

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             Nate frowned as he watched the waters lap against the stone, no sign of its inhabitant coming up from the depths below to greet him. Since he’d entered the exhibit, the jet black mer had yet to surface and didn’t appear willing to do so anytime soon. It reminded him of how his relationship with the mythical creature had started, except that instead of being greeted with aggression, the mer had taken to avoiding him entirely.

             He knew that Danny was hiding from him, unable to come to terms with the fact that he’d bitten him. The few times he’d gone down into the exhibit hall below and peered through the glass, he’d managed to glimpse the mer sulking amidst the sea grass; at least until he noticed him and darted off into the privacy of the caves. It was going to be difficult to mend the rift between them.

             “Oh what am I going to do with you?..” He just shook his head, replacing the old pile of fish left ignored by the water’s edge with a fresh one. It was most likely going to spoil like the last one, but he had to keep trying. He wasn’t about to give up on his aquatic friend just because of a spat.

 

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             The feeling of weightlessness; lulling in the sense of at ease it brought. Adrift was the best way to describe it, rocking back and forth with a gentle tide.  But the sounds of waves did not meet with the sensation, rather the mulling echoes of voices calling out, diluted into ripples that brushed against the skin, and yet rung like music in the chest. A single call rose up above the others, its sound shrill and eerie, silencing all the other noise in its wake.

             A still silence. No sound or echo bouncing off tumbling surf, just a feeling of emptiness that hung with a sense of loneliness. Like a small shell tossed up and out into the open water, only to drift down to rest within the sand below. A broken remnant of what it used to be.  It appeared so innocent where it lay forgotten. But reaching out to touch it flashed eyes of toxic green and jaws like a snake…

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             Sam’s eyes snapped open with a hushed breath, hands held tightly to her chest. It took a moment to still her initial panic, taking in her surroundings and the realization that it had simply been a dream. But she couldn’t shake the unease that had settled into her stomach. She’d never been one to have surreal dreams, and most of her dreams didn’t leave her so shaken. Sure she was a lover of all things dark and spooky, but those sorts of things didn’t feel like something crawling beneath the skin. Perhaps it had simply unnerved her with the sheer oddity of it. There’d been too much stress in her life lately.

             Sitting up, she yawned, stretching and bringing her hands up to rub away sleep, only to find her fingers wrapped up in the old hemp bracelet she’d purchased from the aquarium months ago. It was a silly thing she’d picked up last summer during the center’s opening, and yet it had helped clue her into how the help the jet black mer back then. It still had the broken tip of the shell remaining, the edge shaped where the mer’s fangs had sliced through it like butter.  Since that fateful day, she’d kept the trinket under her pillow as a reminder of how their friendship had started. It left a smile on her lips. Perhaps it would help them out of this rut they were in.

             A quick change of clothes and she was on her way to the aquarium. Meandering about the exhibits as she familiarized herself with the feel of the place after almost a month of absence, it felt nice to finally have some time to actually spend here. She eventually fulfilled her need for nostalgia, heading into the back rooms and down the halls in search of her uncle.

             She found the man mulling over a large stack of paperwork, a mix of bills and other things that had piled up since he’d been forced on sick leave from the incident. While he had complained that it wasn’t bad enough to quit working, had insisted that he take some time to let it heal properly, and with a great deal of persuasion he’d finally agreed and now he was sitting there with a load of catch up to do. Sam just chuckled at the sight before knocking on the doorframe, watching as the redheaded scientist spooked and then floundered to gather up the scattering papers.

             “Need some help?” she mused, picking up a few papers that had fallen to the floor and offering them over. This was not before she’d managed to catch of glimpse of what he’d been puzzling over, the logo G.I.W. printed in the upper left corner, “So what’s all this about?”

             He smiled sheepishly, taking the offered papers and setting them back upon the desk, still looking like a kid with his hand caught in a cookie jar, “I was actually just about to ask your input on it. As you know we’ve had Danny here at the center for six months, and as it is, we’re not entirely familiar with everything he needs or how he behaves, only what we’ve been successful with.”

             Sam nodded at this, allowing him to continue. It was true that they only knew the bare minimum about their aquatic companion, whether or not she liked to admit it.

             “This past month in particular has been difficult on all of us, and I feel that Danny’s probably taken it the hardest. But with our lack of experience and knowledge of the matter I’m not sure exactly how to help him”

             “Why not just set him free?” She scowled, not liking where any of this was going. It was known to both of them that the mer was slipping into depression, and as far as she was concerned being in captivity played a big part in that problem.

             “Sam…” He frowned, knowing that was one argument he wasn’t willing to get into. She eventually yielded with a huff, crossing her arms and looking like an irritable teenager, “What I was getting to was that I’ve been doing a bit of research into the matter and ended up coming into contact with a small organization known as the ‘Guys in the Water’. It seems that they’ve been studying a small colony off the coast of New Zealand for several years now and with that sort of experience they could help us help Danny.”

             “Are you sure they’ll actually help?” Sam quirked a brow, slightly interested. She’d suspected that they weren’t the first ones to have encountered the fabled beasts, but with now news on the matter she wasn’t certain. To hear of a group who actually had been in contact with them and kept it all hidden from prying eyes left the wonder on if they could actually be trusted with the secret of their own mer, or if they would hide things from them as well.

             Nate had picked up on her uncertainty, leaning back into his chair with a sigh. It was a difficult matter to think over, but some of the pros outweighed the cons. It was more a matter on if everything said and done was true, and if their resident mer would put up with them. Lately he’d become a bit more open with people being around, ignoring most of the other staff with a state of at ease rather than screeching at every passerby.

             “The most I can say for certain is that they’ll be of great help if he winds up sick again. Having a vet that actually knows how to treat his species would be more beneficial than trying to pay off a vet that might not know how to help… And despite Vlad’s best intentions, I honestly don’t trust is choice in vets.”

             Sam sighed, seeing as she didn’t have any opposing argument other than her distrust of the unknown. She didn’t know these people or what they were capable of, only that they seemed to have experience in the field and knew how to keep it under wraps, “Seeing as you’ve already made up your mind on the matter, when should we expect a visit?”

             “Hmm, a few weeks, give or take setting up the arrangements,” He shrugged, turning to sort through a few more papers while his niece had taken to wandering about the office.

             She’d perused the shelves briefly before looking back at him, “Considering that you’re thinking about a vet… Just how bad is he?”

             Raising his gaze up from his work, the marine scientist took in the look of concern upon her features. It contrasted heavily with the lighting in the space, making her look older, worn, and he couldn’t help but feel a similar weight in his own chest. He knew that she wouldn’t like the answer, and his expression was enough to convey that message.

             “That bad…?”

             He nodded, heaving a sigh as he set down his work, “He’s not been eating for the past two weeks, and given what he usually intakes, there’s no doubt that he’s lost a decent amount of weight. I’ve been trying to get him to eat, but he’s not let me anywhere nears him, and I fear he’s severely depressed.”

             “Why didn’t you call me?! I could have helped!” Her yelling was enough to get her uncle cowering behind his computer monitor. While he loved his niece’s compassion, she could be scary when she was angry.

             “I didn’t want you to worry,” his excuse only led to her pursing her lips with a growl before she relented, flopping onto the couch across the room.

             Sam just continued to scowl as she let her gaze wander about the room, trying to let her irritation settle. Slipping her hands into her pockets, her fingers wrapped around the small bracelet she’d held onto, it let her mind drift through the memories of what had led up to this point, and with it came a solemn understanding.

             “I think he’s afraid he’ll hurt you again…”

             Nate blinked at her words, at first uncertain as to what she meant, until she’d turned to look over at him. She was discussing the incident again. How it seemed to be the catalyst for all this negative behavior and damage to the mer’s wellbeing. The question was how to put it all together and overcome what had happened.

             Seeing the man’s inquiring gaze, Sam sighed, pulling out the old trinket to fiddle with it before she continued to speak.

              “Danny apologized to me that day…,” she turned the bracelet over in her hands, examining the broken shell for what it was, “I’d honestly never expected those to be his first words...”

             “He spoke?” Nate couldn’t help but stare over at her in shock. It shouldn’t have been possible. While the mer had shown signs of considerable intelligence and potential to understand their language, yet he’d given no indication of being able to speak it. The lack of proper vocal cords didn’t help.

             A long look from his niece was enough to shake him from his scientific ramble. As curious as the potential of him understanding speech was, it could wait till later when the weight of the situation didn’t lie so heavily on those words.

             Sam just forced a smile at his antics, sometimes there was just no stopping the man’s inquisitive mind. Shaking her head, she let her own thoughts go back over the memory. She could still see those bright green eyes staring up at her, begging her to forgive what he had done. There was so much fear and regret that hung within that gaze. Sometimes it was scary how quickly they could forget he wasn’t human; but with such an understanding of the world around him, one simply couldn’t call the mer an animal.

             “It was broken, but they were definitely words…” She frowned, wrapping her arms around her knees, “I can still see his face… I’ve never seen him look so scared, and I didn’t know how to react…”

             The scientist sat back in the moment of silence, biting the tip of his thumb in deep thought. While much of this information was startlingly human, there was still the matter of what it all meant and led to, “So in other words, there’s the possibility that he believes we haven’t forgiven him and has ben punishing himself as a result?”

             It was a rather farfetched idea, but so far there wasn’t much to go by besides the gut instinct of his niece. So far that instinct had been right, and with no other options to turn to besides calling in the vet, he nodded his agreement.

             “Only one way to find out,” He picked himself up from his chair; Sam doing the same as she followed him out towards the main exhibit.

             Aside from the sound of the door closing behind them and the gentle slosh of the wave turbine, it was dead silent; no familiar cries from the jet black mer vying for her attention. The pile of fresh fish had been left ignored by the water’s edge, untouched from where it was placed earlier that afternoon. It was a depressing sight, leaving them feeling almost alienated by the lack of activity in the enclosure.

             It seemed that the mer was not going to appear of his own accord and would take a bit of coaxing to get him out of his hiding place. A frown creased her lips as she let the reality of this all sink in; she’d have to drag him out like she had last time. She just hoped that it would be less upsetting.

             Pulling off her shirt and pants, she shoved them into her uncle’s arms.

             “Hold these,” She ordered before jumping in, leaving her uncle sputtering in a mix of embarrassment and protest.

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             Danny lay coiled up within the confines of one of the caves, his hands had been clasped firmly around one of the oyster shells from his clutch. In a moment of despair, he’d torn the once closely guarded shellfish apart, and had been left with the broken pieces to stare at for the long, lonely hours. As expected, they’d not produced any yield; but in that moment he hadn’t care, having settled into the fact that he was destined for an eternity of loneliness, trapped within the confines of this place.

             He’d not seen the goth in over two weeks, and had all but given up, believing she had moved onto other waters, like all the others, leaving him to wallow in his own self-pity that would eventually boil into frustrated and aggressive anger. But he couldn’t let himself fall that far. It was the aggression that got into this mess and every other mess he’d been in. It was why his shoal had chased him away, and it was why his beloved had now left him.

             The sudden flurry of the surface tension was enough to break the mer from his stupor. His form jolting and having forgotten the broken piece of shell clasped within his hands yelped as it tore at the webbing between his fingers. He grimaced, taking a quick glance at the damage before tossing the broken bits away. It would heal in its own time; right now he had bigger problems to worry about.

             The violent ripples in the water panged against his lateral line, warning of a large and inbound entity. The sensation wracked his body with fear as his brooding thoughts were suddenly replaced with panic. He didn’t know what to expect. Had they finally had enough of him and come to run him off for good? Not that he had any place to run to considering he was boxed in on all sides, and if he could not flee, then he would certainly perish.  What he hadn’t expected to see was the face of his beloved peering on at him, and expression of concern rather than anger upon her face.

             After a bit of scouring, Sam had finally found the mer tucked into a nook in one of the caves. A frightened, nervous look held upon his features, as if he feared he would be beaten, and the sight of his skinnier form did not sit well with her. He’d truly been punishing himself all this time. It was time to put a stop to it.

             Taking a wary approach, uncertain of how much his behavior had shifted over the last two weeks, she brought herself to crouch along the mouth of the cave, reaching a hand out in attempts to console the skittish mer. But instead of him warming up to her touch, Danny flinched back a whine in his throat. It seemed it would take more than just a bit of encouragement to get him to come out, but time was not in her favor and she was forced to go up for air.

             When she breached the surface she was greeted by the sound of her uncle yelling after her. For a man who dealt with so much of the wild world, he was certainly a worry wart.

             “I’m fine! He’s just being stubborn!” She huffed, taking in another gulp of air before diving back down completely ignoring the man’s protests.

             Danny simply watched her return to the surface. Feeling it was probably the last time he’d see her. But he couldn’t help the pang of hope pulling at his heartstrings at seeing her again. He’d grown so desperate for her, to feel her touch, to know she was there for him to the point that he feared she was simply a trick in his mind, like so many other things that pulled him into a state of madness. He longed for the contact she brought him, but also wondered that, if this was deemed to be but a delusion, would reaching out to it cause him to snap. 

             He wasn’t able to think on it for long as she was soon returning back down into the depths and he couldn’t help but feel drawn to her, claws tapping along the threshold to the open water. He was still unsure if this was all just within his mind, most of his hallucinations never came back to him. Watching her for a long moment, he gekkered nervously; this felt more and more real with each passing moment.

             Within the next, she was in front of him again, her hand held out in front of him. The broken bits of string and shell could be seen between her fingers, eyes widening with realization as to what it was. It had been the bracelet around her wrist the first time he’d met her without glass in between them. He remembered how he’d mistaken the shell as food, rather than a decoration. It almost seemed funny now.

             A jostle of the trinket deemed she wanted the mer to take it, and it was in that moment that he understood. This was very much real; she was indeed floating in front of him, offering a gift to forgive her absence. A reminder that while she may have been angry with him, she had not left him. He still had a chance to make it up to her, to prove to her that he was worthy of her affections; although he’d have to find another gift. A glance back at the mess of tattered shells left a grimace on his face before he turned back to her.

             Sam winced, knowing she was running out of time. She could feel her breath slipping away with each second that ticked by, and the mer’s indecisiveness was making it feel far longer than it should. But she couldn’t up and leave for the surface just yet, something in her gut warned that this was her last chance to try and set things right, that if she didn’t go through with this now, he’d never accept her or her uncle again. Yet she could feel her muscles straining as they screamed for oxygen and she grimaced before realizing she had to make the decision and head up.

             The mer shifted suddenly when she’d made to leave again, a webbed hand reaching up to grab her. She started at the sudden grasp, writhing desperately to break free; she had to get to the surface. It did her no good, as the mer, having grown curious with some sort of revelation, pulled her close, an inquisitive expression upon his features. Normally she would have shared similar interest for his sudden change in demeanor, but at that moment she couldn’t breathe, and everything felt like it was threatening to close in around her.

             ‘Air! I need Air!’

             She thrashed, giving one last effort to try and get out of his iron grip, but her movements were growing sluggish, a dark haze starting to set in along with the pain of her lungs demanding oxygen. She could feel herself sinking.

             To say that Danny had panicked was an understatement. For the moment she had turned to leave, everything in him feared for the worst and he’d finally relented into reaching out for her. Pulling her close he’d whined, trying to get her to understand, but he was only met with thrashing limbs desperate to be rid of him. It wasn’t until he say the wave of bubbles leave her and how she started to go limp within his grasp that he realized the reason for her desperation. She couldn’t breathe!

             He didn’t know what to do, everything just froze in that moment; staring down at her form as her violet eyes glazed over, everything beginning to drift into nothingness. He had to find a means to save her, and he had to act on it now. Remembering his own air reserves that kept him afloat, the mer tilted her head up, hoping that this would work, and clamped his jaws around her’s, forcing the air from his own lungs into her own.

             After a minute of circulating her breath, he could see her features tense, beginning to come to life with the needed oxygen and he mentally heaved a sigh of relief at knowing he’d succeeded. But now he was left with the fact that he was so close to her, his lips pressed up against hers. While he’d heard stories and seen humans performing the gesture, he’d never really understood what it meant, only that it was apparently some form of affection they showed to their respective mates. Considering he’d all but chosen her as his own, it was strangely appropriate, and he could understand now why humans were so fond of it. The soft sensation of her lips left a tingling sensation along his spine, and he couldn’t help but give into the guilty pleasure of attempting to mimic the action with its true intention.

             The next thing Sam knew, her chest was practically bursting with air and she found herself planted into a kiss with the aquatic beast. A startled squeak almost cost her second breath as she stared into those half lidded eyes before they snapped open, staring at her in panic before he pulled away, coiling back against the cave wall.

             She could only stare over at him with a look of confusion and uncertainty, a hand reaching up to brush over her lips. They still buzzed with the unfamiliar sensation, like they’d brushed against scales. There was the possibility that they had, seeing as she’d found the mer inches from her face. A questioning glance shot the mers way left him warbling some sort of apology, looking like a beaten dog before deciding better of it and popping and air bubble off his lips. She watched the small stream of gas drift upwards to break the surface, understanding dawning. He’d saved her from drowning; but the method in which he’d gone about it left her cheeks red wondering why he couldn’t have simply taken her to the surface.

             The surface; he hadn’t surfaced in over two weeks. Was he afraid to? She didn’t know, but with this limited renewal of breath, she at least knew she would have to head back up, and hopefully pull him out of his hidey hole at the same time.

             Swimming back over to him, she ignored the fearful whines, bringing a hand out to gently brush over a scaled cheek. He flinched under the initial touch, but she pressed on, continuing to caress the frightened mer, scratching a bit behind the ears. Danny eventually relented into her touch, nuzzling up against her arms as if he’d never see her again; it was a sad sight, but at the same time it bought a soft smile to her lips, knowing that he wasn’t lost forever.

             She continued to pet him, slowly distancing herself from the cave with each motion, the mer obediently following, too wrapped up in the need to feel her touch to care. By the time he’d noticed where they were, they had breached the surface of the waters and were sitting in the shallow end of the pool. At this realization the mer whined trying to make his way back into the depths only to be pulled into the goth’s arms.

             The mer squirmed within her grip, giving a yowl; water swashing about violently from the beast’s floundering tail. There was no doubt that had he been at full strength he would have simply pulled them both into the depths, but at that moment he could feel his strength waning, left to flailing and crying out like a little guppy.  Sam simply frowned at his actions, knowing that even without his health the mer would continue this protest until exhaustion hit.  Danny could squirm all he wanted, but she wasn’t going to let him revert back into the depressed stupor she’d found him in.

             She watched him continue to struggle weakly in her grasp, desperate to hide, and yet not strong enough to do so. It was a depressing sight, and she wished it wasn’t so. Braving whatever consequences would come after, she held him close, resting her chin atop his head in hopes that he’d calm at the act of comfort.

             The mer stilled almost instantly in her arms; his body tense, and for a moment she feared she’d made the wrong move. That was until she caught sight of those large green eyes looking up at her with an almost unreadable expression, until he all but broke down in her arms, sobs wracking his emaciated form as he clung desperately to her.  Sam could only sigh, petting his head in attempts to soothe him. She continued to console the mer until exhaustion took him, leaving him sleeping fitfully within her arms.

             Nate stared on at the sight before him almost unable to believe what he was seeing. With the time his niece had spent under the water he had begun to panic and was just about to dive in after her when the two of them had breached the surface. Now he was left standing before the dozing mer as Sam held the beast within her lap, gently rubbing one of his ears.

             He sighed softly, shaking his head as he knelt down beside them, taking in the state of the mer’s condition. While it wasn’t as dreadful as the first time when he’d called Vlad in desperation to find help for the beast, it was clear something would have to be done. Danny had lost more weight than was healthy, and judging by his fitful state, this was more than just something a little food could fix.

             Giving a knowing look towards his niece, he was surprised she’d been giving him the same expression. Despite her distrust for strangers near the mer, this situation called for help they couldn’t give. At least he’d gotten to explain it earlier.

             “I’ll go call the vet.”

 

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TwilightFox42's avatar

Aww, so amazing