[CHAPTERFIC] Cerulean Chapter Two (Axis Powers Hetalia)
Title: Cerulean [FF.NET] [ Writing Journal Previous Chapters ]
Pairing: Main: AmericaxEngland. Minor: CanadaxUkraine, SwedenxFinland, DenmarkxNorway, SpainxSouth Italy.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance/Humor/Drama/Alternate Universe
Word Count: 4,159
Summary: Arthur is spending a normal summer at his father's beach house in Cape Cod, when he encounters the extraordinary in the form of an enthusiastic young merman named Alfred, who holds an intense curiosity for Arthur. Over one summer, they'll fall in love. Over one summer, their lives will change forever.
Chapter Summary: He really, really wanted to be Arthur’s friend. It wasn’t hard to admit. Okay, he was a human, and that was an automatic plus. But Alfred liked talking to him. They were around the same age, and he was fun to watch, if unintentionally so. From the way he scowled to the way his eyebrows (which were really big!) furrowed to his weird accent. He wasn’t entirely like any human that Alfred had ever observed.
Author's Note: Three fic updates in a row. Hopefully I can keep this up! :D! I have some characters in this chapter that don't have canon human names.
Derek- Denmark
Nikolas- Norway
Ingimar- Iceland
Katyusha- Ukraine
“Hey, tell me about shoes, okay?” Alfred queried, shifting excitedly on the edge of the boat. Arthur’s eyebrows rose. Mid-afternoon had turned into late afternoon, and according to Arthur’s (luckily waterproof) watch, he’d been chatting with the merman for a solid two hours. Alfred’s curiosity was limitless. He never ran out of things to babble about, questions to ask, and discoveries to make.
Arthur noticed that Alfred was staring rather intently at the pair of deck shoes that he’d slid under the bench. This was far from the first trivial item Alfred had asked him about, so he shook his head and snatched the shoes from where they had been stashed. “Well err… they go on your feet.”
Alfred took the shoes from his grasp. “I know that!” He placed a shoe on each hand, mimicking the movement of walking with them. “But why do you wear them? I mean, don’t your toes help you with balance and everything? I can’t imagine wearing something over the end of my fluke. It would really slow me down!”
Arthur bit his lip and sighed. “Don’t be daft. We don’t float around up here like you do in the water. We walk around on hard ground, and it’s easy to hurt yourself if you don’t wear shoes.”
Alfred rested the shoes atop his fin, picking at the leather that made up their upper part. “For protecting your feet then? Aren’t socks enough to do that?”
“No, of course not. Socks are soft. They don’t protect you well at all…”
The merman looked truly boggled now as he played with the shoes, investigating the rubber soles. “Then why wear both of the---“
Alfred’s question was interrupted by a loud splash. He clicked quietly under his breath, and Arthur half wondered if he’d just cursed in mermish. Alfred was staring straight forward. He’d dropped the shoes to his side. Arthur followed his gaze, and it landed on another blasted merman.
His golden hair was slightly longer than Alfred’s, but otherwise, he looked almost identical. “…Your brother?”
Alfred nodded. “Hey Matthew!” He shouted. Matthew shot the duo a frightened look and did not come closer. Arthur caught a quick glimpse of his tail, which had peeked out of the water. It was similar in color to his brother’s, but with a tinge of violet to it.
“Alfred, what are you doing?” He yelled back. “How are you even----“
The merman next to him beamed. “This is Arthur. He can see us Matthew, he can see us! It’s so amazing. Swim over here, come on!”
Matthew’s expression was wary, but he swam toward the yacht nonetheless. He stopped about a meter away, refusing to close the distance. “Alfred, are you crazy? Humans can’t find out about us. It’s a disaster waiting to happen.”
“Um, hallo, I’m right here,” Arthur cut in. “No use talking about me as if I’m not here.”
Up close, Arthur noticed more differences between Alfred and his twin. Matthew’s features were slightly softer, more rounded, and his eyes were a shade different. He also did not speak English as well. If Arthur thought the way that Alfred formed his words was strange, it was nothing compared to how Matthew struggled to wrap his mouth around the sounds of the English language. But considering Alfred’s intense interest in everything human, he wondered if Alfred was the exception, if he spoke the language better than his family. He’d have to bring it up with him.
Alfred shot his brother a reassuring grin. “Arthur is awesome. I’ve been talking to him most of the afternoon. He’s cool, Matthew.”
Arthur’s cheeks pinked at the compliment. Matthew was investigating him now, he could tell. After about half a minute, he sighed in resignation. “But how can he see you? Alfred, you didn’t let your--- disguise down, did you?”
He shook his head vehemently. “No way! Nikolas still hasn’t taught me how to do that.”
“Probably because he knows you’d do it all the time,” Matthew replied. Alfred just laughed. “Anyway, we need to go, brother.”
Alfred rested his elbow on his fin, then his chin in his hand. He pouted. “Meeting with Ivan’s pod tonight, right?”
Matthew scratched the back of his head and glanced away, his face lightly flushed. “It’s about me and Katyusha…”
The other merman bounced, leaning forward, bright eyes and wide smile. “Are you and Katyusha…“
Matthew nodded. Alfred’s grin grew. “That’s great! Amazing!”
“Thank you.” He paused. “When we leave the meeting we can talk about… this.”
Arthur averted his eyes between the two, completely lost to whatever the bloody hell they were discussing. He recalled that Katyusha was Matthew’s girlfriend, but he hadn’t a clue what was going on otherwise. It was slightly irritating. Before he could speak up, Alfred slapped him on the shoulder.
“Before we go though, you’ve got to be formally introduced to Arthur!” The Englishman felt Alfred nudge him with his elbow.
“All right.” Arthur held out his hand. “I’m Arthur Kirkland. Pleased to meet you, Matthew.”
Hesitantly, Matthew reached forward and took his hand, shaking it briefly before pulling away. “Matthew, of Berwald and Tino’s pod. I’m Alfred’s twin brother.”
“He’s the younger one,” Alfred supplied. “Hey Matthew, can you leave us alone for a second? I’ll be right with you.”
“Okay…” he agreed, reluctantly. Matthew turned around and swam away, still in vision but out of earshot and with his back turned to the pair.
Alfred fidgeted, twiddling his fingers. “Sorry I’ve got to go,” he said.
“It’s quite all right,” Arthur replied.
“We’re definitely going to see each other again though!” It was a statement, not a question.
Arthur shrugged. “If that’s what you want. I’ve told you that it’s fine.”
Alfred beamed, placing an arm around Arthur’s back in a warm gesture. “Great. You going to be out here tomorrow?”
Arthur nodded, swallowing thickly. If this wasn’t a bloody merman, it would be a bit like a date; a date that Alfred was very enthusiastic to go on. To be honest though, the entire not being human thing aside, Alfred was likely more interested in what he was than who he was. Who was he to deny him though? He was buoyant and enthusiastic to the point of being slightly obnoxious, but he was friendly enough, and there was no real reason not to indulge his curiosity. His company was honestly not bad, and being that he spent so much of his time alone, well, he had to admit that talking to someone was a bit pleasant.
“Perhaps we should meet up somewhere?”
“Well there’s a small underwater--- “
“Idiot. I can’t exactly see underwater, so I can’t go by that.” He rolled his eyes. “How about right at the very end of the spit in East Bay? It’s not far from where I’m living.”
Alfred furrowed his brow in thought for a moment, before smiling. “Yeah, I know where that is. Awesome. I’ll be there!”
Arthur tapped his chin. “All right. Shall we meet at noon then? Er, mid-day,” he corrected, for surely merpeople did not have clocks. Or perhaps they did. He had no blooming idea.
The other man glanced up, shielding his eyes from the sun. “When the sun is highest in the sky, right?”
“Yes, exactly.”
Pushing his arms up and practically leaping, Alfred leapt back into the water. “I can’t wait!” He laughed, dunking underwater for a moment and then coming up again, whipping his head back as he did so. Some of the droplets from his wet hair managed to hit Arthur. “Bring something cool, all right?”
“What do you want me to bring?”
Alfred lifted his shoulders. “I don’t know. Just bring something.”
Arthur sighed, but chuckled quietly nonetheless. “Very well then.”
“Oh and…” Alfred glanced down into the water, dropping eye contact completely. Arthur could see his fin beneath the surface, swishing back and forth, as if in a nervous gesture. He was rubbing the fins on his arms as well. Eventually, he gave Arthur a weak smile, pushed his arms up on the side of the yacht and leaned forward, so he was only inches from the other man.
And then he closed the distance between them, planting a chaste kiss on Arthur’s cheek. He pulled away quickly, cheeks stained scarlet. “Goodbye.” He nodded, giving a small smile, and departing as quickly as he’d come.
------------------------------------------------
The first thing Alfred was met with upon diving underwater was Matthew, joining him and swimming alongside him.
They swam in silence for several moments, until Matthew finally spoke. “I always figured it would be you, eh.”
“Huh?” Alfred slowed down, glancing sidelong at his brother.
“I mean that if any of us were ever to meet up with a human, like the old stories, it would be you,” Matthew explained.
Alfred shook his head. “They’re not stories Matthew. All the stuff that Nikolas and Derek tell us? It’s all part of our history!” He beamed.
They were almost at the bottom of the ocean, the white sand just meters away. “I guess so eh, but it seems so hard to believe, merpeople and humans living side by side like that; trading and forming alliances like they’re just two different kingdoms. And all that magic…”
Alfred stretched his arms, and then flipped upside down in a somersault, landing on the ocean floor. “It’s so amazing! Awesome. Can you imagine being able to discover everything there is to discover? All of the world’s oceans and all of the cultures and---“ He paused. “Back then, we could have, because if we couldn’t have gotten there on our own--- “
“I’m pretty happy where I am to be honest, Alfred,” Matthew interrupted. Following his gaze, Alfred spotted Katyusha in the distance, her pale yellow fin brushing the sand.
Alfred slapped his brother on the shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. “I’m sure Ivan will say it’s all right. I know he’s a bit of an ass, but it’s not like Katyusha is wanting to marry me.”
Matthew gulped and nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure you’re right, eh.” He gave Alfred a wan smile and pushed off with his fins in Katyusha’s direction.
The older twin watched him go, his mind already flitting back to his encounter above water with one Arthur Kirkland. His musings didn’t get far though, because before his brother even reached his girlfriend, Alfred felt a sharp slap on his back. “Hey, Derek.” He didn’t even need to turn around. Derek had this habit of announcing his presence with a slightly too firm pat on the back.
Swimming the other way to face Derek, Alfred was met with the rest of his pod. Berwald had his arm around Tino, Nikolas was shooting Derek a glare, and Ingimar lingered in the back.
Alfred smiled. “Hey, you guys!”
Throughout his nineteen years, Alfred had met up with several pods; but there was no doubt his was most unusual. Pods usually consisted of merpeople related by blood, as well as merfolk who had married into the pod. Alfred’s wasn’t like that at all. He and Matthew and Ingimar and Nikolas were the only members that were related, both being pairs of brothers.
They were a bit of a patchwork group. Alfred and Matthew had both been orphaned at a young age, and taken in by Berwald and Tino. His adoptive parents had a unique story before they’d taken in the twins as well. They’d decided to marry young but had left their pods in the Baltic Sea when their families refused to approve their engagement.
Ingimar had still been a child when Nikolas and Derek had started traveling together, although he was still several years older than Alfred and Matthew. The two small groups had met up during a storm in the North Sea and had decided to form a pod soon after. Their journey across the Atlantic to American waters had occurred a year later. Alfred didn’t remember living in the North Sea at all, so young was he.
But really, Alfred thought his family was awesome. He got along with all of them well, and his parents were really great and--- speaking of.
“Afternoon, Alfred,” Tino said. He glided forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, leaning in. “Um, I know you don’t like Ivan very much, and honestly, neither do I… but remember, for your brother’s sake.”
“Yeah yeah, I’ll behave myself,” Alfred grumbled.
Tino smiled. “Matthew is counting on us.” The younger merman knew that a lot was riding on this meeting, so he nodded mutely. Tino didn’t like Ivan much either, although most of the rest of the pod was more tolerant of him than Tino and Alfred were. Berwald sometimes mumbled negative comments about him, but Alfred suspected that was simply because Berwald was wary of anything that irritated Tino.
“I know,” he stated.
The pod went quiet for a few moments, and then Derek spoke up. “So I had a great day! What did you all do?”
Trust Derek to break the silence with one of his random and out of place comments. He could hear Nikolas muttering ‘moron’ under his breath. Alfred shrugged, but then smiled widely.
“Today was really awesome, actually,” he began, buoyantly. “I met this really cool human named Arthur and we---- “
“Ivan’s here,” Matthew’s voice cut in, having swam up to the group silently (Matthew had this uncanny ability to remain unnoticed). Alfred deflated. His family hadn’t looked remotely surprised at his mention of meeting a human, but then again, they had no idea that the human had met him back, actually being able to see him.
He pivoted around, swimming toward Ivan’s pod with the rest of his family on him and Matthew’s tail. They were all there with Katyusha: Natalia, Toris, Feliks, Eduard, and Raivis.
Alfred got along well with the rest of Ivan’s pod, with the slight exception of Natalia. She was all right when her brother wasn’t in the picture, if a bit dreary. But when Ivan was involved, she was scary, holding a deep and obsessive infatuation for her older brother. Alfred liked to avoid encountering that side of Natalia, although he did find it somewhat amusing, since it completely terrified Ivan. Eduard and Raivis were good friends, and Feliks was always hilarious.
Toris though, was his best friend. He caught a flash of Toris’s green fin before he emerged from behind Feliks, and Alfred smiled, waving as he came into view.
Toris greeted him in return.
Ivan swam up in front of the pod, and Alfred bit his lip to hide a scowl. He and Ivan hadn’t gotten along since the older merman’s pod had moved into the area two years before. Alfred just didn’t like him. Their personalities clashed, both dominating and strong, and most of all, Alfred disliked his relationship with Toris. Ivan was very possessive of Toris, more so than any other member of his pod. It made Alfred uneasy. Plus, he was a hero! And if Toris was at all being treated unfairly, it was his job to combat that injustice!
“Good evening!” Tino greeted cheerily, masking his dislike completely. Alfred wished he could be as good at it as his elder was. He had decided to just seal his lips and maybe… try to think of other things or something.
Like Arthur.
“’T’s a nice n’ght.” Berwald nodded.
Ivan leaned forward and shook the pair’s hands. “Good day, comrades.” He smiled. “So we’re here about Matthew and Katyusha, yes?”
Tino and Berwald nodded. Matthew looked anxious, fidgeting with his hands and darting his eyes about. Across from him, Katyusha didn’t look much better.
“Good then.” His smile quirked up. “I’m surprised it is Matthew we are discussing before Alfred. Alfred is the older of the two, yes?”
“I’m only nineteen,” Alfred snapped, and then berated himself. Ivan was attempting to bait him into an argument. Calm down, calm down. Toris was shooting him a sympathetic look. “I’m sure I’ll find someone soon.”
He took a deep breath and tried to distract himself again as Ivan babbled on. Ivan’s tail was a russet brown red, and he was kind of like--- the biggest merman Alfred had ever seen. He was pretty sure that when humans saw Ivan, they saw a walrus, not a dolphin. Or at least that was his theory, and it amused him greatly.
But thinking about that made him want to laugh, which would look totally bad. So his mind went elsewhere, to Arthur.
He really, really wanted to be Arthur’s friend. It wasn’t hard to admit. Okay, he was a human, and that was an automatic plus. But Alfred liked talking to him. They were around the same age, and he was fun to watch, if unintentionally so. From the way he scowled to the way his eyebrows (which were really big!) furrowed to his weird accent. He wasn’t entirely like any human that Alfred had ever observed.
And he could see him. His mind recalled Nikolas mentioning something about ‘the sight,’ an ability to see through magical disguises and concealments. Nikolas had said that it used to not be that uncommon, but now it was practically unheard of. Certainly I haven’t heard about it in my living memory, he’d said.
Nikolas was the one of the pod who knew the most about the magic of the merfolk, which had been rendered almost obsolete by now. The only commonly used magic was their concealing spell. He had a deep affinity to the history of the merpeople, and his partner Derek was a direct descendant of the last great mermish king. When they talked about the past, about the long forgotten history of the merpeople and their magic and their legends, Alfred listened with rapt attention.
To him, it sounded like a dream.
Arthur was going to meet up with him again. Tomorrow! That definitely meant he wanted to be his friend, right? It was so amazing and exciting. He’d have to finish asking that question about shoes…
“M’Alfred?” Berwald cut into his thoughts. “Iv’n’s speaking to you.”
Alfred’s eyes shot up to meet Ivan’s violet gaze. “As I said, it’s a good thing it is Matthew and not you, yes? I could not approve a union between you and dear sister.”
He smiled, faking politeness. “You know what you said earlier about Matthew getting married before me?” He sighed. “You’re right, that’s kind of weird, huh? I mean I know I’m barely older than him, but he’s the shy one and stuff…” Alfred chanced a glance over to Natalia. “But I was thinking, if Katyusha is getting married, that means that you’re probably next, right? You’re the second oldest, after all.” Natalia’s eyes flashed and Ivan shuddered, knowing exactly what was on her mind. She swam up next to him and linked her arm with her older brother’s.
“I think you must be right, Alfred,” Natalia replied curtly, tightening her hold on Ivan’s arm.
Alfred smirked inwardly. This was going to be a long meeting, but at least now, he could make sure that Ivan wouldn’t enjoy it either.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Arthur’s eyes slid closed as he lay on the living room’s leather couch. He’d returned from his trip out on the yacht two hours before and cooked himself up a delicious (if he did say so) dinner in the kitchen. Now he was relaxing, although his mind raced. If it hadn’t been for the fact that Arthur did not come home from his day out on the sound with a massive sunburn, he’d have sworn he’d just fallen asleep on the yacht and had a very vivid dream about a golden haired merman. But really, there was no doubt that what had happened had actually happened, down to every last bit of it. An attractive young merman had most certainly sat on the edge of his yacht and investigated his body and spent hours talking with him and then---
Alfred had kissed him on the cheek.
He jolted his eyes open, not wanting to fall asleep.
It was a bloody expensive couch, no doubt, but despite the price, Arthur still found it irritating how whenever he’d nap on it, he’d wake up and have to peel himself off it, the leather sticking to his exposed skin.
His face was red in remembrance of the kiss, of Alfred tentatively leaning up, and then leaving before Arthur could even say anything. It was just a kiss on the cheek, he told himself. Probably, it was some sort of traditional goodbye. Then again, why get so flustered over a traditional goodbye?
Arthur’s continued musing was halted by his phone ringing. He picked it up from the table, read ‘Frog’ on the caller ID screen, and flipped it open with a roll of his eyes. “Hello Francis, no I don’t care what the hell you’re doing in Provincetown.”
“Arthur, you wound me,” Francis replied, mocking hurt. “I know how it is. You are merely jealous and do not wish to discover even more things to be jealous of.”
“Not even close,” Arthur snapped, sitting up on the couch. “Do you have anything important to tell me?”
“I am just checking in, making sure you’re not allowing yourself to be miserable and lonely.”
“I’m not miserable and lonely at all,” he grumbled. “I had quite a lovely day.”
Francis chuckled. “Surely not as lovely as mine. I am at the Atlantic House…”
“The dance club?”
“Oui,” he replied. “Believe it or not, Antonio actually managed to convince Lovino to come. I guess the idea of Antonio at a club with so many other attractive men was enough to make Lovino jealous enough to come.”
“Mmm.” Arthur took a sip of a glass of water he’d set on the table. “Good for them, and I imagine you’re… honestly, I don’t want to know.”
“So what did you do today that was so lovely? Read a book?”
Arthur rolled his eyes. “For your information I…” He paused, biting his lip. “I spent several hours on the yacht with a very attractive man!”
Francis laughed. “Did you find someone as interested in the weather as you?”
“No, that’s not what we talked about at all!”
“Then surely you must be lying,” Francis spoke louder, and Arthur could hear music blaring behind him. He must have reentered the main area of the club. “Or you are talking about a character in one of the books you are reading?”
Arthur slammed the glass down. “He’s quite real! Blonde hair, blue eyes, a year younger than me. He’s quite tall as well.” Alfred had certainly looked tall, at least… or long? “His name is Alfred.”
Francis faked a gasp. “Arthur, I know you are lonely, but are you sure you are not imagining things?”
The question was although annoying, almost humorous in its irony. No he was not imagining things, but--- well; it was certainly strange enough to be a figment of his imagination.
“Is it so hard to believe?” Arthur snapped. “Oh god forbid the one that doesn’t hit on anything and everything that moves has someone who wants to spend time with him. Bloody hell, not everyone wants to hang out with a pervert like you.”
And Alfred didn’t, judging by his reaction to Arthur’s description of Francis.
Arthur could hear Francis smirking. “Anyone in their right mind would.”
“Shut the hell up. Oh, and I’m meeting up with him again tomorrow,” he added.
“I believe you then. Good luck, my brother,” he replied. “But you will have to introduce me sometime…”
Arthur cursed inwardly. How the bloody hell was he supposed to do that? He’d just acted like he was going on a date or something, blowing out of proportion and making his meeting with Alfred sound like something entirely different from what it was. Now Francis probably thought he had a potential boyfriend, and even if that were the case, it’s not like Francis could meet him anyway. Francis was going to think he was delusional, wasn’t he?
But it was his own damn fault. He’d just had to rise up to that Frog’s challenge. Francis was making fun of him, and instead of saying “why yes, I quite enjoyed my book,” he’d made the decision to tell Francis something that would shock him to hear. He rubbed his forehead. “Listen Francis, I’m going to go. Goodbye.” He hung up without even waiting for a reply.
Leaning forward, he grabbed his glass of water again, taking a gulp. On the coffee table next to the glass, was Arthur’s digital camera. Arthur thought of wide blue eyes, brimming with curiosity and fascination, and a beaming smile and a voice that filled the air with questions.
He picked up the camera, running his fingers across it. At the very least, he knew what he was going to take for Alfred tomorrow.
Pairing: Main: AmericaxEngland. Minor: CanadaxUkraine, SwedenxFinland, DenmarkxNorway, SpainxSouth Italy.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance/Humor/Drama/Alternate Universe
Word Count: 4,159
Summary: Arthur is spending a normal summer at his father's beach house in Cape Cod, when he encounters the extraordinary in the form of an enthusiastic young merman named Alfred, who holds an intense curiosity for Arthur. Over one summer, they'll fall in love. Over one summer, their lives will change forever.
Chapter Summary: He really, really wanted to be Arthur’s friend. It wasn’t hard to admit. Okay, he was a human, and that was an automatic plus. But Alfred liked talking to him. They were around the same age, and he was fun to watch, if unintentionally so. From the way he scowled to the way his eyebrows (which were really big!) furrowed to his weird accent. He wasn’t entirely like any human that Alfred had ever observed.
Author's Note: Three fic updates in a row. Hopefully I can keep this up! :D! I have some characters in this chapter that don't have canon human names.
Derek- Denmark
Nikolas- Norway
Ingimar- Iceland
Katyusha- Ukraine
“Hey, tell me about shoes, okay?” Alfred queried, shifting excitedly on the edge of the boat. Arthur’s eyebrows rose. Mid-afternoon had turned into late afternoon, and according to Arthur’s (luckily waterproof) watch, he’d been chatting with the merman for a solid two hours. Alfred’s curiosity was limitless. He never ran out of things to babble about, questions to ask, and discoveries to make.
Arthur noticed that Alfred was staring rather intently at the pair of deck shoes that he’d slid under the bench. This was far from the first trivial item Alfred had asked him about, so he shook his head and snatched the shoes from where they had been stashed. “Well err… they go on your feet.”
Alfred took the shoes from his grasp. “I know that!” He placed a shoe on each hand, mimicking the movement of walking with them. “But why do you wear them? I mean, don’t your toes help you with balance and everything? I can’t imagine wearing something over the end of my fluke. It would really slow me down!”
Arthur bit his lip and sighed. “Don’t be daft. We don’t float around up here like you do in the water. We walk around on hard ground, and it’s easy to hurt yourself if you don’t wear shoes.”
Alfred rested the shoes atop his fin, picking at the leather that made up their upper part. “For protecting your feet then? Aren’t socks enough to do that?”
“No, of course not. Socks are soft. They don’t protect you well at all…”
The merman looked truly boggled now as he played with the shoes, investigating the rubber soles. “Then why wear both of the---“
Alfred’s question was interrupted by a loud splash. He clicked quietly under his breath, and Arthur half wondered if he’d just cursed in mermish. Alfred was staring straight forward. He’d dropped the shoes to his side. Arthur followed his gaze, and it landed on another blasted merman.
His golden hair was slightly longer than Alfred’s, but otherwise, he looked almost identical. “…Your brother?”
Alfred nodded. “Hey Matthew!” He shouted. Matthew shot the duo a frightened look and did not come closer. Arthur caught a quick glimpse of his tail, which had peeked out of the water. It was similar in color to his brother’s, but with a tinge of violet to it.
“Alfred, what are you doing?” He yelled back. “How are you even----“
The merman next to him beamed. “This is Arthur. He can see us Matthew, he can see us! It’s so amazing. Swim over here, come on!”
Matthew’s expression was wary, but he swam toward the yacht nonetheless. He stopped about a meter away, refusing to close the distance. “Alfred, are you crazy? Humans can’t find out about us. It’s a disaster waiting to happen.”
“Um, hallo, I’m right here,” Arthur cut in. “No use talking about me as if I’m not here.”
Up close, Arthur noticed more differences between Alfred and his twin. Matthew’s features were slightly softer, more rounded, and his eyes were a shade different. He also did not speak English as well. If Arthur thought the way that Alfred formed his words was strange, it was nothing compared to how Matthew struggled to wrap his mouth around the sounds of the English language. But considering Alfred’s intense interest in everything human, he wondered if Alfred was the exception, if he spoke the language better than his family. He’d have to bring it up with him.
Alfred shot his brother a reassuring grin. “Arthur is awesome. I’ve been talking to him most of the afternoon. He’s cool, Matthew.”
Arthur’s cheeks pinked at the compliment. Matthew was investigating him now, he could tell. After about half a minute, he sighed in resignation. “But how can he see you? Alfred, you didn’t let your--- disguise down, did you?”
He shook his head vehemently. “No way! Nikolas still hasn’t taught me how to do that.”
“Probably because he knows you’d do it all the time,” Matthew replied. Alfred just laughed. “Anyway, we need to go, brother.”
Alfred rested his elbow on his fin, then his chin in his hand. He pouted. “Meeting with Ivan’s pod tonight, right?”
Matthew scratched the back of his head and glanced away, his face lightly flushed. “It’s about me and Katyusha…”
The other merman bounced, leaning forward, bright eyes and wide smile. “Are you and Katyusha…“
Matthew nodded. Alfred’s grin grew. “That’s great! Amazing!”
“Thank you.” He paused. “When we leave the meeting we can talk about… this.”
Arthur averted his eyes between the two, completely lost to whatever the bloody hell they were discussing. He recalled that Katyusha was Matthew’s girlfriend, but he hadn’t a clue what was going on otherwise. It was slightly irritating. Before he could speak up, Alfred slapped him on the shoulder.
“Before we go though, you’ve got to be formally introduced to Arthur!” The Englishman felt Alfred nudge him with his elbow.
“All right.” Arthur held out his hand. “I’m Arthur Kirkland. Pleased to meet you, Matthew.”
Hesitantly, Matthew reached forward and took his hand, shaking it briefly before pulling away. “Matthew, of Berwald and Tino’s pod. I’m Alfred’s twin brother.”
“He’s the younger one,” Alfred supplied. “Hey Matthew, can you leave us alone for a second? I’ll be right with you.”
“Okay…” he agreed, reluctantly. Matthew turned around and swam away, still in vision but out of earshot and with his back turned to the pair.
Alfred fidgeted, twiddling his fingers. “Sorry I’ve got to go,” he said.
“It’s quite all right,” Arthur replied.
“We’re definitely going to see each other again though!” It was a statement, not a question.
Arthur shrugged. “If that’s what you want. I’ve told you that it’s fine.”
Alfred beamed, placing an arm around Arthur’s back in a warm gesture. “Great. You going to be out here tomorrow?”
Arthur nodded, swallowing thickly. If this wasn’t a bloody merman, it would be a bit like a date; a date that Alfred was very enthusiastic to go on. To be honest though, the entire not being human thing aside, Alfred was likely more interested in what he was than who he was. Who was he to deny him though? He was buoyant and enthusiastic to the point of being slightly obnoxious, but he was friendly enough, and there was no real reason not to indulge his curiosity. His company was honestly not bad, and being that he spent so much of his time alone, well, he had to admit that talking to someone was a bit pleasant.
“Perhaps we should meet up somewhere?”
“Well there’s a small underwater--- “
“Idiot. I can’t exactly see underwater, so I can’t go by that.” He rolled his eyes. “How about right at the very end of the spit in East Bay? It’s not far from where I’m living.”
Alfred furrowed his brow in thought for a moment, before smiling. “Yeah, I know where that is. Awesome. I’ll be there!”
Arthur tapped his chin. “All right. Shall we meet at noon then? Er, mid-day,” he corrected, for surely merpeople did not have clocks. Or perhaps they did. He had no blooming idea.
The other man glanced up, shielding his eyes from the sun. “When the sun is highest in the sky, right?”
“Yes, exactly.”
Pushing his arms up and practically leaping, Alfred leapt back into the water. “I can’t wait!” He laughed, dunking underwater for a moment and then coming up again, whipping his head back as he did so. Some of the droplets from his wet hair managed to hit Arthur. “Bring something cool, all right?”
“What do you want me to bring?”
Alfred lifted his shoulders. “I don’t know. Just bring something.”
Arthur sighed, but chuckled quietly nonetheless. “Very well then.”
“Oh and…” Alfred glanced down into the water, dropping eye contact completely. Arthur could see his fin beneath the surface, swishing back and forth, as if in a nervous gesture. He was rubbing the fins on his arms as well. Eventually, he gave Arthur a weak smile, pushed his arms up on the side of the yacht and leaned forward, so he was only inches from the other man.
And then he closed the distance between them, planting a chaste kiss on Arthur’s cheek. He pulled away quickly, cheeks stained scarlet. “Goodbye.” He nodded, giving a small smile, and departing as quickly as he’d come.
------------------------------------------------
The first thing Alfred was met with upon diving underwater was Matthew, joining him and swimming alongside him.
They swam in silence for several moments, until Matthew finally spoke. “I always figured it would be you, eh.”
“Huh?” Alfred slowed down, glancing sidelong at his brother.
“I mean that if any of us were ever to meet up with a human, like the old stories, it would be you,” Matthew explained.
Alfred shook his head. “They’re not stories Matthew. All the stuff that Nikolas and Derek tell us? It’s all part of our history!” He beamed.
They were almost at the bottom of the ocean, the white sand just meters away. “I guess so eh, but it seems so hard to believe, merpeople and humans living side by side like that; trading and forming alliances like they’re just two different kingdoms. And all that magic…”
Alfred stretched his arms, and then flipped upside down in a somersault, landing on the ocean floor. “It’s so amazing! Awesome. Can you imagine being able to discover everything there is to discover? All of the world’s oceans and all of the cultures and---“ He paused. “Back then, we could have, because if we couldn’t have gotten there on our own--- “
“I’m pretty happy where I am to be honest, Alfred,” Matthew interrupted. Following his gaze, Alfred spotted Katyusha in the distance, her pale yellow fin brushing the sand.
Alfred slapped his brother on the shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. “I’m sure Ivan will say it’s all right. I know he’s a bit of an ass, but it’s not like Katyusha is wanting to marry me.”
Matthew gulped and nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure you’re right, eh.” He gave Alfred a wan smile and pushed off with his fins in Katyusha’s direction.
The older twin watched him go, his mind already flitting back to his encounter above water with one Arthur Kirkland. His musings didn’t get far though, because before his brother even reached his girlfriend, Alfred felt a sharp slap on his back. “Hey, Derek.” He didn’t even need to turn around. Derek had this habit of announcing his presence with a slightly too firm pat on the back.
Swimming the other way to face Derek, Alfred was met with the rest of his pod. Berwald had his arm around Tino, Nikolas was shooting Derek a glare, and Ingimar lingered in the back.
Alfred smiled. “Hey, you guys!”
Throughout his nineteen years, Alfred had met up with several pods; but there was no doubt his was most unusual. Pods usually consisted of merpeople related by blood, as well as merfolk who had married into the pod. Alfred’s wasn’t like that at all. He and Matthew and Ingimar and Nikolas were the only members that were related, both being pairs of brothers.
They were a bit of a patchwork group. Alfred and Matthew had both been orphaned at a young age, and taken in by Berwald and Tino. His adoptive parents had a unique story before they’d taken in the twins as well. They’d decided to marry young but had left their pods in the Baltic Sea when their families refused to approve their engagement.
Ingimar had still been a child when Nikolas and Derek had started traveling together, although he was still several years older than Alfred and Matthew. The two small groups had met up during a storm in the North Sea and had decided to form a pod soon after. Their journey across the Atlantic to American waters had occurred a year later. Alfred didn’t remember living in the North Sea at all, so young was he.
But really, Alfred thought his family was awesome. He got along with all of them well, and his parents were really great and--- speaking of.
“Afternoon, Alfred,” Tino said. He glided forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, leaning in. “Um, I know you don’t like Ivan very much, and honestly, neither do I… but remember, for your brother’s sake.”
“Yeah yeah, I’ll behave myself,” Alfred grumbled.
Tino smiled. “Matthew is counting on us.” The younger merman knew that a lot was riding on this meeting, so he nodded mutely. Tino didn’t like Ivan much either, although most of the rest of the pod was more tolerant of him than Tino and Alfred were. Berwald sometimes mumbled negative comments about him, but Alfred suspected that was simply because Berwald was wary of anything that irritated Tino.
“I know,” he stated.
The pod went quiet for a few moments, and then Derek spoke up. “So I had a great day! What did you all do?”
Trust Derek to break the silence with one of his random and out of place comments. He could hear Nikolas muttering ‘moron’ under his breath. Alfred shrugged, but then smiled widely.
“Today was really awesome, actually,” he began, buoyantly. “I met this really cool human named Arthur and we---- “
“Ivan’s here,” Matthew’s voice cut in, having swam up to the group silently (Matthew had this uncanny ability to remain unnoticed). Alfred deflated. His family hadn’t looked remotely surprised at his mention of meeting a human, but then again, they had no idea that the human had met him back, actually being able to see him.
He pivoted around, swimming toward Ivan’s pod with the rest of his family on him and Matthew’s tail. They were all there with Katyusha: Natalia, Toris, Feliks, Eduard, and Raivis.
Alfred got along well with the rest of Ivan’s pod, with the slight exception of Natalia. She was all right when her brother wasn’t in the picture, if a bit dreary. But when Ivan was involved, she was scary, holding a deep and obsessive infatuation for her older brother. Alfred liked to avoid encountering that side of Natalia, although he did find it somewhat amusing, since it completely terrified Ivan. Eduard and Raivis were good friends, and Feliks was always hilarious.
Toris though, was his best friend. He caught a flash of Toris’s green fin before he emerged from behind Feliks, and Alfred smiled, waving as he came into view.
Toris greeted him in return.
Ivan swam up in front of the pod, and Alfred bit his lip to hide a scowl. He and Ivan hadn’t gotten along since the older merman’s pod had moved into the area two years before. Alfred just didn’t like him. Their personalities clashed, both dominating and strong, and most of all, Alfred disliked his relationship with Toris. Ivan was very possessive of Toris, more so than any other member of his pod. It made Alfred uneasy. Plus, he was a hero! And if Toris was at all being treated unfairly, it was his job to combat that injustice!
“Good evening!” Tino greeted cheerily, masking his dislike completely. Alfred wished he could be as good at it as his elder was. He had decided to just seal his lips and maybe… try to think of other things or something.
Like Arthur.
“’T’s a nice n’ght.” Berwald nodded.
Ivan leaned forward and shook the pair’s hands. “Good day, comrades.” He smiled. “So we’re here about Matthew and Katyusha, yes?”
Tino and Berwald nodded. Matthew looked anxious, fidgeting with his hands and darting his eyes about. Across from him, Katyusha didn’t look much better.
“Good then.” His smile quirked up. “I’m surprised it is Matthew we are discussing before Alfred. Alfred is the older of the two, yes?”
“I’m only nineteen,” Alfred snapped, and then berated himself. Ivan was attempting to bait him into an argument. Calm down, calm down. Toris was shooting him a sympathetic look. “I’m sure I’ll find someone soon.”
He took a deep breath and tried to distract himself again as Ivan babbled on. Ivan’s tail was a russet brown red, and he was kind of like--- the biggest merman Alfred had ever seen. He was pretty sure that when humans saw Ivan, they saw a walrus, not a dolphin. Or at least that was his theory, and it amused him greatly.
But thinking about that made him want to laugh, which would look totally bad. So his mind went elsewhere, to Arthur.
He really, really wanted to be Arthur’s friend. It wasn’t hard to admit. Okay, he was a human, and that was an automatic plus. But Alfred liked talking to him. They were around the same age, and he was fun to watch, if unintentionally so. From the way he scowled to the way his eyebrows (which were really big!) furrowed to his weird accent. He wasn’t entirely like any human that Alfred had ever observed.
And he could see him. His mind recalled Nikolas mentioning something about ‘the sight,’ an ability to see through magical disguises and concealments. Nikolas had said that it used to not be that uncommon, but now it was practically unheard of. Certainly I haven’t heard about it in my living memory, he’d said.
Nikolas was the one of the pod who knew the most about the magic of the merfolk, which had been rendered almost obsolete by now. The only commonly used magic was their concealing spell. He had a deep affinity to the history of the merpeople, and his partner Derek was a direct descendant of the last great mermish king. When they talked about the past, about the long forgotten history of the merpeople and their magic and their legends, Alfred listened with rapt attention.
To him, it sounded like a dream.
Arthur was going to meet up with him again. Tomorrow! That definitely meant he wanted to be his friend, right? It was so amazing and exciting. He’d have to finish asking that question about shoes…
“M’Alfred?” Berwald cut into his thoughts. “Iv’n’s speaking to you.”
Alfred’s eyes shot up to meet Ivan’s violet gaze. “As I said, it’s a good thing it is Matthew and not you, yes? I could not approve a union between you and dear sister.”
He smiled, faking politeness. “You know what you said earlier about Matthew getting married before me?” He sighed. “You’re right, that’s kind of weird, huh? I mean I know I’m barely older than him, but he’s the shy one and stuff…” Alfred chanced a glance over to Natalia. “But I was thinking, if Katyusha is getting married, that means that you’re probably next, right? You’re the second oldest, after all.” Natalia’s eyes flashed and Ivan shuddered, knowing exactly what was on her mind. She swam up next to him and linked her arm with her older brother’s.
“I think you must be right, Alfred,” Natalia replied curtly, tightening her hold on Ivan’s arm.
Alfred smirked inwardly. This was going to be a long meeting, but at least now, he could make sure that Ivan wouldn’t enjoy it either.
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Arthur’s eyes slid closed as he lay on the living room’s leather couch. He’d returned from his trip out on the yacht two hours before and cooked himself up a delicious (if he did say so) dinner in the kitchen. Now he was relaxing, although his mind raced. If it hadn’t been for the fact that Arthur did not come home from his day out on the sound with a massive sunburn, he’d have sworn he’d just fallen asleep on the yacht and had a very vivid dream about a golden haired merman. But really, there was no doubt that what had happened had actually happened, down to every last bit of it. An attractive young merman had most certainly sat on the edge of his yacht and investigated his body and spent hours talking with him and then---
Alfred had kissed him on the cheek.
He jolted his eyes open, not wanting to fall asleep.
It was a bloody expensive couch, no doubt, but despite the price, Arthur still found it irritating how whenever he’d nap on it, he’d wake up and have to peel himself off it, the leather sticking to his exposed skin.
His face was red in remembrance of the kiss, of Alfred tentatively leaning up, and then leaving before Arthur could even say anything. It was just a kiss on the cheek, he told himself. Probably, it was some sort of traditional goodbye. Then again, why get so flustered over a traditional goodbye?
Arthur’s continued musing was halted by his phone ringing. He picked it up from the table, read ‘Frog’ on the caller ID screen, and flipped it open with a roll of his eyes. “Hello Francis, no I don’t care what the hell you’re doing in Provincetown.”
“Arthur, you wound me,” Francis replied, mocking hurt. “I know how it is. You are merely jealous and do not wish to discover even more things to be jealous of.”
“Not even close,” Arthur snapped, sitting up on the couch. “Do you have anything important to tell me?”
“I am just checking in, making sure you’re not allowing yourself to be miserable and lonely.”
“I’m not miserable and lonely at all,” he grumbled. “I had quite a lovely day.”
Francis chuckled. “Surely not as lovely as mine. I am at the Atlantic House…”
“The dance club?”
“Oui,” he replied. “Believe it or not, Antonio actually managed to convince Lovino to come. I guess the idea of Antonio at a club with so many other attractive men was enough to make Lovino jealous enough to come.”
“Mmm.” Arthur took a sip of a glass of water he’d set on the table. “Good for them, and I imagine you’re… honestly, I don’t want to know.”
“So what did you do today that was so lovely? Read a book?”
Arthur rolled his eyes. “For your information I…” He paused, biting his lip. “I spent several hours on the yacht with a very attractive man!”
Francis laughed. “Did you find someone as interested in the weather as you?”
“No, that’s not what we talked about at all!”
“Then surely you must be lying,” Francis spoke louder, and Arthur could hear music blaring behind him. He must have reentered the main area of the club. “Or you are talking about a character in one of the books you are reading?”
Arthur slammed the glass down. “He’s quite real! Blonde hair, blue eyes, a year younger than me. He’s quite tall as well.” Alfred had certainly looked tall, at least… or long? “His name is Alfred.”
Francis faked a gasp. “Arthur, I know you are lonely, but are you sure you are not imagining things?”
The question was although annoying, almost humorous in its irony. No he was not imagining things, but--- well; it was certainly strange enough to be a figment of his imagination.
“Is it so hard to believe?” Arthur snapped. “Oh god forbid the one that doesn’t hit on anything and everything that moves has someone who wants to spend time with him. Bloody hell, not everyone wants to hang out with a pervert like you.”
And Alfred didn’t, judging by his reaction to Arthur’s description of Francis.
Arthur could hear Francis smirking. “Anyone in their right mind would.”
“Shut the hell up. Oh, and I’m meeting up with him again tomorrow,” he added.
“I believe you then. Good luck, my brother,” he replied. “But you will have to introduce me sometime…”
Arthur cursed inwardly. How the bloody hell was he supposed to do that? He’d just acted like he was going on a date or something, blowing out of proportion and making his meeting with Alfred sound like something entirely different from what it was. Now Francis probably thought he had a potential boyfriend, and even if that were the case, it’s not like Francis could meet him anyway. Francis was going to think he was delusional, wasn’t he?
But it was his own damn fault. He’d just had to rise up to that Frog’s challenge. Francis was making fun of him, and instead of saying “why yes, I quite enjoyed my book,” he’d made the decision to tell Francis something that would shock him to hear. He rubbed his forehead. “Listen Francis, I’m going to go. Goodbye.” He hung up without even waiting for a reply.
Leaning forward, he grabbed his glass of water again, taking a gulp. On the coffee table next to the glass, was Arthur’s digital camera. Arthur thought of wide blue eyes, brimming with curiosity and fascination, and a beaming smile and a voice that filled the air with questions.
He picked up the camera, running his fingers across it. At the very least, he knew what he was going to take for Alfred tomorrow.