chibinightowl:

Hello, anon! You didn’t give me much to work with here, so have some merboys and their human friend, Timmy. Fluff and light angst ahead!

~*~*~

Tim glanced around as he walked down the beach, checking to see if anyone was paying much attention to him as he made his way further and further from the more populated areas. Not that it was a crowded beach, especially this early in the morning, but privacy was a must considering who he was meeting up with. He hasn’t seen his friends since last summer and while he can’t wait to see them again, he also knew that not everyone would understand why the Drake heir was friends with two merboys.

He suspected Mrs. Mac knew what he was up to and who he would be with. She was scary smart like that and it explained the extra sandwiches, cookies, and juice boxes she put in his backpack. Tim was fairly certain she didn’t know Dick and Jason weren’t human.

This was Mrs. Mac though, so it probably wouldn’t faze her in the slightest if he introduced them. She was cool like that, even if she was old.

The sandy beach soon grew more pebbled underfoot and a rocky cliff rose up to his right, altering the stretch of sand into something less habitable for people. Jagged rocks appeared in the water and the waves broke around them. Tim climbed up some boulders blocking his path, old and worn and probably from the same landslide that send those rocks out into the ocean. An old warning sign sat crooked in the sand about uneven ground, but Tim was small and nimble and doubted his 60 pound frame would do much to shift things around. His water shoes provided enough traction for him to scramble up and over the slippery stone.

After several yards, Tim dropped down heavily onto the sand on the other side. It was like a different world here. Tidal pools ringed the edge of the cliff, shallow and rocky during low tide. There was a narrow sandbar against the back of the pools where high tide brushed the cliff walls, but Tim wasn’t worried about the tide, not with two merboys for friends. Their names weren’t really Dick and Jason, but they were the closest approximation Tim’s human vocal cords could make of the series of clicks and hisses that made up their actual names.

The tide was mostly out right now, so Tim set his pack on the sand and withdrew a carved shell whistle that he had strung on a cord to wear around his neck. Jason had given it to him three years ago, telling him that when he came back to blow it in the water so that he and Dick would know to come.  

It’s worked every time.

Tim picked his way out along the tide pools to where the waves lapped at the edge of the rocky shelf. Blowing the whistle in the sheltered pools didn’t do any good. It needed open water where sound could travel. He knelt on the rock and small waves lapped at his knees. Taking a deep breath, Tim stuck his face in the water, raised the whistle to his lips, and blew hard. A high pitched sound emerged, echoing oddly in the crash of the surf.

Only one blow of whistle was needed, so Tim resurfaced and scooted back a little ways to wait. Last year it had taken two solid hours for his friends to arrive while the first year it had barely been thirty minutes.

The sun was higher in the sky and Tim had started exploring the tide pools when he heard an excited shout from the water behind him.

Turning, he spotted Dick waving wildly from the edge of the shelf. “Timmy! You’re back!”

The merboy was a few years older than Tim and didn’t seem to care in the slightest that he was friends with a younger boy. Tim thought he was the most beautiful creature he’d ever seen. Inky black hair, pale skin, and leanly muscled, Dick would have caught anyone’s attention if he were human. But it was his inhuman features that caught Tim’s eye, like his pointed ears, webbed fingers and sharp claws, and the ridge of scales that ran over his shoulders and down his back. And his fins…Tim swore that one day, he’d find the right color combination of blue and green and black to paint his bedroom walls with. It was such a vibrant and rich color and he couldn’t wait for Dick to climb onto the rocks and into the shallow tide pools so he could see it again.

“Dick!” Tim said with a shout, rushing to greet his friend.

The merboy caught Tim by the ankle and hauled him into the water, catching hold of him in a tight hug. “You’ve been gone so long this time!” he said, nuzzling into Tim’s hair. “It felt longer than a year.”

“I know,” Tim agreed, returning the hug with enthusiasm. He didn’t get a lot of hugs at home except from Mrs. Mac and if there was one thing he knew about Dick, it was that he loved giving them. Jason was always shoving him off, but it was playful rather than mean. “Mom and Dad didn’t want us to come this year, but Mrs. Mac and I eventually won out. That’s why we’re late.”

He didn’t say that this was going to be the last time he’d be able to come for a while, possibly even years, because he was going away for school this fall. Nope, that was for later.

“I’ll catch you something nice to give her to eat,” Dick said, nodding firmly. “I’m so glad you’re here finally. Jason has been annoying the last few moons, wondering when you’d come.”

“Where is he?” Tim asked, twisting around to try and spot the other black haired boy.

Sharp claws started tickling his leg and Tim kicked out of reflex, connecting solidly with something below the surface.

“Ow!” Jason said, scowling as he rose above the waves, teal eyes flashing in annoyance. “Take a joke, why don’t cha?”

Tim scrambled out of Dick’s grip and swam over to the other boy, who promptly dragged him into another big hug. Jason was always very tactile with him, even if he wasn’t with Dick.

“You’re late,” Jason muttered into Tim’s hair, his dagger-like nails digging a little too firmly into Tim’s ribs. His s-shirt would have new holes in it.

“I’m sorry,” Tim replied, clutching Jason around the neck. “It’s not like I can come and go as I please.”

“Stupid human rules,” the merboy said, releasing Tim and helping him back to the rocks where it wasn’t so deep. “You should just come live with us.”

Dick nodded in agreement. “We’re old enough to be on our own and you’re not much younger than us. We can take care of you until you’re bigger and have all your adult teeth.” The mer bared his to emphasize his point, revealing sharp fangs perfect for slashing and piercing flesh.

Jason poked at Tim’s mouth, trying to look inside. “Do you have all your teeth?”

Tim jerked his head away. “Of course, I do!” Mostly. He didn’t think they meant adult molars.

“I dunno, your fangs are really dull.”

“He’s human, Jay,” Dick reminded him. “Their teeth are different. Remember that ship we explored and found those human skeletons in? All their teeth were like Tim’s.”

“You explored a sunken ship? Wow.” That sounded so cool. “All I did this year was go to school and attend boring parties when my parents were home.”

Tim hauled himself back up onto the rocks. Unless there was a way into the tide pools, he’d stay here with Dick and Jason until the waves got a little higher and they could all explore the area. There was always something new and Tim remembered his snorkel so he could breathe properly this year. It looked like Dick and Jason had grown in the last year; they were bigger than he remembered, so they probably needed to wait longer.

Dick stayed in the water, but Jason ducked back underneath the waves before surging out to come to a rest beside Tim. His coppery red scales glistened in the sunlight, but that was not what caught Tim’s attention.

“What happened?” he asked, cringing at the long white scar than ran down Jason’s back and onto his tail. It was huge.

Jason scowled and looked away. “I got a little too close to a boat.”

“Too close, my fins,” Dick retorted. “You almost died. I thought I was going to lose you. That propeller ripped you apart.”

What? No. No, no, no. Tim’s eyes squeezed shut, hands clenching into fists as he tried to process the news. His friend almost died in the last year and he hadn’t known. He wouldn’t have known, not until just now if it had only been Dick who came to see him. There would have been no more of Jason’s crooked smiles or practical jokes. No more of him picking seaweed out of his and Dick’s hair or those little crabs they all enjoyed snacking on that only he was able to find.

Arms wrapped themselves around his waist and he opened his eyes to see Jason pressed against him with his head in Tim’s lap. “Hey. Don’t cry, Tim. I’m okay now.”

“You almost died!” Tim rubbed at his eyes, not realizing he was in fact crying until now. “And I didn’t know because I wasn’t here!”

“Yet another reason why you need to stay here with us all the time,” Jason said, like the answer was as simple as that.

This wasn’t the first time the merboys had made these kinds of comments. They wanted Tim to stay with them, to live and explore the coastal waters as they did. To his mind, it was the perfect life. No more school, no more parties and stupid suits that he hated wearing. He could do what he wanted and just be happy with what each day brought.

But this kind of life wasn’t for him. Not with who he was. He was the heir to everything his parents worked hard for, even if he didn’t want any of it.

Tim sniffed and wiped his runny nose on his arm. “I can’t just leave though. If I run away, people will look for me.” Mom and Dad may not always be around, but if Mrs. Mac reported him missing, they’d move heaven and earth to get him back, even if it was only for appearances.

“We can hide you where you’ll never be found,” Dick said, catching hold of Tim’s hand with his webbed fingers. “Under the surface, no one can find us if we don’t them to.”

It was so tempting to be with people who actually wanted him for who he was. “But I can’t breathe down there,” Tim said. “Not for long anyway.” He’d need a tank of air and a mask, not to mention fins and a scuba suit. These weren’t exactly things an almost eleven year old boy could just buy.

Jason hugged him tighter. “We can breathe for you, silly.”

Dick nodded enthusiastically in agreement. “I learned from a siren and then I showed Jason.”

How that was supposed to work, Tim had no idea. “But, but how can I speak? I suck at your language.”

They spent a good amount of time in the water every summer, above and beneath it. Tim was a fantastic swimmer as a result, better than anyone ever expected of him, but he still had no more than a rudimentary grasp of the mer tongue. The hisses and clicks and whistles were hard for him to form underwater, especially since he couldn’t suck in water and blow it out through a set of gills like his friends.

The merboys closed their mouths and shared a confused look. “Uh, shoot,” Dick replied, bobbing higher in the water as a larger wave hit the rocks. “Okay, so we have to figure that one out still.”

“I also can’t live in the water all the time like you guys can,” Tim added. “My body just isn’t adapted for it.” He’d learned about evolution recently in school and he had spent more than one night wondering where exactly the merfolk branched off and ended up in the ocean rather than on land.

Jason made a face and curled closer to Tim, burying into the wet t-shirt clinging to his thin frame. “We know that,” he said, sounding somewhat muffled. “It would just be temporary until they stopped lookin’.”

Tim sighed and rested his free hand in Jason’s damp hair. He loved his friends, he really did. They were more constant in his life than his parents were, than anybody was. Except for Mrs. Mac, but they both knew that as soon as Tim got old enough and could take care of himself that she’d be gone.

He sighed heavily, debating about if he should speak up now about not coming back next year. Waiting wasn’t going to do any good; in fact, Tim already knew that Jason would throw a fit over it while Dick glommed onto him and refused to let go. Suddenly, he had an idea.

“Let’s make a promise,” Tim announced. “When I’m grown up and can do whatever I want, I’ll come back and live here all the time. Then we can always be together.”

It was like the sun shone even brighter as Dick’s grin lit up his face and Jason sat up, his gaze intent on Tim. “Really?”

“Yes, really,” Tim nodded firmly. One day, his life would be his own and he could fulfill his own dreams rather than those of his parents. He’d be back, he knew it.

Jason tugged at the whistle hanging from Tim’s neck. “Swear on this,” he said.

“Swear on your blood,” Dick added. He let go of Tim’s hand to drag a sharp nail down the center of his palm.

It hurt, especially with the sting of salt water entering the wound, but Tim wrapped his bloodied hand of the shell. He could have sworn he felt it grow warmer. “I swear I will come back. No matter what happens.”

Dick cut his own hand and laid it over Tim’s, his blood darker and colder against his skin. “I swear that I will be here when you return.”

Jason took it one step further and bit his hand. Blood ran down the corner of his mouth as he wrapped his fingers around them both. “I swear that I’ll be here waiting for you, Tim. Not even death will stop me.”

There was no mistaking the surge of warmth that rushed through Tim’s veins as their vows were spoken and sealed. More than just a promise had been made here. Something important had just happened. Tim could feel the pounding of his heart growing louder in his ears the longer they held on. Distantly, he thought he heard an echo, of not one, but two hearts beating in time with his.

It was comforting, knowing his friends would always be with him.

An even larger wave took that moment to crash into all three of them, knocking them back into the tide pools. Tim spluttered as his mouth filled with water and he sat up, spitting it out. Dick and Jason were laughing at him.

“Silly human,” Dick teased, the incredible blue of his fins finally above the water where Tim could see it. “You’re supposed to swim in the water, not breathe it in.”

“I thought you said you’d breathe for me?” Tim spit again, trying to get the salty taste out of his mouth.

“In the deep water,” he replied with a grin, flashing sharp teeth as he rolled into a shallow pool. “What do you want to do now that you’re finally here?”

Jason flipped himself over, scales redder now that he was fully out of the water. “Did you bring cookies?”

Dick’s eyes widened. “Cookies! And what about those barrettes you told me about last year? I have shells I saved to braid into your hair.” He loved playing with Tim’s hair, as well as Jason’s when he could get away with it.

Tim stood and grinned down at his friends. The future could stay in the future, at least for now. Here in the present, things would go on the way they always had. Just him, Dick, and Jason. “I did, and shells are fine if you sucked the crabs out this time.”