Fighting for Survival (Faye x Windsong)

Status
Not open for further replies.
His facial expression changed and of course, he seemed rather ashamed that he'd damaged her handiwork, even if he was said handiwork right now. "Sorry.." He muttered beneath the waves, an impish smile coming to his face, careful to keep his lips closed this time, no sense in scaring away the healer.

"Please do fix it. Sharks can still get in here on occasion, and they're never friendly to me." He added with a word of warning, glancing at the ledge above for any sign of, well, a sign of anything, he had never been disturbed out here but he couldn't help but feel wary when he was like this.

Her movement and subsequent stop made him flinch, tail tensing and twitching when he expected her to do one of two different things: either running into him, accidental or otherwise, or giving him a hug, had he deserved it? How does one deserve a hug anyway? The thought plagued him for a minute before he simply relaxed, taking the initiative once more and swimming closer to her with his arm raised and side turned.

"You're the one who can fix it." He mused with a grin. "So yes, please do?" He seemed confident enough, though inside he was rather embarrassed for needing her help, on top of showing himself to her like this so openly, but he kept up the facade, even if his skin had gone an entire shade darker from near head to toe, hopefully she'd think it was merely a shadow and not his entire body feeling warm despite the cooler waters.
 
Sharks! No way did she want to tangle with them. She was still a little embarrassed at her own eagerness to find out the answer to her question. She had startled him a little earlier as well by moving too quickly. Ah, and he was doing his best to keep his teeth sheathed for her...She noted that a couple times he'd checked himself by just smiling with his lips. She found herself getting a little shy about what he asked of her. Sure she'd healed plenty of men before, but never something as small as this. And never when she had been so curious about a body. He seemed plenty confident though, and ready to encourage her more if she didn't comply.

Fay nodded in agreement as she reacted a timid hand toward him. Her own webbed fingers came softly into contact with his heated, smooth skin. Perhaps she would have noticed the warmth beneath her hand if she hadn't been trying to control her own blush as well. She peeked up at him through thick eyelashes, her white hair blocking her view at times, hopefully hiding her pink cheeks as well. Her gaze soon returned to find the source of the blood. Ah, it just tore a little bit.

She had to constantly remind herself to focus solely on healing the cut, and not allow her eyes to wander. Her left hand splayed across his injured side as she allowed herself to heal the area completely. The process started at the edges making the pink flesh to gain back the normal color of his skin. The healing looked as if Fay's touch simply sped up his own bodies way of repairing itself. As it finally closed, her hand was taken back and held close to her own side. She rubbed her fingers together as if still trying to figure out what his skin felt like. It was so much different from her own scaled hide.

She smiled shyly, hoping she wouldn't get teased too much for being so shy about doing her job. "Well, there you go...good as new...or at least as close as you could get to new." Her mind didn't even register that they were still very close. The soft pulse of water caused by Daen's undulating tail was soothing against her own tail.
 
He couldn't help but feel comforted by her presence, something he rarely knew and was quite eager to avoid losing anytime soon. The sensation of her healing his wound wasn't exactly the most comforting thing to go with her presence, he was keenly aware of how strange it felt that his skin was being dragged and knitted together by tiny invisible fingers that clasped it together. Even at a natural pace it felt like nothing at all, but at this rate it wasn't exactly something he'd want to happen often.

Before he knew it the healing had been finished, it still tingled, but otherwise it felt as if he'd never suffered from any wound at all, even considering how infected it'd been such a short time ago.

Daen looked at her hands, such a minute detail that he'd yet to notice, webbing between them that even he was lacking. Without doing much thinking on his part he reached out and grabbed it to pull it up a bit. This tiny detail seemed to give him pause, though his tail continued to swirl in its slow rhythmic motions to keep him slightly adrift. For such a small detail it seemed to make all the other one's that much bigger, even being a different race hadn't been a large problem, but now he felt so alien compared to her, foreign even.

"Thank you again. If I knew a way to repay you for all the help I would do it." He spoke sincerely, turning away with a look of shame. Daenlynn had next to nothing in terms of belongings, even if she wouldn't accept payment he still felt obligated to repay his debt, having saved his life and shed insight into exactly what he was.
 
Fay had been searching for some reason to move. She was sure she was the only one of the two to get so flustered in the other's presence. Her stomach seemed to turn itself in knots around him. She wanted to always stay close, to allow him to protect her. That was a nice vision. But would he want to? He was a Sang'ell...did that even register to him? That they were naturally loners...or at least only socialized with their own kind in the past. She healed him...so now what would they do? She couldn't stay in this city...not for that long. She also couldn't ask that he leave their beloved sea, the salt water, and the cool breeze. They would have to part ways. Unless she were able to find a home in the ocean itself. She'd already hoped to do that, to finally be able to call the sea her home. Why did it hurt to think about leaving Daen behind? Even unconsciously she'd been trying to think of a way they could remain close. Perhaps it was just because he was the first Aquarian she had met? Or was it because he was so injured? Or could she possibly....be breaking through the shackles of fear that had secluded his race in the first place? She had accepted him, even with his appearance. Yes, she could at least count him as one of her trusted friends. A person she could go to if she were ever in trouble.

It was just as she decided this that a sudden tug brought her hand up. At first she wanted to pull back and run from whatever grabbed her, but then she saw Daenlynn. Her arm did twitch back, but not with enough force to free her limb from his grasp. A small smile broke through her once concentrated face allowing her to relax. She could worry about the future later. Daen seemed to be examining the webbing between her fingers as if it were the most interesting thing he'd ever seen. Time seemed to pause, at least for a few seconds. Fay had examined this webbing herself when she first discovered this form. She found that she did have nerve ending and blood flowing through the thin membrane after pricking herself with one of her suture needles. That had been a little strange, but she then assumed that all her fins had at least some feeling in them, as well as a blood supply to keep vitamins flowing into them to supply their vibrant color. She giggled a little bit at the curious look he was giving her hand. Whether to amuse herself by his reaction, or to simply show him everything the webbing did, she wasn't sure why. But she did close all her fingers together, effectively hiding the webbing from view. Then she splayed them out as far as she could, creating a paddle that could help her swim when she needed speed. She wiggled her fingers before simply allowing her hand to relax once more.

While she had been displaying her webbing, it had been hard to overlook his own hands that grasped her forearm. Long slender fingers, that tapered off beautifully. His had no such webbing or frills, just as the rest of his rather plain body. Fay understood why though. Her color and display was to attract the attention of her own species while warding off predators. Her bright color would be a display of possible poisoning should a carnivore attempt to eat her. As far as she knew, her body held no such poisons, making the display a simple front line defense. After that, she would need to rely on her speed to escape. Daenlynn, however, was built as a hunter. His lack of fins helped him blend in with his surroundings, aiding in his hunts for food. Long fingers would hold his prey still while his teeth finished it off. She could feel at least a part of his strength in just the grip of his hand. Her mind told her that it wouldn't take much on his part to hold her still. Though, if her tail was not secured in some way, she could most likely bring them both out of the water.

His grateful words had her blushing ever so slightly. "Please...I don't need payment. It was enough for me to see that I'm not the last of our kind left." That was all she would have been able to ask him for, just a display of his true form. In her years of travel, she'd heard there were other Aquarians, but she'd never been able to see their forms. It gave her hope, hope that their small race wouldn't be wiped from the oceans and land forever. "Really, being able to meet you, and disprove the negative light your race was put in...now I know it all was just fear and prejudice on my part to think that way. I'm really glad I was able to meet you." This already began to sound as if she were going to leave. Ah, she didn't want to go just yet. No, she wanted to stay here. Enough with her job as a healer...she'd helped enough Ru'mans to be able to carry on well enough without her. But could she just leave the people that needed her like that? She wasn't sure. Her mind was simply turning circles now. She couldn't think of the right answer.
 
Maybe it was his natural desire to be alone that kept him from letting his mind wander off to visions of companionship and his skewed idea of romance, or simply a defense mechanism he'd developed after having been left to his own solitary devices since for as long as he could remember. The idea of sharing one's life with another seemed so foreign and strange, how did something manage to cope with another's worries, anxieties, and fears on top of their own while also sharing those with the other, was it a mutual trade or did it simply happen over time? Those thoughts made his head hurt, and it was apparent to him why he'd never had much interest in studying those esoteric ramblings. That was the job of poets, bards, scholars, and philosophers whether they wished to relate to one another or not in their differing fields.

He'd finished his examination of her just minutes prior, save for the hands. Her lustrous colors and vibrant hues had caught his eye like a shiny bauble to a collector. It was a wonder that he'd pulled himself away instead of simply swimming in circles for hours, curious to see how many different colors her scales could show. What if they changed color at night? That would've been fascinating to see happen.

Still, when her hands moved he gave a soft laugh of delight. He sounded like a boy that had been shown the secret to a magic trick, which only made him examine it further to better understand it, even if in understanding he'd be no better off or smarter for knowing, simple curiosity that he'd never really taken the time to afford himself in the rapid spirals of life.

"If you insist on it so, can't argue for my tail's tip.. But I'll find a way to make it up to you, Fay. It's... The right thing to do?" He asked, usually the right thing to do in his mind was for himself, no other microcosm of another's emotions mattered, but her's did suddenly, and as before it was so foreign and exotic he wasn't sure whether to press on the matter or shy away for fear of pain.

"Who knows.. Maybe I do hate you, I just don't know why yet.. " He muttered quietly, looking angry, though it was clearly intended at himself for speaking against her so. "How could I hate someone so kind as you? Peo--Ru'man's hate others for something as stupid as their smell, or their hair, or even just because they speak differently. I don't want to hate you." He admitted, leaning forward to her with a nod. If he'd been on land he'd have been fighting off a powerful emotion that was plaguing him suddenly, something that was long repressed and shunned. He'd regret hating her, no matter the circumstance he was sure of that.
 
Why did her heart seem to skip a beat when he said her name? It sounded as if she were named just to have the word spill from his lips. No. She couldn't do this to herself. She had to leave, and he'd stay here. It was very likely that they wouldn't see each other for at least a long while, if not ever again. It was a sad fate, but fate none the less. "I suppose it's right if you believe so...I've had Ru'mans tell me that it isn't right for me to charge others when I have a gift." She shrugged, still feeling his smooth skin against her scaled wrists. It was comfortable and unnerving at the same time. She wanted to pull away, but the feeling of something smooth around her was so novel....she just stayed put.

His next comment had her giggling. He sounded as if he really did want to hate her, but honestly couldn't find a reason to. What was going on in his mind to make him want to blame her for something? Then he went on...ah, she nearly felt herself explode right then into a dark blush. He still had her arm, effectively keeping her close. "I...don't want to hate you either..." she admitted quietly. His face was so close. She couldn't bring herself to look away either, his eager eyes anchoring her own, drawing her in, refusing to let her leave. Even his face held no terror for her anymore...if he were to kill her now...she wouldn't be able to bring herself to think ill of him. It would have been her own silliness to lead them here, she couldn't blame him. "I wouldn't want to ever forget you either..." Yes, she wanted to remember this moment, right now, the day she met one man who defied all prior preconceived ideas. Fay even seemed to forget to think much past the feelings at the moment. She felt the soft pulse of water from his tail, as her own tail kept her afloat. His soft grip, that was so strangely smooth against her wrist. Even how her blush seemed to heat the water around her. He was way too close, and not close enough. She couldn't tell if she wanted him to move further away or even closer. It would be the first time she'd been in this situation, and it was confusing.
 
After what seemed like a long enough length of time for him to feel shy that his hand still kept her wrist in place he released it, almost reflexively his entire body moved and he put some space between them. "I don't think I could forget you anyway. Aren't good memories the one that burn longest?" He asked a little too loudly, considering he was but a foot or so from her, giving another foot after his outburst. It was rude to have shouted such a silly question, but maybe she was the right one to answer?

Even so his smooth body felt like it had an itch, a strange scent passed his nose, but his eyes found nothing to note of it as he scanned the area, perhaps his vision lingering on her too long. Such an exotic thing she was, if he'd owned a shop and she were an object he'd find it impossible to place a price upon. That itch made him retreat further, his eyes finally drifting from her as his body followed suite. He never went far, to the bottom to search for that scent, near the exit to the shelf that led into the deep blue, even coming back up past her by her side, a little close as his tail flicked her in one of its lengthy undulations. "Sorry." He murmured, not pausing.

Close to the ledge and close to the surface he looked out through the shallows, small bait fish fled from him as did any clams or crustaceans on the sandy bottom, their white shells stark contrast to the black sand. His head broke water and the world was a blur, his eyes soon adjusting to air to see their things untouched, nothing but two sets of footprints down the shore and into the water as well. Nothing seemed out of place as he sank a ways before moving back towards her with another slow scan of the hole. Was this jealousy? Fear? Daen couldn't place the feeling of irritation as though something were wrong.

He wanted it gone. So he did the one thing that seemed to give relief.

He hugged Fay. It wasn't long and he didn't try much else but a brief embrace. Just as quickly as he touched her the itching seemed to fade, and she was released. The sang'ell backing up a ways looking irritated for some reason.
 
Time seemed to speed back up to a normal pace as he finally released her and backed up. She could breath easily now, not feeling as if she'd break something if she moved a little. But now...she felt cold, entirely empty. It saddened her. Was this how she would feel every day they weren't close? This was the sinking pit of being alone again that she would have every waking moment? His words still brought on a bright smile from her in return. "Right. And I could always come back to visit....If you don't mind. It would be nice to make more happy memories to brighten up our separate days." Did that just slip out? She admitted to leaving, and to wanting to stay in the same sentence. It didn't seem to bother Daen at the moment though. He seemed to be entirely distracted, and rather irritated. His entire body seemed to display his agitation in an almost...fascinating way. The way his tail seemed more aggressive in its undulations, and the way his eyes darted around, his entire body seemed poised to strike if anything unusual was seen.

He swam lower as if sensing some danger, or investigating...a...smell? She hadn't noticed it before, but the way he was going about looked as if he were relying on some superior sensation of smell. Hmm, was that something else he had that she didn't? Honestly she wasn't even sure if she could smell anything in the water...even on land it was hard to pick out individual smells unless one was overpowering. Several times it had helped her in some of the worst cases she'd dealt with. Interesting, she usually relied on her sight and hearing, or touch. Speaking of which, his tail seemed to flick her as he passed beside her. She just smiled and shook her head. Something so smooth was still a novel thing to her, she wouldn't have minded it even if...oh, dear...when was the last time she had thought about those things? Most of the time, any romance was shoved to the side because she wouldn't have time for it. Though...she did long for a companion. Someone to just keep her company and help her not feel isolated.

Her eyes seemed to watch him sadly as he peered around above water. He seemed distant now...as if she'd never be able to touch or see him again if something wasn't done. Her arms soon wrapped around herself in a sort of hug. Alone...they both were...but it appeared as if nothing could be done to remedy that. He was sinking back down to her, still looking rather upset. Was there anything she had done to make him uncomfortable? She wracked her brain for any possible solution. Anytime she had touched him, had been with his permission. So it couldn't be something of that nature. Her eyes looked back up to him as he closed in on her. He seemed to suddenly decide on something, before moving closer and wrapping her in a warm embrace.

She had decided to trust him before, so the thought of moving hadn't occurred to her. The instant his arms pulled her close, she felt as if she were wrapped in some protective bubble. Her body seemed to relax against the smoothness of his skin, her tail stopping it's motions for a moment as if it were trying not to brush against his longer tail. She wanted to smile, to hold him even closer and spin circles in the water. The contact made her so happy, and yet she wasn't sure why. He pulled away before she could put her arms around him in an attempt to get him to feel the same thing she felt. Her broad smile faded upon seeing his pensive look. "What's the matter? Did I do something wrong? Does your wound still hurt?" She tried to think of any reason for him to be so irritated. Her search make up without anymore than the pull to hug him again, and stay like that until his smile returned. All she wanted was to help him forget or solve whatever was bothering him.
 
The relief from the brief embrace was enough to put his mind at ease, even if he looked irritated he felt quite elated to have done so. Like being scared of the dive, but elated and eager to do it again and again after the fear was conquered. Her questions rang in his mind, nothing was wrong, or at least nothing felt wrong at the moment the words left her lips, were they lips still? He'd not had the chance to check that.

"No.. I don't.. Should something be wrong? Can it be wrong?" He asked, rapidly responding as fast and as coherently as his mouth would allow. "Something was wrong.. But it's not anymore?" He queried again, sighing with a slump of his shoulders once more, beginning to lose his buoyancy.

He sank slowly, picking up slight speed. Through conscious thought or his own unconscious desire he grabbed for her wrist once more as he sank to the deeper sandy bottom, littered with shells and dark granules. Daen's tail coiled below him as sort of a cushion, giving her the gentlest of tugs to bring her with him, it seemed appropriate if she didn't want him to leave that he wouldn't want her far either, a pleasant thought.

Though it may have looked strange he felt quite comfortable sitting on his tail, the tip swirling sand gently of its seeming own accord. It's length kept him well of the bottom, even affording him a lap that he seemed to draw her to, was it appropriate? He'd no idea, but he felt it was a way to get his point across whether he knew how to speak it properly or not.
 
Her mind felt as if it were spinning around and yet, solely focused on that one event. She was worried that something had bothered him, but he seemed to be on just as much of a high as she was. His eyes sparkled as he just as rapidly fired off his own responce and questions. She found herself giggling a little at the silliness of them both. The pale pink scales at the edge of her mouth could be called lips, though she wasn't sure if they were quite the same. She rapidly shook her head as he affirmed that nothing was really wrong. Whatever problem he had seemed to be solved, at least in a way. She quietly watched as his body stilled itself and began to sink. She wanted to follow him down, unconsciously reaching her hand out to his as he even reached up to grasp her wrist. She allowed herself to help herself down slightly by easily batting the water with small movements of her tail. Something about this was exciting, as if he were bringing her into a separate world all their own. Her eyes flicked away from his as she watched his tail curl up under him. That was strange, and reminded her of snakes that were curled up like that to sunbathe. Only he was much larger than a snake...though quite possibly just as dangerous. The danger may be what made this that much more exciting.

As he settled himself, in what looked to be a comfortable position, she allowed her tail to drop beneath her once more. She looked around, trying to think innocently for a moment. A soft tug on her arm pulled her further down. She bit back a blush as she felt his tail underneath her to give her a place to rest. Her pale eyes glanced shyly at him, seeming to affirm that she wasn't about to go anywhere without his say so. As a spur of the moment decision, she brought her free hand around to find his, and timidly laced what she could of her webbed fingers with his. This feeling was so odd, nothing she could think of seemed right. As if...it wasn't her place to start something, only encourage it for the moment. For her, she had a good idea of what this was, but whether it be infatuation of actual love was still undecided.
 
He was fairly silent the whole time he pulled her down, his face passive save for a faint smile playing on his almost snake-like features. Daen had never actually sat like this on the bottom, rather he'd laid there or floated just off the sand thanks to natural buoyancy from an inner bladder that maintained that on unconscious whim, this was different though, and he was quite comfortable, especially with her there as well.

He took a long breath, or what could be construed as one. The gills that weren't that obvious just below his jawline flared open, revealing the soft red lining inside, then closed when his chest relaxed as well. He also didn't find her hand very easy to hold, it was such an awkward way of touching one another he'd think it was something that they'd laugh about later on.

"We're alon-- Were alone, but now neither of us is. What are the chances we can find others like us? On land? At sea? The ocean is enormous, what if there are more that even you don't know about?" He asked, it was apparent he was choosing words carefully by how slow he spoke and his occasional pause to consider them.

"I won't make you come, and I won't ask. But now that I know I might not be alone, or that there might be others like you--" He paused, the thought that there were more like her was so alien, she was so unique to him that even the concept was strange. "--Like us. I want to find them. What if they rebuilt and have homes again, and we just didn't know yet?"
 
Fay's eyes again flicked away from his as a sudden flash of red appeared on his browned skin. She almost laughed at her own reaction when she noted they were only his gills. Such a contrast of color, it made her want to examine it further. Though...playing with his gills would likely be uncomfortable and nerve racking for him. Then of course the odd way of holding hands...yeah, she really wished that her hands had been more like his own. She found herself drawn back to focus on his face and eyes as he spoke. Run away...leave the land...she had honestly wanted to do that for a long while, she just hadn't felt as if she could before. She had been scared of going alone. On land...their people were in hiding, and not allowed to show their true selves. Even if they did find an Aquarian, it was possibly that that person wouldn't come for fear of being led into a trap. The ocean seemed to be a better shot. If some Aquarians had escaped the land, and found a suitable place to call home beneath the waves. If they didn't make their presence obvious, the Ru'mans wouldn't know. She found herself getting excited at the prospect of discovering more of their people.

"I've been thinking that very thing for a couple years now...I know there are others on land." She too spoke carefully, not wanting to raise or lower his hopes. "And--I...I...would really like to travel with you." Her eyes focused entirely on his. She'd found a person to travel with, to discover new things. "I think those on land would rather be left to themselves. They have found a way to live there...but...the sea--the sea is a mystery to me." She looked longingly at the hole near the bottom that would lead out into the open. "I believe the sea would be a far safer bet. If we don't find a clan of sorts here...we could make one!" Her excitement seemed to grow, making her eyes sparkle and her grip on his hand to tighten. "We could somehow find a place for a home, and then tell the Aquarians on land!"
 
Her prospects were exciting, every one of them seemed like a better idea than the last. It may have just been his elated mood but he couldn't help but feel good about whatever conclusion they came to. Instead all he could do was smile and nod, though avoiding looking like a dull fool in the way he did so with his half-smile, kept shut to avoid looking like a monstrosity. Her mention of making a clan struck something, maybe he correlated a clan with family, but the thought was once more foreign. Could they start a family? Could a sang'ell call anything but another sang'ell it's mate and spawn from that. He had no idea. He hardly knew what he exactly was so it didn't go further than that in his mind.

"We can try." His response that time was short and to the point. "You're the first aquarian I've ever met, by complete chance, if I hadn't hurt myself last week I'd have never done it, and would still be-- Alone." Daen added, smiling impishly at the thought, how splendid it was to NOT be alone! He'd been happy for other things, a hot meal, even a soft bed, but nothing compared to this, that he was sure of.

"We will try." The tune changed slightly, more determined this time, as though his mind was suddenly set. "There's no sense in not, that's for sure. I've nothing to lo--- I have something to lose.." He'd begun to trail off, fingers going slack against her webbed digits briefly before regaining strength. "If I didn't try, I would lose you. I can't let it be like that." He stated as though it were a fact he'd known all his life, his chest swelling with a hasty pride he'd never taken in himself before this moment.
 
Fay's tail took to flicking back and forth in excited twitches as she had started to speak her mind. A clan, a whole clan of Aquarians! She could hardly imagine more than the two of them existing right now. But there were definitely others, there had to be. Finding a place where she and Daen could live close and find others to socialize with. But...then again...would she really mind if Daen were the last Aquarian alive? Hmm, no...that really didn't bother her. He was nice to have close, and she wouldn't mind trying...well, even her knowledge seemed to stop there. She had no clue if any sort of union between them two could produce anything. What sort of odd children would that make? Children...her cheeks colored at the thoughts. Sure, she wanted them...but now seemed, the wrong time. And she didn't even know if Daenlynn would ever consider herself a suitable partner. They were so different in that respect...maybe too different. His first reply seemed to be a little hesitant, as if he wasn't sure he'd like her traveling with him. Then of course his smile, it made her mirror it as she tried to think of what he would say next.

She couldn't describe how elated she felt when he agreed. They would go, and at least try to find more of their kind. He seemed to change his mind half way through that sentence, and the change was enough for her to eagerly watch him and urge him on. What is it that he could lose? Did he have something dear to him here? She felt his hand go slack in hers...was he having doubts? Suddenly his grip returned, firmer than before. Her webbing was pressed down slightly. Perhaps if she had been in any other position, she would say it was uncomfortable. But now, this was comfort. Being so close to him. She looked a little shocked at first when he finally stated he couldn't lose her. Then a bright smile lit up her face, and she let out a joyous laugh. Giddiness exploded through her. It was as if she couldn't stay still right now, something in her wanted out. Her hands quickly pushed back and around him as she engulfed him in the best hug she could give at the moment. Her face nestled itself in the crook of his neck as if it belonged there. "Thank you...." She felt as if he just granted her the world. "I don't want to lose you either...I don't think I'd be able to stay away for very long even if you had told me you didn't want to see me again. I don't want to be far from you..."
 
Who knew friendship could be so rewarding? Came to his mind as he found himself being pushed backwards, were there air around them he'd have obviously fallen and landed on the floor. With how slow the world could seem to go beneath the blue waves he simply slid 'off' his tail and landed with a soft poof of sand around his silhouette on the sandy bottom. His back hadn't even hit the sand before he gave her another one of those hugs he'd done before, it was nice of that he was quite sure, and he would be sure to ask about proper hugging circumstance later on.

A sudden thought occurred to him and and it felt as if his entire body had gone red hot as an iron poker in a forge. Was he mating with her? It didn't take long laying on the sandy floor and an almost instinctual realization to know he wasn't, oh what a relief that was, not entirely sure he could handle the act of that with her just yet, assuming they even could.

"No, thank you. You knew more about me than I knew about myself." He commented, a portion of his tail coiling around her just below where her rump would be, using both that and his own strength to pull himself back up to a sitting position, not exactly in a rush to push her away. Even in the water her skin felt soft and cool, and he found one of his hands curious enough to trail from her shoulder to her hip to see just how it felt, and he found it wholly pleasant even on the return trip, if not different considering how her scaled skin was. Even so the next hug was only emphasized by the strength of his tail around hers, it seemed to hold back quite a bit even as he maintained trying to be gentle.
 
Oops, she had knocked him over. This merely made her giggle more. This was going to be so much better than walking around alone! A sudden feeling toward the back of her tail snapped her out of these blissful thoughts. She had just tackled a man to the ground in a hug. How improper was that?! And now his tail seemed to hold her close as well. She was suddenly very aware of every touch. He had righted them both now, and...and...his smooth hand left a trail of static in its wake as it stroked her scales from shoulder to hip. It felt good...She couldn't deny that, but oh, it was so not proper! They were just friends right? That's how he saw them, right? The teachings of her noble Ru'man superiors echoed in her mind. Between friends this would be inappropriate...but between lovers...did she want him to be that way though? It was a tempting thought. But what if he wanted someone of his own kind? And if he hadn't been schooled like she had, it could be likely that he was just ignorant of that fact. He hugged her again, this time adding a small squeeze of his tail.

With a smile she tried to return the strength of his hug, knowing she wouldn't come anywhere close. If he wanted to hug her, she wasn't going to complain. Fay decided to explain the etiquette and meaning behind different hugs later. Right now, they both needed this contact. They had thought they were alone all this time, or at least isolated. After another moment, Fay loosened her grip, and slowly eased away, hoping he'd understand and do the same. Her eyes still sparkled excitedly. "So, when do we leave?"
 
When he felt her begin to release he did the same, tail unfurling and falling to the sand with a weighty pomf that sent more sand up and around them. A wrong time to breathe for him, soon expelling sand from his mouth like a smoker did after a drag. His tongue came out with more sand on it, soon falling off in the gentle current inside the protected cove. Maybe it had been appropriate to touch her in the manner he did, but he was ignorant to customs about personal space for an aquarian. Personal space on land seemed close enough as is, not that he had many dealings where he'd have been so close, but still, more ignorance on his part for his own culture, or at least hers, something he'd have to learn to respect.

What was he supposed to do to plan for such an expedition? He honestly wasn't sure, so, he'd simply defer to her and let her experience and wisdom rule out over his street smarts. Though he was sure he'd have to put that to use some day for sure.

"Do we.. Need much?" He asked calmly. "I guess.. What do you eat? Do you hunt? Can you hunt?" His second set of questions were dubious, her teeth didn't look meant for it like his did. "Unless you needed things we could leave.. Now!" Daen said excitedly.
 
"You need your knife don't you?" As before his questions fired off rapidly. And of course as soon as he mentioned hunting her face heated up and she had to look away. Embarrassment was quite evident as she slowly drew further away feeling foolish and small. "I can't hunt...I never learned how, and I really don't have any weapons to catch something. I do eat most fish that are caught though...." She chewed on her lip, feeling as if she'd just be a hindrance to him. Her skill with cooking wouldn't be helpful here in the water...and going to any markets wouldn't be wise.

She looked back up to the surface for a moment. Their things were just sitting there on the shore. Perhaps they should hide them in the rocks if they returned. "I think we should at least hide our things if we're leaving now...I can't really take any of my things into the water...even my staff wouldn't be suitable for our trip." She tried to think hard to be sure they wouldn't forget anything. That was all really...unless her lack of a hunting skill would drive him away. She peeked over at him, watching for his reaction.
 
The sudden recollection that they'd only been in the water for half an hour at most quickly dawned on him, it made him laugh and nod in affirmation as he swam over to her despite her retreat. "Do you want me to hide our things somewhere? You don't have to go up, I'm sure I can do it quickly." He stated, noting mostly for his lack of clothing and her shyness wouldn't clash well.

"And I'll teach you to catch, it's not hard, especially if a ru'man can do it with some string all tied together.. " Daen added as he coiled his tail to head to the surface, pausing and uncoiling to look at her. "Do you need anything from up there?"

He'd wait for her response before heading topside once more to gather anything that was needed before coming back down. Below the waves he wasn't too concerned with needing his knife, so he may just leave it here if they were leaving today. The idea of swimming at night wasn't on his top list of priorities with her in tow, though he was quite adept at swimming in total darkness he was positive she would be near helpless if something happened. A myriad of alcoves around the middle and some with sandy bottoms along the hole could make resting places for the night in case they didn't find shelter nearby before sunset, which was rapidly approaching.
 
He was so sweet... Her first thought made her smile in return for him offering to do most of the work on shore. "I think it would be best if our things get hidden, yes." His offer to teach her how to fish brought an even bigger smile to her face. He didn't find her useless, and still wanted her to come along! "I'd like that very much...Thank you so much, Daen!" She watched as he pushed himself upward. It looked like a rather slow process for him. Strange really. But she liked that about him. He was unique and different from herself. Ah, she would travel the ocean and learn to fish! And all with a companion! That was the best part. She listened as he asked the last question, and shook her head. "No, none of my things are exactly water proof, and we won't need any coins down here..." That thought was odd. She always brought money with her, not much, but enough to get her though the day. Ah, none of it seemed to matter right now. "All of my things just need to get put aside."

With her answer, Daenlynn swam to the surface. Fay found herself with relatively nothing to do while she waited on his return. She never did get a good look around here. That decided it, she would explore the world here, the sand was a peculiar thing, though she assumed it may have something to do with the outlet of water right here. White sand could drift through the hole, and settle over the black sand. Clams and crustaceans were here as well, seeming to enjoy this predator free zone. She could easily swim among them without frightening them away. Part of her wanted to check up on the progress Daen was making on the surface. The other part was quick to remind her that he likely wasn't wearing much more than he did down below the surface. That was a strange thought....they were both wearing what they were born in, but were still covered enough to be passable in a Ru'man village. Hmm, strange...She sank to the bottom of the sinkhole, and waited for Daen to return to the water so they could be off once more.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom
Back