Part of Your World (Sano Manjiro x Mermaid!Reader)

Prologue

The winds howled eerily as distant claps of thunder echoed through the darken sky. Not a twinkle of the stars nor the faded white glow of moon had graced the coastal area of Shizuoka, but violent waves hitting on the sea stacks, bringing fear to the locals with each mighty crash.

A young man woke up grudgingly as he heard the sudden slap of his windows and sounds of his chimes downstairs. "Curse the winds," he muttered, voice hoarse from his once peaceful slumber. He knew that it was the weather that caused the ruckus; no one would dare to set foot in his household. He slowly got up from his bed, yawning loudly as he made his way down to the first floor. Opening his tired eyes, he was crossed when he saw that his favorite wind chimes was thrown on the ground while his windows were wide open, letting the harsh cold winds to enter his living room. His annoyance gradually builded up once he spotted the cracks on his window panes which were cause by the sudden force of nature.

"Great, just great," he groaned. Not wanting to let go of his remaining drowsiness, he just picked up his chimes, setting them on the nearest furniture before going to the windows. Just as he was about to close them, a soft melody reached his ears that made him snap wide awake. "Someone's singing?"

He looked around from his window frame to locate the sound but unfortunately the source seemed to be further outside, along the beach he assumed. His hands slapped his cheeks, making him more awake, and listened carefully. True enough, there's someone — or something — out there. He looked up to the sky, he still have ample time before the storm lands. Grabbing his coat and boots, he jumped over the window frame and headed out to the beach.

His house was built near the coast which he once thought was a great idea since he loves a nice ocean view when he awakes. Imagine having the beach as your front yard, that's the kind of life he has. His location was ideal as well, far from the main beach where the locals and tourists were therfore he has the whole area to himself. However, he was slowly regretting it everytime a storm brews up. Trust him when he says that the beach was not as pretty as it was afterwards; the waves just brought too much seaweeds and broken corals for his liking. Some even gets washed up in his porch in which he does not find satisfaction in. And since he was isolated from the rest, he has the duty to clean up the mess all by himself. Such tedious work he always describes it.

Footprints were on his wake as he ventured further to the shoreline. The waves were getting fiercer, any step closer would surely bring harm to those dared face them. But despite the roaring sounds of nature, he followed the calming tune that's slightly getting louder as he neared the jagged rocks on the distance. He momentarily stopped on his track once he realized he was getting near Siren's Drop. Something rolled down his forehead. Whether it was his sweat or a droplet formed from the mist of water that the wind carried, he didn't know. All he knew was his heart started to thump loudly that each beat was louder than the crash of the waves roaring in his ears — he's terrified.

Everyone in town knows about Siren's Drop. The cove was surrounded by sharp rocks, making some sort of wall that seperates the sea from the marine sinkhole that was created inside. According to local history, it used to be a wide area of coral reefs that graced fishermen with abundant ocean resources back in the day. One night, an earthquake erupted in the prefecture. Not much casualties were made in land, but locals were surprised that their coral reefs were changed to what is it today. Despite the sudden appearance of the jagged rock formations, the overall structure of the area was breathtaking. The remaining corals were still bustling with life with small fishes and crustaceans freely swimming and crawling, the sinkhole and stone walls gave a majestic and mysterious effect.

Although the aftermath can be describe as beautiful, the events that happened next was what made Siren's Drop's infamous reputation fear the hearts of many, especially the locals. In the early times, fishermen used to go out into the seas and casts their nets and traps before the break of dawn, hoping for a good catch of the day. However, after the formation of the coves, strange things started to manifest. Traps were getting destroyed underwater, nets were suddenly shredded to pieces, and for some reason, the fishes have slowly decreased in a few days time. Speculations were made that sharks must have resided in the area which could explain everything that's been happening.