Heart of Gold (Fall of SGE AU)

Golden Scales

He was going to be dead.

Someone gave the King a damned potion that would allow him to become human and be present at the trial.

How was he supposed to know that Clown was going for a night swim and he was going to catch him?

You are an idiot, Kieran. A blockhead.

He clawed at the stones of the prisons, his nails long and sharp. His light pink eyes glittered in the dark.
He would die or be turned into a figurine, trapped in time.

It seemed like an eternity until the jailer unlocked the door to his cell.

Of course, he was given looks of hatred and contempt, but he had the satisfaction to return them. Worthless humans.

He kept his blue-haired head up high as he was marched to the trial. The King was in the center, looking as disconnected as ever.

Maybe I do have a chance after all, with someone like that conducting my trial.

However, Kieran's hope sank like a ship filled with water when King Midas looked him in the eye, making it clear that his idiocy was just a facade and that he would make his life miserable with nobody noticing.

"We found this mermaid or whatever to call him before," some witness said. "We thought we were delusional."

"And you didn't care to tell me about it?" The king snapped. "I can easily check for myself whether something is delusional or not.
We apologize, Your Majesty," he said. "We didn't know it was real."

"I'm not an it!" Kieran yelled. The witness rolled his eyes. "What are you then?"

"Back to what we were saying," the king broke in, slightly annoyed. "Listen, Scales. Were you going to kill me in there?"

"Name's Kieran, Your Majesty," he answered, sure to make it extra cutting and insulting. "No, I wasn't there to kill you. I was there because I wanted to. I could care less for your life, alive or dead as the case may be. I don't care for humans at all."

"Since you insist on being such a smart ass, you must know I banned people of your kind from the shores of my kingdom. You and your people are dangerous."

"We aren't all like that," Kieran argued. "My family left Neverland because it's too messy and political and they didn't like their king. My people have families, just like humans here do." Midas was looking at him intently.

"I swear on my life I wasn't here to kill you. Or anyone else for that matter."

"You still trespassed," Midas pointed out. "And I still don't trust you. You could just be talking to save your skin. Believe me, I know how it is to fake emotions to get your way in life. I know how it is to lie."

The chubby sweet-faced man next to the king decided to say something. "Mermaids tried to kill King Midas before, a long time ago. He has every right to be suspicious." He smiled at Kieran. "I'm glad you are harmless."

"We can't just take him at face value," someone,  probably part of the jury, snapped. "No offense, sir." Kieran snorted. "So are you going to kill me or not? I'm tired of waiting."

Midas stared at him, and Kieran felt severely uncomfortable. He wasn't fond of royalty whether it was his own kind or a human monarch. He also felt unsettled by the fact that he was holding a small blue scale.

Scales. How significant. A derogatory nickname from His Majesty for me, and yet a symbol of justice. Something I won't have in this trial, not when it's dominated by self-important, hedonistic bastards.