I Have No Excuse

Untitled Part 15

It was a boring run of the mill Tuesday afternoon. Barricade was getting a tube shoved down his throat again as he still refused to eat. Prowl didn't bother trying to encourage him to eat once they started force feeding, but so long as Prowl didn't mind then he must be fine. He was healing much better now that they had a little nest. He'd just lay in front of the entrance all day and briefly moved when Prowl emerged. Within another few days we were thinking of trying to merge them with another broken pod. It was a group of three that we've had for a while. Five wouldn't be a complete pod, but with a larger number they could survive out in the ocean. One mating season and a mix with another pod and surely they'd have another in no time. A red mer and a golden mer and a little mini that had somehow gotten into the group. All of them had a bad habit of splashing anyone nearby, but they did it without the intention to harm or make things harder. They liked attention and liked to play with anyone who was willing. They didn't bite or growl or hiss anymore. The golden mer didn't join in as much and spent a lot of time grooming himself, but even he had a more playful side. They had, had a bad run in with some hunters and their pod stuck out with the glimmering scales. They were far too brightly colored for their own good and their chosen spot by the reef nearby had given the hunters easy access.

Quite honestly I didn't think it was a good idea. Anything that had to do with Barricade was a bad idea. Trying to get him to play nice was an even worse idea.There was no way it was going to go over well. If it was possible I'd find a way to get Prowl to drop his pod member. The mer was way too aggressive and I swear he'd rip anyone or thing apart that entered his space. I could picture him slaughtering Prowl. There was nothing I could do about that and from what I had seen two of the three were fighters. The mini was more of a scout. Checking for danger and looking around stealthily enough to not be caught before returning to tell it's pod members. The little thing was fast, but unfortunately young and the event had scarred the poor thing. Hopefully when the time came he'd keep away from Barricade.

"Prowl. I know you're in there."

I sat on the feeding stand as I pulled out the colored bag. I shook it a few times and watched the hidden entrance to the makeshift nest. No response. He didn't even stir from what I could see. I frowned.

"I brought ya a treat... Blaster, I need ya!"

"What? He's still shunning you?"

"Quit laughing at me and get up here."

"I don't think m&ms fix everything." He shook his head as he climbed the stairs.

"They don't need to. Just need to soften the blows and warm him back up to the idea of forgiving me."

"Right. Of course. How could I have ever doubted you?"

"I could do without the sarcasm, Best Friend."

He however just laughed at me again. "Prowl. Come here, we have a treat for you."

And of course at Blasters call he stuck his head out. I held up the color package for him to see and he inched out a little more. Maybe he hadn't swam up like he usually had, but this was a start and at least he was considering it. I dumped a few of the colorful candies into Blasters palm. He dipped his hand into the water and Prowl cleared the distance with a flick of his tail. It was pretty neat to actually be able to see him so clearly. We thought his movements were graceful and effortless before, but without the mix of sand and other particles that shifted around him in the sea it was amazing to see he barely moved at all. His wing fins would shift the smallest amount, almost like a twitch, and with one flick of his tail he was moving far faster and smoother than it looked like he should have. Each of his movements were precise and not without thought. He knew what he had to do and how much effort he needed before he even moved.

"So you're still upset with Jazz? Yeah I know what you mean. He can get on my nerves sometimes too." Blaster glanced back at me as Prowl took the candy from his hand.

"What's that supposed to mean? I am a delight."

"Most of the time. You're persistent, which can be annoying at times, you come up with schemes that are unnecessary in every way shape and form, and of course we can't forget the fact that despite your chipper, music loving, and friend making personality you can be a devious bastard. Maybe you don't like your sister too much but apparently you like her enough to prank her ex for a week."

"Hey, my 'schemes' make people smile. Plus he was an asshole and shouldn't have dumped her for that slut Lacey. They didn't even last a month anyway." I countered with a hint of defiance.

"Did he really deserve you hacking your way into his school account and replacing his debate report with a history report on pimps and hookers?"

"Yes. If he didn't want his account to be hacked he shouldn't of had his password set as his dog's name. He bragged about it enough." I replied and he rolled his eyes.

"...Your Schemes make everyone uneasy."

"Oh really? Because I'm pretty sure my last 'scheme' was your surprise birthday party."

"You led me into a room blindfolded to get ambushed with silly string and then you mixed mentos in with the ice bucket and way too many times to count someones drink exploded."

"Hey it was fun. It was a great party."

"Ok yeah it was fun, but I still think you could step back a bit sometimes." He relented.

"That's what I thought." I grinned as I made an attempt to offer Prowl some m&ms only for him to turn away. "Really? I thought we had something special."

Blaster took the chance to laugh at my misfortune once again. I was very tempted to shove him into the tank.