Captivity

Chapter 14: Song and Dance

NOTICE: MATURE CONTENT WARNING



The waters were warm. Down to his bones Danny could feel the surging heat that came with the tropical spring. It buzzed along his scales in the false sunlight that trickled down into the waters, fueling the sensations that prickled through his veins, driving his frustrations. The mer had yet to procure a suitable gift for his beloved and he doubted that song and dance alone would woe her. 

Not that there wasn't anything wrong with song and dance... He flexed his fins, giving them a long, hard examination. They'd grown brighter as of late, a more brilliant white than their usual cloudy gray. Along with his fins, his scales shone with a vibrant flare; his stripes more pronounced in the light while the rest glinted with almost a subtle hint of green. Yet in the dark, they were still their ever powerful ebony. It was the healthiest he'd ever looked and felt; all the signs that he was ready for his debut, and yet, he was not.

He huffed in frustration, clawing irritably at the rocks. He still had no gifts, and there wasn't much in the way of pickings either. The corals that lined the tank he claimed as home were either dull in color, or fake and made of stone. The oysters from before had produced no yield and had resulted in nearly breaking the relationship he was trying to form.
Thus unable to find an object to impress her, he turned to his newer talents. If he could not express himself through an item of worth, he would create one. He still remembered the look of delight upon her face at seeing him create his thoughts upon the ground in the form of simple pictures. While it held a childlike fascination on both their parts, he wanted her to know more than that. 

He found the box of chalk he'd grown fond of off along the far wall, just outside his comfort zone by the water's edge. Still he pushed himself, breaching the safety of the water for her, to claim it. He then proceeded to color the entire upper enclosure in a menagerie of designs. Spiraling winds and rolling seas, he portrayed every image he could recall in great detail till every inch of concrete was covered and the chalk worn down into dust.

While not a physical gift, it was certainly something to marvel at. It was something unlike any other mer had done. It was unique and stunning as far as he was concerned, looking on at his masterpiece with a content nod. He'd put a great amount of effort into it. Enough so that he found himself exhausted and curled up to sleep, forgetting about the cool necessity of the water. His dream filled thoughts on pleasing her.

Danny wasn't sure how long he'd slept, only that he was abruptly awoken by the sensation of rain. The water running down and cooling off his dry and dusty scales; powered in a whole variety of colors. He was so dry he nearly felt sick, and swore that if he moved his scales would chip and crack. Thus the moisture came as a much needed relief and he relished in it for a long peaceful moment.

Though the longer he stayed there, the more the sensation began to bother him. It felt good, yes, but there was something bugging at the back of his skull that it was wrong. He raised his head to seek out the source of the water, only to find what was nagging in the back of his mind. He was greeted with a horrifying sight. 

Pools of color sloshed about, wiping away and smearing his efforts into a muddy, awful mixture. The water that cascaded off of him devoured the chalk as it went, slowly destroying everything he'd spent hours working on. He shrieked, pawing at the designs as if it would stop the downpour from destroying all he'd worked for. It was only when the water shifted and a voice called out that he froze.

"Easy there bud. You need to be more careful. Had you dried out much more I fear you'd of been very sick again," Nathaniel smiled sheepishly, trying to calm the jet black mer; hose swaying in his grip. 

Danny's eyes wavered from the ruined art, up to the spray that doused him and followed it down to the hose in the scientist's hands. The man in turn, just smiled as if he'd done no wrong, and normally it wasn't, seeing as the water was a much needed physical relief. However, the dark mer wasn't rational, his thoughts everywhere but self-preservation. Fins flared and hackles raised, he screeched, tail swishing violently and eyes ablaze. The mer glowered up at him with a newfound fury. Fangs bared, he mock lunged at the man, hiss still in his throat.