Dive: Stucky

Part 9: The Mermaid

When Steve shoved Bucky off the dinghy, it offset the balance. He rocked back and forth violently as he saw Bucky's blue light fade under the tossing waves. Steve gripped the side of the boat in attempts to steady himself, searching the horizon desperately for signs of the ships that had passed, but they were long gone. 

He felt himself starting to lose what little fight he had left in him. His strength was gone and his exhaustion overcame him as the sea gave a savage lurch. His grip finally failed him, and he flew over the side. 

He plunged into the water with a smack, feeling the icy cold blackness set in. He started to sink as the waves tossed him about, feeling his lungs scream for air. He didn't even try to fight the inevitable. 

He was going to drown.

He gave up, letting himself go as the life drained out of him. His limbs were numb and his lungs silenced their screams as he slipped out of consciousness. The last thing he heard was the boom of a thunderclap. 

***

When Steve next awoke, he was lying on his back. He looked through his lashes up at a clear night sky and the moon shining down on his broken body. He sat up dizzily and spewed sea water from his mouth, coughing and spluttering. 

"Where am I..." he said to no one in particular, looking around at the expanse of beach he was sitting on. 

The sand was pearly white and the waves that lapped at his feet were crystal clear. He shook sand loose from his hair and brushed it off his shirt, standing shakily. A couple pieces of driftwood lapped at the sand and as far as he knew, he was alone on a deserted island. He collected the pieces of wood and placed them in a pile in to start a fire, and then paced around the beach, searching for any signs of life. Occasionally his gaze would drift to the ocean in hopes that he'd see Bucky's head popping out of the water looking for him too. But he was never there.

He crouched down to inspect the driftwood he had managed to save when he heard a familiar sound. His head spun towards the water just to see a tail smacking the surface before disappearing under the waves.

His heart skipped a beat. It wasn't Bucky's oceanic blue tail, no. It was a fiery red one. It flicked out of the waves again, and Steve curiously paced to the shore, the water hitting his ankles. He squinted through the darkness to try and catch a glimpse of it again. This time the tail was much closer when it surfaced. The creature was obviously swimming directly towards him, so he backed up a few paces to stay clear of the water.

The creature finally surfaced in the shallows of the water, and Steve gasped involuntarily. It was a girl- well, not exactly a girl. It had the torso of a beautiful maiden, with long hazel hair framing her pale, but beautiful face. Her eyes were enormous umber spheres and her nose was small and delicate. Her lips were full and red, and they parted into a curious smile.

"H-Hello there~" Steve managed to choke out his shock and return her smile. She faltered at his welcome and splashed back. "No, don't be afraid," Steve crouched down on the sand to make himself look smaller and less threatening, "I won't hurt you."

The girl batted her long lashes at him, making his face grow hot all of a sudden. She slowly made her way closer to him in the shallows, flicking her bright red tail in the surf. She really was beautiful...

Steve shook his head and snapped out of it. Maybe this mermaid knew a way to get off this island? He crawled forward slowly and carefully, and she too brought herself closer. She still had that curious look on her face, staring him up and down.

"Can you speak?" he asked in a quiet tone, so as not to scare her off. She didn't indicate any sign of understanding as she wiggled her way onto the sand. Steve tentatively tried to help her into a sitting position, but she pawed him away and sat by herself.

"Can you understand me?" he said, looking at her. She nodded and laid on her side, gazing up at him with a rather dream-filled expression. "D-Did you save me?" he managed to tear his gaze away from her captivating eyes and focus his mind on more important matters.

She nodded again, moving slightly closer. Steve's eyes turned back to her and noticed the way she was edging herself closer to his side. He shrugged it off seeing as they were very different, and it was perhaps just a way of getting adjusted to being around him. 

"Thank you," he said and smiled, "you saved my life."

She flicked her tail and her arm brushed against his, making him flush again. She chortled in amusement as his expression and reached up, touching his cheek softly and turning his head her face hers again. She then began to sing a sirenic tune.

Come, come, be free,

Come, come, be with me.

"W-What are you?..." his voice trailed off as he became entranced with her. Something shifted in his eyes and he began to feel woozy. Suddenly he had a deep desire to go with her, back into the ocean.

Come, come, beneath the waves,

I will save you from the grave,

See the water,

Hear it speak,

Come, come, be free,

Come, come, be with me.

Her voice echoed in his head as he became enchanted with it. Her smile was suddenly the world to him and there was nothing that would stop him from leaving with her. He would die for her if he had to! He loved her!

She slowly started guiding him back to the water. The water.. her tail... they reminded him of something... or someone...

He then remembered Bucky, and he cried out and pulled away. He scrambled back as far as he could in the sand, panting.

"H-Hey!" he snapped, glaring at her. "What was that for!"

She snarled and plunged back into the water, darting away at top speed. Steve watched her swim away and dread filled his stomach. She was his only chance at getting off his island and he had scared her off. In his defense, she had just tried to take him.

"Wait! I'm sorry, please don't go! You're my only chance at survival!" he called desperately. She stopped and looked back for a moment before flipping around and continuing to swim away.

For what felt like eternity, he tried to start a fire. He shivered as the ocean breeze blew mist over him. The state he was in was miserable!

It was only when he heard an unusual splash did he turn around. He squinted into the darkness and saw a shape moving towards him. It was a banged up dinghy, and the mermaid pulling it towards the shore. She had gotten him a boat?

He stood up and spaced towards the edge of the water, peering out at her in disbelief. She give it one last tug before beaching it and darting back into the water. She then resurfaced a safe distance away from him and waited for his response.

"Why are you helping me?" Steve asked, looking skeptically into the boat. There were a couple freshly caught fish waiting for him inside. "You just seem so genorous...."

She shrugged and pointed to him, then to her tail, then back out to the open ocean. Steve frowned in confusion. What was she trying to say? She made the movements again and looked at him intently.

"Are you saying you know something about Bucky?" Steve asked hopefully. There couldn't be any possible way...

To his surprise, she swam closer to shore and nodded, mouthing the word 'yes.'