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Blue...
Kid’s vision was filled with the color of the cerulean sea.
One moment he and his mates were fighting another pirate crew on the enemy's deck, then some fucktard decided to swing a piece of the broken mast at him from behind, and Kid just happened to be standing near the railing.
So now he was falling face first into the watery hell for Devil Fruit users. Moving on autopilot, the Supernova hooked his goggles down and took a deep breath before he hit the cold water. Bubbles rushed and gurgled past his ears. The force of the impact knocked his fur cape off his shoulders.
He remained frozen in the position that he submerged, claw-like fingers extended in front of him uselessly, sinking head first like some kind of stone gargoyle delving into the translucent underworld.
Kid absolutely despised the feeling of being rendered immobile, vulnerable, so helpless underwater. Even though he loved and trusted his nakama with his very life, he didn't want to burden them with the task of fishing their hammer of a captain out of the water every now and then.
His crew was accustomed to keeping an eye on him during seaborne battles. If they didn't see their rogue captain wreaking havoc anywhere on board then there was a high possibility that he had fallen off so someone had to dive and save him.
All Kid could do now as he sunk into the crystal clear sea was gaze at the sand and the sparse coral below. The sun rays refracted by the waves above crisscrossed on the seabed, which didn't seem too deep in this zone so it shouldn't be a problem to find him. He just hoped one of his crew would reach him before he ran out of air.
Seconds passed by as the man sank deeper and deeper like lead, limbs swaying to the strong underwater currents.
What the hell is taking them so long? thought the captain. His lungs were starting to ache.
Maybe this time nobody had noticed him fall overboard? Or were the enemies preventing them from following him?
A large shoal of rainbow fish swam by beneath Kid. Their scales shimmered splendidly in the light, but all that Kid could see at the moment was his life flashing by.
Am I really gonna die this time? Who's gonna look after the crew? Those vandals need a leader… They need me...
Immersed in his own echoing thoughts, he failed to notice a creature swimming towards him at full speed from a distance.
Kid's lungs were burning by the time he reached the sandy seabed, nose mere inches away from the top grains.
No, not seabed. Deathbed... My fucking deathbed.
Suddenly, the pirate captain felt something tug at the gun harness encircling his torso from behind. The unknown presence used the leather strap to hoist Kid up from the bottom of the ocean, and higher still.
Kid's lungs couldn't take it anymore. He started to cough and choke, eyes squeezed shut, salty liquid invading his mouth and airway.
Oh, how it burned.
The redhead vaguely sensed that his savior hurriedly swam around to his front. Nimble hands cradled Kid's head. A set of soft lips sealed his own. The invading salt water was sucked out of Kid's mouth and replaced with a long blow of air.
It was the most memorable intake of oxygen in Kid's damned life.
The pale man inhaled whatever he could greedily and held his breath again. He could feel the person's lips detach from his own before one of those gentle hands quickly pushed his jaws shut. The captain opened his eyes once more, expecting the figure in front of him to be one of his pirates, even though he couldn't remember anyone with such soft skin.
Instead, he saw a naked woman.
An unbelievably beautiful one, too.
Her wavy orange hair captured the rays of the sun. Her lips were smudged with his burgundy lipstick. Of course, she wore no clothing, but was adorned with a pair of pearl earrings and some bejeweled bracelets. The cerulean ocean in the background contrasted against her porcelain skin. It was when Kid's eyes ventured further down that he realized she had an orange fish tail in lieu of legs. The fins were frilly, reminding him of a goldfish's tail.
…A mermaid…
He had seen merfolk before, but never this up close and personal.
Kid's line of sight returned to her angelic face.
The distorted slivers of light from above casted over both of their features. They remained studying each other for a while, Kid with his eyes wide open, the mermaid with a cheeky smirk.
Then she grabbed Kid's gun harness at the front and swam upwards, lifting the living anchor along. Kid could see the bright surface now. The light of day getting closer and closer…
The two finally broke the surface and the redhead gasped for precious air. The mermaid towed the exhausted captain towards a rock and tried her best to push his heavyweight form onto it. Now with his upper torso out of the seawater, the captain found enough strength in his arms to drag himself up.
After getting his sorry ass on the rock, Kid flung his goggles off and slicked his sopping scarlet hair back. He looked around to find the enemy's ship as well as his own nearby. He was relieved to see that it was his friends who were forcing the other crew to walk their own plank. Those who refused to comply would be hauled overboard, either manually or by Wire's trident.
Even though he was still heaving from his near death experience, Kid couldn't help but grin. He was proud of how merciless his crew was. The Kid Pirates weren't notorious for nothing!
"Good job, you bastards!" the sodden Supernova shouted at his shipmates. Killer's head snapped towards the direction of his captain so fast Kid was sure the blond would get whiplash. Killer pointed around and gave orders to the other shipmates, and it seemed that they were preparing to lower a lifeboat.
Now that he knew that his nakama were safe, the Devil Fruit user turned his attention back to the mermaid, who now had her arms folded on the rock beside Kid's left knee, curious eyes looking up at him, frilly tail swishing above the water surface. Her vibrant tresses lay strewn across her neck and shoulders.
Drops of seawater slowly dripped from the tip of Kid’s nose and chin as he regained his breath. Fiery carmine eyes stared down into liquid grey ones.
Eventually, the spellbinding stillness was broken when the male hooked his forefinger beneath her chin and used his thumb to wipe the burgundy mess off her lips as gently as he could.
Kid was a pirate. Pirates were anything but grateful. However, to have his life saved by someone was just... a whole other level. Furthermore, Kid did not like being indebted to anyone.
"How can I repay you, dollface?" he asked the mesmerizing mermaid softly as he released her chin and wiped his thumb on his pants, adding another hue to the gaudy garment.
She remained silent, but her doe eyes diverted to his various strapped weapons and decorative accessories, particularly the shiny ones. Her wandering orbs landed on the biggest golden bangle around his left wrist and stayed there.
The corners of her lips curved upwards.
In the past, the redhead had stabbed a couple of people's hands when they tried to pry his belongings from him. But for her, he did not waste even a second to take the targeted ornament off. He was going to take the right one off as well but a wet hand stopped his actions.
"One bangle for one breath. That's enough," the mermaid said. Then she raised her left arm in front of him. With one hand holding her delicate fingers, Kid pushed the wide bangle past her other bracelets until it fit snugly around her upper arm.
"You're just been gifted by Eustass 'Captain' Kid!" the husky male declared with open arms and a smug grin.
The sea creature pushed herself away from the rock and propelled backwards lazily. She raised her left fist in the air, "And you've just been saved by Nami!"
The sun glinted on both Kid's and Nami's solid gold bangles, two identical pieces that would be forever separated hereafter.
Nami eventually disappeared under the waves, leaving Kid to wait on the rock for his trusty first mate.
He stood up and rested his hands on his hips, turning towards the approaching boat with a smile, one that for once wasn’t murderous but rather a simple, good-humored smile.