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Ena poked her head up over the surface of the water and scanned the landscape before her. The winter swept beach was mostly made up of gravel and jagged rocks and was further embellished by a few old docks and an out-of-commission lighthouse. There were also some seasonal decorations, including dead grass and trees as well as chunks of ice floating in the water. To top it all off, someone with pink hair was making their way down to the cove. It was about time for another victim to come by…
They wore a bucket hat and a brown vest, and they carried a fishing rod at their side. Those clothes clashed quite a bit with the ribbons that tied their hair back, but no matter. Once the fisher was seated in their rowboat, Ena got into position behind a rock in the shallow water, being careful to obscure the lower half of her body, and then she started singing. Her delicate voice filled the calm silence of the bay and easily caught the attention of the fisher, causing them to start rowing in her direction. Hook, line, and sinker.
As they got closer, Ena couldn’t help but notice that they were actually pretty cute. This was quite a step up because the usual visitors were old, fat men; it’s a shame that this one had to die.
“What are you doing out here little lady?” The pink-haired fisher asked.
“Nothing much.. I just came here to sing a little, then I saw you. What’s your name?”
“Mizuki Akiyama! And you?”
“I’m Ena..” she said while feigning embarrassment, “What are you doing in a place like this?”
“My friends Kanade and Mafuyu aren’t doing so well, they need some food. I happen to be, hehe.. quite the expert at fishing.”
“That’s so nice of you! You seem like such a kind person.” After Ena said that, Mizuki smiled and then gazed into her eyes; what seemed like some kind of unnatural hypnosis had taken them.
“...You’re really pretty, did you know that?” Mizuki said. That was perhaps one of the most satisfying things she could hear from a victim, it signified the moment when they were fully engrossed in her enchanting allure. To secure her victory, Ena tentatively placed her hands on the side of the boat and pulled herself closer, all while maintaining eye contact.
“Am I?”
As expected, Mizuki reciprocated and leaned in, their eyes lingering momentarily before closing the gap between their lips. It was a sweet kiss, probably the only one Ena had actually enjoyed a bit. When they pulled away, a triumphant smirk made its way onto her face.
“It was nice meeting you, a shame it has to end here,” she said.
…
“What? I’ll be back here on other days too though! Are you leaving somewhere, En-”
“Huh!? How…” Ena’s mind went racing, spinning at the sight of Mizuki calmly adjusting their vest like they were perfectly fine, “...How are you alive right now?”
“What do you mean?” Mizuki asked.
Her mouth produced poison, it was one of the side effects of her curse. This probably would have been a good place to easily cover it up, but Ena was so ticked off she didn’t care. “My poison...Never before has someone not died on the spot. How are you fine like that?” Mizuki stared at her blankly, confused by her sudden break of character. Then, much to Ena’s surprise, they started..laughing.
“Haha! That’s so funny!”
Ena’s face scrunched up in anger, “...What did you just say?”
“I was wondering why that kiss felt so.. electrifying!” Mizuki saying that really made Ena mad, but she also felt kind of embarrassed too… Did they enjoy it too, then? “Oh, that’s right, my friend Mafuyu is an assassin. She makes all these CRAZY strong poisons and I always test em out so it probably didn’t work. Better luck next time♪”
No, forget embarrassment, this was just a mockery. Ena could feel her fangs erect and her eyes become serpentine as her blood practically boiled at the insult, “I’ll-”
“Waaaait a second!” Mizuki interrupted, “If everyone else died, does that mean I basically took your first kiss?” Ena let go of the boat in shock.
“H-Huh!?” she exclaimed.
“Like.. if you kiss someone and they die in the middle of it, I’d say that doesn’t count right? I’m your first kiss♪”
“That’s not how that works!” Well, she could see the logic, but still.
“If that’s not how it works then surely you wouldn’t mind… if we did it again?” Wait- they wanted to do it again? Even though they knew about the lethal poison? Why would they possibly.. “Hehehe… You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed, Ena.”\
“S-Shut up!” she shouted before dunking her head underwater and turning. She didn't want to see that stupid fisher ever again, so she used her tail to swim until she was far, far away.
A few uneventful days passed, uneventful and boring. People not coming down to the bay was typical, but for some reason, Ena had been antsy ever since that Mizuki visited a few days ago. She watched the sun rise and set several times, and every time she wondered if they would ever come back. After all… she really needed to kill them. It was a personal grudge and absolutely nothing else.
One day, when she was lounging around on the sea floor amongst the shimmering sand and rocks, she noticed something bobbing near the water and immediately swam up to check it out. As she had hoped, Mizuki was in the boat fiddling with something. Ena observed them until they started paddling out into the deeper waters, at which point she ducked below the surface again. Once they were in a suitable location, she took up a small rusty knife she had found on the sea floor and thrust it into the bottom of the rowboat. She didn’t waste another second and resurfaced to see Mizuki’s reaction. What face would they make when they realized they would sink and drown?
“Oh, hey there Ena! Good afternoon,” Mizuki greeted cheerfully. She didn’t answer, only glared at them. “Why do you look so upse- Hey, there’s a hole in my boat!!”
Ena chuckled and showed off the knife before dropping it into the water, “I’d say good morning back, but your last morning isn’t usually a good one.” Rather than a scared expression, like she’d hoped to see, Mizuki looked perfectly calm.
“It’s good that I brought tape for an occasion like this~,” they said, leaving Ena baffled. By the time she had processed what they just said, the sound of tape ripping made it clear that her nuisance of a hole was already patched up. Now that the boat wasn’t flooding, they could easily paddle back before she retrieved the knife… Another humiliating defeat at the hands of this idiot Mizuki.
“Ughhh why are you so stupid, just die!”
“Mmm maybe because you aren’t good enough yet, young one!” Mizuki said teasingly. Ena’s body was wrapped in frigid water, but her face was on fire right now. There’s no way this could happen, not once, but twice.. While she wallowed in her shame, Mizuki picked something up from the boat.
“Hey since you’re here.. Wanna play something with me?” they asked while striking the strings of an old guitar.
“...Play something with you?”
“Yeah! Your singing was so good the other day, I thought it would be even better with some music!” They never failed to astonish.
“Sure.” As soon as she said that, Mizuki's face lit up with a big smile. Seeing it somehow washed away Ena’s anger.
“Really? Alright then, let’s go♪” They put their fingers into place and started playing a familiar tune. Even after spending years living in the water, Ena knew this one by heart, and she began to sing along. The song started slow and mellow, and gradually got more heavy until it hit the chorus. It was a sweet love song with many drawn-out notes. Ena sang and Mizuki played the guitar, a perfect duet. Before either of them knew it, the song was over, and the last chord echoed through the open air.
“Hey, that was really good! I could listen to you sing all day,” Mizuki said excitedly.
“Well of course someone like me could sing well..” Ena shot back, made sheepish by the compliment. A silence fell between them, and so Ena followed Mizuki’s gaze to the water horizon to see that the sun was setting.
“It’s getting late..” Mizuki said.
“Then you need to leave. Bye. See you tomorrow.” She had intended for that to sound cold, but that last part slipped out accidentally…
“Oh, you want me to come back tomorrow? See you tomorrow then~”
“N-No! That’s not what I meant, it’s just a formality..”
“Sure, sure~” They could barely contain their laughter, but despite that, they still picked up their paddles and rowed away. Finally, that loud idiot is gone and I have some peace and quiet. Ena swam to the depths as she usually did and found a nice patch of seaweed to lay on.
..
...
Was peace and quiet always this lonely?
The next day, Mizuki was good on their word and returned. For the third time (a record among the visitors of this place, dead or alive) they sat into their rowboat and started paddling out. Ena took a deep breath and went to put her third plan into action. She climbed onto a rock and sat with elegant poise. Mizuki noticed and started to row over excitedly. However, the excitement faded when their ears caught the soothing song that Ena started singing.
The serenade soon enthralled them and they resumed rowing. With each stroke, they got just a little bit closer... Ena watched the front of the boat with bated breath until a loud crash pierced the air of the bay and rippled the murky gray water. All of her muscles tensed up as she watched the front of the boat smash against a hidden sharp rock, and the front bust open completely.
Fear struck Mizuki's face as their boat dipped forward and sank quickly under the waves. They tried to crawl to the back to redistribute the weight, but it didn't matter when their legs submerged. This was supposed to be the anticipated moment of victory, but it didn't feel good at all. In fact, Ena was more afraid than anything. Watching them squirm and fight for survival brought so much pain. At last, they threw one final helpless look at Ena before getting completely overtaken by the waves.
To soothe the unbearable pain, Ena found herself leaping from the rock to the spot where Mizuki went down. The freezing water washed over her face and she opened her eyes to look around. It was dark, but she still caught sight of a faint silhouette directly under her. She wasted no time swimming down and wrapping her arms around Mizuki's body, and once they were held securely, she turned to the shore and swam with all the strength her scaly tail could muster. I'm the idiot here…
Ena had not walked with legs in a long time, so she hobbled around on her knees picking up random twigs and driftwood. Their skin is pale, they need to get warm. After piling up a sizable amount, she lit a match she found in Mizuki's pockets, starting a small fire.
"Please.. please wake up," Ena said while shaking their soaked, cold, and unmoving body. "I'm sorry, I'll never try to hurt you ever again..." Still, no answer. Finally, she took a hold of their face and leaned in desperately to kiss them. It wasn't as nice as the first time, but she couldn't think about that, only how much she wished they would wake up...
As she reluctantly pulled away, a pair of hands grabbed her head and pulled her back in feebly. Their lips met again and filled Ena with relief, even making her tear up. They kissed for a while until Ena backed off to let them get up and huddle near the fire.
"... I'm glad you're okay," Ena said quietly. Mizuki smiled a bit and turned back to the fire, gazing pensively into it. For a while, its crackling along with the lulling waves was the only thing occupying the silence.
"I understand if you don't want to but.. would you come back tomorrow?" Ena asked. At that, Mizuki seemed a bit surprised.
"I didn't know you could be so sweet, Ena. But.. sure, I'll come back however much you want."
"... Then never stop,” Ena responded promptly.
"Huh?"
She paused so she could force her next words out, "Come back every day, forever."
Mizuki already looked surprised, but now their mouth just hung open. "Really?" they asked.
"Yeah.. because… I think I might be falling in love with you."