Chapter Text
Aaron Burr wasn’t exactly well versed in the nature or customs of the human creatures that lived on the land, so when the large craft floated by his sunning spot, he was naturally curious. He clambered down from the rock, following the wooden vessel from a safe distance, the words of his mentor fresh in his mind.
“You can never be too careful around humans,” James had told him, “They attack what they don’t understand.”
“Yeah, and they’re stupid too,” Thomas had added, “They wouldn’t be able to tell you from a fish, so stay away from their nets.”
Aaron had listened, kept out of sight of the passing vessels, stayed below the waves where he was safe. But he wasn’t a child anymore, he had gone through the rights. He was an adult now, not to mention he was about to begin his training as a warrior as well.
He could handle himself against a couple of humans.
Not that it would come to that of course. Aaron was always careful, even in his rebellion.
But he followed them anyway, watching their colorful flags fly on the horizon. Everything about the wooden craft fascinated Burr, it’s ability to stay afloat, what those great white sheets could possibly be for, how the wood didn’t curl even as the water lapped against the sides.
Aaron even gasped with delight as bright lights were lit around the huge wooden post which stood tall in the middle of the ship. The lights twinkled around the rails of the vessel as well, creating a glow around the ship in the dimming light of the day.
Aaron couldn’t help it. With a grin, he swam close, staying underwater so as not to make too much noise, and popping up again once he reached the ship. He was close enough to touch it now, the wood surprisingly smooth beneath his fingertips.
He’d seen boats like these beneath the waves, empty husks impaled on rocks at the bottom of the sea, but he had no idea they were meant to float. He continued along the side of the ship, looking up every now and again to catch a glimpse of the white sheets that billowed in the breeze.
He reached the front, bobbing up again and cocking his head to the side in slight confusion. There was what seemed to be a woman attached to the front of the boat, looking out over the waves, un-moving and seemingly uncaring as to her predicament.
“Strange,” he muttered to himself, and moved his eyes from the frozen woman.
That was when he saw them. Or more appropriately, when they saw him.
Four men stood by the rail, staring down at the sea, staring down at him, with wide eyes and dropped jaws. Aaron froze, unsure of what to do. Even with all of James’ warnings, he never told him what to do if he was seen by humans!
“MAN OVERBOARD!” one of them shouted and Aaron gasped, instinctively diving under the water again.
He swam a few feet away from the boat before popping up again to see what the men were doing. He panicked when he saw one of the men dive into the water from the ship and begin to swim towards him. The human was fast and almost upon him when Aaron ducked back down below the waves.
He didn’t expect the arms to haul him back up again.
“Don’t worry,” a voice said comfortingly, but it did little to help Aaron, “I’ve got you.”
“No!” he shouted, trying to pull away from the man, “Let me go!”
“It’s okay, it’s alright I’ll take you back to the ship over there, see? You’ll be okay.”
Take him back to the ship, he was going to take Aaron back to the ship! The mermaid struggled even harder, pushing at the man’s arms which were secure under Aaron’s own. He could hear the human grunting, trying to keep them both afloat.
“Calm down or you’ll take us both under!” he shouted before calling back to the ship, “Hercules! I need some help!”
“NO!” If another one of those humans grabbed him, he’d have no chance. So he did the only thing he could.
With the human’s arms still around him, Aaron dove under the water, taking the man with him. His surprise made him ease up on his grip, giving Aaron enough room to wriggle free. Turning to face him, he saw the human staring at him with wide eyes, breath held. But he wasn’t staring at Aaron, he was staring at Aaron’s tail.
The man’s arms were back around Aaron in a second and he suddenly felt them tighten, as the man continued to try and haul him upwards, now with more force. Burr growled low. He didn’t want to drown him but he also wasn’t willing to simply go topside with him either.
Suddenly another pair of arms appeared, encircling the human man and pulling him up. But the first man wasn’t finished with Aaron, his grip leaving bruises on Burr’s skin with how tight he held on. Then they were all above the waves, the human gasping for breath and Aaron flailing wildly.
“Let go of me, dammit!” he shrieked, beating his tail against the man’s legs with all his might.
“Herc, a mermaid! He’s a mermaid!” the human shouted with glee, tightening his hold around Aaron.
“Let him go, Alexander.” another voice said, so deep and cool that Aaron paused in his thrashing to listen to it.
“W-what?”
“Let him go.” there was finality in the other human’s tone, “Right now.”
And just like that, the arms disappeared from around Aaron, who in turn pushed against the man to gain distance. He turned around, glaring darkly at the two, taking in their appearances.
The man with the deep voice looked at Aaron with a sort of respect, maybe reverence. He held the other man away and nodded lightly. Aaron nodded back before turning his snarl on the first man.
Smaller than his comrade, his attacker watched him with a longing which made Aaron incredibly uncomfortable. He breathed deeply, not allowing himself to speak else he risk sobbing out of fear. So, with his head held high, he turned, diving back down, but not before allowing his tail to come up above the waves to slap his attacker across the face.
From the depths, he watched the shadows of the humans retreat to their ship, noticing how the first man paused, looking down into the water before being pulled by his companion.Aaron wrapped his arms around himself, unsure of what to do now.
James and Thomas had been right, humans couldn’t be trusted; he’d been a fool to follow them. And he’d payed the price. Sparing the surface one last glance, Aaron swam back towards his home, reminding himself not to mention this to his family.
He didn’t need a lecture about a lesson he’d already learned.
A few days later found Aaron sunning himself on a large rock near the beach, underneath a cliff edge. It was the early morning and there were no humans about, just as Aaron found himself preferring it. He’d had enough of humans to last him quite a while, thank you very much.
He sighed, stretching out lazily on the rock, feeling it cool his hot skin. Hopefully the bruises left by his attacker would disappear within the next week. Thomas and James had asked him about them, and he’d lied easily, telling them he’d simply been sparing with Theodosia again.
He prayed they hadn’t asked her. As much as Theo was his best friend, she would be the first to throw him under the bus.
As he pondered his relationship with the girl, a scowl on his face, his ears perked at the sound of footsteps behind him. Pushing himself up, he turned slightly, eyes widening at the sight before him.
The four men from the boat stood on the shore, eyes locked on him. The two men who hadn’t jumped into the water had disbelief written on their faces. The third man looked solemn, but not ashamed. He stared at Aaron with the same wonder as the other two.
His attacker watched his every move with delight, eyes roving over his body, lips widening into a grin when his eyes reached Aaron’s tail.
Coming back to his senses, Aaron scrambled as quickly, albeit as awkwardly, as he could down from the rock and into the ocean, diving down just below water level. He heard a shout and watched the four men move towards where he had disappeared.
He thought they would leave if he stayed hidden, as there was nothing there to entertain them. Unfortunately his theory was proven wrong as he watched them climb up onto the rocks where he had been sunning himself. This annoyed him. How dare they take his spot! Theywere the ones trespassing!
Pouting only slightly, Aaron bobbed the top half of his face above the waves, his eyes watching them with a glare. They laughed with each other, removing their footwear and lying back against the rocks as he had previously done.
One of them, a tall man with a handsome face and what looked to be perpetual bedroom eyes, caught a glimpse of him and grinned, leaning forward on the rock holding his hand out, palm up and eyes sparkling.
Aaron sniffed haughtily, turning his face away and diving back down, listening as they spoke.
“I don’t think he likes you, Laf.”
“Nonsense, he is simply being coy.”
“…was that supposed to be a pun?”
The men laughed raucously and Aaron found himself snarling. They were laughing at him. He swam around the rocks, darting up between the legs of another one of the men. The human jumped, startled, before laughing, smiling as Aaron examined him intently.
This one had dots on his face, covering nearly every inch of his skin. Aaron’s hand came up out of the water to touch them, poking them gently before meeting the human’s eyes again. He blushed at the look of amazement the man gave him, and ducked back under the water.
“Oh wait!” the man called, before tisking, “Nice going Alex, now he’s afraid of us.”
“How is it my fault!?” the voice of his attacker called out, folding his arms and pouting on the rock.
“You attacked him,” the man with the deep voice said, watching the waves.
“I didn’t attack him! I just wanted to get a better look! If anyone was attacked it was me! He slapped me with his tail!”
“Alex, honestly can’t you be a bit respectful?”
The man sighed, leaning over the rock and patting the water with his hand.
“I’m sorry, okay?” he called out, Aaron assumed it was to him, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Aaron came up out of the water to glare at the man.
“You gave me bruises.” he said simply.
The dotted man and the one with the eyes stared at him with awe.
“He is beautiful.” the man with the twinkling eyes said.
His words were spoken in a strange way, his voice changing the sound of each word and Aaron couldn’t help the blush that crept up his neck at the compliment. He didn’t take his eyes off his attacker though, keeping a firm scowl on his lips.
“You gave me bruises.” he repeated.
At least the human had the decency to look ashamed about it, scratching at the back of his neck and looking away.
“I’m sorry.” he said again, and this time it sounded less rehearsed, “I was just excited. I didn’t want you to go.”
“So what? You would keep me? As some sort of trophy?” bitterness crept into his words and his tail whipped angrily beneath the water.
“No, no of course not!” the man cried, his hands up in a placating gesture. “I just- you arebeautiful.”
James’ words echoed in his mind. They attack what they don’t understand. Would they hurt him again? Just because he was beautiful? Aaron found himself growing anxious under the stares of the humans and instinctively hid beneath the water again.
“What did I say!?” he heard the man call out to the waves.
But Aaron didn’t answer, swimming away from the rocks. He wouldn’t admit his fear to them or to anyone for that matter, but he hoped the humans got the message. To leave him alone.
Unfortunately Thomas was right, humans were stupid.
Everywhere he went after that, he would see them, watching him. As he polished his scales, they were on the beach, laughing with each other and gazing at him. The migration of the newly born sea turtles brought them around as well, the dotted one looking particularly interested as Aaron herded the babies into the ocean.
But they were always there, searching for him above the waves, waiting for him by the rocks, calling out to him when he dared to emerge above the surface. When they appeared on his sunning rock one morning, Aaron decided he had had enough. If they wanted to see him, they’d get to see him.
He swam over, listening to their loud voices and laughter as he got closer, his scowl deepening. When he reached the rocks, he pulled himself up, his tail just coming out of the water and sparkling in the sunlight. Aaron leaned up, glaring into the face of his attacker, who jumped back slightly, surprised at Aaron’s sudden appearance.
“This is my rock.” the mermaid stated petulantly.
The man looked bewildered, staring from Aaron to his friends before cracking a grin and leaning forward.
“I don’t see your name on it.”
Aaron growled quietly. His name WAS on it, he’d carved it on the rock with Theo when they were both children, but he wasn’t about to get in a debate with the human based on semantics. That wasn’t the point.
“Why are you following me?” he asked, looking between the men for an answer.
The one with the strange voice seemed to be too busy trying to get a look at his tail, and his attacker simply sputtered, looking for words. Aaron sighed, humans were useless. He dove under again, swimming to the side and popping up beside the man with the deep voice, the one who had advocated his freedom.
“Why are you following me?” Aaron repeated, voice calmer as he spoke to the man.
The human looked surprised, before smiling down at him.
“My ma always said seeing a merrow meant you were intended for greatness. I guess we’re just trying to stretch out our luck.”
“Plus Alexander never properly apologized.” the dotted one butted in.
“Alexander.” Aaron tasted the name on his lips and noticed his attacker’s eye twinkle as he said it. “Is that your name?”
“Yeah,” Alexander nodded, almost breathless as he watched Aaron grow closer. He was leaning over the rock, “Yeah, that’s me.”
“I don’t like you.” Aaron stated firmly, but watched the human curiously. He didn’t seem to mind Burr’s obvious distaste, rather grinning as he voiced it.
“That’s fair.” he admitted, rubbing at his neck again, and Aaron followed his movements with his eyes, “But I am sorry. I…didn’t mean to frighten you, or hurt you. And there was no excuse for it.”
Aaron blinked. Surprised at how genuine the man sounded. His tail flicked nervously in the water and he huffed a little.
“I…suppose I accept your apology, human man….Alexander.”
He felt his cheeks grow hot at the sight of Alexander’s ecstatic grin and debated diving back under the water to avoid his embarrassment, but a voice cut through his thoughts.
“Oh don’t go yet.” the human with the dots called out, scrambling across the rocks to sit closer to him in the water, “You just got here. At least tell us your name.”
“Mmm,” the mermaid hummed, debating whether or not to risk it. Names were powerful things, even if humans didn’t realize it. Seeing his hesitation, the human smiled.
“Here, we’ll give you ours first, I’m John, that’s Lafayette,” he pointed to the man with the funny voice, “you know Alexander, and that’s Hercules.” The man with the deep voice smiled and waved a little.
His tail whipped anxiously beneath him and he rubbed at his arms. He didn’t trust these humans, not in the least, but giving them his name might satisfy them enough to make them leave him alone.
Little did he know that they would never be satisfied.
“Aaron, my name is Aaron.”
“You are very pretty, Aaron,” the man named Lafayette said, leaning back lazily on the rock and gazing at the mermaid.
The men laughed at Aaron’s blush, and he crossed his arms, glaring at the water, away from the humans. Alexander leaned forward, face right in front of Burr’s, noses almost touching. The grin on his face was wide and his eyes sparkled. Aaron swallowed nervously before the human spoke.
“Do you want your rock back?”
“Uh-um,” he stuttered, his tail fins fluttering, “I should…I should go home. I can’t….I can’t stay.”
With a quick flick of his tail, Aaron spun around, diving back into the water, not bothering to look at their disappointed faces as they watched him go. Yet another thing he wouldn’t mention to his mentors.
Alexander watched his mermaid dive beneath the depths before he could shout out. He looked to his friends, confusion written on his face.
“But…I apologized.” he said to Herc, almost desperately, and the older man simply shook his head, not looking all too bothered by the disappearance of the merrow.
“He’s not your pet, Alexander. He’ll stay and go as he pleases.” Hercules leaned back against the rock, watching the clouds move overhead, “Besides, merrow’s aren’t known for making attachments with humans. He’s probably just nervous.”
“He is magnificent.” Lafayette commented, staring up at the sky dreamily.
“I have a feeling he’ll be back.” John chuckled, noticing the head bobbing up above the waves, watching them before disappearing again. He didn’t mention it to his friends, just smiled.
“I hope so,” Alex picked up a loose stone, skipping it across the water, “I mean, meeting a creature like that, can you imagine? It’s a once in a lifetime chance and we’ve spoken to himthree times!”
“Well, you didn’t really speak to him the first time, you attacked him.”
“Whatever,” Alexander sniffed, scowling at John, “I’m just saying, it’s gotta mean something.”
“It means you don’t know when to quit.”
The boys roared with laughter as Alexander shoved John into the water, unaware that they themselves were being watched. Aaron stared curiously at the humans as each in turn jumped into the water, splashing each other and shoving each other underneath the waves.
With a quirked eyebrow, Aaron sighed, turning back around and continuing on his way home. He hoped Theo wouldn’t ask where he had been. He already missed their sparring session. But it wasn’t like he could help it. He found the humans fascinating, even with their barbaric attitudes.
He had forgiven the human Alexander, and that at least made him feel better. Making enemies wasn’t worth it, and the three other men seemed nice enough, it would be a shame not to know them simply because of a grudge. Maybe he would return to them.
Later of course. For now, he had a best friend to meet and excuses to make.