FicWad

There was a ‘no entry’ sign hanging on the gate to the boatyard at the harbour. The boatyard had always been open to the point that Gerard hadn’t even noticed that a gate existed. People were free to walk along the gangways and look at the different boats, just like the owners were free to come and go to use their boat whenever they pleased. Not even when the aftermaths of rare, exceptionally bad tropical storms hit would the boatyard be closed. This was a seafaring town; people were expected to have enough common sense to know when going out into the sea would be a bad idea.

Yet the gates were shut, the boats were inaccessible and barriers were getting put up every evening to stop people approaching the water’s edge whenever night fell.

Many people who owned boats had moved them away, taking them further down the coast to different harbours or putting them into storage until the fear enveloping the town disappeared. The only boats that went out now were the large commercial ships and fishing boats that were owned by the giants of the industries; the sailors given their instructions by men in suits who lived hundreds of miles inland and had probably never worked a day on a ship in their life.

There was a dark sense of foreboding hanging heavy over the town. Sometimes it felt so tangible, so real, Gerard felt that people almost expected to see a black fog sinking over the streets. At other times it just felt ridiculous and frustrating, nothing more than being over superstitious.

Gerard knew the truth though, and he wished that he could tell people. He knew why sailors were going missing; he knew that everyone was right to be afraid, and to lock up their boats and not go into the sea at night. Perhaps once the Sirens started getting frustrated that they couldn’t snatch people at night they might even start doing so in the day instead.

Gerard didn’t know if they would dare to come so close to the shore that they could take people who were just swimming in the sea. Maybe they would give up and go somewhere else instead. Or maybe they would grow daring and take people from the shallows in broad daylight. Maybe the whole beach would have to be sectioned off. Swimming and sailing would be forbidden. Even the big commercial ships would stop going out there. Everyone would hide from some unseen terror in the waters and the whole place would become a modern myth like the Bermuda triangle.

The harbour which had once been Gerard’s favourite place to visit, the main reason for him moving to the town in fact, was now like something out of his nightmares. He knew that something had to be done to stop the Sirens… He just didn’t want Frank to be the one to do it.

Gerard looked at Frank and sighed, his eyes soft and sad. The younger man was sleeping beside him, curled up to his side and breathing softly against his shoulder. He looked like he didn’t have a care in the world whilst he was sleeping, but Gerard knew he was nervous about returning to the sea.

The two men had discussed Frank’s decision to go back into the ocean in more depth once they had managed to calm their emotions and had had a night together. Gerard still didn’t like it, but Frank was convinced it was the right thing. As long as Gerard promised to wait for him to return the year after, then he was determined to do whatever he could in saving the humans from the Sirens.

Gerard sighed and gently moved his arm from underneath Frank. The merman mumbled quietly and stirred in his sleep, but he soon settled down again when Gerard lay perfectly still. Once it was clear Frank wasn’t going to wake up Gerard slipped out of bed and walked across the dark room and into the living room beyond.

It amazed him that Frank wanted to help the townspeople when really they shouldn’t mean anything to him. Gerard wondered if humans would be so quick to save merpeople if they knew about them; he knew they would… but he wasn’t convinced it would be out of selflessness like Frank. Humans would just want merpeople to survive so they could lock them into laboratories and run them through a million different tests.

Gerard winced at the thought of Frank being kept in some dingy tank with wires going in and out of his arms and knew he would rather die than see that happen. He felt a sudden overwhelming relief that no one suspected the existence of anything like merpeople and prayed that the Siren attacks wouldn’t change that.

Leaning on the windowsill in the living room Gerard cracked the window open and breathed in the cool night air. The crescent moon was bright, not a single cloud to be seen. More stars could be seen here than in the city and Gerard looked up at them all as he lit a cigarette and wondered how he was going to cope when Frank left.

It was strange that Gerard was so in love with someone but couldn’t tell any of his family or friends. He would spend another lonely year to himself, pretending to be single, whilst all the time hoping that his lover would return. It was like a cheap, badly scripted movie. Or something from a Disney film. Why couldn’t he just meet someone and have it be simple? Not that he wanted anyone other than Frank, and he supposed, at least things couldn’t get any more complicated than they already were.

As Gerard stood smoking, Frank was stirring in the bedroom. He had rolled over to encase himself in Gerard’s arms only to find that the artist wasn’t there. Within moments he had woke enough to sit up and was unsteadily making his way out of the bed and across the floor in search of his lover.

Gerard didn’t notice Frank come into the living room, to busy staring upwards at the stars and inhaling deep lungful’s of cigarette smoke. He was thinking about how now that the harbour was closed hopefully there wouldn’t be any more disappearances for a while. It would be nice to turn the radio on in the morning and not have more names of dead men read out.

Frank’s hands seemed to appear from nowhere to Gerard, causing him to jump as they touched his waist and slid gently up his sides. Frank halted when he realized he had frightened the older man, but then carried on when he had relaxed again.

“What you doing out of bed?” He asked quietly, his voice husky from sleepiness.

“I was just smoking.” Gerard responded quickly, his heart still hammering from the surprise of Frank’s appearance. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“You didn’t…” Frank whispered, brushing his lips slowly across the back of Gerard’s neck. He was half awake and wanted to fall back into bed and curl up beneath the warm sheets. But he didn’t want to go without Gerard; and now that he was up and holding him he was thinking of other things they could do in bed too.

Gerard smiled weakly and nodded, finishing his cigarette in silence as Frank kissed gently over his neck and shoulders.

The two men stood quietly together for as long as it took for Gerard to finish smoking. The cool breeze coming through the window made them stand even closer together, enjoying the contrast of warm skin and cold air. Neither spoke, and other than Frank’s soft kissing and Gerard’s lowering and raising of his cigarette, neither moved. The moment was tranquil, and it could have been perfect, if it wasn’t tinged with the knowledge that all too soon Gerard would be at this window again; looking out into the night and wondering where his lover was, and whether he was safe.

Cigarette spent and flicked out of the window, Gerard turned to face Frank and meet him in a chaste kiss. He laid his hands on Frank’s side and smiled at him, feeling sleepy again himself. The cigarette had helped take his nerves off edge, and he felt like he would be able to sleep now.

“Shall we go back to bed?” He whispered softly, brushing a lock of Frank’s hair off his forehead and gently planting a kiss there. Frank smiled and nodded, taking hold of Gerard’s hand and leading him back to bed himself.

Frank could sense that Gerard was not his usual self. He could understand why, it was obvious that his decision to go back to the sea had been hard on the artist. It was hard for Frank too, he hoped that Gerard understood he had not taken the decision lightly. He wanted nothing more than to be with Gerard, but he couldn’t risk the humans getting any more suspicious about the disappearing sailors. He also couldn’t remain a human permanently without saying goodbye to Jamia and Bob. He sometimes felt like they had probably forgotten him by now, but deep down he knew that wasn’t true, and he knew he owed it to them to let them know he was safe.

“You know I love you…” Frank whispered, not sure if he meant it as a question or not. There was no doubt in his mind what his feelings were. He was amazed that he hadn’t admitted them long before. It felt like he had always known that he loved Gerard.

“I know.” Gerard sighed, looking down at Frank and smiling softly. His hands came up to rest on the younger man’s back, cupping his shoulder blades and holding him protectively against his chest. “I love you too.”

Frank smiled and leant up to press a soft kiss to Gerard’s lips. He wished he could think of something that would make everything okay; something that would take the sting away from the wound he had inflicted by deciding to leave.

A year would pass quickly for Frank if he was busy trying to fight the Sirens. But he knew that every day would drag like a hundred years for Gerard who would be unable to do anything but wait.

“You said before you wanted to make love to me?” Frank breathed against Gerard’s lips, still drawing on his chest though it was more to soothe himself now. He had vague ideas of what sex entailed, and he knew making love was just a nicer way of saying sex; but he wasn’t informed enough to understand what would happen and if it would hurt. He wanted to try it though, because he knew Gerard wanted it and he just wanted Gerard to be happy.

“Uhuh…” Gerard was feeling sleepier by the second, but he woke up a little at Frank’s question. He tensed, waiting for Frank to carry on.

“Why don’t we do it now?” Frank blushed at his proposal, lowering his gaze to watch his finger drawing swirls and circles on Gerard’s clavicle. He didn’t know how humans went about suggesting these kind of things, and he hoped he was following the proper social conventions. Gerard didn’t seem to mind if he had got it wrong though; when he tipped Frank’s face back up his smile was weak but warm and genuine.

“Are you sure?” Gerard felt like maybe he was too tired, and he was sure Frank was exhausted too. But maybe that’s what they needed. Being sleepy would make them relaxed, and it wouldn’t give their minds chance to race too far ahead or overthink anything. Gerard was happy to go to sleep, but he wouldn’t dream of passing up a chance to feel Frank properly and make him his own.

Frank gazed into Gerard’s warm, honey eyes and smiled as he nodded. He knew he had done the right thing by suggesting this, and he wasn’t going to back out. The little nerves he felt were fast disappearing as Gerard tenderly cupped his face and pulled him up so that their heads were level. He was lying half on Gerard’s chest and half off, and his leg splayed across Gerard’s hip as he closed his eyes and pouted his lips into the kiss Gerard had planted on them.

It had been a long time since Gerard had last had sex, but this he knew was going to be entirely different to any time before. Despite how long he had been eager to touch Frank and how deeply his desires had rooted themselves he forced himself to keep slow. He moved his lips over Frank’s as gently as he could, sucking his lower lip between his teeth for just a second before tracing his tongue over the same spot.

The two men were tired and their bodies felt warm and relaxed as a result. Frank slumped on top of Gerard and rubbed his hands up and over the artist’s shoulders. Despite the gentle pace he was still always a split second behind in the kissing, following Gerard’s lead and enjoying the feeling of being submitted to Gerard; he was overpowered by him even like this and he loved the feeling of safety it gave him.

Gerard could feel how exhausted Frank was and so gently rolled them over so that he was on top instead. Just the knowledge that no boundaries stood between them anymore was enough to have Gerard growing hard already, but when he nudged his hips tentatively over Frank’s he was relieved to find that Frank was too.

Gerard pulled back from the kiss to look down at Frank for a second. Their gazes met and Gerard’s heart skipped a beat before they were kissing again.

Frank pushed his hands into Gerard’s hair and pulled ever so gently. He was starting to liven up, energy coursing through him as his body sought after the pleasure it was being promised. He sighed softly into Gerard’s mouth and touched their tongues together for a moment as his hips rolled upwards of their own accord.

Gerard’s hands were warm and soothing as they stroked down Frank’s sides; his thumb caressed over Frank’s hipbone and then hooked into his underwear. He rubbed the skin there, teasing the younger man and himself. He didn’t remove Frank’s clothes straight away, instead he moved his kisses to the merman’s neck and left a trail of gentle bites that felt warm even after Gerard’s lips had disappeared.

Frank closed his eyes and relaxed, working his fingers gently through Gerard’s hair as he let him lead the way. Every time their hips pushed together Frank would sigh in quiet delight, enjoying the friction between their erections and bucking his pelvis in search of more. He turned his face to the side to kiss at any part of Gerard he could.

Both men were beginning to breathe heavier. Gerard felt shaky as he stripped himself and Frank of the few clothes they were wearing. He sat back to look at his lover for a moment, taking in the sight of Frank naked beneath him like it was the first time.

When Frank realized Gerard had stopped he slowly opened his eyes to look up at him. He smiled softly, confident in his body and feeling no anxiety as he let Gerard stare down at him. He in turn looked over Gerard; even though he had seen him naked before it was still intriguing to him.

Looking at Gerard’s body just felt different to looking at his own, and he eagerly looked at the way his legs attached to his hips, and his hips to his torso. He followed the lines of his sternum, hip bones and midriff. He reached out to trace a finger down the line of hair that led from Gerard’s navel and down to his penis. He looked at the way the muscles in his thighs tensed and relaxed whenever he shifted his weight, and the way his erection twitched whenever his fingers stroked over a sensitive spot.

Frank thought that humans were beautiful; and Gerard the most beautiful of them all. Many merpeople thought that humans looked strange and abnormal, but Frank was beginning to think that they were the abnormal ones.

“Frankie…” Gerard felt the need to the break the silence surrounding them, realizing he had been looking at Frank for a long while. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Mhmm.” Frank nodded his head without hesitation, staring at Gerard’s hips for a minute longer before looking up to meet his gaze. “I’m sure.” He smiled, leaning up on his elbows and smiling when Gerard leant down to kiss him.

“Is there a specific way I should lie?” Frank asked, his hand stroking the back of Gerard’s neck.

“No… No, on your back is fine.” Gerard whispered, sighing as he kissed Frank quickly again. He supposed it would probably be easiest for Frank if he was on his side, but Gerard wanted to be able to see his face. “Hold on a second…”

Gerard blushed as he got out of bed and hurried to get the lube from one of the drawers. He pulled out the tube and then hesitated as he looked at the condoms inside. He was clean, and he knew Frank was a virgin so he would be clean too, but suddenly Gerard wondered if it would still be unsafe. Frank had different blood to a human, if their blood ended up mixing somehow would it make one of them sick?

Gerard thought back to the rumours in high school that AIDs was caused by a man having sex with a monkey and decided he wouldn’t risk it. He grabbed a condom and hurried back to the bed, placing the items he had retrieved next to Frank before lying atop him again.

Frank smiled softly as Gerard kissed him without another word and their hips started to rock together. It didn’t take either of them long to relax fully again and soon Frank was panting and mewling softly as he pulled on Gerard’s hair and kissed him with feverish passion.

Gerard was spurred on by Frank’s eagerness, but he forced himself not to rush into anything. He continued simply kissing Frank and rubbing their cocks together, waiting until they were both getting sticky with pre cum before he broke the kiss and picked up the tube of lube next to them.

Frank kept his eyes closed, breathing heavily and slowly running his hands through his own hair as he struggled to compose himself. He opened his legs as wide as he could when Gerard nudged them, and lifted his hips when he was told to do so. Gerard slid two cushions beneath Frank’s lower back to tilt his hips up more, kissing him quickly again before squeezing some lube onto his fingers.

Frank gasped when something cold and slick ran over his anus and he immediately tensed as a result. As the lube warmed up though he relaxed to the gentle pressure of Gerard’s fingers smearing it against the outside of his hole.

Gerard sat back and focused on what he was doing. Frank seemed relaxed and his eyes were still closed. Every now and then he would give a small huff of impatience and Gerard couldn’t help but smile. He had had sex with a virgin before, and he liked to think he knew what he was doing; Frank certainly seemed to be enjoying it.

Gerard ran his fingertips in small circles around Frank’s entrance, feeling the muscles grow soft and pliant beneath his gentle rubs. Soon he managed to press a finger inside Frank without any resistance. He kept slow though, watching Frank’s face screw up in surprise. The younger man released a quiet squeak and he shifted uncomfortably.

“Is it okay?” Gerard asked quickly, stilling his finger inside the merman. Frank sighed and rolled his head to the side, his eyes fluttering open for a moment before he nodded.

“Uhuh… It doesn’t hurt…” He promised quietly, though the sensation was incredibly strange. Frank didn’t know how it was supposed to feel exactly, he just knew he had never felt anything quite like it in his entire life. Gerard was starting to rub his inner walls ever so gently, not quite thrusting his finger, and for a while Frank could only shift his hips about, trying to get more comfortable and used to the sensation.

Gerard could remember his first time as a bottom well, and he knew that it would take a long time for Frank to really enjoy it. He wriggled his finger deeper, searching for Frank’s prostate. He knew that at least would make everything a lot more bearable.

Gerard didn’t manage to find that special spot until he had worked a second finger inside Frank. He kept an eye on the younger man’s erection, pleased that he was still fully hard and using it as an indicator of how much he was enjoying it.

Now that he was beginning to grow used to the sensations Frank was starting to feel like he could enjoy them. He relaxed more and gave soft sighs and moans of encouragement, wanting Gerard to know he was okay. After a while the two fingers inside him pressed against his prostate and began to rub, causing him to moan with more enthusiasm.

Gerard recognised the texture of the prostate immediately and began to rub his fingers in a ‘come hither’ motion to massage it. He was gentle and slow still, and his erection throbbed at the quiet moans of pleasure he was causing Frank to make. His anal muscles were beginning to pulse around Gerard’s fingers and so he began to thrust them ever so gently.

Frank shivered in delight at the new sensations the thrusting caused. Gerard was careful to nudge his prostate with each press in, and soon Frank was leaking pre cum over his stomach and whimpering for more.

More was provided when Gerard began to scissor his fingers too, stretching Frank’s sphincter and preparing him for something bigger. Frank was beginning to really enjoy himself, and he started to push back down over the fingers as Gerard fucked him with them.

Gerard used his other hand to squeeze more lube onto the two fingers working in and out of Frank, using perhaps more than was necessary but he knew too much lube was a lot better than not enough. By the time he pulled his fingers out of Frank his hole it was shining wetly in the dim light and Frank was feeling positively debauched.

“Unn G – Gerard…” Frank’s cock was throbbing and he felt lost without the fingers inside him. He opened his eyes half way and watched with a hungry gaze as Gerard hurried to roll the condom over his own cock and then rub lube over the top.

“What’s that?” Frank slurred, referring to the condom which he had never seen before. Gerard gave him a crooked grin and shook his head.

“It’s just a safety thing.” He shrugged, turning himself on even more as he worked his hand over his length. Frank watched him and nodded, deciding they could talk about the safety thing later, it wasn’t important right then.
“Okay…” Gerard swallowed thickly and moved forward to press the tip of his cock to Frank’s ass. “Hold my hand…” He whispered, cupping Frank’s waist with one hand and then moving the other to slot against Frank’s palm. He laced their fingers and met Frank’s gaze with a soft smile. “Squeeze my hand as much as it hurts, then I know what pace to go.”

Gerard found that the hand squeezing was much easier in these situations. Talking could be difficult, and squeezing someone’s hand was more instinctive than telling them it hurt, and he wanted Frank to be as comfortable as possible.

“Mm… I love you Gee.” Frank whispered, keeping his grip loose on Gerard’s fingers as he kissed him softly. “I trust you…”

Gerard knew Frank was giving him the go ahead and so after one more passionate kiss and a husky ‘I love you too’ he began to push his hips forward.

Frank squeezed his eyes shut but didn’t tighten his grip on Gerard’s hand just yet. He could feel the pressure of the head of Gerard’s cock trying to push through his sphincter and he focussed on relaxing as much as possible. Little by little Gerard entered him, and Frank gasped and squeezed his hand hard when the head suddenly slipped inside him.

Immediately Gerard halted, looking anxiously at Frank but the younger man didn’t open his eyes. His muscles were clenching around Gerard, but after a few moments of deep breathing on Frank’s part, his muscles loosened up again and he released his death grip on Gerard’s hand.

“Okay… I’m okay…”

For what felt like forever the same thing happened again and again. Gerard would move forward as slowly as he could, and with each inch that disappeared into Frank he would stop whenever the grip on his hand tightened. There were no tears though, no gasps or whimpers of pain. At worst Frank would screw his face up for a few moments before relaxing again. The process was agonizingly slow, but when Gerard finally managed to press his entire length into Frank neither of them were hurt.

Frank sighed and shifted his hips slightly, moving his body around until he felt more comfortable. Gerard was stroking his waist softly and kissing his neck, and Frank was able to just take a few minutes to relax.

Gerard was feeling breathless as I stroked his thumb along Frank’s palm and tried to steady his breathing. The merman was so tight around his cock, and he could feel the heat through the condom. His hips felt tense with the need to thrust, but he kept still despite how hard it was to control himself.

It felt like years for Gerard before Frank was relaxed again. He felt the change in his muscles and opened his eyes slowly to look at him. Frank was already gazing at him and he smiled softly as he nodded, giving Gerard’s hand one more, gentle squeeze.

“Okay.” He whispered, his expression calm. “Ready.”

Gerard exhaled slowly and groaned as he leant down to kiss Frank. He felt so in love with him right then it was overwhelming, and knowing that Frank would soon be leaving broke his heart. He tried not to think about it, but even as he began to rock his hips he couldn’t quite push it out of his mind.

Gerard stayed buried deep in Frank as he made love to him. He didn’t thrust his hips back and forth, not wanting to hurt Frank, knowing he would ache just from the stretch as it was. Instead he kept pressed against his prostate and just rolled his hips enough to cause a small amount of friction and to rub the tip of his erection against Frank’s sweet spot.

Frank was relaxed beneath Gerard, his arms now draped around his neck and his fingers played with the ends of his hair. He was moaning quietly and arching his hips up to meet Gerard’s, keeping the penetration deep and gasping over how good it felt.

Gerard was so turned on that even just being inside Frank was enough to get him close to climax. He moaned quietly into Frank’s neck and wrapped his arms around his waist, hoisting his hips up to press further inside him.

Both men were panting and breathing out soft words of pleasure between their quiet moans. They held onto each other tight, keeping all gaps between them closed.

Gerard was the first to cum; he tensed and stilled inside Frank, gasping and moaning his lovers name louder as he spilt into the condom. He jerked his hips forward a few more times before slumping down onto his elbows. He continued to roll his hips forward for as long as he could bear but soon he was too sensitive and he pulled his softening cock out of Frank.

“Fuck…” Gerard tipped Franks head up to kiss him heatedly, wrapping his other hand around Frank’s still hard cock and squeezing firmly. “I love you…”

“Ah! Ha… You too…” Frank gasped, moaning and arching his back as Gerard stroked his erection rapidly to bring him to orgasm. “Love you too…”

Frank’s pleasure climbed much faster now his ass was able to rest and soon he was spilling over Gerard’s fingers, crying out his name as he did so. He shivered and tingled all over as Gerard milked his orgasm, loosening his grip on his cock and stroking gently until Frank was completely spent.

Gerard sighed and kissed Frank tenderly as he moved his hands away from him. He wiped them clean on the sheets and quickly removed the condom, tying it off and throwing it into the bin before he pulled Frank into his arms and tucked his face into his neck.

“Was it okay?” He asked quietly, his voice sounding thick and husky.

“Uhuh…” Frank nodded, feeling exhausted. “Amazing…” Though his ass was now throbbing Frank was still happy. He knew they had just done something important and he felt closer than ever to Gerard. He laid his chin down on top of the artists head as he hid in his neck and gently stroked Gerard’s back.

Gerard breathed in Frank’s scent as he lay hiding in his neck, thinking about what they had just done and how it was going to feel when Frank left. He began to cry without really noticing he was doing it. Frank said nothing but tightened his hold around him, gently rocking him as he began to sob in earnest.

Frank squeezed his eyes shut and sighed, his own eyes welling up with tears as he listened to the quiet, broken sounds escaping Gerard’s throat in gasps and gulps. He didn’t say anything, knowing there wasn’t anything he could say. Instead he just held onto the artist and let his own tears fall silent until they both managed to drift to sleep late in the night.

xXx

The town was in uproar. Everywhere merpeople were panicking and talking, some shouting to try and be heard above the rest. Some had already began to pack up whatever few belongings they wanted to carry away with them, placing them inside stolen fishing nets; no one expected that there would be any other option than to leave.

Marigold was wringing her hands nervously as she turned round and round, trying to take in all the frightened faces looking at her. She could barely hear anyone, the combined voices were just becoming a din of noise that she couldn’t focus on. Her own heart was racing and she was just as frightened as everyone else, but she tried to appear calm as she finally found her own voice and shouted for silence.

“Please! Everyone, just calm down!” She called, holding her hands up and continuing to slowly turn so everyone had a chance to see her face. She recognised every person looking back at her and she felt a sickening feeling come over her. She loved everyone in this town, she wanted to protect them but she didn’t know how.

“I understand that everyone is frightened, but we mustn’t panic.” Marigold kept her voice as soft and calm as possible. Now that everyone was silent and listening to her she was beginning to feel better. She knew they had to resist getting worked up and just think rationally, but the fear clouding them all was difficult to ignore.

“We have known of the existence of the Sirens for some time, and I warned you all not to go anywhere near them.” Marigold looked at the wide eyes and frightened faces looking back at her. “I… Can’t help but feel like this tragedy could have been avoided if David had heeded that advice.”

“But Marigold!”

“That’s not fair, David-”

“They seduced him-”

“He wouldn’t have gone there if they hadn’t-”

“-Not fair to blame him!”

Marigold squeezed her eyes shut as everyone began shouting at once. She held her hands up for silence but still had to wait for some time before Bob shouted at everyone to ‘shut up!’ and she was able to open her eyes again.

“Thank you Bob.” She sighed, her voice weak and she suddenly looked like she had aged ten years. She felt exhausted.

“Now, I know that David was a good man, and I know he wouldn’t have just disobeyed my orders.” Marigold paused, not sure what to say. She didn’t believe that Sirens could seduce mermen like they could seduce humans, but she didn’t want everyone to think that she believed David had gone to their domain deliberately. But she also didn’t want to believe that he had been attacked for no reason.

“This is the first time that the Sirens have taken one of our own. Up until now they have focused on the humans and as long as we kept out of their way we had no reason to fear them.” Marigold bit her lip, waiting for someone to challenge her but no one did. “David obviously got too close to their town… Whether it was by accident or not I don’t know, but he did. I’m going to tighten the town parameters and from now on I’m making it law that no one leave the boundaries.”

Another wave of uproar met this statement, but it died down quickly. Marigold knew that no one would like the law, but she had to enforce it.

“To any of you who are planning to move on from here then I won’t stop you of course, but I will say I hope you reconsider. This could just be a freak occurrence, and this has been our town for hundreds of years. We shouldn’t leave at the first sign of danger, I say we stay and just be extra careful until the Sirens move on.”

“What if they don’t move on?” One of the men called out, Marigold turning to face him.

“They can’t keep taking humans from here forever.” She pointed out, blushing slightly. “The humans have already stopped using their boats as much in fear. The Sirens are rousing suspicions and are also scaring away their prey, they’ll have to move on eventually.”

A few people murmured their doubts but overall people seemed to agree. When the Sirens had seduced sailors off large ships further out to sea they would only take one or two from a crew of over a hundred men. A couple of missing sailors in the grand scheme of things was never looked into too deeply. But every man who went out on their boat in a town? That was too conspicuous. The Sirens would have to leave.

“What about David?” Someone else called out, Marigold turning to face them too. It was Jamia. “Are we just going to leave him to die?” She demanded.

Marigold bushed deeply and sighed, knowing Jamia was still hurting over Frank’s disappearance and that having another merman disappear would hit her hard.

“There’s nothing else we can do Jamia.” Marigold told her gently. Bob, who was floating behind Jamia, squeezed her hand gently and wrapped his arms around her.

“David is in the Sirens hold now.” Marigold sighed. “If he isn’t dead already he soon will be, we can’t save him.” Marigold hated to speak so bluntly, and many of the people around her winced or began to sob but she had to be honest.

“I could send out a search party but it would only result in us losing more people. We… We just don’t have any other choice.”

“What if people volunteered?” It was Bob who spoke now, and he had a determined glint in his eyes. “I’ll be happy to try and bring David back, I’m not afraid of the sirens.” He spoke strongly, but Marigold just shook her head.

“I can’t let you do that.” She told him softly, her eyes sad. “We don’t want to lose you too.”

Jamia turned to Bob and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tight as a lump rose in her throat. She whispered at him to drop it, and her soft words forced him to do so even though he tensed his jaw and gritted his teeth. He wanted to help, he wanted to /fight/, but he wouldn’t do anything Jamia didn’t want him to.

Marigold waited for more questions but when none came she nodded and began to give out instructions to different people. The town parameters would be brought in, people would be forced to remain within them and anyone wanting to leave would have to speak to her first, or be hunted down as a traitor.

As everyone swam away the day seemed darker than ever and for the first time Jamia was glad Frank wasn’t there. With him out of the sea she could pretend he was still alive, but somewhere safe. Somewhere he could be happy.