(Sittin' On) the Dock of the Bay
for Kenza
the Tidebreaker
King of the Merfolk / Chef

Age: 38 | Height: 6'6" | Race: Mermaid | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 9 - Strg: 34 - Dext: 30 - Endr: 40 - Luck: 36 - Int: 0
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,252 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#15
Hadama didn't seem to mind the outburst. It was, conveniently, what he himself had been thinking when he'd pulled his 'prize' from the ocean and found it...

Well. Surprising, certainly. Unexpected. Amusing, even.

Or it would be, in a few more hours. At the moment it was just frustrating as the cranky cephalopod resisted the mermanta's attempts to free its precious boot from his line.

If he noticed the woman laughing he gave no sign and didn't seem to mind. His attention was fully focused on pushing the hook through the leather while the octopus strove with not-inconsiderable might to remove his hand from its boot! Unfortunately not realizing that Hadama was attempting to do precisely that, and the octopus's efforts were only making it harder.

"It is nice to meet you, Kenza," Hadama said with quiet dignity in spite of the ridiculous situation he found himself in. Wrestling an octopus, indeed.

Finally, with a grunt, he managed to push the hook free. The rod spanged! straight, no worse for wear, but...

Now he had one quarter of an octopus wrapped around his arm and he stared at it, perplexed, as it glared back. "Do you have any suggestions...?" he rumbled to Kenza after a long minute of tense silence with his stubborn catch.
Barmaid

Age: 28 | Height: 5'8" | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 0 - Strg: 9 - Dext: 10 - Endr: 12 - Luck: 4 - Int: 0
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#16
Kenza
"It's nice to meet you too," she responds, not quite daring to say his name for fear of mangling it with her clumsy landlubber tongue. She eyes the clingy octopus—quite fascinating creatures really. She wonders what all those suction cups would feel like on your skin, if it's painful the way its gripping his arm. "Though I don't think he agrees."

In some way, she hadn't even thought this far: she'd just been content to watch the show, thinking the merman would pull some arcane deep sea trick out of his figurative back pocket and just magically get the octopus to take its boot and fuck right off. Instead, he just contemplates it in, before asking her—her—for ideas. What?! She blanks for a second, contemplates if this is the shattering of an illusion, of this idea she's built up of him, if he's ... not so different from her and other humans, after all.

"Uhhhh..."

Maybe merman don't get stuck on octopuses much?

"They tend to like sticks, things they can grab," she says slowly. No way she'll suggest sacrificing the fishing rod, that'd just be rude. She bites her lower lip for half a second, before unfurling from around her fish basket and jumping to her feet. "Wait here!" Because what else would he do, dive off with his new friend? She grunts to herself as she jogs down the jetty onto the beach. Because what's always on a beach? Driftwood! Woop woop. She collects a couple of suitable sticks that aren't too brittle, then jogs back up the jetty and alllll the way to the edge where Hadama is.

His golden scars look amazing this up close, glittering in the sunlight.

"Here, maybe..." she kinda mumbles as she offers the octopus the first stick, gently poking and prying in an attempt to convince it that the stick is much, much better than that pretty merman's arm.
the Tidebreaker
King of the Merfolk / Chef

Age: 38 | Height: 6'6" | Race: Mermaid | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 9 - Strg: 34 - Dext: 30 - Endr: 40 - Luck: 36 - Int: 0
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,252 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#17
"No." No, the octopus definitely did not find any pleasure in the meeting, glaring at the bemused merman with all the rage of a very young Elder God in the making. Hadama wasn't particularly enjoying it anymore himself now that he couldn't set the cephalopod down. While Kenza thought about his predicament he reached up to set his fishing rod on the dock so he would have one hand free to wrangle his new eight-armed accessory.

"Yes," was the simple response to her admonition to wait while she went off to gather distractions. Hadama lowered the octopus back into the water so it could breathe while they waited, and to rest his own arm. He fended off further encroachment up his arm with his free hand, but when it was one versus four (two of the octopus's arms were firmly wrapped around the boot, and the other two around his arm) he couldn't make much progress.

It was with a sense of quiet relief that he met Kenza's return, nodding in approval of her driftwood stick idea. The octopus ignored the stick at first, then slowly began to twine one of its arms around it, tugging at it curiously. "Good thinking," Dama rumbled, managing to get one coil of tentacle unwrapped from where it had reached his elbow. "Can you distract one more?"
Barmaid

Age: 28 | Height: 5'8" | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 0 - Strg: 9 - Dext: 10 - Endr: 12 - Luck: 4 - Int: 0
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#18
Kenza
That kind of praise when rescuing a merman from a thing of the sea was...

She doesn't even know what to think. It makes her giddy, in a way, feels like the highest form of praise and approval. She bites her lip in concentration, fencing with the little octopus for a short moment before it beings to properly take hold of the driftwood. Ah-ha! Carefully she maneuvers the stick to keep it lodged under her foot as she reaches for a new lance.

She's completely focused on her task, poking and prodding at the tip of the last tentacle clutching to Hadama, trying to entice it into picking dry, brittle wood over nice and firm merman forearm.

If it lets go completely then sheesh, it needs to get its priorities straight. She can kinda see where the octopus is coming from in this case.
the Tidebreaker
King of the Merfolk / Chef

Age: 38 | Height: 6'6" | Race: Mermaid | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 9 - Strg: 34 - Dext: 30 - Endr: 40 - Luck: 36 - Int: 0
Played by: Cirago Offline
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Posts: 1,252 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#19
In truth, Hadama would have been far more concerned about an amorous octopus latching onto him, rather than a merely perturbed and grumpy one. This, he could deal with thanks to Kenza's timely assistance, though it was far from comfortable.

The octopus nearly pulled the stick free from her hand as Kenza shifted it beneath her foot, but Hadama distracted it by tugging on one of its other tentacles and it turned its attention back to him, peeling one of the tentacles around his arm free to try and grapple higher--

But then something else was poking at it. So rude! and it lashed out without thinking to wrap a tentacle around that stick as well.

Except now it was being stretched in four directions between Kenza's two sticks, the boot, and Hadama's arm. The merman lifted the cephalod swiftly into the air again and, while it only had one arm wrapped around him, he reached to pull the tentacle free even as the rest started to descend in a frantic attempt to grab purchase.

There was an unpleasant series of wet popping sounds as the suckers peeled away from his skin and then he dropped the octopus and hastily swam several feet back. It hung from Kenza's sticks, arms curling and uncurling in outrage, and started climbing the wooden shafts towards the woman's tender arm and leg.

"Next time I will cut the line," the mermanta decided solemnly, though amusement twinkled in his eyes.

Amusement, and pain. The sucker marks on his skin were already turning to welts as he tilted his head to examine his arm with stoic resignation.
Barmaid

Age: 28 | Height: 5'8" | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 0 - Strg: 9 - Dext: 10 - Endr: 12 - Luck: 4 - Int: 0
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#20
Kenza
In some ways, it is kinda funny—the octopus is suddenly stretched out like a spiderweb. "Gotcha!" she exclaims under her breath without really noticing, a look of immense satisfaction on her face as she juggles the two octo-sticks. She's not quite sure how to proceed from here, though. Can they just.. tickle it until it drops Hadama?

But he solves that on his own, peeling it free and letting it crash towards the water.

She's kinda looking, at the swift and graceful way he's backpedaling. Wonders briefly if he's going to disappear now, free of the octopus and maybe put off the despicable and human way of fishing, and that annoying girl on the jetty—

And she's kinda watching the octopus. The way its arms curl and uncurl around the sticks, reaching towards her, hauling its precious boot along... It's menacing.

She doesn't wanna be octo-food.

She drops the stick and steps off the other one, letting the thing fall into the sea, sticks and boot and all. She gives a small, triumphant smile, somehow surprised that Hadama is still there. "Will you though?" she finds herself teasing him. Would he really pass up on such a mystery?

Then she sees what he sees, and some of the triumph fades away. She folds her arms over her chest. "Looks unpleasant."
the Tidebreaker
King of the Merfolk / Chef

Age: 38 | Height: 6'6" | Race: Mermaid | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 9 - Strg: 34 - Dext: 30 - Endr: 40 - Luck: 36 - Int: 0
Played by: Cirago Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,252 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#21
He had no intention of leaving the kind human girl who had helped him, nor was he the type to swear off an activity because of one bad experience that was as much a fluke as anything else. But he also had no desire to remain in range of the octopus's rage when a little judicious finning could get him far enough away to avoid a repeat performance.

A glance showed that Kenza was likewise smart enough to remove herself from the cephalopod's equations; learning from his lesson what not to do when a creature with eight arms decided to wrestle.

As their erstwhile nemesis was summarily plopped back into the waves, Hadama turned his gaze solemnly to Kenza's teasing, his face completely serious as he gave a slow nod of confirmation. "After I see what is on the end of the line, yes." He'd sate his curiosity first, and only then would he sacrifice his hook, if the price would be too high.

In this case, it hadn't been worth freeing the fishing hook from the boot. He might have won the war, but the mermanta had definitely lost the battle as he flexed his hand and elbow carefully before sinking down into the waves to let the saltwater soothe the welts.

"Extremely," he agreed to the unpleasantness of his new bruises. "But they will heal." All things in time, if one had patience. He turned his attention back to Kenza and dipped his head gratefully. "Thank you. I am in your debt."
Barmaid

Age: 28 | Height: 5'8" | Race: Attuned | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 0 - Strg: 9 - Dext: 10 - Endr: 12 - Luck: 4 - Int: 0
Played by: Neowulf Offline
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#22
Kenza
Ah- of course. Curiosity did kill the cat, after all. Hadameowma. Her smile is small, and fond, and slightly, slightly wicked, something in her subconscious wanting to let him know that she had been right. He wouldn't be able to just drop a mystery. And who knows, maybe he'd get burned again? And maybe he'd get rescued again?

But that's not right now. Hopefully not tomorrow either. Sort of self-consciously Kenza looks down to her fish basket, full of cold, smelly scales. Then, up to the merman. Nods slightly. Unsure how she found herself here. The past few minutes seem bizarre and unreal all of a sudden.

"Oh, it's no problem," she assures him. (And she hates it when this happens: she feels like a suddenly punctured balloon, or something rapidly thrust into cold water. The good, sunny feeling in her veins suddenly wrenched away, thrown off her stride, the flow and the vibe gone, just unpleasant uncertainty left to course through her)

Her eyes are drawn back to his arm again. "I imagine you'll want that taken care of." She's quiet, subdued, solemn, squatting down to grab her fish basket and hoisting it. The wooden boards of the jetty feel coarse and dangerous under her bare feet. "You should come by and have some hot chocolate sometime," she kind of blurts out, even though she doesn't know how that'd work. What were they gonna do, put him in a bathtub and carry him in?
the Tidebreaker
King of the Merfolk / Chef

Age: 38 | Height: 6'6" | Race: Mermaid | Nationality: Natural | Citizenship: Torchline
Level: 9 - Strg: 34 - Dext: 30 - Endr: 40 - Luck: 36 - Int: 0
Played by: Cirago Offline
Change author:
Posts: 1,252 | Total: 7,219
MP: 10170
#23
Hadama met Kenza's wicked smile with his unflappable calm, but the corners of his eyes crinkled with shared mischief. He would undoubtedly need rescuing again someday, and hopefully the sprightly barmaid would be near enough to lend a hand once more when the time came.

And then her body language shifted, and while Hadama was still learning what certain human mannerisms meant (things with the feet and shifting weight on the legs in particular), there was enough similarity in the dropping of a gaze and the tension of shoulders for discomfort to be clear even across species boundaries. He floated quietly, patiently waiting to see if she would clarify what had caused the change in the atmosphere of the dock but--

"Indeed," he agreed, flexing his arm beneath the water carefully and considering the long swim back to the City where it could be taken care of. But Kenza's parting offer eased the solemn lines of his face and he dipped his head deeply in gratitude - very nearly a bow. "I will. Soon." Perhaps she could bring the drink out to the canal nearest to her bar. "Thank you, Kenza. Until we meet again."

He raised his eyes to hers, meeting her gaze with serene contentment for how their meeting had gone. Then he gathered his fishing rod and dove back into the clear ocean, swimming out to deeper waters on his way home.

~Fin~


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