◼️⬛ || 𝕯𝖊𝖘𝖈𝖆𝖓𝖙 || ⬛◼️

|| 099.25 || Not Just A Ward 🔱 O/F

"You really can't say anything. Those tentacle marks on your wrists? What the hell do you and Ina get up to?" Amelia blushed, tugging at her sleeves as she sucked her teeth.

"Uh-hu, and you and Gura? You should know I have to pass by her pool room on the way to my office, y'know? It's all splashing and mo-" You huffed and covered Amelia's mouth, cutting her off.

"How about talking about something other than our sex lives?" Amelia narrowed her eyes at you, shoving your hand away from her mouth.

"Fine by me, I got places I need to be and reports I gotta fill," Amelia gave you a lazy, one finger salute before adjusting her lanyard and stalking out of the room. You downed the rest of your drink, chucking the mug in a nearby sink before following after her, only splitting up when you had to descend to the lower levels.

With every floor you passed, it only got darker and more empty, right until you were the only person left. Made sense since very few were actually allowed access, pretty much only you, a handful of your managers and of course, Gawr Gura.

Despite how uncomfortable it was, you were glad your swimsuit was insulated since the lower levels were fucking freezing. You shrugged off your lab coat, setting it aside in your locker along with your devices, lanyard and shoes. Thank whoever decided it was a good idea to make sure the pool had heated water.

"Took ya long enough," There she was, toothy smile and and bright eyes, leaning against the edge of the pool with her shark tail swaying side to side behind her casting faint ripples in the water.

"Got caught up when a new co-worker asked me about work jitters," You shrugged, fastening all your needed equipment to your suit, all while Gura watched with an inquisitive look, almost like she was regarding a work of fine art. Apparently the mershark found it interesting seeing how fluently and easily you could assemble all your equipment.

"Hurry up! I'm getting cold fins over here. I've already done all my warmups and I've missed you all day," Gura whined, leaning further out of the water, clawed hands splaying over the cold tiles.

"Sharky, you and I both know that water is warmer than Satan's arse. No one is getting cold in that water," You waddled over to the water as Gura sighed.

"It was an expression, stinky," Without any warning, she leaned forward and took your hands in her own, letting the both of you fall into the warm water. For a moment the world was nothing but blue hues and spinning waves. You briefly resurfaced to catch your breath and sliding your mask over your face, taking in an experimental breath before diving deep beneath the lapping water.

You felt Gura ghost past you, a shark in her natural habitat.

She looked happy, happier than whenever she was on the surface and happier now that she was with you.

It was a beautiful sight. Silver hair swaying like silk in the wind, powerful tail, however scarred it was, a deep shade of gray-blue contrasting against her pale skin and blackened claws. Her eyes shone in the dark depths, almost glowing as she turned around to smile and swim back to you.

There was no way you could match her pace, not that either of you cared. Gura once again took your hands in her own, tugging you along with her, almost like a dance. It was only in this moment you felt truly free, submerged with your favourite person away from all the struggles and stress from life.

'I wish we could do this more often' Her voice echoed in your head, clear and sharp like cut glass. Atlantean magic, she had told you the first time you swam together. A way that each Atlantean could communicate underwater aside from an ancient form of sign language.

'I do to, but the research teams need their diving suits and commissioning Cover to get a personal suit is a bit out of the budget for the moment. You would not believe how expensive they are' You broke away and ran your hand over the bottom of the pool, relishing the scenery around you. Mimicking a coral reef perfectly, right down to the slivers of darting fish and soft, seagrass swaying in the still current.

'You couldn't get one through work? I feel like that would count towards this whole program thing' Gura matched your pace, tilting her head curiously. You sighed, a cloud of bubbles swarming around your head.

'You'd think, wouldn't you?' Gura grimaced at you, gently bumping against your side before swimming in circle around you. The surface above you was in a constant ebb and flow, reflecting off the low light above and the bioluminescent glow from the algae below.

What a sight, your eyes followed Gura's lithe form, swimming and dipping and somersaulting, and then there was you, sitting in a small seagrass meadow. Small fish would dart up to you, nibbling softly at your suit before swimming away as Gura circled back.

'You ever think about getting a diving mask? So you can breathe with your lungs underwater?' Gura gave you a quizzical look over her shoulder, slowing down and letting her fins brush against the seagrass.

'Why would I need a diving mask to breathe underwater? I got gills for a reason, dummy' She smiled, bonking into you again.

'Because you have to keep moving to breath. If you had a mask like me, we could hug and cuddle underwater' You reasoned. Gura paused, crossing her eyes as she pondered over the question.

'That... makes sense. But we already have a hard enough time trying to source one suit, I can't imagine the head ache you'd have trying to get a second one' You blew another slew of bubbles, watching them disappear into the world above.

'True... We could always cuddle in a shallow body of water...' You mused. Gura just shook her head fondly, swimming above you and letting her tail curl as she circled. Like you were acting on instinct, your gloved hand reached out and ran along her tail. You had felt the sharkskin on your bare hands, and you were surprised at how rough it was. But, despite this, if you pet it at the right angle, it was actually quite soothing, although Gura much preferred headpats.

'Now, c'mon! You gotta help me with my hunting exercises!' Gura grabbed your hands and hoisted your upwards. A faint smile played on your face, not that either of you could see it under your mask. With a kick of your flippers, you slowly ascending to the surface with the mershark hot on your heels.