Siren's Son ASMR Oneshots

Captured by a Pirate - Part One

Author's Note: my Angelfish, Epoi Menaldi, uses sign language despite the fact that she can hear due to an inability to control her siren voice. Basically, when she uses her voice, she can't help it. Her siren powers activate and people go crazy and either do whatever she says or try to off themselves. She doesn't know why. Ok, have fun!
A/N 2: made this Chapter One because it's the chapter I like best and I want to make a good impression :)

Epoi thrashed against the net holding her. The rough fibers cut into the wound in her tail, but she would not cry out. She couldn't.
The net tightened, sending lightning pain slashing through her scratched-up body. As the net was drawn up above the surface, Epoi fought that much harder to escape, but it was useless. Exhausted, but not giving up, she let her body go limp in the net.
"Aye, hoist up the net, boys. I want to see what we've got," came an arrogant-sounding voice. Epoi stayed limp as the net rose over the side of the ship, feigning unconsciousness. The second the net went still, clearly reaching the height of the pulley, her eyes flashed open and she came alive, fighting with all her strength to get over the side and back to the water. But surprised shouts filled the air, and the net tightened again, halting her escape and leaving her a tangled, breathless, aching lump hanging practically upside-down over the deck.
Hope left her. Her escape attempt had failed. Her heartbeat sped up to the point that she was in danger of passing out, but she stubbornly refused to shut her eyes.
"Now, what in the nine hells do we have here?"
Epoi turned her head sharply, grating against the net.
The pale-skinned man standing beneath her was clearly some kind of pirate. He was wearing loose brown pants and a long-sleeved white shirt with a lace-up collar. His dark red hair was curly and long, tied back in a ponytail. His confident smirk displayed a gleaming gold tooth, and even upside-down, with her pink hair smushed in her face, she could see the greedy gaze with which he surveyed her.
Epoi fell stubbornly still. She couldn't get her hands free to start signing, and even these horrible men didn't deserve the fate that would befall them if they heard her voice.
"One of those rumored merfolk that live under the ocean of Caspar, huh?" he said to himself- or to her, she wasn't really sure. "Swimming a little close to the surface is quite dangerous for your kind. I'm just glad we caught you before some group of savage thugs came along, don't you agree?" he laughed as she struggled silently against the net.
"Drop the net on the deck, boys," he ordered. "I want to see just what this poor, unfortunate soul looks like up close."
The net thumped against the floorboards, drawing a strained hiss from Epoi. Footsteps came closer, so she rolled to face her captors. She ended up rolling a bit too far and landing facedown, so she wriggled one arm free, pushed herself back to the side, looked up, and snarled weakly. The pirate that must have been the captain was standing over her, giving her a slow once-over with a pair of calculating yellow eyes.
"Hmm. For something I just pulled out of the ocean, you don't look that worse for wear," he said. "Now how do you reckon we were able to catch a fast little fish folk like yourself? Y'know, you half-bloods are a real fickle prize to attain."
Epoi fixed him with a fierce glare.
"Could it have something to do with that fresh wound on your tail?" he speculated.
She twitched the betraying appendage out of sight, beneath the net and in the shadowy edge between the rail and the floor. The pirate's catlike eyes glimmered with amusement.
"Well, well. Looks like we weren't the first ones after all. Too bad for you that your kind are worth a fortune in the kingdom's market."
She swiped her tail fin at him, but its range of motion was restricted by the net, and he stepped over it easily, chuckling.
"Some folks just have sh!t luck, savvy? Hm," he said smugly.
She fumed. Not only did he drag her out of the ocean, but he had the nerve to add insult to injury by taunting her? The repercussions of using her voice were becoming less and less obvious.
"Well, I don't say I'm above this. I'm a pirate, after all. I take what I want, and I give nothing back. And after this boring three weeks of sailing on open waters and dodging rival ships... I think we'll be taking you for keepsies. At least for the time being."
His patronizing tone was rubbing salt in her wounds- or was that actual salt water in her actual wounds? She couldn't be sure.
Suddenly, his voice turned commanding. "Lead 'em down and throw 'em in the brig. I got some questions to be asking 'em later."
Rough hands seized Epoi, and she struggled, albeit halfheartedly. She knew there was little to no chance of escape unless she used the one weapon she swore she'd never use again.
"So I hope merfolk don't get seasick," he said offhandedly, "'cause you may be with us a tad bit longer than you were expecting. Raise the anchor and untether the sails," he ordered. "We're heading back to Destimono with our new... merchandise."
She spun her tail and flailed her arms, but the burly, dirty men surrounding her restrained her easily, laughing at her with hungry eyes. She fought all the harder for their lewd stares, but then one of them grabbed her in a place he shouldn't have. She sucked in a breath, eyes going wide with panic, but a young pirate with floppy blond hair and brown eyes slapped his hand away with a scathing glance. When they caught her looking, they flinched away and helped the others drag her belowdecks.
They lugged her down a flight of stairs, bumping her shoulders against every step on the way down, and tossed her roughly into a brig with the walls and door barred by rusted iron. Her cell- her cage, she thought- took up half of the room belowdecks. It was surprisingly well lit, with a pair of lanterns hanging on opposite walls. She flopped to the ground with a disgusting wet smack and lay there dazed, staring up at the leering faces of her captors as they passed out of sight.
🧜‍♀️🏴‍☠️
Rough scales sank underneath the surface of Epoi's body. Her tail split into two in a painless yet uncomfortable transformation, then the ends of each half began to sprout their own protrusions. Mercifully, her white turtleneck tank top remained, but the lower half of her body was entirely unclothed.
Suddenly, she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She scrambled to the back of her cell and curled into a ball to block the newcomer's view of her crotch, remembering humans were supposed to keep those private.
The pirate captain from before entered the room. Upon seeing Epoi curled into a trembling ball in the corner, using the shadows as cover, he raised an eyebrow.
"Hmm. So you folk can change your tail into legs. Huh. That's a nifty little trick, isn't it?"
It comes in handy, she signed, glaring.
The pirate furrowed his brows. You deaf? he signed.
I can hear. Won't talk. Not that you care.
"Well, I hope you found your sea legs," he recovered. "I heard the scurvy sets in fast if you're new to ship life."
Epoi didn't reply. She simply scowled, as if to say what an idiot she thought he was.
"Here. Catch." He tossed an orange sphere through the bars. She let it fall, regarding it warily.
What, she signed.
"It's an orange, dimwit. What does it look like?" He rolled his eyes.
What am I supposed to do with this?
"Ya eat it so you don't get sick on the seas," he said like it should be obvious. "You're a might daft one, aren't you?"
I live in the OCEAN. She emphasized the word ocean by signing it with harsh, exaggerated gestures.
"Well, if you don't want it, I can always throw you to the sharks," he said. "They gotta eat too, you know."
She sat up straight. Maybe, just maybe, he was actually dense enough to think throwing her back like a bad catch would be a death sentence. She tried her best to look horrified by the idea. No sharks, she signed, shaking her head emphatically.
"That's what I thought. Now, I got some teensy questions to be askin' ya," he said loftily. "First of all, I want to know what your name is. A pretty little creature like yourself must have a pretty name to follow."
Epoi's cheeks heated.
"Plus, if you sound cute, I can probably get you for double the price."
She gave him a sour look. E-P-O-I, she spelled.
"Hmmph. Well then. Looks like I might be rich when we get to the bay," he replied. She gave him a strange look.
What your name? she asked.
"Well, I suppose it's only fair." He sighed. "You can call me Cap'n Shay Silvertongue. I run this here ship called the Moon Maiden's Curse. This trip may take a week or two to get back to land, so... we might as well get acquainted with each other."
Epoi shrugged. The pirate- Captain Shay Silvertongue- didn't seem like the worst sort, but she wouldn't allow herself to be sucked in. He meant to sell her, which automatically made him the worst sort.
"Uh, here," he said, interrupting her reverie. "I know you're probably not used to the winds outside the sea, and I can see you shakin' like a beach trout. Take my vest. It should cover you nicely." He offered her a flat brown garment that looked like she could use it as a tent. "Also, so the crewmen don't have to look at your naked bits every time they come down here for a snack."
Epoi stiffened, the words having brought to mind a horrible new possibility. She hasn't considered it, but with the way the crewmen had been looking at her earlier, she probably should have. She wouldn't endure that again. She'd use her voice if she had to, divines forbid.
"Well, I won't have it said that I'm a terrible captor." Probably reading the look on her face, Shay hurried to add: "And that's another thing you won't have to worry about. Me and my men aren't cruel savages." -She scoffed- "You don't have to worry about being taken advantage of. And if I do catch one of them messing with the padlock, I'll just do you the favor and keelhaul them myself," he said. "So at least you're safe. That is... until we get to the market," he muttered, turning away.
G-E-E, thanks, she said, thrown by his altered, almost regretful tone.
The captain seemed to come back to himself.
"Eh, agh, but, not to worry. I'm sure the folks who purchase you will be more than accommodating. I hope."
She gave him a dark look.
"That's enough of that Debbie Downer stuff," he rushed on, gaining his composure once more. "To my next question, how'd you get that cut on your tail? Or legs, I should say, now."
Epoi lowered her gaze to the newly reopened gash that had, indeed, translated over to her legs. Then she returned her gaze to Shay. Why did he want to know?
Merman prince. Golden scales. Stabbed me with trident. Epoi figured it wouldn't hurt to explain, but she was wrong. Flashes shot through her mind. Golden scales flashing through a shoal of fish. A vicious, blood-hungry grin. The point of a trident catching her tail as she tried to dart away. A hand over her mouth, serrated fins slicing into her chin, unnecessary though it was.
She curled into a tighter ball, pulling the vest around her.
Shay seemed incredulous. "Hm? It was... from another merfolk? A- a golden-scaled merman prince who wields a trident stabbed you?"
Yes.
"Well, what for?" he demanded.
She rolled her eyes. I served in palace. When youngest prince ran, royals were angry.
"You worked as a servant in the palace," he said slowly as she signed, "and when the youngest prince ran away, they decided to start taking their anger out on... you?"
Since they couldn't bully B-R-E-N, they needed an outlet. Found me. I wasn't allowed to fight back. Only after she saw the odd, unreadable look on Shay's face did she realize that she'd punched the air to make the sign for "fight" a bit too vigorously.
"Well... that's a sh!tty thing to do," he snarked. "Hell, I just captured you and have the intent to sell you off, and even that makes me feel like a saint."
She glared at him for the reminder. It shouldn't, she signed forcefully.
Shay didn't seem to know how to respond to that. "Well, I guess I know what drove you to the shallows then, huh?" he said with forced sarcasm.
She gave him a deadpan look, hoping her face wasn't too pale.
"Well, lucky for you, I keep a special medication on hand for damaged merchandise. I can't be selling off damaged goods, if you get what I'm saying," he said.
There were those words again. Merchandise. Goods. She scowled, but it slid right off her face when he pulled a glowing blue vial out of a pocket in his pants. She pointed to it with wide eyes.
"It's derived from a flower known as the-" he broke off with a laugh, seeing the awestruck look on her face. "Well, you probably already know what it's called, don't you?"
Epoi quickly erased her expression.
"Anyway, yes, it's a moonbell potion. Take a swig here, and this bad boy'll make you right as rain," he bragged.
Epoi gave him another odd look. He didn't fit the typical profile of a half-blood-trading pirate.
Why are you being nice to me? she signed, or more accurately, something like Why you nice me?
"Huh?" Shay asked. "Why am I being... nice to you?" She nodded. "Well... why shouldn't I be? It's not like I have anything against you personally. I just gotta make my coin, sweet cheeks," he said with a wink.
Not expecting it, Epoi blushed, then promptly hated herself for doing so.
Shay smirked.
She glared.
He decided to continue, leaning against the ship's wall. "Growing up, I had to scrape by and do terrible things just to make sure my little sister and brother didn't starve. I did things I'm not proud of, I did some things I'll definitely regret... and some things that'll haunt me until the Dark One comes to collect my soul." Shay laughed softly. "And even after all of of that, my siblings were still taken from me."
He chuckled bitterly as Epoi tilted her head.
"The world is a cruel place," he confided. "But... don't you worry, my pretty little angelfish." He regained his jaunty confidence, resting his hands on his knees and leaning down to her height as she stared questioningly up at him. "After a while, you become numb to it."
She met his yellow gaze and noticed more depth to them than before.
Then she noticed the way their gazes met and jerked, severing the fragile understanding she hasn't realized they'd formed.
You haven't had a normal conversation with anyone in a while, have you? she signed.
"Huh?" Shay seemed amused. "No, actually. I haven't just sat down and had a normal heart-to-heart conversation with anyone in ages." He smirked. "I almost felt something in my cold, dead heart."
Epoi rolled her eyes, her near sympathy for him broken.
"Hm. Tell you what, Angelfish." Was the moniker going to become a regular thing? Divines, she hoped not. "How about I come back down here tomorrow night, and we can have these little late-night chats. Make it like a routine thing," he said. "I'll bring you some food and drink that's better than what the crewhands'll give you. Think of it as a reward for listening to me babble, savvy?"
It could be a trick, but what would she have to lose by playing therapist for her kidnapper? She shrugged, but she was sure her face betrayed her confusion.
"Well then," Shay said, rubbing his arms, "I'm off to bed for the evening. I guess I'll see you tomorrow night for our little chat. Goodnight... Angelfish."
Epoi's face scrunched and her cheeks reddened before she realized what she was doing. Trying to recover her dignity, she gave him a rude gesture he didn't need to know sign language to translate. Shay chuckled at her reaction and strode off, up the stairs and out of sight. His yo-ho-ing drifted on the salt-spritzed air, sweet and enticing as if he was a siren himself. She sat back against the wall, letting her forehead fall to her knees as his singing faded away.
What am I going to do now? she thought.
Author's Note: it's finished!!!! Also, that crew member? The not-completely-awful one? He'll come up again :)