The Sentiment Beneath The Surface ~Aarmau AU~

~Cover~

I'm so so so so so so so so so sorry for the delayed chappy crystals!

Aaron's POV

*Play Song* 

The sun's blinding rays and the sick feeling overwhelms me as I groggily open my eyes.

 The sun shines brightly through the ship's open window.

I was laying down on the floor of the crew's cabin.

Oh no......

That wasn't a dream, was it?

The queen of the mermaids.........

And every single mermaid out there....

Every merman....

Every merchild.....

Was murdered, by my hands.

My whole body swarms itself with guilt.

Maybe Father's evil quota will finally be satisfied now.

Heh, who am I kidding?

His name is Scaren, after all.

I make my way up to a standing position, shuffling uncomfortably as I regain control of my body over to the stairs that leads up to the deck.

I find my father by the wheel, staring out into the beyond, at the stern of the ship.

When he discerns my presence, he shifts to face me, another devious smile blossoming at his chapped lips. Pirate lips.

"I'm proud of you Aaron, really proud...." He starts but I cut him off.

"You're proud? My god, you're proud of me subconsciously killing hundreds of innocent....." I try, but it is no use, as he cuts me off.

"Again? Really? I thought you would finally understand, boy. Finally grasp the importance of your actions, but apparently you are just as weak and pathetic as I thought you were."

Without hesitation, but much gratification, I slap him right across the face, no guilt or regret anywhere in my body when it came to this.

He turns his head slowly to me, raising an eyebrow while holding his stricken jaw.

"I'm done with you Scaren, and I'm done with being part of your crew." I bellow at him, running over to the side of the boat, and leaping over the railing in a diving position.

The whole crew comes to the side of the ship, to see where I went, attracted by the action.

I was already rowing a small boat towards shore.

I grab a rowing oar in each hand and paddle quickly to shore.

My father just scoffs as if he'd just had a mild quarrel with his naive teenage son, then turns around, clearly annoyed by me.

I may be free of his control, but I will never be free of my own guilt.

I had just ended the mermaid race.  

Aphmau's POV

I arrive in the shallow waters of a beautiful beach.

My tail detects the land and goes through its transformation, separating into soft, lean legs then my scales fade to sunkissed skin. 

I stumble as I get used to the two limgs, though my face shows pure determination.

Because my eyes haven't set back to their original shade yet, I cover them with the hood of my cloak as I embark into the joyful town.

I was anything but joyful.

Everything I had........

Everything I never appreciated.... 

Was gone......

At the flick of a mermaid's tail.

Why.....

Is all that runs through my mind......

Why did everyone had to die......

And leave me alone......

Heh, at least it's not like I don't know how to be alone.

Dark humor has always been my forte, as you can so clearly tell.

I'm also not the best when dealing with grief, usually just idling in denial most of the time. 

I enter the area of the shopping square, and spot an elderly woman, knelt over a woven basket, sorting through assorted beads.

I approach her with as much politeness as I can muster, my hands gripping the side of my hood.

"Excuse me?" I question.

She raises her head to me, blinking rapidly, then smiling.

"Hello there dear, what can I do for you?" She responds, a kind smile growing on her face.

"I was wondering where I could find someone named Lycan, Aaron Lycan."

When I say the name, she shudders, a frightful look on her face.

"Oh dear, you mustn't go messing with them folk, they are pirates dear." She states, her expression showing concern.

"Ma'am, please I must know where I can find him." I plead.

She is hesitant, but then sighs.

"You would probably find them lot in Tortuga, a pirate island far from here, but you can only get there by ship." 

I offer her a small smile, the first one I've given in a while.

"Thank you so much, ma'am, here." I pull out of the pocket of my cloak, a few rare jewels.

Her eyes grow wide, and a wide smile spreads on her face.

I hand them to her, sprinkling them into her wrinkled hands.

"Poseidon bless you, dear, please be careful though."

I then leave her and try following the ground to find the docks.

It didn't work that well.

As I walk, I discern a narrow, dark alleyway next to some stores.

Though at the very end of it, was a frail bird on the ground, it's wing badly damaged.

I hurriedly rush to its aid, kneeling down beside it.

"Hey, hey there little birdie, what's wrong?"

The bird just tweets.

It was a majestic bird, of many colors and shades.

Its right wing was badly injured and deranged.

"Is it your wing that hurts? Here." 

As I reach into my pocket to grab something for the bird, I hear numerous snickers.

"Looky what we have here." A deep-pitched voice remarks.

I look up from the bird to find three tall men, all quite buff, all quite pirate-like, towering over me, and blocking the only exit out of the alleyway.

The one in the front had a frightening flirtatious look on his face.

Oh no.

Have a nice day my crystals!