spicy bread ,,

[spicyskeleton]

kai was touched by the others promise to have his back if his identity was to be exposed. it was a good feeling to know that a human out of all creatures would somehow back him up if any of his own kind were to try to harm him; it made him feel even better knowing that this human was his soulmate, and it was finally starting to feel like the two were in a good place. before, kai had never imagined the pair in this scenario- kai in his true state while the two talked and laughed and enjoyed the genuine happiness they brought each other. they had come a long way from their earlier interactions, and he appreciated it for what it was. his face formed a softer smile as he turned his eyes to meet sebastians, "thanks, really. it means a lot coming from you." he didnt realize how much it had meant to him to gain the others respect and friendship until he had finally gotten it. "ill have you back too, if need be," kai paused and pulled himself up on the rock to side next to the pirate, half of his tail still engulfed by the water. he turned to gaze at sebastian and felt impacted by it more than he had meant to; it made his stomach churn and his throat get tight and he managed to smirk a little before continuing, "its always a good idea to have someone like me on your side." he chuckled and ripped his gaze away from the other with the realization that he might have been staring for a little to long.

kai nodded in an understanding way at the whole 'pirate initiation'. he most certainly did not agree with it, but there was no point in bringing his opinion about the topic into the conversation. it seemed wrong to him that you had to prove yourself to be a pirate, they were the lowest in society and it didnt make sense for them to turn someone away; especially a kid. what would have happened if sebastian failed their little test? they probably would have left him to be arrested, it seemed like a logical thing pirates would do. at the mention of his valuables kai's face fell for a split second before turning into a small grin. "i only have two things and one of them i wouldnt count as mine," he referred to the small journal that he had stolen a month back with a laugh, "and i dont know what good a trident would do a human." tridents were specially designed for merfolk and he couldnt even imagine a human wielding one just because it seemed.. wrong to him; his trident in particular was an heirloom and one of the nicer ones he had seen so sebastian would have to pry it from his cold dead hands- but he knew the pirate wouldnt steal that from him considering it was pretty much all he had.

"i guess one day i could give them a shot." kai shrugged, there was no harm in attempting human puzzles. it would be nice for a challenge of some sorts if they happened to be extremely difficult. he grew up solving all sorts of puzzles and riddles adults threw at him in attempt to solve- he had once spent a week trying to figure one out but eventually did; his knack for them wasn't entirely useful but it was a talent nonetheless.

[breadstick]

The pirate noticed the marginal shift in Kai's expression as the words bounced off his tongue, softer than he had originally anticipated them to be; perhaps conveying some emotion he had more or less never considered to be evoked towards the merman - genuine care and respect. He recognised the appreciation on a personal level that arose from the other's gaze, and the sight quirked a genuine, soft smile from his features, replacing the previously teasing smirk that had been all but present from the moment he had pushed Kai into the water below the rock. He supposed he would not gather how much it meant to the other that he had finally managed to not only accept, but protect, the other's identity, after having such a harsh reaction in the first instance of his exposure. As the merman raised his eyes to meet the pirate's, a jolt of surprise shook him, momentarily, at the softness he found there; simply laying in the other's expression, an open book, so far removed from how guarded he had been in their first meetings. And, from what he could tell from yet another minor shift in his gaze, there was some recognition of that; a bolt of realisation at the comparison between the two now in contrast to the way they had acted towards each other months prior. He could not be sure, but he was about as good at guessing how others were experiencing emotion than he was at swimming with a missing leg - so he wouldn't have trusted his judgement too easily. He tore his gaze away after a moment, finding some intensity in the other's gaze that he was sure the other had not noticed was present, and finding it mildly uncomfortable, given the stirring in his gut as he stared. It wasn't that the merman wasn't something to look at - because he absolutely was, Sebastian would admit that - but there was something lurking behind his persona that he still pressed down, smothered over with angst and denial. As he forced his gaze to settle on the reflections of the sunlight upon the waves, disturbing what might have been a clear picture, had the waters not been so turbulent - the other spoke, obviously returning the gesture; Sebastian did not have to be a genius to understand that much, even from his tone. Nonetheless, an awkward smile widened the already present, genuine smile, and he dipped his head a little to acknowledge the offer. "Thanks. I doubt I'll ever need it, though; you've seen me with a gun." He murmured, raising his head to meet Kai's gaze in a challenging, mischevious manner. "Still, it's nice to have the support there. Thank you." He added, hurriedly; eager to ensure that the other's offer had not gone unappreciated.

Sebastian found himself merely rolling his eyes at the other's comment concerning his possessions, still retaining a teasing air about him as he did so, to ensure that the other did not take the action too seriously. He had not missed the slight second that the other's face had fallen; it had been only a slight detail, but the pirate could tell when someone had taken something slightly too seriously than he had intended. Of course, he had no intentions to steal the other's possessions - he might have been a thief and a pirate, but he was not below stealing the possessions of those who truly needed them - or those who he valued the opinion of. It took Sebastian a mere moment to realise that this was the only thing stopping him from merely running off with any of his two possessions; in fact, even when the two had not been on the best terms, he had not even considered such a thing. "I don't have any intentions to steal anything from you - never have - if that's any consolation." He murmured, unsure of whether the other's opinions upon him would have still consisted of the expectation of him to steal, even from his own soulmate. He might have been beyond the typical sense of honour - but he still upheld his own moral compass vigorously, as he saw fit.

Tilting his head to the side a little, Sebastian listened to the other speak upon his willingness - although perhaps reluctant willingness - to try these puzzles the pirate had spoken of. The thought of the other weilding a pen and filling out one of those pads filled with human puzzles was almost an amusing image; but it also struck up an inquisitive streak in the pirate that was not something that he had experienced often towards merfolk; but in the last hour, he had become rather curious and accustomed to Kai's company that he would certainly not refuse learning more about their culture. Turning his gaze back to the merman to meet his gaze, ignoring how that same feeling he had experienced earlier once more stirred in his gut, contorting his emotions to become slightly softer, he swallowed, and spoke. "What kinds of puzzles do - did you - do, back in Xebel?" He asked, attempting to refute the curiosity that was creeping inevitably into his tone, but ultimately failing in the process, cringing as he heard the same tone reflected in his voice.

[spicyskeleton]

kai turned his face away from sebastian at the mention of his gun and stared off into the horizon. the sun had dipped below its peak and reflected nicely off the water, its rays only penetrating a few feet beneath the surface. truth be told he hadnt seen the pirate in action with his gun, only a few instances of him shooting at the sky and such; never actually having hit a target. he believed that the other had skill and didnt care to put him to the test; he still felt rubbed the wrong way by guns after being taught by his people that they were a means of weak defense that belonged to humans that were to pathetic to fight, though he felt that sebastian had more fight in him than he had displayed yet. kai inhaled deeply and released it back into the air with a huff and looked down at his tail that lazily moved with the water. "i remember the first time i saw a gun," a small bitter chuckle escaped the back of his throat at his pause. "i was nineteen, going on my first patrol; heh, i was so eager to be apart of something bigger than myself." kai paused once more to take in the scenery in front of him. it never occurred to him that he had not seen the ocean from this perspective before. "and thats when a ship full of pirates came along and of course a war broke out; up until that point i had never heard of such a.. projectile weapon. the pirates put up a good fight at first but i guessed realized they were losing and just let bullets fly." he had no other reason to tell this story besides the fact that it had popped in his head and wanted to explain his hatred for their weapons. it was his first time witnessing the deaths of his own people, and the memory stuck strong with him; he was not particularly close with any of the merfolk he was stationed with at the time but it still hit hard. it occurred to him that he also might be telling this story in order to truly show sebastian the cruelty of his people towards his own. "my people have strong feelings for guns and their wielders; but for some reason i dont think of you exactly like the way i see any other pirate with a gun. your different, and i cant put my finger on why." kai arched an eyebrow and studied the others face before turning away with a small smile. he melted right into the others presence- the way he listened to whatever he had to say and put their differences aside, hopefully, in order to work out something that was impossible. "and your welcome, by the way. i dont need a reason to beat humans- and if they are constantly trying to come at you because you are a pirate, well, then lucky me." even after his less than happy story he had just told, kai still managed to keep a smile on his face and say something that was anything but serious in order to express that his happiness hadnt wavered.

kai wondered what his people would think if they could see the ocean from this point of view- it was still beautiful even from the outside. from what he could tell, they only traveled to the surface in the case of an attack or if some rebels wanted to lay their curiosity to rest. he never had the urge to see what was outside or beyond the ocean, it seemed unnecessary to look at something he would never be able to experience; yet here he was doing just that. at sebastians mention of stealing his valuables kai shook his head and laughed lightly, "i know im just pulling your," he motioned to the others missing leg, "metaphorical leg." he managed to suppress his laughter at his joke of the others missing leg, he knew it was something the other was bitter about but he couldnt help himself. "im sorry, that one was just.. to tempting." he snickered to himself before turning back to the topic that was being discussed. "its not like i really have anything to steal, but if i did i think i can trust you enough by now to keep your hands off."

he slowly turned back towards sebastian to see what might be running through his mind in the comfortable few moments of silence, but all he got was a look of curiosity. kai smirked once the pirate finally spilled what was on his mind in the form of a question. "well," he paused to ponder a way to explain it to a human that has never been to xebel. "they range from small trinkets and objects to huge moving stone pieces." he had spent much of his youth doing these puzzles and attempting to figure them all out before he lost interest in them. "one i recall that i had a blast doing was similar to a kaleidoscope, but the trick was you had to look in it when the sun had risen but the moon was still visible; i dont know why but there had been small symbols carved into it that i thought were nonsense until i actually looked at them closely. it had a dozen small knobs on it that you had to turn in specific patterns in order to solve. it was some sort of ancient something, i dont really remember honestly what they said it was but.. i did solve it and all that was inside of it was some ancient writing." kai shrugged and dipped his hand in the water as he finished speaking; it felt nice to talk about xebel to someone who was so curious to learn about his home and his ways- it made him feel like it was still his home in a way.

[breadstick]

The pirate had very few intentions of carrying on the conversation further than he had deemed necessary, but the other seemed eager to tell his own experience with guns - something that vaguely intrigued yet worried Sebastian marginally. He had always known that Kai did not have a high opinion on his kind, or even his use of guns; and such feats were not things he was necessarily ashamed of, but he could still feel a slight burn at his cheeks in the knowledge that there was still some hatred there for his ways, his tactics, his weapons. There was bound to be; after all, there was a distinct feeling of dislike towards the fact that the other was a merman and someone he had been conditioned to despite all his life from Sebastian, even then; he just could not place why things were so different with Kai. Even so, he was willing to accept it - but it would still take some time - but that fact even illustrated that Kai might harbour the same emotions towards him, despite being far more willing to come together and talk about their unorthodox situation than the pirate originally was. Nonetheless, Sebastian listened to him talk, falling into a comfortable silence as the other talked upon his experiences; and, to his surprise, he was engaged in the story, the way Kai told it, even if the subject matter seemed largely directed at a loathing for his kind. He nodded an affirmative every now and then, watching him carefully to ensure that he knew that he was listening to him. He knew Kai had only been nineteen at the time, and he was undeniably older, now; but the pirate could not help but think back to the day he had first met Kai - shot by a pirate, bleeding on out on the beach. Dying. And now, on the same day, he recalled shooting a merman off the side of his ship, just as the merfolk attacking were retreating. A light inkling of suspicion kindled within him; a thought that was slightly painful to think upon, but one that was a possibility nonetheless. Now that he knew that there was only one merfolk city, and with the only pirate ship Sebastian had laid eyes upon being his own, it was entirely possible that there was some chance that Kai had been shot, that day, by one of his crew - or, worse, by him. Pushing all thoughts of such a chance completely from his mind, he listened to the other talk once more, having lost a small portion of the story - but he could pick it up from what the other was saying nonetheless. Frowning, but feeling marginally touched by the fact that his earlier assumptions had been disputed entirely by the addition he had heard, Sebastian shifted quietly, unsure of what to say. “Glad to hear you don’t think I’m a complete loss, whatever reason that might be.” He said, the smirk once again taking the place of the brief frown on his expression. “But ... yeah, that’s what pirates tend to do. If there’s a chance we’ll lose, or if a great deal of us are bein’ seriously injured - or just if someone needs some target practice or can’t fight any other way, really - we pull ‘em out and just shoot. Not the most dignified way of fightin’, I’ll give you that. Feels a bit like cheatin’, with merfolk, at least - but when have pirates ever played fair?” He commented, shrugging nonchalantly in an expression of a lack of care for the matter. Pirates didn’t play fair - that was why they were pirates, after all. Nonetheless, the thought that had followed Sebastian from the moment it had settled in his mind only festered, even as he replied with an amused huff to the other remark the merman gave. He smiled a little, the incident from not too far earlier in the day coming to mind at the thought. “Even if I’ve pissed you off.” He added, alluding to the circumstances that had led up to that point, assuming that his gratitude could, even now, be detected in his tone as he addressed the occurrence.

Sebastian merely ended up rolling his eyes at the other’s joke; although it might not have been originally intentional it still came across as a joke made specifically to poke fun at his limitations. Although he did get that quite a bit from his crew, he couldn’t say he particularly minded; with Kai, at least, he didn’t feel like he needed to prove himself as still worthy of being on the crew, even with countless reassurances from literally every person who had ever dwelled on that deck. That thought at the very least had a somewhat calming effect; he didn’t feel judged, here, and that was something he appreciated. “Alright, smartass, I know you can see.” He teased, and, before he could stop himself, he reached over and ruffled the other’s hair lightly; despite being thoroughly soaked, he still felt it had the desired effect as he pulled his hand away with a smirk. “Glad to hear you’re finally trustin’ me.” He murmured with a roll of his eyes, still smirking nonetheless, amusement lacing his tone as he spoke.

At the mention of the merfolk puzzles, Sebastian tilted his head s little, the curiousity slowly coming to consume him as he listened. It founded interesting - too complicated for him to grasp, he was sure - but Kai seemed content explaining it, and solving it, eventually; and, for that fact, the pirate was simply content to listen. He smiled softly, his eyes wandering about the other’s features; he seemed relatively disgruntled at the fact that he had such a talent; although, he assumed that would make him pretty popular within human culture. The puzzles sounded nothing like the ones he had in mind, but he nodded quietly, somewhat proud on the other’s behalf since he did not seem to spare much of a thought for it. “Huh. If nothin’ else, that means you’re smarter than me.” He murmured. “Sounds like you’ve got a real talent there, though.” He added, quirking an eyebrow as he spoke, regarding Kai with watchful but interested eyes.

[spicyskeleton]

kai hoped that he hadnt upset or made him feel awkward by his earlier story; he could see why it might make the pirate feel uneasy, though he did not explicitly talk about his hatred for pirates though their use of weapons. if anything the story should have came off as meaningless- even if he had an underlying desire to show the other how cruel pirates were towards his people. kai looked down and smirked at the others words, a ping of relief hitting him now that he knew sebastian wasn't going to take defense on what he had said. he was glad that he could recognize that their ways were cheating and unfair- but he knew that wouldnt change. after all, the pirate only had one leg and was not fit to be in a physical battle with others, so he did what he had to do. "glad you can see that." kai murmured. he let the conversation vanish into the wind without any desire to continue it, talking about pirates seemed to put a slight damper on the original cheerful energy. he found a smile forming at the pirates recollection of his earlier actions towards the merman, "piss me off at your own caution- i might have to accidentally punch you again." he had almost forgotten the twos little quarrel that caused him to storm off in a fit of rage; it seemed like forever ago, and he never would have guessed the two would be sitting together happily chatting after that.

kai laughed at sebastians reaction to his somewhat mean joke- at least he took it well. he was known for poking fun at the things that shouldnt be made fun of, a missing leg being one of them. he was a little shocked when the other reached out to ruffle his wet hair, he hadnt expected the sudden contact. it wasnt something that was unwelcome but he didnt think the pirate would be so keen on making any physical contact. kai instinctively reached his hands up to run them through his hair in attempt to stop it from flying in every direction and laughed, "come on, it was funny and you know it." he gave up on attempting to fix his hair in any way, it was a lost cause at this point. he turned to look at the pirate and paused to think about his trust in him- sure he trusted him not to steal his things, but how deep did his trust run? the other had proven he was not plotting to hand him over to his crew yet there was still a part of him that wanted to doubt sebastian; but the part that trusted him overtook that. kai nodded in response and turned away to watch a bird flying over the ocean.

the merman shook his head and laughed a little at seb's accusations of him being smart. "i wouldnt say im extra smart. puzzles and riddles come naturally to me but put a math problem in front of me and im out." in school kai had been a mediocre student with average grades, he couldnt bother to study for long periods of time or put much effort in; he had excelled in the more physical things rather than mental.

[breadstick]

Sebastian couldn't help but feel marginally bothered by the pointed edge with which the other had spoken the small tale, clearly with some ulterior motive to either remind him of his status as a pirate - something he was sure the other still majorly disapproved of - or the damage of which his kind had caused to the merfolk. Nonetheless, with the determination to not sour the mood more than he had already done so in the past - determined to make up for his actions the previous day, and his overreaction to the revelation over a month ago, he merely softly chuckled at the other's response to his own. He would acknowledge it, for the sake of their relationship; but nonetheless, he could not exactly talk, being a pirate whose only way of effectively fighting when outnumbered was with the use of such a projectile weapon. He let the two sink into a comfortable silence for a moment, the sounds of the waves crashing over the rocks around them; until that silence was inevitably broken, with the mention of their scuffle earlier that day, and the 'accidental' punch in the nose he had given Sebastian. Still somewhat miffed and offended by the entire ordeal, he simply shook his head in mock annoyance; he was not about to stir up the event again by annoying him further. "I'll find a way to return that 'accidental' punch some day." He murmured with a smirk, gesturing in such a way that conveyed amusement and also a melodramatic challenge. He had no intentions of hurting the other further; and he would admit then he would much prefer to avoid any other punched being thrown in his direction from that particular merman, either way. It had hurt his emotions as much as it had hurt his pride - and his face.

The pirate had realised as soon as he had retracted his hand from the ruffle of the other's hair that the reaction would not be one of contentment; although the surprise was not entirely unwarranted. The physical contact between the two had undoubtedly been limited, for reasons that were rather distinct and obvious, even to the pirate; and he had even taken himself by surprise by reaching out and initiating such a thing. It was an action borne out of a fondness he was yet to consciously recognise; and, as a result, he immediately regretted the action in its implications. Despite the initial, expected surprise, Kai did not seem particularly uncomfortable with the act; he merely reached a hand up to fix his hair as soon as he had drawn his own hand away; something that proved a relief to Sebastian in the moments that followed. "Alright, alright." He muttered, laughing a little inbetween the vowels he spoke, unable to hold his composure for too long. "Not like I haven't heard that one before. Can't wait to see you invent something new." He added with a smirk, folding his arms momentarily and tilting his head in a challenge. "If you're goin' to go after somethin' so obvious, at least be original with it." Moving his arm to gently nudge the other in an act of fondness once more - yet again, an involuntary act that Sebastian immediately regretted. "If you're as smart with jokes as you are with puzzles, I'll be anticipatin' it." He moved his hand back to where it had originally been, on the rock he sat upon, and he looked away in an attempt to mask the fact that he was somewhat embarrassed at the way he was becoming so fond with the merman.

Shifting forwards to the side slightly, so that he could see the pirate ship, he realised with a jolt that he had disappeared for the majority of that day - having only told Al a simple 'I'll be back soon' - and there he sat, clearly not back at the crew's temporary base as of yet, with more than an acceptable time having passed through the day. As much as he felt a pull to stay there, where he was, and speak with Kai for the rest of the day - he knew before long there would be search parties for him. It was unlike him to stray too far from his crew; and now that he was disappearing for more time every day, he could only assume that they would be suspicious of something or another. With a sigh, he returned his gaze to rest on Kai, shuffling off the rock a small inch and grabbing his crutch. "As much as I'd like to stay," He murmured; both a quip and a genuine statement behind his words. "I do have other commitments to attend to." He explained, as softly as he could. The worst case scenario he could imagine was that of which had taken place the day prior, with the parting ending disastrously for both parties. He hoped that the other would see, at the very least, that he had enjoyed the talk - but that no matter what he did, he could not abandon his crew mates for the entire day; whether it be to evade suspicion, or out of his natural obligation as a pirate. "I ..." He began, his voice eventually trailing off as he fumbled for what to say. "I enjoyed this." He eventually murmured, a small smile reaching his suddenly sombre features once more; this time, soft, fond and genuine, as opposed to the playful and mischievous smirk that usually dwelled upon his face. "If you're around, I'll visit again when I can. I'll search back here at some point t'morrow." The addition was rapidly spoken; although not completely inaudible. After a small pause, he ripped his gaze away from Kai, realising how little he genuinely wished to leave. Screwing his eyes shut and muttering a curse to himself, he pushed himself off the rock, using his crutch for support, and left the cove - not before turning back before he could stop himself. "Thank you." The grateful note seeping into his tone was impossible to miss, for so many reasons; he did not entirely recognise it in that moment, but Kai had done more for him in the time they had spent together than he had realised; ranging from saving his life to letting him vent his frustrations. "I'll see you soon." And with that, before he could say any more, he forced himself to turn away and limp away from the cove, turning his thoughts to his crew once more as he headed towards the ship to mingle with the three people present upon the deck.

-- The Next Day --

Sebastian's crew had not questioned him as much as he had expected when he had returned to their hiding place - but he had begun to notice some concerning, knowing looks from various members of his crew - actions that served to only fuel his anxieties towards sneaking off to meet with Kai. Thus far, nobody had made more than a few snide comments about the way he had disappeared so suddenly to spend time with some girl (Sebastian always smirked at that mention) who would be out of his life in so little time that there was no point in forming an attachment with her. Don't get attached. Don't forget we'll be leavin' soon. Don't lead them on. The voices of the crew members who had uttered such words in his ears as they passed echoed in his mind as he, once again, ignored their advice and limped casually down the street, towards that same cove he and Kai had met at the previous day. Grumbling to himself under his breath as he walked, he focused on the thoughts of the merman. Was he becoming too attached? Wasn't that the entire point of a soulmate bond? How would he survive if he was forced to leave the island, only to never return - leaving Kai on his own, forever waiting for someone who would never return to him? He knew that being a pirate and having a soulmate was something that was physically impossible to retain both of; and, once again, that left him with the inevitable choice between Kai and the pirate crew. He shook his head, refusing to even think on the matter any longer; he wanted to enjoy his time with Kai while he could still before having to make a decision that would undoubtedly take more guts than the pirate had to make. The cove came into view after a few more minutes of silent walking, and he straightened his posture a little, sure that his gaze had brightened slightly. If he had the ability to run, he most certainly would have been in that moment. Eventually, after a painstaking few minutes further, he reached the cove, and he peered around the walls in order to observe the surroundings.

[spicyskeleton]

kai arched an eyebrow at the others possible threat and smirked. "alright, i'd love to see you try." he challenged the other in a playful manor while examining his nose. there was a large cut across the side where he had split the skin upon contact, but other than that it wasn't as swollen or purple as he thought it would have been. hmph, thought i hit him harder than that. he thought with agitation pricking at him at the fact that he didnt cause as much pain as he had wished. kai didnt plan on hurting the other anytime soon, he assumed that the pirate had learned his lesson.

his face quickly formed into a shocked expression at the pirates insult towards his joke. "first of all, how dare you. my jokes are all original." kai cheekily grinned and once again was a bit put off by the sudden contact with sebastian; once again though, it wasnt unwelcome. he gently returned the shove back towards the pirate and then shifted his position so he was leaning back on his palms. the conversation fell silence for a few moments and kai basked in the others presence, perfectly content knowing he was there beside him. his eyes steadily watched the waves gently lap at his tail until the pirate broke the stillness by speaking. kai could only sigh in response knowing that he was going back to his crew and there was nothing he could say or do that would make the other stay. he bit the inside of his cheek, struggling to come up with anything to say. kai offered a tiny smile and nodded, "i did too." he wanted to ask the other to stay but knew that it would be in vain; sebastian had already began to lift himself off the rock. he stared down at the water and then turned back to look at the pirate who was about to venture off, "bye." he waved and then turned back towards the ocean with a nod. knowing that the pirate would come back tomorrow made this departure better, but the thought of sitting around waiting for sebastian to sneak away from his crew egged at him. "ill see you tomorrow." kai turned as he said this but realized the pirate had already walked away. he sighed and looked up at the suns position in the sky, and from what he could tell dark would be falling within the next few hours. without turning back to look in the direction of the cove he slid back into the ocean and vanished into the abyss.

the next day

for the rest of the day prior kai had spent it milling about the ocean far away from the island and returned late at night to the waters near the cove. he had made a bed of sand big enough for him to lay on and fell asleep on the oceans floor only to wake later in the day. his eyes fluttered open and he rolled onto his back with a sigh; he couldnt tell if it was light outside and from what his sleep felt like he had only gotten a few hours. kai lay on the ocean floor for a few minutes without any motivation to wake up until he realized sebastian would be coming back today. he groaned and muttered to himself while he sat up and stared forward out into the vast ocean until finally forcing himself to swim to the surface.

kai trudged out of the water with a grunt, his hands covering his face. "good lord the sun is bright." kai talked to himself unknowing if anyone was around and stumbled on the sand; he gently removed his hands from his eyes and squinted. his eyes had adjusted back to the darkness of the ocean and the sudden change of environment messed with all his senses. kai continued to grumble to himself half asleep and struggled to find his way towards the rock he had put his hoodie on. everything was so bright it felt blinding and made him feel slightly nauseous, but despite all of that kai found his sweatshirt and pulled it over his head, keeping the hood up to shield his eyes until the dilated in adjustment to the suns rays. he planted himself in the sand with his legs crisscross and stared off into the ocean while he waited for his senses to become more human like.

[breadstick]

At the sound of clumsily placed, heavy footsteps behind him, Sebastian immediately, involuntarily, turned around to face whoever the intruder was before he could fully grasp whatever was in the cove - or the lack thereof, it seemed. His hand instinctively reached to his back, where his gun sat, ever present, its inclusion on his person particularly comforting after his escapade with the thugs the previous day. Turning his torso sharply to meet the intruder with harsh words, he stopped suddenly at the realisation that he recognised the being who was making such a noise. Suppressing a chuckle but ultimately failing as the merman he had just been searching for emerged from the sea and groaned a loud curse to himself at the brightness of the sun, clearly with no knowledge that he was in the company of another being. He stepped out of the way of the cove entrance, attempting to stay entirely out of the other's grasp as he stumbled around aimlessly, somehow ending up finding the hoodie he had worn in the last two encounters. Remaining silent for the time being, he hung back, entirely out of the other's view, utterly amused beyond words by having witnessed such an experience. Placing all his weight into his crutch, he leaned against the rocky walls, watching the other as he sat himself on the sand, completely unaware that he had arrived. He stood there for a moment, eyes narrowed a little as he observed the merman who was looking out into the ocean, staring for a few more beats than was probably socially acceptable for him to simply regard him as a close friend. Swallowing roughly after that realisation, he took his gaze away from the merman, who had been silhouetted by the slowly rising sunlight, and eventually forced himself to break the silence that was only accompanied by the sound of the soft waves beating against the rocks.

Clearing his throat hesitantly, he shifted his weight to be balanced between the crutch and his working leg, before beginning to move towards the other, not intending to in any way allude to how long he had stayed in that same position for, simply entertaining himself by watching Kai and the sunrise. He made his way over slowly, humming softly in thought, before stopping beside the merman, unable to hide the smirk that arose on his features as he realised how tightly the other's hood was pulled over his head. "I'll admit, this wasn't what I was expecting to see when I came back." He murmured, chuckling a little afterwards before setting himself down on the sand steadily, putting about a foot or two's distance between himself and Kai. "Are you alright?" He asked, almost genuinely serious when he asked; the other did not look in particularly the best shape he had ever seen him in, soaked through with a hoodie pulled tightly over him, as though shielding his eyes.

[spicyskeleton]

kai resisted the urge to sit with his eyes closed for he knew if he did that his eyes would never adjust. he could only imagine what they looked like at the moment- his pupils were probably huge. he rested his elbows on his knees and placed his chin on his hands to give himself some support as he focused on the relatively calm ocean. the longer he was exposed to the sun the more clear things became and everything slowly got darker; he cursed the sun in his mind and wondered how humans dealt with it. the things he expected to be the least of his problems ended up being his largest. as the merman sat and pouted about land he had missed the sound of the pirate clearing his throat and approaching him, but quickly came to realize someone was in his company when he heard the familiar voice of a pirate.

kai jumped at the sudden sound of a voice and turned towards the sound, only being able to see a partial outline of the person approaching him; but he knew the voice and quickly sighed relief. "dont scare me like that." he muttered and turned back towards the ocean with slight agitation- kai was not nor never would be a morning person and didnt like making any sort of contact within the first thirty minutes of waking up. he forced the feelings of agitation away and instead replaced them with a more welcome tone, he was genuinely happy to see the other.. he had just hoped it would be later in the day. kai tenderly rubbed his eyes and covered them once more; the bright intensity was starting to give him a headache. he sat there for a few seconds and then removed his hands so he could once again open his eyes and look over at the pirate who by the looks of it had sat down beside of him. he wondered how long sebastian had been watching him and felt his ears burn hot with embarrassment with the realization of how dumb he must look, or drunk, but he couldnt bother enough to care at the moment.

he turned back away from sebastian in order to shield his eyes from the other- they must look hella black and creepy. he dug his hands into the sand in attempt to root himself more into the ground and focus on the current nausea he was experiencing from this sudden change. kai heard the others question but let it fly over his head without realizing it was actually a question meant to be answered. he quickly turned to look at the other beside him and huffed before displaying a small smile. "me? yeah, im good.. im great." he trailed off and narrowed his eyes in attempt to make out any facial features- it was so close to being a clear picture yet still was not. "um, i just woke up. like a few minutes ago, and as you know at the bottom of the ocean the pressure is different and my eyes are made to see in complete darkness so im still adjusting to the sun and stuff." he talked quietly and a yawn escaped his mouth, why was he so tired? maybe because he didnt sleep the night before and barely slept last night. "how are you?"

[breadstick]

Sebastian found it oddly amusing how the other had jumped like he hadn’t heard him approaching before he had spoken, but it did eventually encourage him to realise that he was maybe more out of touch with reality than he had originally supposed he would be. He had no idea what waking up and getting to land as soon as he woke up was like for the merman; but if this was all any consolation, he would admit any day that he was glad that the same was not the case for him. Whether it was just Kai who experienced such sluggishness in response to such an occurrence, or whether it was, in fact, a universal experience for merfolk, was completely unbeknownst to him; and he supposed it was best left that way. He frowned gently after he spoke, realising that the other had not seemed to have heard the question, simply staring away from him as though he was partaking in some other reality separate from this one. He merely chuckled as the other responded with such relief to even hear that it was Sebastian who had approached him and not anybody else; a few days ago, that matter would have been completely reversed and Kai would likely have preferred to see anyone but Sebastian. But there they were, sat on the beach overlooking the sunrise, with apparent relief sweeping through the other’s tone like wildfire. He hadn’t intended to scare him, although his reaction had been rather entertaining. He had tried to warn him of his presence, but apparently now, he was too out of touch with reality to even consider hearing such a small gesture of warning. Now, however, sat beside the merman who seemed to be struggling to even comprehend what was happening in front of him, he felt a small smile in response to the situation as a whole creep onto his features. The smile felt more akin to a smirk than anything else, but the action had the same effect nonetheless, and, for the moment, he was content to simply sit in silence if that was what Kai so desired, after being so rudely disturbed so early in the day.

It, therefore, came as somewhat a surprise when Kai’s voice piped up once more, beside him - this time disturbing the quiet the pirate had imposed between the two of them. It seemed he had recognised that there was still a question lingering in the air; and although he answered it, Sebastian could still tell that he would have preferred to have been left alone. There was no point in Sebastian leaving now, however; he was here, and he could have been willing to sit in silence until the other felt ready to speak to anyone. He was familiar with people who preferred to communicate on their own terms in the mornings, and recalled times where such attempts to do otherwise had led to short term scraps between the pirates. The pirate himself had never really felt too bothered about mornings; he had never slept well, anyway, so there was no point in being angry if someone was trying to talk to him when he was still waking up and tired. If he were to do that, he would not be talking to anyone for the most part of every day. Even so, however, he appreciated that Kai had recognised that he was still there and hadn’t attempted to take his other leg off, so he supposed that was a bonus. He nodded, a little sympathy creeping into his gaze as he realised that the circumstances of the others grievances might have been more founded than simple tiredness. The pressure and light level between the bottom of the ocean and the land was much different; he could only assume that it felt like being hit like a truck in the moment he had decided to swim to the surface. Turning his head to face Kai as he realised the other’s gaze had landed on him, he realised how distant the other’s gaze really was; looking directly at him, but not really seeing anything. Suppressing a chuckle, he shifted a little on the sand, leaning on his palms once more. “Ahh.” He muttered eventually in understanding. “So that’s why you look like a deer in the headlights.” The analogy was most likely something the other would not understand - and while a grim image it was certainly what came to mind when he looked directly at Kai in that moment.

Catching a glance of the yawn after he turned his gaze back to the ocean, not wanting to stare at Kai for any longer than was really necessary after he had caught himself staring for longer than he had originally intended to earlier, he tilted his head a little. “I’ll take that to mean you didn’t sleep well, either.” He assumed after a moment, realising that the night prior he would not have caught any wink of sleep after getting lost in the town. He decided to say no more on the matter, realising soon enough that there would be no point in bringing up things that he could not control. As the question was rebounded back to him, Sebastian turned back to Kai momentarily, nodding a little. “I’m as good as I’ll ever be, really.” He said; and, although vague, there really wasn’t much to build up upon that. The thoughts that had plagued in his mind had been lingering, still, but there was nothing he could do or say that would fix anything that he had to inevitably do in the future. That was the reality of the situation, as much as he hated it and did not want to accept it; but bringing it up with the merman, especially in this state, would be a lost cause; he knew that the merman had wanted him to do from the minute he had first walked away to board his ship and leave him for another month. And, as much as Sebastian hated to admit it, that option was becoming increasingly sour. Since Kai’s outburst, he had considered that maybe it wasn’t only him who was affected; and that Kai would not be pleased if he decided to leave once more. But he found himself still so reluctant to leave his crew, despite everything; and yet the pull towards Kai was growing ever stronger. Kai did not have to deal with this - his situation was resolved - but Sebastian was still forced to choose between his crew or his soulmate, something he was not looking forwards to discussing with either party at any point. However, in that moment, he pushed all thoughts concerning the matter out of the way. He had come here to enjoy his time with Kai while he could; and he would be damned if he was going to let the same thing happen once again in such a short space of time. Yet it was inevitable that this would come up in conversation at some point - and inevitable that it would end with him leaving one of the two things that mattered to him the most.