Of Man and Mer (Cheshire Pup and desertpaladin)

[Cheshire Pup]

The cave was not small but neither was it too big. It was mostly hidden by foliage and the easiest way in or out of the cave was under the water. Seaweed washed up in here usually and it was in one of these piles of seaweed that a true treasure laid. No gold or jewels could match the value of this treasure, this treasure was a child. The child was sleeping, wrapped snuggle in the seaweed as a mother would wrap her child in a blanket, half in and half out of the water left the child in a very dangerous position, sometimes the waves even washed over the poor things face, threatening to drown a normal baby by high tied. How could a mother be so careless as to leave her child so close to the water? Well, it was quite simple, it was not as it seemed.

Because of the seaweed the truth about itâ??s appearance was hidden from sight. Beneath the seaweed that was wrapped around the baby to keep it warm was a secret that man never dared to believe to be true. The child had a long fish tail instead. Sailors had often spoke of women of the sea, some even were said to sing men to their graves but in al the tale of these women one fact was sorely neglected, that fact was this child. Surely if the race of women existed then they had to have children so surely this had to be one of them. But where was its mother?

The cave was dimly lit, the light made by the reflection of the water caste a beautiful pattern over the walls of the cave. The water had pushed up all kinds of things. Seaweed, drift wood, a few crabs inhabited the cave but none dared to disturb the child while the child slept. While the child lay sleeping in its seaweed cocoon so tenderly wrapped by a mother who was not there, the child would have been almost invisible to the eye so that the cave could be explored and it would be very likely no one would even notice this child by the water.

The mother had gone to great care to hide her child here but there was something that she didnâ??t count on; her baby crying while she was away. To anyone that came in from the sound it would seem as though the mother had simply abandoned her child be the water and left it to drown, even after discovering what it was they might still think that it was abandoned. Though that was not the case it surely would seem that way.

The cave was supposed to be safe, it was on an island that man kind had not even found yet. There was not a single human being that inhabited the place and she took even more care to pick and island that was so far away from man that you could not even see where they were. She had watched the island and its surroundings for a week before she laid the child on it while she went to fetch food. No boat had ever come close so her child should have been safe there and she could not carry the child with her to the depths that she needed to go to get herself a meal. She couldnâ??t care for her child by starving herself, she would run out of milk soon and she needed more food for her stomach to make more.

The island, not that she had seen it, was a tropical paradise. It was overflowing with all kinds of beautiful flowers and colorful birds. The island had a strong supply of ripened fruits and sometimes one or two would find their way to the water. She loved the fruit form the island but had no way to get to them so sadly all she could do was watch it from the sea. The island was dangerous in some ways. Along with ht exotic birds there were other creatures such as wild cats that would find her an easy meal if she tried to beach herself for a fruit. She was simply lucky that they liked to stay deep inside the jungle rather then on the beaches.

Today was supposed to be a normal day like many before it. She would leave her child, warm and wrapped in the cave for the day while she hunted her own meal deep under the waves, they by nightfall she would return and feed her child and care for the babe in the cave since it was so perfect for her still developing child. It could not yet venture too deeply into the water and needed frequent changes between breaths of water and breaths of air. In one year the child may not even need the air anymore but something happened before then, while she was away from her baby, something very bad.

A man discovered her island.

 

[desertpaladin]

The man's name was Lawrence, he had been young, naive, and foolish, not a good combonation when he had decided to go out boating from his local down in California... Lawrence looked around through a telescope as he tried to figure out where he was. The ship was a small sailing vessel, when he had gone out the weather was nice but as he got a bit out to sea the weather suddenly and drastically changed. The winds picked up and the waves grew quite choppy so that it knocked the sailboat around on the water, sending it bounding along on a new course. He now had no idea where he was. He had once had a hand held GPS... but the waves knocked him against the side of the boat and he dropped it into the sea below. No doubt it was long gone and no longer working by his guess.

He had only managed to keep the few essencials that he had locked away in the interrior of the boat which was some emergency equipment, like rope, a knife, his father's old telescope, life vest, blankets, first aid, and a bit of food. But right now he was screwed to say the least he didn't even see a speck of... wait" he turned his head back a bit and he smiled seeing something... land?

He went ro work right away, changing the ships course so that it pointed to the island and he made full speed ahaid to the island. He beached the small craft on shore and sighed as he bowed down on his hands and knees "thank god..." he said to himself as he looked up but his look of gratitude vanished... where the hell was he? He had never seen any kind of plants like those before... and what were those sounds? he herd strange birds, weird animal sounds... the wind and the sea and... was that...?

Brushing back some of his still slightly damp brown hair from his hazel eyes he turned to look in the direction of the sound and saw a large rock face jotting out of the water... but there was... a hole in the side of it? Moving forward he made sure his ship was secure and he hurried over to the rock face. It was very dangerious. The rocks he could walk on were very smooth and wet, he nearly slipped a few times before he got to the cave mouth, looking inside he saw a small alcove with... 'oh my god..." he said and he rushed inside. He saw a small baby crying before him, his lower half wrapped in something... seaweed? and the tide was rising, the waves were splashing against the baby's stomach. He snatched up the baby just as a big wave came in and covered the small bit of land the baby had been on "hush now..." he said softly to the crying infant as he held it in his arms 'it is ok... hush..." he gently rocked it as he carried the baby from the cave, taking the same path back but making sure to be careful as he held the bahby close, trying to keep the infant calm as he walked back to his ship "Come on... lets get you warmed up..." he said to the infant...

As he got back he lay the baby down on a blanket on the sandy beach and he then took the knife from his small pack as he hurried up to land and cut down a few branches, taking a few fruits that fell as well and he hurried back to the boat. He started a small fire with a pack of maches near the child to help warm it and he moved to the seaweed. Slowly removing it but he raised an eyebrow... something did not seem right... he kept removing a seaweed until his eyes widened from shock.

 

[Cheshire Pup]

The child continued to cry as it was lifted from its watery crib and it took its little hands and seemed to be reaching out form something that was not there. Had the man been a woman with breasts that would have been exactly what the child was grabbing onto, but that was not the case. The baby was left to only grab at the air while he was carried form his place.

The child was a beautiful looking baby. As the man set a fire the girl looked at it amazed with its beautiful blue eyes. There ere not the color of ice like most babies are born with, they were the color of the ocean. The childâ??s hair was down to its neck and it was the color of a pirates golden coins. The baby itself was tan, as though it had gotten a lot of sunlight in its short life time. The baby looks as though it could not be more then a few months old at this time yet itâ??s mother clearly keeps it outside often and not in much clothing since the child has not a single tan line.

The child looked totally normal but the seaweed was a bit longer then the babiesâ?? legs should be and as the man cut it off something would become quite clear, this was no normal baby. The babies bottom was like a normal baby, and the baby was a female child, judging form the parts, but was no ordinary female. Below that point there were no legs. The legs came together to form one single thing and that was a tail. A fish tail to be exact. The scales were a muddy green but they shined so beautifully in the sunlight. Once the seaweed was removed from the childâ??s lower half the baby kicked its tail and began to cry again.

Since the baby did seem to he half fish perfectly dry land, like what the man currently had it on, would likely be the death of it. The baby would need water; it would need to have its tail submerged. The fire was wonderful for warmth but it would dry the child out like a fish if the man didnâ??t get the child near the water soon.

 

[desertpaladin]

When he saw the fish tail he could not believe it. But he felt it already getting dry. Having fished at home he knew that was dangerious for fish so could it be...? He did not wait to find out as he moved and grabbed the biggest container he could find, it had been one of those plastic storage boxes. Now with all of his stuff all over the front of the beach he hurried with the tub to the water, filling it a little over half full as he placed it near the fire. he picked up the baby and placed it into the container gently splashing more water on it's tail as he looked down at it.

Gently he tickled it as he began to chop up some of the fruit with the knife. looking it the pieces once they were small enough he offered them to the baby knowing they should be easy enough to eat. He just watched to see if the baby would eat the fruit.

 

[Cheshire Pup]

The child continued to cry until it was put in the water in the tub. Then it stopped and looked around, seeming confused. Then the baby splashed in the water and giggled. When the baby was tickled it giggled more. Its mouth opened, showing that the child had no teeth yet. It was likely that the baby was not yet on solid foods. This idea was seconded by the fact that the baby refused the fruit that it was offered. The baby looked out at the ocean and reached out for the water. When that didnâ??t work it went back to splashing in the tub with its hands and even its tail.

It was not long after that before the child managed to tire itself out and it curled up in the tub and drifted off to sleep.

 

[desertpaladin]

It was many hours later and Lawrence was still up, watching the flickering fireplace and the baby in the tub. he had taken some towels from the boat and placed them under the baby's head as it slept to keep it's head out of the water to breathe. He looked up at the very dark sky and wondered what all had happened. i mean he had felt the storm and he now had a child... a merchild... but he wondered what God had planned this... it seemed all too odd. Just then his ears perked up as he herd something in the same direction of the cave. But this noise was different. he turned his head... had what he herd just been some mind trick? no.. it was faint but it was there he knew it... He had to go check... but he also had to keep the baby safe. he slowly picked up the sleeping toddler from the tub as he made sure not to wake it. he moved toward the cave, a new path being exposed thanks to the higher tide along the side that was a bit safer than the way he had taken earlier. He walked forward and he had to swim a bit until he saw something on the land where he had seen the baby... he kicked as hard as he could to keep himself and the baby's heads from going under as he looked at the sight "h-hello?" he asked