[ When he feels her grip slacken he tries to get away again, only to find he still can't. All this thrashing is tiring him out too, so he hangs in the water a bit, flapping his tail again and again against the water. ]
P-Please don't kill me... I-I can drown you, you know...!
[ It's a pretty weak threat from someone who's positive he's gonna die now ]
[ Dia lets him go. Just for a second. Just long enough for her to grab him by the shoulders and look him dead in the eyes. But she's not angry anymore (or at the very least she doesn't look it). Her eyes are huge and... they're practically sparkling.
Uh. ]
You're... you're not human, are you? You're a... a merman. Is that what you are?!
[ please be a merman and not just a creep lurking in the water ]
[ he flips his tail out of the water again... then tries to sink back into the water as much as her grip will let him. Like he's trying to make himself look small. ]
She splutters a bit -- her voice cracks again as she talks but she doesn't sound angry anymore at all. Just wrongfooted. It's one thing to have encountered a stranger out here and yet another to have run into a merman of all things. ]
I'm not going to eat you, for goodness sake! I'm trying to talk to you!
[ what would mermaid even taste like? just thinking that grosses her out a bit. ]
[ ... Okay. Good. She's not trespassing or something. She was a little worried there about the potential for getting into trouble with mermaids of all things for taking a dip in the wrong part of the sea. But... well, this is the only one that's seen her and she can hardly credit him as a threat.
(Sorry Choromatsu)
She gives a huff and lets go of his shoulders before looking away. It... almost looks like she's going a little red. Is she actually embarrassed. ]
I see. Well then. I suppose I... should offer an apology for the... misunderstanding, in that case.
[ a long pause. you kind of get the impression these are words she doesn't use particularly often. ]
... I'm sorry.
[ ... "for putting you into a headlock and screaming at you" ]
[ She gives a little huff -- upwards, to try and blow her hands out of her face. They're wet and sticking unpleasantly to her forehead and that prissy little sigh doesn't do much to shift them. ]
Is that why you were expecting me to harm you or eat you? Is it just what you assume we would do to you?
[ what sort of idiot has been filling this boy's head, honestly. ]
It's what everyone's told me... what we've seen...!
We know about that stupid myth, you know...! The one where you all think you can be immortal if you eat our flesh! And we've seen the way you act like you own the sea and ruin it with nets and garbage!
... You honestly think people believe that sort of nonsense?
[ Well, maybe other people do -- Dia's not surrounded by people who are keen to chatter about merfolk so she's always assumed that people can tell myth from truth. But maybe the line's a little blurrier when it concerns, y'know, merfolk ]
Well -- regardless, I've no interesting in harming you, much less eating you! I only apprehended you because I thought you to be some sort of... of... peeper!
Of course I do, you ridiculous boy. If I had my heart set on eating you, I would be dragging you back to shore as we speak, with my servants readying the dinner table.
[ JESUS CHRIST DIA ]
But I do not. So you needn't worry -- you have my word.
[ and then he actually does start to swim away, because he's still supposed to stay away from humans. But then he stops again and turns his head back to her. ]
[ She looks a little surprised to hear that. Not that she doubts it's true, of course, but it's a bit surprising to hear it from a merman. But her expression quickly shifts and she gives him a grin that's all confidence. ]
Well, of course. I could hardly call myself a daughter of the Kurosawa family if I sounded like a warbling cat, could I?
[ SHE PUFFS HERSELF UP IN ABOUT THE MOST INDIGNANT WAY IMAGINEABLE
shoving her face up close to Choro's-- ]
Then allow me to educate you! [ oh no ] The Kurosawa family has a long and proud tradition of seafaring and exploration, dating all the way back to [ oh my god you don't need me to type the rest of it, you know what Dia sounds like when she goes off on a lecture. this is a lecture. rip in pieces, choromatsu. ]
[ LEANING BACK oh god this is. a lot. and he is only really paying attention less than half of it.
after his surprise, his face goes back to unimpressed ]
How was I supposed to know any of that? That'd be like expecting you to know merfolk families.
[ he swims around her, if just to give him a bit of distance after she was all up in his personal space and to stretch his tail... huh, speaking of merfolk though... ]
Though... if you're seafarers... would you know who Poseidon is?
Of course we do! What sort of fools do you take us for?
[ And now she's back to just sounding lowkey offended instead of highkey. No change to the high volume, though -- she's at a seven when the situation calls for maybe a three. Get used to it, Choromatsu. ]
I understand you think of humans as being particularly ignorant but perhaps consider giving us some credit!
I-- no, please. I'm sure I must have just misheard you for a moment -- would you mind saying that again?
[ surely it's just some weird mermaid name for Posidon that happens to sound like 'Dad' or maybe all merfolk call him that. Maybe it's a weird merfolk thing. ]
After all, it sounded as though you just referred to him as your father and surely, that can't be the case.
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P-Please don't kill me... I-I can drown you, you know...!
[ It's a pretty weak threat from someone who's positive he's gonna die now ]
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Uh. ]
You're... you're not human, are you? You're a... a merman. Is that what you are?!
[ please be a merman and not just a creep lurking in the water ]
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...You didn't realize?
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P-Please don't eat me...
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She splutters a bit -- her voice cracks again as she talks but she doesn't sound angry anymore at all. Just wrongfooted. It's one thing to have encountered a stranger out here and yet another to have run into a merman of all things. ]
I'm not going to eat you, for goodness sake! I'm trying to talk to you!
[ what would mermaid even taste like? just thinking that grosses her out a bit. ]
Does this cove belong to you?
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[ That sounds fake but ok ]
...No. B-But there's still usually no one here...!!
I just wanted to be alone for a while, honest...!
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(Sorry Choromatsu)
She gives a huff and lets go of his shoulders before looking away. It... almost looks like she's going a little red. Is she actually embarrassed. ]
I see. Well then. I suppose I... should offer an apology for the... misunderstanding, in that case.
[ a long pause. you kind of get the impression these are words she doesn't use particularly often. ]
... I'm sorry.
[ ... "for putting you into a headlock and screaming at you" ]
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Eh?
...You're apologizing?
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[ she makes an indignant sort of gesture with her hands like she's not sure what else she should be doing with them. ]
I accused you loudly and at length of having untowards intentions! Would you rather I refused to give you an apology?
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[ He sinks lower into the water, tail swishing about ]
I didn't expect that from a human. I've always been told they're all the same...
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Is that why you were expecting me to harm you or eat you? Is it just what you assume we would do to you?
[ what sort of idiot has been filling this boy's head, honestly. ]
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It's what everyone's told me... what we've seen...!
We know about that stupid myth, you know...! The one where you all think you can be immortal if you eat our flesh! And we've seen the way you act like you own the sea and ruin it with nets and garbage!
Why wouldn't I expect one of you to harm me?!
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[ Well, maybe other people do -- Dia's not surrounded by people who are keen to chatter about merfolk so she's always assumed that people can tell myth from truth. But maybe the line's a little blurrier when it concerns, y'know, merfolk ]
Well -- regardless, I've no interesting in harming you, much less eating you! I only apprehended you because I thought you to be some sort of... of... peeper!
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hrmmmmm
he deflates a little ]
...Do you actually mean that?
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[ JESUS CHRIST DIA ]
But I do not. So you needn't worry -- you have my word.
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[ and then he actually does start to swim away, because he's still supposed to stay away from humans. But then he stops again and turns his head back to her. ]
Your voice is really pretty.
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[ She looks a little surprised to hear that. Not that she doubts it's true, of course, but it's a bit surprising to hear it from a merman. But her expression quickly shifts and she gives him a grin that's all confidence. ]
Well, of course. I could hardly call myself a daughter of the Kurosawa family if I sounded like a warbling cat, could I?
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The... what family?
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[ she makes THE MOST OFFENDED noise ]
You surely aren't about to tell me you've never heard of us?!
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You're humans.
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shoving her face up close to Choro's-- ]
Then allow me to educate you! [ oh no ] The Kurosawa family has a long and proud tradition of seafaring and exploration, dating all the way back to [ oh my god you don't need me to type the rest of it, you know what Dia sounds like when she goes off on a lecture. this is a lecture. rip in pieces, choromatsu. ]
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after his surprise, his face goes back to unimpressed ]
How was I supposed to know any of that? That'd be like expecting you to know merfolk families.
[ he swims around her, if just to give him a bit of distance after she was all up in his personal space and to stretch his tail... huh, speaking of merfolk though... ]
Though... if you're seafarers... would you know who Poseidon is?
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[ And now she's back to just sounding lowkey offended instead of highkey. No change to the high volume, though -- she's at a seven when the situation calls for maybe a three. Get used to it, Choromatsu. ]
I understand you think of humans as being particularly ignorant but perhaps consider giving us some credit!
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Eh? Really?
I'm used to everyone knowing who dad is, but I didn't actually expect a human to considering how he gets...
[ wait ]
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what ]
I-- no, please. I'm sure I must have just misheard you for a moment -- would you mind saying that again?
[ surely it's just some weird mermaid name for Posidon that happens to sound like 'Dad' or maybe all merfolk call him that. Maybe it's a weird merfolk thing. ]
After all, it sounded as though you just referred to him as your father and surely, that can't be the case.
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