waves of mayhem

Astoria chuckled softly. “Let’s dive right in the deep end, huh? You’ll do just fine.” She said. He wasn’t from around these parts he said, and Astoria tilted her head curiously when he said that included her. “Oh, yeah? What makes you say that?” Astoria wondered what it was that gave her away, her voice lowered a little. “Where exactly do you hail from then?”

-

“Y’know, I really like your attitude and I feel like we’re gonna get along well” Ronan commented when she decided to take him on as an opponent. Things were already set up from his last match, so luckily they could just get to it as soon as they were both ready. “Oh, I’m from everywhere. Mostly from places where there's a lot of water around.” It wasn’t a very clear answer, but hopefully it’d be enough to give away what he was. It was so hard sometimes, having to keep stuff secret from humans. “I’m Ronan, by the way.”

｡･:*:･ﾟ⎈ ｡･:*:･ﾟ

Steph jumped back from the crash first and then just stared at the carnage that was all the broken glasses and spilled drinks for a moment, Ronan’s words pulling her out of the surprised haze. “Oh you don’t say,” she rolled her eyes and gently slapped him on the arm, “Come on, help me help,” she told him and lowered herself into a crouch next to the girl. “I am so sorry, that was not intentional. I promise Victoria is nowhere around, we can clean this up fast and nobody will notice.” Well, the people directly around them were noticing, but at least Victoria wasn’t among them.

-

“Do I have to?” Ronan asked when told to help. That was certainly not the type of thing he enjoyed or wished to do at a party, but he crouched down besides Steph anyway. “What’s the problem if Victoria notices?” After that anti-mer speech, he certainly knew who that was and had an idea of what type of person she was, but didn’t much care about what she thought. He had met humans like that before, and, honestly, they made Ronan want to do exactly the opposite of what they wanted or deemed acceptable.

.

Gabi started to bear her teeth for a moment, but it didn’t have quite the same effect in human form. So she flared her nostrils instead. “You know that your problem is being an absolute strain on every situation that you happen to work yourself into. You enjoy this, and you don’t get anything out of it but your own satisfaction.” Sure, Gabi liked to make other people miserable, but in her mind it was for nobler purposes- like establishing power. It didn’t make a lot of sense if you analyzed her logic too closely. “You may find better company elsewhere.”

-

“Sounds like a pretty good assessment of myself” Ronan nodded with a smile. “But you forgot the part about how it’s caused by a conjunction of all my life experiences that make it hard for me to form meaningful relationships with others and how it’s all a way to mask deeper issues.” He took another bite out of the mini sandwich like that was a way to prove the point. “Or, maybe, I’m just very, very bored. And, while I can find better company elsewhere, yours is a great way to deal with said boredom.”

.

“Free drinks are nothing to complain about.” The siren agreed with a shrug. As long as someone was paying for them, the bartender didn’t care who actually drank them. Dropping the tray back onto the pile, putting the dirty glasses back where they belonged to be washed. “Maybe you’d be better of at The Houseboat then, if you’re looking for a challenge. Lots of spritely young tourists over there who I’m sure would love to take you on.” Allegra hummed, shrugging. 

Blue eyes flicked up, narrowing at the question. It wasn’t that they didn’t wanted to answer it, but Allegra wasn’t even sure what the answer was. “Somewhere in the middle.” The brunette finally said, another shrug falling from their shoulders. “You?” Though, Allegra could probably guess the answer, considering the night he’d had. 

-

Ronan laughed at her suggestion of where to find a challenge. “The tourists? Really? Have you seen those guys before? Not really a big challenge” he said after a moment to catch his breath. “I agree I can find a better challenge in a group not Port Vale native, but that was certainly not what I was thinking about.” He took a sip of his beer, still chuckling slightly at the idea.

.

“Yeah. I work at the inn now. It’s fun. I think your job that isn’t a job is perfect for you. I could never ever do anything like that, but I’m glad that you can be successful here on land like that on your own terms.” Stella was glad that Ronan had managed to find a job that worked well for him. The idea of having to sell objects to anyone intimidated her, but that didn’t mean that she thought it was terrible as an entity. There was something thrilling and exciting about being able to make things found in the sea be desirable that she couldn’t see herself being able to make happen.

She tapped her finger on her chin. Oh that was cold! Everything outside was so very cold. She’d forgotten. “Uhm. How about that funny lamp pole over there. Its height makes it interesting, but it’s not going to be that easy since it’s so skinny. That work for you?” There were not a lot of good reasons for her to throw anything, so she wasn’t very good at this, but she was certainly excited to try.

-

“The inn is okay. I know the human who owns it” Ronan said. He was almost certain the owner was one of Sisi’s humans, at least. “I think he’s a bit boring, but my brother really likes him, so… You could have gotten it a lot worse.” And it did sound like a good job for Stella. The inn was certainly the best place in town to meet new people and learn new things from and about them, especially once tourist season started. However, she would also probably get very busy once that happened, so Ronan wanted to enjoy all the free time they had together before that. “And make sure to tell me all about the craziest guest you get there.”

   xx

    “Well, lucky you,” Ridley pouted with a miserable sniffle, her arms tight across her body as she braved the weather with as much dramatic effect as possible. At his totally privileged realization that he’d never been sick, a privilege she, too, had boasted of until recently, her eyes rolled in annoyance but her lips stayed quirked in an amused smile. It was impossible to ever truly be annoyed by him, even if he was oblivious to his fortune. “Um, okay, well, it totally sucks, obviously. You have this scratchy feeling in your lungs, like swallowing super sandy water, and your tummy feels like it does when you first try to walk on land, and- oh, the headaches, it’s awful, Ronan,” She was only scratching the surface, but her tone grew more and more pathetic until she was all but pouting at him, lip extended and all. 

      Maybe she was milking it,  a little bit. Why? Well, Ridley wasn’t sure yet, but it was always nice to have the pity ready to pull, if need be - though she suspected it wouldn’t work too well on Ronan. 

   Either way, a thought came to mind to distract her from the illness she was making a fuss over. “Wait- wait, wait, so you don’t play video games and stuff? Wow, like, I totally thought you’d be a gamer dude, or whatever,” She chuckled, but she understood. As much as she thought some video games seemed fun, even Ridley doubted if she could ever figure out how they worked well enough to sit and enjoy playing them. “What sort of human are you?” Ridley asked, curiously, in a whisper- she’d learned that humans had subgroups, and that somehow, as the Assyrian’s came to land, they tended to mold their disguise after certain types of humans they saw.

   Who did Ronan want to be? It was hard to imagine him as anything but Ronan, even without his true form to boast about. Ridley smirked. 

    “There is nothing interesting to tell about me, nothing that would top your stories, probably,” Ridley snorted, a bit self-depreciatively. In her mind, nothing were as mythical and intriguing as the hippocampi; those who existed before time itself. But she smiled at his decision to choose truth, and she considered the question for a moment before finally selecting what she wanted to know. “Alright, fine. You have to be honest. Which do you prefer - sirens or mermaids?” 

-

As Ridley explained how it was to feel sick, Ronan decided that maybe that wasn’t a new thing he wanted to try. Or, well, maybe he still did want to try just a little bit. It was so hard to find stuff he hadn’t tried before, he would always get curious, even if it sounded terrible. That did also make it very hard for him to feel very sympathetic towards the siren’s situation, unfortunately. “Well, you’re still alive, so it can’t be that bad, can it?” he said, patting her on the head.

Just to prove his point of it not being that bad, she soon enough perched up again on the topic of human forms of media. “Nah. Some games sound cool and all, but they take way too much time” he said, shaking his head slightly. He has tried a few during the 90s and he definitely didn’t have enough focus to finish most games, especially not when they seemed to be getting more and more complex with time. “I do enjoy watching some cartoons from time to time, though.”

“What do you mean ‘what type of human’? I just act like I always did” Ronan shrugged at her next question. “That’s the best way to do things than try to fix in one of their defined boxes, trust me. Most times, humans themselves will come up with the explanations to any weird behavior we might have. That’s the biggest lesson I’ve learned visiting land over the years.” He got closer to her before whispering the next sentence. “Just don’t tell the others. It’s fun to watch Assyrians struggling way too much at trying to fit in.”

“I don’t believe that” he said when Ridley said she didn’t have good stories. “Didn’t you travel around before coming here too? There must be something crazy that happened somewhere.”

The man was something, for sure. It went without saying that he basically beat every big and strong dude that attempted the challenge against him and left them practically weeping. And now here he was, already taking a seat next to him before Isaac could even make any sound. “Uhm, sure. No problem,” said the man finally.

“Isaac. Wow man, you really are strong to beat up every single men here like that,” he said, impressed enough and already knowing it was best to stay on this dude’s good side. A black eye was something he’d wish to avoid for the night.

Ronan chuckled a bit on the man’s comment, like it was some sort of inside joke. “Yeah, I swim a lot and that builds upper arm strength” he said simply. The hippocampus had no idea if this had anything to do with how sea people tended to be stronger than land people or not, but it was the best explanation he could give this human. “So, Isaac. Is it okay if I call you Sasa? Tell me, Sasa, if not some friendly competition, what brings you to this side of the docks?” He didn’t really care all that much, but it’d be boring to just drink in silence without anyone to talk to and this human really didn’t look like the rough sailor type you saw around the Seaman.

Speaking of, a group of those types arrived just that moment and tapped on the hippocampus’s shoulder. “You cheated” one of them accused him, without even any form of greeting. “No, I didn’t. And I bet I can beat you all again” Ronan said, getting up and staring the sore losers down. They were clearly looking for a fight and Ronan was more than happy to oblige.

-

“Hey, just checkin’,” Mike joked. He knew full well what Ronan could do, but it was still good to hear the guy agree to it even if the menu wasn’t up to him. They headed on in and Mike set the bag of ingredients down on the counter, and started getting things out a little ways away from Ronan and his knife. “Here’s the chicken and the tofu - I think these are supposed to marinate, so they might come first?” He’d skimmed the recipe’s instructions earlier to make sure they had enough time to make what had been requested and get a general sense for the order. “Then we got - a buncha veggies, and some spices. Fruit too, but that’s for sides, I think. Oh! And here’s the recipe.” He passed Ronan the piece of paper - probably would have been the thing to do first, but oh well. “How can I help? If it’s stayin’ outta your way, just lemme know.” He wasn’t a hazard in the kitchen, but there was no denying that it wasn’t exactly a talent either. 

-

Ronan continued to play with the knife as Mike listed everything he had got. When his brother gave him the recipes, Ronan took only a quick look at them before putting them aside. He already had a good idea of how to put his own special Ronan touch on them. “Right. I can take care of the chicken and the tofu.” Those were the parts that dealt with fire and would be the most fun. “Can you help with the veggies?” he asked, putting the knife down for just a moment to roll up his sleeves, before using it to start to cut the ingredients.

“So, Keke. Your new plan to get me out of trouble was making me productive to society?” Ronan said after a moment, when he finished cutting the chicken and started working on the marinate. “I don’t really care, but you do know I might still pick a fight with some of the sailors in the docks later, right?” At least, no one could say he wasn’t self aware about that.

Maya pinched the bridge of her nose. Well, that decided that.  She’d been all but certain he belonged to the ocean, but now she had confirmation – he was one of the last of the hippocampi.  And he apparently had enough alcohol in him to loosen his tongue more than expected. More to the point of her concern, one of his brothers had informed ‘his’ humans. Who were they?  What did they plan to do with the information?   What did she do with it? Hippocampi had become so rare in their world … it worried her.

Would the humans protect them?

Or would they do something … bad?

Noting that the humans in the bar began to wander away since the games seemed to be over, Maya slid into the chair across from him. “You and your brothers are older than we are,” she pointed out. “It’s less nerve-wracking for you to try something new I would think.” Talking with the tipsy or drunk didn’t usually have much of a point, but maybe she could find a way to … Oh, she didn’t know what to do with him. She didn’t want to just leave him here spilling out details on the sea.

-

Hippocampus. Hippocampus. Hippocampus.

It was a funny word. Maybe because it was Greek? Did Greece have any more funny words? They had pi. Ronan started giggling as he thought of the number pie, because it sounded like pie. He almost didn’t hear what the woman was saying. Something about his age, maybe?

“It’s rude to call people old,” he pointed back, literally pointing at her with his finger. “You should be calling us your handsome elders.” Was there really a difference? Maybe not, but he wasn’t going to dwell much on that at the moment. “And that makes no sense. People are always saying life is too short and you should go out and enjoy” he continued after her comment. “Our life is not. It’s much, much, much, much, much longer and sometimes it feels like we have all the time in the world to do new things. You are the one who should go out there and do risky stuff, yolo and all that shit.”

“Yeah, I’ve seen that happen a few times in my day,” Theo said–as if he was some kind of wise old man. After years of bartending though, he was basically an expert on the antics of drunk bar patrons. There was a little he hadn’t seen before, and now that it was truly his full time job, he was in for many more years of drunk shenanigans. “I just don’t want to be the one who goes up against the drunk guy who doesn’t know his own strength and then get my arm snapped,” he laughed. 

Sipping on his beer, Theo thought about which bar games he liked the most. He was usually on the other side of the bar, but that didn’t mean he still didn’t go in his free time. Some of his favorite memories in New York were of staying out all night at some hole in the wall he stumbled upon. “I mean I was going to say bar trivia, but if you have tricks then I want to see them,” he urged the man on. Whatever he had in mind sounded more fun than trivia at least.

-

“You have been to a lot of bars then?” Ronan laughed at the human’s old wise man attitude. Truth be told, he did look familiar, the hippocampus just couldn’t say exactly from where. With how little Port Vale was, it wouldn’t be a surprise if they crossed each other’s path on the street before, though. “That does sound bad” he agreed on the comment about surprisingly strong drunk guys. “I never stop to think much about this sorta thing, tho. Too much thinking gets in the way of the fun.”

“What if I take my brothers? It’s not a good idea to involve a lot of other people in your crimes, so let’s keep things in the family. I don’t know what each one would do, or even if Keke and Sisi would agree, but hey! That would be fun, wouldn’t it? Oh! And we can also call little Starfish, of course!”

.

Gabi gave Ronan a look that she hoped was withering. Unfortunately, she expected little success on that front because the hippocampus seemed to feed on disapproval. “That’s great for you. But unless you can make some for yourself right here, that doesn’t matter whatsoever and you’re just being a cretin.” Mm, she’d done better insults before, but this wasn’t so bad. “You know there’s other food that you can compare your own to elsewhere.“

If looks could kill. They couldn’t, so the only thing the siren got back from Ronan was a raised eyebrow and an amused smile. “What’s the problem, Bibi? I’m just making conversation” he said, innocently. Despite what he said about the food earlier, he still picked up another little sandwich to eat. “Even if there is other food, where else will I get such good company?”

｡･:*:･ﾟ⎈ ｡･:*:･ﾟ

If Steph was being honest, she was proud of herself for coming up with the nickname and it made her giddy that he seemed to like it. Fanny still felt… oh, did feel annoying, but hey, if you can’t fight it, embrace it. “Oh, oh, it’s like that, okay,” she nodded and started doing an overly goofy and ridiculous version of the macarena. Nothing gets better than that, right? Except as she twirled, she wasn’t paying attention and knocked into Judith, one of the older teenager who was working at the banquett and handed out drinks, all of which landed on the girl and the floor, with the clinking crash of the glasses.

“You go, girl.” Ronan laughed as Steph showed her dancing prowess. They were probably both looking ridiculous, but he didn’t care much about it. Dancing was something that he could always have fun with around humans, so he was just enjoying the moment. Of course, it didn’t last long as the human bumped into another human. Ronan had to hold back another laugh as the sound of breaking glass raised above the music. He did enjoy that kind of chaos, but he knew it would most likely end the fun they were having. “Oh, that looks bad” he said, not very helpful, but what did anyone expect better from him?

.

He trailed along behind her as Allegra made her way back to the bar, a slightly amused smile playing on the siren’s lips. A shrug when he said she sounded pretty confident. They weren’t, really, which is why Allegra was declining. Besides, Allegra had seen the casts they put on broken bones, and that’s the last thing they wanted anywhere near them. The brunette didn’t deal well with restriction. 

Allegra had pretty much figured that he wasn’t human, the way he was beating pretty much everyone. But he seemed to want to confirm that, Allegra raising an eyebrow. “I figured that’s why you were having so much fun getting free drinks.” The siren didn’t really care that he was taking advantage of humans, honestly. A breath escaped at the question. “Long enough.” She muttered. 

-

Ronan could see the small smile on their face and that was a small victory in his book. He enjoyed getting people annoyed, sure, but if she was getting amused by him, maybe this was another way for her to play with him. He could adapt.

“I don’t know if ‘fun’ is the right word,” he said. “It’s nice to get free drinks, I won’t deny it, but I miss having a real challenge, y’know?” He sat on the bar in front of them, watching them work. Revealing what he was didn’t seem to work like he expected it to, especially if she had figured it out by herself already. “Not adapting well? Or adapting too well?” he asked after her answer. Long enough could be any amount of time, but he wasn’t the type to insist on it if the other didn’t want to say more.

˚.·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙ (⊃｡•́‿•̀｡)⊃━✿✿

A good nose for outsiders? Brothers? The pieces were slowly coming together but Lena didn’t let it distract her. So many questions were running through her head. Of course, she should have seen it sooner but didn’t know many other hippocampi - they were rare. “Oh so you came here to be with your brothers? I’ve been here for about a month. I’ve been staying busy, but it feels like time moves much slower in a small town. I’m not sure how you’ve been able to keep yourself from dying of boredom.” She laughed. In the month that she’d arrived in town, it didn’t take long for the siren to see everything the town had to offer. Lena had to agree with the other’s statement. The most interesting part of living in Port Vale was the inhabitants. She had never expected the town to be like this. Clearly, something about the town was special if it drew in the mermaids, sirens, selkies and hippocampi (the few that were remaining). The purpose of everyone’s presence was still a mystery to Lena but she tried not to think about her worries about an upcoming war and pushed the negative thoughts away from the forefront of her mind.

After winning the arm wrestle she couldn’t hide the grin that formed on her face. It had been a while since she felt the adrenaline coursing through her veins, it was refreshing to have participated in friendly competition. “Thank you … You were a worthy opponent.” She mused. The night was not going how she expect but she enjoyed being in the company of someone who knew what she truly was. Lena felt happy because she didn’t have to pretend in that moment. After the bartender handed her the prize of a glass of beer, she turned back to her opponent. “I’m Lena.” The siren said finally. “What’s your name?” She asked and moved closer before adding. “I haven’t met many of your kind, so I’m surprised that you’re here.” She made sure no one else was listening in on their conversation. There was so much she wanted to ask this stranger. 

-

“In a way” Ronan said when she asked if he was in town because of his brothers. “I also know some of these new folk in town, and they make the stay fun. But boredom is something I’ve been constantly fighting most of the time” he agreed. By experience, he could say that it was as bad at Port Vale as anywhere else. Or, maybe, if he was honest, a little worse, but the Assyrians in town were making it bearable so far. He didn’t care much for the reasons for most of them to be here.

“So were you” he said back to her compliment. He ordered her drink and turned back to her as she introduced herself. “Ronan. Nice to meet you, Lena… Nana. Can I call you Nana? Nice to meet you, Nana.” He didn’t give her the opportunity to complain about the nickname, planning on still using it even if she did. Especially if she did. “I’ve been hearing that a lot lately,” he said when she mentioned her surprise. “But you said you haven’t met many of us, so you know some of my brothers?” 

   xx

    Her heart twisted with desire - yes, she wanted to explore, yes, she wanted to find shipwrecks… but she looked down instead, shaking her head to decline. “Haven’t you heard?” She asked quietly, not making eye contact. Maybe Ronan didn’t know about the illness, but surely, he knew of the darkness? All the death, the destruction? “Sirens are getting sick. Some of the mermaids, too. Apparently it’s the water making us sick.” She said us. She’d outed herself. Would he hate her now, too? Ridley couldn’t shake the feeling everyone was avoiding her now. Her stupid sniffles, her stupid cough- Ridley wanted to scream, in the moment, and instead just turned to look at Ronan again, gauging his reaction. “It’s not contagious, before you ask. I don’t think you even can get sick, not like this. Have you ever been sick before, like, ever?” 

   Holding up her iPhone, Ridley nodded. Of course she’d stolen the best there was. What else would she settle for? “Yep!” She grinned, triumphantly. Happy for the change of subject. At least she could own a smartphone properly. “I’m the best one of all of us at The Internet, too,” she couldn’t help but boast, wanting for some reason to impress the hippocampi. 

   “Aw, but the truth part is the most fun!” Ridley contested, smirking at him and raising an eyebrow. “What, you got secrets, Ronan? You don’t want me asking certain questions? Because I would love to know all your deepest, darkest, best hidden secrets… I’m the best one to tell, aren’t I?” Because who would listen to her, without any rank, any importance? “But dares are fun too.” 

    She gave him a warning look at the question - and hoped he meant it when he said he wouldn’t ask again. “I am so totally, super, absolutely fine. Better than ever.” 

-

As Ronan listened to her explanation, his brows furrowed further. A sickness? Caused by the water? “No, I hadn’t heard anything of that.” It wasn’t like he was one to go after these kinds of news, but he was pretty sure he hadn’t ever heard anything like that before. It was something new and different, and usually these made him excited for new discoveries after centuries of life. However, something that could potentially keep them away from the sea? It certainly gave him conflicted feelings on the matter.

“Not that I can remember” he said about having ever been sick. “Have I never been sick before?” And, truly, he couldn’t remember it at all. Any reserves about being kept from the water fell to the wayside in front of that realization. “How is it? Being sick? I don’t think I ever have, now that we’re talking about it and there haven’t been a lot of things I haven’t tried before.” It never sounded necessarily good or fun, but now he was curious.

“Wow, the best with The Internet? Impressive” Ronan laughed, taking her phone to save his contact info in it. “I admit I’m not the best at it. I just can’t see the appeal in all of those human virtual medias and stuff.”