#v ore

Chris lowered the snack cake, hesitating. She opened the wrapper and held it out. Faster than she could react, a thick, webbed hand snatched the food from her shaking grip. Chris recoiled and watched as the shark stuffed the cake, wrapper and all, into a mouth lined with gleaming ivory fangs. With a single swallow, it was gone, and the shark’s attention shifted to her once more. She reached a now-damp hand into the cooler again and handed him an unwrapped cake. As he devoured it she pocketed the wrapper, staring at him.

He was…oddly heavyset for a merperson. A whale? But no-his fins were definitely shark fins. She shifted, trying to peer further down, only for the boat to rock backwards. The merman had flinched away, now staring at her with a glare. Chris raised her hands.

“Sorry, I-…” she hesitated. Did he understand common tongue? Recordings of merfolk speaking weren't well known nor validated. Hard to say…worth a shot to show she meant no harm. “I’m not here to hurt you,” she reached back into the cooler and passed him another unwrapped treat. “Here-“ It was snatched away with as much vigor as the first, and the strange creature went back to staring.

Chris sat back on her boat, eyes flicking down to the water. No, too dark to see his form. She sighed and looked back to the cooler. A few more treats left…and it was getting too late to get much more data for later. She reached into the cooler, carefully unwrapping all of the treats. Once done, she held them out. The merman snatched them all, his eyes wide. For a moment Chris swore he was drooling…but before she could get a good look, his jaws opened, almost unhinging, and the food was stuffed inside with everything else. Gone in an instant.

Chris sat back in the boat. The merman licked his lips, eyeing her for another moment. Then, he was gone with a single splash. Chris sat up, leaning over the edge of the boat. She looked down. Her reflection stared back at her, wide eyed, exhausted. She sank back into the boat, rubbed her head, grabbed her oars. Maybe it was time to head back.

~~

Jake peered above the water as the boat began to ease out of sight. It would have been easy to tip it, fling the human into the water. Eat her with all those treats…but if he did that, she wouldn’t bring him more. The shark frowned. Nah. She wasn’t worth the fight…besides, she’d been coming to this spot for a few days now. Picking off the scraps she threw over the sides, while padding his growing waistline, had become a pastime of the mako’s. He almost anticipated the little boat to make its appearance now, bringing new and tasty treats with it. Sure as hell beat hunting. All that swimming, just to find another measly shark or two-hardly enough for a big guy like himself.

He watched the boat for a moment more. She’d definitely fit, he’d eaten much bigger. It had been a while since his last human-and those that fished were always so salty. Maybe she’d taste better… Maybe he could eat her for a while, spit her back out. That could work. Then he could eat her again, she’d still bring food. Long as she didn’t run away. Which…he got the sense she wouldn’t. She’d stuck around this long…

Or maybe she would, and he’d still get a good taste. Jake frowned. There’d be other suckers…though no humans had stuck around this long. Eating her the usual way didn’t sit right with him, either. It wasn’t because he cared…because he didn’t. It was just…easier having her around. Yeah. Nothing else, no other reason. His jaws parted in a yawn, eyes resting as he dozed and swam. Better to put the feelings away for now. Either way, he’d eat her. Yeah…that was a good start. The rest he could figure out later.

~~

Chris rowed over the sand bank, barely responding to the familiar THUD of her boat scooting over it. Taking a second to ensure the sand was settled, she pushed off to deeper water. Today her cooler was stocked with various foods. Fish, sweets, some vegetables. Anything that looked edible to try with the new fanged, friendly face. It had become a routine now. Go over the sand bank, row out a ways and study, then feed the shark when he came by.

Her boat bobbed lazily on the current. The evening sun cast long shadows into the blue depths. Warm, hushing wind gently tousled her hair. A perfect day to try and make friendly with a shark person.

She frowned. Was this a good idea? Keeping herself occupied feeding wildlife human foods? Would the merperson get sick? If he hadn’t already, it wasn’t likely. From all studies conducted on merfolk they could digest human food. It stood to reason it would be fine. And she’d brought plenty of fresh-caught fish from some locals, his natural diet. Surely it would be fine.

Her head twisted at a splash to her right, nearly rocking the boat with the speed. Just a ripple. Probably a fish. Chris sighed. A heavy rock of disappointment sat in her gut as she sat back in the boat, only to feel it jerk under her. She recoiled, eyes rounding to face the familiar shark once more. He’d propped himself up to his shoulder on the side of her boat. A pointed grin met her gaze. Water dribbled from the blue of the shark’s skin onto her boat.

It took Chris a second to register what was happening, and an additional breath for her heart to calm. She laughed breathlessly.

“Ahah…hah, very…very funny,” she shook her head. “You got me…” She reached over, cracking open the cooler to toss him some snacks. They were immediantly devoured, some before they hit the water. Chris unloaded the second batch, watching the shark as he greedily occupied himself.

While he ate, she looked him over. He’d definitely gotten more heavyset than the last time she’d seen him. Rolls of blubber floated in the water, sagging down when he surfaced. If she didn’t know better, and his hide wasn’t blue, she’d almost mistake him for an awkwardly shaped seal. How the weight effected his buoyancy was beyond her…was it harder to swim down now? How deep did he need to swim for food?

After a few more minutes, the shark seemed to realize she was still sitting in the boat. He looked up, half a donut coming between his lips. A pink tongue swiped it into his jaws before Chris could get a word out. She raised a brow.

“I don’t have any more,” she sighed, leaning back in the boat.

There was a moment of quiet.

“…dammit.”

Chris shot up. Her eyes darted to the merman, whose head was lowered to the water, as if searching for something. She could have sworn she’d heard a voice. Deep and gravely, with a scratchiness unlike anything she’d heard, with an accent too-though its origins were beyond her. She squinted. The merman, seeming just as shocked as she was, stared back at her for a moment.

“Oh, fine,” he groaned, throwing his head back. “Ya’ dun heard me talk…”

She straightened. Green eyes eventually lowered, meeting her eager gaze with one of flat in amusement.

“You…you can talk-“ Chris began.

“So can ya’,” he shrugged. “Ain’t nothin’ special.”

“I…maybe not to you,” she leaned forward in the boat. Eyes examined him with a new scrutiny, watching his throat’s gills pinned to his neck. “To me it’s…very special.”

“Uh-huh,” he shifted, and Chris realized he was backing up. His eyes were warier now.

She blinked, leaning back. Right. Too much too soon. “Sorry. I-I’ve met other merfolk before, and I haven’t…I’ve never heard them talk,” Chris explained. She shuffled, rubbing at her neck sheepishly. “I, uh…I didn’t mean to get too excited.”

“Er…’s fine. Yer not th’first human t’get real interested when I starts talkin’.”

Her eyes flicked upwards to catch a shrug. Curious. So he knew human gestures? How many did he know? Who taught him, or was it instinctual? Questions darted around her mind like a school of fish. She shook her head, focusing on here here. Questions later. Now was the time for introductions.

“I don’t…actually, I know I never got your name. I’m Christina, but most people call me Chris. What’s yours?” She stuck a hand out to the open water.

The shark’s eyes honed in on her hand. For a moment, there was a flicker of something. Though she couldn’t name it right away, her muscles tightened. A natural response to something ready to attack. She stared. Something hungry in that gaze. By the time she could name the look, it was gone, and he was closer than he had been before.

He stared at her hand, then at her. A webbed hand lifted from the water, smacked hers, and descended into the navy depths with a flat splash. Chris sat up, pulled back. Her hand dripped with salty water. Maybe he didn’t know that many human greetings. A chuckle almost escaped her.

“Jake,” his voice startled her. She jerked to look at him. Red brows rose at her response. “Ya’ can calls me Jake.”

Chris was quiet. Ah. His name. Her heart thudded fully in her chest, quieting as the surge of fear fell away.

She nodded slowly. “Uh…okay, yeah. Hi, Jake.” After a moment she sat back in her boat. “So…what brings you this close to the surface? I didn’t think mako merfolk like you patrolled this high up.”

Now Jake went quiet. Quiet enough for Chris to notice he’d gotten even closer to her boat, almost close enough to touch without capsizing. Chris caught a look, pensive, before he replied.

“Humans is always givin’ me treats…so I kinda sticks around here…” he shrugged, “most of ‘em don’t hang around long once I starts talkin.”

She frowned. “Why wouldn’t they?” The question fell from her mouth before she could stop it.

Jake shrugged, eyeing her nonchalantly. “Dunno. Ain’t think it’s my lack of charms~,” his lips parted in a grin that made Chris feel uneasy. Hungry…why did he look so hungry?

“Right…” Chris shifted. She could see why people hesitated. A gnawing, morbid curiosity kept her rooted. “Just what do you eat, other than donuts?”

“Eh, some fishes, some mer folk, ain’t too picky,” he absently picked at a tooth, glancing to her. “Peoples too, usually if they falls outta their floaty things.”

There it was. Chris felt something heavy sink to her stomach, then past it. Her limbs felt heavy, wrong as she stared into those emerald eyes. What was worse, a part of her wanted to see how it happened, how he managed to eat an entire person. Did he chew-was he even capable of doing so?

“Could eats you,” the shark continued. Chris shrank back as the shark’s proximity became even more apparent. He was an arm’s length away, maybe less. Close enough she realized he was much bigger the her. Not just tall, but his blubber-laden body blocked out the sun, casting a dark and looming shadow around her boat. In that moment she felt very small. She leaned back, the realization kicking in some ancient survival instinct. Her skin prickled as though she’d fallen into a giant urchin. Spindly spines of ice cold fear crackled over her.

“Y…you could-“ she squeaked, “but…should you?”

“Dunno,” Jake moved slow. Intentionally. A webbed hand planted itself on the edge of her boat. Chris gripped the other side, eyes wide and muscles wild. She needed to run, to get away from this predator, but there was nowhere to go.

“I-if you do, I can’t feed you-“ Chris protested, watching as the shark pushed down. Her boat tilted. She braced her feet, scrunching herself into the opposite end of the little paddle boat. “A-and I can’t be the-I won’t be able to talk-!”

His eyes met hers. For a second there was consideration.

“Eh, ya’ll be feedin’ me either way~.”

All at once the boat set into motion. Chris yelped as she was pitched forward. She impacted the water with a splash, limbs flailing to catch herself. Her clothes felt like weights tied to each one, making her sink further into the water as she fought. Through a bubbly, salty haze, she squinted in the water. Her eyes were met with a tooth-framed pink abyss. Before she could react Jake rushed forward, and warmth and darkness swallowed her face. She tried to push back the shark, to shove him away, but webbed hands clamped down over her arms.

A deep, resonating hum filled the squishy black as she was fed forward. Something pulsed around her head, and with a horrible squelching sound, she felt herself shoved further into the shark’s jaws. Her legs kicked at the water, ultimately doing little good. Another pulse pulled her in, and another. The muffled bubbling of the ocean soon transformed to a symphony of sounds Chris cringed to place. Flexing water, shifting muscles and bone, the sound of every swallow sucking her down. Somewhere she could hear the thud of a heartbeat.

It felt like an eternity before the crushing chute of the shark’s throat opened to a more roomy space. One filled with air instead of water. Chris gasped, eyes opening as her lungs desperately filled themselves with a heaving cough. The air smelled stale, thick, and reeked of the ocean, but it was breathable. Enough to ease the ache that had settled into her chest. She grunted as she slid with another swallow, face scrunching into something slimy and warm. Her face contorted in the murky black.

More and more of her body fell into the shark’s middle, slipping in like wet cement. Chris couldn’t place if the adrenaline crash was draining her more or if it was the weight of her body’s it left the water’s embrace. Either way, she sank like a stone into the cramped stomach, scrunching herself up with a numb reverence.

Once she felt herself fully slip into the stomach, her hands pressed out. There was a strange sound, a deep and crass rumble, followed by something dully thumping against her side. Like she was being patted under a thick layer of blankets. She pushed her arms out, unable to extend them fully before a soft, heavy layer stopped her.

“What…” she winced, “what just…happened?”

~~

Jake glanced down to his middle as he felt something push out. His hand glided over the spot. Huh. No bulge. He rubbed over it for a moment, brows quirked. Had he always been that thick? …No, he’d been able to see bulges from large meals before.

Humming, the shark patted the spot. Nobody would mess with him now~. And, now, with the extra weight, he finally felt himself sinking down to the sandy ocean floor. Jake moved to stretched himself out as he settled into the shallows. A shadow passed over him, giving him pause. He glanced up.

The floaty thingy bobbed above him. Jake frowned. Slowly, he pushed his tail, swimming up to the weird human contraption. It would sink if he left it here too long, and then the human-Chris-wouldn’t come back. Wouldn’t bring him food… Slowly, he reached up, pulled down on the weird shape. Didn’t budge. He huffed. Stupid human thing. He reached up to one side, so that water rushed into the bottom. As it filled, it sank. Jake snatched the cooler as it sank too-finding it empty. Ugh.

He followed the boat as it fell further into the water, landing right side up onto the sandy floor. Jake let himself sink with it, eventually laying on top of it. He could feel the strange shape grown beneath him-but it held. Heh. Smirking, the shark stretched himself out sideways along Chris’ way home. Maybe he could use it as leversge…yeah. Let her out and say if she came back to feed him, he’d give back the boat. Yeah.

“Hey-“ he poked his stomach. There was an immediate jolt in his middle. Jake grinned. “Ya’ still breathin’?” Not that he cared…though his ears did perk to pick up his captive’s response. And maybe a little anxiety swirled in his stomach when it took a second for her to respond. But only a little.

“Uh-I…yeah?” Came the quiet answer. Jake felt himself relax, settling into the little boat’s frame. “I’m…I’m breathing…and-you…you-you ate me! Why did-how…why?!” Jake could feel her squirming now, prompting him to pat his middle and watch the ripples it made.

“Hmm…ya’ tasted good, I wanted to, an’…oh, I’m a shark,” he said with a snicker. “‘S kinda my thing t’eats people.”

“Am I gonna….” She fell quiet. “Are…will you let me out?”

Ah, there it was. Jake grinned, a hand gliding over his middle. He pressed into the fat a little. “Hm…I dunno, are ya’ gonna makes it worth my while?~”

“I-how…?”

“Ya’ can starts by bringin’ more foods next time…lots of it~. An’, if I catch ya in the water an’ ya don’t feed me, I cans always do this again. I can makes it stick…an’, too, I gots yer floaty thingy, so ya’ cant’s really go nowhere unless ya’ promise.”

Another pause. Jake smugly stretched out along his newfound resting place. It was oddly comfortable, less scratchy than the sandy bottom.

“I…guess I don’t have much choice, do I?” Jake felt her slump, sagging his stomach just slightly.

“Nope~,” he snickered. “So ya’ better makes good on it.”

“I…yeah, I can…as soon as you let me out-“

“N’ I will, after a nap~.”

“A-after?!” Came the frantic question. Oh, this was just too perfect. Jake patted his middle.

“Mhmm, after. Means not before, y’know,” he waved a webbed hand, stretching as he settled his head down. “I’ll gets in my nap, an’ then I’ll letcha go.”

“But, what if I…?” What she meant was clear enough from the wariness in her voice. What if she didn’t make it through his nap?

“Eh, ya’ll be fine. Probably~.”