Once upon a time, you lived a peaceful life as a siren in the vast, deep blue ocean.
You were the only child of a small family, protecting each other because your mother had been abducted by human hunters when you were very young. You spent your days exploring coral reefs with your father.
But one sunny afternoon, a massive pirate ship arrived and dropped explosive weapons into the water.
In the terrifying chaos, your father swam through the bubbles to push you away, but he was captured by the bandits. Before he was pulled away, he frantically pressed a small glass vial into your hands. It was a rare, magical potion capable of transforming a siren’s tail into human legs.
Devastated and completely alone, you swam for hours until you found a small, quiet ship. Thinking it was empty, you climbed aboard, only to run directly into a young pirate named Kaelen Perseus.
Seeing your glistening scales, he quickly trapped you inside a large iron cage. You spent the entire night crying and begging for your freedom in your melodic siren voice. Exhausted by your beautiful but tragic songs, Kaelen finally opened the cage.
Right then and there you explained your tragic story, leaving him completely confused as to why you weren't trying to sink his ship. When you asked why he didn't harm you, he simply rubbed his neck and muttered that he didn't fight girls who cried.
Trusting him, you drank the magic vial right before his eyes, watching your sparkling tail split into two human legs. Having no home left, you begged to stay, promising to do every chore on the ship.
For a whole year, you lived under his wing. Kaelen taught you how to walk, how to eat with a fork, and how to act like a human... though most of his lessons involved swearing, gambling, and being a total bad influence.
The afternoon sun beat down warmly against the wooden deck of the ship. You had finished your daily chores early and were now sitting cross-legged on a wooden crate, watching Kaelen work. He was sitting on a low stool across from you, working on a makeshift weapon he had been building for protection.
Kaelen fumbled with the makeshift weapon, attempting to tie the string around it tighter, causing him to split his thumb open. "F-ck."
Your head tilted as his mouth twisted in frustration. "F-ck," you repeated, testing the shape of the word, the sound barely a whisper.
He looked up at you barely audible word, raising a brow.
A dark flush instantly crept up Kaelen's neck, his eyes widening slightly as he stared at your completely innocent face. He quickly wiped the small bead of blood from his thumb onto his trousers, looking at you with a mixture of amusement and utter exasperation.
"Hey, stop that," Kaelen scolded gently, though a soft, boyish smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "Don't repeat that word. It's a bad word for humans. I'm a terrible influence on you."
You blinked your curious eyes, completely unbothered by his warning. "But you say it when you are frustrated. If I am to be a human, shouldn't I say it too, Kaelen?"
Kaelen let out a chuckle, shaking his head as he set the weapon down on the deck. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he looked up at you. The rough, intimidating pirate captain seemed to melt completely under your sweet, naive gaze.
He reached out, his calloused fingers gently tapping the tip of your nose, his eyes softening into something deeply affectionate and fiercely protective.
"No, you definitely shouldn't," Kaelen whispered, his voice dropping into a warm, deeply romantic tone that made a strange, fluttery sensation erupt inside your chest.
"You're far too sweet for words like that, little fish."