The mermaid's eyes seemed to light up at his words as he looked down once more.
"Hah, really? That's good to know" he murmured, brushing away some of the hair from his face. From the overall look, some of the bruises from the other day had begun to fade, slowly whilst others were still there, seeming a little uglier than they were yesterday, especially the one on his back. Quite a fragile little fishy, so it seemed.
Half submerged in the pond, the scales on his tail shimmered gently underneath the liquid surface, as his fins moved slowly, keeping him afloat.
"Where… Where am i?" he asked after a long period of silence as he looked around
(Awwww adorable! I love him <3)
Sanada found himself in awe of the creature—his tail, his voice, his hair and simple grace. How could anyone wish to harm him or any other of his kind. After the brief pause, and the question was asked, Sanada was pulled out from his thoughts. “Ah, put simply you're at the palace. Specifically in the garden pond.”
"Palace?" Akanashi looked around, his eyes filled with curiosity. "I've never seen a palace before. How did i get here?"
He was now holding on to the edge of the pond, right next to Sanada, most traces of shyness having faded away. Based on that, it seemed like he was the type that was quick to befriend someone once he was sure he was safe.
“I found you washed up in the beach. It looked like you were injured so I brought you here.” Of course it was much more complicated than that, but he decided it was unnecessary adding all of the details. Like the middle man who had actually brought him to the palace. Sanada would have brought him here anyway if the other person wouldn’t have.
"Washed up on the beach?" he murmured, moving his gaze downwards and a faint crease appearing between his white eyebrows. He squinted a but, as if trying to recall the events of the previous day, slowly moving his eyes.
"Ah, i think i remember something, i must've been too close to the shore when i got picked up by a wave. I think i hit my head when i fell" the boy recalled, raising a hand to pat the back of his head, only to flinch at the contact with a small gasp. "Hah, i really did hit my head, it wasn't just my imagination. Ouch…"
Judging from his reaction, the bump was probably big. Not wanting to further aggravate the already small headache he was experiencing, Akanashi let the bump alone and redirected his focus back to Sanada. He looked at his face again with his clear eyes, trying to pick his words.
"Um, you would not happen to have any food, would you? I'm kinda hungry and i dont want to eat any of the pretty fish here" he spoke shyly, gesturing to the colorful decorative koi populating the pond.
(Idk, i gotta ask LadyBeetle)
(Hm.. I’d rather keep this a one-on-one if that’s alright with you, Kinarymo)
Sanada listened and nodded along. Everything he said made sense—the injury, the time for recovery, and the story all lined up satisfactorily. He was all in all glad that this ningyo was safe, and found by something with good integrity.
He looked off to the side to think. Maybe he could get some fish from the cooks in the palace. “Yes, I’ll see what I can do. The chances are that I’ll be able to find you some, so I’ll be right back.” He pushed himself off the ground to stand.
Seeing him get ready to leave, the boy smiled and nodded.
"Ah, thank you!" he chirped.
Now the thing was, is a ningyo's diet comprised strictly of fish? Most likely, since they lived in the depths of the ocean, but could he stomach something other than that, like vegetables for example.
Akanashi waited patiently in the pond for the man to return, playing with one of the grass blades sprouting from the ground. He moved his tail in a slow, lazy pace to keep himself afloat, as he let out a big yawn
“You’re welcome,” Sanada smiled lightly, “I’ll be right back, then.” He turned on his heel in the grass to head back into the palace. He’d go to the chef first, of course, because what better place was there to find food so close? He approached the kitchen, pushing open the door and peering inside.
In the kitchen, the chef and another servant were busy tidying up things, while the servant did the dishes.
When they heard the door, the chef lifted his head and gave a polite smile and a bow when she recognized Sanada, with the servant behind her doing the same.
"Young Master, how may this humble one be of assistance?"
Now, question was what could he tell them to give him? He hadn't asked Akanashi what would he like to eat, so the decisiom was left to Sanada. Raw fish seemed like the best option, after all thats what he most likely fed on in the depths of the water, no? But at the same time he looked almost totally human and he was also in the young man's care, so wouldn't it be more appropriate to give him something better?
Sanada cleared his throat, "Ah, yes, do you happen to have any fish cooked already?" Raw fish seemed like a good opetion, especially if Akanashi already mentioned the unfavorable possibility of eating the koi fish in the pond. But he was a guest, and if cooked fish was available, maybe it would be more palatable than raw fish. He would bring both cooked an raw, just in case.
The chef and the servant exchanged looks, before the latter was sent to check. Fortunately, some fish had been fried several minutes ago for the young lord's meal, alongside some other sea foods and, most prized of all, unagi.
At Sanada's request they quickly prepared a tray with everything necessary and gave him a polite bow as he turned around to leave.
Akanashi was waiting in the pond, with his head rested on his arms, contemplating the grass near him in silence. Bored as he was, he was opening and closing his dorsal fin, his stomach nearly pressed against the stone wall of the pond
Sanada offered them appropriate thanks before he took the tray and turned around to head back to the pond. He hoped this would be satisfactory enough for the creature, but he was fairly confident this would do.
He balanced the tray carefully in one hand as he sank down beside the pond again. He was much less than graceful as he just barely managed not to spill the contents of the tray on his way down. “I just assumed you have an appetite for fish, based on what you said about the koi,” he explained.
Akanashi raised his head and smiled when Sanada returned, placing the tray near him. The food smelled amazing, especially the fried fish, and he was very curious about the white rice within a small brown plate.
"Ah, thank you!" he spoke, dragging himself on the edge of the pond so he could use his hands freely, reaching out for a piece of fried fish. "Truth be told, there isnt much else in the sea to nibble on, aside from fish!"
He took a bite of the fried fish, making pleased noises as he chewed it. Seems he'd never had cooked fish before, only raw, which also raised a question regarding how well would his body receive the cooked food.
"This is so good!" he chirped, relishing the new flavours that assaulted his mouth.
One small octopus within the seafood bowl tried crawling out to make an escape, yet the boy was quick to grab it and stuff it in his mouth, chewing it calmly while some of the left out tentacles stuck to his cheek and nose, as if one last ditch attempt at pulling itself out of the ningyo's mouth
Sanada watched with a peaceful expression. “Yes, I assumed you might have been tired of raw fish,” he humored. He placed his hands folded in his lap. Naturally, his eyes darted to the ningyo’s tail again. It was stunning, and definitely eye catching.
"Mn, though not all fish tastes the same" he commented, with his mouth half full, holding the rice bowl.
Soon enough, he'd finished pretty much everything there was on the tray, sighing happily.
"Thanks for the meal!" he chirped, swaying his tail around. "I needed that"
It had been some time since he'd had anything to eat, or so he felt. He had no idea why he felt this hungry nor what the reason was behind his unwilling fasting - there had to be a reason, its just he'd forgotten it.
“That makes sense,” Sanada nodded. He sat up to shift into a more comfortable seating position, as the previous one had become to grow almost painful. He pulled his curved leg forward in front of the other. “You’re very welcome,” he replied with a humored curve of his lips. “It looked like you did. When did you wake up?” He added, “Last night or this morning?”
Akanashi placed all the used dishes back on the tray, stacking them in a neat pile before pondering on the man's question.
"Hmm, i think i woke up a little before dawn, but snoozed a little until the sun rose up. I had this splitting headache that just would not go away -" he answered, lightly massaging his head with hesitant moves. "It's still there but its not that bad anymore"
He lightly swam by the pond's edge, resting his arms on the stone slabs
Sanada carefully pushed the tray away from the water, just to a more flat ground level to keep it from tipping over. He tilted his head a little at Akanashi’s headache, but he wasn’t surprised it had occurred.
“Do you live with any other of your kind?” He wondered, refocusing himself to the more important questions. The rational part of his brain insisted that learning more about this mysterious species as a whole was more important than asking an individual strictly about himself.
"Other?" he repeated the question, staring ahead like trying to recall something, lightly pressing his temple. "I… I dont remember. I dont think i did."
It wasn't excluded for the head injury to have caused some memory loss, but for the young ningyo it looked more like a case of amnesia. Could he have really forgotten his way of life in the ocean? And if so, just how much had he forgotten?
"I dont have any memory of anyone else like me, and if i did meet one at some point, i cant remember… Sorry"
He rested his chin on his folded arms, feeling sad for not being able to answer the man's question
“You don’t?” Sanada furrowed his brow curiously. These ningyo’s could either be solitary creatures, or this specific one could have lost his memory. He rubbed his chin with a hand. On to the next question. “Is this language we’re speaking your native language?” He questioned, tilting his head into his hand, propping it up. “Or did you have learn it?”
"Hmm, i… dont know for sure." he replied. "When you started talking to me i understood you right away, so i suppose it could be my native language. I dont remember having to learn it."
Yet another hole in his memory. This mermaid most definitely lost his memories after the storm, otherwise he would have been able to recall such a thing like language
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