Siren Song

by YouAreMyHappilyEverAfter

Summary:

Archie has been sailing for a while now. He’s seen plenty of different places, even more people, but everywhere, people are the same. They hate the Earth. All he needed to do was find Kyogre to use his power to give the planet back to the Pokemon. There was just one problem, though. On their journey, they accidentally picked up a siren that could ensnare his crew with a song. And, oh yeah, wanted to eat him. No problem.

Notes:

We've been working on this a long time and I hope you all enjoy it! It's one of our more laidback stories, but we still had a lot of fun with it! - Kit

This is still a work in progress, so we'd really like to know what you guys think about this! ~Kas

Chapter 1

"You know, I'm kinda regretting not just raiding this place," Archie mumbled around the sucker he was half-chewing on in his mouth. "I mean, look at this shit. They have some good silver and it's too fucking expensive. We'd be doing a service."

Shelly laughed beside him, nudging him. "Yeah. To us. Let's make sure we can at least come back to a couple ports, alright Captain?" Ugh, the title near always made him wince.

"It's their fault for not being prepared for pirates, now isn't it?" Archie shot back, cracking down on the sucker and splitting it in two, still absently chewing on the stick. "'Sides, this place would be fine. They're fucking rich."

"Yeah, but we couldn't come back. They'd chase us out. You're the one that said 'lie low' in the first place."

"Even if Shelly can't really do that," Matt pointed out to them.

Ignoring the two as they started yet another argument, Archie sighed as they walked away from the silver shop. It'd be fun to just steal a few things and then run off, but he couldn't do that anymore. He was 'Captain'. He had to be all responsible and shit just as he had been doing for the past nine months . He was really starting to get sick of being Captain. At first it sounded fun, but now it just seemed like more work than it was worth. Maybe he could pass the Captaincy off to Shelly...

She, at least, was dressed the part. Dramatic coat that she had stolen off a noble in one of the cities they had visited, a feathered hat she had won from a pirate in a bar, and a sword that she had brought from home that was sharp as her words. Yeah. She'd be a great Captain, but she didn't want it. She wanted her freedom way too badly to give it up for that. And she wasn't exactly the most responsible... Maybe Matt? He was good with responsibility and taking care of his family. Archie thought it over before finally shaking his head. Matt was definitely better at going with the flow than giving orders.

Jeez, that didn't leave anyone else, really. Most of the crew they had picked up were teenagers running away to the sea. They were good kids, but they didn't know enough to lead someone. The older ones, like the cooks and the blacksmith, were too in love with their passions to ever give it up for something like Captain. No... As much as he didn't want it, Archie was the only one on the ship who could do it. But jeez, sometimes he wished they'd pick up someone else who was just right-

"Oh, sorry." Archie steadied the older man he had run into, waving off Shelly and Matt's looks. "Wasn't payin' attention. Hey, quick question, what's the next port after this one if we head north?"

"Head north? That'd be Meadowing Shore but- But you're goin' 'round the Spades, right?"

"Nah, we're just gonna cut right through."

"Ye must be joking! No ships these days pass through the Spades and live to tell the tale! Talk of a creature lies in the depths, waiting to sink anyone that sails in."

"A creature?" Shelly crossed her arms, her eyebrows raising. "Like what, a pokemon of some sort? That just sounds interesting!"

As the old man sputtered, Archie felt a grin form on his own face. "A mysterious creature and ships that never go near it? Sounds like an adventure to me."

"T'aint no pokemon! Word is spreading that a mer has taken up the Spades as home." A mer, huh? Doubtful. Archie had heard all the tales before and they never changed.

"Or it's a pokemon who's pissed off by you humans messing with its territory," Archie waved off. Far less interesting. "Don't worry, we'll steer clear of any tails and blonde hair."

"C'mon, Cap'n," Shelly said with a roll of her eyes, nudging him. "It's already a three day journey to the next port. Going around the Spades would add another day."

"We'll just skim it." They could at least keep an eye out for anything weird. "C'mon, we have a few more things to stock up on- Hey, old man, are there any shops that sell silver here that aren't so fucking expensive?" But the man was already walking away, glancing back at them and shaking his head, muttering to himself. Honestly, he looked at him like they were on their way to Dratini Jones'. "Think we're about to die at sea, then?"

"No way," Shelly laughed. "Just another tall tale."

"We'll be fine, Cap'n," Matt waved off, Archie just barely hiding his wince. "We've handled worse, after all!"

"Yeah we have! Alright, mates! All aboard!"

"Yeah," Archie mumbled, sighing as he rubbed at the back of his neck. "All aboard."

::

Swearing as he near slipped - again - Archie clung onto one of the railings and watched his crew slide around the soaked deck of the S.S. Aqua. As much as he loved his ship, it was hell when sailing during stormy weather just as this. The storm had been going for hours, now, and it showed no signs of breaking. The wind slashed at them and the rain felt like hail as it pelted them from all sides. And then, in the midst of all the chaos and thundering, Archie heard a... A song. Like an angel.

No... No, that wasn't right, though. No one on his ship would be singing during weather like this, so why was he hearing... It sounded so beautiful. Archie moved towards the front of the ship, looking out over the waters and trying to locate the source of the music. It sounded like the ocean come to life. He couldn't find where it was coming from but- But he had to. He had to find it- "Captain. Hear that?"

"Yeah- Yeah, I hear it." Archie climbed onto the figure head, clutching onto the wood tightly with blunt nails as he scanned the waters. "Gotta be around here somewhere." Everyone had just about stopped what they were doing to listen.

"Hang on- It's getting quieter," Shelly called, panic lacing into her voice. "Captain! We have to find it!"

"It's going into the rocks," Matt called, voice loud as it could be over the storm from where he was at the wall. "Orders, Cap'n!"

"We-" Rocks. The storm was raging and his ship was shaking and Archie was captain and he had to protect them and the song was calling to him as if to say come home, come home, but his ship- "No. No, the rocks would- They'd tear us apart."

Shelly whipped around to him and Matt gave him those awful Deerling eyes like he was being torn apart from the inside out. "But- Captain!"

"Captain, we can't lose track of it!"

"I know, but-" Too dangerous. He wanted to go home, too, but not yet. "Turn the ship around, we need to get out of here."

"Turn the ship around?!"

"We have to go through the Spades!"

"We don't have enough-"

"Turn this damn ship around now ! That's an order!" No sooner did the words leave his lips, a horrifying, hellish screech tore through the air, causing them all to quickly cover their ears, wincing at the pain of the ringing. Cracking his eyes open, Archie saw a flash of red from beneath the churning black waves. Night had fallen long ago and Archie was realizing just how dangerous this area now was. "Get us out of here, Matt, now!"

"On it, Archie!" The thing continued to screech and scream, and for one moment that had Archie's heart beating out of his chest, it was silent. That wasn't good. That could never- Archie and a good deal of the others screamed or yelled as the ship suddenly lurched to the side. It was only Shelly grabbing him and pulling him backwards that saved him from falling into the waters.

"Archie, what the hell?! What's going on?" Oh gosh... Shelly looked terrified, and he couldn't blame her. Another screech and the ship was tipping again, but not enough to go over.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck." Grabbing Shelly by her coat, Archie dragged her over towards Matt, pushing her towards him before taking the wheel and sharply turning it straight towards the rocks. As the boat evened out, he quickly turned the opposite way from whatever had hit them, hoping the sudden changes in direction threw it off.

" Meal, " he heard. He heard the damn thing. It wanted to make a meal out of them?! Fuck, that didn't mean it was some type of pokemon. Fuck . They needed to get out of here.

"Brace yourselves!" Okay, maybe if they went through the gap in the cliffs over there they could throw it off their tracks. Whatever it was had to be big to be pushing the ship around like that. Was... Were all the tales of the mer really true? Could they be? He'd spent years on the sea and never seen one, but he'd never come across something like this.

No. No, there was no way- Focus, Archie, focus. He was Captain. He was Captain , and right now his crew was scared. He had to keep them safe. Fuck, he hoped this worked. More screeching followed as Archie steered them into the cliffs. Just barely fit, but that meant they couldn't be tipped. He thought he felt something pull the ship, but then... Nothing. Silence. Nothing pushing or pulling the ship. Like it was just gone.

"I don't like this." Even with the storm still raging, Archie could hear Shelly's scared whisper over it all. "It's not just me, right? It feels like it's still there." Yeah... Yeah, not just her.

"Well, we're gonna get out of these waters and go around, and avoid whatever that thing was." Keeping the ship steady, Archie finally eased up a little. "Matt, take over, keep us straight on course and get us out of this fucking place." With that, he was letting the wheel go and moving to the front of the ship. He didn't trust this.

"Aye aye," Matt said seriously, keeping them on track as Archie climbed onto the railing to peer into the waters below. Not a thing. As though there wasn't anything to begin with. With the way they were tucked into the cliffs, it was like the storm had even lost sight of them. Archie didn't trust it - didn't trust it, didn't like it, didn't believe it. Something was very, very wrong.

"I know you're out there." What had the power to sing a song that would make them like that and then want to eat them? Archie heard the stories of sirens, of course, but... How could they ever be true? Some half-fish half-human singing creature that ate humans and fish? When he was young, it seemed like some story he was told so he wouldn't wander out too far.

There was no way it was true, but... Whatever it was pushed their whole ship, ensnared all of them with a single song, and could speak. It could speak English. It wasn't friendly, either. "Get those sails out! I want us out of this area an hour ago!"

"Yes sir!"

"Aye aye, Captain!"

"Yes, Captain!"

Eugh. Right, just, put up with it for nwo, Archie, you had to get them all to safety. It was his responsibility. His. No one else. It was up to him and dozens of lives rested on his shoulders- Focus. For now, he just needed to… focus.

::

Ridiculous. It had been hours, and it looked like they got away scot-free. Archie didn't like it. "Storm's clearing up, Cap'n," Matt said, nudging him from where they were at the front of the bow. "You could probably go and get some rest before Shelly raises a mutiny."

"I'd rather keep an eye on everything, Matt."

And then, almost like an echo, " Matt, " he just barely heard. But it couldn't have been an echo. Not the way the voice seemed to crack from too much salt and gargle in the water.

"Please tell me you heard that," Archie said softly, staring down at the water and he heard it. He had heard it. Someone had said Matt's name.

Matt frowned at him. "Heard what? Bro, you really need sleep."

"You- You didn't hear someone else saying your name?" Archie looked to Matt almost desperately and no- No, there had to have been- There had been a voice.

"No?" Matt shook his head as he took up Archie's position at the railing. "Just you. Why?"

"Nothing. No reason. I guess I'm just more tired than I thought." It had followed them. How did Archie say that without raising the whole ship into a panic, though? He'd have to tell them below deck. Better chance of the thing not hearing them. But Archie knew for a fact that they were being followed. "Hey, will you and Shells come with me for a second, actually? I wanted your opinion on something."

"Uh... Yeah. Shelly?"

" Shelly, " he heard again.

"Comin', bro!"

Archie snatched Matt's shirt and dragged him towards the entrance to the lower deck, grabbing Shelly's hand as they passed. "Keep quiet and keep calm, I need to tell you both something."

Shelly frowned at him. "Arch, hey, what's up? You're not normally so-"

"Crazy." Waiting until they were down in the hold and protected from behind overheard, Archie looked at them carefully.

"Whatever attacked us a few hours ago? I don't think we left it behind. I think it followed us."

"Archie, come on. It's been hours and nothing. We're fine. We got out-"

"I heard something repeating the names we said from the water. It was the same voice I heard when we were in the Spades."

"You- You think that thing - whatever it was - not only followed us miles out of its territory but is also learning our names?"

"I know, it sounds crazy, but that's what it is." It was learning their names quick, too. "I don't know what it's planning, but keep an eye out and be careful, okay? I don't want the crew knowing yet, either."

"...Alright. Since you're so sure about this. Go get some sleep though, yeah? We can handle ourselves." As much as he didn't want to, Archie sighed and nodded, heading further down the ship to his room. That was one good thing about being Captain, he supposed. Private rooms.

From his porthole, he could hear Matt whistling. Huh. Glad he got... Better...

Feeling warmth on his face after a few moments, Archie frowned and what? Was Shelly trying to drip candle wax on him again? He told her last time- Sunlight. Why was there- He had just laid down? He had barely even closed his eyes a few seconds ago! There was no way he could have slept through the night and into morning. Everyone in the ship knew he was the lightest sleeper of them.

There was a harsh rapping at his door. "Captain! You're gonna want a look at this!" Fuck, what else could go wrong, then. Stumbling out of bed and still dressed from the night before, Archie only took the time to right his bandana before opening the door.

"What happened? I swear to Arceus if Matt fell overboard again-"

"No, Captain." Shelly wasn't even trying to joke around. It had to be bad. "We tried fishing, this morning, and our crew says it was heavy, going to bring in a big haul."

"Was? Going to?" Archie really didn't like the sound of that. "Did the lines break?"

"I'm thinking you were right about what you told us last night." The two walked out to the nets. The lines still seemed sturdy, but there was only a single fish caught within the net.

"The fuck," Archie breathed quietly, moving to inspect the net. There were no tears in it, no way for them to get out or escape. The only way would be if someone were to open the net from underwater. Fuck. "Talk to the cooks, half rations until we reach the next port."

Shelly gave him a nod. "Yes sir. What are we gonna do at port? The plan was to sell any extra fish we caught."

"Yeah, that was the plan, wasn't it?" Debating for a moment, Archie shook his head. "I'll let you know soon." With that, he was climbing up towards the crow's nest. He needed to think because there was always the option of pillaging, but that was a last resort plan for a reason. They had a fucking mermaid on their tails, no chance of losing it, and-

He saw red. Literally, in the water, he'd seen something bright and fiery red. Like... Like hair. It was getting cocky. Gritting his teeth, Archie felt himself shake for a moment because there was some mythical monster stalking them and it was getting cocky . It thought it could tease him and starve his crew and nothing would come of it? It was making a big fucking mistake.

Fingering the pokeballs on his belt, Archie carefully took one off and stared at it. While he had always been a bit impulsive, would this be going a little too far to call Drago out? He knew Drago could take care of himself most days, but this thing was formidable... It'd only be to scare it a little. Not a real fight. Drago would have fun, too. Would think it was all a big game. Another flash of red had him making up his mind, pressing the button and aiming it for the water.

As usual, Drago emerged with a roar that near cracked the air, diving into the water and rocking the ship on the waves it caused. Archie couldn't stop his smile at the behavior. Drago roared and snarled, all his usual behavior as he dove underwater... And he didn't come back up. That- That wasn't right. Grabbing a rope, Archie took a moment ot make sure it was taunt before he was throwing himself out of the crow's nest and rappling down to land on the railing, scanning the waters the second he caught his balance.

It took a few minutes, but Drago surfaced again and...purring. Drago, his giant fearsome Gyarados he had sent to deal with the siren wreaking havoc on his ship was purring and acting like a pleased Skitty. Archie stared for a long time before giving a sharp whistle and getting Drago's attention. "Drago. The fuck?" Why was he purring? He never purred! He heard a whistle echoed back from behind Drago. He couldn't see the source but Drago was quickly turning and dove underwater again, splashing as he went and hiding the creature.

Archie couldn't help but mutter a few more swears under his breath because had his fearsome and ferocious and fucking awesome Gyarados just been charmed by a fucking siren? Judging by the delighted calls, he'd have to give that one a yes. Useless. Fuck, okay, he could fix this. What other pokemon did he gave that could scare of a siren? He... Nothing. Fuck. They were all royally fucked and there wasn't a thing Archie could do about it.

No, no, he couldn't think like that. There had to be something . Maybe if he could get Drago to lure the thing up they could shoot it with the canons? Mm. They could empty the icebox and hope it was satisfied with the fish? No, the empty nets proved that wouldn't work. Or maybe... Maybe it was working. It had sounded hungry yesterday, but here they were, middle of the wide open sea sailing along like there wasn't a creature of death following them.

It was just using them to get food. After seeing the place it had been, Archie wasn't surprised. It would probably follow them, steal their fish to regain strength, and then settle down at the next island for a while. As long as no one went overboard or was too much of an idiot, they would be fine. They would be... Fine.

::

"Land, ho!" Arceus, finally. Excusing himself from the cook that was throwing a hissy fit, Archie quickly went back up to deck and grinned at the chaos that surrounded him. Throwing himself into the docking procedures, he made sure to call out orders to those who needed it, keeping a careful eye on the water, as well. Everything had been quiet - except for Matt whistling the past couple nights and knocking Archie out instantly. But he knew without a doubt that the creature had followed them to Meadowing Shores. Hopefully now it would- It would eat and leave them alone.

"Alright, you lot, you know the rules! Twenty-four hours of shore leave and if you're not back I will leave you behind!" Half of them were already laughing and playing and heading for the plank to get off. They were kind of adorable. Hearing whistling, he turned with a grin towards Matt - he really had gotten better. But... But Matt's mouth was closed. He wasn't whistling. Then who... Whistling. That- Oh, Arceus, don't tell him. Scrambling up towards the railing, Archie quickly scanned the waters, looking for any sign of red.

Archie finally got a good look at the creature that had been tailing them since the Spades. It... It wasn't big and monstrous. It looked human. It looked like a guy, actually. Albeit, a guy with kinda long bright red hair, and eyes to match. Then the creature bared fangs and Archie saw nothing but a monster that was very, very hungry. "Shelly, Matt," Archie called back, trying to keep his voice even. "Tell everyone to stay away from the water."

"On it, Captain!"

"You got it." He watched as the creature glanced to the shore where his crew was already starting to enjoy themselves. The creature turned to stare back up at him.

"I know you can understand me." Archie met its gaze, trying not to show his discomfort. "I don't give a fuck if you eat every human on this island, but you stay away from my crew."

The beast hissed and seemed to swim closer. "I hunger." Arceus fuck Archie was very much in the mood to run the fuck away then and there.

"Do I look like I give a shit? Avoid mine. I don't care what else you do." That... He saw its eyes gleam. It was planning something. Archie only glared back, refusing to turn away first. It looked back to the island and shot Archie a wicked sharp grin and... It was gone. "Fuck."

Heading towards the plank, Archie kept a hand close to his pokemon. While he was going to keep his crew away from the shore, he was definitely going to be keeping an eye out for that damn monster. Aside from his loud ass crew, there wasn't a damn sound, and that was almost worse. Hopefully that thing actually stayed and listened to him. He may not have wanted to be captain, but he would go down fighting for his crew.

Taking a calming breath - or at least trying to - Archie headed towards the town. There was shopping to do, after all, and regrettably he wouldn't be able to go for a swim until they were well away from this place. This place and that thing .

::

He couldn't be upset that some of his crew were enjoying the night at the local pub. They had been given twenty-four hours, but dammit, they couldn't properly sail a ship hungover! Archie was walking along the shoreline to get a few crewmates to the ship, at least, when he heard it. That gorgeous beautiful voice as though the Heavens parted for Meloetta herself.

The song itself didn't have words to explain how beautiful it truly was, and Archie was helpless to do anything but follow along after it and hope he could hear more. There was a passing thought spared to his crew, but they were all safe in the pub or on the ship. So it was fine for him to explore. It was only when he saw the moonlight gleaming on bright red hair that he was snapped out of the daze and quickly scrambling backwards, but... The mer wasn't even sparing him a glance.

That- That was good, right? That it wasn't looking at him? If the mer hadn't been trying to lure him over, though, then who... Another glance showed a young, rowdy looking couple who had to have heard the song from one of the pubs close to the docks. They were both obviously smashed, holding hands as they stumbled towards the water, and Archie watched the creature grin menacingly at the two of them before singing louder, the sound even more sweet. It was only because Archie knew what that thing was that he wasn't enchanted by the song. He was still startled by the way he took a few steps closer before he managed to stop himself and skitter behind a rock. Should... Should he stop this? When he looked, the... The thing looked kinda sick. If it were a human, it'd definitely be sick. Its skin was pale and sallow, its cheeks looking hollowed in- Arceus, did that thing have some cheekbones.

Taking another glance to the drunk couple, Archie took in their appearance quickly. Bruises and scratches showed they had probably been in dozens of fights, and there were no visible pokeballs anywhere on them, so, really, why not? Humans like those were the reason the world was so fucked up to begin with. He watched the siren close its mouth, and the song faded into the quiet night, the creature watching the two with a tilted head. The two humans looked dazed, eyes glazed over. Archie wondered what the thing was waiting for. Toying with them, maybe? Just as they began to regain clarity, Archie saw its eyes sharpen and he snarled, launching himself at the girl of the couple. She barely had time to scream.

Thinking on it, Archie should probably be running away, but there was something... Not- Not enchanting like the song had been, but it was- Ah. Thrilling. Curious. Interesting . It was interesting to watch this creature attack and 'hunt'. Really, it was probably smart of him to go after her first. If he'd gone after the guy, she might have run off and gotten the whole town on his tail. Literally. Ah, that was why he had paused. Considering which to kill first. It was the same as sizing up for any fight, really. Granted, Archie was more used to fighting trainers and pokemon, especially back in his Team Rocket days. Oh, the guy was fighting back now. Idiot. He should've just run. It... It looked like whatever hits he got in on the siren didn't even bother the thing. It just... It killed her. It didn't stop until it was satisfied, then it turned on him.

For as sick and weak as the thing looked, it was ripping bodies apart like they were nothing but paper. Blood and organs spilled onto the sand and Archie watched in... Horror? He was pretty sure there was a bit of horror, but it was like- Like a wreck. A crash. Something so bad he couldn't look away from it. The siren before had looked human, but now, its pupils had contracted, it seemed like it had sprung fangs and claws, and they were giant shiny pink fins fanned out on either side of its head. There was nothing human about this creature. There was nothing remotely human as it tore into flesh and swallowed down chunks of it with ease. This was a monster from the depths of the ocean he had loved ever since he was a child. This was the villain of the stories he'd been told, that had been handed down from generation to generation. This was what nightmares were made of.

So why the fuck wasn't he running away? Why was he just sitting there and watching as if he knew he wouldn't be hurt? He had threatened the damn thing to stay away from his crew, but had said nothing of himself. He was in danger here. So why wasn't he running. The guy wasn't fighting back anymore and Archie watched bits of flesh and splinters of bone bob through the waves as the thing seemed to scarf down every piece he could get close to. Hardly even a few minutes passed and already there was nothing human about them anymore, just a pile of bones and clothes and hardly a scrap of flesh in sight. He was beyond grateful the sea breeze was carrying whatever smell there was /away/ from him. "Hungry?"

Startling, Archie blinked and looked to where the mer was staring at him, slowly shaking his head, "I think we eat different things." Okay, he was talking to a creature who had just devoured two human beings. Right. Great. "Unless that's you saying you're still hungry." Which would be bad. The siren shook its head, grinning at him. Its teeth looked normal, but they were blood-stained red. "Right. Good. Glad to give you a lift here then. So, I'll just, uh, go?"

"A… lift?" Right. Knew English, then, but not certain phrases. That was fine. English was hell, in Archie's opinion.

"It basically means that we gave you a ride? You latched onto our ship, right? Yeah. Just- Yeah."

"...Thou be dismissed."

"Th... Thou?" What the fuck? The siren only rose an eyebrow at him. "Where the fuck did you pick up English, the 1600s?"

"I do not understand."

"Okay, so, it's not 'thou be dismissed' or whatever, it should be 'you're dismissed' or something. Wait, why the fuck are you even 'dismissing' me!"

"Thou cannot see for thineself ye are unwanted."

"What?" No, seriously, what the fuck did the thing just say? "Did you just insult me? I think you insulted me. You fucker."

"How darest thee!"

"Hey, you insulted me first!"

"Thy crew be needing its Captain, no, human?"

"Oh? That sounds like a threat." Maybe. It was hard to tell.

"Simply fact. Dismissed."

"Who the fuck gave you the authority to decide what a captain can and can't do?" Okay, so he hated the captain title, but it was working great for him now. The sharp grin he was given made him feel like this siren knew too much and Archie knew far too little. "Just what are you!"

"I am siren."

"Yeah, figured that much out, thanks. I mean how can you- Why- You're so human ."

The thing just nodded at him. "Yes."

"Why! Why can you speak English! Why are you talking to me instead of just- Just eating me!"

"T'was taught. And t'would be rude to eat thine whom fed me." Okay, maybe he was picking this whole language thing up. Sort of? Sort of.

"I didn't feed you. You lured those two idiots here on your own."

"Thou led me to the isle, no?"

"Accidentally. Trust me, I was trying to leave you behind."

"Thy crew was kind to gather a school for me during the journey, as well."

Trying not to insult the giant talking fish again, Archie gave a harsh exhale. "Just stay away from me and my crew and have fun eating everyone on this island." The siren watched him, not answering one way or the other. "Next time we'll use the cannons." With that, Archie was carefully starting to walk away, trying to keep the creature in his sights. The thing didn't seem to care, picking up a nearby bone and scraping bits of meat off as it sucked the marrow.

Okay, just a few more hours and then Archie could get the hell out of here and never come back. He would leave behind this siren, take his crew, sail far away, and continue searching for their dream. Right. Easy.

In the morning, everyone safely abroad and accounted for, Archie grinned. "Alright, let's set sail, mates!" They began to cruise through the waves when their ship seemed to... stutter. The whole thing paused before continuing like nothing happened. No one else seemed to notice it or if they did they passed it off as a rough wave. Suspicious, though, Archie moved around to the railing and no... There would be no reason to follow them. Right?

"Ahoy, Captain! We leave the slimy Eelektrik behind?" Shelly was beaming at him from port side.

"Let's hope," Archie laughed, trying to keep the smile on his face and maybe he was just fearing the worst. Right?

"It feels good," Matt said with a nod. "Felt like there was a dark cloud hanging over the ship."

"Creepy is what it was," Shelly shuddered, acting a bit too dramatic for all her worry to be faked. "I'm glad we won't see it again."

"I never saw it period," Matt laughed. "Probably a good thing. Might make its way into my nightmares."

"Trust me, it will," Archie muttered, remembering last night at the beach. The further away he got, the more he realized just how fucked up it had all been and how he should have been terrified. But that was it. He hadn't been, really at all. He'd just been a bit curious. Weirded out, maybe, but it had all been a bit interesting. Well. He had long ago admitted he was pretty fucked up. "C'mon, let's get the hell away from this place. We have work to do after all, right?" Even as he spoke, he was still scanning the water.

"Aye aye, Captain!"

"On it, Arch!"

" Arch? "

Feeling his heart stutter out and stop, Archie smiled poorly at the two and waited until they were gone to look down at the water. "My name is Archie, not Arch." There. Red.

"Archie?" The... The siren was staring up at him and frowning. Why was it frowning? Hold on, why had it sounded confused, almost?

"Yeah?" Archie stared back and at least he knew he was safe on deck. Relatively. "Got a problem with my name?"

"It is... small." The siren thought his name was small?

"I mean, yeah? It's a nickname. It's short for my real one."

"You allow it?"

"I encourage it," Archie barked a laugh, quieting down as one of the crew members shot him a strange look. "I don't like my full name. Too pretentious."

The siren stared and just before it dived again, Archie could have sworn he heard it scoff, " Humans. " Staring for a moment longer, Archie groaned as he ran a hand through his hair. Looked like they would be dealing with this siren for a while longer.

Chapter 2

"Archie? You're staring at the water more than usual."

"Maybe I'm just enjoying the view," Archie replied, a little sullen as he stared at the waves. He knew it was there, but where exactly was the question. A flash of red- Ah! The damn thing splashed him!

"Arch, did you let Bruce out again?"

"No, I didn't," Archie growled, glaring down at the water while wiping his face off. "That little fucker."

Shelly placed a hand on his shoulder, frowning over at him. "Archie? What's up?"

"Ah- No, it's nothing. Just a stray pokemon I was watching, I guess." He didn't want to worry them, but that fucker .

"Hey-hey!" He heard them start to cheer from the other side of the ship. "This is one of our best hauls!"

"It is?" Archie frowned, quickly going over to check the nets and... Huh. It really was a good haul. Archie didn't trust it. Net was perfectly fine, and there were fish to last a couple weeks in it, all flopping around. Well, that was good, but now he was worried over just what kind of game the giant fish was playing with him. Why leave them so much fish when last time it had just left them the one? Well... Archie supposed he could ask him.

Waiting until people were concerned with the haul more than anything else, Archie went back over to where he had spotted that flash of red. "Hey. Why didn't you eat the fish?"

There was silence for a bit and then- "I did not hunger." Hah, Archie knew the thing had followed them. Nice to have confirmation, though.

"Uh huh. How long until you do hunger?" The siren only shrugged before beginning to hum- Oh. That was nice. It was- It was content. It was laughing with friends, playing along the shores of the beach, and relaxing in the crow's nest with his crew making a ruckus while he wasn't watching. It was home. It was interrupted by a sharp bark of laughter. He startled, looking up to see the siren grinning at him knowingly. "What's so funny to you ?"

"So susceptible." The hell was that supposed to mean? Right, so, Archie got a bit distracted by the songs, but he could always fight out of it when he needed to.

"I can still have the cannons loaded and fired if you want." The thing smirked at him before diving back down out of sight-

" Archie? " Startling, Archie turned around at Shelly's tone, hand already reaching for his belt and what was going on who was he and his pokemon- Oh, that was a very not good look. Shelly gave the ocean a significant look. "What the fuck did I just watch?"

"That's what I keep asking myself," Archie sighed, moving to tug her over and lower his voice. "Keep it down, okay? I don't want the others worrying when it's not causing trouble."

" Not causing trouble? It can tip our whole ship, if it wants!" Shelly glanced to the ocean a few more times, but no siren was there to be seen.

"Yeah, but it's not, and that's what weird about it." This siren could tear them all apart, but it was just... It was just following them. "Maybe it's hitching a lift to the next port?"

"Wasn't it doing that for the last port?" Snickering. It was snickering- "Now it's laughing at us?!"

"I mean, I wouldn't say laughing." Definitely snickering. "Look, it ate at the last port, I doubt we'll be attacked out here in calm waters when we can easily fight back."

"It ate? " He watched her face go pale- Oh. Yeah. That... He was supposed to be horrified and disgusted and all that other stuff. "Arch... Do you mean it-"

"Yes." It was kind of satisfying that Archie wasn't the only one to jerk away. He, at least, didn't scream. Archie couldn't blame Shelly for that reaction, though, seeing as the one who had spoken was the fucking mermaid that was right fucking there under the railing . The thing only watched them like some kinda Delcatty or something, all amused and tilting his head.

"Shelly, nod if you can see what I see right now." It felt like some hallucination that would end any moment, but of course, his life had become a bit... Well. Weird was putting it lightly. Shelly nodded beside him, and the siren only gave the two a sharp grin, glancing around the deck cautiously. Archie was ready at any moment to jump forward and push the creature off or grab a pokeball, but it just looked around. Cautious, but curious . "How the fuck did you get up here?"

"My arms." Staring, Archie twitched as if to move forward, finally just sighing and oh, Arceus, he was never going to trust the ocean again. ...Well, maybe that was a bit too far.

"That's not what I mean, smartass. Okay, why the fuck are you up here?"

"Thou wast speaking of me?"

"That doesn't mean you butt into the conversation! Most people would say that's actually rude!"

"...Humans are so strange." He wasn't leaving. Why wasn't he leaving? "Maximillian."

"Why is it speaking English?" Shelly asked quietly, Archie only staring with wide eyes and he couldn't believe. He couldn't stop himself. He fucking cackled.

"What kind of a shit name is Maximillian!" The siren glared at him and snarled, baring its teeth. Still didn't stop him from laughing.

"I received it upon my birth. Dost thou earn such simple names, human?"

"I mean, yeah?" Archie finally stopped his laughter, shrugging. "Others started calling me Archie first and it stuck. Ma still calls me Archibald, though," Archie snorted, shaking his head.

"...Thou play the game of a pauper?"

"Pauper- What?" Okay, that- That made no sense. Archie looked to Shelly because, no, what?

Shelly finally tore her gaze away to look at Archie. "Mama told Matt and me a few stories when we were little. Pauper is peasant- There was one story about a Prince and a Pauper switching places, they looked so alike. The Prince hated all his responsibility, and the Pauper wanted to be free, and rich, and stuff."

"Oh." That... Archie buried his feelings deep, shooting both of them a cocky smile. "I don't think that really applies here, Shells, but thanks for the story anyway." The Prince who hated his responsibility, huh? How fucking appropriate.

Maximillian only frowned, head tilting. "Thou is of the high class, no?"

" Archie? High class?" Shelly laughed.

"Hey," Archie frowned, crossing his arms. "There's no need to be rude. I am Captain, you know."

"You are a pirate. "

"I don't see how that matters," Archie waved off even though he knew it really, really did. "Can we get back to the point of a fucking mermaid hanging off the edge of our ship-"

" Siren! "

"Archie! Shelly!"

"It's enchanted them!"

"Oh, fuck," Archie sighed, looking to- Looking to 'Maximillian'. "You might wanna get out of here." The moment the words were out of his mouth, the siren released his arms from around the railing, falling back into the water. Others of the crew were rushing over, Archie sighing and right, did he say they were enchanted or try to explain? "Whoa. What just happened?" Explaining took effort.

"Captain! Are you alright?"

"It was luring you!"

" Shelly! "

"We're fine," Archie sighed, gesturing for Shelly to be quiet as Matt tackled her in a hug. "I think so, anyways. Did that thing really follow us, then?"

"Thought we left it behind." Matt stared down at the ocean, startling when there was laughter behind them. Looking over, Archie frowned as he saw the thing had climbed up the other side of the ship. Dammit.

"Maybe we should just ignore it."

"Oh?" Maximillian was smirking like he thought this was all a game. To him, it probably was.

"Easier said than done, Captain," Shelly said quietly, Archie hiding his frustration at the name and channeling it towards the siren clinging onto his ship.

"Or maybe we should let Bruce deal with it." The siren frowned, tilting his head- Oh. He could have fun with this. "You know what? Bruce would have fun with this." With that, Archie was raising a pokeball and grinning as he clicked it open. "C'mon out, Bruce!" The siren watched the Sharpedo, falling back into the ocean to follow after him. "Kick his ass, Bruce!" This would show that fish.

The crew eagerly rushed to the railing to watch. Bruce was staring at the siren, and Maximillian watched it before scowling and growling. Bruce made a hideous growling noise, teeth bared as he rushed forward and Archie could only groan and great . Another pokemon fucking charmed by the fish. The siren near roared at Bruce and... Oh, Arceus. They were cuddling. "This was a horrible decision," Archie mumbled to Shelly and Matt, Bruce purring like a fucking chainsaw as he cuddled closet to the siren as he could get.

"Bruce can purr?" Now the two of them looked like they were playing as they swam together. On a whim, Archie called out Drago, curious to see if- Yeah. Drago was fucking delighted.

"Yeah? Most Sharpedos can, they just only do it when they're really happy." Traitors, both of them. At least Maximillian looked to be enjoying himself. Bastard. And now the show was over as all three of them dove underwater and didn't resurface.

"Your life, Arch," Shelly sighed.

"Tell me about it." Archie finally straightened, looking to the crew members that were still staring. "Hey, who gave you brats break time! We're fucking pirates we don't get a break!" Everyone immediately scrambled into action to busy themselves. Ah, the one good aspect of leadership. Blatantly abusing it. "One good thing about that, then. C'mon, we need to study those books you found, Shells. Map our way to the next port, too."

"Yeah, while your Pokemon keep the new pet entertained- Ah! " Blinking at how Shelly was now soaking wet, Archie stared and don't laugh. Your first mate had just been splashed by a siren, Archie, don't- Itw as fucking hilarious. " Archie! "

"Oh, come on, that was funny," Archie grinned, holding his hands up to fend off an attack even as he choked back more laughter. "You're a pirate, you should be used to getting wet."

"I dunno. You're not." Laughter dying in his throat, Archie stared and made a noise of pure offense.

"I could get laid if I wanted to!"

Shelly's eyebrows shot up, even as she stood there with her hair dripping. "Really."

"Yes!" Hiding his doubt, Archie huffed and turned on his heel. "Dry off and then meet me in the map room. And you! Don't cause anymore fucking trouble to my ship or I'll have Drago eat you!" Children, all of them.

::

Okay, damn thing hadn't tried to sing and lure anyone off the ship yet, so Archie felt relatively safe in taking a nightly swim while most of the crew were asleep. Okay, maybe he'd have Stormy as backup if he got in a pinch, but he should be fine! He just... It had been too long since he had swam in the ocean. "You are unafraid," he heard the moment the water settled around him.

Eyes shooting open, Archie stared at the siren face-to-face in the open ocean, feeling fear settle around him. Except, no, he didn't. He wasn't afraid. Cautious, but why should he be afraid? Interesting, though, that this thing could speak underwater clearly. It swam around him in a circle before stopping in front of him again. "The ocean is your home."

Well, yeah. Archie had grown up in a port town right on the beach. He had loved the ocean so much he had run away to it. At this point, why wouldn't it be his home? What was weird, though, was that Maximillian spoke like this wasn't his home. How could it not be? He was half fucking fish. Archie... Honestly, he had dreams when he was little of being a merman. But a cool one. Buff.

Swimming up to the surface to grab a deep breath of air and refill his lungs, Archie immediately dove back underwater and swam as deep as he could go, keeping pace with the ship, but trying to aim down as well. Each time he swam he felt like he saw a little more of the ocean. Maybe one day he would see it all. Maximillian swam alongside him, shooting him curious little looks and frowns. Probably wasn't used to humans that liked to swim so much. Archie wasn't sure there was anyone who liked to swim as much as him.

Still, he didn't argue against the company, only studying the siren in little peeks and glances as he dove downwards before he reached his limit. Damn shame he couldn't see as well underwater, but for now, being surrounded on all sides... It was nice. This time when he surfaced, Maximillian followed him, continuing to just silently watch him. "If you're gonna say something, then go ahead and say it," Archie sighed. "Or just eat me. Either way, the staring is creepy."

"I've nothing to say, for the now."

"Sure likes like you've got something to say. Seriously. Call me stupid for swimming when you're in the water or something ."

"Simply thinking to myself. Do you truly believe the world to revolve around you?"

"Yes. Absolutely." Trying not to laugh at the expression, Archie shook his head. "You're a lot more human than I first thought, you know." Maxie - Maximillian was too long - scoffed at him, looking horribly offended. "Hey, that's a compliment."

"Certainly not! You humans are weak!"

"Hey! I could kick your ass right now if I wanted to!" At least he had stopped with those fucking thees and thous for now. He only snorted as though Archie wasn't actually a threat. Giving a growl of frustration, Archie swam through the waters to catch up to his ship. The winds were calm tonight, meaning he didn't have to work hard to get close again. Maxie swam faster as well before- Oh that was why the ship would periodically stutter. Seemed he would dig his nails into the wood and just... drift.

"Stop damaging my ship," Archie grumbled, knowing full well the bastard could hear him as he swam up to catch on a rope he had thrown down before diving in. "Repairs cost enough as it is." Nothing. Not even a splash. He wondered if mer slept. Deciding he'd think about it tomorrow, Archie grabbed the rope and began to heave himself up, pausing and there was one thing he needed to ask. "Do I need to worry about you stealing from our fishing nets again?"

"Only if I hunger." Right. And he should still be doing pretty good off the last port. Relishing in the water lapping against his skin for a moment more, Archie began to pull himself up.

"Give us a heads up when you start to 'hunger.'" Right. Pet siren. Of course. That was his life, wasn't it? Ah, well. May as well try for a couple hours sleep- Oh. There was whistling again. Sleep... Sleep sounded like a great idea. Just for a few... Just a few minutes...

::

Archie awoke to the sounds of cursing and hollering outside his room. Rolling out of bed, Archie yelped as he hit the floor before scrambling for the door and okay, it was day time, right. magical singing fish, great, what the fuck was going on now? "Shelly! What's going on!"

"The fish stole our fish again!" Ooh, that was going to get confusing real quick, wasn't it? Dammit, they needed a better- Fuck. Fuck .

"He what!" 'Only if I hunger'- Ugh. Ugh!

Matt was already at the railing. "Should I get the cannons and harpoons ready?"

"Bit excessive, but we'll keep the option open," Archie sighed, patting at Matt's chest. "Was there any fish left in the nets, Shells?"

"I dunno, a couple? Enough to last a meal." Shelly gestured to the net. "We only threw down the one, but by now they've probably scattered."

"Damn." At least it wasn't the one single fish, Archie mused. Fuck, alright, time to be captain. Somehow. "Okay, I'll tell the cooks to switch to three-quarter rations. We're still pretty stocked up and we should be good until we get to the next port. As for money... We'll figure out something." Somehow.

"I hate suggesting it, but... There's always the ole loot and pillage option," she pointed out to him.

"Yeah, we'll have to be careful for the next few weeks, though," Archie sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck. "I could give less of a shit about the people, but looting and pillaging puts this lot in danger."

"Yeah... You're right about that. Think we can sic' the fish on 'em," she asked with a bright grin. Ready to reprimand her, Archie paused and, huh. Not a bad idea.

"Maybe. I'll think about it, at least." Shelly looked back to the net, shaking her head.

"I don't like it. There's no way it can go through that many fish."

"It wouldn't attack the nets just to spite us, not when it seemed fine just yesterday," Archie pointed out, crossing his arms and staring over the railing, fingers tapping against his arm. "Two humans only last him a few days, then. Maybe he has to eat more fish to get the same amount of energy a human would give."

"Arch," Shelly said with disgust all over her face. "Did you watch?" Oh, wow, yeah, didn't feel like there was a safe answer to that question.

"I'll go get the maps out."

She stuck her tongue out. "Whatever gets you off, Archie. Just... keep it to yourself. Arceus," he heard her as she walked away. "A literal ocean fucker."

"How the fuck do you get me wanting to fuck him out of me accidentally watching him eat people! What the fuck!" He did not- He couldn't- Shelly used to be so much nicer .

"You never said it was an accident!"

"Shut up! It's not like I set out to watch a siren eat people!"

"Did you not enjoy it?" Definitely not screaming, Archie spun around to see that Maxie was clinging to the railing again, just out of sight and only loud enough for Archie to hear, who had stayed behind as other crew members had dragged the few fish left aboard.

"I'm not answering that." Maxie gave him a sharp grin, licking his lips while he was at it. "Fuck off. You've eaten plenty, I think. Seriously, did you have to eat so many fish?"

"Yes," he simply said. "Do you not feed when you hunger?"

"A warning would have been nice," Archie glared, and yeah, looked like they really would be raiding the next town. "How many people can you charm at once?"

Maxie only shrugged. "Many."

"An entire town's worth?"

"I… could attempt," he said softly, though he looked...unsure? That was the most human Archie had seen him act yet. It was... It was interesting.

"You don't need to keep their attention for long, just lead them to the other end of the island when we dock and then swim back around. We can knock a few people unconscious for you on the shore so you can eat them instead of going up against a bunch of people in a fight, too."

Maxie watched him for a moment before nodding. "Very well."

"That's it?" Oh. Archie thought that would've taken way longer to convince him to do this.

"Food."

"Alright." Definitely remember that for the future. "So, uh, yeah. We should get there in three or four days if we make good speed. Do I have to worry about anymore fish going missing in that time?"

Maxie seemed to take time to actually think about it before finally shaking his head. "No." That was something, then. Taking a ragged breath in, Archie pulled and tugged at his bandana and Arceus. He was talking to a siren that hardly a week or two ago wanted to eat him. Why the fuck was he so comfortable with this? A sound had Arceus frowning and looking around for the source. It sounded like when one of his Pokemon was purring, actually.

It took a few seconds before he slowly looked over to Maxie, the siren still watching him and... "Are you purring?" How the- Why the- Fuck. Arceus fuck what trash romance book of Shelly's had his life become? Maxie startled and seemed to look down at himself with a frown.

"No?" The sound had stopped when he had spoken, though, so he had definitely been purring.

"No wonder you and Bruce get along so well," Archie sighed, unable to stop as mile at the confused little look. "My Sharpedo you met the other day."

"Ah. The small one." Well... Compared to Drago, he wasn't really wrong.

"Yeah, he's one of my smallest, actually." Misty was a fair bit bigger, but Bruce was tied with Bubbles really. "Do you- Uh, do you want to meet my other pokemon?" Maxie frowned, tilting his head at Archie. "I mean, you've met Drago and Bruce, so I thought you might like to meet the others, or something."

"You carry them all with you? In what capacity?" Oh, Archie supposed sirens wouldn't know about pokeballs. Taking one out, Archie carefully walked closer, holding the ball out towards him.

"These. Some genius made them, but basically they can contain pokemon safely." Maxie carefully took the ball, remaining balanced as he examined it.

"...I do not understand." Fuck. That was kind of cute.

"Yeah, I don't really, either. I just roll with it." Reaching over, Archie pressed the button while Maxie still held it, pointing it down towards the ocean surface. "Meet Mist." Mist gave a cheery call as she landed in the water, looking like she was smiling. Maxie tilted back until he was falling back into the water to properly greet Mist. While the Lapras looked surprised for a brief moment, she warmed up to the siren quickly, trilling a short little song and flapping her fins. Archie had a feeling the two would like each other. Maxie was immediately beaming, singing back to her- Oh no.

The song hit and... Fun. It sounded fun . Archie was already grinning and hopping onto the rail, just taking the time to kick his shoes off before he was diving underwater, half laughing before he took a breath right before hitting the water. A few splashes sounded around him, and he felt disappointment grow in him when he realized the song had stopped. A look over to Maxie, and the siren looked... Archie wasn't sure how to describe it. Definitely not pleased at having lured him and half his crew into the ocean.

Taking a few moments to relax underwater while others surfaced and panicked, Archie finally gave a grin to Maxie, making sure it was as wide as possible. It was actually kind of funny, really. "My… apologies." Swimming closer, Archie surfaced, laughing as Mist nudged against him.

"About what? I mean, it was pretty obvious it was an accident, right?"

"Your underlings will not believe this to be so."

"You'd be surprised," Archie snorted. Any person crazy enough to seek Kyogre had to be pretty willing to believe in things like a siren's accidental song. "Trust me, as long as no one gets attacked, then the others will get a laugh out of it." Maxie still didn't seem to believe him... They really didn't know all that much about each other, did they? "Look, I won't lie, we're still freaked out by you. I mean, you eat humans, so it kind of makes sense for us to be scared, but, uh, I guess we can try not to be scared? Okay, well, no, I mean we can try to listen- That'd actually be worse, probably, uh- Fuck, I'm fucking this all up, aren't I?"

Archie was confused when he heard laughter, but it blew his fucking mind it was Maxie that looked to be chuckling quietly. "A small amount, yes." He... He sounded good when he laughed. He didn't seem so terrifying anymore.

"Sorry. I guess just why don't we try to work together for as long as you stick around. Help each other out? We give you a lift to ports, you do your thing, and sometimes you can help us get what we need."

"...Very well. This sounds... mutually beneficial." Staring for a long moment, Archie finally scrunched up his nose, re-settling even as Mist moved so she was now carrying him along towards the ship.

"What the fuck did you even just say?"

"Mutually beneficial," he repeated. "It... It is both of us for good." Maxie glanced to the ship and Maxie watched as he swam to keep pace.

"Good for both of us, you mean?" Archie settled down, watching him for a moment and wait. Eating so much because- "Are you always swimming? Like are you always burning energy because you're swimming?"

"Not always. When I tire, I hold the ship." That still seemed like a lot of swimming.

"Is that why you eat so much?" Maxie nodded. When Archie thought about it, he burned energy even staying in one place. "Guess it makes sense. You know, Mist can carry you too, if you want. She seems to enjoy it." At the suggestion, Mist gave a soft croon, swimming closer to Maxie. Maxie's nose wrinkled, and he looked to Mist cautiously.

"...How?" Laughing, Archie tucked his feet up and settled more on Mist's back.

"You can either climb up here with me, grab her fin, or just hold on to her shell. She can carry quite a bit of weight, can't you girl?" Mist trilled, turning back to butt against him again. Archie watched as Maxie carefully reached out to hold her shell, still looking like she might attack him any minute. Mist only made sure he was holding on tightly before heading back towards the ship, Archie watching Maxie slowly start to relax. "Feels kind of nice to just be pulled through the water, huh?"

"It is no different than holding the ship."

"It's a simple yes or no question."

"Twas hardly a question at all."

"Okay, that. If we're going to be under a truce, I at least want to know where you learned to speak English- Actually, I want to know that and how old you are." Because Maxie looked his age, but he spoke ike he was ancient .

"I was taught by my mother. I am only two hundred and eighty one moons old."

"Oh." Archie stared and narrowed his eyes. "You're not even a year old?" Moons meant days, probably, right?

Maxie frowned further. "Full moons."

"Oh. So, uh, hold on." Doing the math in his head, Archie finally shook it off. "Around twenty, then."

"I do not know your human measurement."

"Yeah, well, I don't know yours really well. Twenty is around the age of a young adult, so, uh, fully grown, but just barely, I guess. I'm twenty-three, so I'm still kinda young myself." Maxie shook his head as he watched Archie.

"Humans are so strange."

"How do you think we feel about you guys?" Archie raised an eyebrow, waving up at the ship when he saw Shelly and a few others looking down at him in panic. "I made a truce with 'im!"

"I am no pet," Maxie said beside him, but... He sounded serious.

"I didn't say you were?" Oh, he had probably overheard Shelly earlier. "Shelly's- Well, she's Shelly, but I think the last thing you are is a pet. Trust me."

"You did not correct her," he pointed out.

"I've given up on trying to win a fight against her," Archie laughed, and he was laughing with a siren. RIght. His life had just gotten weird again. "I don't think anyone can keep her in line."

"You are their leader," Maxie said, as though reciting something long ago memorized. "They look to you for guidance and direction." Now that had Archie cracking with laughter.

"Are you kidding! They never stop fighting me on just about everything! If they ever listen to me it's because they decide it's what they want to do, too!"

"Perhaps. I suspect that to only be an act. A play put on by the paupers."

"A- What?" Archie was never going to understand this fish the way things were going. "Seriously, you speak as proper as a fucking noble or something." That... He flinched. Maxie flinched, looking almost pained by archie's words. "Whoa, hey, uh, sorry? I mean, I'm sure your mom is great at teaching you English? It's just outdated, really." That was weird. That was really weird.

"Obviously," he grumbled quietly. There was a moment's silence before Archie heard clicking and chattering. It took a moment to work out, but he was pretty sure Maxie was still speaking, just not in any language he knew. It was kind of cool. Archie tried to strain his hearing, attempting to pick up as much as he could. No way would he get any words, but Maxie seemed... frustrated? Exasperated? Some other ated? He couldn't quite tell, but the siren was definitely muttering to himself.

"You wanna keep swimming for a while?" Archie asked Mist quietly, noticing that Shelly was still keeping a careful watch on him. He was going to get yelled at later, for sure. Mist bumped him gently with a chirp, seeming thrilled at the mere mention of swimming. "Alright, alright," Archie laughed, settling down further. "I'll make sure to feed you the really good food after this, too." That had her pleased as anything, swimming a couple little circles. Archie looked back to Maxie to see the siren was... smiling at her. "So, uh, you like Pokemon, then?"

"I do not dislike them. They are useful." Frowning, Archie wiggled down to kick some water in Maxie's face.

"Hey, they're not 'useful,' they're friends. Typical humans think they're 'useful'."

Maxie blinked, startled. "My pod," he explained. "They are... useful," he repeated again, but didn't elaborate further... He was hiding something.

"Pod. That'd be like your family, then, right? Your parents and siblings and all that?" Maxie gave him a nod. Okay. That was... not very much information. "What do you mean they're 'useful'?"

"My pod, and others, used them as gatherers, builders, or hunters."

"Better than just using them to fight with, I guess," Archie hummed, rubbing at Mist's neck. "So you work with them."

"Yes." Huh, that wasn't too bad.

"So there's more siren than just you out there, right? I mean, we all know stories, but I didn't think any of you were real , you know?"

Maxie scoffed at him. "Of course. I am not so unique."

"Dunno, you seem pretty amazing to me." Maxie rose an eyebrow at him, obviously disbelieving. Jeez, how had he grown up? "Right. Just feel free to latch onto the ship when you need it, I guess." Their next stop would be interesting at least.

Chapter 3

"Of all the ports we find it had to be one with a fucking large city," Archie groaned, rubbing at his eyes. "There's at least two hundred people just around the shore."

"Aw, jeez, Arch... Think the fish can do it?"

"Dunno. Maybe instead of luring them all to the other side of the island it can just be a few miles away? We can't attract the attention of the whole town, but we should be able to get what we need from the first few rows of shops."

Shelly looked over the map and nodded. "Right. We land here, and the fish should bring everyone he can over..." She pointed a few miles down the coast of the island. "There."

"Seems like it should work," Archie nodded. "We would need to get in and out fast, and I'm sure there's people who won't be affected by the song, or will break it's grip. If I manged to then I"m sure others can."

"How'd you do that, anyway, Arch?" Shelly was staring up at him, Matt much the same.

"Felt like if I stopped listening, I'd die."

"Dunno," Archie frowned,s hrugging and leaning against the back of the ship's railing. "I wanted to listen forever, but I realized you all were in danger. So I stopped listening."

Shelly huffed, crossing her arms. "You make it sound so easy."

"I didn't have a choice." It had been that song or the life of his family. Not really a hard pick. "Although, I kinda broke out of it at that last port." He had followed the song and then saw Maxie luring two other humans and had just sat and watched. That... He still was kinda weirded out that it didn't make him freak out. Maxie ate two people. But... But for him, it seemed like it was a life or death. No matter how many fish he ate, he never looked as good as he had in the couple days after that port. Besides, it was just two people. Two punks who looked like they constantly made bad choices and didn't give a shit what happened to them. Why should he bother to care?

A soft cough startled Archie out of his thoughts and had him looking around. It took a moment for him to look just under the railing, blinking at seeing Maxie clinging on to the side of the ship, "You know, my crew won't kill you on sight."

"Agree to disagree." Fair enough. Turning around, Archie leaned on the railing so he could talk to him better.

"We have a rough plan. Happen to hear any of it?"

Maxie gave a nod, glancing behind Archie and ducking further. "Yes. Everything."

"Think you can do it, then? Like I said, you don't have to fight, just give us the time we need to get what we need and get out of there." Looking away, Maxie finally nodded.

"Yes." Alright. Unsure yes, but a yes.

"How long do you think you can sing before you need to stop?" That had Maxie snorting.

"I could go from the sunrise to sunhigh. Would be difficult and slightly past limitations, but could."

"Alright, don't need to worry about that, then." Damn, that was kind of impressive. Glancing back to where his first mates were watching him, Archie lowered his voice. "I can knock some people out on our way out, you can drag him off to the other side of the island to eat and we can pick you up that way if you want."

"I would be...appreciative." Arceus... He acted like they really were going to gut him any second. Unable to help himself, Archie leaned over and tousled Maxie's hair like he might one of his little siblings.

"Don't worry, everything will go fine."

"Perhaps. My singing is...not so strong. My sister, she is stronger."

"Yeah, but you managed to charm my entire crew," Archie laughed, hoping his smile put the siren a little at ease. Honestly, it would be fine . "We usually aren't that easy to sway."

"Twas-" Maxie winced. " It was not so hard."

"There you go." Trying to taper off his laughter, Archie gave another ruffle to his hair and it... Maxie's hair was soft . "Don't worry, we won't let you get hurt."

"Why?" Maxie was looking up at him with all the caution of a pokemon that'd been hurt before. "Why do you care?"

"Well..." Thinking on it, why did he care? "The ocean is your home, isn't it?" Ah, that was it. Because it was the same as to why he was going to such stupid lengths to protect the water pokemon, too. It was the same answer all the time. "It's my home, too." Maxie watched him for a moment before he was leaning up- Oh. He was pressing his face into Archie's hand. That- That should be weird, right? Feeling Maxie's nose pressed right up against his hand should be- Oh! Wait! That was like a trust thing! Bruce did it after Archie finally bonded with him! "'S okay. I'll keep you safe."

Maxie pulled away slowly, watching Archie with wide, shining eyes like the brightest of fires before he was falling back into the ocean. " Ahem. " Startling and not squeaking, yelping, or doing anything unmanly, Archie turned around as relaxed as he could. "New pet fish?"

"He's not a pet," Archie scolded, shrugging it off like he would a splash of water. "Just reassuring him. He's not so bad once you get past the whole man-eating thing."

"Yeah. Sorry, Arch. Kinda hard to get past the whole wants to eat us thing."

"He doesn't want to eat us." Anymore. "Just give him a chance."

"I'm not giving him one. I'm giving you one."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Because that very much sounded like a threat.

"I mean I trust you, but I don't trust that thing as far as I can throw ‘im."

"That's okay." Archie grabbed Shelly into a quick hug, giving her a wild grin. "Just keep trusting me, then. I won't let you get hurt." He'd protect all of them - even if it was from each other.

A few hours later, after sailing and docking at the far end of the dock for a quick escape, Archie was making sure the crew was briefed on what they needed to do. Keep their earplugs in, get what they needed from the list they were given, and get the fuck out. He saw Maxie beginning to swim over to the shore, though the siren gave him more than one apprehensive backwards glance as he got closer to land.

"This is going to be cutting it close," Archie sighed, snagging a pokeball and releasing Drago under the waves, raising his voice just enough to be heard. "Keep him safe, Drago." Drago gave a sharp cry, immediately swimming after him.

Archie watched Maxie stop near the shore and the moment the plank was set down, Maxie started to sing louder than Archie had heard before. It would be scarily easy to get wrapped up in that song and let himself be lost within Maxie's singing, but, well. They did have work to do. Still, Archie kept a careful eye as the townsfolk started wandering down towards the shore, his crew hurrying to get into town and grab what they needed.

Maxie began to swim away from the town, still singing. Like a lighthouse. He was... Oh boy that was a lot of people. Had he really managed to attract all of these people? It... It was incredible. It was really, really incredible. And they were all following him like Horseas to a Lanturn. Right, this was one of the largest ports in a while and they had a museum on the history of the ocean right by the port. A quick check for anything Kyogre-related, a stop by that lovely silver shop he had seen, and then grabbing whatever else they could use.

Going through the city, it was like a ghost town. No one around anywhere. Was Maxie's song really that strong? And his sister was supposed to be even stronger? Fuck, Archie could only imagine running up against sirens like those . Right, focus. He still needed to get Maxie fed. He was starting to look pale again, and a bit too skinny for Archie's liking. He wondered how many Maxie would eat before he was full. He had eaten two no problem. Was there a limit? Maybe the museum would have something on sirens, too. Port towns would be the best to try to learn about them.

"Hey, Captain! Check this out!" Pausing, Archie groaned and doubled back over to where he was being called and this had better be important. They were on a time crunch! Archie rushed over and gasped. All sorts of abandoned pokeballs, and a few Pokemon, but he was more shocked at the two laying on the ground in the middle of a wide ring.

"A fucking pokemon fighting ring." Of all the fucking- Archie rushed over to the Keldeo and Granbull collapsed in the middle of the ring, checking them over quickly and feeling a stab of pain as the Granbull growled and tried to get back up to keep fighting. "Hey, hey, easy, it's over now, okay? No more fighting." Unless... "Unless you want to fight the ones who really did this to you." The Keldeo was a bit too far gone for Archie's words to really get through, but the Granbull seemed to understand.

"Arch," Matt said behind him. "Bad idea."

"He's right. Sending them over there with the fish getting stirred up into a frenzy?"

"Maxie won't hurt pokemon," Archie frowned, watching the Granbull stumble to his feet, worn and exhausted. "You might have a point about it being a bad idea, though. Hey, fighter, you want to be free? Or do you want to make humans suffer for what they've done to you and your friends?"

The Granbull tried to growl and run off after them, but only made it about three steps before collapsing. Jeez, none of these guys were in much of a human suffering kinda shape. Archie placed a hand on the pokemon's brow, pressing softly, "Easy, fighter. Healing's a part of the whole battle thing, too. So, want us to drop you off somewhere on the island? Fight them on your own when you get better?" Glancing back to Shelly and Matt, he watched Matt pick up a few other Pokemon gently in his arms while Shelly opened up her bag and began to scoop the pokeballs in.

"Big city. Gotta be a center nearby." For something like this? No doubt.

"Get them there and make sure to leave a note or fucking something about what went down. I'm going to make sure they won't be using this place as a fighting ring for much longer."

"On it, Captain." Waiting until they were gone, Archie stood up and looked around the hastily constructed arena, and fuck, none of his pokemon would be good for this. Water types. Right. Looked like he would be tearing this fucking place down by himself.

And oh, he made sure to tear it down. His crew could handle getting what they needed. It was shit likes this that had him wanting to awaken Kyogre in the first place. People didn't give a shit about Pokemon. Only themselves. Pokemon were their friends , they loved their trainers fiercely and showed kindness to those who showed kindness to them. And what did humans do? They fucking captured them and made them fight for fame and money. He hated them. He hated humans. "C'mon, fighter, let's get you out of here, too."

He carried the poor Granbull all the way to the Pokemon Center but when he tried to set her - cause of course she was she with that temperament - down, she only started to kick up a fuss. "Whoa, whoa, hey, you need to be taken care of and this is the best place to do it." Archie carefully picked her back up, watching her reaction to that. In his arms she immediately relaxed. Jeez... She was small, too, for a Granbull. Poor thing. Making like he was going to put her down, Archie snorted as she growled. "Alright, alright. Okay... Yeah, you're too much of a fighter to just sit back and let others handle things, huh?" Maybe... Looking to his belt, Archie pulled out a pokeball that was empty, holding it in front of the Granbull. "Feel like trusting a lowly human one more time?"

He smiled when the Granbull only cuddled closer to him, though she did seem a bit wary of the pokeball. "Arch, hey. We probably don't have much time left."

"Fuck, yeah, I know," Archie sighed, hugging the pokemon just as close. "I'll let you out as soon as we're on my ship, okay? I promise." He gently bumped the open pokeball against her head, smiling as she disappeared inside it. The pokeball squirmed once, twice, three- Click. "Alright then, fighter, let's get this taken care of."

Archie managed to ransack the museum in only half an hour, stealing every book and scrap of information and maps he could. He did take ten minutes to loot through the silver shop - he found quite a few nice things - before running back to the ship. As soon as he counted his crew, only six left to come back, he looked towards Maxie. He could hear Maxie was starting to get a bit worn out, but when he glanced over and saw Archie the song grew stronger and people were stumbling into the water to their waists. Archie gave a quick signal to show they were almost done, dropping his things in the map room before scrambling back out.

"Matt, Shelly, get this ship ready to move!" Okay, now he just had to make sure Maxie would be able to escape and still have a meal- Oh. Grabbing a fishing net, Archie gave a sharp whistle for Drago. "Feel like toting a couple humans through the water for me?" Drago seemed confused, head tilting as he looked towards the crew - Fuck. Fuck, Maxie was starting to get distracted. Archie could see his teeth lengthening into fangs, the fins on the side of his head slowly fanning out. "Matt, get the ones who aren't back here now and then set sail. I'll catch up."

Stepping onto the railing, Archie tossed the net down before diving in after it and oh, Shelly was so going to yell at him for this later. "Drago, get me over to Maxie!" Drago cried out loudly and scooped Archie onto his neck before swiftly swimming through the sea. Maxie's eyes were starting to dart around and the song was starting to stutter. Swearing under his breath, Archie adjusted the net he had just had time to grab, nudging at Drago's neck. "Take this and capture the humans that are in the water, at least two of them, maybe three, okay? Keep them underwater and drag them after us." With that, Archie made sure Drago took the net before he was letting go and swimming righter over to Maxie.

Maxie seemed startled at seeing Archie so close, the song pausing before he quickly tried to ensnare them all again, looking away from Archie. Placing a hand against his back, Archie spoke quietly, "We're almost ready to go. As soon as the ship starts pulling out I want you to dive underwater and swim after Drago. He has your 'lunch' waiting." Just like that, Maxie looked like a fully fledged creature of the deeps, fins, fangs, and all. His singing was starting to border on screeching, too. Fuck, Archie could see some of the people starting to stumble out of it - they were still ensared, but it didn't look like for much longer. "C'mon, Maxie, focus, this isn't going to work if you let yourself lose it here."

Just a few more minutes, that was all they needed, but at this rate, Maxie would only last a few more seconds. This wasn't good, but at least it wasn't getting worse. Maybe listening to Archie's voice was keeping him focused? "C'mon, just a few more minutes, Matt's rounding up the last of the crew. Hey, we got everything we needed and more. Even broke up a pokemon fighting ring. You're gonna like the Granbull- That's a fairy type pokemon. I'll teach you more later, if you want, you probably only know the water types- Fuck, your singing is amazing- Focus. Sorry, you just- Fuck." Hearing a bell, Archie turned to see the ship starting to sail out. He only caught a glimpse, however, because after that, his vision was obscured by water splashing around - He was being pulled. Archie just barely had time to suck in a breath of air before he was being pulled underwater and fuck, he thought Maxie was fast before then that was nothing compared to his.

It took just about no time for Maxie to catch up to Drago, immediately tearing into the net. He wasted no time on trying to sing for these people. With the way they were already half-drowned underwater, they didn't put up much of a fight, Maxie easily tearing into them and turning the waters red. Archie couldn't bring himself to surface, only watching with wide eyes. He had seen Maxie go 'feral' before, but this seemed to be on a whole different level.

This definitely better fit the term 'frenzy.' He didn't seem to be thinking about anything other than food, letting only his most basic instincts guide him. He was... kind of gorgeous, in it all. Kind of. In a way. Fuck, Shelly was going to tear him a new one for sticking so close to a siren in a feeding frenzy, but Archie couldn't just leave . He had promised to look out for Maxie and he was damn well going to- Fuck, Areceus, if eh didn't fucking drown first fucking need to breathe. He surfaced quickly, gasping for breath as his lungs burned. He could still see Maxie pretty well from the surface, though.

Drago was able to drag the two along  after the ship, and Archie watched Maxie finally start to slow down. Jeez, how much did he need to eat - Oh. Maxie had surfaced and was now holding archie's face in his claw tipped hands. Instead of being scared, like a fucking sane person, Archie only stared at him and gave a quiet hum, "Eat enough?" Arceus, he couldn't even feel a bit of fear. Maybe he was the weird one.

He watched Maxie slowly calm down, coming back to himself as his fins lay flat again. The siren quickly let go, beginning to chatter and croon and click in that strange language. Archie blinked, having no idea what he was saying and finally hazarding a quiet, "'S alright. Felt nice." Felt nice. It felt nice . Fucking hell, he was a mess.

"...Yes," Maxie said quietly, wiping at his mouth. "I ate well enough."

"Good- Great. That's good. Sorry if you had to rush through it or anything, but this was the safest bet." Maxie gave him a small nod, looking... He looked like he was ashamed, but that couldn't be right. He was a siren. He couldn't be ashamed for eating. "Right, well, thanks to you we rescued a bunch of Pokemon from a fighting ring. So there's another amazing thing you've done."

"You would have done so anyway. Far too sacrificing." Well, Archie couldn't really fight against that accusation, especially when he had a hurt and sleeping pokemon attached to his belt, now.

"I need to go back up to the ship. You gonna be alright down here?" Maybe they should make it so Maxie could latch onto the ship without having to actually tear holes into it with those claws. A net, maybe?

"Yes," Maxie confirmed with a nod before diving below the water. Archie snorted, patting at Drago's neck.

"He's a strange one, huh? C'mon, Drago, let's get you fed, too. You did a great job today, you know." Drago gave a chirp, and almost a purr as he leaned back into Archie. Laughing, Archie gave him one more good scratch before standing up on his back and grabbing hold of the rope ladder that had been tossed down over the side. "If we have to go back for anyone then I'm gonna be pissed! Shelly, give me a count!"

"Everyone's on, Captain! We're all good to go!" Thank fuck.

Scrambling up, Archie looked around the ship. "Sweetie in the infirmary?" Hopefully she had some spray for his new Granbull.

"Yeah," Shelly told him with a frown. "You hurt? Fish get ya?"

"No, a Granbull from that fighting ring decided to stick with me, I want to get her checked out."

"Oh." Shelly finally nodded, glancing down to his belt. "You gonna actually keep 'er?"

"Why not? She's a fighter, after all," Archie grinned, heading into the ship. "Make sure we got everything, Shells, I'll talk to ya later."

"Alright, fine, Archie. Take care of her."

"Of course." This was a good time for him to calm down from all the excitement, too. If he kept throwing himself into things then he'd probably cause some other ship-wide diasterlike the one that got him thrown overboard for two hours. "Hey, Sweetie. You in here?"

"Hey there, Cap'n! That was the best raid yet! Looks like you're my only patient! So, whatcha in for? Lacerations? Asphyxiation? Other -ations?"

"None of the above," Archie chuckled, and, really, this kid was adorable. "For once. I have a different patient for you." Taking the pokeball out, Archie gently released Granbull onto the bed. "Busted up a pokemon fighting ring. This one wants to stick around."

"Oh! Well hey there, sweet thing!" Sweetie immediately began to get bandages, sprays, and Poke Puffs together. "Looks like our brave Cap'n got to you in the nick o' time!"

"I don't know about that." Archie sat next to the pokemon, carefully and slowly rubbing at her head. "She did pretty good fighting on her own."

"That's not much of a surprise. Alright, sweetheart. You go ahead and eat those Poke Puffs, I'm gonna use this spray on you to help you get your health up!" The Granbull - he needed a name for her - nodded and started munching on the puffs, keeping close to Archie and watching Sweetie very warily.

"'S okay, fighter, she's about as dangerous as a caterpie."

"Fighter? Not your usual naming style, Captain."

"Ah, no, it-" Actually, that did fit her kind of well, didn't it? Glancing back down to her, Archie gave a rumbling laugh as he gently hugged the pokemon close. "It's not, is it? It fits perfectly for her, though."

"Hey, watch it! Trying to work, here!"

"I'm offering her comfort!"

"Hang on! One two three, and done!"

"Seriously?" That was fast even for Sweetie."This si why we can't live without you, Sweetie."

Sweetie laughed, gently petting Fighter. "Yeah. I know." Fighter settled at the touch, leaning back into Archie and making a please noise that was like a rumbling growl. It was adorable. "She's gonna be good for you. I can tell. She's darling. "

"Yeah, no trying to steal her from me, I know you like fairy types." Archie hugged Fighter close one more time before loosening his grip, setting her on the bed as he stood up. "Alright, I'll let her rest here. I gotta talk to Shelly about how everything went." This time, Fighter didn't throw much of a fit when he felt, only relaxing further on the bed.

"Don't worry, Captain. I've got her from here." Nodding, Archie spared her one last past before heading back out towards the deck, thoughts turning back to Maxie and his strange behavior as they got back to the ship. Really, Archie would have expected the siren to be a lot more... A lot less timid. Maybe timid wasn't the right word, but he seemed ready to deal with any mess-ups. Maybe it was more accurate to say he acted like anything that went wrong was his fault. Maybe it came from having siblings? He mentioned having a sister, at least. But... If he had siblings, then why hadn't they seen any others? Arceus, why hadn't they ever seen a siren before the Spades?

Maybe they lived in isolated areas and they just got unlucky when it came to finding Maxie? The stories were everywhere, but no one ever had proof. Was it possible sirens were going extinct just like pokemon? Well... If they were, at least they managed to save one. Maxie was probably better off with them. If most people knew to avoid the Spades, he probably didn't eat often. Now that he was traveling with them, he'd be much better fed, as well as much safer. It was something that worked out well for both of them. Siren, Archie was beginning to see, had lots of tricks up their sleeves.

::

It had been a few days since the raid on the port town and Archie finally kicked his shoes off and admitted defeat during his night watch shift. Not only did he need to swim, but he had a few questions for Maxie. Nearly the second he was in the water, Maxie was in front of him, seeming to try to puzzle him out without either of them speaking a word. Archie stared back for a moment, taking the time to notice that Maxie still looked rather well fed, before he was swimming along after the ship. Maxie easily swam beside him, still watching him with a tilted head. Heh, he was kinda like a pokemon, with those cute little quirks like that.

It was fun to just swim next to him like this - relaxing. When he was underwater he was no one but himself. No Captain, no crew to look out for, just him and an ocean that went on forever. Would soon go on forever. Seeing movement out of the corner of his eyes, he glanced over to see the fins on the side of Maxie's head were spread out and seemed to be flicking and twitching, the siren frowning and looking around. Archie doubled back, staying as still as possible and letting the currents float him along as he watched Maxie. He seemed to be listening- Tracking? Something was up. Maxie looked over to him and nodded. "Fish school." Fish school? What- Oh!

Nodding, Archie swam to the surface, sucking in air before grabbing the rope and scrambling up it. Who would be least likely to kill him for waking them up this late... Matt. He would start with Matt and go from there. "Huh... Arch? Bro, wassup? 'Nother nightmare?"

"No, Maxie found a school of fish for us. Wake up."

"Found a...huh?" Matt rose with a yawn, clambouring out of bed.

"We're going fishing, wake up a few others."

"Alright... Ash. Nick, Get... Get..."

"Aw, tired still?" Archie flipped over Matt's hammock, nodding as he hit the floor. "There we go. Hey, Ash, Nick! We got some fishing to do!" For emphasis, Archie took his shirt off and squeezed the water out over their heads.

" Ah! "

"Come on, Arch, what gives?!" Hey, they were awake! That was great!

"Fishing time! Get up and come help me with the nets."

Hearing a soft, quiet song from outside the porthole, Archie couldn't help a smile. It looked like Maxie was helping them in return for being helped at the port. Well, Archie wouldn't be against that. When he got topside, there was a sharp, high whistle that had him looking over. Maxie waved an arm before pointing... Ah. Pretty decent haul. "Nice work, Maxie," Archie beamed down at the siren, calling over his shoulder. "Matt, with me, Ash and Nick, get over to the other side. C'mon, boys, time to stock up and make our cooks happy!" Maxie quickly swam to the opposite side of the ship, avoiding any possibility of getting his fins caught in the net as well.

It didn't take long for them to get the fish caught up and reeled in, Archie making sure every last one was on board and the three were getting them into ice boxes before he was grinning and diving back into the water. Maxie frowned at him, head tilting. "Will you not feed?" Waiting until they surfaced, Archie shook his head.

"In the morning. We eat at certain times of the day, typically morning, afternoon, and evening. Some just eat whenever they're hungry, though. It differs."

"...Humans," Maxie scoffed, shaking his head.

"Yeah." That was as good an opening as any. "What do you know about Kyogre?"

That had the siren drawing back. "The great wave maker and ocean rider?"

"I'm gonna go with yeah, that one." That meant he knew of him. "Tell me what you know. Tell me everything."

Maxie's eyes widened. "He... He created the oceans themselves, and all within them. But he is no longer. Tale tells that he lies at the bottom of the darkest, coldest trench, awaiting the one destined to awaken him."

"Any idea where that trench might be?" Archie asked weakly, looking away at Maxie's look. "There's a reason we became pirates, you know."

Watching him, Maxie eventually sighed and shook his head. "No. My sister, Zinnia, would know much more of the subject. She is the scholar of us."

"Any chance she lives nearby?" Back at square one, then. Nothing. That had Maxie glaring at him.

"I left Zinnia, as well as the rest of my siblings at home."

"Right, okay, sorry." Right. Siblings. Touchy subject.

"Zinnia was the only one I didn't absolutely despise."

"Gotcha." Very bad past with his siblings, then. "So, uh, how many siblings did you have?"

"Six in total."

"Oh, jeez. I only have three siblings." Arceus, Zachery would be going into high school, now. That was, if he hadn't left when he was ten.

"You are the eldest." He said that like he knew... Oh.

"Yeah. Little brats are probably getting into heaps of trouble." Fuck, he missed them. "They're probably better off without me there, anyways. I always brought trouble home."

Maxie scoffed at that. "That blame rarely lies with the eldest."

"I can tell who the favorite in your family was, then." Bitter as the taste of ocean water.

" Octavius, " Maxie bit off. Right, very sore subject. What would help right now... well, that might work. Lunging forward, Archie caught himself on Maxie's shoulders, near dragging them both underwater as he grinned.

"Come swim with me some more."

He could hear the frown in Maxie's voice as he tried to turn over to look at Archie. "What- What are you doing?"

"Dunno. I can call it a hug or I can call it a tackle, depends on whatever you need, really." Tackles and play fighting had helped soothe Jane, but hugs had always put Zachary at ease. "C'mon. Swimming."

"A- Why would you hug me?"

"You looked like you needed a hug." Archie shifted so he was hugging Maxie even tighter, face pressed up against his neck as the waves pushed them together. "Is it helping?"

"Is it supposed to be?" Huh. He seemed confused by this whole 'hug' thing. Maybe it wasn't a siren thing.

"Sometimes. Here, just- Try hugging me back." Archie loosened his grip a little, settling a bit more to rest his head on Maxie's shoulder as he let the siren shift about. It took a bit more coaxing, but Maxie finally hugged him, arms loose around his waist. There was a stretch of silence before he sighed quietly and relaxed into Archie's hold. Resisting the urge to say anything, Archie only hugged him back a bit tighter, pleased that the hug seemed to be helping.

Archie heard a... A sniff, and he wondered if maybe now Maxie smelled a school of fish nearby. But his shoulders were shaking- Oh. Oh, jeez. Fuck. Pulling Maxie close to him, Archie tucked the siren under his chin, holding him close. "'S okay, Maxie. You're alright."

It took a few minutes, but he heard quietly against his chest, "Maxie?"

"Yeah. I mean, Archie is short for Archibald, so I figure Maxie can be short for Maximillian. Still your name, just more you, I think."

"It is...strange. Human."

"I guess that's kind of a bad thing, then, huh?"

Maxie shook his head. "No. It is... better."

"Oh. Good- Glad. I'm glad you like it, then." Somehow, it felt stupidly right to be hugging a siren in the middle of the ocean at night. He barely even had to worry about swimming, with Maxie keeping him so easily afloat-

"Forty three moons." Okay, that one was random.

"Forty three moons?" Was that a countdown or a 'since then' kind of thing?

"It has been forty three moons since I left my home." Doing the math in his head, Archie got to three years before he was hugging Maxie as tight as he could.

"Fuck, Maxie." Three years on his own and probably hiding in the Spades... Fuck.

"I still cannot bring myself to regret ever leaving."

"Still, to be on your own that long? That's... That's incredible, Maxie. You're so amazing for being able to do something like that." Areceus knew Archie wouldn't be able to handle being on his own like that.

Maxie snorted, shaking his head. "I am weak and selfish." 

"Seriously? You just charmed an entire port and you just now helped us catch a huge school of fish. You are in no weak and definitely not selfish." Just like whenever Archie tried to tell Maxie how great he was, the siren just clammed - heh, clam - up and seemed to deny it all. "Fine, we'll work on it." Finally letting him go, Archie shifted to grab the siren's wrist, grinning at him. "C'mon."

Maxie frowned at him. "Come where?"

"Anywhere- Everywhere! We're in the ocean," Archie laughed, pulling him along as best he could. "We can go wherever we want."

"Not particularly. Your pod would be most displeased to lose its captain." Maxie followed after him, a small smile beginning to worm its way onto his face.

"They'd survive without a captain." Not that Archie would ever leave them. "Bet I can beat you to the ship." With that Archie was summoning Bruce and latching onto him. "To the ship, Bruce!" Within seconds, Maxie was swimming beside him- Ahead. Maxie was swimming ahead of him. That ass. "Dammit. We're gonna have to try harder in the future, Brucie."

" Brucie, " Maxie laughed. He could laugh? That... That was good.

"Hey! Brucie is a great name!"Archie was smiling too much to really defend his pokemon, but Bruce seemed happy enough himself.

When Maxie got to the ship, he placed his hands against the wood and stared up. "What is it like to ride atop your vessel?"

"Freeing." Archie grabbed the rope ladder, letting Bruce go back to sleep inside his pokeball before he was looking to Maxie. "Here, c'mon. Wrap around my shoulders and I"ll give you a lift up and show you." Maxie snorted at that.

"You would not be able to hold me."

"Wanna bet?" Maxie seemed to give him a considering look before swimming over and holding onto him. Didn't seem too bad. Hoistering them up the ladder, Archie stumbled as they left the water and fuck. Why was he so fucking heavy .

"Should I release my grip?"

"No, no, you're fine." Fuck, fuck, fuck, fucking heavy . Didn't stop Archie from climbing up because now he had a fucking point to prove. Maxie tucked his face into Archie's shoulder, snickering quietly. "Shut up." Ignoring the laughter, Archie just barely made it over the railing, helping Maxie onto the deck. "I'd offer to take you up to the crow's nest, but maybe save that one for next time."

Maxie's hold tightened on him and he was silent, though Archie could feel him looking around, and scrunching down when he saw the night crew working the sails. Archie gave them a wave and a quick thumbs up, and, really, this was not the weirdest thing his crew had caught him doing. "'S okay. No one will hurt you."

"Agree to disagree," he heard Maxie mumble. Archie ruffled his hair, careful to avoid the fins.

"Just enjoy it. How long can you stay out of the water?"

"I don't know." Presumably until his tail dried out, then.

"We'll keep it short for now." Shifting carefully, Archie scooped Maxie into his arms and oh, that was much easier. "C'mon, I'll walk you around the edge." Maxie kept his arms around Archie's neck and he couldn't help but chuckle, "Like a princess."

Maxie immediately frowned up at him. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing," Archie laughed a bit more. "It's a human thing. From old fairy tales."

"You consider princesses to be the stuff of legend?"

"No- Well, some do. I was always more into all the stories about the ocean," Archie said quietly, carrying Maxie to the bow of the ship and setting him down on the figurehead. "You know, sirens and Kyogre and all that." Maxie nodded, silent once again. He remained facing away from Archie, instead staring out over the ocean from his new vantage point. "Let me know whenever you want to go back down." Sitting beside him, Archie faced the other way, watching his ship and the few crew members still awake.

"Is it always like this?"

"Always like what?"

"Beautiful."

"Yeah." Archie glanced back, Maxie's face soft and filled with wonder. "Yeah, it's always like that."

"...I wish I were human," he whispered. Archie... What could he even say to that? Quiet for a long, long moment, Archie finally gave a sigh, speaking just as softly - if not softer.

"I wish I were a siren."

Maxie quickly turned back to him, shaking his head. "No. You don't. You really don't. Tis a curse no being should bare-"

"You think being human is any better?" Archie shook his head once before shaking it sharper a second time. "I hate my own kind. I saw you eating my own kind and I was happy ."

"Tis not my own free will, thou need not feast upon flesh to sate the hunger for a moment. Ye know not of the all consuming hunger that controls yer being." Wha- Archie didn't even understand half of that and it was startling enough to knock him out of his thoughts. Did... Did Maxie really see his existence as a curse?

"We're both kind of fucked up, huh?" Maxie only shook his head again, now leaning against Archie and chattering to himself quietly. He still didn't understand that language one bit. Leaning back against him, Archie thought over the words before huffing out a quiet laugh. "Me more than you, sounds like." Maxie didn't choose his curse. Archie felt like he sort of did. He felt Maxie shake his head against him, a clear disagreement, but he didn't say anything. Instead, the siren only placed his hand over top of Archie's.

Startled for a moment, Archie glanced down at their hands, wiggling a bit so their fingers were clasped and, huh, weird. It wasn't really scaley , but it was weird. Very weird. Sharp nails - claws? - too. "My life is a curse," Maxie said again.

"Curses are meant to be broken." That was one thing he had alwasy believed, stupid as it sounded some days. "Maybe we can find a way to break yours."

Maxie huffed, holding Archie's hand tighter. "I wish thee luck."

"Don't need luck. I'm the one who's going to wake Kyogre up."

"You believe yourself to be the one destined to awaken the wave maker?"

"Dunno, never heard about anyone being destined, I just know I'm going to be the one to do it." Because the world had to fucking change and Archie wasn't stupid enough to think he could change it alone. But he could with help. He could do this. He would . He had no other choice.

"...I will do what I can to assist you."

Chapter 4

Sailing into port went smooth enough. Archie supposed news from the last town hadn't spread this far, yet, which, yeah, that was good. Keeping an absent count of everyone, Archie went over to the railing and leaned over to look for Maxie, Fighter trailing right behind him. "We're going into town. Do you need to hunt?" Maxie didn't even look to him, only staring at the shore.

"I will, this eve." Mm, bordering on that old fancy talk of his. He was distracted, definitely.

"Want me to come with you?" Maxie gave a small shake of his head. "Want me to stay away?"

"No." Ah. Archie got a good look at Maxie's face. Longing.

"Hey, how do you feel about silver? Like jewelry and stuff?"

"I do not disagree with it." As he replied, Maxie's hand came up to curl around the necklace he always wore, though his was more of the shell and coral type. It seemed important to him. Hm.

"Good. I was going to head into the silver shop in town and see if I can't trade a few of my own pieces for something better. I can bring you back a few things you might like, if you want?"

"If you insist." Maxie finally turned away from the island and began to swim further out to sea.

"We're definitely going to have to do something about that." Looking down to Fighter, Archie gave a small smile. "Want to come into town with me?" Fighter seemed to beam as best she could at him.

"What was that all about, Arch?" Shelly was watching the direction Maxie had swam off in with a frown.

"He's been a little down. Nothing too bad, I don't think." A curse, huh? "I'm going to hit up the silver shops they have in town. Any luck finding a museum or library close by?"

"Yeah, Nick found one, we're gonna see if they have anything. Matt's going to see if they've got a-"

"Got it, boys!"

Hearing the shout from another ship, Archie looked over curiously. "Fish in the harbor?" A pokemon who didn't feel scared to get close, maybe? The moment the net broke the surface, a screeching of the damned had Archie's blood run cold. Archie couldn't even bring himself to speak, only jumping onto the gangplank and running onto the docks as fast as he could and running through the pokemon he had in his head. Drago? Maybe. Stormy? Would definitely cause a scene. Fuck, fuck, fuck, they hadn't been careful enough- "Maxie!"

More screeching and wailing rang through the air, and Archie nearly stopped in his tracks when he looked at the fishing vessel again. That couldn't have been Maxie. He seemed similar, but that couldn't have been. For one thing, there wasn't a siren in that net, but a struggling human . A human with red hair that looked scared out of his mind and fuck . "Hey! What are you fuckers doing going around catching random swimmers!"

"But it- It had a tail!"

"I saw its fins!"

"I saw its fangs!" They were all giving Maxie - if that was Maxie -  cautious looks as they seemed to discuss it amongst themselves.

"No, that's my fucking shipmate and you're scaring him! Let him go before I let my Gyarados get him back for me!" He could see Maxie shaking like a Bayleaf as he stared up at him,  gripping the net tightly.

"...It changed. It ain't human," one of them finally said, the others quickly agreeing.

"For fuck's sake!" Archie knew he could be a bit impulsive, but the ship was over a dozen feet away and Maxie was looking at him with terror in his eyes. "Fine. You asked for this, you scum. Come on out, Stormy." His Wailord seemed happy enough to do so, landing in the water gleefully. The ship rocked to the side and near overturned, Archie kicking his shoes off and tossing them to Fighter who had run after him off the ship. Diving in, he immediately went towards the flash of red he saw. Grabbing the knife he liked to keep on his belt, Archie was quick to cut the net to help Maxie out, the redhead immediately wrapping around him.

Archie held him close before kicking up to the surface and managing to get on top of Stormy's back, the wailord immediately rising to the surface as he typically did. Gasping for air, Archie looked down to the human in his arms. "Maxie?" The nervous- No, the frightened clicking and hissing could only belong to his siren, but... But he wasn't even holding a siren. "Ssh, hey, it's okay, Maxie, I got you. You're alright." Archie shifted and sat down, sighing and glancing around the harbor. He had definitely attracted attention.

Arceus, that had probably been the most intense emotion Archie had seen from him. Fear. Maxie didn't even so much as pull His face away from Archie's shoulder or adjust to be more comfortable. Probably wasn't used to legs. Legs that were... very naked, Archie was suddenly realizing. Oh, boy. Archie shifted enough to tug his shirt off, squirming and moving Maxie before he finally managed to get it on him, letting the siren - human? - wrap back up to him as soon as he was done. "Let's head back to the ship for now." Try and figure out just what had happened. Maxie nodded against him. The way his limbs curled around him, Archie had a feeling Maxie would love Bubbles.

Raising his voice, Archie called loud enough for Stormy to comfortably hear him. "Swing us by the docks and then back to the ship, Stormy!" Had to pick up Fighter, after all. Stormy crooned as she began to swim to the docks,  seeming a bit confused by Fighter. Right,  he hadn't introduced his team to the new addition. "Don't worry, she's the new addition to the team. You'll love her." As soon as they were close, Archie called Fighter over, amused when she ran into his arms and squirmed up against Maxie. "Right. Looks like you get to meet Fighter, too, Maxie." Maxie startled,  staring at her for a few seconds before turning back into Archie.

Fuck. Right. His siren had just turned into a human. "Don't worry, Maxie, we'll figure this out, okay? Jeez, are you hurt anywhere?" Archie tried to shift him back enough to check him for any wounds. Maxie didn't even allow it,  only shaking his head as Stormy swam them all back to the ship,  where most of the crew seemed to be staring. "Fuck." That seemed to be the only thing Archie could really think to say.

It took a good twenty minutes just to recall Stormy and get back up to the ship with Maxie clinging to him, Archie finally just carrying him on his back and Areceus he was way too light. Seeing Shelly's look as he headed for his room, Archie shook his head, "Later." He could tell it was serious if she wasn't even trying to fight with him on this. Only when they got to His room did Maxie seem to finally start to calm down. Setting him on the bed, Archie finally pulled back, giving a nervous smile. "Better?" Maxie looked away from him without answering,  which,  really. That said it all.

Sitting on the bed, Archie rubbed at the back of his neck as he watched Fighter struggle to climb up, finally managing and plopping herself down right beside Maxie. "I'm guessing this isn't something that's supposed to happen."

"I... have heard of it. It will sometimes happen when a siren needs defense, or... Or..." Whatever the or was, Maxie couldn't bring himself to finish it.

"Good time to figure out it was there," Archie joked, patting at Maxie's back. He looked so small without his tail and fins.

"I didn't realize until it was mentioned."

"At least you're okay." Because Maxie had almost... Fuck, there hadn't been time to do anything .

"They were right. Humans only want to hunt us, or show us off like treasure."

Archie stayed silent, looking away from him. What could he say? Maxie was right. People would fear him if he knew what he was, and those that didn't would want to keep him like some trophy or pet . "There's a reason I hate humans, too."

Maxie leaned against Archie, this time showing no hesitation in twinning their hands. "This form is safer."

"Especially when we're at ports," Archie agreed, smiling a bit at their entwined hands. At least Maxie was warming up to them. He didn't even seem to mind the Granbull now sitting in his lap and rumbling quietly- Ah, right, they should find him pants. "Will you be alright staying like that?" Maxie nodded,  using his other hand to pet Fighter a bit warily. It was pretty cute.

Archie was content to just relax and watch Maxie, the amazement slowly hitting. His siren was a human right now. That was just- That was incredible. As strange as it was, Archie could now take Maxie into town and show him things he hadn't been able to see before. "Is your ship always so cold?"

"Sometimes. I'm willing to bet right now, though, it's because you're not wearing any pants." Standing up, Archie scratched Fighter before moving to dig through his clothes. "I might have something that can fit you here somewhere." Maybe. He was fairly sure all his clothing would hang off of Maxie terribly - Oh. There was always that. Shelly was going to be so pissed if this worked- Yup, here it was. "Okay, red seems a good color on you. Try these on. And, uh, I need my shirt back, now." Maxie looked at the shirt before slowly taking it off and handing it to Archie.

Clearing his throat, Archie took it and turned around to give Maxie some privacy, tugging his own shirt back on. Right. Just a naked siren turned human in his bed. Totally normal. Some shuffling around and grumbling later, Archie turned around to get a look at maxie. He still didn't look entirely comfortable,  but He was dressed. "Right. So, do you want to stay here or come into town with me? If you stay here then Fighter will probably stay with you."

"I will remain here for the time being." Fighter nudged at Maxie's hand, earning a small smile from him- He hadn't put on the underwear. Right. One battle at a time, then.

"I'll be back to check on you later." At least he knew he'd be well looked after. Maxie nodded,  back too sitting on the bed and resting a hand on Fighters head. "If you want to get some fresh air, just stay on the ship, okay?" With that, Archie gently edged his way out of the room, shutting the door and okay. Okay. Siren in his bedroom.

"Archie." Shelly in front of him. Little bit more important, that one.

"Oh, uh, hey, Shells." Just don't show fear. "How you doin'?"

"So now it's got legs?" She was looking at the door behind him, her arms crossed. She looked so much more like a captain than he did...

"Apparently it's a thing that can happen," Archie smiled weakly, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Sorry for causing a fuss out there, but he says he's gonna stay like this a while. That it's safer."

"He's been able to do this the whole time? How do we know this isn't just some way for it to get closer to us to eat us?" Sighing, Archie pulled her along back towards the deck, shaking his head.

"I don't think he knew he could do this, Shells. He was freaked out when I finally got to him and he's still shaking here and there. Whatever this is, he didn't plan it."

"I definitely don't think he planned for a fishing ship to pick him up," Shelly said with a huff. "It is still pretty convenient that when they pulled him up, he looked like a regular person."

"Works well for us, too, you know. Now this way you can keep an eye on him and be sure he's not planning anything." Archie smirked, giving her a wave. "I'm going into port. Feel free to play guard if you want."

"Fine," she said, rolling her eyes. "You think it's safe for us to stay in this port?"

"We'll be fine for a day or two before anyone gets suspicious, I'm willing to bet."

"You don't think those fishermen are gonna be a problem?" She shrugged. "Alright. You're Captain. Actually..." Shelly grinned and turned to Matt. "Hey, bro!"

"I don't like the way you grinned just now." Being Captain was exhausting. Maybe someone would steal it from him. "What are you doing, now?"

"I'm passing over guard duty." When Matt rose an eyebrow to Shelly, walking over, her grin only widened. "Hey, bro. Keep an eye on the fish for me? I'm gonna go into town. Oh yeah, Arch, I'm gonna need a bit of money."

"Steal it from the treasury like the rest of us do," Archie snorted. "Just don't touch my fucking silver, and Matt, don't scare him anymore. He's already terrified out of his mind and Fighter might bite you."

"You got it, Captain," Matt said with a nod. "That catch the other night was one of our biggest ones ever."

"See you boys later," Shelly said, beaming.

"I don't trust  her when she smiles." Honestly, the things Archie put up with. "Okay, I'm going into town. Let one of the others know to switch with you if you wanna get off this ship. Or just ignore Shelly's paranoia, that's what I do a lot."

"Sorry, Arch, but I still gotta trust the sis' gut."

"You just know she'll kick your ass if she finds out you left." The look he was given said it all. "Seriously, at least eat something if she's not back in an hour."

"Yep, got it." Alright... Now, to the silver shop...

::

"Alright, sailor, you're relieved of duty." Archie tried not to snort too much as Matt startled, looking to be half-asleep against the wall. "Arceus, go take a fucking break and eat something in town. There's a cart that sells sea taffy just past the docks."

"...I'll be back in just a few minutes," Matt finally said, hurrying off the ship. Archie shook his head, knocking on the door.

"Comin' in, Maxie." There wasn't a response, but when Archie entered, Maxie gave him a weak half-smile from where he was laying back on the bed. He still seemed to be doting on Fighter, the Granbull laying possessively across his lap. "Any better?" Archie shut the door behind him, setting his bags on the floor and taking a seat at the end of the bed.

"A small amount," he said softly. He still looked scared, but he was better than when he had been surrounded by water and hadn't known what to do. Smiling, Archie reached down into the bags, digging for something.

"Good, I have something that will make it a large amount." Maxie seemed to frown at Archie, head tilting.

"So many ornaments will weigh you down in the water."

"Orna- Oh." Shrugging, Archie pulled out a small necklace box. "I like silver. I know my limits, besides."

"It makes you such a more visible target as well," he huffed.

"Whoever attacks me has to get through me and my team. Trust me, Shelly gets after me about my silver habit, too." Opening the box, Archie carefully took out the necklace, holding it up in front of Maxie. "What do you think?"

"It is nice enough, though I don't understand why you ask me of such a thing."

"Because it's for you." Archie shuffled over so he was closer to Maxie, giving a grin. "It'll look good on you, plus it's light and thin." Maxie looked a bit startled - more than a bit, he was really surprised - and his hand came up to hold onto the necklace he already wore. "You can wear them both. If I eyed this right then it shouldn't knock into that one or damage it any, either."

Maxie gave him a small nod. "...Alright."

"Want me to help you put it on?"

"I believe you may be better at such a thing. I don't recognize the clasp."

"Yeah, these are weird ones, but they're made so they don't break as easily." It took a bit of maneuvering to get as close as he needed, wrapping the necklace around Maxie's front and peeking over the other's shoulder so he could clasp it from the back. "Just stay still a second." Maxie gave a half-nod, and stayed perfectly still, apparently not even daring to speak. They would have to work on making him less shy.

Fiddling with the clasp for a few moments, Archie finally got it hooked in before leaning back and giving a smile. It looked good on him. Maxie was only staring at him with wide eyes. Archie wasn't really able to read the expression on his face beyond 'not bad.' He then got a bit distracted because, really, Maxie was so small as a human. His hair was the only thing wild about him, everything else soft and smooth. "Ah- I... I do hunger, a small amount."

"Alright. Do you need to eat what you usually do like this or do you want to try some fish for now and see if that helps?"

"I...do not know." Maxie finally glanced down to Fighter. "I...will try your food."

"Alright." Fighter shifted to nuzzle up against Maxie some more, Archie stifling a laugh. "I'll bring you back something and we'll see how it goes for now." Maxie smiled down at Fighter, and when Archie turned away, he swore he could hear Maxie cooing to her. "I'll be right back." He'd have to keep an eye out, because the idea of those two bonding was fucking adorable .

" Hey, Arch! Like the new look?" Blinking at Shelly and her tattoo of a Shellder , Archie finally shook his head.

"Matt's going to kill you." It was kind of fucking awesome, though. "Fuck, Shells, now I wanna get one." He had been thinking of a nice Gyarados design... "Appropriate choice." Tattoo of a Shellder and... Earrings. She moved her hair- Her blue-streaked hair. Oh boy... "Matt's going to breakdown crying, I hope you know."

"Yeah, it's good, right?" She at least seemed proud of herself. "What's up? Thought you'd be making out with your fish for the next hour."

"I am not- Oh, forget it. Grabbing some food. Matt's out getting some saltwater taffy if you want to find the best place to give him a heart attack."

"Great! Hey, bro," she called out loudly, hopping back down the gangplank. Matt was so gonna kill her. It'd be great.

Grabbing two plates of whatever the cooks had made, Archie nodded along to their complaints before hightailing it back to his room. Maxie jumped a bit when he came in, raising an eyebrow.

"That was...more swift than I at first expected."

"The cooks were already pretty much done with lunch." Archie sat back down, handing a plate to Maxie before digging around for the poke food he had snagged, setting it down between them. "Here ya go, Fighter."

Maxie took a cautious bite. He seemed startled for a moment,  but eagerly ravaged the rest of his food. At least that meant he could eat it and liked it well enough. Archie ate a bit slower - although not much. It was really good. It was only a few minutes before Maxie was putting the plate down to lick his fingers... Aw... "So you'll be staying like this for a while, then?"

Maxie nodded quickly,  finally smiling. "Yes. A long while." Wow. He certainly seemed happy- Oh. Maybe it was because...

"Do you still feel hungry?" Maxie's grin widened and he shook his head. "Looks like you found a way to lessen your curse all on your own, then." Archie watched fondly as Maxie opened his mouth- Oh. He was singing. It was beautiful as always, but Archie didn't feel that absolute need to do whatever the song wanted of him. "It's softer." There wasn't that undercurrent of control. He still kind of wanted to do whatever Maxie wanted, but he didn't need to.

Maxie stopped,  and even smiling, he looked like he was going to cry. "Human."

"Yeah. Pretty damn close, at least." Archie gave him a smile, trying to be as supportive as he could even at the twinge of bitterness he felt. He- Oh. Maxie was wrapped around him, now. Didn't take him for the hugger type. "I'm glad for you, Maxie." So a siren could become a human, huh? Too fucking bad it didn't go both ways. It wasn't fair- It wasn't- Fuck . He was so fucking lucky and he got to be a part of the ocean like Archie had always wanted but could never have. But... But that wasn't Maxie's fault. Not by a longshot. Just... It was shitty circumstances they were born into... Huh. Maxie was crooning as he held onto Archie.

That seemed like a good noise, at least. Carefully, Archie ruffled Maxie's hair, frowning as his fingers got tangled in the hair before he was carefully brushing it out and, right. Saltwater. Stretching towards his dresser, Archie just managed to reach the brush on top. Maxie seemed like the type to appreciate his hair being all smooth and untangled. Giving it a second to make sure Maxie was calm, Archie carefully began pulling the brush through his hair, using every trick he knew to make sure it didn't hurt. He didn't want to find out if those claws could come back in this form. And...purring. Maxie was purring as he clung to Archie. And nuzzling him. That wasn't really helping the whole hair situation.

"Damn, you're more cuddly than I thought." Not that it was a bad thing. It was kind of really cute, and at least Maxie was no longer so scared like he had been earlier. Maxie said something to him in the siren language, but he had no possible way to know what. Still, he seemed happy enough and Archie was able to adjust him and go back to brushing through his hair, so that was something. This wouldn't be so bad. Human Maxie. Kinda nice.

::

"Fuck." Archie paused from where he was getting read for bed, staring at where Maxie was rubbing a dazed Fighter. "The bunks are full right now." There weren't any free beds open on the ship.

"...Oh." Maxie looked down at Fighter. "I... I think I can shift back-"

"No, no, you don't have to. I don't like you sleeping all alone down there, anyways." Jeez, okay. "Hey, why don't you sleep with me for tonight? My bed should be big enough."

"Oh- No, I regularly don't sleep." Maxie shot him a smile that Archie saw through in seconds. "I need less sleep than you-"

"Needed. Now you're human, right?" Archie tugged on his shirt the rest of the way, walking over and pushing Maxie down against the bed. "Humans need sleep every night."

"Not really human... It is more of a disguise-"

"Still counts. Shut up and go to sleep." Archie made sure Maxie stayed for a moment before hefting Fighter up and nudging her to lay on top of Maxie. "Move and you wake her up."

Maxie frowned at Archie. "But I don't want to wake her up."

"Then don't move," Archie laughed, pulling the blankets up over them all. "Go to sleep. Be human."

Archie's eyes slipped shut and he nearly dropped off to sleep until he heard shuffling beside him. Cracking an eye open, he blinked down at Maxie. It was easier now that the siren wasn't whistling him to sleep. Maxie didn't seem to notice him, only shifting with a frown and staring up at the ceiling. Probably still hyped from earlier. He'd calm down soon, hopefully. Eventually...

Eventually turned from five minutes, to ten, to thirty, and it seemed Maxie was just as frustrated as Archie that he couldn't just lay there and sleep. Scrubbing a hand down his face, Archie sat up and glared down at Maxie, watching him twist and turn in the sheets and... "Fuck." Maybe he was like Archie when he felt anxious. Sitting up a bit more, Archie shoved at Maxie's side so he was pressed up against the wall, gathering the blankets and sheets and curling them all into a huge ball in the middle that was a wreck of a mess. Much better, already.

Maxie turned back over to him. "What... did you do?"

"Something I used to do as a kid." Archie pushed and shoved the blankets around to form a little dent in the middle, leaving one blanket to drag on top of himself. "Here, get in the middle." Though he frowned, Maxie hugged Fighter tightly and shifted over into the middle of the mess. Archie threw the blanket over them again, shifting and settling half on top of Maxie and giving a soft sigh. Much better.

It seemed that the 'nest' idea was enough and after another lazy day in port, Archie was ready to turn in once the ship was underway onto the next island. The idea that someone was probably waiting for him was- A-Ah. His bed... His blankets . His blankets and sheets had been torn to shreds, and it seemed his pillows had fared no better. There, dead asleep in the middle of it all,  was Maxie curled up with Fighter. They both looked to be peacefully asleep and content as could be and it was all Archie could do to keep standing because of all the fucking- He couldn't even buy new blankets because they had just left the port .

It wasn't like he could just turn the ship around, and he wasn't a siren, he couldn't Just swim back and try to pick some up. So until the next port... Oh Arceus give him strength. At least it looked comfy? Arceus. Maybe he should steal one from Shelly- No, she'd kick his ass. Fuck, he could steal one from Matt, then. Later. When he wasn't so exhausted. When he laid down beside them,  he was able to hear Maxie quietly purring. In his sleep.

"You fuck." Pulling the other into his arms, Archie huffed as he tucked his face against Maxie's neck and, okay, at least he was warm. And nuzzling him. Sirens. Archie... kinda loved it. He wished... Fuck, no use in wishing for the impossible. He would settle on waking Kyogre, first. The next island they were going to should have the museum he needed that would tell them where he was located, too. If they did this right, then... "Just one more island." The same thing he had been saying for years, but it would be true eventually.

::

It only took another day to get to the next port,  thankfully. He really needed to do some shopping- Hand on his arm. Startled only a little, Archie looked over to Maxie, surprised he had left the room. He had been near hiding ever since he had changed. "I... Would like to accompany you."

"Oh. Oh- Yeah! Sure!" Archie grinned, looking to Fighter. "You gonna come with and protect us, too?" Fighter gave a growl,  trailing along behind the two. Cute. She thought she was fearsome. "Right. We can actually get you some clothes while we're in town, too. Just so you have other stuff to wear."

Maxie frowned at him. "But I like this."

"Yeah, but you need other clothes for when those need to be cleaned, or if they get ripped. Just trust me, more clothes are a good thing."

"Hmph. Are you here to gather information, as well?"

"Always. This place, though, should actually have the information I need . Everything else just leads me from one island to the next."

"Oh. Do you keep your information anywhere on the ship, then? I may be able to use my scarce knowledge to determine a possible location."

"Yeah, I can show you the map room when we get back. It has all our books and the maps we've collected." Archie helped Maxie down the gangplank, noticing that he still had a bit of trouble keeping his balance. "And I doubt your knowledge is 'scarce'."

"As I before told you, Zinny was the scholar." Maxie looked back to the ship with a sigh. "This life was her dream."

"Oh." What else could he really say to that? "Maybe we can find her one day and convince her to come with us, then."

"No. She remained at home." Right. And he was 'never going back.'

"Who knows, she might leave too, one day." Taking Maxie's hand as they got into town, Archie pulled him up onto the sidewalk. "Stay close, okay?" Maxie nodded,  squeezing Archie's hand.

That lasted all of ten seconds, as Maxie kept trying to wander around And look at everything. It was hell to get him to stay by his side and more than once he and Fighter both had to work to keep him out of the foot traffic and the actual traffic. It was kind of fun in a fucked up way, but mostly just worrying. They finally got to the museum,  and after telling Maxie a million times not to touch anything,  he let the siren wander. Fighter stayed by his side, Archie sighing and looking down at her, "It's like raising a kid, isn't it?"

It took a few minutes before Archie heard laughter. In a museum? That didn't seem right. Alright, he could wait a few seconds just to see what it was that had caused laughter. Making sure Fighter was behind him, Archie poked around the halls before seeing red hair and then an exhibit on... Oh, no. Maxie looked over at him. "Look at this! Is this what humans truly think?"

"Most of 'em, yeah." The exhibit was all about sirens and mermaids and what they were like if they were 'real.' "Seems you guys eat a lot of seaweed, huh?"

"They think sirens to simply be singing Mer! The Mer were driven to extinction two hundred years ago!"

"Whoa- Wait, really?" Archie didn't know that. "So mermaids and siren are completely and totally different?"

"Yes, of course! Mer were much more fragile and simple minded! To call a siren a Mer is an insult!"

"Oh. Uh, sorry if I ever called you one, then." Huh. Weird, but kind of cool.

"You have not. You may not have lived to tell the tale," Maxie informed him,  but when Archie looked over,  he had a Sableyesque grin.

"Mhm. You want to stick around here and mock this stuff, then?"

"The tails are so small! "

"Yeah. They look way too human, too." That had Maxie frowning,  looking over at him. "I mean the design. They're small and just look like humans with tails. No scales or fins or anything."

"Ah,  yes, Mer. Sirens adapted to be hunters. Mer were bottom feeders."

"Gotcha." Mer were really looked down upon, then. "I'll be over in the library area. Be ready to run if I have to steal something."

"Alright," Maxie hummed. At least Archie knew Maxie would be entertained while they were here. Still, he hadn't known mers and siren were really different. It was interesting to know. Not very useful, but interesting.

::

"Still pretending to be a person, fish?"

"We just get back and you can't resist." Archie sighed as he shifted the books and maps in his arms, Fighter holding another batch and looked quite pleased to help. Beside him, Maxie was now glaring at Shelly and oh, boy, this was going to go well, was it?

"Perhaps better than you, human, " he growled. Oh boy. Here Archie had hoped most of The siren stuff didn't bleed through.

"And just what's that supposed to mean," Shelly snapped back. "At least I'm not disguising myself as something I’m not."

"No? You certainly seem to be under the guise of captain when you're nothing more than a wench. " Ooh, noo.

"The fuck you say to me?! Why don't go crawl back into the fucking ocean you came from, mer!" Fuck. Maxie snarled,  baring fangs at her as his claws sharpened- Fuck.

"Alright, I think that's enough from both of you." Archie pushed his books into the arms of whichever crew member was closest, pulling Maxie back and not even flinching as the claws pierced his arm. Maxie probably didn't even realize it. "Shelly, for fuck's sake, quit antagonizing him all the damn time."

"Sure, Captain, no problem. As soon as it gets off our ship." Swallowing the bitterness that surged within him - because he had found something worse than being called Captain and that was mockingly being called it - Archie shook his head.

"Cut it out, Shells." He made sure to not speak to her as Captain, but as the one she had run to when they were kids and she was scared of what lurked in the dark. "Just...stop."

"Why are you putting us all in danger for it?! We've seen what it can do! It ensnared an entire town, what's to stop it from taking one of us when it-"

"Would you just shut up !" It. It . "For fuck's sake, Shelly, he is right here and can fucking understand what we're saying. Yeah, okay, he's not human, big fucking deal! For once in your life stop being a self-centered brat to hide when you're scared!" Maxie wrestled away from Archie, but instead of lunging at Shelly like he expected, the siren jumped overboard.

"Yeah, I'm scared. I'm scared you're putting all our necks on the line for that thing. You're the only one it even talks to, Archie. It should've been left behind in the Spades."

"Do you honestly think I would ever do something that would endanger any of you?" Archie snapped, already worried. Would Maxie be able to shift back to his siren form? "He helped us! He's been helping us! He's not just going to suddenly turn on us, Shelly."

"We don't know that! We don't know anything about him, Archie!" Now she really did look like a scared girl. "You're the only one that knows anything. Why is he even still here?"

"I don't-" Archie frowned, quieting at that. "I don't know." Seeing the fear grow, Archie stepped forward and pulled her into a hug. "Shells, when have I ever been a bad judge of character?"

"What about Leila-"

"That doesn't count and you know it. How about the day I met two punks who were trying to steal from my house and instead invited them in for lunch?"

"Still not your best idea... You're literally the only person on the ship that knows anything about him and it's been weeks."

"That's because I jumped into the ocean to swim one night," Archie admitted, taking the weak hit to his chest with grace. "What if I can get him to open up more and prove that he's not here to hurt us?"

"I wouldn't believe you or him. The past four days, he hid in your room."

"Because he had just changed into a human and didn't know what to do. I'm pretty sure he only just figured out how to walk."

" Four days? " She rose her eyebrow up at him.

"Well, what would you do if you suddenly had a tail?"

"Take an hour to figure out how to swim and find the bottom of the bottom."

"Yeah, well, you're kind of crazy." Archie ruffled her hair, hugging her closer for a moment. "I think I trust him, Shells. He won't hurt us, that at least I know for sure."

"Alright, alright, fine, Arch. I'll give the Mer a chance."

"Also, don't call him mer. Apparently that's a huge insult kind of thing."

"What? But they're the same thing."

"Nope. I’ll explain later. Here, you and Fighter get these to the map room. I'm gonna go see if he's alright.”

"Alright. Come on,  girl." Fighter looked between them before trotting after Shelly, Archie smiling and kicking his shoes off. Time to go check on Maxie, then.

He dived in after Maxie,  looking around for that familiar red,  but it was nowhere to be found. Guess he could change back. Alright, where would he go to hide from everyone... Under the ship, maybe? Hah. Knew it. Maxie was curled up under the ship, looking to take care that he couldn't be seen from the surface. At least he hadn't run off to the other side of the island. Doubling back and getting another breath, Archie dove right back under and swam straight to where Maxie was hiding, giving him an unamused look. Shelly was cruel, but there was no need to run away to the ocean . Maxie's eyes widened before he looked away. "She was right. I am no human."

For fuck's sake, that was the whole fucking point! Maxie was better than human! He- Grabbing the siren, Archie pulled on his arm until he complied and let himself be dragged up to the surface, Archie coughing to clear his throat. "You’re fucking- Of course you're not fucking human! You're better! Do you have any idea how jealous I am that you can choose between land and the ocean? She's scared, but that was no fucking reason- You're better ."

Maxie glared at him. "This is not better. My life is a living hell." Maxie swam closer,  fangs growing. "Do you look at a person you care for and wonder how they taste? How easily their skin will tear beneath you?"

"I..." What could he say to that . He was so fucking enchanted, but he kept forgetting that Shelly had reason to be afraid. Maxie was a siren. He was one of the most deadly things in the ocean. "Fuck, Maxie." He didn't feel fear, but he felt so fucking bad . Arceus, and Maxie had kept trying to tell him earlier, too.

"My family-" Maxie swallowed. "My life is no better than yours. You were born with freedom."

"We really got fucked over, didn't we," Archie laughed, the sound raw and jagged. "No matter how much you say how terrible your life is, I still fucking want it. Is that wrong of me? That I want a curse like that?" Maxie watched Archie, and for a second He thought the siren would run again. But then Maxie swam up and wrapped his arms around Archie's shoulder.

"If I could, I would give you my life in exchange for your own."

"And if I could I would find a way to let you be human for real," Archie sighed, hugging Maxie tightly and there had to be a way to get what they wanted. There just... There had to be something.

::

"This... Is... I thought you were smarter than that."

"Wha- What's that supposed to mean?"

Maxie looked over the map. "You have coastal regions marked. That is the farthest from where you will find Kyogre."

"That's from when we first started out," Archie admitted, running around and pulling out a few more maps. "We found out pretty quick that all the references were to islands way far away from the mainland, though, and even more references to trenches, like you mentioned." Archie started spreading the maps out, grabbing books on constellations he had gathered, too. "Now, one account said 'the stars will guide you' and all that, so we've been messing around by plotting our course by following the constellations. It's way finding, basically, but it's more basic, sort of. Okay, so this is the set we're on right now. More promising leads if the islands if we've come across mean anything."

Maxie chewed at his lip,  looking over the maps before grabbing a pen and circling seemingly empty areas of the ocean. "I myself know a few regions you may have luck in." He seemed to hesitate before he circled one final area in the north- Oh Arceus.

"Nope, nuh uh, no way. There's no way we're going anywhere near Dead Man's Trench. Anyone that sails in those waters ends up dead, ships either wrecked or missing."

Maxie snorted,  rolling his eyes. "I'm fully aware, though I doubt that is where he lies. I know the region well, but it still remains possible."

"Why would you know that region so well." Unless... Oh. "Don't tell me."

Maxie's eyes narrowed at him. "What."

"The reason that you know the region so well and that ships are always disappearing inside it. It's because that's where the other sirens live, isn't it?"

Maxie stared before finally sighing. " Regnum Syreni. Kingdom of the Siren."

"Kingdom?" Sirens had kings? Huh, that was... Archie stayed quiet, staring at Maxie and oh, now that made sense. That made a lot of sense, actually. "Right, probably save that one for last, then?"

"Yes. As I said it's highly unlikely."

"What do you think, then? Where should we go first?"

"Based on our current location,  and the areas marked, I say we look... Here."

"Might have to change our course, soon, then." Archie drew a little star next to the spot, moving to get another map. "I should have a map with more details of that area somewhere around here- Ah, right, it's under the table."

"How do you know where anything is in here," Maxie huffed.

"I have a system," Archie grinned, petting Fighter as he passed. "I know where everything's at!"

"You must be the only one." Maxie shook his head. Deciding not to admit that, yeah, he was the only one, Archie cleared his throat and waved it off.

"We have other books in here if you want to look around, you know."

"Very well." Maxie looked around and Archie saw a soft, sad smile appear on his face. He was probably thinking of his sister, again, the one who was the 'scholar'.

"You can read them whenever you want, you know. The books."

"Not really, but I appreciate the thought." Pausing, Archie looked to Maxie with pure confusion. What did he mean 'not really'? "I was taught much more of the speaking aspect, than reading or writing. It... It makes us better hunters."

"Oh." So he couldn't read English. Not yet, at least. "Huh. Maybe- Yeah, that would be perfect. How would you like to learn how to read them?"

"I..." Maxie turned to him with a smile. "I'd love to."

"Great. Let's go get Shelly, then." This would be good for them. Eventually.

" What? The she-witch? "

"Yes, the she-witch." Archie grabbed his hand and pulled him along. "She's the best teacher when it comes to this kind of stuff. Plus, it'll be good for you two."

"You must be joking. Her? What does she know?" Mm, this might actually be more trouble than Archie thought. Well! It'd be interesting to try, at least!

"Archie. Fish."

"Witch."

Then again, maybe this was going to take a little more work first.

Chapter 5

Twenty minutes. He'd left them in there twenty minutes and he heard thumping. Archie wanted to leave them on their own and give them a bit of time to work it all out- The door rattled. Alright. "Okay, Fighter, you distract Maxie with those cute eyes of yours, and I'll stop Shelly from killing everyone." The two opened the door and...oh boy. Maxie looked ready to tear into her. "New plan, Fighter, you grab Shelly."

With that, Archie was heading over to Maxie and probably stupidly stepping in front of him before he could hurt anyone. Maxie snarled at him, " Move. I'm going to teach this harpy-"

"What the fuck did you call me!" Shelly near screech, Fighter clinging to her leg to try and keep her from rushing forward.

"I leave you two alone for twenty minutes and you're already trying to kill each other," Archie groaned, placing his hands on Maxie's shoulders. "Calm down."

"She called me Mer!" Oh, jeez... He understood now why Maxie was upset, but he didn't get why Maxie was so upset.

"So what! You keep calling me insults!"

"Yes, fight fire with fire, just like our parents told us." Archie sighed, looking back to Maxie. "Okay, why did she call you a mer?"

"Because he-" Shelly shut up when Archie gave her a stern look.

"I cannot understand your human linguistics," Maxie huffed, leaning against Archie and crossing his arms.

"Well, that's just because you haven't been taught how, yet. It's not like we're born learning this language, either."

"Uh, we kinda are."

"No- No?" Archie frowned, shaking his head. "I mean, if you take a baby and throw them in another culture they pick up that language instead of this one."

"But, since we're born here and stuff, we are born already learning it."

"And he was probably born learning his language- You're missing my point, here."

"Why is your written language so different from your spoken?!" Maxie threw another book at the wall in frustration.

"Beats me." Archie sighed, rubbing at the back of his head. "Shelly, why don't you take a break?"

"Not a problem with me, Arch."

"Maxie." Archie scooped Fighter up, holding her out. "Here. Hug her." Maxie pouted, but after a moment he held his arms out, head still turned away. Archie gently passed Fighter off to him, the pokemon giving a pleased rumbling and curling up against him. "Better?"

"I am no Mer." Sighing, Archie tousled the other's hair, giving a weak smile.

"I know you're not, Maxie."

"It is... It is a term of disablement, and low intelligence."

"Oh- Oh! Okay, now I get it." It'd be like calling someone a retard, then. Ugh, no wonder Maxie got so pissed. "Let me guess, someone called you that a lot?"

"My brothers. Zephyrus especially." Jeez, and he had a lot of siblings, didn't he? Archie sighed, tugging Maxie into a light hug. There wasn't much else he could do, really. Maxie sighed as he seemed to relax in Archie's hold.

"I'm sorry you had to go through shit like that, Maxie."

"Yes, so am I... You mentioned you had siblings."

"Yeah, three. The second oldest is fourteen, right now." Fuck, he missed them.

"...Oh. You are...much older."

"Yeah. Ma didn't want anymore kids for a while and then she went and had three more and then my Pops died and... I kind of had to step up and help raise them."

"You...only grew up with one parent?" Maxie adjusted his hold on Fighter to hold Archie's hand. "What was that like?"

"Difficult." Archie returned the grip, giving a small smile. "Really difficult, at times. I was... Jeez, I was almost fourteen myself when Pops died and my littlest sis was only a year old or so? I had to help Ma out a lot. Quit school early and got a job to bring in support until we could get it all worked out."

"You... You labored for wages? At so young an age?"

"I had to take care of my family," Archie sighed, moving to lean against the table in the center of the room, still holding Maxie's hand. "What other choice was there? Besides, I wasn't all that great, in the end. I left the second I could."

"No child should have that sort of responsibility shoved upon them." Maxie's grip tightened. "No child."

"No, they shouldn't, but no one ever said life was fair."

"It should be."

"Yeah, it should." Taking a moment, Archie finally smiled. "It's fine, now, though. C'mon, we should probably get lunch. Hungry?" Maxie nodded, setting Fighter down on the ground and now holding her hand. Archie choked on a laugh, shaking his head. "You two are really attached already, huh?"

"What is it like? To be bonded."

"I- Bonded?" Maxie only nodded down to Fighter curiously. "Oh! Well... It's like knowing you have a friend to help you out. One that won't leave and will always be there for you."

"...I believe I understand."

"You do?"

"I think."

"That's a good start." Archie took Fighter's other hand, laughing as he led them through the ship. "C'mon, lunch and then you can help me with the maps. Numbers are a bit easier to understand for you, I'd be willing to bet."

Maxie nodded. "Not quite. Just… the ocean. Maps. Stars."

"Common ground." Maxie smiled at him, and leaned against Archie. It... It was nice. Seeing Maxie so relaxed and actually smiling was nice . Archie kind of hoped he could keep him this way - if not forever then just for a bit longer.

The two got down to the mess hall, and Maxie wrinkled his nose. "This is where you… eat?" Oh, boy.

"We are a pirate ship," Archie pointed out, trying not to laugh. "Yeah, it's where we eat." Maxie got this adorable disgusted little look on his face as he turned his head away. Archie failed in not laughing that time, but it really was an adorable look.

"Why would you eat in a place like this?"

"You get used to it." Besides, the ship was too much home for Archie to ever shy away from any part of it. "C'mon, cooks will have made something you like."

"I highly doubt that." One of the cooks seemed to hear, narrowing his eyes at Maxie and giving a look to Archie.

"He'll learn," Archie said solemnly, and, yeah, no, he was not fighting one of the cooks.

"Hmph," Maxie huffed, turning his nose up. One of the younger crew members - Trin - walked by and laughed.

"Hey, Nick. Come on, let's get the caviar for His Highness. " The sharp jerk and wide eyed look Mmaxie gave only confirmed Archie's suspicions on to just who he had been in his home.

"'S a joke," Archie explained, looking down to Fighter. "If you want to bite him, you have my full permission."

"Oh, come on, Trin! Let's get the escargot! "

"Actually, please bite them. Just a little nibble. They're being annoying."

Maxie finally seemed to collect himself. "That... I've heard you give commands, before. That's not correct. It's... Isn't it Use Bite?" Oh, no. Fighter perked up, looking right towards Trin. Archie just barely caught her around the waist as she pounced, more amused than upset.

"It is, actually. Good job, Maxie. Fighter, that was a joke. You can bite them, just don't use Bite, okay?" Because there was a friendly nip and then there was a bite from a Granbull. A glance to Maxie had Archie laughing because he just looked so surprised and confused. He really didn't get Pokemon, did he? "Maybe we can find you a pokemon of your own to catch at the next island we stop at."

"Of- Of my own?" Maxie seemed distracted, his eyes flicking here, then there, then there around the mess hall. Maybe siren hearing was improved and he was just hearing everyone's conversations?

"Yeah. If you're gonna travel with us it's probably best that we catch you some pokemon of your own."

"Uh... Uh huh." Maxie was frowning as he continued to glance around. When Archie looked over, he saw eyes on them that quickly turned to their food. Probably gossiping about the fact Maxie was staying with them, now.

"You alright?" Whatever they were saying couldn't be that bad.

"I, um... Yes. Yes, I'm fine."

"Wanna eat out on the deck? 'S a nice day. Just gotta be careful of wingulls."

"Yes. Yes, that sounds nice." When the two grabbed their food and made their way up to the deck, Maxie waited until they were sitting to whisper to Archie. "What does it mean. To sleep with a person."

Choking on the bite of food he ahd managed to take, Archie had to take a few moments to not die before realizing he might still die of embarrasment because what the fuck . "I- Uh- Where did you hear that?"

"Ashore."

"Right." Ashore, huh? Archie had a feeling that was very much a lie. "Well, typically when someone says they want to 'sleep' with a person, they really mean they want to fuck them." Maxie's frown only deepened as he tilted his head. "You don't- Okay, jeez, uh." Racking his brains, Archie snapped his fingers. "Means they want to mate with them?" Did he use that right? That had Maxie's eyes widening as he drew back.

" Excuse me? " Yeah, he used it right.

"No need to be that shocked about it. So, where did you hear that phrase again?"

"As I said," he huffed, turning away. "I heard it in passing ashore."

"Uh huh." Such a lie. "Eat your food. You didn't eat any breakfast this morning." Maxie looked down at the food and began to eat.

He'd eaten about half the plate when he looked to Archie, his face drawn. "I hunger."

"That's sort of the whole point- Oh." Not for fish, then. "Port is about another day away. Think you'll be okay until then." Maxie nodded, setting the rest of his plate aside. "Not gonna try to eat anymore?"

"No." Jeez, so like, did he have two stomachs, or something?

"Is there anything you can eat to stave it off? Maybe lessen the effects?"

"No. It lessens in this form, but it continues to grow no matter what."

"Sorry." As Maxie looked back to him, Archie gave a weak grin. "That I can't help more? I'm sorry."

"Why do you apologize when it is something you can't affect?"

"It's more... I guess I'm not apologizing so much that I'm sorry that you have to deal with something like this. It's- It's not pity. Fuck, no, pity is the last thing you need. It's more like... Fuck, I dunno, empathy? Wishing I could help but knowing I can't."

Maxie smiled at him, leaning against him as the two stared out at the ocean. "I know." Seeing movement, Archie glanced over to see Maxie leaning closer- Oh. Placing a hand against his cheek where he had been /kissed/, Archie blinked and stared a little more and, oh. Huh. That... Okay. Maxie had only laid his head on Archie's shoulder,  continuing to watch the waves.

Relaxing, Archie followed his gaze and stared at the waves as well, feeling a sense of utter peace and calm the likes of which he hadn't felt since he left home. "Hey, Maxie?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks. For giving me a chance."

"I only returned the favor."

"Still." Archie leaned back against him, sliding an arm around his waist to pull Maxie closer. "Things will be okay." Their 'curses', finding Kyogre, and finally fucking fixing the world. They'd be okay.

::

"Really? We're trying this again?"

"Can't be worse than when you two almost killed each other," Archie pointed out.

"We can actually kill- Well. I'll kill him." Maxie began to bristle beside Archie.

"Just- Just for twenty minutes I want you two to try and get along. Until I can be sure you can do it, however, I'm going to sit over there at table and fucking babysit you two."

" I am perfectly civilized," Maxie huffed. "I was raised with etiquette."

"'I was raised with etiquette.'"

"Shelly, stop acting like you're twelve. Maxie, seriously? You helped start the fight."

"You don't know that."

"Thank you for confirming it for me, then." Archie snorted, throwing himself into a chair and grabbing a map. "Twenty minutes. Play nice or I'll toss one of you into the crow's nest and the other into the ocean."

Maxie glared over at Shelly. "Well?"

"I can't wait until you become seafood ," Shelly growled, grabbing a book and near throwing it at Maxie's head instead of handing it over. "Page four. If you can even read numbers ."

Maxie growled at her, raising his arm- Archie got up and stepped in, grabbing the book and flipping open to the right page before handing it back. Giving Maxie a stern look, he turned to Shelly and instead gave her a disappointed look. "You, human, would have no hope of understanding the siren language."

"Why the hell would I ever want to understand a language like that ." Shelly crossed her arms, avoiding looking at both of them and good, the disappointed look had at least done something . "Come on, speaking it is the hard part. Reading it is easy." Maxie clicked and hissed at her, eyes narrowed. Still wondered what he was saying. Archie thought maybe he could pick something up, but... Nothing. Maybe he could ask to learn some of the siren language. "C'mon, it's easy." Shelly walked over, completely ignoring the increasing noises, pointing to the words. "You know the alphabet, right? From there it's just piecing it together and linking the words and sounds. See? The. Simple."

"Why do letters have multiple sounds?! Why are things not the same when spelled nearly the same?!"

"You mean stuff like tear and tear?" Archie asked, tilting his head a little. "Yeah, that is bullshit, isn't it?" Maxie frowned over at him, head tilting. "Both are spelled t-e-a-r." Maxie hurled the book at the wall.

" Your human language is impossible! "

"Yeah, no, he's not learning anytime soon," Shelly snorted, Archie rolling his eyes and laughing as Fighter ran over to retrieve the book and run it back to Maxie. "I give in, Cap'n."

"Should have been Zinnia," he heard Maxie mutter, arms crossed as he refused the book.

"Maybe another day," Archie waved off. "Hey, go check the heading? Matt's probably gonna steer us into a cliff if he keeps trying to go without sleep in fear of letting you out of his sight, again. You know. Because last time resulted in piercings and tattoos and hair dye-"

"Hey, you both know I look damn good." Shelly waved. "I tried!" Waiting until she was gone, Archie looked over to Maxie.

"You alright?"

"Yes. I'm fine."

"Alright. Wanna try the truth this time? If not, you can just give Fighter a hug. Or at least take the book so she'll stop jumping around."

"I told you already, I'm fine." Maxie looked down to Fighter firmly. "Enough." Fighter blinked, and Archie almost expected her to cry and pout. Instead, she gave Maxie a very annoyed and judging look - very much like Shelly - before dropping the book on his feet and going back to curl up under Archie's chair. Really, Archie loved this pokemon. Maxie only remained distant and aloof, and Archie had to wonder what was going through his mind.

"If you want to talk or even just yell about it, I'd be willing to listen. Just so you know."

"No." Right. If he was going to act like a bratty child, then that meant one thing. Standing up, Archie crossed the room to him, staring at him in the eyes for exactly five seconds before gathering him up in a hug and holding him close. This time, Maxie almost immediately calmed down, but he still remained silent. Just what was going on inside his head?

"I've decided." Archie tucked Maxie under his chin, rubbing at his back. "Since you didn't get enough hugs as a kid I'm going to make them all up to you."

"Hmph. A challenge even you may regret undertaking."

"Hey, I rise up to any challenge." Archie shifted to rub their cheeks together like he used to do to Zachary when he was having a bad day and needed a laugh. Maxie only began to purr, the motion putting him further at ease as he curled his arms around Archie. "You're so fucking cute." Seriously, for being a 'vicioius predator,' Maxie was so fucking adorable .

"Hush." Chuckling quietly, Archie kept rubbing at Maxie's back before shifting to press a soft, lingering kiss to Maxie's cheek. Maxie's purrs only grew louder at that, tugging Archie closer.

"You're surprisingly affectionate," Archie mumbled, not at all fighting against the closeness. It felt right to be this close to Maxie and do little things like kiss his cheek. It almost reminded him of when he had first met Leila- Wait.

"Mm, tis no surprise." Wow. That relaxed, then. Archie felt just a bit proud of himself. He'd shove his panic off for another time and just enjoy this soft, relaxed Maxie. It was probably for the best since his hunger had no doubt been setting him on edge. He'd... He'd take care of Maxie, first.

::

Archie had to admit, he was disappointed when he woke without Maxie in bed next to him. Probably trying to study in the map room. Sitting up with a yawn, Archie ambled out of the room and towards the map room. "My sister was a much better student." Was he talking to himself in there?

"Well that's setting the bar low," he heard Shelly. Arceus. Barely awake and he had to break up a fight between these two? Jeez, alright, Captain time. Pushing the door open more quietly than forcefully, Archie blinked at the sight in front of him and... Was he still asleep? He was pretty sure he was still asleep. Maxie was sitting at the table and Shelly was leaning over him, standing. The two were looking down at a book. "Alright, so, if that is past tense, that one is..."

"Present." The answer earned a smile and a nod from Shelly, the girl smiling down brightly at him.

"Exactly. See? Much smarter than your sister, I bet." Holy shit, they were getting along. Did Archie wake up in an alternate dimension?

"Oh, no no. My sister practically had our library memorized." Maxie seemed to pause before he looked up, blinking at Archie. Archie blinked back at him for a moment, opening his mouth before closing it and clearing his throat.

"Good morning?" That seemed like a good, safe bet.

Shelly only smiled up at him. "Hey, Captain."

"Okay, no, what the fuck? You two are getting along and not trying to each other apart? What happened?"

Maxie glanced to Shelly and finally answered, "We came to an understanding." He looked down at the book and squinted before pouring himself further over it.

"Was black magic or blood sacrifice involved?" At the unamused look Shelly shot him, Archie raised his hands peacefully. "Alright. Understanding, got it."

"Hang on- What's that?"

"Disaster," Shelly said, frowning at Maxie. "You've been squinting a lot. Salt water mess up your eyes, or something?"

"No, I believe it to be this form."

"Oh, don't tell me." Archie sighed, grabbing a book and flipping it open to a random passage, moving to stand around six or so feet away from Maxie. "Hey, Maxie, do you see words or do they look blurry?"

"How on earth do you expect me to see from that distance?"

"Fuck." Moving forward three feet, Archie raised an eyebrow. "How about now?"

"I- It's difficult but yes, I can see it- What is this about?"

"Glasses," Archie sighed, closing the book. "He needs glasses."

"Jeez, Captain... That's gonna be a lot of work. Can't go pick those up or anything, or go steal them."

"Tell me about it." Archie crossed his arms, tapping his foot. "Keep teaching him. I'll be back." Someone had to have an extra pair of glasses on this ship, right?

"Hey, uh, Arch..."

"Yeah, Shells?" Maybe the quartermaster? He wore glasses when he wasn't fucking around with the weapons.

"Here." She dug through her pocket and held out a pair of glasses. "I... They work for me, so maybe..."

"You need glasses? Since when did you- Nevermind." Archie took them carefully, moving to slip them on to Maxie's face. "Hold still. These should help you see a bit better." Maxie's face scrunched up and he shut his eyes tightly until Archie had the glasses settled on his face. The siren opened his eyes and they flew open wide, looking around. "Better?"

"Yes- How-" Maxie carefully took the glasses off and examined them, tilting them this way and that before slowly putting them back on.

"They're glasses," Archie laughed, delighted at watching his adorable siren fiddle with them. "They're to help humans see better. It makes sense that your eyes are adjusted to an entirely different environment."

"Yes... You simply put glass up to your face?"

"Well, it's not- It's like- It's glass, but not glass." At the confusion, Archie looked to Shelly. "Help?"

"Basically they bubble it in or out so it makes things look bigger."

"They- Bubble? What?" Archie stared at her, shaking his head. "You know what? Nevermind. It's human magic, all you need to know."

Maxie shook his head before looking back down at the book. "Ah! I see, now!"

"Seriously, since when have you needed glasses?" Archie asked quietly, looking back to Shelly.

Shelly rubbed at her neck, looking away from him. "I... I stole them a few months ago. I figured it out- Jeez, a year ago? Matt's the only other person who knows."

"Afraid it'd 'cramp your style?'" Archie pulled her into a hug before she could snap at him, ruffling her hair. "Easy, Shells. I'd rather you use them if you need 'em than fall off the edge of the ship."

"I only really need them for reading. So I don't need them all that often."

"It's okay, Shells, you don't have to explain anything to me. I'm just so glad you feel safe enough-" Archie was laughing even as Shelly tried to get a hit in on him.

"Archie, don't think I won't tell your ma that you're being mean to me!"

"Hey, that's cheating." Archie wrapped her up in a tight hug, grinning as she tried to escape. "I think it's adorable ." Shelly seemed to pause before nudging Archie.

"So. Arch." She gave a significant look to Maxie before looking back up at him. Archie only raised an eyebrow and shook his head, because, what? "You two. Like, for real."

"Wha- No. No! It's not-" Fuck, Archie just remembered his small bout of gay panic. "It's not like that for him."

"Arch. He's been sleeping in your bed for a week."

"Eight suns."

"Has it been that long?" Archie asked weakly, avoiding both their looks. "I mean, it's not like I don't have the room for it in my bed, right?" Shelly's eyebrow only climbed higher.

"Cap'n... You can't be serious."

"I'm always serious. Especially when I'm not. What am I supposed to be serious about this time?"

"I was kidding, before. This isn't Leila."

"Okay, what exactly were you kidding about? Ugh, nevermind, this is making my head hurt. I'm going to get some breakfast, you two should join me. You probably haven't eaten yet."

"Very well," Maxie said with a yawn as he stood and stretched. "If you insist." While Shelly huffed and headed towards the mess hall, Archie fell back to walk with Maxie, nudging him gently.

"We should make port in a few hours. You gonna be okay?"

"Yes. I have gone much longer without, before." Maxie smiled at Archie before twining their arms together. Startling, Archie relaxed into the contact, leaning a bit more against Maxie.

"Good. That's good. Still wanna try and eat something now?"

"Not particularly."

"Will you try anyways?" Maxie only shook his head, leaning it on Archie's shoulder. Of course Shelly chose that moment to look back at them. Archie stuck his tongue out and, really, it was nothing. Just Maxie being Maxie, probably. Who the fuck even knew how sirens treated the ones they saw as friends. Just... Just friends.

::

"Hey, Maxie." The crew had just docked and already crew members were tumbling down onto the docks. "Do you, uh... Is it alright if I come with you while you hunt?" Maxie frowned, apparently not expecting Archie's question.

"I... You wish to?"

"Last time you went off on your own led to you almost getting caught. Besides, I don't mind seeing you hunt."

Maxie slowly nodded. "Very well. If... If you're certain."

"I'm certain. Just let me know whenever you want to go."

"Now?" When Archie looked at him, he turned his head- Aw, he was blushing. "I... While it is common, it is still unpleasant."

"Like I said, I don't mind." Archie took his hand after a moment, squeezing it lightly. "Remember, I have my own little curse." He still kind of hated himself for how much he enjoyed watching Maxie hunt.

"I still disbelieve you." Actually... When he thought about that... Maxie really did kinda get screwed over, huh? Needing to always eat people, can't sing without casting a spell on people, and Prince of a fucking kingdom he hated.

"I never said it was a curse worse than yours." Sighing, Archie squeezed Maxie's hand one last time before kicking his shoes off and jumping up to stand on the railing. There was always something so fucking freeing about being one gust of wind away from falling down into an ocean that was bigger than he could ever realize. He started to turn to Maxie before seeing him dive past, a splash in the ocean only moments later. Laughing, Archie dived right in after him, chasing that flash of red as fast as he could. Maxie looked back at him, tail brushing his cheek before he was taking off.

Staring after him for a moment, Archie grinned before following after him, calling up Bruce and latching on as quick as he could. Bruce seemed far too used to this game already, swimming after Maxie at once. Archie wasn't sure how long they swimmed - he periodically had to come up to the surface for air - but Maxie finally stopped and nodded, surfacing. Archie recalled Bruce as he surfaced next to Maxie, looking around. They seemed to have swam quite a distance. "How far back do you want me to be?"

"You will be safe," Maxie answered pretty vaguely. Archie rolled his eyes, letting the waves pull him closer to Maxie before he was swiftly kissing the siren's cheek. As a friend thing. Yeah.

"I know." Maxie smiled at him serenely before turning his head away and beginning to sing. Archie glanced around again, noticing they were close to the shore, no more than seven feet deep in the ocean or so. He didn't notice much else after that as he got distracted by Maxie's song, Archie smiling back at him before laughing at seeing the glasses . He must have forgotten to take them off before they left. Slipping around to the front, Archie carefully took the glasses off, unable to resist the urge to kiss at the corner of one of Maxie's eyes.

And oh, that was nice. Maxie's song was so sweet and warm, it was the best one Archie had heard, yet. He wondered if the tone changed it at all. After all, he used to whistle to put the crew to sleep. Archie didn't know if that would affect his hunting, but it was nice to simply close his eyes and listen to the song, humming quietly along to the song here and there. During a small lull, Archie spoke quietly, "'S okay, it's not controlling me." The song was nice, and Archie felt the tug, but his actions were still his own.

No sooner had he spoken, two girls came stumbling to the shore, looking hastily put together. They were holding hands and giggling with each other as they came closer to Maxie. Archie watched them absently, moving to slip back around behind Maxie, kissing at the back of his neck and, really, he could probably get away with that. Everything felt good right now, anyways. "Try to have fun."

Those words seemed to flip a switch in Maxie. The girls were only up to their ankles in the water but he already was ending his song and pouncing on the both of them, dragging them into the water as he started to rip them apart. Archie let the waves drag him forward tores the shore more, sitting down a few feet away in the sand and relaxing in the cool water as Maxie turned the waters red with blood, everything about him utterly feral. Archie was well and truly fucked if he could only think about how the color of the blood reminded him of the color of Maxie's eyes.

And Arceus. For as terrified as he should have been listening to the girls still trying to scream, he looked at Maxie and only thought about how gorgeous he looked when he was like this. And he probably didn't even know. Maxie probably thought he looked horrible like this, feral and enraged and relying on nothing but instinct. Archie couldn't help but think that was when he looked the most beautiful. Relaxing more and more, Archie kept his gaze on Maxie as he quietly hummed to himself, trying to mirror the song the siren had been singing earlier. It really /had/ been beautiful.

Finally Maxie was slowing down before he stopped feeding entirely, swimming over to Archie- Oh. Alright. Cuddly mood. Maxie was curled up to his front and clinging as close as he could get, fins twisting and curling in the wind and claws pressing down against his skin - not piercing, though. "Did you eat enough?" Archie ran a hand through Maxie's hair, working at the tangles in it.

"Yes," Maxie purred, his ear fins bending forward gently, the very tips curling against Archie's ear as Maxie only tried to shift closer. Giving a small shiver, Archie huffed a laugh as he let Maxie curl up to him.

"You're cuddly." Skirting his hand around the fin, Archie paused as his fingertips hovered over it. "Do you- Do you mind? I just want to know what they feel like, I guess." Instead of verbally answering, Maxie's fin only tilted towards Archie's hand, brushing against his fingertips. Archie let it stay like that for a few seconds before he was rubbing a thumb against the fin, marveling at the feel of it. It was- It was strange. They were meant to be ears, but the- Material? Skin? Whatever they were was so interesting. Maxie's purrs seemed to hitch and he shuddered before melting against Archie.

 

"Ah, sorry?" Even as he apologized, Archie didn't do much to stop, only shifting so he was rubbing at both fins, keeping Maxie curled up against his chest.

Maxie's head tilted a bit- Oh. Ah. That was weird. The other was kissing at his neck and that- That was very weird- Nice? It was nice, but it was- Jeez. It was way too nice. Fuck it, he could have a gay panic later after he enjoyed this. Maxie could probably bite him and he'd be okay with it at this point. Maxie crooned something in that language of his, but Archie was fairly sure it was just one word. Still no idea what he said.

"You know." Archie swallowed, trailing a hand down to cup the back of Maxie's neck. "I'm not really affected by your songs. So if you wanted to you could sing for me and it'd be okay." Because he could tell that Maxie adored singing but hated how he couldn't just sing to sing. There was a moment of silence, and Archie thought Maxie had ignored him, but then he heard him start to sing quietly. No words, at least, none that Archie knew. But it was still gorgeous as ever.

It was similar to before, but now it was softer and warmer. It reminded Archie of lazy days in the crow's nest where he could just get lost in the rocking over the waves. Before he knew it, he was leaning forward and placing a kiss against the skin right under Maxie's fin, speaking quietly, "Keep singing." Because Maxie needed this far more than he would ever need to hunt. Maxie's song stuttered, but he did keep singing, and the sound only continued to get sweeter as the two held onto each other. Arceus, Archie had never really been good at singing. Never even really cared for music beyond sea shanties. But Maxie...

For Maxie, music seemed to be everything to him - it was an entire way of living. Archie played with the ends of his hair, simply listening to Maxie sing before he was ducking down and kissing at the other's neck, exactly like Maxie had done to him. It seemed like the right thing to do? Fuck, he was so in over his head, here, but... He couldn't bring himself to hate it. Maxie's voice made a funny squeak sound and he shivered as Archie felt nails - nails, not claws - start to press up against his skin. At least if Archie was drowning, it seemed Maxie would be right beside him.

"I'm so in over my head with you," Archie sighed agianst the skin, holding Maxie as close as he could get away with and fuck. He really was in love, wasn't he? Figured. He had always been a part of the ocean, so it made sense he would fall in love with another part. Maybe that's why it felt so right.

Maxie stopped singing and drew away from Archie's grip to stare at him. "I... I have observed a human custom. I'd like to try it." He glanced down before meeting Archie's eyes again.

"A human custom?" Archie frowned, tilting his head. "Alright? I mean, sure, I guess." Maxie leaned forward again- Jeez looked like he was about to- Oh. For a second, Archie was really, really fucking excited and jeez, didn't that just tell him everything he needed to know, and then he realized that Maxie thought a kiss was exchanging air. Arceus. "A-Ah, wait, Maxie-" Archie pulled Maxie back, placing his hands on the siren's cheeks. "Ah, that- Mm, that's- Aha, that's not how you do it."

Maxie frowned at Archie, head tilting in his grip. "No?" Unable to stop a laugh, Archie shook his head.

"No, but let me show you..." If he thought about it, he wouldn't do it. So Archie simply leaned forward and pressed his lips against Maxie's. He had always been more about action than words, anyways. And there, on the beach next to a fresh kill, Archie taught his siren how to kiss.

Chapter 6

"That's it, just relax," Archie mumbled between the soft kisses, guiding Maxie through each and every kiss. He had never had all that much experienced himself, but each kiss seemed to feel more and more right and damn was Maxie a quick learner. But the way he would sometimes tense or shiver made Archie think he was his first... His first. He acted even more unsure than Archie, and that was a feat. It was also kind of- Fuck, Archie felt really fucking lucky, and he made sure to be slow and gentle, guiding Maxie through each kiss and always giving him a bit of time between them. "'S it a human custom you like, then?"

"Yes," the redhead answered quietly. "Very much so." Archie couldn't resist pulling him into another kiss at that, humming quietly and slowly but carefully licking at the other's bottom lip. Maxie shivered and he made a quiet noise as he pressed back against Archie, arms coming up to wrap around his shoulders. Archie wanted to take it slow, but he couldn't resist biting lightly at the lip, sucking on it for a second as he wrapped his arms around Maxie's waist.

Maxie made another noise that sounded suspiciously like a whimper before he pulled away slowly. "I... I believe we should return."

"Yeah- Yeah, we probably should." Archie cleared his throat as he loosened his grip, staring at Maxie and giving him one last, gentle kiss. "Say you'll stay with me and my crew."

Maxie nodded, and his tail split out to legs, his clothes just... magically reappearing. "Yes. As long as your crew will have me."

"I think you'll be with us for a while, then," Archie laughed, rubbing at Maxie's cheek and kissing at the other. Then, in one motion, he scooped Maxie into his arms and stood, walking back to the ship.

"What- What do you think you're doing?!"

"Carrying you back to the ship," Archie grinned, trying not to laugh at Maxie's expressions.

"I am perfectly capable of walking back myself!"

"Yeah, but this is more fun. Besides, you're gonna help me buy some more blankets since all of mine were torn into shreds ." Maxie huffed and grumbled, even as his arms curled to wrap around Archie's neck. "Relax, I'll put you do when we get into town." Adjusting Maxie, Archie couldn't resist leaning forward to kiss at his cheek again. "Okay?"

"Very well." He really was adorable.

"Don't worry, when we get back we can take a nap in my bed, if you want." Maybe practice kissing some more.

"If you insist... Archie." Almost jerking to a stop at that, Archie couldn't stop his wide grin and oh, yeah, it was confusing as hell but Archie had a feeling things were going to be just fine in the end.

::

"So... We're doing what exactly?"

"Catching you a pokemon. I'll be helping you since you haven't exactly had time to get a starter, but between us we should be able to catch you someone pretty decent to start your team."

"You captured her?" Maxie nodded down to Fighter, frowning up at Archie.

"Well- Sort of." Archie rubbed at Fighter's head, giving a small smile. "I gave her the choice of coming with me or staying at the island we found her on. Some trainers give pokemon a choice before they capture them. Others just… take."

"I see." Maxie nodded slowly. "I believe I understand."

"Well, we're about to find out. This should be a pretty good area with some wild pokemon."

No sooner did they step into the tall grass was a Pokemon leaping at them to fight. Fighter was taking a stance at once, Archie smiling a bit. It had been a while since he was in a Pokemon battle. "Generally wild pokemon attack trainers a lot, so be prepared for that."

"I- Right. Right." He looked so confused. Probably didn't know any Pokemon besides water Pokemon.

"Hey, don't worry, you'll catch on fast," Archie laughed, bringing Maxie in to kiss his cheek. "This one is a Numel, a fire type. Fighter, here, is a fairy type. That means her fairy type moves are half as effective. If I used one of my water pokemon, though, then the Numel would be twice as effective."

Maxie began to nod. "Right. Alright. I understand." The Numel grunted and huffed, stamping out the ground as it stared Fighter down.

"Fighter, let's start simple. Use Bite." Archie watched Fighter leap forward and Bite at Numel, immediately draining his health. The Numel squirmed and flailed before charging forward and hitting Fighter, sending her flying back a few feet. "Ooh, he knows Take Down! A strong one, then."

"Take... What?"

"Take Down, it's a normal type move that does a lot of damage. He must've been on his own for a pretty long while to know a move that strong."

"He... He is a high level?" Maxie frowned at him before looking to Granbull and nodded. "Use... Tail Whip." Fighter did as told at once, Archie staying quiet and grinning as he watched. Maxie had been learning, then. Made sense, they had plenty of Pokemon books in the map room. Maxie watched silently as the Numel huffed and shot a Lava Plume out. Yikes. Alright, no big deal. Fighter shrugged it off easily enough, and Maxie seemed to watch it all. "...Use Tail Whip."

While Fighter did as told, Archie raised his eyebrows and, huh. Maxie was the type to get the stats down and then attack all at once, then. Not a bad strategy. Archie himself tended to rely more on constant, quick attacks. Numel shot out another Lava Plume, Archie wincing as Fighter whimpered, and he nearly stepped in before remembering this was Maxie's fight. Not his. "Use Headbutt."

Fighter ducked her head and charged forward, dealing a direct hit to the Numel's side and knocking the pokemon down to the ground. She was strong, wasn't she? The Numel shook it off, already starting to wobble a bit. It shot out an Ember at Fighter, the Granbull quickly dodging to the side. "Use Bite." Fighter leapt forward and got a nice hit in on the Numel's neck, the pokemon bleating in anger more than anything else as it retaliated with another Lava Plume this time, looking to put quite a bit of strength into it. Wearing down quickly, then. Probably wasn't used to fighting long fights. Maxie's eyes narrowed and he only held his hand out to Archie.

Startled for a moment, Archie grinned as he rifled around his belt before pulling out an empty pokeball and dropping it into Maxie's hand. Maxie placed a hand on Fighter's head, using the other to throw the pokeball at Numel. The pokeball hit the Numel square on the forehead before it was opening and sucking it inside, the pokeball twitching on the ground. Once. Was the pokemon tired out enough? Twice. Did the pokemon actually want to belong to a trainer? Three times. Did it want to leave home?

Click.

Maxie startled, his eyes widening and his hand lifting off of Fighter's head. He looked over to Archie, expecting answers. Archie just gave another laugh. "Three times and then a click. That means you caught him. He's yours."

"He's... He's mine?" Fighter ran over to get the pokeball, picking it up carefully before running back over to Maxie and holding it up towards him.

"Yeah. Why don't you let him out so you can say hi properly? He won't hurt you now." Maxie looked down at the pokeball, taking it slowly before looking back up to Archie. Winding his arms around Maxie's waist, Archie leaned over and tilted the pokeball down before clicking on the button. The two watched as Numel was released from the Pokeball, looking around before seeming to look up at Maxie. The two stared before the little pokemon toddled over and gently headbutted Maxie's leg. "Looks like he likes you."

Fighter stared at Numel for a second before giving a quiet growl, sitting down beside the pokemon and looking pleased with herself. Numel looked to her before smiling and bumping his head against hers, as well. Bending down, Archie held his palm out, smiling as Numel gave him a curious sniff. "You should name him. You don't have to, but it helps if you want to name them at the start rather than waiting and changing it later."

"What would you suggest?" Mm. What would fit best for a little fire and ground type that belonged to a siren...

"Rocky." Maxie made a face at that, shaking his head. "King."

"...Michaelangelo."

"Mich- You want to name your Numel 'Michaeleang- Wait, no, Mich- Fuck, why?"

"The longer the name, the higher class," he hummed.

"Oh." Maximillian, huh? "I'm gonna call him Mikey for short." Maxie huffed, though ultimately didn't argue. "You know, if you want, he's probably still small enough that you can carry him back to the ship for a while if you want to." Maxie bent down on one knee to examine Numel properly, resting a hand on his head.

"...Come on, then." Numel pressed up into the hand at once, Archie laughing.

"He's gonna be a cuddler, then, isn't it? C'mon, we still need to stop in town and get a few things. Do you want anything while we're there?"

"No. Not for the now."

"Let me know if you ever need anything, okay?" Maxie smiled at him and nodded.

"Alright. Let's go."

::

Stifling a noise of frustration as he felt the itch at his skin, Archie carefully tried to sit up without disturbing Maxie or their pokemon. Mikey, it seemed, had taken a habit to sleeping with them as well. Of course, with his luck, Maxie immediately began to stir. "Archie...?"

"Just stretching my legs." Archie soothed a hand through Maxie's hair, kissing at his cheek. "Go back to sleep."

Maxie only yawned and began to sit up as well. "Where are you going?"

"I just- I'm just going-" Sighing, Archie shook his head. "I need to swim for a while. I'll be back."

"But... It's the moon time."

"I know, 's the only time no one wonders where I've gone." Archie shifted, biting off halfway through a whine. "Maxie, I need to go swim. I'll be back, okay?" Maxie yawned before nodding and settling back down.

"Be back soon." Archie kissed at Maxie's cheek before he was leaving the room quietly, kicking his shoes off halfway to the deck. His outer clothes were much the same, Archie stripped down to the bare essentials - okay, maybe he was still wearing some earrings and a bracelet or two. They could pry the silver off of his cold dead body-

The smell of the salt winds hit him full force as he stepped on deck, Archie feeling something within him start to relax. He'd been... He'd been a bit on edge for a while, but now he was finally able to unwind, now that he was out at sea. Now that he was home again. Too many ports, too few days between. It felt like they hadn't properly been out in the ocean for far too long.

Sucking in a deep breath, Archie stood on the railing and let the wind rock him back and forth before he was turning on his heel and falling overboard. When he hit the water, he made no move to swim, only letting himself fall further and further into the ocean's embrace. He trusted the ocean with everything in him. He knew that while he was in her waters, he was safe. It was the land he had to be careful of. The land was home to humans, and he'd learned quickly that humans were deceitful, selfish creatures willing to hurt anyone that got in their way.

While the ocean had her temper, Archie knew what to expect. What set her off. With land and the humans... No, Archie would be quite content to stay like this forever. To just lose himself in the waves and sink to the very bottom of the world. Maybe not forever, but to just get lost in these waves. The only thing keeping him from drifting away was the siren grounding him. How ironic. And yet it was the siren tucked away in his room and singing quietly that made Archie stay so close to the ship.

He wasn't sure how long he swam, but he knew by the time he finally crawled back up the rope ladder he had barely thought to toss, he was exhausted, sated, and the sun was starting to come up far in the east. Shaking himself off, Archie yawned as he went back towards his room, rubbing at his eyes as he observed the pile on the bed. Maxie was watching him with half lidded eyes, finally smiling and opening his arms for Archie to crawl into - which he happily did so.

The two pokemon shifted around them a little, Archie relaxing even more and kissing at Maxie's neck as he settled down in their ridiculous mess of a 'nest.' It was nice that he still felt the water drying on his skin. "Was it satisfying," he heard Maxie ask him quietly, fingers gently dragging through his hair.

"Very," Archie hummed, shifting so he was lying on top of Maxie. Much better. "Sorry. Sometimes I just need to swim."

"I can understand it. Are you going back to sleep?"

"For a bit, at least." Archie lifted a hand to rub behind Maxie's ear, yawning again. "Stay?"

"Of course. I, myself, am still in need of-"

"Captain!" There was a heavy knocking at the door, Archie groaning quietly. "First mate Shelly sent me to wake you up! She said it was time to set a course for the next checkpoint for Kyogre!" Maxie kissed Archie's forehead.

"I'll tend to it," he said, already rising and stretching.

"You sure?" Even as he asked, Archie didn't make much of an attempt to move, only settling in the nest and smiling as Mikey and Fighter curled up against him.

"Yes. I know the waters. Sleep." Maxie gently stroked Archie's cheek before pulling away and leaving the room to meet up with Shelly. Archie gave a quiet laugh, settling down.

"Yeah. I'm definitely screwed."

::

Sitting in the crow's nest and marking their position, Archie made sure they were on course even as he watched the ship, grinning when he saw Maxie slowly interacting with people that weren't Matt and Shelly. It seemed a lot of the crew were quite taken with the siren that needed glasses and had the habit of correcting their pronunciation. Maxie... Maxie was still working on it. But he was branching out, so that was a good thing. He even seemed to be interested in how the ship worked, watching them pull at the sails and the ropes with his head tilted. Well, if he was gonna part of a pirate ship, he ought to learn, Archie supposed.

He caught on fast, too, with everything else. It seemed every time he looked back Maxie was learning something new, nodding along to whoever was talking and looking to be concentrating fiercely. His cute little Numel was behind him every step of the way, and, really. A Numel on a pirate ship. A fire type out in the middle of the ocean. Poetic justice.

Archie watched with amusement as Maxie began to attempt to tie one of the ropes down. It... It could have been going a lot better. Maybe he should go help. If he happened to kidnap Maxie for a few hours, well, then those things happened. Really, he was just being a good captain and showing Maxie the ropes. Heh. Now he just- "Captain!" Oh, no. Shelly glanced over to Maxie before looking up again at Archie and waving her hand for him to come down.

"On my way." That was Shelly's 'we need to talk' tone. Archie was gonna hate this, he could just tell. Sighing anyways, Archie swung and climbed his way down various ropes, knowing the strength of each and every one by now.

The moment he was back on the deck, Shelly nodded. "Come on. I picked up a couple things at the last port I think you need to see."

"I don't know if I like the sound of that." Archie followed anyways, sparing a last glance back at Maxie. Maxie didn't even seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, only continuing tying his knots.

The minute they were in the map room, Shelly was picking up a book and setting it down on the table, crossing her arms at him. "Chapter Six."

"Ominous." Opening the book after the look turned into a glare, Archie flipped to the right chapter, frowning at seeing it was about sirens. "Where did you get this?"

"Stole it from a library at the last port. Try actually reading it."

"Stealing a library book. I'm very disappointed in you, Shelly." Siren...mates? What? "What's this about?"

"Here, look." Shelly began to read aloud, having bent down close to the book. "'When the siren chooses their mate, the two will be attached at the hip until a formal mating gesture between the two has been accepted. If the siren feels their mate is threatened, they will immediately protect them from any and all threat, including allies. After the formal mating gesture, all that is left is for the siren to lay claim to their mate by way of a visible mark upon their neck, similar to a scar.'"

"Okay, I'm still not getting why you're making me read about siren mates." Yeah, he and Maxie were something , but mates sounded a bit... "How do we know if any of this is even true? And what the hell are 'formal mating gestures'?"

"I dunno. Did he do anything all... affectionate or sireny?" Well, Archie had taught him to kiss, but he was pretty sure that didn't really count.

"Not that I know of." Oh, he had let Archie stay with him while he hunted, but he had done that before a little bit in the beginning, anyways. "Besides, I think I would notice if I suddenly had a scar on my neck."

"Yeah, just... Just be careful, alright? Says if the mate is human, they start to... To change." Silent, Archie slowly waggled his very human fingers in front of her face.

"No webbed fingers, yet."

"Change like want to eat people."

"Oh." Mm, Archie didn't feel like he wanted to eat anyone. Maybe go swim again, but not eat anyone. "I think we're good, then. Let's slow down for a second, though, okay? We don't know if I'm a mate of his or if this book is even real ."

"Alright. 'The sirens can at first appear to be human from the waist up, but at the slightest provocation, their nails grow to deadly talons, their teeth become lethal fangs, and their pupils contract and sharpen to more similarly match a snake.'" Shit.

"So, what, they got a few things right. That doesn't mean the rest of it isn't wrong. What'd they do, talk to a bunch of sirens to write a book about them? Doubtful." Mates, huh? Now Archie wanted to ask Maxie about all this.

"I dunno. I just think it's something you should be careful of, Arch. In case it does end up being true."

"Alright, alright, but I don't think it's something we need to worry about, Shells. I mean, you saw him. He's struggling to learn how to tie knots. He's not dangerous." To them.

"Yeah... Maybe," she finally admitted.

"I'm touched that you're worried about me, though." Archie smirked before he was launching forward and knocking Shelly back with a tight hug. "It's so cute! It reminds me when you were little and running around the island and pig tails and-"

"Ugh, knock this mushy shit off! I'm not five years old anymore, Arch!" Archie cackled as Shelly struggled to get away, near reaching for her pokeballs.

"You'll always be that cute little girl to me, Shells."

Maxie entered the map room and immediately bypassed them, tearing through one or two of the books. "I should have realized- So stupid! " Confused at that , Archie looked down to Shelly for an explanation. Shelly shrugged. "We have to awaken the great earth shaker. If we don't, the world will be thrown entirely out of balance and every species may well end up dead. "

"I- Wait, what?" Archie startled and was he talking about- Oh, no. No, no, no. "No. There is no way in hell we're waking up Groudon ."

"If we don't, the earth will flood, and it's likely even the pokemon and other creatures of the water will drown, unlikely it may seem. The water levels will rise drastically and quickly and the resulting pressure will kill many. If Groudon is awakened, it will be much slower, as the two will battle, and Kyogre will then be weakened."

"That... Fuck, it fucking makes sense, but it sounds way more fucking dangerous, too." Archie let Shelly go and walked over to the book Maxie had open, swearing under his breath as he read through it. "This just got a lot more complicated."

"That means we need to search the land for Groudon as well. First, we'll determine the location of Kyogre, however." He looked up at Archie. "I feel our options are dwindling in where he may lie."

"I don't like the way you said that." Archie looked into Maxie's eyes and gave a wince. "You know where he is, don't you?"

"There was always one trench we were told to stay away from, due to the darkness, and the cold even most siren had trouble handling, let alone myself."

"And you think this trench is where Kyogre is?" Maxie sighed and nodded.

"Loathe as I am to admit it."

"Right. Right, that... Right." That meant it was in the siren kingdom. A ship full of humans sailing to the siren kingdom. That- Woo, maybe- Maybe not. "Think we should track down Groudon first, then?"

"Perhaps, yes. Which will be much easier, as we'll be better off searching ports. Unless he lies...inland."

"Let's start by checking the library and see what we can't find and then I can map out some likely ports and we can go from there. I... I don't know what to do if he's inland, though." Maxie gave a shake of his head.

"Neither do I. What on earth- I can't believe I hadn't even thought of it."

"I missed it, too," Archie shrugged. "Right. Okay. So now we just need to find two legendaries. Easy as can be."

"One, as we know the location of another, now." Right. Right, they totally had this. Looking back over to Shelly, Archie blinked at seeing she had all but fled the room.

"Right." Okay, nothing to worry about, no big changes, today. Just found out sirens could change their mates into other sirens and they had to find Groudon. Normal day for him. "Hey, uh, Maxie?"

Maxie sighed, looking up at Archie. "Yes?"

"Do you..." Fuck. "Do you want any help learning how to tie knots?" Arceus, he couldn't even ask Maxie straight up if the mate thing was true. Maxie seemed to start, pushing his glasses up.

"I... Yes. Yes, I think that'd be nice."

"Great- Good. Awesome. Let's, uh, let's go, then." He could always just ask later about all of this. Right?

::

"Archie? You have been...troubled, recently." Fuck.

"Uh, no? I don't think so, at least."

"No?" Maxie sat on the edge of the bed, frowning as he tilted his head.

"I... Not really troubled, at least, just thinking about this book Shelly had me read."

"Oh? What of? Something you found of Kyogre?"

"No, not, it, uh, she actually found a book on sirens." At the hesitant look, Archie was quick to sit down beside him. "Nothing bad, nothing bad, just- I mean, a lot of it was stuff I already knew, anyways."

"But you have still been distracted." Well, he couldn't deny that one, could he?

"Maxie, what... What do you know about mates?"

Maxie seemed as though he understood now. "Mates are the partner a siren chooses and claims."

"Yeah, it had a lot on mates. Most only how, uh, siren mates, if they were human, could...change?" That had Maxie frowning, his head tilting.

"I have... I don't recall hearing of such a thing." Okay, so then maybe the book was wrong. That... That actually didn't make him as happy as he thought it would.

"Yeah, it seemed to think that a siren could turn their human mate into a siren!"

Maxie gave a shake of his head. "No. Humans cannot become siren. I have never heard of such a thing except perhaps in mer tales read to sleep."

"Yeah, we had stories about sirens becoming human when I was a kid." Archie stared at Maxie for a moment before reaching over and pulling him into his lap, kissing at his cheek. "Sorry, I've been wanting to hug you all day, but you keep finding more work to do around here."

The siren relaxed in his lap, easily curling up to him and wrapping his arms around him. "There is always work to be done." Somehow, Maxie thinking that way didn't really surprise him.

"If you want to be human then you need to learn the value of taking a break." Archie tugged him close, pressing their lips together for a moment before pulling back. "Need help learning?"

"Perhaps. It seems like a very long, very difficult lesson." Oh, as if Archie needed anymore reasons to fall in love with this idiot.

"I'd be happy to teach you if you think you can handle it." Maxie smirked, and Archie saw a gleam in his eye as he adjusted in Archie's lap.

"Do you put forth a challenge?" He was slipping. Just noticing that had Archie grinning as he pulled Maxie closer, kissing at the corner of his lips and mumbling against the skin.

"Don't think it'd be much of a challenge."

"No? Then show me." That was all the incentive Archie needed to twist Maxie around and pin him to the bed, jerking him into a rough, harsh kiss as he settled between the other's legs. He felt Maxie gasp more than heard it, and he used it to his advantage, pushing further against him and beginning to lick his way inside of him, the siren moaning softly underneath him and beginning to kiss him back with enthusiasm. That shy little siren on the beach was nowhere to be seen, Archie rather pleased by that. Keeping the siren distracted with the kiss, Archie shifted so one of his hands could rest on Maxie's hips, fingers lightly rubbing at the exposed skin. He felt some of the lingering tension Maxie seemed to always hold disappear as his arms wrapped around Archie's neck and pulled him down further. Hell. Siren perk, Maxie never pulled away to breathe.

Considering Archie had fucking swimmer lungs, that meant he could continue the kiss for much longer than with anyone else and focus all his attention on distractin Maxie with soft touches, pushing his shirt up more. Maxie finally pushed against Archie's chest, panting slightly. "What...are you doing?"

"Touching you?" Archie raised an eyebrow, swiping his thumb over an exposed nipple. "Don't like it?"

" Ah- No, Yes- No, I do like it. Much. I like it much." Grinning and repeating the motion, Archie watched Maxie's reaction as he bent down to kiss at the side of his neck. Maxie gasped and arched up, his head tilting back to fully bare his neck. Archie really couldn't resist that invitation. Pinching at one of the nipples and rubbing at the other, Archie leaned forward to latch his teeth around Maxie's neck, surprised by how much he just wanted to bite down until the skin broke. Maxie groaned, his nails feeling like they were getting sharper against Archie's back- " Please, " he pleaded.

Not exactly one for questioning his instincts when the other was begging , Archie bit down sharply on Maxie's skin, shuddering and knowing he broke skin when he felt that sharp copper taste that filled his mouth and wasn't... And wasn't bad. Maxie's hips bucked up against Archie's as the siren whimpered. He fucking whimpered. Oh, maybe they weren't mates, but Archie would make fucking sure everyone knew who Maxie belonged to. Biting harder for just a moment more, Archie let go and immediately licked at the bite marks, trailing nails down Maxie's side to distract him from any pain from the bite. Maxie was... he was clicking and crooning- Oh. Archie had pushed him to use siren language. That- That was fucking awesome, actually.

Dragging Maxie in for another kiss, Archie carefully settled on top of him, hands keeping him braced up on his knees as he teased Maxie into pushing closer himself before parting just barely enough to speak, "Now a good time to mention the whole falling in love with you thing?" Maxie leaned further forward, his nose against Archie's cheek as he nuzzled him. Arceus... He felt Maxie's hands start to move down towards Archie's hips, probably wanted to see if he could get under his shirt- Arceus fucking hell. Or that. Or Maxie would pull Archie's hips down to grind their cocks together. That was possible.

"Th- Thought-" Fuck, fuck, fuck, that felt far too fucking good. "Thought you were new at the whole human body thing."

"I- Ah! I learn fast." He squealed. Arceus, he was in love. Withholding a laugh, Archie brought Maxie into another kiss before starting up a steady pace, rolling and grinding his hips contiously into Maxie's because fuck if that wasn't the best feeling he'd ever experienced. The longer he went, the tighter that tension seemed to coil in his gut and the more wound up Maxie seemed to get. "Arch- Ah, Archie. Archie. "

"Ssh, ssh, hey, it's okay." Archie nipped sharply at the shell of Maxie's ear, mostly to get his attention. "Just relax, Maxie, I'm gonna make you feel good, okay?"

"Archie... I- What...?" Poor thing. As much as Maxie pretended and wanted to be human, some things couldn't be mimicked without experience.

"Don't worry about it." Archie swallowed, leaning back to stare down at Maxie's flushed cheeks. "Hey... Do you trust me?" Maxie nodded up at him without even a moment of hesitation, eyes wide. Fuck, there was so much he wanted to do, but for right now probably best to keep it something simple that wouldn't overwhelm either of them. "Okay, just relax, then." Stealing another kiss, Archie shifted to tug at Maxie's pants, pulling them down his hips and oh. Right. No boxers. Well... Made this easier, at least.

Maxie frowned, starting to sit up- He did not know the meaning of the word relax, did he? "What are you doing?" But Arceus, he was already dripping. If Archie had less restraint he probably would have sucked him down then and there.

"Like I said, making you feel good- Or, better, I guess." Shimming out of his own pants, Archie gathered up the leaking precum and soaked Maxie's cock as much as he could, watching his reactions. Maxie immediately fell back onto the bed with a groan, pressing himself up into Archie's touch. This siren was going to ruin him. Archie couldn't bring himself to care, however, when Maxie was making those sweet noises and trying to press more and more into the touch. It took more effort than it should have to stop before he was moving to slick up his own dick.

Once he figured they were good, Archie was sliding down against Maxie, the two both moaning at the feeling of touching other without any kind of clothes in the way. Archie just barely waited long enough to get a hand around the both of them before they were back to thrusting and grinding, Archie shaking and biting his lip to keep his noises in. Maxie seemed to have no such misgivings instead moaning and keening underneath Archie, beginning to give soft thrusts against him.

Fuck, Archie wasn't going to last long at all, at this rate. Figuring Maxie wasn't either, Archie sped up against him, dragging him into a harsh, rough kiss to quiet him. It only took a few more before Archie felt Maxie tense against him, then a warm splatter against his stomach that had his head dropping as he panted and chased his own climax. A wave of pleasure washed over him, Archie shuddering and keeping the motions up for a few more moments before letting go and collapsing beside Maxie with a satisfied sigh.

Maxie huffed, nuzzling him again. "That... Was..."

"Yeah, it was," Archie laughed, pulling Maxie into his arms and kissing at his cheek. "Feeling alright?" Maxie's arms wrapped loosely around Archie's waist.

"Yes. I feel good, thank you." Considering the other was a relaxed pile of siren puddle, Archie was leaning towards believing him. Tucking him closer, Archie squirmed out of his shirt and using it to wipe them off a bit, frowning at the bite marks he had made.

"You sure you're alright? I bit you kind of hard, there." One of Maxie's hands touched the bite mark gently.

"Yes. I will heal." Shrugging, Archie pulled Maxie back into his arms, shifting them to a drier spot before moving Maxie's hand and kissing at the spot gently. Aw. Aw... Maxie was purring. That meant he really liked it, then. Archie felt like he should say something, but he also kind of felt like breaking the silence would be almost wrong . He settled for giving Maxie a kiss before kissing and licking at every bite mark he had given him. At least Maxie liked it.