Page 50 of The Noble's Merman

“A connection…” Mo lay back down and held onto that thought. This astounded him—Noon was the first individual who knew anything at all about making the shift happen. So it was possible. Even as a siren. He always thought it was so, but a connection? Ever since he was younger, Mo felt connected to humanity in one way or another with his interests. That interest was only made stronger in his relationship with Kent.

Kent Wilson: the human who he cared for the most. Mo was certain that same care was reciprocated. Why else would Kent go through all these great lengths of boarding the ship if he didn’t want to be with him? The way Kent smiled at him, the way he blushed at every gentle touch, the way he was so eager to be even closer, skin to skin, showing the same desire Mo had to be intimate. There was no doubt they shared a strong connection with each other, despite not knowing each other for very long.

But was there something else?

The more Mo thought about Kent, his cheeks warmed up and his heart beat faster. Those pesky minnows swirled in his chest and fluttered their fins, making his whole body feel light even under the pressure of the sea. He’d never felt this way about another being, human or merman. Somehow, with one chance encounter, Kent took center stage in his mind and was all he could ever think about.

“I think I’ve fallen in love.”

“Hmm?”

Fuck, did I say that out loud?

“The… there’s one human man aboard the ship we’re trailing. And…” —he swallowed— “I think I’m in love with him.”

Noon hummed, a joyous little noise. “That is wonderful. Does he feel the same?”

“I…” Did Kent feel the same? He wasn’t sure, and had no idea the proper way to ask. But with everything he knew they felt for one another, he supposed it was possible… “I don’t know. But it’s likely.”

“Is he a human you have a strong connection with? I assume you are asking how a mer becomes human because you have not shifted yourself, and wish to do so.”

“Yes, that’s correct.” He nodded against her back. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to be human, but now that I feel this for Kent, I’ve been wanting it more than ever.”

Noon was silent for a moment, swimming along the dark gentle tides, before she spoke again. “I wish I could help you more. I can only tell you what I know, which I have already done. But if you do believe there is a deep connection there, and he reciprocates, perhaps such a reality of shifting will be possible in your future.”

“Perhaps, yes.”

He held onto the wonderful thought, hopeful, as he drifted off to sleep.

The next day, Mo was lifted up by the fishnet again to spend time with Kent and the crew. He took off his carry-bag and left it by the railing of the ship, since he didn’t really need it while on board. With Mo keeping the ship on a clear path with beautiful skies, not much work was actually needed today, so a handful of the crew sat down on the main deck to play cards with each other. Kent tried to explain the rules of the game Faro to him, and it seemed easy enough. Mo joined in for a handful of turns, but mostly just sat next to Kent, watching him play with the others. He gifted any coin he won while he was playing to Kent, anyway.

“Dammit, Fareham! How the devil do you keep this up?” said Davies while suppressing a laugh, scooching the winnings in Kent’s direction along the wooden floorboards.

“I think I’m fairly good at this, what can I say?” Kent said with a smile.

“A lot of the game is luck, you know. There can be strategy, but you can only do so much if the banker pulls a bad card,” Walker offered, the banker himself.

“Yes, I know, but let me have this win!” Kent chuckled, and Mo did as well with him whilst sitting by his side.

“You sure you don’t wish to try again, Mo? Take his place?” asked Davies.

“You only say that because you think you’d have a better chance against me, since I’m new to this.” Mo smirked.

“That may be one of my reasons for suggesting, yes.”

“I think I’m done for now, though,” said Kent. “Got enough of my fill for the moment.”

“Yes, I think I’m done too,” said Allen, sitting on the other side of Mo. He did fairly well in the game too, all things considered, with how much coin he threw back in his pocket.

“I’m glad Harris isn’t playing with us anymore,” said Davies. “He was a well squinny. The whoreson would never shut up about how he planned to steal us dry of coin, and how much better he’d spend our money. As in, since we weren’t spending it at brothels, he would.”

Mo knew what a brothel was since some merfolk cities also had such establishments. He kept a straight face and said nothing, not wanting to raise anyone’s suspicions on his involvement with the previous surgeon’s disappearance.

“Harris... He was the old surgeon, wasn’t he?” asked Kent cautiously.

“Yes.” Walker nodded. “Whilst he was very exceptional at the technical aspect of his job, he was not an enjoyable person to be around. In his twisted mind, only men were ‘true’ persons, and women were merely sexual objects.”

That made Mo, and everyone else sitting around, scrunch their noses in disgust.

---