They shrugged and their coral-covered shoulder bumped me. With a little kicking and spinning in the water, his claw eased me over his shoulder to perch there. I kicked my legs slowly, laughing, releasing his hair to avoid tugging at any.

Another clicking storm that felt like agreement had me grinning.

"Do you live down here?" I asked. "Alone?"

I felt his shoulder dip and my bare feet brushed the sand.

Loneliness had always been my greatest fear, the worst thing I could think of. He had been suffering from it for how long now? “That's horrible. You're so gentle and quiet too. Are there more like you?"

He dipped his head again and began to glide forward. One of his palms came up to hold me steady when we shot through the water. I squealed when his tail flicked out and we took a hard left.

The deeper we got, I laid low against his neck. The scales that peeked through the coral cover were warm to the touch.

He let out a few deep groans as we moved and dove deeper until the sand shifted and a crack became clear. The cavern we slipped into had better lighting than the lagoon we just had left. It was soft coral and little crystals that were natural lighting.

My friend’s bulk gave just enough comfortable wriggle room to swim through but he kept low, keeping my back far from the cavern’s curved wall. My friend crooned, an arm coming up around to touch my back. Much more secure than a seatbelt. The current through this tunnel had a strong pull but he slapped his palm against a patch of white coral and the rushing stream stuttered to a startling halt before… “Holy shit!” I bellowed as he took one deep inhale and shot off into the unknown.

His tail cleaved through the water and I counted five twists before the tunnel opened up into three separate entrances. He ignored all of them, headed straight for the solid stone ahead.

“Hey!” My squeak got left behind far behind us as the stone glowed the same white as before. What had been stone turned to sand and fell to the tunnel floor. I had to find whatever magic I could in this place, after we managed to get out of the tunnel systems.

The walls beyond the secret door were lined with green algae and little pearls set in between soft clusters. “Beautiful,” I whispered as he started his slow ascent. The water got cooler the lighter it was above us. My only warning was his hand pressing me closer before he flicked his tail.

He lunged out of the water, throwing us into an air pocket.

The abrupt, icy chill punched whatever breath I had from my lungs. I choked, raspy and panicked when his other hand caught me and we hit the water again. I clawed at my throat, sucking in sandpapery breath after breath. He dipped back under the water with my head cradled in his palm.

I sighed, bubbles escaping my lungs as I took in as much water as I could. “I–I think I’m okay,” I whispered, words warped. “I can try again. Sorry.”

They, (he if I went by the flatter chest and the more masculine build) clicked and cooed.

He let me push up and away from his hand, breaking the surface to grasp the lip of the rocky platform. Not even a ruler’s height above the water in some sections, I pulled my head up and out of the water at a snail’s pace. Beside me, my new friend surfaced too and kept just out of my bubble.

Breath by long, exhausted breath, my gills began to recede. I could feel the skin flattening and sealing along the smooth expanse of my neck. I counted fifty breaths before I felt safe enough to try pulling myself up and out. A clawed hand cupped under my legs and raised me like I weighed nothing. 

He set me on the rock, leaving only my feet in the water.

“Th–This place is gorgeous! It’s like a cave temple!" I gasped and pulled up my legs under me, looking around the glowing walls with luminous algae growing far above the water. Some crudely carved statues of blue stone stood propped up like columns. It looked well lived in with tapestry on the floor further in and caught the sunlight filtering in from above. “Can people get in through that?” I asked, pointing to the fissure high above our heads. Slivers of the morning light turned the grey stone to warm yellows in sections.

He let out a soft groan, shaking his head when I turned to face him.

Their arms were curled over the ledge, still sopping wet.

I laid down flat too, along the cool stone that didn’t hurt my sensitive skin. I cocked my head and grinned when he tilted his head too. “Is this your home?"

He rasped a short answer this time and I caught a few syllables. The claws scraped over to a sharp shell sitting on an uneven stool with three legs. I had seen similar, though even versions, of the stool out in the lagoon area and near the vendors near the docks.

"I use that?" I pointed to the stool.

A weird hacking and then barely coherent 'es' sounded. Either his vocalisations were improving or he meant something different. My smile got wider, excited for either option. This huge cavern took some maneuvering along the uneven flooring. Big enough for twenty of him if he dragged himself up out of the water, I traced around a deep pool separate from the watery entrance.

The fishbone comb tucked under the sharp shells still pearly with nacre had seen better days. I weighed the shell in my palms, pattering over to the ledge and humming when my friend slinked close enough that his shoulder bumped my knee.

When he didn’t shy away from my offered hand, I settled in to survey his shoulders and back. There weren’t a great many growths that would draw blood (I hoped) but they were almost fused with scarred muscle and scale.

To distract myself, I cupped a hand in the water and poured the trickle over his neck. The gills fluttered (I had to bite back a coo). "This place is lovely. That pool over there is like your bed, right? You have some scribed tablets stacked against it too. Whoa!" I gasped as I ran my fingers through his choppy hair. He ducked his head so that I could reach his nape without bending over. “So soft.”

I began to measure out the length in sections because the shape of his head ended up broader than an average humans’. "Do you need the stuff on your shoulders? It looks like moss."

A mournful 'oh' was my reply and I frowned.

Kicked guppy, no. He should never make a face like that. "I could help you with it. I'm great at clearing algae, barnacles and all sorts of residue from the ocean. There was this one huge piece of driftwood and I had to scrub off all the coral and barnacles that grew over it. It's up in my room back on the mainland now, since I love the smell of anything deep-ocean."

He made a pleased grunt and I laughed when he pressed back with a canine-like whine. I didn’t know fish biology could make that sort of noise.

The groves of the shell in my hand were smooth in some places when I shifted it in my palm. The sharp jagged edge could cut very well as I mimed small slices in the air. It took little presses and jerks to the side against the strands to slice entire clumps away. I counted seven calculated cuts for his dark hair to look more even. I ruffled the strands affectionately. "I've never met anyone like you before. I didn't even know hybrids underwater could communicate! This is like a cool fantasy novel I read in school."

A grumble and I snorted, smoothing hair from his big eyes. "You won't hurt me, right fella?"

He made a very deep guttural groan in answer. He sounded like I offended him with the question.

Okay, sweetheart confirmed. I leaned back with limbs loose and warm. My gut didn’t rebel and I trusted it more than anything. "Think I could use one of those rags? You look like you have a few wounds on your body. Did you try to get rid of these things?"

His affirming dip of the head made my heart ache for him.

His claws scratching at his scales would've been more painful than this shell. I scrambled away and picked up the crisp rags from the pile near a woven basket next to the shallow pool. They looked like scraps from a sail. In the time I collected the supplies, he had dragged his body over the rock and toward me. His tail slapped at the water when he slid into the pool. His quiet huffing was the only indication that he had strained himself even a little.

Some of the stubborn sections of his sore shoulders needed the shell but the rags could ease looser sections away without risk of cutting into him.

"On your front, please," I sang and I waddled over, laden down with the 'rags'. They were each as long as my arm in neat squares so I had difficulty carrying them over. I dropped them on smoother rock and watched as the creature flopped over. I spied something like a huge downy sponge and dragged that over so he could rest his head on it. He made a pleased snort and I giggled when his claw reached out and hovered over my hair in thanks, a gentle pressure. “I’m ready if you are. I will rub as gently as I can to get most of it off. Make a noise if I hurt you and I'll stop, okay?”

He grunted and I got to work.

I marvelled at the armour-like scales underneath the thinner sheen of coral and other strange substances. The cloth soaked and a little stiff  washed away masses of rainbow fungi along his nape and shoulder blades. With no complaints or twitches from my friend, I ran my fingers along the worst of the infestation at his shoulders. Some parts of the coral had been cut away brutally to leave puckered pink where the scales got stripped away.

I dabbed a fresh rag over each while rubbing at the roots of the sponges sticking to his shoulders. I ended up draped over his spine, humming as I worked my way up and down his arms. I was careful to go with the direction of the scales, yielding under slow swipes. I had to use the shell to scrape down and remove a few more dense fungi but the moment they were gone, sharp silver scales threw off the sunlight.

Another new cloth dabbed at the revealed sections tenderly until he had to turn over and with a few more wipes, his body was free of the fungal problem. Without the roots or clingy sections, the salt water and shedding scales would get rid of every other bit.

“There! Good as new. I could wrap these up and dispose of them somewhere if you’d like," I offered with a sweet smile. His soaking palm and claws ran over his shoulders in wonder before the other hand curled behind my back. I pitched forward and stuck to his broad chest. The pool water we emerged from coated his scent. The four lotuses floating at the far corner reminded me of the smell of his scales. "Aw! You're welcome, big guy.”

I yawned when he let out a happy click and something bumped my cheek. I hadn't realised my eyes slipped shut, too busy enjoying his scaly warmth. A dead fish hovered in front of me when I opened an eye to peek. The cobalt blue sheen glanced off soft light from the walls and I licked my lips. He let me sit up but I kept one hand on his scales.

"For me?" I asked, a ravenous hunger tearing at my gut in a matter of seconds. This was new, jarring even.

“Or... oo,” I felt his chest rumble with the sound.

He nudged the slimy scales against my lips and I sniffed cautiously. This clawing hunger begged to be sated, overriding any fear that seized my muscles.

Miles had always been my voice of reason and I could hear him now, reminding me that I shouldn’t be perched on a creature that put the scariest deep sea monsters to shame. He’d say that regardless of the species difference, I don’t go laying over any stranger. Especially males, he emphasised many times over.

My new friend never registered in my brain as a threat. A marvel, sure, but nothing to fear.

"Thank you," I rasped and took up the heavy fish with an unsteady hand. When it slipped from my grip, I had to use both. A claw reached up to brush over my hair, the tender gesture drawing me further away from the dizzying build up of gnawing hunger.

My teeth ached.

I lurched forward, bringing the fish to my mouth. I barely processed the tearing through scale and bone to reach the white meat and stringy guts. Snarls and guttural rumbling spilled from my throat.

The startling fear for my lack of control wasn’t enough to jar me from the need to sate my hunger. Entrails slipped down my throat and bones crushed under the violent workings of my jaw. The fish disappeared far too quickly, leaving only the head and spine connected to the tail. I pulled back from the remnants to lick at the blood coating my hands and swiped at my chin. "Wh–What just happened?" I asked myself, lethargy pulling at my overloaded brain.

A yawn slipped out.

The fish remains dropped to the side and slid off the smooth scales of my new friend when I slumped. With my stomach filled and cosy water lapping at my limbs, I nodded off. His gentle inhuman crooning could beat any of those podcasts to help with insomnia.

“Sweet dreams,” I slurred. “Pretty eyes, pretty scales.”

Prettiest smile, I wanted to say but sleep pulled me under.