The Tail Of Taekook

3 - Meet Horace

(This is what Horace looks like ^^)

Taehyung blushes, and his eyes flash purple, a signal that he's a little flustered. I just chuckle, and allow myself to relax a little, allow myself to return to the calm state that I'm normally in when I'm at my post, mainly because I don't have to deal with other people.

At least until I spot someone crossing a boundary that I wouldn't want to cross if I were them, simply due to a very specific predator.

"Hey! Wait! Don't go in there!" I call to them.

They scoff, rolling their eyes. "We're the top of the food chain. I'll be fine," they dismiss, turning away and carrying on.

I cover Taehyung's eyes when a giant spotted octopus jumps out of seemingly nowhere, tentacles swirling in all directions. The mermaid shrieks in panic when one wraps round her waist, another round the lower half of her tail, and I turn Tae around, shoving him towards his baffled mother, before powering my way over to the scene, as fast as I can. If I don't sort this, one of my creatures could end up being killed for attacking one of the mer.

A stupid rule, considering the arrogance of everyone here, but it's one that's followed more than anything else.

"Enough!" I command, and the creature freezes completely. The mermaid, who's nearly completely vanished by this point, nearly sobs with relief. "I've talked to you about this before, Dowoon. There is safer prey in the oceans, that won't execute you the moment you appear. Be patient."

The octopus flicks a tentacle at me, and I cross my arms. "Don't give me attitude," I snap harshly, my tone sounding as if I'm talking to a naughty child, almost. "I know you haven't eaten in three days. I've been here every day, in case you didn't notice. But the mer will kill you faster than starvation."

He lets out another tentacle, one that curls round my fin slightly, and I hear a collective gasp. "Don't you remember what happened when you tried to eat me to make me shut up?" I say dangerously. "Let her go. Now. Or you're out. Understand?"

The tentacle retreats slowly, and then the mermaid is set free, chucked from the mass of seething slimy limbs into the ocean with a strong kick. "Calm down," I say, "you're getting more sulky every day. Is it the fact that you haven't found a mate for the season yet? Is that the problem?"

Dowoon, as I've named him, blinks one of his expressive black eyes at me, slowly, and I nod in understanding. "Get gone before they start sentencing you," I order, gesturing downward, and he vanishes in seconds, camouflage himself into the sand without further instruction.

I then turn to everyone else. "He probably won't follow my orders next time," I warn gravely, "he's a very rebellious character when he's hungry. So just steer clear, and you'll be fine. This is my post. My rules. Every creature here has a place. Don't think that I will accept any excuse from anyone at all if you try and shove them out of it."

Penelope frowns, an almost angry expression crossing over her face. "You're not allowed to speak for those creatures. They rebel against us, they die. It's that simple. What makes you think they'll listen to you?"

"I listen to them," I explain simply, shrugging and crossing the sand back to where Tae and his mother are casually keeping themselves upright in the water, "and I make sure that they're all okay. If you take a moment to actually pay attention to the environment around you, there's a lot you can discover. A neutral attitude to life here is better than a tyrannical one. We're lucky to have a second chance, yes, so let's be a little humble."

With that, I turn back to my soulmate, speaking to him quietly, telling him one of the infinite secrets of the oceans, smiling at the amazement on his face, ignoring the other mer, who realise that I don't care about their existence and decide to just disperse back to their posts, forget that this ever happened.