Night Swimming (Open)

[asharpertongue]

It's been a trying day...week...month, if she's honest. The situation with Bach and the missing elders was getting on her last nerve.

She needed a swim.

Pulling her phone from her bag, she sent a text to a few of the more senior members of the siren community:

Night swimming tonight from sundown on the wrecking beach. All welcome. Food and drink provided. Please spread the word.

That should do it.

She send another note to her contacts at the police station so the unaware human element would be steered away. The wards would be up around the beach, discouraging vanilla humans from coming down there but it didn't hurt to have insurance in these matters.

Hopefully the sirens would come, maybe some of the witches. It would be nice to sprawl on the rocks for a few hours with friends.

Comments

[asharpertongue]

"I've been trying that for most of our adult lives."

[louise_abasi]

"Hey!" She grabbed a pancake and waved it at her. "Don't make me show my violent streak because you're joining the Lou-is-a-kid category."

[asharpertongue]

Lara grinned and put up her fists in a prize fighting pose. "Come and get it, human."

[louise_abasi]

She tossed back her non-existent hair. "Get ready for a behind-whooping, ma'am."

[asharpertongue]

Lara cackled and playfully jabbed at her friend. "I'm ready. I can take it."

[louise_abasi]

She threw the pancake at her, turned on her heel and ran. "HELP! There's a siren attacking me!"

[asharpertongue]

"I'll catch you!" Lara watched for a few seconds and saw Lou run down the beach towards the outcropping. Knowing where she was headed, Lara ran for the water, diving under the waves and changing form to swim faster than Lou could run, getting ahead of her and breaching out onto the rocks directly in Lou's path. She growled dramatically and flashed her fangs and talons, tentacles that had replaced her hair posturing up and reaching for her playfully. "Gotcha."

[louise_abasi]

"Ch-"

She took a couple of steps back, looking behind her to prevent herself from going ass over head. "Drats, Lara. You had to do the whole nine yards of legends and fail to let me win?"

[asharpertongue]

Lara edged forward on finned legs and tilted her head, grinning. "You humans always win in the legends. Our turn for once."

[louise_abasi]

"We must have been reading different stories." She slowed down her breathing. "I probably drank too much for this."

[asharpertongue]

Lara chuckled and sat down on the rocks, patting them. "I think we both did. But I had a nice swim, so I'm fine with it."

[louise_abasi]

"You could act like you're feeling just a little bit about scaring the shit out of me, madam."

[asharpertongue]

"Oh please. You've seen me like this more times than we can both count. Remember that whole summer where I was going to live like a mermaid??"

[louise_abasi]

"That Summer was almost twenty years ago, whippersnapper."

She nodded. "But okay, okay, okay. I stand corrected."

[asharpertongue]

Lara let one of her hair-tentacles wander over to Lou and pat her on the shoulder. "If it hadn't been for you bringing me your Mamas cooking, I would have been eating raw fish every meal. I'd have probably got mercury poisoning."

[louise_abasi]

"I'm still surprised my mother wasn't shocked but very cooperative." She squeezed the tentacle. "I think you got better meals than us at home."

[asharpertongue]

Lara let a few more tentacles wrap around Lou's wrist gently. it was nice to relax with someone while she was like this. She liked her human side - it was her after all - but when she was close to the sea she always felt the pull to change into her other side. Lou had long since learned to deal with her duel looks so relaxing was easy.

"Your Mama was like a second Mom to me after mine..." She smiled. "And Aunt Clare loved getting a night off from a teenage tearaway with fangs and claws."

[louise_abasi]

"Teenage?" She cocked an eyebrow and winked. "Uhuh."

[asharpertongue]

She nudged Lou. "You're one to talk. I bought you those collectable stuffed Kaiju last year."

[louise_abasi]

"Art pieces! Doesn't count!"

[asharpertongue]

"Next thing you'll say you've never played with them."

[louise_abasi]

"Of course not, they're collectibles! They're still in their plast-" She balanced on her feet. "Mostly. Except for Mecha."

[asharpertongue]

Rocking back with the force of her laughter, Lara slapped her thigh. "I knew you wouldn't be able to resist it!"

[louise_abasi]

"It moves on its own! Roaring!"

[asharpertongue]

"You're lucky I have a spare."