Chapter 78: Little Mermaid (Part 5)
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Once they arrived at the kingdom, Leron had experienced the happiest days in his life with Vladstin.
They spend the last few months there getting to know each other, teaching each other the things they know, and dancing.
Dancing! What a wonderful thing it was, to be able to move your feet into timely beats with the one you loved most!
"You're a natural, Leron!" Vladstin praised him as they danced at a festival.
They were always partners in the next one and the next and the next, never dancing with anyone else. Leron twirled Vladstin three times with a laugh, clapping his hand.
"I can say the same to you, Your Highness! I'd say you're the best dancer in this kingdom!"
"Oh, I wouldn't go that far. There's a fun chap who moves better than me, it's his own personal thing, so I don't want to take away his title as the 'best dancer in Crescentia'. " Vladstin went dizzy a bit from the spin, but he laughed it off and held onto Leron again for stability.
"Really? There's such a person renowned for that? What's their name?" Leron dipped Vladstin.
"Sangfroid."
The former merman immediately dropped the prince from shock.
"Ow!" Vladstin had fallen to the ground, wiping his back. "What's wrong?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Your Highness!" He tried to wave off the daze from his initial shock and picked Vladstin up. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine!" Vladstin smiled and brush himself off. Then, he became a little worried. "Are you?"
"Yes.... Uh..... This Sangfroid....." Leron tried to keep his voice steady, but his mind is in chaos. "Where is he from? What's his background? How did he become the best dancer in Crescentia?"
"Whoah, you're really interested in him!" The prince chuckled. "Sangfroid lives near the docks, and you can often find him performing by the beach there. Not only could he dance, but he has an amazing set of lungs! People even think he may be a reincarnation of a nightingale or some songbird!"
Leron gulped. "S-So you've met him?"
"No, that's only what I've heard. But he's performing at our Palace in a fortnight." Vladstin rubbed his hands together. "I'm very excited about it, I want to know if the rumors were true."
That night, Leron could not sleep and could only ponder at the strange situation on the balcony.
Could it be just a mere coincidence? A man on land who also happens to be good at singing bears the same name as the fallen guard?
Or was it a ghost of the past haunting him?
He hoped it was just a mere coincidence rather than the latter. Because then.....
That would complicate things, and he is already walking on thin ice here.
One wrong move and he would be plunged back into the waters as a merman with no life of his own and unable to be with the love of his life. That is the consequence of his deal with Triton. He was gifted this chance, yet he could also easily lose it.
He looked at the sky. The full moon is coming soon, perhaps this fortnight itself, and Vladstin has not kissed him yet.
---------------
"What condition would that be?"
"You can only stay human until the end of the fifth lunar cycle, when the moon is full, and the tides are high." Triton said with an eerie smile, his eyes fogged with green mist. "Unless you have received a kiss of loyal and undying love."
"So in five months, I need Vladstin to kiss me." Leron pressed a finger over his lips, reddening at the thought of it pressing with Vladstin's. "What would happen if I fail?"
"You would return to the sea, never to see him again, his mind robbed of the memories of you."
He frowned. "Is there no other way? Five months is a short time to fall in love with someone."
Lord Triton laughed, and Leron felt the earth shake as the waves became stronger as he did. "Oh, I am willing to make more arrangements, of course. I am very easy to converse within this matter. If you could not receive the kiss in five months' time....."
"Then give me Vladstin's heart, and let the blood flow on your feet. That will keep them from reverting back into a tail."
Leron's eyes widened. "I would never do that!"
"Then depends upon you, my child. What do you value more? The freedom to be on land that you have longed for since you were born in the clutches of your father's underwater kingdom? Or this human prince, who you have just met?
"Either way, you cannot deny that this is an enticing offer, and a very generous one at that. I'm not asking you to risk your life or find me some treasure. Just a kiss, and if not, you can still live in the ocean if you chose not to kill Vladstin."
Triton held out his hand. "And so, do you accept this arrangement?"
Leron hesitated, weighing in the consequences, then shook his hand.
----------------
"If Sangfroid is the Sangfroid I knew, and he reveals the truth, there is no way Vladstin would love me." Leron sighed.
He and Vladstin had been very close, but he knows that this had only started because Vladstin thought he was the one who saved him.
If he found out he lied..... Would that connection stay?
He learned that Vladstin doesn't do well with liars, along with his whole kingdom. They either cut them off completely or bear a grudge against the person for years.
And even without the Sangfroid problem, he cannot seem to move past friendship even when time is running out. Vladstin's actions have been very vague, and it did not help that he is the type who gets along with everyone.
He laughs with everyone, enjoys anyone's company, and treats them like they are the best person in the world.
So how does one figure out if they have a special place in the heart of someone like that?
"Cannot sleep?"
Leron jolted, and there he was. The very subject of his thoughts, holding an oil lamp with a wide grin and eyes brighter than the lamp itself.
"Your Highness! What brings you here?" Leron shifted nervously.
"I just wanted to check in, since I cannot sleep either. I even hesitated a bit because I thought I would disturb you, yet sleepiness also seems to elude you this evening." Vladstin moved beside him. "What are you thinking, Leron?"
"Nothing in particular." Leron said as persuasively as he can, but there's a falter in his voice. He is usually good at lying with a straight face, but now, he is out of it.
"There seems to be something tormenting your mind since we came home from the festival dance earlier." Vladstin squinted and tried to get a read on him, he is usually not good at reading people. "You can tell me anything, and I would do my best to be of help."
"I appreciate that, Your Highness. You are too kind."
But Leron knows he cannot tell him anything, and he wouldn't be of any help either.
"I am never 'too' kind with you. I do these things out of my own volition." He gently squeezed Leron's hand as a sign of comfort. "Out of gratitude for saving my life and your relationship with me."
Leron was trying to calculate what would be the best reply, but his impulse had overpowered him. He blurted out. "If I may ask..... What is my relationship with you, Your Highness?"
Vladstin blinked. "You have to ask such a thing? Isn't it clear to you?"
"It's not." Leron took back his hand, eyes on the ground. "I don't know if I am a mere friend or something else. Perhaps it is because I have been unclear about what I feel towards you as well. But, I cannot take it any longer."
"I love you, Your Highness." He admitted while biting his lips, in the softest voice, so timid and uncertain.
Vladstin's eyes widened, then he smiled. He took Leron's hand again and gently kissed it.
"I do too, as well. I do love you." Vladstin caressed his cheek, and Leron could tell that his feelings are genuine.
Leron's spirits lighten up as he received a wave of euphoria just from those words. It was such a strong joy that it almost paralyzed him into place. He cannot believe it.
"Why are you surprised? I'm the one who's surprised that you never noticed and only told me this now." Vladstin ruffled his hair. "Are you merfolk really that dense? Not used to how humans show affection?"
"No, I'm well aware." Leron held his hand.
He took this chance immediately."And I know that.... One of the most common ways is to kiss your beloved."
"Can we?" He asked meekly with a small awkward smile.
Vladstin was not used to Leron being so forward that he began to chuckle. He then went closer and lifted Leron's chin.
"Of course we can."
And so, the little merman received his first kiss with his beloved human.
------------------
Fortnight came, and so did Sangfroid.
It truly was him.
Leron paled at the sight of him, but his heart has soon calmed. There's nothing Sangfroid can do now. The kiss was done, and he would stay as a human.
Sure, it may spoil Vladstin's affections for him a bit, but he believed in his strong love for him and that it would not fade away just from a small setback.
He eyed Sangfroid with a look of indifference, like he doesn't even know him. He just sat beside Vladstin in the large divan where they would to view his performance, picking up a pastry on his plate lazily.
But the performer certainly showed recognition on his face.
"Your Highness!" Sangfroid rushed to him, but a guard blocked him.
"What business do you have to move closer to the prince? Shouldn't you start performing now?"
"Let him be." Vladstin waved the guard off. "Perhaps he has something important to tell us. Go on, Sangfroid of the Southern Seas."
Sangfroid calmed down and made himself less tense, so he wouldn't appear intimidating. "May I speak with the one beside you at the moment?"
"What matter shall you discuss with me, Sir Sangfroid, that it had to be on private?" Leron regarded him coldly. "Can't my lover also hear it?"
He placed a protective hand over Vladstin's chest, yet it just appeared doting.
Vladstin blushed from this gesture, chuckling a bit. "Why, no need to be so suspicious from a simple request, my love. But can't you truly say it to me as well, at least? I can shoo out the guards, if you want."
Vladstin waved his hand, and everyone file out of the door, leaving the three of them alone.
Leron protested. "There's really no need to entertain this odd request, I do not even know him—"
"Your Highness, have I ever done anything wrong to you for you to say that?" Sangfroid said, his one purple eye downcast and looking hurt.
Leron's words got stuck on his throat. "Who are you talking to? There's only one 'Your Highness' here, and that is our prince, Vladstin."
"Your Highness, I took the barnacles for you. I broke the rules, and got stabbed in the gut for it. I sang for your wound to be healed." Sangfroid knelt with his head bowed. "I do not ask you to return all this, but please. Do not forget me. Do not pretend you do not know me."
He lowered his head on the floor. "That is all I ask for."
Leron's heart clenched at these sincere words, and his eyes almost welled up in tears from them. But he clenched his fist, and gritted his teeth, proclaiming as firmly as he can.
"I do not know you—"
Suddenly, his feet quickly turned into a blue tail and a gust of wind broke all the windows of the palace!
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Once they arrived at the kingdom, Leron had experienced the happiest days in his life with Vladstin.
They spend the last few months there getting to know each other, teaching each other the things they know, and dancing.
Dancing! What a wonderful thing it was, to be able to move your feet into timely beats with the one you loved most!
"You're a natural, Leron!" Vladstin praised him as they danced at a festival.
They were always partners in the next one and the next and the next, never dancing with anyone else. Leron twirled Vladstin three times with a laugh, clapping his hand.
"I can say the same to you, Your Highness! I'd say you're the best dancer in this kingdom!"
"Oh, I wouldn't go that far. There's a fun chap who moves better than me, it's his own personal thing, so I don't want to take away his title as the 'best dancer in Crescentia'. " Vladstin went dizzy a bit from the spin, but he laughed it off and held onto Leron again for stability.
"Really? There's such a person renowned for that? What's their name?" Leron dipped Vladstin.
"Sangfroid."
The former merman immediately dropped the prince from shock.
"Ow!" Vladstin had fallen to the ground, wiping his back. "What's wrong?"
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Your Highness!" He tried to wave off the daze from his initial shock and picked Vladstin up. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine!" Vladstin smiled and brush himself off. Then, he became a little worried. "Are you?"
"Yes.... Uh..... This Sangfroid....." Leron tried to keep his voice steady, but his mind is in chaos. "Where is he from? What's his background? How did he become the best dancer in Crescentia?"
"Whoah, you're really interested in him!" The prince chuckled. "Sangfroid lives near the docks, and you can often find him performing by the beach there. Not only could he dance, but he has an amazing set of lungs! People even think he may be a reincarnation of a nightingale or some songbird!"
Leron gulped. "S-So you've met him?"
"No, that's only what I've heard. But he's performing at our Palace in a fortnight." Vladstin rubbed his hands together. "I'm very excited about it, I want to know if the rumors were true."
That night, Leron could not sleep and could only ponder at the strange situation on the balcony.
Could it be just a mere coincidence? A man on land who also happens to be good at singing bears the same name as the fallen guard?
Or was it a ghost of the past haunting him?
He hoped it was just a mere coincidence rather than the latter. Because then.....
That would complicate things, and he is already walking on thin ice here.
One wrong move and he would be plunged back into the waters as a merman with no life of his own and unable to be with the love of his life. That is the consequence of his deal with Triton. He was gifted this chance, yet he could also easily lose it.
He looked at the sky. The full moon is coming soon, perhaps this fortnight itself, and Vladstin has not kissed him yet.
---------------
"What condition would that be?"
"You can only stay human until the end of the fifth lunar cycle, when the moon is full, and the tides are high." Triton said with an eerie smile, his eyes fogged with green mist. "Unless you have received a kiss of loyal and undying love."
"So in five months, I need Vladstin to kiss me." Leron pressed a finger over his lips, reddening at the thought of it pressing with Vladstin's. "What would happen if I fail?"
"You would return to the sea, never to see him again, his mind robbed of the memories of you."
He frowned. "Is there no other way? Five months is a short time to fall in love with someone."
Lord Triton laughed, and Leron felt the earth shake as the waves became stronger as he did. "Oh, I am willing to make more arrangements, of course. I am very easy to converse within this matter. If you could not receive the kiss in five months' time....."
"Then give me Vladstin's heart, and let the blood flow on your feet. That will keep them from reverting back into a tail."
Leron's eyes widened. "I would never do that!"
"Then depends upon you, my child. What do you value more? The freedom to be on land that you have longed for since you were born in the clutches of your father's underwater kingdom? Or this human prince, who you have just met?
"Either way, you cannot deny that this is an enticing offer, and a very generous one at that. I'm not asking you to risk your life or find me some treasure. Just a kiss, and if not, you can still live in the ocean if you chose not to kill Vladstin."
Triton held out his hand. "And so, do you accept this arrangement?"
Leron hesitated, weighing in the consequences, then shook his hand.
----------------
"If Sangfroid is the Sangfroid I knew, and he reveals the truth, there is no way Vladstin would love me." Leron sighed.
He and Vladstin had been very close, but he knows that this had only started because Vladstin thought he was the one who saved him.
If he found out he lied..... Would that connection stay?
He learned that Vladstin doesn't do well with liars, along with his whole kingdom. They either cut them off completely or bear a grudge against the person for years.
And even without the Sangfroid problem, he cannot seem to move past friendship even when time is running out. Vladstin's actions have been very vague, and it did not help that he is the type who gets along with everyone.
He laughs with everyone, enjoys anyone's company, and treats them like they are the best person in the world.
So how does one figure out if they have a special place in the heart of someone like that?
"Cannot sleep?"
Leron jolted, and there he was. The very subject of his thoughts, holding an oil lamp with a wide grin and eyes brighter than the lamp itself.
"Your Highness! What brings you here?" Leron shifted nervously.
"I just wanted to check in, since I cannot sleep either. I even hesitated a bit because I thought I would disturb you, yet sleepiness also seems to elude you this evening." Vladstin moved beside him. "What are you thinking, Leron?"
"Nothing in particular." Leron said as persuasively as he can, but there's a falter in his voice. He is usually good at lying with a straight face, but now, he is out of it.
"There seems to be something tormenting your mind since we came home from the festival dance earlier." Vladstin squinted and tried to get a read on him, he is usually not good at reading people. "You can tell me anything, and I would do my best to be of help."
"I appreciate that, Your Highness. You are too kind."
But Leron knows he cannot tell him anything, and he wouldn't be of any help either.
"I am never 'too' kind with you. I do these things out of my own volition." He gently squeezed Leron's hand as a sign of comfort. "Out of gratitude for saving my life and your relationship with me."
Leron was trying to calculate what would be the best reply, but his impulse had overpowered him. He blurted out. "If I may ask..... What is my relationship with you, Your Highness?"
Vladstin blinked. "You have to ask such a thing? Isn't it clear to you?"
"It's not." Leron took back his hand, eyes on the ground. "I don't know if I am a mere friend or something else. Perhaps it is because I have been unclear about what I feel towards you as well. But, I cannot take it any longer."
"I love you, Your Highness." He admitted while biting his lips, in the softest voice, so timid and uncertain.
Vladstin's eyes widened, then he smiled. He took Leron's hand again and gently kissed it.
"I do too, as well. I do love you." Vladstin caressed his cheek, and Leron could tell that his feelings are genuine.
Leron's spirits lighten up as he received a wave of euphoria just from those words. It was such a strong joy that it almost paralyzed him into place. He cannot believe it.
"Why are you surprised? I'm the one who's surprised that you never noticed and only told me this now." Vladstin ruffled his hair. "Are you merfolk really that dense? Not used to how humans show affection?"
"No, I'm well aware." Leron held his hand.
He took this chance immediately."And I know that.... One of the most common ways is to kiss your beloved."
"Can we?" He asked meekly with a small awkward smile.
Vladstin was not used to Leron being so forward that he began to chuckle. He then went closer and lifted Leron's chin.
"Of course we can."
And so, the little merman received his first kiss with his beloved human.
------------------
Fortnight came, and so did Sangfroid.
It truly was him.
Leron paled at the sight of him, but his heart has soon calmed. There's nothing Sangfroid can do now. The kiss was done, and he would stay as a human.
Sure, it may spoil Vladstin's affections for him a bit, but he believed in his strong love for him and that it would not fade away just from a small setback.
He eyed Sangfroid with a look of indifference, like he doesn't even know him. He just sat beside Vladstin in the large divan where they would to view his performance, picking up a pastry on his plate lazily.
But the performer certainly showed recognition on his face.
"Your Highness!" Sangfroid rushed to him, but a guard blocked him.
"What business do you have to move closer to the prince? Shouldn't you start performing now?"
"Let him be." Vladstin waved the guard off. "Perhaps he has something important to tell us. Go on, Sangfroid of the Southern Seas."
Sangfroid calmed down and made himself less tense, so he wouldn't appear intimidating. "May I speak with the one beside you at the moment?"
"What matter shall you discuss with me, Sir Sangfroid, that it had to be on private?" Leron regarded him coldly. "Can't my lover also hear it?"
He placed a protective hand over Vladstin's chest, yet it just appeared doting.
Vladstin blushed from this gesture, chuckling a bit. "Why, no need to be so suspicious from a simple request, my love. But can't you truly say it to me as well, at least? I can shoo out the guards, if you want."
Vladstin waved his hand, and everyone file out of the door, leaving the three of them alone.
Leron protested. "There's really no need to entertain this odd request, I do not even know him—"
"Your Highness, have I ever done anything wrong to you for you to say that?" Sangfroid said, his one purple eye downcast and looking hurt.
Leron's words got stuck on his throat. "Who are you talking to? There's only one 'Your Highness' here, and that is our prince, Vladstin."
"Your Highness, I took the barnacles for you. I broke the rules, and got stabbed in the gut for it. I sang for your wound to be healed." Sangfroid knelt with his head bowed. "I do not ask you to return all this, but please. Do not forget me. Do not pretend you do not know me."
He lowered his head on the floor. "That is all I ask for."
Leron's heart clenched at these sincere words, and his eyes almost welled up in tears from them. But he clenched his fist, and gritted his teeth, proclaiming as firmly as he can.
"I do not know you—"
Suddenly, his feet quickly turned into a blue tail and a gust of wind broke all the windows of the palace!
Once they arrived at the kingdom, Leron had experienced the happiest days in his life with Vladstin.They spend the last few months there getting to know each other, teaching each other the things they know, and dancing.Dancing! What a wonderful thing it was, to be able to move your feet into timelybeats with the one you loved most!"You're a natural, Leron!" Vladstin praised him as they danced at a festival.They were always partners in the next one and the next and the next, never dancing with anyone else. Leron twirled Vladstin three times with a laugh, clapping his hand."I can say the same to you, Your Highness! I'd say you're the best dancer in this kingdom!""Oh, I wouldn't go that far. There's a fun chap who moves better than me, it's his own personal thing, so I don't want to take away his title as the 'best dancer in Crescentia'. " Vladstin went dizzy a bit from the spin, but he laughed it off and held onto Leron again for stability."Really? There's such a person renowned for that? What's their name?" Leron dipped Vladstin."Sangfroid."The former merman immediately dropped the prince from shock."Ow!" Vladstin had fallen to the ground, wiping his back. "What's wrong?""Oh, I'm so sorry, Your Highness!" He tried to wave off the daze from his initial shock and picked Vladstin up. "Are you alright?""I'm fine!" Vladstin smiled and brush himself off. Then, he became a little worried. "Are you?""Yes.... Uh..... This Sangfroid....." Leron tried to keep his voice steady, but his mind is in chaos. "Where is he from? What's his background? How did he become the best dancer in Crescentia?""Whoah, you're really interested in him!" The prince chuckled. "Sangfroid lives near the docks, and you can often find him performing by the beach there. Not only could he dance, but he has an amazing set of lungs! People even think he may be a reincarnation of a nightingale or some songbird!"Leron gulped. "S-So you've met him?""No, that's only what I've heard. But he's performing at our Palace in a fortnight." Vladstin rubbed his hands together. "I'm very excited about it, I want to know if the rumors were true."That night, Leron could not sleep and could only ponder at the strange situation on the balcony.Could it be just a mere coincidence? A man on land who also happens to be good at singing bears the same name as the fallen guard?Or was it a ghost of the past haunting him?He hoped it was just a mere coincidence rather than the latter. Because then.....That would complicate things, and he is already walking on thin ice here.One wrong move and he would be plunged back into the waters as a merman with no life of his own and unable to be with the love of his life. That is the consequence of his deal with Triton. He was gifted this chance, yet he could also easily lose it.He looked at the sky. The full moon is coming soon, perhaps this fortnight itself, and Vladstin has not kissed him yet.---------------"What condition would that be?""You can only stay human until the end of the fifth lunar cycle, when the moon is full, and the tides are high." Triton said with an eerie smile, his eyes fogged with green mist. "Unless you have received a kiss of loyal and undying love.""So in five months, I need Vladstin to kiss me." Leron pressed a finger over his lips, reddening at the thought of it pressing with Vladstin's. "What would happen if I fail?""You would return to the sea, never to see him again, his mind robbed of the memories of you."He frowned. "Is there no other way? Five months is a short time to fall in love with someone."Lord Triton laughed, and Leron felt the earth shake as the waves became stronger as he did. "Oh, I am willing to make more arrangements, of course. I am very easy to converse within this matter. If you could not receive the kiss in five months' time.....""Then give me Vladstin's heart, and let the blood flow on your feet. That will keep them from reverting back into a tail."Leron's eyes widened. "I would never do that!""Then depends upon you, my child. What do you value more? The freedom to be on land that you have longed for since you were born in the clutches of your father's underwater kingdom? Or this human prince, who you have just met?"Either way, you cannot deny that this is an enticing offer, and a very generous one at that. I'm not asking you to risk your life or find me some treasure. Just a kiss, and if not, you can still live in the ocean if you chose not to kill Vladstin."Triton held out his hand. "And so, do you accept this arrangement?"Leron hesitated, weighing in the consequences, then shook his hand.----------------"If Sangfroid is the Sangfroid I knew, and he reveals the truth, there is no way Vladstin would love me." Leron sighed.He and Vladstin had been very close, but he knows that this had only started because Vladstin thought he was the one who saved him.If he found out he lied..... Would that connection stay?He learned that Vladstin doesn't do well with liars, along with his whole kingdom. They either cut them off completely or bear a grudge against the person for years.And even without the Sangfroid problem, he cannot seem to move past friendship even when time is running out. Vladstin's actions have been very vague, and it did not help that he is the type who gets along with everyone.He laughs with everyone, enjoys anyone's company, and treats them like they are the best person in the world.So how does one figure out if they have a special place in the heart of someone like that?"Cannot sleep?"Leron jolted, and there he was. The very subject of his thoughts, holding an oil lamp with a wide grin and eyes brighter than the lamp itself."Your Highness! What brings you here?" Leron shifted nervously."I just wanted to check in, since I cannot sleep either. I even hesitated a bit because I thought I would disturb you, yet sleepiness also seems to elude you this evening." Vladstin moved beside him. "What are you thinking, Leron?""Nothing in particular." Leron said as persuasively as he can, but there's a falter in his voice. He is usually good at lying with a straight face, but now, he is out of it."There seems to be something tormenting your mind since we came home from the festival dance earlier." Vladstin squinted and tried to get a read on him, he is usually not good at reading people. "You can tell me anything, and I would do my best to be of help.""I appreciate that, Your Highness. You are too kind."But Leron knows he cannot tell him anything, and he wouldn't be of any help either."I am never 'too' kind with you. I do these things out of my own volition." He gently squeezed Leron's hand as a sign of comfort. "Out of gratitude for saving my life and your relationship with me."Leron was trying to calculate what would be the best reply, but his impulse had overpowered him. He blurted out. "If I may ask..... What is my relationship with you, Your Highness?"Vladstin blinked. "You have to ask such a thing? Isn't it clear to you?""It's not." Leron took back his hand, eyes on the ground. "I don't know if I am a mere friend or something else. Perhaps it is because I have been unclear about what I feel towards you as well. But, I cannot take it any longer.""I love you, Your Highness." He admitted while biting his lips, in the softest voice, so timid and uncertain.Vladstin's eyes widened, then he smiled. He took Leron's hand again and gently kissed it."I do too, as well. I do love you." Vladstin caressed his cheek, and Leron could tell that his feelings are genuine.Leron's spirits lighten up as he received a wave of euphoria just from those words. It was such a strong joy that it almost paralyzed him into place. He cannot believe it."Why are you surprised? I'm the one who's surprised that you never noticed and only told me this now." Vladstin ruffled his hair. "Are you merfolk really that dense? Not used to how humans show affection?""No, I'm well aware." Leron held his hand.He took this chance immediately."And I know that.... One of the most common ways is to kiss your beloved.""Can we?" He asked meekly with a small awkward smile.Vladstin was not used to Leron being so forward that he began to chuckle. He then went closer and lifted Leron's chin."Of course we can."And so, the little merman received his first kiss with his beloved human.------------------Fortnight came, and so did Sangfroid.It truly was him.Leron paled at the sight of him, but his heart has soon calmed. There's nothing Sangfroid can do now. The kiss was done, and he would stay as a human.Sure, it may spoil Vladstin's affections for him a bit, but he believed in his strong love for him and that it would not fade away just from a small setback.He eyed Sangfroid with a look of indifference, like he doesn't even know him. He just sat beside Vladstin in the large divan where they would to view his performance, picking up a pastry on his plate lazily.But the performer certainly showed recognition on his face."Your Highness!" Sangfroid rushed to him, but a guard blocked him."What business do you have to move closer to the prince? Shouldn't you start performing now?""Let him be." Vladstin waved the guard off. "Perhaps he has something important to tell us. Go on, Sangfroid of the Southern Seas."Sangfroid calmed down and made himself less tense, so he wouldn't appear intimidating. "May I speak with the one beside you at the moment?""What matter shall you discuss with me, Sir Sangfroid, that it had to be on private?" Leron regarded him coldly. "Can't my lover also hear it?"He placed a protective hand over Vladstin's chest, yet it just appeared doting.Vladstin blushed from this gesture, chuckling a bit. "Why, no need to be so suspicious from a simple request, my love. But can't you truly say it to me as well, at least? I can shoo out the guards, if you want."Vladstin waved his hand, and everyone file out of the door, leaving the three of them alone.Leron protested. "There's really no need to entertain this odd request, I do not even know him""Your Highness, have I ever done anything wrong to you for you to say that?" Sangfroid said, his one purple eye downcast and looking hurt.Leron's words got stuck on his throat. "Who are you talking to? There's only one 'Your Highness' here, and that is our prince, Vladstin.""Your Highness, I took the barnacles for you. I broke the rules, and got stabbed in the gut for it. I sang for your wound to be healed." Sangfroid knelt with his head bowed. "I do not ask you to return all this, but please. Do not forget me. Do not pretend you do not know me."He lowered his head on the floor. "That is all I ask for."Leron's heart clenched at these sincere words, and his eyes almost welled up in tears from them. But he clenched his fist, and gritted his teeth, proclaiming as firmly as he can."I do not know you"Suddenly, his feet quickly turned into a blue tail and a gust of wind broke all the windows of the palace!
