Merfolk!AU

A mer!AU where the Tang clan and Raleigh are Merfolk!
==Challenger==
(inspired by this)
Liu lands on the deck of the /Vanguard without a thump which, considering the 19 knots needed to make the ten foot jump from the sea, is rather impressive, but time enough for that later–
Chau crosses the deck in three quick strides, grabs Liu’s chin–
Liu’s frill bristles. 
–and peels away an eyelid. "What the /fuck did you do, kid?" 
Liu's membranes flick open and shut and the frill smooths. "Challenge to the throne; hit the cold water barrier at a bad angle." Sorta shrugs. "Other guy got shredded." Pulls away, takes something from a rib cavity, calls, "With the scarf?"
Said crewfolk starts, looks around. "Me?" 
"If you wanted a rock from the bottom of the ocean."
"I did say something like that two months ago."
"Then have a rock from the bottom of the ocean." Liu tosses it over. 
"/Nice." The crewfolk catches it. "Thank you!"
"You're welcome."
Chau queries. 
Liu gives him a Look. "I don’t go back on my promises, Chau." 
"Are you here for anything else or are you just taking up space?" 
"The latter." Incline of the head. "Good day." Slips under the railing and into the sea without a sound. 
.
With a final tail whip, Liu glides from the ocean onto the inlet, rolls around in the sand a few times, and lies face-up, eyes closed, in the sun. 
A few waves later, Hu surfs up. "You okay?" 
"Cold." 
Hu looks about, twists around, grabs ahold of Liu’s tail, and flops back, pulling its end from the water and cradled to his chest. 
Liu flicks Hu’s chin with a caudal fin. 
"You’re welcome."
==Weis vs Kaidanovskys==
Their first meeting; so far Jin's latched on to Tall Sasha's ankle (with his mouth), Hu's draped himself over Taller Sasha's shoulders, Cheung's pretending he's not in the least bit related to them, and Liu's making a list of people who may know where he can find a time machine. 
==Strength==
They are very flexible--where a human would have difficulty touching their feet to their head, it's rather easy for merfolk. 
Merfolk are very, very strong; leaping from the sea onto the deck of a ship is easy business, landing gracefully on said deck takes a bit of skill but most adults (if they care to) master it (fun fact, the triplets, though not adults, do not fall into this category). 
==Chernobog==
Jin and Hu do their best to jump /over the ship; the record (Hu) is 3/4 of the way. Someone's usually kind enough to kick them back off the side if they don't slide off. 
The Chernobog has an incredibly clean exterior hull--no ship, in fact, has a cleaner hull (though while it was in service, Captain Sevier's Howler came close); the younglings (usually some combination of Cheung, Jin, and Hu) find the algae and mussels growing on the under the waterline /absolutely delectable and loooove snacking away. 
The elders are horrified. 
==Mud==
The wind and rain make it almost impossible to see but 15-year-old Mako pushes towards the prow anyway. 
"Nice weather we're having!" calls Hu. 
"Aren't you guys...?"
"Are you kidding? This is great!" yells Jin. 
"You should really stay below deck," calls Cheung. 
"I'm just worried about you!" 
"We're fine, Mako, promise!"
"Please go inside?" 
"If you say so."
And of course that means a massive swell hits the ship broadside. 
Mako stumbles, slips; Cheung uncoils and dives just as she slides under rail and into the ocean. 
.
The sea yanks Mako about in a thousand different directions and then something that's not the current grabs and holds her close and all the other forces melt away. 
Sound returns with an angry roar. 
A hand on her head pushes her into something slimy that may be a shoulder. 
"You can breathe!" yells Cheung and she does without fear of water dripping into her mouth. "The storm'll last a couple--under!" 
A crash, silence ... wind shrieking. 
Cheung's shoulder's right by her nose; she wipes her mouth and gulps down air. 
"Jin's looking for an air pocket to wait it out!" 
Mako nods. 
==Advice==
Does Raleigh ask Cheung, Jin, and/or Hu about how to approach humans? 
"Oh, Mako? You want us to introduce you?" asks Hu. 
"Uh, well--"
 
"It's easy," says Jin. "You go up to someone and ask if you can lick them." 
"Jin-"
 
"Look, I'll show you." He darts off. 
.
"Hey, Miss Mori?"
Mako totally doesn't jump. "Good morning, Jin." 
"My friend thinks you're pretty. Can he lick you?" 
Mako bites back a 'how dare you!', turns it into an exasperated smile and she turns around. "Jin, I've told you before that's not really--" 
That grin.
"You knew exactly what you were asking." 
Grins wider. 
Mako advances and does her best to loom. 
"Anywhere in particular?" he asks sweetly. 
"You little /guppy." 
Jin shrieks with laughter and slithers off the deck.
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