I've been wanting to write a Merman fic for a while and I thought what better time to write one then during Shark Week. This was really fun to write and someone on DA has made a fan art of it! Check out my DA (MaplePucks) to see it! It's amazing!

Comments are really awesome!

The sun shone down brightly making the crystal blue water of the Mediterranean shimmer with every ripple. There were a few white, puffy clouds passing over head but with not a touch of gray to them, they were being ignored. A very refreshing cool breeze swept across the water and Francis then let out a content sigh. Flicking his beautiful blue tail gently, so that he propelled just a little through the water, the merman then flipped onto his back. He let the warm sun bask him with its wonderful glow.

Spending his days on the surface, lazing in the sun was what Francis love doing. Even the threat of being seen by a human did nothing to deter him from doing it. Cruise ships routinely came through the area, Francis had seen several of the large vessels before. Sometimes he was far enough away that he would ignore them. Other times, he purposefully let the current carry him close. As soon as he heard loud exclamations and shouts for cameras on the decks above, he would disappear. Slipping quietly and gently back down below, content to become part of a vacationer's wild retelling of the encounter.

That suited Francis just fine, he loved the mystery, intrigued and romance that came with his breed.

Today, however, there were absolutely no cruise ships out. None that he could see anyway. Perhaps over the horizon, far off, coming towards him, there might be some. That would exciting, he thought, to watch something materialize out of nothing. For now, he would just float along lazily, every now and then flicking his tail to help the current, waiting for something.

As if on cue, something did happen. There was a loud splashing noise nearby of someone breaking the surface. Francis just laughed. This something was expected. In fact, this something was late.

Still laughing, Francis made his way over to the Merman who had just arrived on the surface. His short blond hair sticking up in all direction as he shook the excess water from it. The man slapped the water frantically as if he was trying to stay afloat. That made Francis smile even more and when he reached the man, he let out a soft chuckle.

"You're late, Arthur. What took you so long? Trouble picking zhe right shell to wear in order to impress moi?" Francis asked playfully. He was referring to the one shell earring the other wore to set himself apart from others. Francis found it alluring and enticing. He smiled when Arthur blushed and automatically reached up to cover the blue with pink speckled shell hanging from his ear.

"Twat, as if I need to do anything to impress you." Arthur growled angrily, continuing to slap the water. Francis swam in a lazy circle around him, effortlessly.

"Zhat is true, you 'ave impressed and enchanted moi already." He whispered. Not surprisingly, Arthur turned a deeper shade of red and sputtered for a few moments before changing the subject.

"Why do you insit on meeting up here everyday? You know full well I flounder about on the surface like a…like a…" Arthur struggled. Francis stopped swimming and straightened himself out in front of Arthur.

"Like a fish out of zhe water?" Francis offered. To his great amusement, Arthur continued to flail but gave him a deadpan look.

"Brilliant. Do you feel better no that you've got that out of your system?" Arthur spat. With a happy nod, Francis watched him struggle for a few more moments before swimming over to help like he always did.

While Arthur was one of the most graceful Merman's in the kingdom, second only to Francis himself, his above water finesse was lacking. He was thrashing his tail back and forth too rapidly. This caused most of his body to propel out of the water, making him top heavy and unstable. He could control himself so that lead to the flailing around. He did this every day for the same exact reason. Francis wished he could relax.

Not that Francis could blame him, the merman was terrified of the surface. Always fearful that he was going to be seen or captured by a human. Or maybe even worse. He had only confided this with Francis and that was one of the reasons they always met on the surface. Francis was trying to help him overcome his fear. And get the man to relax a little.

Slipping his arms around Arthur, drawing him in very close, Francis felt him freeze. That was normal and expected. After a minute or so, the green tailed merman relaxed and allowed Francis to hold him. The frantic tail motions stopped and soon, Francis got him to follow the same rhythmic pattern he was doing.

After a few moments of half letting the current take control and Francis leading the way, Arthur fully relaxed. He even let a smile cross his face as Francis stared into his lovely green eyes. It was taking less and less time every day to get him to relax. That was good, maybe some day Arthur would be able to come up to lounge about and taunt cruise ship passengers with Francis. The Frenchman would like that very much.

"See mon ami, zhere is nothing to be afraid of on zhe surface." Francis said, lightly brushing the back of his fingers up and down Arthur's forearm. The man sighed.

"I know, be that as it may, I would still like to go back under now." Arthur said, whipping his head around to check if anything was coming. He sighed again and in a whisper added, "Where it is safe."

Francis smiled kindly and stopped moving his tail. Soon, they were sinking back into the crystal blue water. The rays of sun shooting down around them, this was Francis' favorite part, sinking back into their world. Particularly when sinking with his love nestled softly in his arms.

As they descended, Francis did what he normally would. Placing one hand on the small of Arthur's back, Francis pulled him in so that their bare chests were pressing against each other. Not to be out done Arthur did the exact same thing, smiling triumphantly as if he had bested Francis.

Then, the most important reason they met on the surface every day began. Entranced and enamored by the slow decent, Francis began running his hands all over Arthur. Where ever his gentle fingers could touch and reach, he let them slide over the merman in his arms. The same was true for Arthur, as he began to caress Francis as well. In the flurry of bubbles created as they went down, they tangled together, the two tails wrapping around one another. It was exhilarating and exciting.

Finally, as they neared the ocean floor, very close to the entrance to their kingdom and home, Francis ran his hand up and tangle it into Arthur's swirling blond hair. Pulling the man's face gently to him, he leaned down and first kissed his neck. The small groan and the fact that Arthur dug his nails slightly into his bare skin made Francis smile. Soon, the kisses trailed from his neck to Arthur's ear, that Francis nibbled affectionately and then traveled over to his cheek, and finally over to his nose.

Francis could hear the frustration in the man's voice and wasn't shocked at all when Arthur roughly grabbed him and pulled him into a kiss on the lips.

Although Arthur lacked gentleness, there was no mistaking the passion, which Francis equally returned. Their heads turned this way and that, each trying to gain the upper hand. The only sound was the short breaths of oxygenated water they were taking through their nostrils. This went on for several minutes before Francis eventually won, making Arthur melt into his seduction.

At last the two broke apart but smiled at each other, hovering just mere feet above the sea floor. Francis ran the back of his fingers down Arthur's face and let out a small laugh.

"Were you a bit eager today, mon amour? I cannot blame you, I would be eager to kiss moi as well." Francis quipped, stealing just one more kiss from the man. Arthur turned red and shook his head.

"Narcissistic git, why would I—" He started but stopped. By this point, Francis had completely frozen and grown pale. He was staring wide eyed over Arthur's shoulder and gripped him tight. He was even trembling. Speaking softly, he never took his eyes off of whatever he was watching.

"Arthur, do not move. Please do not turn around, I will protect you." Francis whispered. At that, Arthur raised his eyebrow and went to turn around anyway. Before he could completely turn his head, Francis grabbed his face, forcing him to look only at him. Francis knew without a doubt that if Arthur saw what was lurking behind him, he would panic. They could not afford that, though this behavior wasn't exactly keeping calm either.

Reaching over to grip Francis' forearms tightly, he looked up at him with worried green eyes, "What is it, Francis? Why would you need to protect me? What is going on?" Arthur asked in a whisper. There was no chance for Francis to answer. At that moment, the creature decided to attack, springing forward. All Francis could do was push Arthur out of the way, just in time to take a direct hit to his chest. Francis groaned as he was carried away from a screaming Arthur, feeling a few of his ribs crack. This wasn't going to be pleasant, he thought vaguely.

A shark, a Great White, now had Francis perched on the tip of his nose, away from his teeth. However, the Frenchmerman knew he wouldn't be able to keep himself that way for long. Why was this monster attacking them? Usually these beasts left the merpeople alone. It was very rare to have one attack. He and Arthur must have been at the right place at the right time.

As Francis struggled to get away, punching and poking the shark furiously, he saw a blur of green speed up next to him. Arthur. The frantic merman was holding out his hand, reaching for Francis, trying his best to keep up with the speeding shark. There was fear and panic in his voice as he screamed for Francis. It filled Francis with both a sense of dread and hope. The poor merman was trying so hard to get to him, to save him. Shakily, Francis threw out his hand to reach for Arthur.

Their fingertips had just brushed when it happened. Francis felt his heart plummet into the pit of his stomach as the beast readjusted his position, the Frenchmerman slipping sideways into the open jaws. His horror filled eyes locked onto Arthur's just as the shark clamped down.

The pain was immense. Each tooth seeming to break the skin of Francis' abdomen one at a time. All he could see was the shark's cold dead, black eyes staring at him as he bit into the French delicacy he had captured. Feebly, Francis tried to keep fighting back but all he could so was punch the gray body weakly. The only thing he could think of was that this was the end. He was certainly going to die here. At least his last afternoon in the sun had been a memorable on spent with his love, he mused as the shark refused to let go.

The shark thrashed from side to side and Francis arched his back, screaming in terror. Unfortunately, the move only pushed his torso further into the upper jaw. Even more pain shot through him. Yes, he thought as he grit his teeth, this was definitely the end.

Then as suddenly as the shark had bit Francis, he let him go. Almost as if the beast decided to spit him out. Francis didn't care why, he was just relieved the pressure on his body had been released. For a moment, he floated there, breathing heavy until he began to sink. He could have sworn that Arthur sped over to investigate before hastily speeding away but he couldn't be sure. Honestly, he hoped the merman was gone already. Mostly for his safety but also because he didn't want Arthur to see him die. Wrapping his arms around his waist, Francis took another ragged breath and let himself fall to the ocean bottom.

The water around him swirled red as he made the decent. He tried his best not to focus on that but instead turned his mind to the pain wracking his body. Gently, he felt around his broken torso, there were puncture marks all over him. Some were shallow and not of too much concern. Others he was able to slip his finger, some even two fingers, into a fair ways. They were very deep gashes and as Francis thought about it, he began to panic more. This was not what he wanted, he didn't want to dwell on the fact that he was dying. Instead, he looked up and saw rays of his beloved sunlight cutting through the pink water above him.

What a beautiful site, he thought, then letting his eyes slip close.

Landing in an outcropping of coral, Francis kept his eyes closed. He was nestled, almost protectively, between two large formations and they were giving him a sense of comfort. He didn't move a single muscle as he laid there, content to allow himself to die peacefully. The blood was still flowing freely, despite him gripping the wounds tight. There was also still a great deal of pain surging through his body as well but he didn't moan or groan with it. He wasn't even crying, in fact, there was a smile on his face. After such a violent encounter, Francis was determined to lie there quietly and peacefully until he completely faded away.

However, his eye's snapped open as another force hit him hard. The Frenchmerman flailed, thinking it was the shark, come to finish what he started but stopped when he realized there were gentle hands cupping the sides of his face. Francis looked up and saw a very scared Arthur, trying his best to calm him down. In a very soft voice, highly unusual for the normally very gruff merman, Arthur assured him that everything was going to be alright, that he would get him back to the safety of the kingdom. All Francis could do in response was nod and take a deep rasping breath.

After Arthur quickly bound Francis' wounds with some kelp, he hastily scooped the injured merman into his arms. Though Francis was a bit larger then Arthur, the green tailed merman was having not trouble carrying him. As they sped towards the kingdom, Francis noticed that there were fresh scraps and cuts on Arthur's body. Without thinking, Francis reached up and touched a few gently, wondering for a brief moment where they had come from. Then it hit him, Arthur must have fought the shark! Fought to keep it away from his Francis. The thought filled Francis with joy and his smiled. Certainly, if he could fight a shark then the surface wouldn't scare him anymore.

Letting his eye's slip close again, Francis wrapped his arms around Arthur and gave him a very weak hug. "Come play in zhe sun with moi, mon ami. I want to chase zhe cruise ships togetzer with you, je t'aime, Arthur." He said weakly. His head slumped against Arthur and the man shook his awake as they reached the kingdoms entrance.

"I will, you bloody git, but you have to survive this first." He said forcefully. Gently he brought Francis up close to him and nuzzled his hair, still speeding towards help. Francis felt him frown against him, "I love you, bastard. Don't die on me, please, Francis." He whispered into Francis' ear. In response, Francis quickly gave Arthur a kiss to the cheek before he pulled away and smiled.

"Oui, je t'aime, Arthur." Was all Francis could manage as they reached help and he was taken away. He promised himself he would survive, just so that he could see Arthur on the surface again.