A merman is captured at sea by a fishing boat and placed in captivity, in a large tank of a popular United States aquarium. Visitors flock to see this newly-found species, from opening time directly until closing time. One particular visitor notices the merman's distress, his sadness, and takes pity on him, leading to a desire to help him escape...((I want to play the merman.))

Name: Amelie "Emy" Romine
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Species: Human

Name: Léandre Arcturus Skelter
Age: Seventeen (but is much older)
Gender: Male
Species: Skeltan Merman (Male Siren)
Looks:

Emy sighed as she was dragged along by her younger sister. "Come on, Emy! There's a new exibit today and I wanna get up front!" She looked the complete opposite of Emy. She was very thin, with glasses and dressed very typical for a 10 year old girl. Emy wore a black pleated skirt, green tank top, with black lace up Chucks that came to her knees, a couple bracelets on her arms and two or three rings, spike studs and black loop earrings. She pulled her long red hair back into a messy ponytail and followed her all-too-eager sister. "You like these places too much." The little girl rolled her eyes at her. "Marine life is cool. Now, COME ON!" Emy bit her tongue, knowing anything she said to her would be reported back to her father and he didn't need any more stress. So she went along quietly, aside from a grumble or two.

Once they entered the park, she bought a smoothie and went with her sister to the new exibit's place on the map. Her little sister bouncing with excitement.

The new exhibit was a large tank, indoors. It was alongside the shark tanks, and some of the rarer, exotic tanks. The front of the tank itself was large, and long, so a lot of people could look at once. It had been where some of the sharks had been before, but they'd been moved to the tank next to this one. It was covered up with a blue tarp.

There were people crowded in front of it already, chattering away and waiting for the owner to reveal himself and unveil the new exhibit.

The little girl stomped her feet when she saw all the people. "See what you did!? If you hadn't have had to get your stupid smoothie, we'd be in the front!" Emy sighed, then looked around for a way to get up front. She looked at her younger sister. "Oh, stop your fussing. I've got an idea." She took her hand and pushed her way through some weaker looking viewers, till she got to the middle front, having to stomp on some woman's foot to get her to move. "There, you happy you little squirt?"

The crowd had to part anyway in a moment, because the manager of the aquarium, flanked by two guards, headed on up to the front of the pack. He stood there--a chubby man in his late forties, with a round face and beady eyes.

"Ladies and gentleman, sorry to keep you waiting. In this tank is the newest addition to our aquarium's family! But, before we can reveal it to you, I'm proud to say that the fisherman who captured this creature captured...a new species."

The girl turned and giggled in excitement at the news. "A new species! Did you hear that, sis?!" Emy nodded in a sort of bored fashion. "Probably just a new species of shark of whale or something." She grumbled to herself. The girl turned back to the tank and waited anxiously for it to be revealed. Emy sipped at her smoothie, bored.

Emy had eyed the man that spoke. He looked like one of those carnival men who ran the Freak show. Slimy, good for nothing people. She hated those types of people. Stomping on other people's lives just to earn a quick buck.

The man cleared his throat. "Please don't spook the poor thing, he's..." he trailed off when a loud, panicked, watery, musical sort of wail came from the tank behind him. "Ah-ha, he's a little sensitive. Now!"

He stepped away, into the crowd. The man's two lackeys pulled away the tarp. The inside of the tank was heavily decorated, with many fake rock caves all around it and a lot of sea plants. There weren't any other fish, however...which was strange. The wail sounded again, closer this time, and something shot across the front of the tank. It paused near the middle of the tank and turned, its side facing the front of the tank...

It was a merman. A real, live merman, with a bluish-violet tail, a pale torso, light blonde hair and arctic blue eyes. He stared at the crowd like they were hostile aliens.

Emy wasn't even paying attention until she heard the cry from the inside the tank. She jumped slightly, then her heart sank a little at the sound. "Poor thing..." She muttered. Even her sister was worried. "Everyone needs to be quiet."

Emy tisked at the decorations. "Disgusting. Fake plants and rocks? Was it so hard to go find real ones?" Her little sister shushed her as they heard the sound again. The girl was consentrating intensely on the thing making the noise. She gasped loudly as she saw it.

Emy's eyes widened and she looked a little afraid, almost mirroring the look on the merman's face. But then she realized he was trapped...she wasn't. She looked at him in a different way. "Poor guy..." She looked at him for a long time, then looked around at everyone that was pressing closer. She hastily pushed up to the front and yelled. "Get back! Can't you see you're scaring the poor guy to death!?" She sounded angry.

"Now, now, settle down," The owner chided, shooing Emy back into the crowd. The merman swam around in rapid circles, attempting to find a way out. "He's simply not used to his new quarters yet. And he needs to get used to all of these people, after all."

He turned away, walking to his guards. He was muttering something about how he regretted not having a female of his kind to breed him with.

Emy reluctantly stepped back, giving the merman an apologetic look. She watched sadly as he swam around oviously trying to find a way out. Her ears were very sharp and she caught what the owner was saying. She gritted her teeth angrily, then forced herself to turn back to the merman before she did something to get herself in trouble. She noticed that her little sister was pressed up against the glass, staring wide-eyed at the merman as it moved. Emy was made even more angry by this.

The merman, finding there was no way out along the sides of the tank, miserably sank lower, examining the floor and trying to find a way out from there. He looked like a rattlesnake coiled up for attack...anyone who walked up above the tank, where there was a walkway the staff was supposed to feed him from, was going to feel his wrath.

Emy watched the behavior of the merman and frowned. She looked at where he was aiming and thought to herself. "There's a way to get to him....maybe....I can help him somehow..." She'd thought of setting him free, but it seemed impossible for a 17 year old to do. She just stayed there and watched the merman, looking around the tank for weak spots or maybe doors that would get her better access to him.

The owner seemed ecstatic with the attention his newest prospect was getting. He looked around, then noticed Emy's interest in both the tank and the merman. "Young lady! Do you have extra money on you? Would you like to be the first to go up on the walkway and feed him? Twenty dollars."

Emy nearly jumped out of her skin when the man addressed her. She thought she'd been caught. She turned and looked surprised at his offer, but a little wary. The merman did look angry....and she didn't want to get hurt. "Umm...is it ok if my sister is nearby, I have to watch her." Emy dug out 20 dollars, glancing at the merman. Her little sister was freaking out. "I wanna go too!" Emy frowned at her. "If I think it's safe I'll let you go."

The man accepted the money. "If you want her to stay here, my guards can watch her," he offered, kindly. The owner himself didn't look too friendly, but the guards seemed friendly enough.

The merman swam around in more rapid circles, chest heaving. He wanted to get out. Out, out, out...and fast.

Emy looked at the man, resisting spitting on him. She was always a good judge of character, she'd been right about this one too. She nodded slowly. "Alright, you stay with these nice men for a couple minutes." The girl pouted, but did what she was told. Emy then nodded again. "How do I get up there?"

The man turned and led her through the crowd, and outside. He walked along the back of this particular building and led her through the infamous 'Employees Only' door around the back. This door led behind the tanks. There was a stairwell leading up to a door at the top of each tank, and that led onto the walkway. He stopped in a side room near the door and returned a moment later with a bucket of live, flapping fish.

"We've found he only eats live fish, so just drop them down in the tank," he explained, holding the bucket out to her. "It's the middle stairwell. The stairwell should be labeled, so you'll know which one it is."

He turned and walked back outside.

Emy followed him, staying close, but keeping her distance at the same time. He didn't look trustworthy, nor did she want to be left. She studied the path, memorizing everything...for future reference. Then looked at the live fish with a slight disgust, but took the bucket. She nodded slightly to the man, but he'd already headed back out. What kind of owner is this? To trust a teenage girl with a "prized possesion"? But then again...he had her sister. She sighed and headed up the stairs he'd mentioned. When she got out there she took a deep breath and slowly went out, looking down into the water, looking cautiously for the angry merman.

And he was angry...quite angry.

He let out another wail--this one had a furious tone to it. He lingered near the middle of the tank, tail flicking back and forth, a look of pure fury on his face. He didn't know what she was in here for, and he didn't trust her.

Emy's face flushed a little and she stepped back a little, then swallowed and encouraged herself quietly. "How are you ever going to help him if you're too much of a coward to face him? He's got every right to be angry." She murmured as she edged out to the middle. "Please...if you can hear me...I'm not going to hurt you.....I want to help..."

A low hiss escaped the merman's throat, and he ducked deeper under the water, ice blue eyes watching her every move. If he could speak, he wasn't showing it. He was on the complete defensive at the moment. It seemed that Emy would have to earn his trust somehow.

Emy sighed sadly as he went down to the bottom. "I don't know if you can hear me...but I'm just going to talk to you anyway." She moved to the middle and sat down, looking down at him with a kind, but sad look in her eyes. "I really do hate how your 'owner' is treating you....I think they should've just cut you from the net and let you go...not put you up in a tank for stupid people to gawk at..." She glanced at her sister. "Though....I guess you can't really blame them for gawking. They've never seen a merman before...but...I still think this is terrible what they've done to you..." She just stared down at him sadly, looking as if she were going to tear up, but she took a deep breath and tried to collect herself. "I'm sorry...I wish there was some way for me to help you...."

The merman paused, then swam to the far end of the tank and shot up to the surface, breaking it with his head only.

"You're all the same." He had a semi-masculine, tenor voice. It was laced with venom, for the moment. "All of you humans are the same! Why should I trust you?"

Emy watched him move, then sighed a little when he spoke. "I know...there isn't any reason for you to trust me. You have every right to think all humans are the same. But....I have to tell you, I really do wish to help you..." Truth shone in her eyes, as well as determination, a little hate leaked in when she spke again. "That...man...he's terrible...he spoke of wishing he could breed you like you were some....horse or show dog or something." Her face was angry for a moment, then she closed her eyes. "People don't really trust me anyway...though I've done nothing to earn their mistrust." She looked at him again, somewhat of a pleading look in her eyes.