Acceptance. Everyone says they are accepting of many things. In the city they claim to have acceptance. What I see is an intolerance for customs that break tradition, a cruelty toward other races, and disliking for anything that stands against the royal family.

Where I come from, my parents have always loved me as their child . . . but not as their successor. My older brother has always been "the rightful heir," no matter how often or loudly he protested against it. For decades we've learned that tradition will not be changed. No matter how badly we want to switch places, we cannot.

I would take the throne in a heartbeat. I want it. He does not. Acceptance? None. I will never be accepted as the ruler of our city as long as my older brother lives.

Before the Crucifixion, far before the birth of Christ and the rise of kings, what is now known as Italy served as a dry-land version of the sea for a race of what appeared to others as their peers. The De Luca family, royal blood of an underwater race, lived among humans. They had quickly forgotten their finned heritage as they ascended above the waves where they hoped to make a living like humans, but as time wore on, and their age never showed, rumors began flying that the family was demonic, or the spawn of a series of witches. Armed with the intent to kill, the villagers of the De Luca’s home descended upon them, forcing them to return to the waves.

Atlantis fell long before then, however. And after several decades descended into ruin. The De Luca family, however, made their home in a massive crater deep under the waves. Over time, the De Luca family created a huge, sprawling city, larger than Atlantis ever was, and as interest in the ocean’s depths grew among the land-dwellers, a shroud had to be placed over the city. The true object of this shield, which veils the city from prying eyes, is unknown.

The De Luca family has mostly faded save for the elderly king and queen and their two successors. They have existed below the waves so long their past living on land is a distant, fading memory.
-


Azzurro

Azzurro is the eldest son of the king and queen. His tail is especially long and flat along the fin, its scales a brilliant gold that eventually fades into a normal tanned tone of skin halfway up his torso. His hair is long and black, and regardless of being under or above water, it tends to be everywhere. His eyes are a very pale blue, and tend to be rather wide, despite being devoid of many emotions.

He fears the death of his parents and his eventual, swift succession to the throne. However, law states the eldest son or daughter, at the death of the king and queen, is next in line. Azzurro dreads his ascent, but cannot stop it. Often he wishes to give the state to his younger brother, but it’s been forbidden many centuries ago when the details of the king and queen’s death was brought up.

Lokio

Lokio is the complete opposite of his brother: while Azzurro is gold-scaled and dark haired, the younger son has brown hair and black scales. His tail isn't quite as long as his brother's, but nearly so. The end of the fin is a bit ragged, though it has always been that way.
His eyes are coal black, giving the impression of an abyss. While his features are strangely tan, they show much more emotion than Azzurro's. Lokio has smatterings of scales along his shoulders and bordering his features, and the demeanor of a disgruntled scholar.

Always one for the books, Lokio enjoyed spending much of his time throughout his growing years with various scholars and historians. He learned much of tradition, and has come to the conclusion that the city should continue on as it always has. Viewing himself as a more eligible leader, Lokio has hardly kept his feelings from everyone else. He still treats his brother with respect and a brotherly love, but . . . there will always be a barrier between them. That barrier was much less important when they were children, but now it has become the very essence of their lives.

- The Story -

- In process

"Intruders, you say?" Lokio's black fin slowly lifted from the stone beneath him. He was lounging on a carved chair, reading a few stone tablets while inspecting a rather strange looking gem. Setting his things down, Lokio's onyx gaze turned to the broad-shouldered creature before him. "Have you seen them before?"

"Yes, m'lord. They have been near the border for days, now."

At first, the princeling was interested. Heck, he was going to be interested no matter what tradition dictated. Still, as the youngest son it wasn't his duty or his right to go nosing around into the affairs of the kingdom's safety. That fact always weighed heavily on Lokio's mind. It was always Azzurro who was born to lead: and he didn't even want it!

"Why would you come to me with this?" Lokio's tone was smooth, but the expression on his face was one of hardly-controlled frustration. "Isn't my brother more suitable?" The male wasn't angry with having the situation brought to his attention, but he was irritated with the fact that he wasn't allowed to do anything about it.

The guardsman seemed to hesitate, his fins flickering in the clear water. "I'm sorry for troubling you, m'lord."

"Find Azzurro. My brother needs to hear what you have to say." Lokio's tone softened, but his pupil-less black eyes remained narrowed. Yes, he needs to hear it. Perhaps it was worth a reaction this time. Dismissing the guard, the merman sighed to himself. "I'll tell him. Return to your post."

Lokio was moving with a powerful flick of his tail. Swiftly making his way through the city, he searched for his brother thoroughly. He knew where to find him: and it wasn't the most obvious of places. "Azzurro," he approached with a tense smile. "The guards have spotted intruders near the eastern border of the city. It is best that I informed you." That, and it meant that Lokio could now follow his brother out there. . . .

Death comes to all life. Regardless of age, life span, or durability, it’s only a matter of time before even the most powerful and resilient creature, man or beast, succumbs to the absolute finality of death. And sometimes, you just can’t accept that. You push that truth farther and farther away until it smacks you in the face one day, and catches you completely off guard.

I don’t want to lead the city. I don’t think I can. I won’t be good enough, strong enough, fast enough. I’ve said so. I’ve begged. I’ve thrown self-respect out the window in favor of my little brother Lokio. But to what avail? Embarrassment, perhaps. But nothing more. Not even pity.

I just hope Lokio doesn’t hold this against me. If I could I’d trade places with him in a heartbeat. The throne is imposing and cold, much like my very heart is becoming. What good is protest if it gets you nowhere? What good is freedom of speech if no one ever listens to you?

~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~*~~~~~

For once he could be alone. For once, Azzurro had awoken to absolute silence, absolute stillness. And he had taken his shortcuts through the palace to the courtyard, its garden of bright coral shining as the sun managed to reach the depths of the palace floor, despite being so far down. His abnormally long tail was coiled beneath him, acting as a nest as he sat among a kelp patch, observing the crabs and small, colorful Angelfish that didn’t seem to glitter as brightly as the perfectly golden scales of his tail, which stretched up to patter his upper torso. The crab didn’t appreciate being picked up, and showed its frustration by sinking a pale claw into Azzurro’s forefinger, not quite hard enough to draw blood but enough to cause a sting. He let it go as he felt someone approach, and uncoiled the long snake of a tail from beneath him to meet the newcomer, one he would always recognize as the dark shadow of his younger brother.

The words stabbed a cold dagger into his chest. But it wasn’t of worry for the city. They had dealt with intruders before. His tired, lackluster blue eyes fell to the sandy floor of the courtyard. “I see.” He sighed. “Thank you, Lokio. I... suppose we should do something about it.” He slid through the water with nary a beat of his tail. “You... can come if you like. I can’t stop you either way, can I?”

Each day draw nearer the death of the king and queen, the parents of Lokio and Azzurro. The elder son dreaded the horrible truth, but could do nothing about it, and as the unavoidable day advanced like an approaching army, Azzurro had become less and less energetic, less happy in general. He desperately wanted to give power to his younger brother, but that was forbidden. It was he who would take his mother and father’s place. He who would have the weight of the city and its people on his shoulders.

Azzurro wouldn’t bring along a guard. He’d been rigorously trained in battle and defense by his father and an elder guardsman. Whether or not Lokio came along was up to his younger sibling. Though Azzurro didn’t doubt the young merman would follow. Despite their past being relaxed and friendly, Azzurro didn’t know his brother’s intentions. Lokio wanted the throne, that was more than obvious to anyone who had been around them more than a few hours. He’d like to think his brother wouldn’t harm him, as he’d never do such a thing to Lokio. But regardless of how long one knew someone else, anything was subject to change.

"We both know that you'd miss my company far too much if I stayed behind," Lokio's smile was slight, but true. "You've never asked me to stay behind before." The dark-skinned creature glided after his brother, eying him for a few moments. From the look of things, they were going alone. Lokio knew better than to suggest bringing someone else: there wasn't a better fighter in the entire city than Azzurro himself. Or, nearly.

Lokio hadn't trained much in the fighting arts. He'd learned more tricks than any other merman, and knew how to remain unseen in the midst of trouble, but when it came to combat he was hardly decent. It came with being a bit smaller than his older sibling.

A frown slowly settled over Lokio's dark features as they moved through the waters in silence. "I worry for you, brother." He'd seen Azzurro's quickly fading sense of happiness. It seemed as though the gold-scaled youth was losing his very life one day at a time. Every moment that passed left more and more weight on the older male's shoulders. "You know that you aren't alone in this."

The farther they swam, the more Lokio began to see the burden his brother seemed to bear. It had been obvious before, but . . . right now it was hideously blatant. "Do you remember the small creature we found when were children?" They'd found a small selkie child lost near their reefs. The poor girl had been terrified, and it was Azzurro who managed to keep her calm enough to point out the way back to her family. Lokio had been more concerned with the fact that it was forbidden to even speak with other races, let alone help them.
"You have a way with people. Your heart is good." Lokio's black eyes moved away from Azzurro's golden form as they continued. "Besides, the only thing that will change is you being the ultimate go-to." Right. And then there was the extra responsibility, and the meetings, and the formal dress and behavior. . . . Ugh.

As they neared the eastern border, a flicker of movement came from ahead of them. Whatever it was, it moved with the darting patterns of light along the ocean floor. For a moment, slitted eyes gazed at them from a rocky crevice. "Only one?" Lokio muttered, narrowing his onyx eyes. As though the intruder heard his words, it darted from one dark space to another one a few feet closer to the approaching mermen. It was too strange looking to be one of the city's folk, and far too large to be a fish. No tentacles, so there was no possibility of a squid. It looked oddly humanoid, but it was hard to get a good look at it while it was hiding.

Another flickering movement. The creature moved to an even closer crevice in the ocean floor. Once again, the creature eyed them. Or, more accurately, it eyed Azzurro.

Azzurro still knew how to smile, despite popular opinion. He’d overheard the guardsmen, the townsfolk, spreading rumors that as the death of the king and queen approached at a faster and faster speed, Azzurro’s will and ability to smile dwindled a bit more. But he had to smile at Lokio, it was something he couldn’t help. Certainly, he’d never be able to say no to his brother, they’d been inseparable in their younger years. Now, though. They tended to go their separate ways, Azzurro enjoying his solitude among the life of the sea while his brother went here and there, learning on his own. Besides, Azzurro would be a fool not to bring his brother along. He could so easily conceal himself, something the elder brother couldn’t do for his very long, bright tail; he was usually the one targeted in a fight. Lokio could hide, then strike when attention was off of him.

“I wish you wouldn’t worry.” He said, passing through the roads of the city now. “I know... I’m not alone.” Although he sometimes felt that way. He’d watched as the bond between them began to very, very lightly unravel as they returned to the waves of the ocean after having been run from the Italian village they had settled in. Perhaps as their parents, while the very city itself was constructed, pulled them aside to give them a dose of reality, robbing both boys of what possibly remained of their childhood.

Azzurro glanced at his brother as he recounted that past situation. Indeed, had they not found the girl she may have been killed, or imprisoned, or simply ran off. “You know I’ve never agreed with that... why we have to avoid speaking with others of our own race. I always considered it paranoia.” Indeed, he hated the law, and it would be changed. That, perhaps, was the only good thing about ascending to lead the city after his parents. “I’m not the only good one.” He said. “You’ve just been more cautious in the past. I’m just... afraid I’ll fail. Fail so grievously...” He gritted his teeth as they arrived at their destination.

Azzurro’s quick eyes watched every movement the little creature did. He’d seen these in books, and indeed, in different areas of the ocean. A frogling. They had originated in freshwater ponds and lakes, named by humans because they tended to hop and jump while on land, and as they adapted for saltwater situations, the name had never been changed. They tended to be small, green-skinned and could breathe both water and air. And they could speak, they just chose not to more often than not.

When the frogling turned its slit-pupiled gaze on Azzurro, he felt a shiver go about him. It seemed to study him as he and his brother studied it, but seemed to be transfixed on Azzurro. As it bobbed up from the crevice, it put its hands on top of the knot of stone hiding most of it from view. Its greenish hands were very webbed, long and flat, giving it speed in the water. “Frogling.” Azzurro muttered at last. “Maybe it’s just lost or curious.” He spoke to his brother, but didn’t look away from the studying, wide eyes of the frogling.

"You won't fail." Lokio grimly set his expression, and then focused on the strange little intruder.

"Frogling," he muttered, "of course." Now that he could see it, Lokio recognized it from the books. He'd never actually seen one, for they were more common in freshwater bodies. "It must be lost. I haven't heard of them wandering about these areas in any of the histories." Every race had been meticulously recorded so that if they were ever seen they would be warded off. Froglings, while in the books of knowledge, weren't said to be anywhere near the underwater city.

Lokio slowly moved forward as though to offer his hand, and the frogling immediately flickered away. "I don't really have the intention of chasing it down," the male said, his black eyes narrowing, "but the guards might react poorly if they see it around here again. It needs to go back to where it came from."

As though in response, the frogling leaped up into sight again. The look it its slitted eyes was unreadable - it was difficult to gather emotion or intention from any underwater creature, really. It bobbed forward, stopping a few feet from Azzurro. The frogling slowly maneuvered closer, but once again paused a little ways back.

"Well it certainly has an interest in you, brother." Lokio's black eyes narrowed further, and he seemed to fade back into the darker patterns of the water. "What does it want?"

The creature ignored Lokio's presence, and instead lifted one of its webbed hands toward Azzurro. It looked at him for a few more moments before re-offering its hand. Prompting the merman to touch it, the frogling bobbed in the water a few times while waiting patiently.

Azzurro leaned close to the frogling. He could never see what a creature was thinking, that was something which most merfolk considered impossible. And he’d read all he could about every kind of water-dweller, especially froglings. Cursed swamp-living people, it was said, because they wouldn’t conform to the ‘right way of life’ of this king or that queen or accept a certain religion. Since frogs were small and many, and generally harmless, they had taken the form of a frog-like human to live in the water. Usually, however, if they even came to the ocean, they stayed among freshwater lagoons and rivers and rarely preferred breathing water.

He glanced at his brother as the little green creature bobbed forward. “It must be lost. They usually travel in groups.” He said. “Perhaps it came here for help...” Curiosity reigned with a stronger fist over caution, and Azzurro moved forward, placing his own hand in that of the frogling’s. The wide-mouthed thing hopped backward, pulling Azzurro along. If he hadn’t obliged the little thing by pushing himself forward with the fin of his coiled tail, the frogling wouldn’t have been strong enough. It pulled Azzurro to one of its previous hiding places, a small crevice that had been clogged with kelp growth and sand, and pointed into the shade. The frogling let him go and crouched at the mouth on the other side of the crevice, looking into the dark. Azzurro did the same, finding a glittering golden object lodged between two large stones. Cautiously, Azzurro reached in, working a bit to bring it up.

The item looked as though it were made of Azzurro’s own scales. The same gold, if a little discolored, with a short barrel and a handle, a small lever that looked to be used by only one finger. Azzurro pried at the small half-circle protrusion, unlocking the reservoir hidden within and revealing eight small holes, as though each one once held some small missile, something that he’d seen on massive man-made war-ships.

“Strange.” Azzurro moved back to his brother. “This... I think I’ve seen one of these before.” He snapped the reservoir back into the empty barrel and held the item in flat hands. “I just don’t remember what it’s called.” He glanced back to the frogling. They were naturally curious because they were quick in wit and speed. But they didn’t usually keep what they found. Sometimes they gave it away, and other times they just left it behind.

Azzurro handed the item over to Lokio. “I don’t know what it is, but I should really see what this poor thing is doing alone out here. If you’d prefer, you can take this back to the palace.” He moved back to where the young frogling stood crouched, staring up at Azzurro’s shining golden scales. “Maybe you know what it is.”

((:eager: Is it a gun? :lol: That's what it sounds like . . . though Es is good at missing these sort of things. . . .))

Lokio reached to take the golden object from his brother, frowning as he did so. "I have a hunch," he muttered, inspecting the strange item thoroughly. "I would love to see if I could find out more about it." His black eyes moved to Azzurro . . . and he slowly backed away. "I see no danger here. Do you think you'll be alright on your own?" Once more his gaze scanned over the area. There were no other signs of life beyond the frogling.

The creature, which seemed pleased that Azzurro had passed the golden object off to Lokio, looked back to the golden scales before him. With a quick movement, he brushed a webbed hand over the merman's wrist. A voice, very much croaked and genderless, entered Azzurro's mind. Peace. Need to speak alone. Its slitted, large eyes continued to stare at Azzurro as Lokio spoke.

((Dun dun dun! It wants to speak with him alone!! :insane:))

}Yes, it's a gun. I tried to hit its key features. More specifically, a custom-made golden revolver{

Azzurro stared evenly at the frogling. They had long ago lost most of their ability to physically speak, and indeed, projecting their thoughts into the minds of the ones they indicated was the only way they could. "I... I'll be fine." He said. "You can go on without me, Loki, I'll be back soon.

Azzurro moved close to the ocean floor, disturbing loose sand in little clouds as he gently flipped his tail and moved along with the frogling. Its tough outer skin rippled under the loose sunbeam that dove down to their location, but in an instant it had gone under a large outcropping of stone, hung with drifting kelp and colorful anemones. Azzurro followed reluctantly. "Well." He said, crossing his arms. "Are you really lost, or do you just like putting various cities on high alert?" He narrowed his eyes at the creature. "What is it you want, anyway?"

Though his eyes were generally emotionless, they were nothing compared to the double-lidded gaze of a frogling. Bright, glimmering, yet freakishly unresponsive to even the most powerful of anger, which often showed when one lost their catch of food or had been outrun by this creature or that.

Lokio stared at the golden object in his hands for a brief moment before glancing to his brother. "Then I will be waiting for your return. Come back soon." The merman slowly turned away, his black gaze full of curiosity. He was gone within moments, and never saw the frogling lead Azzurro off into the cropping of stone.
-

The frogling stared back at Azzurro as the prince asked his questions. Then, it tilted its dirty-looking head to the side. Not lost. Peace. A second frogling moved across the entrance, suddenly slipping in and staring at Azzurro with the same wide, unblinking eyes. You are next king. Power to change. With a flicker of wide hands, the frogling was inches from Azzurro's smooth features. We want peace. They want peace. Whoever they were was a mystery, but we referred to the froglings.

As a third frogling appeared, it became apparent that there was a rather large group of them. They had wanted Azzurro's attention. Gold, friend. The speaker bumped a frog-like head against Azzurro's chest, seeming almost desperate. You keep peace? It was asking for peace between their people - though for what reason? The froglings weren't exactly the only race to suffer from the mer-folk's traditional intolerance for the other races.

Azzurro twisted himself away and up, above the heads of the froglings. He knew how high the water allowed them to leap, however, and lifted a few more feet. “I try to keep the peace between colonies and cities.” He said from his floating perch. “I’ve kept my father and mother’s heads level for centuries, and it’s stopped unnecessary wars and battles. You have to keep your end up, though. I won’t stand in the way if you act up and do something stupid, all right?”

He didn’t usually put a stern tone to his voice, so it almost threw Azzurro himself off as well as the froglings, who looked at him almost fearfully. Then they nodded. As one, they bounced and leapt to and fro, and Azzurro allowed himself to sink a bit. Then one grabbed his tail and snapped a scale from near the base, sending him twisting like an aquatic snake. Gold! Its thoughts cried, croaking almost as badly as their actual voice. Gold friend to come with us!

Azzurro’s anger bubbled suddenly. “You little bastards!” He lunged forward, grabbing the one that had stolen a scale. It wasn’t the actual act of taking it, but the pain that had accompanied it and the blood that had trickled into the water, ready to attract any near carnivorous fish. He rammed the little creature against the outcropping of stone it had led him to. “I’ll kill you if you or your little idiot followers come back here!” He roared. “Don’t let me catch any of you here again or we’ll wipe out your entire race! Get away! Go!” He let the creature drop, and follow its scattering mates away in shock.

For a moment, he floated there, bringing his tail up and to his front to keep it safe. His breath came quick and short, settling the sediment that had been disturbed by the frogling’s actions. The feeling of such horrible anger was almost foreign to him, but it was there, usually when someone or something took advantage of his kindness. With an annoyed huff, Azzurro flipped around and took off toward the city, following his little brother. He left his fallen scale on the ocean floor.

((Thank you for inviting me to join your new thread. *bows in thanks* Sadly, I don't think I should take on any more than I already have. :sweat: As you have seen, I can be a bit overwhelmed with both threads and life. . . . But I really do appreciate the thought! I also apologize for the disgustingly long wait. :sarcasm: Es can be bad at this sometimes.))

The froglings left. Azzurro left. When everything had settled, a flicker of movement left the rocky walls. The creature was female, though it moved with the grace of a hunter. Its eyes narrowed, and she seemed to stare at the discarded gold scale. The froglings weren't supposed to prompt Azzurro to anger. To her, it was good that they did. It meant that whoever was controlling the little things was slipping. The charm that kept the froglings in one general mindset was fading already.

The creature lifted the glittering scale, hissing to reveal splintery fangs. This war was going to be the end of this golden mercreature. Every last one of the merfolk would die. The female flicked her eel-like tail and disappeared into the caves, returning to whatever camp she'd come from. War was on the horizon - and there would be precious little time before it came to life.
-

Lokio inspected the golden item thoroughly. He'd been so intrigued by the strangeness of the object that he had almost forgotten to tell the guards to keep an eye out for his brother. Hopefully Azzurro wouldn't get into any trouble.

The books weren't very thorough. By the time Azzurro was headed home, Lokio had a vague impression that it was a human tool: a gun. It was from the most recent books they owned, though . . . it looked nothing like the strangely rickety object drawn in the figures.

Lokio's black, pupil-less eyes focused on the gun once more. He couldn't identify it completely, but he was rather certain now. How . . . different. This weapon really interested him. Lokio loved oddities from the outside world, and this was a real treasure. The only thing that disappointed him was the fact that this tool didn't seem to work underwater.

Sorry for the delay! I'm just a slow fool. And it's okay, I tend to forget... You shouldn't take on so many threads at once, woman!


Azzurro cursed his hairpin trigger. Sometimes it got him into the most distasteful of situations. Perhaps, he thought as he returned to the city, he should have brought that scale along. The loss of one of his scales wouldn’t be the end of him, they grew back, and he didn’t specifically adore his color. If anything he would have enjoyed being black and white, so he could easily slip away from certain situations. Still, it was what he was born with. Azzurro considered his brother much luckier in that case. Many cases, really.

As he reached the entrance, an armed guard approached with a flick of his sea-green tail. His hands were grasped around an especially sharp spear tipped with obsidian, durable and not entirely crude. “Prince Azzurro.” He said with a slight bow. “How far have you been? You know it’s dangerous nowadays to travel far off without an escort.”

Azzurro rolled his eyes. “Yes, Wren, I know. I haven’t been too far, and trust me, I’ll take care of myself. Okay? If I need a sitter, I’ll come to you personally.” He raised a brow, and Wren nodded his head in slight defeat. He was young yet, the guard, yet he tried to make himself appear much more intimidating than he really was. It was a sad sight to see, and to others, rather laughable. Azzurro had heard other, more experienced guardsmen talking about the boy in various areas of the palace, and not in particularly flattering ways. It kept Azzurro from putting him down more than he already was.

Lokio was most likely in the palace archives. They held a wealth of knowledge from above and below the water, written on special paper-like sheets with inks that never faded with the water’s influence. When he entered the archives, he found Lokio, staring at the golden item they had discovered. “Brother.” He nodded to Lokio and looked at what he had been reading about. A few words rang a particular bell. “A gun.” He said. “I remember those... Or, I’d heard explorers talking about them, not long ago. Several decades I think, when they managed to get on the surface and meander about the human cities and towns.”

He took a place beside his brother and lifted the gun to inspect. “They’re used to kill from a distance, using powder and a lead round. The adventurers say they’re pretty strong, and hard to handle. Stole one, so they say, but once it gets too wet, it won’t fire anymore. It’s definitely unique for this location.” He held it out. “If you want to keep it, you can. Just don’t let anyone else know... They... might try to replicate it so it fires in water, and that wouldn’t be good.”

Azzurro recalled the adventurers talking about the use of the gun. Mainly, it was used to kill others. Usually out of malice or spur-of-the-moment reactions of anger or fear. He didn’t even want to think about what it would do if a marine version were created.

"Brother."

Lokio's black eyes were cold when his gaze moved up to see Azzurro enter. The strange look faded instantly, and was replaced by an expression of amusement. "I'll be sure to keep this hidden from any nefarious traitors then, brother." The merman tilted his head, carefully taking the gun back. "Did the frogling ever tell you what it wanted?"

His black scales seemed to slide through the partial darkness that surrounded them. The small glowing lichen on the wall of the cave-like alcove above them was more than enough light to read by. Lokio was used to little light. His black eyes absorbed all the rays available, giving him a strange sense of sight in even the darkest of scenarios. Even now the pale youth turned from Azzurro and accepted another book into his hands, ignoring the play of shadows as they teased the pages before him.

"A gun. Yes," he agreed with his older brother before carefully gliding up beside the nearest bookcase. "It's in remarkably good condition." Lokio's onyx eyes scanned over the golden object . . . and then it seemed to disappear as he slid it into a tiny hiding place in the stone behind some of the books. It was hidden from anyone and everyone . . . save Azzurro and himself.

"I will, as I said, keep it secret. I will keep it safe." Something in his features was off, but . . . it was too subtle to really come to Azzurro's attention. When he looked back to his brother, Lokio smiled slightly. "Mother and father wanted you to get your fitting finished. They want to present you with that royal vest on the day you're crowned, you know."

Azzurro tilted his head to the side. Lokio seemed so strange. Perhaps due to the recent activities? Perhaps. Azzurro wasn’t entirely up to everything he’d once found he loved. He shook his head. “They seemed to want to form an alliance or agreement.” He sighed. “Until one plucked a scale from my tail and really...” he chuckled. “... really struck a nerve. They won’t be returning unless it’s for a specific hostile reason.”

Azzurro widened his eyes a bit. The place was a bit dark, so the paleness of his eyes really assisted in his ability to see. While Lokio’s black eyes took in every bit of light to see, Azzurro’s found what light was there and reflected them back, something like a mirror. He could see Lokio move around to take a book, hide the gun.

Something flashed in Lokio’s face. Something a bit off. Perhaps he was tired... Azzurro really didn’t want to distrust his brother, but it wasn’t a secret how much he wanted to be in Azzurro’s place. Though the golden merman would give anything to allow Lokio his place, to ascend to the throne and allow him to keep to the back, be unnoticed when he wanted to, it was still impossible. He’d never thought Lokio would hold it against him, but now... anything was possible. He shook the sickening thoughts from his head.

He sighed. “I’d rather just forget it.” He muttered. “What is the use of that vest? Didn’t they only recently come up with it?” He took a book from the corner and leafed through it. “It’s not as though it’s an heirloom or tradition...” The sight of that vest, a combination of gold, black, and white to represent the king and queen, Lokio, and Azzurro’s tail colors, was very closely-fitted. It was uncomfortable to wear for a long time, and the way it was fussed over was nearly laughable. “I suppose I’ll go find them, then.” He indicated his parents, setting the book back on the shelf and turning. “Would you like to come?” He glanced around to Lokio.

"Come?" Lokio almost looked surprised. "To your fitting?" A smile spread over his face. "Brother, I would come just to watch you squirm for the next hour." A flick of his black tail brought up close to Azzurro. With a chuckle, he gave his brother's shoulder a shove.

Moving through the water, the younger prince glanced back. "I will beat you there."
-

((*grimace* Sorry for the extremely long delay and tiny little post. It's not good. :/ Es doesn't usually have this problem, but she's having a hard time knowing what to post!

Any ideas on what happens next? :3))