Name: Astrid
Age: 21
Species: Merfolk

It had been three years since she had been caught in that fishermen's net. Three years since the humans learned of her existence. And three years since she had been shoved in this tiny fishbowl of a tank in the back corner of a world famous Aquarium. At first the humans feared her, scared that they were no longer the only sentient beings on the planet. They stayed away from her glass walls as she swam in her small circles. Barley whispering as they stared at her like she was some freak.

The scientists came eventually. Poking and prodding with their needles and knives. Her once flawless skin was now littered with missing scales and scars everywhere thanks to them.

But as the time slowly ticked away the humans got bolder. Got closer and treated her like a freak. They had never found any more like her, of course Astrid knew they were out there, the humans just couldn't find them. But now the human's belittled her, threw trash and debris into her tank. Her once crystal clear water was now an ugly yellow and brown. At one time she had tried to fling the trash back out but her captors had withheld food from her so she behaved. The only ones aloud near the opening at the top of her tank were the owners of the establishment and they were the worst. Giving her rotten food to watch her suffer or letting the trash float around her for weeks before they'd even pretend to clean it.

Astrid sat on the bottom corner of her empty tank arms wrapped around herself as her blue hair floated listlessly about her. She wondered how long she could survive in a place like this before it would all kill her.

Name: Logan
Age: 18
Species: Human

He had come into the world screaming, like many babes, and like many poor children before him he was much unwanted by a mother who hated him for scaring his father off. So it was to an orphanage he was sent. An orphanage he was raised until the tender age of five when his mothers brother, his uncle decided to take him in and raise him. Not out of a sense of love but embarrassment that his sister beget a child and pawned him off.

So that's how Logan came to his Uncle's house, ushered off from the only home he had ever known into a lavish house befitting a man of excessive wealth. His Uncle an elderly man took him under his wing spending years molding the boy into a man befitting that house.

Logan enjoyed the easy life, ever feeling indebted to his uncle for pulling him out of poverty and giving him a home. That was until he made his mistake, the pivotal mistake that cost him everything and got him thrown out of his uncles house into the streets.

Since then he completed odd job after odd job eking out a living barely, his latest job was to clean up and look after the creatures at an old out of the way aquarium, how surprised was he to find that one of the creatures he was to look after was a being of myth.

Astrid swam in small circles as she awaited the delivery of her meager meal before the crowds started to show. Slowly breaking the surface of the water her once bright blue eyes peered over at the metal walkway that her captors used to leer down at her. Blue strands of hair clung to her face as her finned ears twitched at the sound of approaching feet.

She darted back down beneath the surface just as a half full cup of soda collided with the wall of her tank. She could hear the muffled shouts of someone as a small group of the bipeds approached. Freak. They used this term a lot. Fries bobbed on the surface of her tank as their little cardboard container floated past her before sinking to the bottom. One of them actually got close enough to touch her glass wall so Astrid bolted forward and body slammed the wall. The kid screamed before falling over, his friends laughing at him.

As they walked away, the mermaid sadly swam to her little corner, silently crying as her tears mixed with the dirty water around her. Why wouldn't anyone help her?

"In one ear and out the other, that's what it's like for all you young'uns nowadays" shoving a bucket into the startled young man's hands the older man spat on the floor and stalked off. "Feed the fish and report back we have some more things to go over kid." So that was his new boss? Not a terribly cheerful bloak it seemed. And he didn't exactly seemed disposed towards the younger generation either. Shrugging at something he knew he couldn't change Logan turned and headed towards the tank of the fish he was supposed to be feeding. It must not be a terribly big fish, there wasn't very much chum or whatever that stuff was floating in the bucket.

The instant he set eyes on the tank his nose wrinkled in disgust, cleaning must not be very high on the list here, the water was a dingy brown tainted obviously by the garbage floating around on the surface of the water. The only thing that made sense to him was that this fish must not be a very big attraction otherwise why would it be allowed to live in such filth. Pity for the poor animal welled up inside him. Sighing he walked out onto the walkway until he was right over the middle of the tank. Squinting he tried to make out the creature who lived there. "Here fishy fishy" he coaxed feeling stupid because fish never came when called. "Time for some food"

Her eyes lifted as she heard the sound of heavy feet on the metal stairs beside her tank. She didn't want to go to the surface, see what new disgusting thing they were going to force her to live off of but her stomach was gnawing at itself. She needed to eat. Slowly her once strong tail propelled her the short distance to the surface. But she paused just before breaking the calm tension between the air and the water, there was someone new standing over her tank.

Ever so slowly she let her head clear the surface, pale fingers pushing fries and trash out of the way as her eyes blinked and revealed their shimmering blue orbs as she stared up at him. He was young, near her own age from what she could tell. The youngest by far to be let up here to feed her. But she had never seen him before, for all she knew he could be just as cruel as the rest. As beads of the dirty water rolled down her pearly skin she just stared at him, wondering what he would do. If she had never seen him, he had never seen her... would he be just as fascinated as the first timers or bitter and hate filled like the majority?

This was a joke right? Some trick they played on the new guy in an attempt to unnerve him. But no something inside him told him this was no joke, the being out of myth staring up at him with those beautiful blue eyes was real, it wasn't a joke, he wasn't imagining things, it was real. Swallowing hard Logan was at a loss as to what to say, what exactly did one say to a mermaid anyway? Remembering the reason he was there he held out the chum bucket offering it to her, was he supposed to give it to her and let her eat out of it or did he dump it into the water and she ate like a fish? It seemed rude to do that, though what was considered rude in a situation like this baffled him.

How could the owner of the aquarium let her swim around in filth like this? A mermaid would draw people from around the world, they would be clamoring just to catch a glimpse of her. It made no sense to him, settling down on his haunches he cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Hi..... I don't know if you can talk or not but my names Logan. Why do you live like this?" he felt stupid for the question he was positive given the choice she wouldn't choose to live in such squalor. "I mean, how could the old guy let you live like this?.... I'll try and clean it up for you"

She stared at him for a long moment, her head tilted curiously to the side. He seemed confused by her, that was a first. Wasn't he holding her pathetic excuse for a meal in his hands? But as he hunched down closer, she backed up a little bit, putting more water between them, wary of him.

Then he spoke.

The tension in her shoulders and back seemed to release as she stared up at him. None of them had ever given her that privilege. Treat her like a person instead of an animal. As he offered to clean out her tank she lifted her self up just a little more so her shoulders just touched the open air.

"Logan." She said softly, her voice quiet, but melodic almost like the sound of a harp string. Swallowing she wrinkled her forehead, it had been a long time since she had actually spoken to anyone, she was unsure of the consequences. The young man, seemed genuinely shocked by her general presence, and the state of her care... perhaps he could be her salvation.

"No one cares about a... freak. That is why I live like this." She used the term she had heard so many people use on her as she looked at him. Her stomach growled as she hovered there, but the chum in the bucket wasn't exactly the appetizing meal she was hoping for.

His eyes fixed on hers unable and unwilling to tear his gaze away from those blue eyes, there was pain in her gaze as she said the word freak, and he felt pity well up as he looked at her and the sorry state of her tank. It didn't seem right to keep her inside this filthy tank eating gods knew what was in the bucket he held. Disgusted he set the bucket down and wiped his hands on his jeans. "You aren't a freak... just different..." boy was that an understatement, she was as different from him as it was possible to get. Standing he looked down at her unwilling to leave but figuring he would get her a suitable meal, on closer inspection he noticed the thinness of her shoulders, the hollowness of her cheeks, and hunger in her eyes. "I'll be right back."

As he hurried past the other tanks, all of which didn't look particularly well cared for, he could only hope he didn't run into the owner no doubt he would get fired for acting humane and taking the mermaid....he hadn't gotten her name, some real food. He wasn't exactly sure what she ate so he had thrown together meat, fish, fruit, bread, cheese, he figured the fish would go over best but who knew she might like the other stuff too.

She was still where he had left her, course she couldn't go anywhere else stuck in a tank as she was. "Here... I've brought you some food" he said setting the tray down on the pier and taking a step back like he would with a scared animal who had only known the hand of abuse.

Astrid stared up at him with her big eyes as he tried to dispute what she said. She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling somewhat unnerved by his staring. She was constantly on display, but for whatever reason, his gaze, so intent as it was, bothered her. She tore her eyes away from him just as he said he'd be right back. The mermaid found herself reaching out for him ever so slightly as he disappeared from sight. the first bit of real interaction, real conversation, however minimal. She had been longing for it. Sinking just below the surface she sighed and waited to see if he would ever return.

Hearing the creaking of the stairs, she turned around excitedly, but tried not to show it. She poked her head back up when she saw it was Logan. Her eyes got wide when she say the tray of food he had brought for her and she couldn't help but lick her soft lips. Her eyes flicked up to him for a moment as she stayed put and he backed away. Cautiously she swam a bit closer, grasping the metal walkway and pulling herself up out of the water just a little bit further to peer at the food he had accumulated. Fresh whole fish and fruit and bread and cheese. Her mouth watered.

Pulling a fish from the tray she retreated into the water and devoured it, all but the bones, head and fin. Then she poked at the spongy piece of bread before moving on to the apple and bringing the shiny red skin to her lips. As her teeth broke the skin and the juice filled her mouth and dribbled down her chin she smiled a bit at the odd flavor and looked up at Logan as she ate away the majority of the fruit. "Thank-"

"What the hell are you doing Logan?" Another young man came storming up the stairs, glaring at the pair. A boot to the face shoved Astrid below the surface with a small cry and a bloody nose. The mermaid let herself sink to the bottom of her tank to sulk quietly. "If the boss finds you helping that thing you are going to get your ass handed to you. What are you thinking?" He grabbed Logan by the shirt and shoved him down the stairs, kicking the tray of food after him. "Wasting good food on it to? He's really going to throw a fit.... Damn it Logan..."