there’s always a bigger fish
(ao3)
Puffy was collecting kelp for its medicinal properties, and the bandages she could make out of it. She was deep in the kelp forest, and it was quite a chore trying to keep the kelp from getting tied and knotted around her tail and fins.
A large shadow passed overhead, above where the kelp ended. Puffy assumed it was Dream, because Dream hated getting kelp caught on his tail, so he stayed out of the forest.
The shadow passed by again.
“I’m almost done!” Puffy called up to Dream, but there was no response. Puffy found that weird, so she hoisted her bag of kelp onto her back and swam closer to the top of the forest, to try and spot Dream. Before she could swim out of the forest, though, something big swam overhead again, and this time, Puffy froze because, looking at the shadowy figure – that was not Dream, but it was definitely a siren. And that was not good.
Dream, as a siren, may have been peaceful and didn’t eat mer, but that was only because he had been raised by a mer. His big size also meant that mer were not a nutritious or big-enough meal for him.
Looking at this siren, which was circling the kelp forest predatorily, it was smaller than Dream – Puffy was maybe the size of their forearm – but that made it no less terrifying. It was an unknown predator, and that meant that Puffy needed to hide. Unfortunately, the siren’s glowing eyes locked onto Puffy, and they shot toward her. Their eel-like tail allowed them to glide faster than Puffy could ever hope to swim, especially when she realised that, while she was focused on the predator, the kelp had gotten tangled with her tail again. Puffy was stuck.
Trying to remain hidden and unnoticed was no longer possible, so Puffy immediately started calling out for help, trilling and chirping the way all mers do. The siren didn’t even growl, which meant they weren’t giving any sort of warning, and definitely meant to make Puffy a meal.
Puffy was struggling in the kelp, cutting away at the plant with her dagger, and she kept chirping in distress.
Help, help! Her chirps meant. Danger-help-danger!
Normally, these chirps were meant to lead other mers in the pod to the one in danger, so that they could help. Puffy didn’t want to lead Bad, George, or Sapnap to the kelp forest to potentially be eaten by the large siren, but she kept chirping because she was hoping her calls for help would reach someone else.
Finally, Puffy got free, and she barely had enough time to duck deep into the kelp stocks before the predator swiped at her. The siren, staying above the kelp, hissed as they missed, and they stuck their hands deep into the kelp to try to catch Puffy. Luckily, the kelp was deep enough that the siren couldn’t reach her without also swimming into the kelp, which it seemed reluctant to do, and Puffy thanked every god she knew that bigger predators had trouble maneuvering in such cramped and small spaces.
Nonetheless, Puffy kept calling out, chirping, louder and louder. The siren hissed again. “Stupid little mer!” It growled. “Shut up!”
Another shadow passed over Puffy, but this time, it wasn’t from the predatory siren. It was near completely silent. Puffy glanced upward, and through the dark kelp, was able to see the absolute massive figure now swimming from above. It was an even bigger predator.
Puffy couldn’t help but smile in relief.
She chirped again, but this time, it meant: here! Here!
The siren kept hissing and reaching for Puffy, and almost came close, before it was suddenly body-slammed from the side. The siren went flying through the water, crashing through the kelp forest.
“Dream!” Puffy let go of the breath she was holding. Dream was here now; she would be okay. She kept up the chirping. Here! Over here! Safe!
Momentarily distracted, the predatory siren swam out of the kelp, enraged, and growled a warning at the newcomer. It attacked with a slash from its powerful claws, but they barely left a scratch on Dream’s tail, which was strong and armoured with thick green scales. Dream’s hair, copper in colour, floated around his face. His bright green eyes, which matched his tail, blazed with anger. Dream finally turned to face the other siren, and he straightened his back and flared out his fins in return. Looking between the two, Dream was easily bigger than the other. The other siren was toddler-sized in comparison.
Then finally, the other siren seemed to realise this size difference, and the big advantage that Dream had. It hissed angrily and slithered away in the water, accepting its eventual defeat, and running away to avoid unnecessary injury and fight.
Dream continued to flare out his fins and posture, growling lowly, until the other siren disappeared completely from sight.
Puffy swam out from the kelp, not at all afraid to approach the even bigger, dangerous siren. After all, Dream was her son. “Dream?” She asked. She fretted over his tail, where the other siren had clawed him. “Are you okay?”
Dream hardly acknowledged Puffy; his eyes were slitted as he glared out into the open ocean. This wasn’t unexpected. Dream commonly struggled with his more predatory, siren instincts. Mer didn’t have the same instincts, so Puffy couldn’t understand, but she knew it got particularly bad when Dream was protective or worried about his family.
Puffy swam up to Dream’s side, reaching out to pat his arm to comfort him. Suddenly, Dream moved toward her with such speed, that Puffy’s world spun.
“Whoa!”
When her vision rights itself, Puffy is cupped between Dream’s hands. She holds her hands out to grip onto Dream’s fingers, keeping herself steady.
Two big, golden-green eyes stare down at Puffy in concern. A low whine works it way out of Dream’s throat, and the siren bent low to start nudging Puffy around with his nose, as if Puffy was just a little siren pup, and Dream was assessing her for injuries. Puffy can’t help but laugh out loud, startling Dream, who paused, before going back to nudging Puffy. Dream’s tongue peeked out and licked the mer delicately a few times, like a mother siren cleaning her pups, before Dream finally pulled back, deciding that Puffy was safe.
Puffy patted Dream’s fingers reassuringly, chirping. Safe! Safe!