an-urchin

[an-urchin]

"Hey Urchin. Good luck on your travels, yeah?" Hans said, kneeling by the waterside with a grim smile. "The ocean's a big place, and I guess I know a little about what it's like to go it alone... Just take care, okay? Hopefully I'll be lucky enough to hit you again while skipping rocks someday, so at least we can do a little catching up. Anyway," the prince said, sitting back with a sigh. "I'll be watching the coastline for you -- just in case."

Urchin peers up, and waves with a slow grin. He shakes his head, and laughs-- More to himself than anything, but the smile's a genuine one.

"I hope to be lucky enough to chuck 'em back, your highness. Good luck on your ventures."

[an-urchin]

Urchin's blood ran cold and his eyes met Ursula's-- And in an instant the pike was up and pointed to her throat as he growled, voice magnified by horror and anger:

"You don't mean it-" But the fear shook his hands and drew him into palor, his eyes searching Ursula's fighting for truth or confirmation that it wasn't true. Couldn't be true.

They hadn't let him in the castle. He'd last seen her going to the ship. She never wrote back. She never wrote back even when he said he was sorry and he was trying when he sent her gifts and when he came home she was gone, leaving, trailing her world behind in an orange bag--

Back to the ship and the deathtrap. To the shark. The sunken coffin her sunken coffin.

The pike floated down and he drew his face into his hands, curling agsint the back wall with his fin pulled to his chest, voice choked and hoarse: "You can't mean it."

Dark Seas || Urchin, Ursula

Ursula wanted to laugh at the boy’s foolishness. Ha! How could he not know about the runaway tramp who snagged herself a prince! For a while, Eric and Ariel’s wedding extravaganza was all the ocean’s inhabitant’s would talk about. It was vastly over-rated, and, to make things more nightmarish, the redhead chose that dress? Girl..

But instead, Ursula pretended to be shocked and saddened. “Oh dear..” she trailed off. “You haven’t heard?” the sea witch asked. “I thought of all people, you’d be the first to know of her whereabouts..”

"You’d at least get some word if the poor mermaid died, wouldn’t you?” she said in fake sincerity, trying to stir Urchin’s emotions. She held her own chin and sucked her teeth. “I just wouldn’t think such a girl would leave you in the dust like that..”

She sighed. Keeping up this charade could be so exhausting, but she knew it would be worth it in the end. Especially if there was a Triton in the equation.

"I’d really hate to be the bearer of bad news, but.."

[an-urchin]

Urchin glanced to Rapunzel sheepishly-- Her simple acceptance embarrassed him a little, and he wished again he had a solution. She was too kind to be left just..Wanting like this. He could see it in her eyes, the way she looked out at the horizon and laughed and smiled when he told her about his world.

It was almost if she didn't have enough of her own world. His thoughts tracing back to Ariel, he wrote her name idly in the sand with the tips of his fingers. He'd have to remember to tell her about this-- He'd have too!

Somehow, though, he knew beneath his heart he wouldn't and it bothered him. No-- No time to think about it now. He looked up with a start as she hugged  him and he squirmed with a laugh-- She was so DRY!

"Gosh!" He grinned and shook his head, "Are you sure? I mean-- I've got some people to get back too.." Triton, Sebastian... Ariel. He swallowed and blushed, "So I should probably.."

He trailed off. In the sand, a shell had washed up-- Small but purely formed, a tiny spiral of white laced with gold. Distracted he picked it up, and held it up, "Would you look at that? Huh. I didn't know these could make it all the way up here."

There was a moment's pause before he held it out to Rapunzel with a grin, "Here! If you put it to your ear, you can hear the ocean-- Or so I'm told. That way you're never too far, huh?"

Good Tide(ings) // Urchin & Rapunzel

[an-urchin]

Urchin relaxed slightly and scratched his head, "Great! Uh. Extinct, huh?"

He looked around and considered it, then nodded, "I can see that. Not a lot /but/ sea-creatures really..Like it down here. Once, Ariel told me she found this..Under-water ship with a furry thing in it. It had four legs and a weird nose, and triangle ears and a long tail like kelp strands-- And it was not happy to be down here, let me tell you!"

He shrugged and glanced at Milo, as if to say 'what can you do', before he realized his error. He was getting friendly again. He cleared his throat and reminded himself, be more on your guard! 

He had to admit, however, it was difficult. Milo was ...Obnoxiously easy to talk too. He wanted to tell him things, like about the settlement of the sentient sucker-handed octopuses. He blinked, the nodded, automatically,

"Help is good-" But he blanched at the idea of being carried. A memory, slightly fuzzy of cold and talking rocks came to him then wandered off. He exhaled, and raised a brow,

"Er-- Well, as long as I'm not swaddled, I can agree to that." He raised a brow. Having been so distracted by explaining things and talking about octopuses or not and food, his stomach growled.

"Where are we going to eat, again..?"

Motor-Mouth Bass || Milo & Urchin

[an-urchin]

Urchin flopped over Kristoff's arms, frowning slightly. He felt absurd and, really, less than useless- He definitely wasn't used to being carried! Triton had had to do that, but it was once and it was still really embarrassing--

But not as embarrassing as the shriek that came from his mouth as the rocks began to unroll themselves before him into lump, bright-eyed, smiling creatures. He scrabbled, but unable to move his arms, only proceeded to flop in Kristoff's arms like a horrified burrito.

"I- Am- Not-- AH! A BABY!"  He wriggled frantically, his fin coming unraveled-- It waved desperately in the air as Kristoff held him close, and he felt like he was in a net. If he had legs, he'd be kicking him, he thought. As it were, he tried to slap his fin into Kristoff's torso, to varying but altogether large degrees of failure.

He stopped as Kristoff started walking, partially out of fear of falling, but more out of fear of being held by anything else. His eyes narrowed and he hissed to Kristoff,

"This was not what I had in mind!"

His eyes turned to Pabbie however as he was jostled forward, and he fell silent. The Troll before him, though he had no word for their kind as simply thought of them as coral creatures, looked to be the eldest. Lichen and moss clung off his head like banks of kelp and the glow of the under-dark fish, and Urchin fell silent, eyes wide. Maybe it was the clearing around him or his cloak, which Urchin found himself fascinated by briefly, but this one held an aura of-- 

Well, authority.

Urchin tried to bow, and half-flopped from Kristoff's arms.

Ice Fishing | Kristoff and Urchin

Krisotff was swaddling Urchin in his blanket as if he were a helpless infant. In fact, he was freezing and couldn’t walk. That seems reason enough for holding him. 

All of the trolls were looking at Kristoff and Urchin with wide, curious eyes. 

"A baby?!”

"Oh, lemme hold him!"

"Where’d you get it, Kristoff?!"

"Yes, tell us!"

Of course his family thought he had just…found a baby and brought it with him to his family to show it off. But then again…that’s somewhat like what happened to him. But the circumstances were different….much different. 

"No! No no no. You guys!" Kristoff hollered while they were all grabbing at Urchin to hold him. "This isn’t a baby. It’s a merman. I saved him from the frozen lake about 2 miles East of here. He’s never been to the human world before, so I thought I’d bring him to you guys! I told him about the magic, so I made sure he knew of something he was wishing for!"

Kristoff scanned the large crowd of Trolls to find Pabbie. He’s the one who had the magic, and he hadn’t yet seen him. “Ah. There you are.” He said, as he made his way toward the wise Troll. 

[an-urchin]

Urchin stood up quickly and perhaps a little rigidly, following Ursula with his eyes as she moved beside him. He pulled back slightly from the tentacle, but was unable to resist being drawn inside-- After all, that's what he had come for, wasn't it?

Swallowing his unease, Urchin raised a brow at her but said nothing. He had heard those things, but what was the opposite of stealing children? Giving them? That was absurd. His lips thinned into a slight crease of a frown as he managed,

"About-- About me?" His brows met over his eyes and he scowled, correcting her with a swift and coldness to his voice,

"Ariel. And we did. We-- Don't anymore."

The words hung with a silence weighed by lead. His arm ached but he refused to relinquish the weapon; he wasn't sure. Not yet. Carefully he glanced to her, then asked slowly,

"I may be here-- About... Her. Do you know anything?"

He wanted to say I went to the castle and asked but they wouldn't say, and She hasn't written since-- but he couldn't think of when or why. Her last letter had been curt-- But his hadn't been much kinder.

"Dear Ariel-- The academy is treating me well. We're learning all sorts of things about humans-- It turns out, your father has been right in many most areas, but.

I hear your sisters are hosting a ball? I should hope to see you there, if they let me break from patrol training. 

I hope this reaches you safely

Love Cordially,

Urchin."

His jaw tightened. She hadn't written much back- And no invitation had been enclosed. He was assigned to stand guard at the doors, and he'd almost seen her pass--

Then out again, her bag on her arm, Flounder trailing. He knew where she was headed then, and it hadn't been to him, but to them. His fists tightened around the Pike, and he looked to Ursula warily.

How much did she know? And what would be the cost to learn?

Dark Seas || Urchin, Ursula

"Of course you heard.." she said, approaching Urchin. At least he had some sort of manners, seeing the quick bow.  Ursula was flattered at such a gesture, but of course she wasn’t going to admit it. Not yet. The sea witch had a first impression to uphold.

Now at the boy’s side, a black tentacle rested on his shoulder, gently guiding him farther into her home. “Just like you might have heard that I had green scales and fangs, or that I steal ill-mannered children in their sleep. Ha! Not so! Quite the opposite, really..”

She stopped guiding him along, moving past him to reach the other side of her cauldron. With one hand, she leaned onto the lip, towards the merman. 

"But I’ve heard a lot about you, as well! A little bit of a troublemaker, orphaned.." she paused in a fake state of pondering, "Didn’t you run around with that pretty little redhead? Aria?"

Ursula shrugged. “No matter..it’s such a shame that she up and disappeared into thin water, you two were quite the pair..” the sea witch said in false pity.

[an-urchin]

Ariel looked at the small handful of hearts she found in her hands, sighing softly. Slowly, one by one, she put them in the water so that they'd float down below to her friend. "I hope you're all right, Urchin," she whispered softly. "I'm sorry for hurting you..."

Urchin leaned on his pike, exhaling a slow stream of bubbles. He had three more hours on this patrol, and it was moving as quickly as a sea-slug in a patch of sticky kelp. Chewing on his lip he looked upwards-- Perhaps there'd finally be a passing boat, or something to break the monotony.

Instead, there was a shadow, fleeting and gone before he could catch it or follow, and a slow shower. He braced himself for nets or worse--

And found, falling downwards, a rain of slowly disintegrating paper hearts. His mouth went dry and he looked back to the sea floor and away, heart hammering in his ears.

Urchin ground them under his pike, and moved on.There was nothing happening here.

[an-urchin]

Somewhere along the shore, Prince Hans frowned to himself, skipping rocks onto the surface of the water, deep in thought... Too troubled to notice, Hans picked up a ♡ hidden amongst the rocks and flung it forward, expertly skipping it five, six, SEVEN...! *CLUNK* Surprised, Hans sat up to see what the ♡ had hit.

"Ow!"Urchin sat up in the waves and rubbed his head, squinting at the flat, blocky shape. He grumbled, "What kind'a..?"His eyes roamed up and caught Hans. They widened.

His hair looked like fire. And he'd chucked a heart that far into the ocean.

There was only one proper response:

"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE THROWING STUFF!"

And chucked the heart back as bodily as he could.

[an-urchin]

Send a ♡ to hear how my character would tell your character that they loved them without actually using the word "love."

[an-urchin]

Urchin raised a brow and chewed on the inside of his cheek-- On one hand, a trident could do like, anything, couldn't it?

On the other hand, letting a human to the Ocean could be equally dangerous. He frowned and shook his head, face falling,

"I'm sorry- If I could I would." He smiled weakly to Rapunzel; she was the opposite of..Well, everything he'd been told Humans were. He felt bad-- She was so much like Ariel, so lost in another world. He fell quiet and pulled his fin up to his chest-- They'd been talking so long the tide was coming back in now. He could go back soon.

Part of him was sure he didn't want too.

Good Tide(ings) // Urchin & Rapunzel

[an-urchin]

"Back!" Urchin gasped, writhing for control. The nets tangled around him and weighed him to the deck, the water drying rapidly- He flipped to move his fin from the sun and push himself up, but skidded on one hand, his pike clattering away. 

He reached for it, only for a sailor to stomp hard on the staff. The shattering noise was all he could bare, and he snarled, lunging at the man's foot,

"You-- Dare--! I am of the Royal Guard, human- You will pay!"

He took hold of the boot and pulled hard, his other hand fumbling for the short knife at his waist. Anything to get up and get out, to get away! It was bad enough being caught but his pike broken, defenseless in the scorching sun-- The water had all but evaporated from his shoulders and he could feel a quick burn starting. Spots of black were dancing around his eyes, and a kick to the jaw from the struggling sailor sent him back and into the deck quickly with a groan, his hand still feeble about the hilt of the blade.

Great-- Just great--

Sanded Shores || Aladdin & Urchin

[an-urchin]

Urchin tensed a little-- Milo's words weren't exactly the picture of reassurance, and his fists gripped losely. Milo wasn't threatening anything, just assuring Urchin that his hunches had been correct. His stomach churned, but Milo continued.

"They-- Haven't?" Urchin's brows knit in confusion, "What do you mean?"

He eyed the ketak with suspicion, but nodded slowly, It was fish-shaped! How bad could it be? They seemed to like the ocean life, if the decor and impressive carvings were any indication. He raised a brow, and nodded carefully-- The prospect of food was tempting.

"Er-" He looked up, having not been paying attention. He guessed casually, something about dinner? He blinked, "Kelp and fish. Not shelfish, though, or Octopus-" He cleared his throat, "Can't do that. Forbidden after the Octowar," He smiled nervously, "Wouldn't want word to get out."

Furthermore, he knew several Octopi -- The idea of eating Ollie made his stomach churn even worse than the idea of human scientists. He pulled himself towards the ketak, and grimaced at the feeling of his scales across hard ground, stopping immediately. He looked up to Milo and flushed,

"Er, sorry, I can't," He mumbled.

Motor-Mouth Bass || Milo & Urchin

[an-urchin]

Things Under-Fin || Open Post [Young Urchin]

He was going to do it-- Urchin was going to learn more about the human world! He'd figure it out, a way to keep Ariel happy and himself okay. There had to be more than what everyone said...Right?

Urchin broke the surface with a gasp. He hadn't been out this way before-- He'd just been swimming until a light had caught his eye and drawn him upward. Now in the open he squinted the water from his eyes, muttering,

"How do they see in all this air? Everything's so dry..." Frowning to himself, Urchin scanned the sealine for any sign of life as things began to focus...

[an-urchin]

"I--" He choked on the words and looked away.

How could he tell her he had? It would only lure her further up to the shore. And certainly the ones he'd met hadn't been too bad, but when he'd lived on his own he'd met plenty of kind faces against a sea of cruel ones. How could he begin to tell her that even the smallest fraction of experience didn't equal all of it, and that the rest--

It had to be true. They couldn't be anything but evil. He'd seen what they'd done; he knew. ...Right?

A seed of doubt nagged at him through his sinking guilt and anger. He moved the blanket off himself and held his arm against his chest protectively, mouth feeling dry and head aching as he avoided looking at her. His eyes and heart betrayed them with a painful wrench of emotion as he looked up to see her weeping into her pillow, and every ounce of strength he had sapped away as he fought reaching out, apologizing, wishing he could take everything back--

The darkness of the ship lurked in his thoughts and the rooms of the dead swallowed any bravery he held, as he pulled back and whispered, moving back to linger in the doorway--

"Ariel--"

He turned, her name the last words on his lips. He had to keep her safe, he had to protect her--

At any cost.

He left the castle, his stomach sour and his body cold, her words ringing in his ears like drums, distant and foreboding:

Just go.

Don't Be Flipper-ant || Urchin & Ariel [And maybe sisters? :D]

[an-urchin]

Urchin grinned and rubbed the back of his head, "Gosh! She'd sure like you, I'm certain. I'll have to remember to tell her about you-" 

He stopped, then added quickly, "If that's okay! I mean," He lowered his voice, "She's really excited about human stuff, so she might have a lot of questions. Just, prepare yourself, y'know?" He grinned.

Leaning back, Urchin nodded, "Gabriella's a friend of ours! She can't talk, so she uses Sign Language. It's really cool! Her friend Olly is an octopus, and he translates and stuff, since she can't hear us, either. She's really nice." He smiled, 

"You'd like her too, I think. And you'd meet Olly, of course, and he's always handy-- Y'know, since he has eight of 'em." He grinned.

Good Tide(ings) // Urchin & Rapunzel

[an-urchin]

Urchin's brows felt permanent arced above his forehead. In fact, if Milo kept up with his strange ways, he was sure they'd leave his face entirely. Writing on arms was sort of odd, but he seemed to determined to learn. It was almost comforting-- It reminded him of Ariel, who had wanted to know..Well, everything, everything one COULD know about Humans.

She'd wanted to know the good things, anyway. His stomach churned slightly with the memory and his mouth tasted stale. There was so much darkness, too, and he wondered if she'd ever known their capacity. Looking at Milo, it was easy to forget...

"Yeah," He said carefully, though the reminded was a relief. He rubbed at his arm and was surprised by Milo's reaction, and his mouth dropped open. He stammered,

"I thought-- That's what- I mean-- Merpeople who wind up with humans get examined or questioned or worse! It's science- Right? When you find a strange..."

The word animal lingered and bittered in his mouth. Creature was somehow worse, and he frowned, waving his hands, "A strange-- Concept. I thought," and here he felt the fingers of foolishness slowly rolling over him and he flushed,

"I thought that's what Humans...Did."

Motor-Mouth Bass || Milo & Urchin

[an-urchin]

Urchin pulled back slightly and frowned, "For what means? For all we know they could have been luring it out to find it's pod, or worse. The fact that they caught him at all is a barbaric practice," He muttered.

He shook his head, "No- Ariel. I can't let you do this-- They're just too dangerous, and unpredictable! For every human that releases a dolphin, I'm certain that at least two die. Those ships they travel in aren't safe, either..." His lips thinned, but he didn't say any more about that. That would have been a step too far-- But his eyes lifted all the same to the walls, before tearing away from the portrait of the Queen, and looking down to the bed spread he's knotted in his good hand. He cleared his throat,

"I should-- Go. Before someone..I mean." He glanced to her, then away.

Don't Be Flipper-ant || Urchin & Ariel [And maybe sisters? :D]