30daysmeme, Fish Story, Tir Na Cali

Day 12 of 30 days of Fiction: “12) Write a scene at a sushi bar.” Tir na Cali, and surprised me.

The sushi bar had a mermaid in its fish tank.

I was new in town, having just recently parlayed my experience with the Agency into a cushy consulting gig and my hazard pay into a nice little house, and I’d decided to check out the local eateries in the days before the gig officially started. People had told me the southern cities were a little out there, and I’d believed them, more or less, but this…

I didn’t bother pretending I wasn’t staring. It was okay, she was staring at me, too. She was, frankly, gorgeous, which means I really got the better end of the deal. Her hair was greenish blue, her eyes the same, her tail darker shades of the same hues. Even her nipples were blue, a silly conceit, but still a nice look. And her slave collar was mother-of-pearl. Of course.

I smiled at her, because what else was I going to do, really? She managed to stop staring at me – the royals of Tir na Cali do not accept deformity in their ranks, and I had the eyes to mark me as theirs, and a leg missing from the thigh down that I wasn’t bothering to camouflage at all. It was August in Southern California; pants would have been too damn warm. A bathing suit would have been too warm. I’d earned my hazard pay, damnit, and the regen would take months of visits, maybe years.

She flicked her tail at me, with a little bit of a smile. I wondered if she missed walking, too. I raised what was left of my left leg to her in a salute..

I wasn’t feeling much like sushi anymore. I ordered a bottle of sake, warmed, and two cups, one for me, and one for the mermaid.

The story continues here



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14 thoughts on “30daysmeme, Fish Story, Tir Na Cali

  1. Oh my, I did not know they could do that in Cali. I forget how much gene-manip they can manage. And ouch, yeah he earned hazard pay. Glad he got a house out of it. I like this. I like that last sentence.

    • *grin* interesting that you read the protag as male. And yes, they can do some pretty insane modding. They just usually don;t.

      • Flirting with a female mermaid makes me think male, because I lean heavily het. With that as the only gender clue, that’s how I make the assumption. Though I am curious about this line: She was, frankly, gorgeous, which means she really got the better end of the deal. It reads as the protagonist saying that they are better than gorgeous. Am I right?

          • Ah. With the mention of Royal eyes, I couldn’t tell if the narrator was also gorgeous (it would fit the eyes). *grins* So, lesbian mermaids? (look, I have a water icon)

            • Yay water. I should add “mermaid” to my djinni art requests. I need a list!! The narrator is probably gorgeous, but the lack of a leg makes them think they’re monstrous. Cali royals have really really REALLY strong taboos against “deformity.”

              • And yet they like tails. That is an interesting contradiction to me, which is probably not a contradiction to them. Also, if you have not seen the latest Pirates movie, it has mermaids. Really pretty ones. With sharp teeth…

  2. interesting. i’d’ve said some of the word choices said male to me, but naturally i’d prefer it otherwise 😉

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