Pavement, Aizawa decided, was one of his all-time least favorite things humans had invented. He'd been walking for what seemed like hours on a surface that tore up his new sneakers like a pack of piranhas and multiplied the heat of the sun a hundredfold. His sunburn stung and his eyes felt like they were cooking in their sockets. It was nothing, however, compared to the cramps in his lower body. These legs were rather new, after all. And though his body seemed to have encorporated the muscular mass of his tail into them, he wasn't used to getting around this way. Blisters formed and broke, and he was aware that his feet were bleeding around the same time he began throwing up from heat exhaustion.
Cars drove past him, causing him to flinch and swear under his breath. He could barely stand all the noise, heat and exertion, but then noticed a building coming up on his right. Although he wasn't sure what it was, he recognized the structure as a shop of sorts, someplace to get in out of the sun. And as he grew closer, he remembered something Elly had told him: humans used places called <i>bathrooms</i> to void their waste. Such areas would have water to wash up in, and he desperately needed hydration.
"Excuse me," he asked the cashier behind the counter. "Where is your bathroom?"
The young man looked like he may have wanted to deny him access, but then thought better of it and pointed. "Around the corner by the milk case, sir."
Aizawa nodded. "Thank you." He limped inside and took stock of the situation. There was a sink along one wall and he headed there at once, fiddling with the tap until he learned how to work it. Once he did, he washed his face and hands, cupping them under the tap and drank. He then tore off the bottom part of his shirt to both wash and bandage his feet with, giving them an extra layer of protection inside the worn shoes. He gave the toilet a suspicious side-eye before leaving, thankful that he had no desire to use it because he wasn't too sure about his new body yet. Refreshed, he stepped back out into the store. There was a plump lady talking to the cashier and he heard her mention that she and her son had been at the aquarium this morning.
"Yeah." She took a small bag handed her across the counter. "They evacuated us out of the building. It was scary."
"The aquarium? Did you see where the cars went?" Aizawa hurried over, his gray eyes filled with worry.
The woman nodded, looking him over curiously and giving him a wide berth. "Um... yes. I guess they went back to the base. It's right up the road, you can't miss it."
Aizawa sighed with relief, rubbing the back of his neck shakily. "Good. They took my ma -" <i>Humans don't say mate, idiot</i>! <i>What was the word she used</i>? "- my fiancée. I only had my beach clothes on and I've been walking all day to get there."
She looked far more sympathetic after she was told this and since he wasn't asking for a handout it only upped his credibility. He thanked her and was almost out the door when she dug around in her bag and handed him the sandwich she'd bought and a bottle of iced tea. "You look like you need this more than me," she said as she pressed them into his startled hands.
"Thank you."
"I'd give you a ride, but you're almost there and I'm late for work." She hurried out with a friendly wave.
He smiled as he watched her go.
Outside the day had succumbed to night and now all the cars had their headlights on. It was a good thing he was fortified by the drink and food from the kind lady, because his trip took a frightening turn. The dark combined with the lights turned the cars into giant creatures with glowing eyes zipping far too close to him for comfort. It hadn't been too long ago he'd ventured only a little way into the abyss and almost gotten killed, after all. It never occurred to him to try and stop one of the vehicles for a lift, though truthfully it wouldn't have worked. No one paused at the sight of a bedraggled, unshaven man with unkempt hair staggering painfully around, especially as it grew darker. Aizawa grit his teeth and kept going. At least it was cooler at night without the sun blaring down on him.
<i>The woman told me I was close. I'm almost there and I can't stop now</i>, he told himself with conviction.
At the base the aquarium staff were separated and a military official carefully interviewed each one. In Elly's case the brutish Enji interrogated her. He appeared to regret his decision to strike her, but the remorse could have been because the act had fueled her distrust of the man.
Elly's story went like this.
She had been uploading images on secret blogs and Twitter accounts for weeks, all about "mer people" in the region. There were around twenty blurry and semi-hidden photos of Aizawa scattered throughout these. She had pulled them all into the official aquarium social media accounts right before they were taken in, announcing a new "attraction" that featured - you guessed it -- mers.
Even though some of the security footage the military got access to had Aizawa in it, this effectively explained everything. Enji, however, was stubborn, and even after several hours he was not satisfied she was telling the truth. She was starting to lose her temper due to discomfort and worry for Aizawa, yet she held fast. Even if her team had been doing something wrong they deserved better treatment than they had been subjected to.
"I've told you everything I know several times over. Nothing has changed, and I know for a fact my staff has done the same because we're not lying. You need to release us."
Furious, the Chief Mate stormed into his superior's office to see if anything could be done to wrench "the truth" out of the civilians.
He was in for a shock.
The Master was an older man with a touch of gray peppering his short hairstyle and beard. He looked up as his first in command walked in and then stared blankly at his computer screen. There, in real time at the front gate, stood the supposed merman on <i>two legs</i> demanding to see Elly. The phone on his desk rang, and he picked it up with a heavy sigh.
"Yes? Yes." A long pause. "Tell him we're almost finished here and she will be released shortly. We'll give them a ride home." He slowly lowered the phone and rubbed his hand across his face as hard as he could, enough to pull the skin down as he went. "Son of a <i>bitch</i>!" He swore, furious. "Are you <i>trying</i> trying to get rid of me, Todoroki?! One more slip-up and the brass'll demote me so hard I'll be <i>lucky</i> to get a post cleaning the shitters on the lowest vessel out there."
"But -" The big man blinked, startled. "Permission to speak freely?"
"Fine. Granted."
"You're not letting her go, are you?!" Enji waved a hand at the computer and the bag containing the necklace. "We have proof that they're up to something. If nothing else, they must be hiding the wreck and the rest of the items."
"I very much doubt that," the older man grunted sourly. He pointed at the bag. "She willingly reported this. Why?"
"Why not?"
"Let's assume you're right. If she's hiding a large amount of treasure, she could have hid the necklace with the rest of it and we'd never have known. Instead she <i>reported</i> it. Does she come across as stupid to you?"
"No, but she's a woman -"
"Don't start with that again," he snapped. "I've been trying to change that sexist bullshit attitude since I enlisted. Probably another reason why they demoted me," he muttered under his breath. "That's enough," he began again in a much louder voice. "We're letting them go and <i>those are my orders</i>."
"Sir?" The guard at the door peeked in, alarmed at the shouting.
"Release everyone the first mate brought in, and send the head of the staff - who's, uh... Elly Sketchit, to me."
"Sir?!"
"Just do it." He glared at Enji, who at least had the grace to look uncomfortable. "Get down to the barracks until I have time to deal with you!"
"Yes, sir!" He gnashed his teeth but could not complain.
Elly was ushered promptly into his office by a neutral party, where the Master held a comfortable chair out for her himself.
"I'm sorry, ma'am," he began in a tired voice. "I know what you're thinking. You know what I used to be like, but I've been talking with the community shrink here and -" He sighed. "Psychiatrist," he corrected. "I know we screwed up. How can we make it up to you?"
Elly looked over at her Gift resting on his desk. "I think we can work things out."
<i>Besides, it's better the devil you know</i>. And she thought he did seem different, somehow. Perhaps he really had been trying to better himself and see past his obsession.
After coming to an agreement where she was allowed to keep the necklace and, in return, would not embarrass them, Elly was led out the front where a more congenial jeep than the one she'd been tossed in before was waiting. She almost lost her composure when she saw Aizawa seated in the back. He flung his arms around her and she hugged him back, startled for more than one reason.
"I found you," he murmured into her hair.
She nodded silently instead of asking the myriad of questions that flew into her mind. The trip to her house - located on the beach -- was a quiet yet mercifully quick one, and they were soon waving to the driver as he pulled back out of her driveway.
The two stood at the entrance for a minute as she dug around in her pocket to retrieve her keys.
"So." Elly finally broke the silence as she opened the door. "You've got <i>legs</i> now."
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