It was time! It was time!<br/><br/>Long legs carried the young man through his village, where he had to dance around a few of the workers who were up early, as they usually were. A major fishing vessel was returning today, so several of the amenities were being vacated for the fresh shipment in order to sort the various seafood for delivery around the country. While that was the thing that most of the people were talking about, the thing that had been the talk of the town for the past week, this particular human was very excited about something vastly different. It had been about two months since the turtles laid their eggs! That meant the little baby sea turtles should be hatching any day now! The past two days hadn't been eventful as he kept an eye out, but he was hoping that today would be the day.<br/><br/>Tayden made it down to the beach, the same beach that everyone around here knew about and that was far enough from the docks to be a tourist spot. It was pretty empty right now, since it was too early for a lot of people to be out and about. Not that this brown haired individual cared in the least about that. His bare feet sank into the warming grains of sand as he jogged past the white beach and straight to the rocky knolls. He climbed up and over them with practiced skill that had been built up over the past couple of months. Once he reached the peak, the pale young man hopped down on the other side and found the labyrinth-like caverns that he quickly entered and promptly made two lefts and a right to get through. The last part of the caves was narrow and he had to scoot past sideways, but he finally made it out onto the other side and onto his little patch of paradise. It didn't seem like anyone else knew that this strip of the beach existed. Even the maps didn't really show it, since it was hard to access with a boat or by foot, so the island was always shown as ending along the rocky hills and the caverns, never including this strip that was left relatively untouched for who-knows-how-long.<br/><br/>Tayden ran his right hand up and over the bandages that hid his right eye from view, making sure that it was still properly in place. Even when he was alone, he liked to try and keep it covered and out of sight. It was just how things were after so many years since he lost sight in it from an accident. Content that it was still in place, he found a rock by the water to sit on, then watched the spot under a small cluster of trees to see when the young turtles would come out. Nobody he was around seemed to understand that his fascination with the aquatic life was more than just a passing fancy. It wasn't that he wanted to go out to sea to explore like some fishermen did, or navigators on voyages, or anything like that. No, Tayden had always wanted to be a part of the sea. To be like the turtles that could be on land and sea, or the plentiful, colorful and beautiful fish that could be found near the reefs, or the duller, larger, and very unique fish that were deeper in. It was all so fascinating and beautiful! There were even creatures in the water that produced their own light, using it for hunting or to attract mates or to scare off predators.<br/><br/>The sea was still a vast mystery to them, even though some scientist have claimed that they have explored the furthest depths by now. Tayden knew that couldn't be true. The stories, from where strange aquatic life washes ashore after a massive storm out at sea, were enough to prove to him that there was a lot still unknown to the world on land. There was so much potential, and humans could probably never reach it, which was such a shame. But Tayden wanted to know more, he wanted to see what there was to see, even if he wasn't exactly the best swimmer around. As he worried about that, his deep ocean blue eye lingered on the spot of sand as he waited. And waited. After several hours, the brown haired human fell asleep on the rock, the warmth from the sun on one side and the heated rock on the other was just so relaxing when paired with the soft spray of salty water and the sounds that filled the air around them. He couldn't even hear the people back in town, which was another reason this little place was a favorite hiding spot.<br/><br/>When he finally woke back up, the sun was starting to set. He yawned and stretched out, then froze when he saw movement. Finally! The turtles had hatched and were making their way to the water! Tayden beamed as he hopped down from his spot and eased over, wanting a closer view and to chase away a few of the seagulls that were looking for an easy meal. As he started to make his way across the sand, he noticed something by the water and stopped to do a double-take. He blinked and stared at what he was seeing, as a dark skinned male was in view. At first, he looked like someone that might have washed up from somewhere, but upon a second glance, the alert man wasn't exactly human. The way his arms faded to a beautiful midnight blue was a great indication of that, but the long, powerful looking tail with the fins along it was a much better one.<br/><br/>"Mermaid?" the word fell from pale lips before Tayden could stop himself. He knew he was staring, but he couldn't help it. Mermaids were a thing of myths and legends. There were stories of them being caught in fishing nets and the like, but... People had come to believe that it was just a case of mistaken identity from manatees, but the sea creature was nowhere near as gorgeous as the fantasy creature that was woven through tales over the centuries. Nowhere near as absolutely stunning as the man that his good eye was currently fixed upon as he tried to assess just how much sun he must have gotten to be hallucinating something like this so vividly.