The little guy swam to one of the larger ones and back several times. The last time the big one followed to nudge and thank the longhaired, thin, sad young man. It did not know how to touch a human. The first few bumps pushed Urstain several feet in the chest deep water. In a minute or two, Urstain and the big animal touched, rubbed, lingered and went their separate ways.
As Urstain climbed onto the atoll to gather breakfast, he felt he was being watched but the waves were empty to the horizon in all directions.
For another week the perfect weather held. Diving for food fish, lobster, crabs and edible seaweeds was easy and fast. There was plenty of free time to search the tide pools and try to forget. Viet Nam had been tough on a sensitive nineteen year old. His mind would not forget and his training stayed sharp when he returned. He had married his high school sweetheart when he was discharged. She was perfect and beautiful. They were working on a family. They both had come from money. She jumped from behind a door to scare him one day and he almost killed her. He left when the doctors said she would be all right. Two years later he heard she had married someone safer.
Again, he felt he was being watched. Every day this feeling came and every day he searched but found nothing. The evening weather check said a squall would pass through tomorrow afternoon.
After his morning swim and looking for the watcher, Urstain made ready, raised anchor and moved the forty-foot Hunter about half mile from the atoll. He could still anchor normally there but he set sea anchors also. The feeling was so strong the entire time he was moving the boat that he limbed the mast to scan the water. He could see no one. Was some the craziness coming back in a different form?
The next day was beautiful again. The squall brought twelve-foot swells and lots of rain but only moderate winds. Urstain had the sailboat set back in place near the atoll when he spied a larger light green shape on the reef. He dove and swam as fast as he could. As he climbed out of the water and walked toward the shape all he could see was large flowing tail and crabs beginning to feed on it. A few more steps and he froze. This was a dream. These were only real in the fantasies of sailors who had been at sea to long.
But she was all too real. Her head was bleeding, she was lying in blood from cuts on her side, and she had gills under her arms that were almost dry. He could think and look later. With strength he seldom used, Urstain struggled with the limp body, trying not to hurt her more. He got her inside the atoll. All her blood would attract sharks. Maybe inside the atoll they would be safe for a while.
In a few minutes, the mermaid's eyes opened and focused on him. They were twice the size of his and full of fear. He held her stroking her hair and saying, "I will not hurt you pretty one. I will stay with you, take care of your wounds and protect you. Soon you can swim home." His brain said she understood.
She was so very weak and desperately needed to feed. He brought her crab but she could not chew. He got her small fish but there was not enough blood in them to help her. He took his knife, cut two inches above his right nipple, held her and she nursed blood from him. When it didn't flow fast enough her teeth slit his skin like razor blades. She went to sleep in the shallow water and he ran for the boat and the first aid kit. Blood was still running down his chest.
When she awoke, he fed her his blood again. This time from a six ounce glass. She went to sleep again while he held her and stroked her light green skin and darker green, long, fine hair.
Urstain began to treat this dangerous beauty's wounds and examine her. Her fingernails could easily rip him apart. Her teeth were designed to bite through fish. Her flukes were powerful enough to easily break his back with one slap. But she was so very lovely. She was soft, warm and very sensual. She had a long beautiful neck but no ears. Her breasts were perfect b sized short cones and her nipples always stood erect. She looked young. Her body was covered with millimeter long fine hair. Her lips said kiss me, so he did.
After a total of twenty stitches, he had finished with her really bad cuts. He washed all the scrapes and small cuts with fresh water and put waterproof antibiotic cream on them. He gave her a shot of antibiotics wondering what the proper dose was for a mermaid.
He knew he had to build some shade for her and get some things for himself so he could be on the reef next to her and guard her. First he had to do one more thing. He turned her and lowered his head to see her small pussy. It looked perfect and was in the right place, above where her legs should start. Urstain felt guilty touching the sleeping mermaid. Still he slipped his hands across her breast, rolled a nipple, trailed down her chest past her bellybutton and cupped her. He opened her. She had a clit. He pressed and rubbed it firmly. She was sick and hurting but she moaned as women have for thousands of years at that first touch. He brought his fingers to his mouth and tasted her. She was fresh and sweet. It had been a long time but he had work to do.
When she woke toward evening, she was shaded by a gazebo-like structure and Urstain lay beside her on a mat watching. She examined her wounds.
He drained another small glass of his blood into the glass, slipped into the water and helped her drink. She raised her hands to help this time. Maybe she could eat. He had live fish for her in a pool ten feet away. She ate a few bites, held on to him and dozed off again.
Under the nearly full moon, he fed her fish several times that night. Each time she fell asleep in his arms.
The next morning, Urstain was amazed. Even the most severe scrapes were almost healed. The cuts showed no sign of infection and the stitches could come out in another day. She was looking at him. He had not talked to anyone in months and now he was talking to a mermaid. He was sure she could not understand.
"You had a close call, Beautiful. I think you are healing well and will be good as new in a couple of more days. I'll take out your stitches tomorrow."
He heard her answer but she made no sound, "Thank you for taking care of me."
This made no sense, "Have you been watching me over the last few weeks?"
"Yes, I've never seen a human before. I enjoy looking at you. Why do you have things covering your body?"
"My skin is much like yours, but I cannot dive deep to protect my skin from the sun. So I cover myself."
"I want to see your body with no coverings."
Urstain slipped his shirt and bathing suit off and lay back down next to this innocent beauty.
She reached out and touched his thighs and knees. Legs were new for her. Then reached up and closed her finger around his hardening cock. "I felt you touch me when you cared for me. Did you like how I felt?"