The [M]ind of a Slave (Holey & Pendragon)

[Holeypaladin]

Sigurd merely shrugged at the girl's words. "Vikings tick me off," he remarked. "That's all there is to it, really. For them to call anyone else a savage is just... silly." He felt the girl's head on his shoulder, not minding it at all as he walked her out into the Viking village, supporting her and caressing her waist. Making his way over to the coast, he gazed at the water for a bit.

Turning his head to face Maria, he asked, "Want to go for a swim for awhile? It's one thing to work your legs, but you'll need to work your fins a bit as well, right?" He imagined she had spent quite a bit of time locked up and unable to properly swim. Well, being half fish, she would take to the water much more easily than walking, so she wouldn't need his help to swim... but she'd still need to build up her endurance before attempting any long distance swimming.

[PendragonXeno94]

With her eyes widening at the sight of the water, Maria left Sigurd's side only to find herself fall onto the waves and watching her legs turn into fins. She waved to Sigurd to join her as she began to swim in circles. She hadn't realized how amazing it felt to swim freely until now. She wasn't confined to a tiny space and she could go from one end to the other when she built up enough strength.

"Come on!" she said, grabbing his hands and pulling him further out until the water was chest deep. Holding his hands, she swam for a bit before submerging and popping her head back up, smoothing out her wet hair.

[Holeypaladin]

As the mermaid eagerly jumped into the cold northern waters, Sigurd decided to stay on dry land for the time being. That is, until he suddenly found the mermaid grabbing his hands and pulling him into the water with him. "Dang, this water is f-freezing," he managed to say. "How can you mermaids tolerate it so easily?"

He watched as the girl submerged herself fully in the water. Reaching out his hand, he stroked her fins, feeling the texture. "It's incredibly how you can shift form so easily in salt water..." he remarked. It definitely seemed like she was meant to be in the water, as she no longer seemed nearly so crippled now that she could swim around.

[PendragonXeno94]

As Maria continued to swim around, she jumped a little from Sigurd touching her fins. She wasn't sure why mermaid shifted so easily in salt water; it just seemed to be a part of who they were. Seeing that the water was affecting him, she wrapped herself around him and pressed her body against his as the cold water barely chilled her. "I could always warm you up," she said. But she had a sudden thought. Could she and Sigurd... do it in her current form? It would probably be difficult, but no one said that they couldn't.

"If you... wanted to wait until we got back on land..." She pulled him along, making sure that her body was close enough to him so he could warm up from her body heat. "Better?" she asked, deciding that it wasn't bad to be nice to him every now and then.

[Holeypaladin]

Allowing the mermaid to warm him up, Sigurd held her close, wrapping his arms around her and allowing her to pull him along. "Warm is good..." he remarked, caressing her a bit closer. He never really considered it possible to do certain things with her while her lower body was that of a fish... he wouldn't even really know where to begin... but he suddenly found himself somewhat eager to get her back on dry land and in bed.

"Better, yes..." he said, holding her and giving her a tender kiss. "Are you enjoying your swim?" They'd need to warm up anyway, as once they got out of the water... the cold would end up freezing the water to their bodies unless they quickly warmed themselves up. And while she might be somewhat resistant to cold, Sigurd lacked both Viking and Fae heritage, himself.

[PendragonXeno94]

Now, it looked like Sigurd was more than ready to get back to dry land, though Maria wanted to swim around a while longer. As she was about to answer him, she paused as he kissed her tenderly. The mermaid did let him kiss her for a few seconds before she broke the kiss. "I am," she said. "This is the most swimming I've done in... ever, probably." But then again, all she knew was that she might have family out in the ocean somewhere who were either hoping she would return home or decided that she was dead.

Soon deciding that Sigurd would become too cold despite her efforts, she pulled him along back to shore where she had him quickly carry her off the beach. But where she would be put down was of no concern to her as long as she was away from the sand. As her fins dried, she slightly frowned as her legs began to form.

[Holeypaladin]

"Glad to hear it," said Sigurd, holding on to the mermaid as she swam back to shore. "Sorry..." he remarked, "This water is incredibly cold." He felt like it was his fault that her swim had been cut short. As he climbed onto the shore, he picked the mermaid up in his arms. As it was cold in the frozen north, there weren't many people outside to see her true form... but carrying her back to the inn in her current form would be a bad idea.

Instead, he rubbed her fins, caressing them and watching as they slowly shifted into legs. Once her transformation was complete, he snuck a peek up her skirt at her bare flesh before lifting her up in his arms. He carried her back in to the inn, laying her down on the bed and moving over to the fireplace in his room in order to ignite a fire. With the incantation of "Flickum Bickus," the fireplace was alight. He began to help the mermaid out of her clothes in order to let them dry, gazing at her bare flesh as he did so.

[PendragonXeno94]

"No, it's fine," she replied. "It's nice to be able to move freely for once." After her legs appeared, she was carried back to the inn where a few people kept their eyes on the pair before they went to their room. Maria didn't even protest when Sigurd disrobed her and had a fire going in the fireplace. "Are you trying to be romantic now?" she teased. "We only met a few days ago."

She saw the way his eyes were directed at a certain area and she crossed her legs to see how he would react. "Saw something you like?" she asked, smirking a little.