Temperature rising. (Patreon)

Midas frowned as he turned to face Thalia. The female had tested his patience the whole day now, and he about had it with her never ending complaints. If his best wasn’t good enough, she could go find a different caretaker. One that could handle her insessent yipping. He couldn’t care less if she left.

“I really don’t feel so…” From the corner of his eye, he saw her form slump to the ground and crumple up into a ball. For a second or two, he stood there staring, convinced that she was playing another trick on him.

“Thalia?” If she thought he was going to take pity on her just because….She wasn’t moving. Her arms wrapped tightly around her chest. A clammy sense of worry crept up his neck, squeezing tighter every second she didn’t respond. “Thalia? Talk to me….” Carefully he approached. Wrapping an arm under her neck, he made to lift her, the realization that she was cold as ice struck him like lightning. Placing a finger to her neck, he found the faintest hint of a pulse, but the rest of her body was unnaturally cold to the touch. Midas froze. She’d complained about being cold for a while now. When did it start? Three days ago? Around the time they left Asebis.

The temperature out here in the outlands was nothing like the sheltered waters of the city. Down in his nest, the temperature often dropped below freezing. It didn’t bother him, as Mer could regulate their body temperature to survive and thrive under these conditions. He’d assumed she did so as well. How else was she still moving around?

His mind flashed to the layers upon layers of coverings humans insisted on wearing at all times. Of course they couldn’t regulate their temperature, they didn’t have to. Yet those two scraps she insisted on covering herself with did nothing. She was a mer now… in every sense of the way. Realistically none of this should be a problem. Warming her body should come as natural as breathing.

Unless no one had told her how.

Midas let out a low curse as he swept the human up in his arms. Her body was a dead weight, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Shit! Stay awake! Please stay awake!

Rushing back inside, his mind raced. How to stay warm was one of the first things a mer pup learned, before hunting, or even talking. If a female lost a pup to the cold, it was seen as an act of willful neglect. A crime. The punishment for abuse like that was severe. Yet he’d managed to put -not a pup- but a fully grown female through exactly that. So much so that her heart had slowed down and she'd lost consciousness. He’d put his friend through that. Her body was shutting down due to the hyperthermia. If she fell asleep, there was no telling if she’d ever wake up again. Panic pulled all sensation from his limbs, leaving him a numb bundle of nerves.

He sucked in a breath, rubbing his palm up and down her arm as he swam to the heart of his den. Of course he would prove himself to be a shitty caretaker as well. He couldn’t even take care of a fully grown female!

He had to get her temperature back up, but how? Throwing a sideways glance at Mesos, a thought sprung to mind. The kraken wouldn't produce much, if any body heat, but he could serve as a layer of insulation against the cold.

"Mesos! Lavrai immet nak!" He barked a command at the cephalopod. The creature stirred from its hiding spot, confusion filled his movements. Midas never commanded him to come out in the open, but he wasn't sure if there was any other way. As soon as the Krakens' bulky main mass came into view from beyond the darkness of its lair, Midas commanded him to stay still and block the exits. Pressing Thalia to the creature's side, he checked her pulse again. It was way too weak.

"Pet? Can you hear me? Tali?!" As he gave her shoulders a short shake, her eyes fluttered open ever so briefly.

"S'cold…" her voice was but a whisper. A white hot sting surged through his chest. "I know, pet…I'm so so sorry." Touching her made him instinctively raise his own heart rate, which gave him an idea. Midas cradled the small female in his arms, pressing her flush against himself as much as he could, then he commanded Mesos to wrap a tentacle around the pair of them. The creature let out some agitated bubbles, having been taught that grabbing was bad, but obeyed once Midas raised his hackles.

"Okay, pet. Listen to me. I need you to speed up your breathing until you feel your chest start to warm. Can you do that?" He watched as Thalia's lips parted slightly, a raspy sigh pushed past her fangs, but nothing much else happened beyond that. He cursed again.

After tugging a stray fin behind her ear, he pulled her closer still. Rubbing her claws and palms in an attempt to heat them, he prayed that it wasn't already too late.

"So sleepy…" she whimpered. Midas tensed instantly, alarm bells blaring. "No no no, don't go to sleep. Stay awake pet. Shit!" Rocking her back and forth, he gathered as much of her tail in his embrace and forced his own breathing to speed up. Raising his own body temperature much higher was risky, it could send him into shock as well, but he had to try something.

"If… if you can stay awake, i'll teach you how to hunt tomorrow. Okay? Like you asked. I'll even let you take care of Mesos." The creature let out a pitiful groan as a tentacle curled around their waists.

"He likes being handfed. I'm sure you won't find him as scary after staring down his beak for a bit…"

The female mewled as a shiver surged through her body. The dark tone of her scales had paled somewhat, leaving a couple of her markings a dull ashen gray and Midas felt another guilty cramp shoot through his stomach. "Get your heartrate up, please Tali." There wasn't anything more he could do. If she didn't hear him or couldn't do what he asked, she'd drift away, losing all feeling until her body would just stop… A feeling of complete powerlessness came over him. His fault.

So he nuzzled the top of her head. He rubbed her cold limbs until his muscles screamed and then some. He stayed awake through the night, jolting at every groan and twitch she made. He talked about his family. His home. About how being there, under the city, nibbled at his soul. How he found peace in the wilds after his sister was born, but dreaded going back there every time his family called.

Eventually he ran out of things to say, so he started asking questions instead. Where did she live? Did she miss her family. Would she visit if she ever got to return? She did not answer.

—

The next morning, Thalia woke up better rested than she felt in weeks. And for the first time in weeks, she was warm. Not just comfortable, but actually warm. Hot chocolate, blanket by a fire, thick socks warm. She let out a content purr, stretching an arm outward, which promptly bumped into something hard. Her eyes shot open. Midas lay behind her, his chest scalding at her back, his arms draped over her body and softly snoring. Her head lay nuzzled into the crook of his neck, her nose pressing up against his pecks. Her cheeks instantly colored bright pink. How exactly had she gotten in this situation? The last thing she remembered was having an argument with him about hunting, and being so damned cold all the time… How was she supposed to take care of herself, if she couldn’t even catch her own dinner? Well at least she wasn't cold anymore! That still didn’t explain how she ended up in this position though…

A black and brown tentacle slid across her tail, its suckers tickling her scales as they passed. Thalia had to muffle a scream, resulting in Midas softly groaning as she moved. Reacting slightly to her shift with a soft snore, he adjusted his weight and pulled her tighter against him. Ooh boy, what had happened to him? He looked like absolute shit. Dark bags circled his eyes and the fin covering his head pointed every possible way but up. How very unlike him. Against all reason, and being completely and utterly unfair, he was still prettier than her, but whatever happened had put a severe dent in his appearance. Like he’d aged ten years in a single night.

As the tentacle moved again, more of her tail came into view, but what she saw next gave her pause. Midas had his tail wrapped around hers, restricting her movement. She couldn't move an inch without waking him. Letting out an exasperated sigh, Thalia leaned back.

The position wasn’t entirely unpleasant… She had a nice view of his chest and shoulders. The sight was a lot more pleasant now that he wasn’t trying to chat her up, that was for certain. The necklace she had given him still dangled from his neck, glistening in faint morning light that managed to trickle into the caverns. Staring at it for a minute, Thalia let out a short huff. He still wore it, even with all the jewels at his disposal. Perhaps that didn’t mean anything, but the sight always gave her pause. But what if it did mean something? The edges of her fins curled.

Ooh, she was definitely attracted to this man, mer, creature? She knew the drill, the constant rattling and fumbling were telltale signs that she was falling for him. This knowledge worried her. Could this even be considered boy trouble?

As her gaze slid back to the necklace, Thalia had to suppress another embarrassed wriggle. Her instincts weren’t wrong. He’d proven himself capable of being sweet and caring. If only he didn’t act like such a tool most of the time…

The ground moved with a low rumble. This time Thalia couldn’t help but yelp, as she realized that what she was lying on wasn’t in fact a pillow, but the giant octopus she’d seen earlier. Of course the tentacles had to come from somewhere. If she still had hair, all of it would be standing on end, rippling disgust surged through her as the creature shifted underneath them and let out a low whistling sound.

“Okay, I know we got off on the wrong foot. Just…don’t eat me. Alright? Your master wouldn’t appreciate having to clean me from your teeth.” A tentacle rose to her face, leaving Thalia cringing away as it curled around the side of her face. The sound she made had to resemble a mix between a dying cat and a kazoo, cause the kraken recoiled its appendage slightly, squeaking, but otherwise content to wrap it around her shoulder instead. Feeling it circle behind her back, it eventually appeared above Midas’ neck, resting there.

Still mostly asleep, Midas attempted a groggy slap at the tentacle to brush it off, mumbling something unintelligible. Thalia smiled involuntarily. Even after moving all the way out here, she’d never seen him sleep before. The way his brow wrinkled while he slept was kind of cute.

Seeing the tentacle move for Midas ear, Thalia had to bite her lip. She quickly pressed a palm to the creature's flank, halting its movements.

“Don’t wake him up just yet.” The feel of the monster wasn’t slimy, as she’d first figured, but a sort of velvety smooth texture she couldn’t quite place. As pillows went, not at all a bad feeling. The kraken obeyed, halting its prodding and producing a deep purr that vibrated through her ribcage. Thalia grinned wide. “So you don’t only listen to Midas? Neat. Nice giant octopus.” Patting the creature appreciatively, Thalia allowed herself to relax ever so slightly.

Napping for an hour or so more, Thalia eventually couldn’t take it anymore. Being warm was one thing, but being cuddled up next to Midas for a minute longer would cause her scales to fall off! It felt like hugging a burning stove! Pushing his arm to the side, she started wriggling out of his hold. The kraken stopped purring, brushing a tentacle past her arm in question.

“Hush, I’m going to have a look around while he’s still asleep.”

“Like hell you are.”

Thalia jolted at the sound of Midas’ voice. Feeling his tail tug at hers, she got pulled back down. The mer groaned as he pushed himself upright. Lingering over her, he stared intently at her face.

“How are you feeling? Any numbness? Sluggish? Hungry? Cold?” His face tightened at the last word. “Anything at all?”

Thalia gave him a short pout. He really looked like he’d been through hell for some reason. Racking her brain for an explanation, she came up blank. Yesterday was a complete mystery. Now that he mentioned it though, she was feeling a bit peckish. So much so that even raw fish sounded quite enticing.

“A little hungry… and a bit hot. Mind getting off me?”

Midas blinked once, then twice. His face widened into a grimace. “Hot. That’s good.” He started chuckling softly. For a moment, it looked like he would kiss her, leaning in and brushing a claw past her cheek. Thalia’s stomach did a backflip at the sudden intensity, feeling her body go all clammy and mushy in an instant.  Then pushed away just as abruptly, groaning and stretching his muscles as he swam past the kraken and towards the exit of the cave. “Let’s go.”

“Go where?” Snapping out of her daze, Thalia stretched as well, feeling the joints in her shoulder pop softly at the movements.

“I promised that if you’d wake up, I’d teach you to hunt. Well, you have been unconscious for three days, and I’m starving…”