"If you don't mind me asking Patton, what are you drawing?"

Patton looked up, his tongue still stuck out from when he was concentrating. "Oh. Oh, um, it's nothing really." He closed his sketchbook sharpish. "Not very good either."

Logan tilted his head to the side but didn't say anything.

"You say that you've met merfolk before."

"Yep." Patton slipped his pencil behind his ear.

"Where?"

"Uh... when I was at home. I think." Patton looked at the floor and his eyes clouded with confusion. "Yeah, I think so. Um, my... friend, I think, pointed one out to me and I nearly got caught by one when I was swimming when I was 11."

"Are you okay?" Logan asked before he could stop himself. "I mean, obviously you are. That was a stupid thing to ask, I apolo-"

"Kiddo, it's okay." Logan looked at Patton in surprise. "It's a normal thing to ask. And yeah, I'm fine." Patton laughed a little. "It made me more interested in merfolk and I went looking for facts about them and it was the whole reason I even joined a pirate crew. And here I am."

"What sorts of things have you learned about us?" Logan asked, swimming a little further towards the glass. Patton shrugged and looked around the brig for ideas.

"Oh all sorts. Like... your markings glow when you're near your soulmate and some merpeople don't have any markings at all because they'll never have a soulmate, that fact kind of made me a little sad, and-"

"It's also an incorrect fact." Logan said, pushing his glasses up his nose. "All merpeople have markings just like all merpeople have soulmates. It's just the type of markings that are different. Ones like mine," he pointed to the glowing blue markings on his arm, "are the type of markings merfolk with romantic soulmates have but one of the other people working in the palace... Jessie, I believe they're called, has blotchy black markings all up and down the outside of his arms."

"What's that mean?"

"Oh, it means they've got a platonic soulmate. Someone who they're gonna love forever but not romantically."

"Platonic, that's it." Patton said, clapping suddenly and pointing at Logan.

"I'm sorry?"

"Platonic. That's like friend. You know when I was trying to explain 'friend' to you?"

"Oh, that's what friend means. You could've just said platonic soulmate. Then I would've understood."

"I didn't know you had a word for it. This is awesome."

"In what way?"

"Well I've just learnt something new, haven't I? That's fun." Patton said, beaming.

"Oh, yeah. It is." Logan tried for a small smile.

"Are you okay, Kiddo? You look like you aren't used to smiling."

"Am I not doing it correctly?"

"No, there's no correct way to smile, it's just..." Patton trailed off, trying to find the words to explain himself. "Are you not used to smiling?"

"Oh no, I am, it's just not something I do often." Logan said quickly.

Patton tilted his head like a lost puppy before shrugging and picking up his sketchbook again.

"If you really don't mind me asking, what are you sketching?"

"Kiddo, we've already been over this, it's nothing-"

"I know." Logan said hurriedly. "You've said already. I just... I'm not the biggest fan of unanswered questions."

Patton met Logan's eyes and smiled a little at him but didn't give an answer.

TODAY IS THE MOST BLOODY PERFECT DAY FOR WEATHER EVER! Not too hot, not too cold, not a cloud in the sky, perfectly sunny. It just makes me want to sing like I'm in a fricking musical. I love Spring.
Bye,
Blaize