Profile
James and Azul met at Night Raven College, and this relationship was particularly charged from the very beginning. On the Opening Ceremony, Azul immediately recognized James as he went to the Sorting Mirror, and as the two locked eyes James felt an involutary shudder course him. He has seen that face before, but where? As Floyd made a commotion soon afterward however, James and Azul lost eachother until the commotion was settled.
James found himself walking straight towards Azul, who boasted that he will become the Next Dorm Head after greetings were established. "Sure you are." James said, eying Azul as the two shook hands. As James left, Azul stared after him and had to be prodded by Jade back from the recesses of his mind.
James never liked Azul's corporate mindset or his contracts being used on Octavinelle students. As James was raised to treat 'crewmates' with respect and comradery it really left a bile taste in James's mouth, but he held his tongue knowing he should not be creating enemies when hes in such a precarious position. However after his mother and her crew's disappearance cut off James from what finance he did have, he let his distate for Azul's practices known as he ripped a contract from Azul's hand and shouted out how Azul has loopholes in every contract, as shown via example. For pocket change, James could be hired out as a lawyer of course. Azul on the other hand, felt feelings of betrayel turn into anger. He thought him and James were on decent terms--at least that they would not interfere with eachother. In retaliation, Azul threatened James via the twins soon after. James did stop...finding loopholes that is, but that did not stop James from plotting to get back at Azul...meanwhile Azul thought how to get blackmail on this pesky student. The competition would get nastier and nastier as James used joke names in Azul's contracts (Ura bumwhole) and even had a plan to write Azul's name in a contract, until he decided he wanted to clean his hands of red, and use the dorm heads to get rid of Azul instead via insulting them in letters by Azul's handwriting. His forgery skills would have come in hand, however, Azul was not idle, and was confirming the truth of James' origins while talking to Lilia in order to get him expelled...or...?
The truth has been revealed, and with it the MC now understands why James and Azul react to eachother the way they do. Azul seemed too fixated, too attached so early while James seemed to have hidden much...much information that the MC begins to doubt how much they really know about their companion. Azul meanwhile, demands from James an explanation on his behavior in the NRC entrance ceremony in their first years. "You kept on acting you didn't know me at all..." "Well, neither did you." "I-I thought-...I...I wanted to have a clean start." "But not me." "...Yeah...not you, I didn't want you to."
James and Azul have met far earlier than told. After James got bitten by the juvenile croc-merfolk, he would have another encounter with the proclaimed enemy of the pirates, and once again his prejudices were put into question. At the beach, where the land and sea kissed, a ship wreck awaited for scanvengers. The Jolly Roger captain thought it nice to check for supplies on the broken, seemingly abadoned ship while James immediately volunteered himself to do it.
Azul Ashengrotto was trying to prove he wasn't a crybaby like his classmates told him. He promised himself that he'll do something to show them how brave he was, but wasn't sure of how to do it until he spotted a wrecked ship while on a potion ingredient hunt. Swallowing his fear, he swam upward and popped his head out from the broken hull.
There he locked eyes with the prettiest creature he ever saw; about his height, eyes as black as coal and hair the color of purple seaweed. However, this creature had feet instead of fins...or tentacles.
James was panicking; this creature was like a kraken! It had tentacles bigger than his head! It actually had a face though...so not a kraken at all...
A mermaid? Maybe, but it was still weird looking, and he didn't like it. It was so not cute!
Azul noticed the creature was trembling, perhaps it wasn't used to cold temptures? The water would certainly make the temperature lower...? Azul wasn't sure how he could help it, for he was used to such chill.
James inched slowly to a chest, eying the mermaid as he did so to make sure the creature didn't try anything funny while he tried to open it. The creature seemed to look at him curiously as he took out a lockpick and began jamming into the chest's padlock. After a few (embarassing) tries, James opened the chest to spot the most beautiful sight he ever did see.
Azul gasped; dubloons? He heard they were a rarity! Only found on human shipwrecks and made from solid gold; they made alot on money in the Coral Sea just because of how pretty they looked (and being so humanesque). He splashed the water to get the human's attention and pointed at the chest. This would certainly get his schoolmates to see how brave he is now!
James immediately stood protectively over the chest. "No, you can't have all of it! I don't know who you are or where you came from, but I know you don't need this!" James frowned; picturing his fellow pirates eating salted, spoiled food and crackers for most of the trip. "We do, so go back to the ocean where you came from!" James felt tempted to throw something at the mermaid, but the only thing he had in hand was one of those dubloons...
Azul glared, tempted himself to splash the creature with water and make them more cold. The creature was pretty, but it was certainly not nice! Azul pointed at the coin in the hand, hoping that maybe by "bargaining" it will let him get away with something!
Huh? Just one? James scratched his head in thought. Will the creature finally leave him alone if he gives them something? Is one dubloon worth it for that? James grasped the dubloon tightly, and hurled it at the mermaid, who instinctively caught it with a tentacle. James certainly hoped he didn't look as awestruck as he felt.
Azul peeped out from his makeshift face-shield made up of his hands. He caught it...?...He caught it! Azul smiled and brought the coin closer to inspect it. It was rather detailed and shiny, he can see why mermaids liked them.
James couldn't help it, he smiled seeing the octopus mermaid seem so enamored with the coin. It was kinda cute. "Hey, maybe you aren't so bad, after all-"
Azul heard it. He heard it; more people were coming but he stuck around like an idiot and now they banged the door from the storage room! Azul gripped the coin and swam backwards. He wanted to see the pretty human for just a few moments longer before he sank into the ocean. Just a few more moments...please...
James pushed the pirate with a harpoon back, screaming "Don't hurt him, he's dangerous!" James saw the octopus looked offended from the corner of his eye, until understanding dawned on his face. The octopus swam further and further out of harpoon's range. "He'll...he'll pop like a balloon if you harpoon him! He's one of those poisonous mermaids we've heard so much about, he told me so!" At the pirate's confused look, James added, "We don't want to be poisoned, do we?"
Azul almost laughed at how ridiculously the pretty boy spun a lie, but held back and grinned so wide his cheeks began to hurt. He sank into the water and swam away like he was being chased by a shark home. His heart was beating rapidly, and he continually thought of the pretty boy he met on the ship. Azul hoped he'll see him again...and maybe...maybe they can be friends...maybe more.
"The coin was a bust", Azul spit. "No one believed I got the coin from a...pretty boy on a shipwreck. They believe I got it from my mother and was lying to all of them." Azul turned away, fists clenched to his sides. James sighed and followed to press himself against the other. "Children are cruel, Azul...At least you found yourself a new hobby, right?"
"...At least I found you."
The MC, feeling gratefully forgotten, smiled and ducked out from the room as quietly as possible. "That was very long a story; Grim must be hungry about now."
James and Azul grew from rivals, to friends, to lovers over the course of the story, and truthfully their relationship consists of those elements even as they settled on being a pair. Attraction was present in the beginning, but overtime the relationship grew to become less shallow as they learned to understand not only themselves, but eachother. They respect the other's way of viewing the world and accept that they are imperfect beings in an imperfect relationship, but that there's nothing wrong with that.
Though at first James was put off by Azul's gentlemanly way of courting and affection, he has come to appreciate these as a sign that Azul is taking their relationship seriously, and usually does his best to reciprocate whether by kissing Azul's tentacle when Azul is in his merform, or linking there arms together as they walked. Azul had no problem being on the recieving end of James own affection, being starved for love as he is. If anything, Azul simply will ask for privacy before James does anything "outrageous". In public, Azul will happily accept a kiss on the cheek or handholding, and in private melts due to being barraged with kisses and cuddling.
That doesn't mean the relationship is purely physical however, as the two have many debates and intellectual discussions. From corporate schemes to technological advancements to books they've read, they hardly run ever run out of things to say to eachother. These two genuinely enjoy eachother's company and have been known to tease and flirt, mostly on Azul's end, as he is rewarded with James blushing and coy response. In particular, Azul likes to call James "dear", and "my darling black pearl", while James can muster up the courage to call him "luv" on a good day. They have arguments at times due to their differing viewpoints, but these tend to be easily resolved in the bedroom if not amicably. These are rare however, as they already have let out all this "tension" and solved their issues by the time they got together.
The two tend to be a solvent for eachother's emotional side, as James supplies Azul with acts of thoughtful childishness that can perk up Azul's day like giving Azul a poster of Coach Vargas drawn with devil horns and a mustache to make fun of him, and Azul stabilizing James with routine that not only makes him happy, but also keeps him busy like the tutoring business.
Simply put, they might not be the most passionate couple or romantic couple, but they love eachother dearly and that is precious enough in a world so twisted.
---(Captain Corelli's Mandolin)---
Love is a temporary madness, it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your root was so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is.
Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being in love, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident.
Those that truly love have roots that grow towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.
"It's hard to believe how one of my greatest pains became one of my greatest pleasures, yet here we are. James is undoubtedly one of the most intelligent people I had the pleasure of besting. Fufu~"
"Though that's true, the win didn't come easy. I never thought that I would meet someone who loves me with such sincerity...all I was ever considered was a fat, stupid octopus, or a con-man. I can't shake that off no matter how hard I try...but, James saw both sides, and still likes me regardless. Truly...I hope I can make him happy."
"I'm speechless. Azul and I didn't start off on good terms, and now were dating. Alot of things happened between point A and Point B. Idia claims we'd make the typical shoujo couple of the tsundere and the main lead so it was bound to happen, whatever that means."
Azul stuck by my side and helped me out when I needed it most. No matter how childish I acted or how difficult I made things for him--still do actually, aha--he still's around. It's hard to find loyalty like that, nowadays. I'm not sure if what I'm feeling is everlasting love, but I do like hanging out with him, and I appreciate all he does for me. I want to ease his burdens."
- James gave Azul a golden dubloon courtesy of his mother. Azul, understanding the importance of such a gesture, placed the coin in a special box among his coin collection. He considers it his luckiest charm.
- As a fan of classical literature, James secretly compares his relationship with Azul to that of Estella and Pip's from Great Expectations. To a lesser extent, also to Petruchio and Katherine's from The Taming of the Shrew. Azul said with finality they are Gatsby and Daisy.
- Both tend to have dates consisting of walking through the Rose Maze of Heartslabyul, playing board games where winner recieves a kiss, and of movie nights watching chick flicks and psychological thrillers. Since both are on a busy schedule, the two treasure these scarce moments of intimacy dearly.
- James enjoys kissing Azul's cheeks and beauty mark the most. For Azul, he enjoys kissing James lips and forehead.
- They have a strong interest in eachother's culture. As they had little exposure in regards to it, both can talk for hours about it and seemingly never get bored. Azul is particularly curious in finding the similarities and differences between them.
- Azul ordered a necklace with a Black Tahitian Pearl. One of the few gifts he's given. James wears it under his clothes, but nevertheless gets teased by the twins that its James precious collar. James can't deny that's exactly what it symbolizes: Ownership.
- After Interlude, James wears a Pansy flower tucked behind his ear courtesy of Azul. Meanwhile Azul wears a Daffodil flower on his uniform. Whenever the flowers are dying out, each exchange for new ones from eachother.
