#going to rip its fins off and the fish just looks scared)

[c-kiddo]

obsessed with how the disney remake obsession with cgi realism has lead to them animating a scene in which it looks like the little mermaid is doing animal cruelty to a fish good job guys lmao

[r0tting-rat]

DCA PROMPTOBER 2024

Life (school) is kicking me in my non-existent nuts (giving me essays to write) guys Idk if I can mansplain manipulate manwhore my way out of this

Day 20 - Trapped

Pairing: Mer!Eclipse x GN reader Warning: Blood Words: EXACTLY 2400 WORDS BITCH Summary: Continuation of this post, go and read if you don't understand anything :>

The two mers you had encountered during your trip to the underwater cave had dragged you in their nest easily, grabbing each an ankle and swimming faster than your brain could process. In a panic, you had tried to fight them unsuccessfully and only resulted in hurting yourself further with the hard scales of their bodies. With your wounded hands you had grabbed their tails and fins, trying to convince them to let you go, but after a few pathetic tries the blue one got fed up with you and grabbed both your wrists, snarling in your face something you managed to understand despite the language barrier. 

“Stay put.”

You decided to listen, not wanting to make your death any more painful than it already was going to be, but under the mers’ grip you were shaking in fear. The way the two of them would communicate between each other didn’t help you at all, considering they were probably talking about the best ways to eat you. 

At some point at the end of the cave, which had been a dark blur of algae and rocks until then, tightened around you. They were dragging you who-knows-where through a hole big enough for the two of them to swim side by side, which was slowly getting smaller and smaller, until the bright yellow mer chirped something to his companion and stayed behind, allowing the other to continue dragging you along without hindrance. You stared at the mer swimming close behind you, trying to understand his intention, and in response he smiled at you. The white teeth glistened in the darkness around you, and you quivered.

After what was barely a minute but which felt like an hour to you, the tunnel opened in a bigger and brighter cave around you, blinding you with its light and making you flinch. Before you could understand what was happening, your body was flung with great force over the water and thrown on an emerging rock. Scrambling to get back to your feet as soon as you realized that you were on the surface, you slipped on the wet surface under you and fell on your side, hitting your shoulder and hip with a cry of pain. Wet and rough hands grabbed your mask, pulling it away from your face as you fought against them, as another pair took off your fins and began to rip away your diving suit, leaving you in your swimsuit and a few new scratches. 

Once your entire diving gear had been removed, you hurried to crawl away from the two creatures perched on the rock like hungry vultures, with their tails dipping in the water, desperately attempting to put as much distance between you and them. The mers looked at you, curious and amused at the same time, until the yellow one looked down at the oxygen tank and chirped something in his language. You looked as the other mer shook his head, replying with a growl, and then the first of the two threw the tank in the water behind him, along with your mask and the rest of your gear. 

-Hey!- you screamed, even if they probably couldn’t understand the value of your diving gear, -Give them back!-

The yellow mer laughed, a throaty and raspy sound that reminded you of a dying animal, and then pushed himself back in the water. His companion was still on the rock with you, observing you with his terrible red eyes, until he opened his razor-sharp toothed mouth and spoke in your language.

-S-ssta-y,- he said, -Hee-re safe.-

You were left even more scared than before, mouth opening and closing in disbelief, until a weak “what” left your throat and the mer slipped back into the water to join his friend. Did the fish just fucking talk to you? Had you imagined it? 

You were left on the rock, surrounded by water in the middle of a large cave, your only light being the one coming in from a hole in the ceiling. Moss and various plants grew on the walls surrounding you, you saw small animals like bugs and birds coming in and out from the hole, but even that beautiful paradise made of shining water and quiet life wasn’t enough to keep you from crying. Once the realization that you were about to die downed on you, you began to tear up, hiding your face in your hands and shaking with both fear and cold. You wanted to go back home, to your loved ones, but because of your stupid mistake you ended up being the lunch of two stupid fishmen. Your life sucked, and it was also going to end early.

The day was almost over, you were freezing and hungry, and no matter how much you tried, you couldn’t find a way to escape. At some point, in a moment of desperation, you had tried to enter the water and find the opening where you had come in—despite knowing you wouldn’t have survived it if you attempted to cross the tunnel—but the sun was setting and you couldn’t see anything underwater. At some point something had brushed against your foot and you had panicked, returning to the surface and climbing back on the hard and cold rock, refusing to stay and look for any other entrances deeper in the cave. You had no other choice; you were going to die there, either by starving or mauled by one of those mers. 

The little piece of sky you could see through the hole in the ceiling was turning a haunting color red, angry and violent, tinting the water around you of a horrifying crimson shade, like something had died there and its blood had mixed with the ocean. You stared at the sun setting, asking yourself if you were going to survive the chilly night, when you heard a sound that made you freeze. It came from the bottom of the cave, deep and chilling, and it sounded like the growl of an enormous animal. Its voice was nothing similar to the ones of the two mers you had met; more gravelly and rough, and it was so loud you heard the rock you were sitting on vibrate under you. 

-Oh, would you look at this?- spoke the voice, echoing so loudly in the cave you could hear it even inside your head, -My little hunters have brought me a treat.-

You were shaking, looking around for the owner of the voice, terrified beyond logic and comprehension. You hugged yourself and tried to stop the tears from spilling out.

-W-What’s going on…?!- you whimpered, -Where… Who are…?-

-Behind you, little bird,- purred the voice, and you snapped your head around so violently you hurt your neck. From the water, something double the size of your boat emerged in an instant, blocking the light coming from the ceiling with its height and casting you in its huge shadow. All you saw were red scales the size of your hand, yellow eyes with vertical pupils, sharp teeth the size of your entire arm, and two pairs of clawed hands coming out and gripping the rock you were sitting on so hard they left marks on the stone. Your entire vision was covered by the color of blood, your lungs were spasming in your chest, attempting to get enough air to breathe, and your legs refused to respond to you anymore. What stood before you—and over you—was a mer the size of a house, terrifying in its imposing size and pinning you on the ground with its stare. You screamed when the tentacle of an octopus wrapped around your legs, keeping you from squirming away, while many others surrounded your little stop on the rock, cutting off any escape routes. 

-Well, are you having fun yet?- mused the mer, resting his chin on two of his hands while the other two tapped the stone, -I hope Sun and Moon have treated you well.-

You were too scared to understand the meaning of those words, your heart was beating so loud you could hear it drumming in your ears, fast and unrelenting. All you could look at were those teeth.

-Is something wrong, little bird?- the mer leaned closer, curious, and in response you tried to shift away with no results. -Did Sun eat your tongue already?-

Seeing that you weren’t answering, the monster rolled his eyes and scoffed, looking suddenly bored. 

-Oh, how sad. Do those shrimps think I’m that easy to please, that any human would do? Did I not tell them I like them feisty and loud? What a shame, truly.- He used one of his claws to poke at your side, at which you screamed and trashed on the spot, trying to push the finger away. -You’re even one of the cute ones, too bad you’re boring.-

While the creature tormented you, you were desperately trying to get your brain to start working, overwhelmed by nonsensical fear and panic. 

-P-Please, don’t eat me!- you found yourself begging, looking up at the monster with tear-filled eyes, -L-Let me go…!-

-Eat you?- wheezed the mer, -Ah! What should I eat? Should I attempt to peel away the fat from your weak bones and hope that’s somehow enough to satisfy me? No, my bird, I will continue eating sharks and small whales, if you don’t mind.-

You couldn’t make sense of the creature’s words. You could understand them perfectly, but still they remained incomprehensible. What did he mean by that? What did he want from you if not to eat you? Slowly, the gears in your brain returned to their job, so you swallowed the lump in your throat and tried to stop your lips from quivering. 

-H-How… How can you talk?- you asked, and that made the mer’s eyes light up in joy. Something that resembled fins rose up from around his face, creating a crown of orange, red, and yellow, which reminded you of one the smaller mer you had previously met.

-Now we’re talking, little thing!- he smiled, all sharp teeth and black gums, -I love it when you humans use your curiosity for good, it always excites me to see which questions you have for me.-

The mer leaned closer once more, getting all up in your personal space with his round face and sniffing you.

-You’re hurt, no wonder you were so scared,- he mused, laying his head right in front of you, -I’ll tell Moon to medicate your wounds later, but now, you want to know how I am capable of speaking, do you not?-

Confused and still scared, you nodded, hoping that could keep him entertained for enough time, until he decided you weren’t fun anymore and left you to the other two sea monsters to take care of. 

-I am simply as old as modern civilization itself, little bird,- the creature replied with a big smile, -When I was born, you still used to sail the seas with carracks and caravels. You gazed into the depths of the oceans, both amazed and terrified, you wandered around like small children allowed by their parents to stay outside and play for a little more. Back then, you still had respect for my species, unlike now.-

Your eyes ran over the monster’s face and arms, seeing for the first time the amount of scars and old wounds covering its skin like a battleground. You also noticed that the mer’s scales had a beautiful glittery texture that made him shine like a ruby even in the dark, illuminating the now completely obscured cave around you. 

That monster was more than 500 years old, you realized. You were looking at a creature that had seen history unraveling before his eyes.

-Are the other two going to be as big as you one day?- you asked, and the mer chuckled. His laugh shook the ground under you.

-Sun and Moon? Oh, if they manage to live to my age, they will become even bigger,- he answered, -I took those two under my protection, they are like siblings to me.- 

The smile on the mer’s face softened as he looked at you. 

-Do you know what I want from you?- he asked, and you shook your head, -I want to learn your story. That’s what I always ask the humans I find: who they are, what they do, where they come from—I seek entertainment. Can you give me that?- 

You looked away, suddenly feeling embarrassed of yourself, but the monster used one of his claws to turn your face back, in a silent warning that he wanted you to keep your eyes on him and him only.

-So?- he egged you on, making you squirm in your spot.

-My life isn’t that interesting,- you tried to say, but the monster interrupted you before you could continue. 

-Liar,- he laughed, -Everybody has a story to tell. You are the only person in history to have lived certain moments, to have met certain people in specific places and times. The sum of your experiences has made you completely unique and inimitable, so now I want to hear your story.-

More tentacles emerged from the water, laying themselves on the rock around you like birds perched on branches of a tree. His voice rumbled with authority, and you understood that was an order, not a question; that mer wasn’t asking you to tell him a story, he was commanding you to do so. You shivered, unable to decide if staring at his sharp teeth could be considered rude, and pretended not to notice how the tentacle that he had curled around your legs was pulling you closer to him. 

-I’ll give you the time to rearrange your thoughts, little one, but I shall not take no for an answer,- a large smirk opened on the monster’s face, -You have no say in this matter.-

-Before I start,- you said, nervous to know what would have happened if your story had been revealed to be too boring to listen to, -What is your name?-

A loud purr came out of the mer’s throat, rumbling and comforting like a cat's. -You shall call me Eclipse,- he answered, -And from now on that’ll be everything you will learn about me, not a word more. Now, you better begin to talk, little thing, I’m getting impatient.-

[devilishly-delightful]

MerMay Ramble

Just a small ramble about finding the brothers on the shore and wanting you to come with them.

CW: Yandere if you squint, also drowning?

It was a gorgeous day outside and you finally got off of work. Deciding to relax before heading home for the day you head down towards the small little cove out of sight from the rest of the beach. Dealing with people all day you wanted to be left alone to recover your battery.

Sitting down with you’re feet in the water you watched out at the sunset that turned the water a beautiful orange-reddish hue. Taking a soft breath to enjoy the atmosphere. You start humming a gentle song to the breeze.And moving to a soft gentle singing voice once you have your melody down.

Unbeknownst to you a head peeked around a rock listening to your soft song.

As you rest your eyes as your song dies down you doze off for a little nap. You dream of someone touching and petting your hair gently.

Wait.

No someone was actually was touching your hair.

Sucking a breath in to steel yourself you sit up quickly. Only to slam your head against the other persons head.

“Ouch!”

“Ow What the hell!?!” You hear a voice back. Nursing your head you try to look up a bit harder since its a little darker out now. Glancing up you see a bright white mop of hair with their hands currently nursing they’re forehead. As you stare trying to make out the person you notice their hands have a... Webbing? In between their fingers? What the hell? You think as you look over the person. Only to look downwards and seeing fins followed by a tail.

A scream rips through you as you try and scramble back only for the sand to slide between your fingers. You going nowhere fast. The Thing suddenly panicked and stopped nursing their head only to grab your ankle in your attempt to scoot back.

“Shit shit shit! Lucifer is going to have my head! Shut up! Shut up! Please!” It, He? Grumbles out Reaching his other hand up to your mouth to stop you from screaming more. You tried to kick him away you really did but he had so much weight on you it didn't even phase him.

“Hey hey. Promise me ya won’t scream and I’ll take my hand off of your mouth ok?” He says. Shivering you nod your head still scared of this weird thing in front of you.Taking his hand off your mouth but not your ankle.

Before either of you guys gets the chance to blurt out a question more heads pop up out of the water.

“What are you doing Mammon?” A commanding voice rings out. The Half fish on top of you freezes at the voice.

Letting out a squeak, He turns to face the water.

“I-I-I don’tevenknow!” He says real quickly! “Iheardsingingandfolloweditandjustcameto!” He adds to panicked excuse.Taking a breath. “For some reason their song just really pulled me in! And the next thing I know I was petting their hair!”

The Blond Hair muttered something under his breath. Only for the 6 others to turn and face him with a owlish look on all their faces.

“I-I-is that even possible?!?!” Squeaked out the purple haired guy.”OMG It would be like that manga I read “My fated mate is totally a human and I don’t know they’re courting rituals!”“ The blond pushed his head underwater.

“Levi hush! We don’t know that for sure. We’d have to run some tests.”

Mammon? You guess was sniffling and pulled you closer to him. “I can’t believe my mate is a stupid human.” Was that a insult? Its hard tell since he’s now hugging you even tighter.

“Woah woah what is going on?! What are you guys? What are you talking about?” You asked back to back.

Mammon shushed you by kissing you. Not having it you try and pull away. Only to fall back to the ground.Something was wrong. Something was wrong. Wrong wrong wrong. You where in so much pain you gasped as holes opened up on your neck, grabbing at your neck you couldn't breath. Why couldn’t you breath?! You collapsed against Mammon. As you started to black out you felt yourself being pulled into the water. As soon as your head was under you where able to breath. The pain in your neck finally settling as water rushed in thru your new gills. Your legs felt numb,As you looked down you panic as your legs where shifting from two to one. Your hands gaining webs between your fingers. Nails becoming sharper.Panic getting worse as you try to pry your legs back to normal.

Before you can hurt yourself two of the brothers grab your hands and holding them so you’re tail can form normally. Memories from your human life slowly fading away as you blacked out from the pain.

“ I can’t wait to spend my life with you my little siren...”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So uh ended up being longer then expected, Enjoy I guess?Listen as much as I enjoy fluffy monster stories. I wanted to do something different where they follow instinct for once.If I need to put a warning for anything please let me know.

[janshu]

In The Shallows...Part One.

Summary: @hanji-is-life more merman!Bakugo and so I shall provide! I was hoping to get this out much earlier, back in may because MerMay but better late than never I suppose! You, a marine biologist, take a scuba dive to see the local fauna off coast and you find more than you ever could've bargained for...

Word Count: 1.5.

Warnings: None but minor curses, mentions of the ocean, an illusion of drowning. Viewer discretion is advised at least.

How did you manage this?

You hadn't walked on the beach, much less roll around in the coarse substance. So how did it manage to get into your pockets? This was a new jacket so how?

A short walk from the parking garage to the pier was all it was, no beach travel involved yet it had wormed its way into your pockets, in between your toes and nearly everywhere else. 

Your team chuckles at your discomfort finding your squirming the funniest thing on the planet as they loaded up the sizable vessel for the day on the water. For the past several weeks you had been cooped up in a lab studying the samples others brought to you but now you were given the green light to head out into the field yourself. Your goal for the day was to gather samples, check on the status of the coral nursery, and a checklist of other menial tasks. A full plate all things considered, much better than getting a migraine staring through a microscope at sea water until you either give up or get sent home. 

Waves battered against the hull of the boat while you and your fellow colleagues suit up in scuba gear. The goal wasn't to go to the bottom of the ocean, far from it, fifteen meters was the maximum for today so simple snorkeling hear wouldn't cut it. You didn't get your diving certifications to be stuck in a lab. The salt spray refreshing against your skin for the few seconds it was vulnerable while you changed from your outfit into the designated wetsuit. Not the full suit that covered your body from head-to-toe, just a body one to keep your core warm when your swimsuit didn't offer much protection.

The boat came to a stop right around where the GPS locator dinged where the nursery site was and the captain gave everyone a thumbs up as you and your fellows attached their fins, tanks, SPG's and all the other necessary equipment. One-by-one each of them held their regulators to their mouths and fell back into the blue ocean below until it was your own, to which you received a wink instead while everything turned upside down.

Ten, twenty, thirty, a hundred. Regardless of how many dives you've had you'll never get over the beauty of the reefs. Each time serving something new, change was ever present in your line of work. Never seeing the same specimens twice to witnessing a rare species and everything in between. The sunshine overhead casting glittering ripples on the sandy floor, catching your eye on the schools of fish that swam by as their scales gleamed in different patterns. This was the closest feeling you had ever come to your childhood dream of becoming a mermaid. When you wished on your birthday candles and shooting stars to holding your breath underneath tub water in hopes gills would magically appear. That's what started this career. Maybe it was a long forgotten portion of your evolved brain from life's time in the ocean but you felt at home, a familiar sense of belonging that you didn't have on dry land. This was where you were meant to be but sadly your wishes had never come true and you were cursed to remain a land-dwelling mammal.

The beeping in your ears ripped you from your fantastical daydreams to remind you of the harsh reality. This is as close as you were going to get but that wasn't so bad, it was better having a little than nothing at all. Looking at the gauge meter it showed that you have roughly an hour left of oxygen which meant you had been in the water for an hour already. How time flies when you're having fun, absorbed in your daydreams, and checking on coral and taking samples.

"Hey, could we switch our tanks out without getting oxygen narcosis or are we screwed in that department?" Your voice came over the radio built in the full face masks everyone in the diving team used no doubt scaring those who were lost in thought as you just were. 

"Y/N...do you really want to stay out here longer? Shitting Christ, you should be glad you're out here in the first place!" The captain's voice responded from the safety of the boat. "Now get your asses back up here n' we'll head on ba-...what was that?"

"What was what?" 

A chorus of responses chimed in immediately after, some crackling from the distance they were from the source and others sounding as if they were a foot away.

"Nothing, never mind, must've been a Manta Ray. Forget about it. Just get your shit and come back, I'm gettin' hungry and its close to lunchtime so hurry up." The static cut off as he put down the radio and looked out into the churning ocean. The massive shadow he had just seen passing by the boat putting him on alert, he didn't want to witness any reef shark's feeding frenzy.

"We can come back tomorrow, Y/N. Nothing's stopping us from that, right?" Another voice, one of your favorite colleagues suggested. That was right, you were there and your boss hadn't explicitly said that this was a one time thing. Another visit would do some good to see if the biometrics have changed in a span of twenty-four hours.

"Alright, okay, we'll come back later for a differential test."

The group had a collective sigh of relief. You were notorious for loving the ocean to such a degree you'd do anything to stay in a while longer, they were all content with leaving now and coming back later if it meant they wouldn't see your sad pouting all the way back to the van. Picking up their equipment and vials everyone began swimming back to the boat now most of them making small talk and discussing their plans for the weekend while you were once again lost in your thoughts.

Something impossibly dark darted through your vision. Blocking out the beautiful view of the turquoise water and colorful life like an angry, ominous storm cloud. A blanket of blindness shrouding all light for a moment but it felt like an eternity as dread sunk in the pit of your stomach, anchoring you to the spot. The warm water now felt cold, goosebumps running up your bare arms and thighs like pinpricks. The heart that had been so calm in the home of your ribcage now pushing adrenaline through your bloodstream, adjusting to a state you weren't acting on. Fear. That wasn't a Manta Ray or a comically large Stingray that was something else entirely. A predator that crashed against the fragile cage of safety, security and believing you were untouchable in shallow depths.

You were reminded of the psychologically scarring and irrational fear of one's ankles being grabbed particularly in the ocean by a shark, the part of your lizard brain firing signals all across your synapses to detach the leg. If only. A fair trade, being left alone at the price of a limb but unfortunately humans couldn't detach or regrow whatever they lost.

That fear was horrifically evoked when something far more firm than a limp leaf of seaweed wrapped around your ankle. Slimey, cold as death and tipped with five sharp points. Reminiscent of a hand, a very large hand. Expanding across your bare skin like a calloused cuff that threatened to break the skin, sink into the meat and tear your foot off entirely. However, that didn't seem to be happening. No cloud of your own blood instead the safety of the boat got further and further away, turning into a speck barely seen in the shallow water.

"Wait, wait no! What the fuck?! Let go! What the hell?" When your brain managed to get over its fear and shock of the situation your fight-or-flight instincts kicked into high gear and your body began to thrash around against the hold. If it was a shark hitting it in the snout and eyes was imperative to get it to release but what if it wasn't? What else could possibly have your leg in its grip with a goal of pulling you away from the boat?

A flurry of indistinguishable voices and noises came over the radio. From yelps, screams and to curses but the thudding in your ears and the furious splashes drowned them all out, everything became topsy turvy, what was the bottom of the ocean and what was the surface became an abstract concept. The primal urge to escape was ripped away when the respirator giving you oxygen was unceremoniously and harshly ripped from your mouth, the hand that had done it orange and black. The water was salty, like you had dumped an entire container of table salt into your mouth and you washed it down with a sip of water. It was invasive, slipping down your throat into your lungs as they tried to gulp air instead. The more you inhaled the harder it was to move. Your limbs becoming as heavy as cement bricks. Unconsciousness began to consume everything, your body down to your mind. The eerie sensation of falling was the last thing before everything faded to black...

[sophie-jen]

water lilies and tadpoles

read on ao3

James rolled onto his back. He looked up at the sun, shining joyfully in the cloudless sky, then immediately groaned, and rolled back onto his stomach.

"You look like a beached whale, honey."

James groaned again. "S'hot," he mumbled. 

"Why don't you go down to the lake and take a swim?"

James did not dignify this question with a response. His mother had been trying to kick him out all morning. She clearly didn’t want him in her way as she pranced around in her sunhat, gardening tools in hand. James was too miserable to care. He just groaned louder and rolled over again. But this was the wrong move, he realized belatedly, as he felt the crunch of his mother's favorite lilies being crushed under his weight. 

Five minutes later and a shovel shaped dent in his skull found James making his way toward the stupid lake. As he pushed his way valiantly through swarms of mosquitoes, he considered the very real possibility that he would drown in his own sweat before he ever reached water. 

The suffocating heat made everything hazy. Overhead, branches swayed. Leaves rustled. Underfoot, twigs crunched. Moss whispered. Streams of light danced around him. Birds croaked. Frogs chirped. A mushroom tipped its cap to him. 

Somewhere in the recesses of his mind, it occurred to James that he might be lost. Just as the beginnings of panic started brewing in his stomach, his foot caught in a root and he went toppling down a hill. He rolled to a stop next to a small glittering lake, and groaned. This was definitely not the lake his mother had been referring to. He hadn’t known there even was another lake in this area. It really was quite small, resembling more of an oversized pond.

There was something emphatically off about the happy twinkle of the water and the ethereal glow that bathed everything in a golden light. He also couldn’t help but notice that the water lilies were eyeing him suspiciously. To their left, a large, judgmental looking trout poked its face out of the water, took a good look at him, and with a disappointed shake of its head, went back down to report what it had seen. And sat on an outcrop not three feet away, looking straight at him while her fingers combed through her long tendrils of red hair, was a mermaid. This was a little much for poor James to take, and mercifully, after one last groan for good measure, consciousness fled and everything faded to black. 

                                                      *

James gasped awake. He lay in the dark for a few seconds, contemplating the strange dream he had been having, before sitting up. As he did, something cold and slimy slid off his eyes and down his face, taking his glasses with it. He felt around for the glasses, slid them back onto his nose, looked at the lily pad that had dropped into his lap, and felt his stomach drop with it. 

"I thought it might help cool you off."

He looked over at the girl who sat not far away. She was looking at him with an expression of mingled apprehension and curiosity. And sure enough, when James looked down, he saw curled under her a long gray tail, scales shimmering in the sunlight. He had to make a considerable effort not to faint again. 

"I’ve found lily pads are really refreshing. I was afraid you had heat exhaustion or something,” the girl said. 

“Oh. Thank you.” James didn’t know how to explain to her that it most likely wasn’t the heat exhaustion that had caused him to swoon. 

“I'm Lily, by the way."

James considered her for a moment. Considered at what point between rolling onto his mother’s lilies and meeting a mermaid named Lily he had lost his mind. Considered the lily pad laying limply in his lap. Made a decision. 

"I'm James."

                                                      *

“So, uh…” James kept his eyes on the small blue fish eating out of the mermaid’s hand. He was trying not to stare at her webbed fingers. “You live here? In the lake?”

“No, I actually prefer to perch on tree branches.” She gave James such a deadpan look as she spoke that he was inclined to believe her. At this point, he was inclined to believe just about anything. 

“Yes, of course I live in the lake,” she continued after a moment. She turned back to the fish, which was stretching as far as it could out of the water, vying for her attention. 

“Ah. Right.” James mulled this over for a moment. “But where do you-” he paused, trying to think of the best way to ask the question. “Well, where do you, you know, live?” Well said. “I mean, have you got a bed at the bottom of the lake or something?”

“Yep. I even splurged on a water mattress recently.”

To James’ surprise, a snort of amusement escaped him. Lily smiled as she stroked the fish, which flapped its tiny fins happily. 

“Honestly, I mostly sleep on land. I like looking at the stars.” She gave the fish a final pat, before leaning back onto her arms, her tail stretched out in front of her, and tilting her face towards the sun. “I couldn’t really do that much back home.”

“Back home?” 

“I live in the ocean.”

“What are you doing here?” 

“I got caught in a storm and washed up in a river somewhere, so I swam up here.” She leaned over and lifted a clump of moss off the end of her tail, where a large translucent fin lay. The left portion of the fin was in tatters, and an angry looking rip spanned almost the entirety of it. "I can't swim properly with my tail in that state." 

"So, what, you're just stuck here?" 

"Until it heals and I can try finding my way home. But I honestly don't mind. I grew up surrounded by angelfish and dolphins, so lake trout and tadpoles have been a nice change of pace.“ 

Despite her lighthearted tone, she didn’t look particularly thrilled as she said it. James immediately felt compelled to do something, though what that something was, or why he even felt compelled to do it, were beyond him. Instead, his mouth moved of its own accord. "Oh, so you're usually surrounded by a much more so-fish-ticated crowd, then," he said, placing emphasis on the “fish”. He regretted it immediately.

“Did you just-” She looked at him incredulously, but James was thrilled to hear the laughter in her voice. “That doesn’t even make sense!”

“Yeah, my bad, won’t happen again.”

“Unbelievable,” she said through a giggle. 

Not wanting to push his luck, he stayed quiet, and they sat in silence together. The fish, realizing it wouldn’t be getting anything more from Lily, swam up to James and gave a hopeful wiggle. He stroked it distractedly as the mermaid next to him sighed and readjusted the moss covering her fin. James only hoped she couldn't hear the frantic whirring of cogs as he tried to make sense of the pretty redhead and her tail, quietly soaking up the sun beside him. 

                                                      *

"Stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“Stop looking at my tail."

"It looked at me first."

"It's impolite to stare."

"Social norms don't apply when your cousin is a guppy."

A lily pad thwacked James across the face.

                                                      *

The sun was beating down mercilessly. James sat at the edge of the water with his feet dipped in up to his ankles. He watched as Lily resurfaced, yet another trinket in her hands, and swam closer to add it to the row of eclectic objects she had set out on the sand. She called them her treasures, although they looked more like what a demented three-year-old might drag home from the playground. 

While she fiddled with what looked like a vaguely heart-shaped ball of algae, he examined one of the rocks. She had said it reminded her of the hammerhead shark that would dig up her garden in search of crabs. It was oblong and one of the ends was slightly flat. To James, the resemblances ended there, but Lily had been thrilled at the discovery, so he had smiled and praised how hammerheaded the rock looked. 

He set the rock back down and checked to see what Lily was doing. She was still poking at the green blob. Her hair looked darker now that it was wet, pooling like blood in her collarbones and trickling down her back in rivulets. He looked away as soon as she turned toward him, and stared intently at a chipped snail shell. 

“I know, it’s not very impressive.”

“What? No...” 

She raised her eyebrows in skeptical amusement. “I wish you could see the collection I have at home. I’ve got this gorgeous pocket watch I found with all these flowers carved on the back. It doesn’t tell the time anymore though.”

“Where’d you find it?” asked James. He slid into the water and made his way towards a water lily he had spotted. 

Lily hadn’t seemed to notice, focused on smoothing out the wrinkles of the snake skin she had laid out. “We collect them from shipwrecks,” she explained.

“That’s morbid.” He snapped the flower off the stem and waded back over to Lily and her treasures. 

“Is it? I remember when I was little, my sister and I used to go looking for sunken ships and scare the octopuses living in them.”

“Here, add this to your collection.” Lily turned toward him, and he handed her the water lily he had picked. 

“I can’t add that. It’ll start wilting soon.” She took the flower from him, her fingers brushing his as she delicately held the white petals. He dipped his fingers in the water to quell the tingles. 

“Oh. I just thought it was pretty.”

She studied the flower for a moment, before placing it in her hair and securing the stem behind her ear. He watched as she fussed with it, trying to get it wedged properly. “There. That way we can enjoy it while it lasts.”

“I can get you another when it turns brown,” James offered. 

“No, I like this one,” she said. “I don’t want to replace it. Some things are meant to be temporary anyway.”

                                                      *

"GAAAHHhhbrrggllslg..."

"Pipe down, you'll scare the fish."

James came back to the surface, spluttering and coughing. “This clearly isn’t working,” he wheezed. 

“Really? I thought we were making great progress.” 

“Funny, ‘cause I thought that’s the third time you’ve nearly drowned me.” James rubbed his eyes a final time and opened them. Lily floated next to him, her hair like a pool of blood around her. He pulled a piece of it out of his mouth. 

She rolled her eyes and ran her fingers through her hair, picking out a snail that had gotten tangled in the strands. “You’re being dramatic.”

“Well excuse me for having a sense of self-preservation.”

“You’re acting like I’m trying to kill you!”

“Lily, I don’t have gills! You can’t just push me underwater without warning!”

She looked surprised at his outburst, her green eyes were wide with worry, and James immediately felt bad. 

“Listen, it’s fine. I just got freaked out for a moment,” he backpedaled. 

Lily wasn’t listening. “Maybe we should stop.” 

“No, really, it’s fine! I’ll just make sure to plug my nose next time!” 

But she was already swimming away, and with a flick of her tail, she had disappeared to a place where he couldn’t reach her. 

                                                      *

The bite was oozing. Oozing what, he didn’t know. Didn’t really want to know. He had never thought he would be having to deal with fish bites. Hadn’t realized such small fish even had teeth. Evil little bastards. Always sweet and cuddly when Lily was around. But this was apparently a summer of firsts. 

He poked at the angry looking marks, and hissed. Lily would know how to take care of this. Fix it. He had no idea where she was. She hadn’t yet resurfaced. 

Not knowing what to do, he climbed onto the outcrop where he had seen her for the first time, and stretched out. Warmth enveloped him on all sides, immediately making him drowsy. As he drifted off, he thought about how unbothered he was. Everything was fine. He let himself be pulled under, into the depths of sleep, not worried in the slightest. She would turn up. She always did. 

                                                      *

He’s sinking deeper into dark blue depths. His legs keep up a frantic pace as he kicks, trying to propel himself forward. All he can see is her: her long, slender fingers, her wrists, her collarbones, glowing in the murky water as she hovers, ethereal. All he wants is to go to her, but with a laugh she turns and swims further down, engulfed by the darkness. 

He can just make out her tail undulating as she moves inexorably on, never slowing down. As he follows her, going ever lower, several jellyfish zoom by, their tentacles tangling together to form a billowing cloud of exhaust. Somewhere to the side, a school of clownfish float in a large reef together, studying. A preoccupied looking manatee comes out of a dense wall of seaweed and almost bumps into James, muttering an apology as it hurries away. 

James is undeterred, his focus only on the mermaid in front of him. She turns to face him, curls one finger in a beckoning motion, and her smile is a hook that snags him, reeling him in, pulling him closer to her. Her lips are moving. He can tell she’s saying something, something important, but he can’t understand her. The water is filling his ears, muting everything, and he strains to hear her, to make out something, anything. Panic rises in his throat as her face grows troubled, panic so thick it’s suffocating. He can’t breathe, and she’s floating further into the murky shadows, and he hates the greedy gloom taking her away from him with every fiber of his being. As she grows ever more distant, his panic grows, and he’s never felt so lost, so helpless. He has to reach her, to stop her, and she’s screaming, screaming his name, over and over and-

                                                      *

“James!” He opened his eyes, gasping for air. After several steadying breaths, the darkness began receding. He blinked while the world came back into focus. The panic he had felt so acutely was already fading, dripping through his fingers, leaking out of his ears. It was replaced by the feeling of solid rock under his back, the sun wrapping him in warmth, and Lily’s hands cupping his cheeks. Her face was right over his, her hair forming a curtain around them. 

“Here.” He felt his glasses being placed gingerly over his eyes. “You alright?” 

Lily’s voice was laced with concern, her eyebrows knitted so close together they were almost touching. Her face was so close to his that he could see every individual hair in her eyebrows. He focused on one hair that lay slightly askew, pointing towards a freckle on her eyelid, as he finished catching his breath. 

“Yeah. I’m fine. Just had a weird dream.”

“Oh. Sure. I have those all the time.”

“Really?”

“Oh, definitely. The other day, I dreamed that I had climbed up a tree, and I couldn’t get down. And you were in the water, and I kept calling you, and asking you to help. But you insisted that you couldn’t, because you had to practice your underwater somersaults. And I was so angry that I started picking crabs off the tree and pelting them at you. But you kept catching them in your mouth and eating them. And you were laughing the whole time. And then you said, ‘Look, Tulip!’ and did a backwards somersault with so much force that you created a huge wave that knocked me off the tree. And then I woke up.”

“Sorry about that.” James was trying very hard to keep a straight face. 

“I can’t believe you called me ‘Tulip’,” Lily said with a frown.  

She looked so genuinely offended that James immediately felt compelled to comfort her. “Like I would ever forget your name!” 

“What was your dream?” she said quickly. 

“Oh, I was just drowning.”

“Well that’s not bad. Why do you get to have normal dreams?”

“Probably because I know how to do backward somersaults.”

                                                      *

James stared at the water intently, looking for any disturbances in the smooth surface. In his hand, he held a freshwater mussel the size of a large baseball. Lily had dug it up from the bed of the lake for the game she had devised. She had informed him that the mussels' name was Petunia, mentioning something about the mussel reminding her of someone. 

He tightened his hold on Petunia, causing her to give an indignant shake in response. James had discovered that a firm grip was necessary when handling the mussel. She had a tendency to clamp down on his fingers when he wasn’t paying enough attention, and getting her to let go required threats of feeding her to the snapping turtle that lived nearby. 

A sudden ripple drew James’ attention to a spot on his left. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the flash of a tail flicking above the water. As he scanned the green surface, he spotted a smudge of red. Raising Petunia above his head, his eyes following the billowing of crimson under the water, he took a steadying breath, and aimed. He exhaled. Petunia went flying. 

“Fucking ow!” 

The cry told him he had hit his mark. The proud victor had only a moment to celebrate his success before a wave of water was flung in his direction, drenching him entirely. 

“Bit of a sore loser, aren’t you?” James smiled as the top of Lily’s head surfaced. Her eyes narrowed and the green flashed somewhat dangerously, but he took no heed. He was on a roll. “Seems I’ve o-fish-ially won!” 

His laugh was followed closely by a scream as Lily pulled him into the water, and he felt his nose being pinched shut as he went under, smothered by a wave of red tendrils. 

                                                      *

"You know I can't stay here." 

"Can't you? What's so great about the ocean, anyway? So it’s got dolphins. Did you know dolphins are actually vicious? I read that they kill porpoises just for fun."

“James-”

“And they’ve been known to attack people.”

“Are you honestly trying to slander dolphins?”

“I’m just saying, it’s a cruel world out there. But it’s safe here. I can guarantee you’ll never be attacked by a toad.”

“The other day, I woke up with a tadpole up my nose."

“Small price to pay.”

“Small price to pay for not being viciously attacked by a dolphin? Do you hear yourself?”

“I just don’t get why you have to leave right now. How could it possibly be safe? Your tail isn’t even fully healed yet!”

“It will be soon.”

Quiet settled over the little lake again. She broke the silence first. 

"Mermaids can live for up to 300 years."

"My dad is turning sixty next month."

“I want to go home, James. You can go home any time you want. You can be sure that you’ll be able to celebrate your dad's birthday with him. What about me? All I've got here are the tadpoles.”

"You've got me."

"What?"

"You've got me, haven't you? Or do I not count?"

"Of course you count, you idiot. You count so much, you have no idea." 

James' heart must have swollen so big it cut off the oxygen going to his brain because all he could come up with was, "I'm actually terrible at maths." 

She sighed. “I will miss you. But I can’t stay here forever, hoping you’ll visit me occasionally.”

“That’s not-”

“It is.”

                                                      *

The heat had somehow worsened. The pair floated in the cool lake water together, incapable of anything requiring any more energy. He could sense her presence, sensed it constantly, incessantly, tugging on his consciousness whenever he was around her. 

They floated in silence, the only sound coming from two particularly loud swallows. The birds were having it out over a spider they each felt entitled to. The angry chirping hadn’t ceased for at least the last ten minutes. 

James felt a ripple and saw Lily shift over and look up at the birds. She rolled her eyes and smiled at him. He felt the sudden urge to bottle up her smile and keep it stashed away, to take out and enjoy on special occasions. Instead, he dunked his head in the water and pretended with all his might that his heart wasn’t being constricted so tight it would shrink to the size of a marble and roll out of his mouth when he was sleeping. 

                                                      *

And then she was gone. Just like that, the lake was empty. James sat on the outcrop, and watched as a wilting water lily floated by serenely. A small blue fish poked its head out of the water. The fish looked around and then stared at James for a few moments, as though wanting to ask something, before diving back under with a small splash.

Here’s a painting that I think looks just like Lily

[alice-angel12x]

Azul X mermaid reader

A long time ago under the sea, the mermaid was wandering the great shipwreck zones. The sunken ship was littered all over the ground, all with some sort of hidden treasure. A young h/c haired mermaid about the age of 6, she had many frilly fins and a jellyfish cap that floated over her head. 

She wondered the grounds as she picked any interesting looking items and plants. As she wondered the dark are of the ocean she felt something stalking her. She turned to see a large scared up shark eyeing her down as it swam circles around the mermaid. 

Y/n's body tensed as she readied herself, and quickly dashed away. The shark quickly gave chase to its prey. Y/n swam with all her might as she made her way back to the kingdom. As she ran she saw a small opening in the side of a rock, just big enough for her to fit into. 

Without hesitation, she dove into the hole. She got inside up instead of hitting a solid was, she felt something squishy.

"OUCH!" Groaned a voice. "Who ARE YO-"

"SHHH!" Y/n said as she covers the person's mouth.

They sat in the dark for a while till they noticed a dark shadow covered the hole, as an eye started in the hole. Suddenly Y/n felt a pair of arms wrap around her as someone started to tremble. It felt like an eternity, but eventually, the preditor left. The two sat in the darkness for a good while till Y/n finally decided to poke her head out of the hole to check to see if it was safe. The coast was clear as Y/n wiggled her way out of the hole.

"Sorry for startling you like I did," Y/n apologized.

"It's...Fine," Said a shy voice.

"I'm y/n by the way. Thank you for letting me hide with you," Y/n smiled.

"Kay. I'm Azul," The voice said shyly.

"Are you gonna come out?" Y/n asked.

"N-no!" The voice stuttered.

"Eh, why not?" Y/n asked again.

"Cause you make fun of me," The voice said, almost in a sob.

"Why would I do that?" Y/n asked as she tilted her head.

"Cause everyone else does," The voice said with a small shout.

"Well... I'm not everyone else, no one likes me either. We can be outcasts together," Y/n said with a smile.

the voice sighed as an 8 legged figure crawled out of the hole, It was an Octopus boy. He looked sad as he came into the light and seemed to wait for some awful reaction. Y/n stared with an unreadable expression, when suddenly.

"AWWWW! You're SO CUTE!♥" Y/N gasped as she hugged the cubby Octopus boy.

(Azul.exe has stopped working)

Azul chubby cheeks were lobster red as he felt this girl drown him in affection. He's never experienced this much affection before, or ever. He just didn't know how to react.

"P-please let go?" Azul stuttered as his heart fluttered in his chest.

"Oh, sorry. Your just the cutest thing," Y/n gushed, with heart sin her eyes.

"Y-you think I'm cute?"Azul asked surprised.

"Yep, so cute and squishy," She sighed as she pinched his cheeks.

But he didn't care for the first time someone was smiling at him. Not a smile of malice, a real pure smile. Know that she was close he could see strange patterns on her cheeks and the Jellyfish cap over her head really would make her stand out. His eyes slowly trailed down to her F/c tail. She had long frilly fins, that must make it difficult to swim fast.

"So what are you doing al the way out here, you also out here to escape the meanies," Y/n asked as she finally let go of Azul's face.

"For the most part, I just hang out here to study and to perfect my magic! I'll show them just how impressive I can be!" Azul shouted determinedly.

"wow, you must be pretty smart and awesome with magic then. I wish I could say the same for myself," Y/n sighed.

"With magic or the studies?" Azul asked as he slowly slides back into his hiding hole.

"Magic, I have a hard time controlling my magic. I can't cast magic like everyone else. Just today my teacher said to never return after I made her age 40 years. It was just an accident, my magic just went wild," Y/n frowned as she laid down on the squishy sand.

Azul simply stared at Y/n, not knowing what to say to her. His heart went out to her. With a shaky breath, Azul poked his head out of his hiding hole.

"I-If you want help I-I can help," Azul offered as he quickly pulled his head back into the hole.

"You will, Thank you!" Y/n smiled.

Azul's cheeks turned a light red as he watched her swim off into the distance. She won't come, he thought to himself. But to his surprise, she did return the next day, just like the day after that, and after that.

----------

(Middle school years)

 Azul for the first time had a friend. She too was outcasted, to the other merpeople, she was just odd. She looked more like a jellyfish more than a mer, she was no good with magic and had the strangest markings on her face. So she would spend most of her time with Azul, watching him perfect his magic, and gathering Info on those who wronged him.

"I did it!" Azul said with pride.

"You finished it?" Y/n smiled as Azul showed off his golden scroll.

"Beautiful isn't it, If someone signs this than I can have anything I want from them," Azul smirked.

"Let's test it out!" Y/n said with excitement.

"Wait, what?!" Azul asked nervesly.

"I know the best practice subject," Y/n smiled as she grabbed Azul's hand.

-----------

"This is amazing, with this I could rule the world," Azul laughed.

"So I bet you going to start with Night Raven Academy," Y/n said.

The two were hanging out in Y/n's treasure cave, or junk cavern if you ask Azul.  Y/n was placing all her found treasures on the shelves when she felt a firm hand on her shoulder.

"What happened?" Azul demanded as he inspected Y/n's back wounds.

"Oh some girls pushed me into a sea urchin, It's fine Azul. I'm used to it," Y/n smiled sadly as she continued to sort her treasure.

"This is not fine, tell me who they are. I can make them pay," Azul growled.

"What, Someone is hurting our jellyfish," Said a familiar voice.

"So who is it we need to hunt down?" asked jade as he and his brother slithered into the cavern.

"Don't know. I don't know their names," Y/n said simply as she slowly sank to the sand ground.

"Y/n just describe them to me, I can use my magic on them," Azul said as he held her scarred arms.

"It's the... three girls... The new leading singers in the school music club," Y/n sighed as she looked away from Azul.

"Why would the get physical with you?" Jade asked.

"I wanted to be apart of the singing group, they didn't want me competing so they... Did what they did," Y/n said as she slowly started to tear up.

"I never heard you sing before, When did this interest come about?" Jade asked with a smile.

"I always like to sing, but I had to be careful because that is the only I can activate my magic. But thanks to Azul, I have better control and now I can sing more freely," Y/n smiled as she tried to wipe away her tears.

"Oh. Why don't you sing for us, Jellyfish?" Floyd asked as Y/n's cheeks turned a light red.

With a sigh, Y/n cleared her throat and sang.

Azul could feel his heart flutter in his chest as he listened to Y/n's simple song. His fists tightened as he felt his anger towards those awful started to grow. When he rules the world, he'll rule with Y/n and the twins by his side, Azul promised himself.

--------

(5 years later)

I've noticed that Y/n has been spending more and more at the surface, which I find more and more concerning. What if she gets caught by humans or worse. She may be slightly faster than me, but that's still not enough to getaway. She should just day down here where it's safer.

"Y/n is late again," Jade sighed.

"I'm here! I'm Here!" Called out a voice.

In the distance Y/n quickly as she could, swam over to us.

"Your late again. You know I could not help you with the finals," I sighed in annoyance as Iset down the study material.

"And that's why your the best Senpai," Y/n smiled as she wraps her arms around my neck in a hug.

I can feel my cheeks heat up as I looked away bashfully.

"Okay, that's enough," I said as I tried to compose myself.

"What got you distracted this time, Jellyfish?" Floyd asked.

"I saw another strange-looking ship today, and it was playing the most beautiful music," Y/n sighed as she started to hum the melody.

Why does she go the surface so much, It's so dangerous up there. I could feel my heart squeeze and twist.

"Anyways we need to get studying," I said trying to get her mind out of the clouds.

"Okay," all three of them said.

They lasted only one hour until they demanded to take a 30-minute break. I simply sat on the side as I watched them play catch with a small clam they found. They simply tossed it to each other Floyd flung it to high it nearly went to the surface, but Y/n managed to catch it. 

"I caught it," Y/n said proudly.

They slowly started to play higher and higher to the surface. I think it was about rime fir them to stop. I tried to call out to them, but they were too far away. So with a sigh, I had to swim up to them and tell them to get back to studying, but suddenly a school of Fish started dash past us. It became too hard to see what was happening, but I managed to get out of the school with Jade and Floyd. 

-------

"What was's Y/n-!" 

"AAHH!" a scream cut Azul off.

They looked above to see Y/n was caught up in the net that was about to be pulled up out of the water. 

"Y/n!" Azul cried out as he swam up.

The gapes between the ropes were too small for even Y/n's small hands to fit through.  Y/n tugged and pulled at the ropes, trying with all of her strength to maybe rip them. She didn't care that the ropes were cutting her hands. The ropes wouldn't break, and she slowly began to give up, when suddenly three pairs of hands grabbed at the ropes.

"Y/n! Just hold on!" Azul said as he tried his luck at the ropes.

The net started to breach the surface and the friends started to panic as they pulled at the rope with even more vigor. Floyd managed to bit through one, but that only made enough space to fit her arm through. Azul quickly held her wrist tightly as the continued to pull at the tough rope. Y/n looked up to see that 90% of the net was already above the water, Hope quickly left her eyes as she gave one last sad smile at her friends.

"I guess this is it," Y/n laughed sadly as she surrendered to her fate.

"Y/n Don't say things like that?!" Azul cried out.

"Jade, Floyd, don't get into too much trouble okay. And Azul, thank you for being my friend," Y/n smiled.

"Y/N!" The called out.

Y/n released Azul's arm as she slipped from his grasp as she was pulled above the surface. Befor they could follow a palace guard quickly grabbed the young teens and pulled them back to the safety of Atlantice.

"hey Azul, are you kay?" Jade asked.

"Gone... She's...Y/n is gone," Azul repeated over and over

And just like that she was gone, the twins looked down at the octo-mer, who was just sitting and staring at his hands with misty eyes. Atlatics was in lock down till the boats left, and by then The humans that took Y/n were long gone.

--------------

(3 years later)

What is this? Why is it so dark? What happened to my clothes? I'm wearing robes. W-why Is it so Hot in here!? Suddenly blue light filled my vision as a plain looking boy came into my line of sight as he offered me a hand. I quickly grabbed his hand, and he pulled me up to see I was in a room full of mirrors, coffins, and blue fire.

"Let's get out of here," He said as he dragged me out of the room.

Where am I and How did I get here.

"Umm, Who are you?" I asked the boy.

"My name is Yuu, what about you?" Yuu asked.

"I-I am Y/n," I said with a nerves smile.

___

Part 2??

[98prilla]

Caught

A Tiny Mer Patton and human scientist Logan one shot, cause why not? quarantine is really leading to an uptick in my writing.

He ached. It hurt all over, he hurt all over. He gasped for every breath, his gills flaring with each one, and his eyes burned with tears. 

 The wire mesh netting bit into his skin, into his scales, tangled around him so tightly there was no chance of wriggling out.  

 The cold, salty air stung against the slowly bleeding cuts where the metal bit into his flesh, but that wasn’t the worst of it. 

 The worst was the agony pulsing through his tail as the wind and the air slowly dried it out. Every scale was aflame with white hot pain sending spots dancing across his vision. 

 Ocean, he had to, had to, get back to the water. He tried to move, to blindly propel himself closer to the tide line with his tail, but the effort left him dizzy and nearly unconscious. 

 He realized he could hear the alarm call common among his kind, the high, unwavering note no human could manage, warning of danger. Calling for help. 

 He was too far gone to realize he was the one calling. He didn’t hear the footsteps approaching. He barely felt himself being picked up, flailing weakly at the hands on him. But he didn’t have the strength left to struggle.  

 Then he felt the cool, endless, relief of water, water on his tail, water surrounding him. He let out a soft sob of relief as the burning ache began to fade, the last string tying him to consciousness snapping. 

   He shoots awake. Pain is ripping through his tail, and he gasps, trying to find the air to sing, but another stab of pain through his arm leaves him whimpering instead. He manages to open his eyes and regrets it immediately. 

 Towering over him is a human. Its hands are pressing him down, and he flinches as he sees the shine of a knife. He manages a low trill of distress, of please don’t hurt me, but he doesn’t have the strength to make it a command, and his singing has never been strong enough to entrap a human, anyways. The human's eyes seem to gleam in the light and before the knife comes down, he faints. 

  He wakes slowly. Water. He’s in saltwater. He is floating in kelp, tangled around it in his usual sleeping position. He looks down, happiness blooming in his chest. The wire netting is gone, he can move freely. The pattern of it is still traced into his skin in red lines, across his tail, but they barely ache, now. 

 And his scales… his vibrant, sky blue, silvery scales, are wet and bright and not dried out. He lets out a little giggle of amazement, swishing his tail in the water. Without a second thought, he shoots through the water like a rocket. 

 And crashes painfully against some invisible barrier. His heart sinks and the amazement of moments before turns bitter and sour in his mouth. 

 No no no no no.   

 He flips around, zooming through the water, letting out a hiss of pain as he slams into another barrier. He rockets through the water, pinging off of glass at every turn, until his shoulders are bruised purple from his efforts. 

 With a sob, he sinks down to the bottom of this prison. His tail is curled under him, and his arms are wrapped around himself as he doubles over from the sorrow. 

 He’ll never see the ocean again. He'll never swim freely again. Never play with the baby turtles, snuggle with the otters, see the endless, impossible blue of the sky meeting the sea again. 

 He knows this. Humans are greedy, curious creatures. He is something new, something rare, and they will never let him go. He will waste away in this cage. He will die here and Virgil- 

 He breaks, letting out a choking, keening elegy because he will never see Virgil again, never feel the much larger mer's gentle hands cradling him to sleep, never hear his sarcastic wit or soft concern and Virgil will never know where he has gone. Will think him dead. He has lost everything. Because of his own carelessness, he has lost everything.

 He startles as he hears something. Looking up, be realizes he can see through the barriers, into a room. 

 There’s a bed, a desk, a large bookshelf. Papers are scattered across the desk. He shudders as he sees a few detailed drawings of himself. He will be studied, then, a specimen, an experiment. 

 Then there are large green eyes staring at him. Quickly, he darts away, finding a hiding place among the rocks, out of sight. His heart is pounding and his hands are shaking and he is afraid, afraid, afraid. 

 “Logan Croft, observation record, day 2. The" a sigh “merperson has awoken. It hid as soon as I entered. It appears to have recovered from the injuries, and based on the speed of movement and fluidity, its tail has suffered no permanent damage. I have replicated what I have deduced to be its natural environment, based on its visible traits. It appeared afraid, not unexpected. I will attempt to feed it later and will continue to record any behavioral observations.” He hears a sigh. Peeking out from behind the rocks, he sees the human, Logan, leaning back in his desk chair, staring up at the ceiling. 

 He hides again before the human can look his way. He is going to stay as hidden as possible. Maybe if he isn’t interesting, the human will give up on studying him and let him go. It’s so little, too little, but it’s something to cling to.

 “Observation day 3, little change in the creature’s attitude. It is still hiding, and appears to sleep wrapped in kelp, so it doesn’t float away.”

 He remembers the first time Virgil swam into his kelp forest. The larger mer had woken him from a dead sleep, it had scared him silly, with his size and sharp teeth. But Virgil had been just as shocked as he was, had backed off immediately, cooing at him soothingly in an apology. Neither could remember the last time they’d seen another mer, and after they’d both calmed down, spent the day talking.

 Later, Virgil told him he ate fish that he caught, would never have even thought of attacking another mer. They’d laughed as Virgil told him just how startled he was, almost more scared of him than he’d been of Virgil, so afraid of breaking something so small and delicate. Virgil was always exceedingly gentle, took him swimming with dolphins, or whales, when they were in the area, dove deeper than he could ever manage on his own, showed him so many new and wonderful things. He wonders what Virgil is doing now.

 “Observation day 4, despite my attempts at discovering the creature’s food preferences, it has not consumed any of the sustenance I have provided for it.”

 He is hungry, but he will not eat. He doesn’t want to give the human any new information, anything to use against him, or other mers. He won’t give away anything he can’t help, he won’t expose Virgil to this, he has already suffered enough.

 He remembers the day Virgil told him where the long scar across his side came from, Virgil had been young, but he remembered that. Whalers, he’d said. He’d been with his family, but had heard the ship coming. They were aiming at a mother and her calf. He tried to save them, get them away, and he did, but the harpoon struck him instead. He must have drifted after that, because he didn’t remember much of the next week or so, by the time he had gained awareness back he was in unfamiliar waters, with no idea which way was home. He hadn’t seen any of his family since. Hadn’t seen any other mers since, either. No wonder Virgil had been so shocked to come across him in the kelp, he must have seemed to be an illusion at first. He wonders how long until Virgil forgets him, too.

 “Observation day five, the specimen has been uncharacteristically visible today. It is floating listlessly, seemingly uncaring if I observe. It is usually quite skittish, but now even tapping on the glass elicits no reaction.

 He doesn’t care anymore. What’s the point, of hiding? The human can look all he wants, he won’t be learning anything. Usually, he eats nearly his weight in seaweed and kelp a day, but he hasn’t eaten since before he was put in here. The hunger pangs seem long removed, and everything feels fuzzy. It’s pleasant, it’s like forgetting. If he closes his eyes, he forgets, can pretend he is back in open waters, can almost hear Virgil crooning softly to him. Soon he will close his eyes and not open them.

 “Observation day six, the specimen continues not to eat. It’s scales seem to be losing their luster, changing slowly from a bright blue to a dark dimming gray. Possibly these creatures are unable to survive in captivity, similar to how many species of whale are for unknown reasons unable to be raised by humans.”

  “Hey little minnow. What’s splashing?” He giggles as Virgil appears, swimming on his back under him, so they are facing each other. Virgil is bigger than him, though almost everything is bigger than him, really. Virgil is probably ten feet long, tail included, though his purple tail flares out into strong, sensitive fins that are almost electric in hue. He himself is barely a foot long, roughly the size of Virgil’s hands placed end to end.

“Not much, big fish. How’re you swimming?” He replies, relishing the soft grin on Virgil’s face, his sharp teeth showing for a moment before his expression darkens.

 “They’re humans in the area again, Pat.” He slows his swimming, tail flicking under him as Virgil pulls up as well.

 “You worry too much, Vee.” Virgil shakes his head.

 “I’m telling you, Pat, you’ve gotta be careful. I don’t know what I’d do if you were caught.” He smiles softly, swimming over and patting his cheek.

 “I’ll keep an eye out, I promise. I’m small, anyway, you’re the one they’re more likely to spot.” Virgil smirks, almost instantly, his colors change, hues racing across his body, until he is almost invisible against the water, blending in seamlessly.

He is used to the camouflage, but even he can’t tell exactly where Virgil’s limbs are. He yelps, laughing, as he feels Virgil’s hands cupping around him, placing him on the mer’s shoulder.

 “Yeah, I don’t think it’s me you gotta worry about. You’re the curious one, minnow. That’s what I’m worried about. You go too close to their ships.” Virgil flickers into visibility again. Patton climbs into his hair, wrapping it around his tail and arms, like he would the seaweed to keep himself in place while he sleeps. He feels Virgil’s chuckle as he snuggles down deeper, enjoying the softness of his hair.

 “You comfy yet, Pat?” He chirps out a small coo of contentment, letting his noise convey exactly how comfortable he is, as Virgil starts swimming.

 “Alright, but be careful, yeah?” Virgil mumbles. Patton agrees sleepily, drifting off.

  Net. Something around him, it’s the net, it is biting into his skin, it is dragging him down, he is being tossed and turned with the tides, then air is hitting his tail and it hurts, it burns, he screams! He hears something, a muttered curse, and feels himself falling. He hits something hard, and for a moment the breath is knocked out of him, as he gasps for air.

 Hands. He feels hands around him. Not Virgil’s, they’re too dry, too rough, he wriggles, trying to get out, but they are holding him tight, too tight, he is struggling to breath. He thrashes, knowing it’s no use, knowing the human will do whatever it wants without any regard for his own feelings, knows it’s too late for him, and tears are falling down his face as his tail is scorched ice cold burning dry and he can’t, he can’t help it anymore, can’t stop it anymore, it is welling up inside him.

 “STOP! Please… please please pleasepleasepleaseplease…” And he is sobbing, because he knows it is no use, knows that now that he’s revealed this he will never be let go, and it breaks his heart all over again. “please. Please just do it, whatever you’re going to do, just… just do it and get it over with and let me DIE ALREADY!” He screams, beating his fists against the human’s too large hands, his breath gasping and short, his heart beating out of his chest as panic folds over him.

 Then his tail touches water and he sobs from relief again, before realizing that there is nowhere to go. He’s been put in a coffee mug, filled with water. There is enough room for him to curl his tail under him, his forehead is touching it, he is doubled over with sobs, from sorrow, from pain, from relief, from fear, because now he is exposed and there is nowhere to go, and he knows the human is watching him and he crumples under the weight of that gaze.

 “You… talk. You’re intelligent. You’re an intelligent species.” He hears the human whisper, hears the human thump into his chair, and he shivers, the vibration sending his heart racing. “fuck.”

 “L-language.” He stutters out, somewhat hysterically, his voice wavering, on the edge of keening again, because he just scolded a human, he is dead, he is dead beyond belief and he knows it. He hears the human’s sharp inhale, and flinches back so hard the cup wobbles. His stomach lurches as the human’s hand shoots out to steady it.

 He gathers his courage, and dares to look up. Logan is looking at him. Awe and shock and surprise and a vague horror is tracing itself across the human’s face.

 “M-my apologies. I… I appear to have made a gross error in judgement.” Logan nearly whispers, eyes distant and face pale. He is confused. He didn’t expect a human to apologize.

 “It’s… it’s ok?” He replies, not knowing how to respond, what else to say. The human shakes his head, eyes focusing back on him, those piercing greens seeing right through him.

 “It is not. I am a researcher. An ethical biologist. I study ecosystems and their wildlife. Keeping an intelligent, aware creature, such as yourself, captive, goes against all of my morals. I knew you were distressed, I just didn’t connect why. I… I should have realized…” Logan looks dazed, almost heartbroken, his gaze soft and concerned and nothing but apologetic as he looks down at him.

 His fins flip nervously and he averts his gaze. This isn’t what he expected. He doesn’t know what to do. He is talking to the human and the human is upset, because the human was hurting him without knowing.

 “Why… why didn’t you say something sooner?” He winces, even though the question is not interrogatory.

 “I-I kn-knew then you would n-never let me go. I th-thought if I st-stayed quiet and b-b-boring you might let me g-g-go home!” He is crying again, the homesickness overwhelming him. The longing, the pure, broken longing for the open sea nearly making him sick.

 “Oh. Oh dear. I… We are at a clear misunderstanding, and that is entirely my fault. I found you beached, tangled in netting. You needed medical treatment, so I brought

you back here to help, and make sure your healing progressed fully. I always intended to release you back into the wild. But then your condition began to deteriorate as you refused to eat and your scales started to gray and I was worried you had some kind of latent infection or perhaps parasites. I removed you from the tank simply to try and get a better look at your condition. Had I known you could speak and comprehend my language, I would have verbally explained all of this to you earlier, and asked your consent at every step of treatment. I… the amount of emotional distress you’ve been under, oh gods… I’ve traumatized a merman.” The human trails off with a groan, a half hysterical laugh building in the human’s throat as it buries his head in his hands. It takes him a moment, as he processes the human’s words.

           “You… you’re going to let me go?” His voice is broken, he is so afraid of this hope fluttering in his chest, terrified of it being crushed once again, knowing he won’t survive if it is.

           “Yes, gods, yes, especially now that I know you are a sentient species with just as much intelligence as humans! It would be… it would be vile to keep you held hostage, especially given the amount of pain and anxiety it obviously causes you. I would be a monster to keep you here, against your will, I have been!” He flinches at the human’s loud voice, his distress, and Logan sighs softly, lowering his head so it is resting on the edge of the desk, so they are almost at eye level.

 “I am sorry. I am so, deeply, terribly sorry, for all of this. I never… I never meant to cause you harm, physical or mental, and I know that I have. I will release you right away. It is… ten pm, perfect. The stretch of beach you were on is too rocky and dangerous for anyone to be gathered on, we can be there in ten minutes or so, I just need my jacket, and it’s high tide, so you shouldn’t have a problem swimming in, of course, and I understand you probably don’t want to look at my face ever again, of course, so I will move my studies elsewhere if that is an area you frequent-“

 “Logan!” He calls, surprising himself by using the human’s name. But it stops Logan’s rambling in its tracks, and he finds himself smiling softly, because really, Logan had only meant to help. And he was letting him go, bringing him home, despite how big a deal it would probably be for a human to have discovered merpeople. “Logan. I… it’s ok. I don’t… I don’t hate you. I’m… I’m glad it was you, that found me. Not… not very many humans would let me go, no matter how upset or sick I got from it. So… thank you. F-for being one of the few good ones.” His voice was soft, and for a moment he wondered if Logan had even been able to hear him, but when he looked up, Logan’s cheeks were an adorable shade of pink, and his green eyes were glossed over with tears. He stood slowly, and took a deep breath, clearing his throat.

 “It… is appreciated. I wish I could say otherwise on your conclusions about humans, but I fear I share your views. I wish more shared my own. And if… if you ever do want to share more about yourself, or your kind, on your own terms, I am never too far from the beach.” Logan’s voice is shaky, but he can hear the relief in it, the slight smile peeking through, and his fins twitch in response. “Now, let’s get you home.”

 They settle on a bucket of water. With his permission, Logan puts the top on the bucket, though there are large airholes in it that allow him to see light and shadows. It is a bit unnerving, but Logan carefully narrates every movement he is going to make, careful not to slosh the water as he walks from the house to the car. He settles the bucket on the passenger seat, buckling it in.

 “I am assuming you have never been in a car before. It will probably seem extremely loud to you, despite me making all the noise cancelling adaptions I can. The water may vibrate and slosh occasionally, but all the noises are natural and we are not in any danger. This is the easiest and fastest way to get to the water, but if this is too much tell me, and I will use my secondary plan.”

 “What’s your secondary plan?”

 “… I haven’t quite gotten there, yet.” He lets out a giggle at that, leaning back in the water and bracing himself against the smooth sides of the bucket.

 “I’ll be ok. I… I trust you, Logan.” The human is oddly silent for a long moment, before he clears his throat.

 “Starting the engine.” He jumps at the rumble that echoes through the water, but acclimates quickly. It isn’t too bad, truly, a bit like the noise of a distant motor under the water. “Starting to move.” That is a bit more jarring, and his stomach flips at the sensation of movement without moving. He closes his eyes and breathes in through his gills, out through his nose, imagining it as the sway of Virgil’s hands as he swims, carefully holding him.

 Before long, the car stops and he hears the engine die down. He blinks as the lid is removed from the bucket. He swims up, clinging to the top of the bucket, poking his head up like a curious puppy. His eyes are wide as he takes in all the knobs and dials and lights. He wonders how anyone can keep track of what everything does.

 “Ready?” Logan asks, and he nods so fast he slips and splashes back down into the bucket. Logan’s head appears above him, concern slipping to mirth as he sees that he is indeed fine.

 “Alright. I’m going to come around to your side and open the door. We’re on the edge of the rocky beach, so I only have to carry you a little ways.”

 The door closes, his door opens, the bucket is carefully picked up and held securely against Logan’s chest, and his gills flare open, wide, blue fins on either side of his neck, that are bioluminescent in the darkness. They only pop open like this when he is excited or extremely happy, and right now he is both beyond measure.

 He is giddy, overwhelmingly giddy, as he smells the harsh, salty air, the smell of brine and moss and rock and algae and sand and fish, the cold breeze stinging against his face, the stars shining down, the moon reflecting on the open water. Just staring at the water is making his heart pound, his eyes water, because he never, never thought he would be here again.

 He lets out a high, warbling, singing, note. He sends it flying into the night air, sends it sailing through the winds and currents and rocks, pure, unadulterated joy, rushing through him like nothing he has ever felt before, can ever hope to name, because the ocean, the ocean is right there and getting closer, and his pulse is pounding with the rhythm of the waves rolling in and out, and the closer he gets, the louder the ocean, the more it takes over his whole being, light exploding in his chest.

 Then he hears an answering note, low and soft and hesitant, but it grows louder and then the sea is right there, and he launches himself out of the bucket to Logan’s surprised and concerned yelp, but it doesn’t matter, because Virgil is there, and Virgil catches him, and is cradling him so gently, so softly, holding him to his chest as if he’ll never let go.

 He has his arms spread as wide as possible, hugging as much of Virgil as he can, endless, relieved, happy sobs wracking his frame. He barely registers Virgil’s soothing rumbles that vibrate the larger mer’s chest, resonating through his frame.

 He is exhausted, he is starving, but he is so, so, so happy.

 Until he hears the shift in Virgil’s tone. His rumbles turn to growls, turn to a low, menacing voice, as he stares down Logan, electric violet eyes glowing in the night.

 “You took him.” Virgil growls, holding onto him tighter.  

 “I-“ Logan tries to explain, but Virgil bares his teeth, letting out a low hiss. He can feel the power gathering in Virgil’s throat, the magic that is about to erupt. Then the night is filled with haunting, echoing music. Impossible chords, impossible tenderness, impossible longing.

 He turns, breathe catching as he sees Logan, eyes glazed over, stepping off the rocky ledge into the ocean. The water here is already up to Logan’s neck, and as he watches, Logan walks farther into the waves, off the sandbank, head disappearing under the water.

 “Virgil! Stop!” He wiggles free of Virgil’s hold, desperately diving under the waves. He spots Logan immediately. He isn’t too far under, and he darts over to him as Virgil’s song abruptly cuts off.

 Immediately, Logan gasps in a breath, choking and coughing as he flails, inhaling water, panicking. He pulls at Logan’s coat collar, trying to show him the way to the surface, tail straining to tug him upwards, but he’s too small, he can’t, and Logan is drowning-

 Then a flash of purple, and Virgil’s hands are grasping Logan’s arms, dragging him to the surface and pulling him onto the beach. Virgil sits on the rocky shore, tail dangling in the water as he turns Logan on his side.

 He leaps onto the beach, ignoring Virgil’s protest as he curls against Logan’s cheek, relieved as the human starts coughing, spitting up saltwater. He murmurs to Logan, his tiny hands shaking as they gently pat his head, cooing and chirping at him softly, gently tugging at his hair.

 “Logan?” He asks, as the human’s eyes blink open. He groans, coughing as he pushes himself up onto his knees, now covered in sand and sopping wet.

 “What… what was that?” He croaks out. He snuggles against Logan, using Logan’s own dampness to keep his tail wet.

 “That was someone getting a little overzealous and being highly impolite!” He answers, crossing his arms and turning a stern glare on Virgil, who is gaping at him, looking between him and Logan with confusion.

 “Pat, he took you. I thought you were gone!” Virgil’s voice breaks, and he feels himself soften.

 “I know. But he only meant to help. It was my fault, Vee. I got tangled up in net. He helped.”

 “i thought you were dead.” Virgil’s voice is a whisper and it breaks his heart.

 “I’m not. I’m just fine, big fish. I’m here, and home and fine, thanks to Logan.” Virgil nods, lets out a shaky breath, extending his hand. He pulls away from Logan and allows Virgil to scoop him up, lifting him so they’re eye to eye.

 He smiles tenderly, placing a hand against Virgil’s nose, leaning his head against it and feeling the mer inhale and exhale.

 “don’t scare me like that, little minnow. I can’t… I can’t lose you, too.” After a long moment, Virgil lowers him back to the ground, setting him down so the tide is just lapping at the tip of his tail.

 “sorry… Logan. I… thank you. For bringing him home.” Virgil doesn’t meet Logan’s eyes, and with a flick of his tail, he is gone, out of sight, but not far. Logan straightens up and runs his hands through his hair.

 “Sorry about that. I should have known Vee would be a little testy. I… he’s lost a lot, already, because of humans. He’s always been pretty protective of me.” Logan shakes his head.

 “It is understandable. I… probably would have reacted less than favorably as well, had I been in his position. I’m glad you have someone who is willing to defend you like that. It… truthfully, you being out there alone made me a bit nervous.” Logan clears his throat, shaking his head. “I… should get going, then, I suppose.” Logan gives a small wave, turning, starting to walk away.

 “Logan! Do you wanna… meet here, again? In a few days maybe? I’m… I’m kinda curious about human life, and I can tell you some mer stuff too. As long as you keep it to yourself.” Logan smiles, turning his head to look back at the tiny mer.

 “That sounds wonderful. I would love to, as long as your friend doesn’t mind.”

 “He won’t.” Logan turns, but the mer’s voice rings out once more. “I’m Patton, by the way. I… I never really introduced myself.” Logan’s lips twitch into a smile.

 “You never had reason to. You were terrified out of your mind. Still, it was a pleasure to meet you, Patton. I… look forward to seeing you under more favorable circumstances.” Patton laughs, a sound a bit like distant bells, and as the next wave recedes from the shore, he is gone.

 He immediately flies into Virgil’s hands, letting the larger mer check him over worriedly for injuries, assuring him the scars wrapped around him from the net don’t hurt, have already faded, eventually just curling up against him, holding him tight, feeling his chest loosen with every rock of waves, every swish of tail, every breath of water.

 “you’re tired. You wanna sleep in my hair?” He nods, immediately burrowing into the silky substance, twining it around himself until he is surrounded by the safety, the warmth, of Virgil. He doesn’t think he will ever emerge. He has never felt so grateful, so safe, so happy, in all of his life.

 “Love you, big fish.” He murmurs, feeling Virgil rumbling lowly again, helping him ease into sleep.

 “Love you too, minnow. So, so, so much.” He hums in agreement, letting the sway of the sea rock him into a gentle, happy sleep, already looking forwards to seeing his human again. Maybe Virgil is right. Maybe he is too curious for his own good.

 But that’s why he has Virgil, and now Logan. He knows, they will keep him safe.

[awakendreamersworld]

Here’s chapter 5! Trust

After a few days of swimming through currents to get back to the place where she last saw Maria, Emily began to grow tired. "Maria, where'd you go?" She said. "Emily!" Shouted a voice behind her, Emily turned around and saw her three other friends, Alice, Bianca and Stacey. "Guys! what are you doing here?" Emily said worried they might get in trouble, "We came here to make sure you find Maria, did she come with you to your mom's place?" Alice asked, "No, she ran away after the shark attacked her mom..." Emily said. "Hmmp!" Alice scoffed, Emily looked at Alice, did she think that was funny? "What was that for?" Emily asked, "Its just how I think, where did Maria go?" Alice said "Uhh, Northeast... I've been tracking her scent so we probably should follow it so it could lead us to her." Said Emily. Alice nodded and the four girls went through the current that quickly rushed them through the same trail it took Maria.

Swimming back up to where the battle-scared shark killed her sister and to where Maria was swimming away, Doria swam up to the current and smelled around for her niece's scent, "There!" She said and began too follow the scent trail to Maria, carrying her sister's bow and arrow and spear and wearing crab armor she was going to make sure that nothing happens to Maria.

The next morning, Maria woke up to a partly cloudy sunny day. She yawned and stretched to wake herself up and then looked down and saw that she had turned back into a siren and that everything was wet, but that wasn't what freaked her out, it was the new fish smell again! She sniffed around to see where this 'new fish' was when she looked beside her on her left and saw Alberto, only it wasn't Alberto, it was a Sea Monster! Maria gasped and took a good look at it. Looks like Alberto wasn't joking at all last night. Then Giulia opened her window and starting singing like a trumpet noise which startled Maria as she accidentally falls off behind the tree. "I can't be seen like this!" She said as she began patting herself down to quickly get dry and as she did her fins, gills and scales went away and she was back to human form. Alberto woke up startled by Giulia's trumpet noises "Do you have to do that everyday?" He asked a little annoyed, "Yep! Hey, where's Maria?" She asked looking around for her "I-I'm here! Heh, just waiting for all of you to get up." Maria said awkwardly smiling coming out from behind the tree, "How'd you get down there?" Giulia asked, "Oh! Um, Alberto kinda scared me when I woke up, heh..." Maria said "Well I told ya, me and Luca are Sea Monsters!" He said jumping down from the tree and shaking the water off him dry so he could turn back into a human, "Does the whole town know about this?" Maria asked "Yep! But its cool. They're fine with it!" Alberto said walking up to Maria and grabbing her hand to pull her back inside the house, but strangely Maria took her hand back and quickly walked into the house, Alberto just shrugged his shoulders as nothing just happened and went inside the house too. They all sat at the table to eat breakfast, which was pesto again, and ate. When finished, they all went outside to play, Giulia, Luca and Alberto went to the water to play. Once Luca and Alberto went into the water they transformed into Sea Monsters, "C'mon, Maria! The waters fine!" Alberto screamed for Maria to join, Maria was standing at the edge away from the water nervous, "No, its fine! You... continue to have fun!" Maria said "Aw, c'mon!" Alberto said coming out the water help Maria to the water, but Maria kept backing away which made Alberto a sad look "Maria?" He said sadly, "Hey, Alberto!" Luca screamed "Come play catch!" Alberto started to head back to the water, he turned back to Maria and gave a sad look then looked back towards his attention to Luca, did he do something wrong? Giulia came up to Maria, "Aye, Amica, what's wrong?" She asked. Maria sighed, "Can I talk to you alone? Please?" She said and grabbed Giulia's hand and went behind some rocks. "What is it, Maria?" Giulia asked. "I'm a siren..." said Maria, Giulia gave a weird look to Maria confused to what she just said, Maria sighed and went to the water still hidden from the others and dunked the top half of her body in the water and came back up. She had scales that were silver grey like a fish and had fins on her back, elbows and ears. "Oh Mio Dio!" Giulia gasped "Ok, so why is this an issue?" She asked, Maria sighed, "Its because its forbidden for Siren's and Sea Monsters to meet, befriend, marry, or even talk to one another!" "Why?" Giulia asked, "Because Sea Monsters are apparently the cause of our exposure!" Maria exclaimed, "Why?" Giulia asked again, "Because that means humans will go down deep into the ocean to find us and kidnap us! Err... that's at least what I've heard..." Maria said. "Aye Amico! C'mere." Giulia said wrapping her arm around Maria walking back up, Maria quickly dried herself so she won't be seen.

"What do you see?" Giulia asked Maria,

"Uhh, Alberto and Luca playing with the human children?" Maria said,

"Exactly! And do you see their parents there?" Giulia said pointing to the childrens' parents,

"Yeah?" Maria said looking at the humans

"Do it look like they're grabbing a weapon and coming after Luca and Alberto?" Giulia said,

"No? But-" Said Maria,

"Then its fine! Your free to be yourself here!" Giulia said

"But does Alberto and Luca know about the forbidden rule of the ocean?" Maria asked,

"Probably not, but just go out there, come on!" Giulia said pushing Maria towards the water.

Maria was very anxious about this whole situation, what would they think of her? After all, she not a Sea Monster like they were. "Hey Alberto, Luca! Maria's gonna come swim with you! Giulia said, "Wait, what are you doing!?" Maria said as Giulia was pushing her more towards the water, "Giulia, WAIT!" Maria screamed but it was too late, Giulia had already pushed Maria into the water, "All Right!" Alberto screamed in cheer but Maria didn't come back up, "Maria?" He said still looking at where she disappeared hoping she'll come back up to the surface, but she didn't. "Maria!?" Alberto said and quickly ducked underwater to look for her, "MARIA!?" He said calling her name, but didn't see her. He then heard splashing from the other side and thought Maria was trying to get out of the water, "Phew! Maria, don't scare us like that." He said while swimming up to Maria, "STAY BACK!" Maria said hiding behind a rock underwater, "Maria? You can talk underwater? Are you a Sea Monster like us?" Luca asked, "No... not really..." Maria said still scared and hiding, "Then, what are you?" Luca asked, "Let us see." Alberto said asking her to come out, "Only if the both of you promise you won't freak out or attack me or... or try to kill me!" She said wanting them to promise. Alberto and Luca looked at each other confused and then back at Maria's direction "Ok, we promise." Luca said, Maria took a deep breathe and swam out in front of Luca and Alberto. Alberto and Luca were truly amazed, they've never seen a creature like her before, She had silver-grey scales and didn't have any legs, it just looked like they fused together into a long silver-grey tail. She also had fins on the side of her tail, elbows, back and ears, she also had gills on her neck and you can even see some breathing on her torso sides underneath her pageant dress. "I don't know why you were scared, you look amazing!" Alberto said, Maria looked at him in shock. Really? She didn't look hideous or freaky? "But what are you?" Luca said, "A Murine siren" Maria said, "Cool!" Alberto said, "But, why were you so afraid to come in the water with us? Did you think we might hurt you? Or cause we're Sea Monsters?" Alberto asked "First off, kinda... You and the humans... Second, yes." Maria said looking down "Cause its the forbidden ocean rule..." Maria said. "Well that's a stupid rule." Alberto said "Good thing your away from 'cross country!' So you don't have to follow it!" Alberto said grabbing Maria's hand and bringing her back up to the surface with the children, Maria was speechless, she had no idea what to think, so she just brushed it off and forgot about it and smiled.

As they went back up to the surface, they continued their game playing with a beachball. The ball bounced to Maria and she swam under and kicked it with her tail, it flew up high and bounced off some kids, they all cheered and continued playing. About an hour later, they all got out the water and turned back into humans. "Ok, I'm gonna go and change my swimsuit." Giulia said, "Ok! C'mon, Maria! Let's go grab some ice cream!" Alberto said grabbing her hand again, "Wait! She can't go dressed like that!" Giulia said, "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Maria asked looking down at her ripped royal blue pageant dress. "Its ripped at the bottom and dirty. C'mon! I'll take to the tailor of this town! He'll make you a new dress!" Giulia said "But first, let me change out of my swimsuit!" She said running back inside to change.

Giulia took Maria to the tailor so he can make her a new dress, Alberto followed close to make sure Giulia wasn't trying to take his friend... again. "Heya Chipo! I got a customer here for you!" Giulia said introducing Maria, "Hello, Giulia! How have you been!" He said, "I've been great!" Giulia said, "Who're your friends here?" The tailor asked, "This is Maria and Alberto!" She said introducing them, "Ha ha! Perdere, this your boyfriend?" He asked "No-" Maria started to say before she was interrupted by Alberto "YES! Yes she is!" He said putting his arm around her, "W-Wait, what? Alberto!" Maria said, "Relax Maria, your 'forbidden rule' can't effect us here! Its ok, you don't have to be so afraid anymore!" He said with his usual cocky smile, "Uhh, ok..." Maria said, "Anyways, what can I do for you today?" The tailor asked. "Maria needs a new dress, hers is... a bit destroyed." Giulia said, "Ah! I got just the one for a beautiful signorina like you! Come with me!" He said, Giulia moved her head signaling Maria to follow him to the back, Maria followed the tailor to see what new dress she was going to wear. Giulia gave a smirking look at Alberto,

"What?" He asked,

"You like Maria?" Giulia said smiling,

"Yeah, she's pretty cool." He said smiling

"And beautiful?" Giulia said getting closer to his face smiling,

Alberto sighed as if he was annoyed, "Yes, she's beautiful, even in her 'Siren' Form, there! Are ya happy?" Alberto said.

Giulia squealed, "I can't believe it! You got a girlfriend! And I'm Pretty sure she likes you too, big guy!" Giulia said punching his arm and putting her hands in her pockets.

A few hours later, Maria came back wearing a light ocean blue, one shoulder and belt, tulle, laced dress that went down to her knees and a blue bow in her hair. Giulia and Alberto eyes widened in amazement, Maria looked absolutely beautiful. "What do you guys think?" Maria asked, "PERFETTA!" Giulia yelled as she ran up to Maria and tightly hugged her, the both of them laughing. "Alberto! What do you think?" Giulia asked but Alberto was totally mesmerized. Maria chuckled and repeated his words the first day they met as to joke with him, "Yeah it sure is! The scenery NEVER gets old, right?" She said laughing, "Hehe, yeah! You look amazing!" He said, "Hehe, Thanks!" Maria said smiling, "Ok, Lovebirds! Lets go! Thank you, Chipo!" She said while leaving the shop and grabbing her bike, "Your welcome, Giulia! Come back anytime!" He said waving goodbye. Alberto and Maria hopped on to the back of Giulia's cart as she rode them back home. "You uhh... Really want to be my boyfriend?" Maria asked, "Yeah! Well, that is, if you don't already have one." He said "No, I don't... I don't have that many friends either, heh..." She said a little sad, "Well, your here so, you can do whatever you want!" He said putting his arm around Maria, Maria layed her head on his chest smiling, "Yeah... I guess so." She said, Giulia smiled and turned her head back to pay attention to where she was riding. Back home, Giulia's dad made their favorite pasta again for dinner, they ate, then Luca and Giulia went into Giulia's room so Giulia can tell him about Alberto and Maria. Alberto and Maria went back up the tree and layed down, Alberto layed down with his hands behind his head and Maria layed next to him on his chest, "So, how was your first few days here?" Alberto asked her, "They were amazing! I'm definitely staying here!" Maria said excitedly, "So... What's so 'forbidden' for our species to not meet each other?" Alberto asked, "Oh... uhh... In my world, its forbidden for Sea Monsters to befriend or even meet Sirens, apparently, my world doesn't trust yours cause they say that YOUR species is the reason why ocean homes are getting discovered!" She said, "What's so wrong about that?" Alberto asked, "Uhh, From what I heard, when humans see us, they kidnap us and kill us so, we're not really 'friendly.'" Maria said sadly. "Like I said, that's a stupid rule. Where do you live? In the ocean I mean." Alberto said, "The Mariana trench, in the challenger deep, it a giant hole that goes very deep into the ocean, if you keep swimming down to the bottom you'll see a kingdom, that's where I live." Maria said, "Good thing your far away from there, I mean, have you and your... fellow sirens even have proof that we do that to you?" Alberto said raising his head up a bit annoyed, "I... Don't think so..." Maria said, "Good, so that means their wrong." Alberto said laying his head back down.

"So since your a Siren, does that mean you can sing?" Alberto asked,

"Yeah, but the Siren song is dangerous, it hypnotizes people into a powerful trance, you can't break free unless the Siren can undo her spell." Maria said

"Then don't sing the Siren song, sing something else." Said Alberto,

"Like what?" Maria asked

"I dunno, just whatever you feel like." Alberto said Maria took a deep breathe and sat up, "Ok, only if you promise that you won't get hypnotized, and if you do, you'll promise me you'll try your best to fight it or tell me, got it?" Said Maria with a worried expression, "Relax Maria, I'm not gonna get hypnotized." He said. Maria took a deep breathe, "Ok... "

"Let's run away into the sea As I hold you close to me Let's slide beneath the waves Down into the caves If you wanna escape with me, come take my hand We'll run away to a better land, a better land."

"Wow, you sound amazing." Alberto said

"Heh, thanks. Are you hypnotized?" Maria asked trying to see if he was caught in her trance,

"Nope!" He said

"Alberto." Maria said trying to make sure,

"I'm fine Maria, relax." Alberto said and layed back down with his hands back behind his head. Maria sighed and just hoped he wasn't hypnotized, she layed back down on his chest in snuggled closer to him as he put his arm over her shoulder, "Goodnight, Alberto." Maria said, "Goodnight Maria." Alberto said back and they both dozed off into a deep sleep. Giulia and Luca was watching them and heard everything, "See? Told ya! They're in love with each other!" Giulia said excitedly, "Wow, I never thought Alberto would get someone like him. They seem more happy together too." Luca said, "Yeah, we should probably go to sleep too. I'm exhausted!" Giulia said as she and Luca closed the window, turned the light off and went to bed.

Chapters: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

[nelllraiser]

fish bites | grace & nell

TIMING: during the fog fish potw, before the morgue scream. LOCATION: the woods. PARTIES: @silveraccent & @nelllraiser SUMMARY: nell and grace decide to take a walk, and run into some foggy-fish- and even though they may be misunderstood, they decide to take the L and leave.

What had started as a truth serum mishap seemed to, thankfully, be turning into a budding friendship. With things seemingly and momentarily slowing down for Nell, it meant that now she could take the time to actually enjoy friends rather than simply worry about their lives and her own being in near constant danger. Of course...that was still something she worried about, and often still had nightmares of, but if the danger kept itself to her dreams and out of the real world it meant she could do things like go on harmless hikes with Grace. As the pair walked through the dense forest of the Outskirts, Nell trudged along confidently, rather familiar with the woods as they’d frequently been her hunting grounds when it came to bringing in monsters for the Ring. “So how’s everything been with adjusting to White Crest? Hopefully no one accidentally slipped you some truth serum or anything equally ridiculous.” The words were an obvious and light jab at herself.

A few months ago, Grace wouldn’t have been able to imagine being friends with somebody who accidentally dosed her food with truth serum. Now, she thought it was fitting to the way that the little town had welcomed her. She and Nell, and even Blanche, were growing to be quick friends. She was grateful, if not slightly wary. Not due to the situations that they had found themselves in revolving around one another, but due to her inability to let go of the fact that one day, her friends might not be around any longer. Still, she pushed through it, thus finding herself on a hike with Nell in the woods she hadn’t trapeized through yet. “It’s taking some time,” Grace admitted to her as she stepped over a fallen branch on the pathway. She looked over at Nell with a smile, “there have been a few things to top that, don’t worry.” She wasn’t lying, either. Between the reanimated corpses, the airplanes, seeing Renee. Her stomach churned. “I wouldn’t worry about me,” Grace said as she stabilized herself on a neighboring tree. “It brought us here, didn’t it?” She asked with a tilt of her head. 

Nell’s childhood had been spent among these pines, running along with her sisters until the sun began to set, and Bea would round them up to get back to the East End in time for dinner. Being famous Vegas magicians on par with David Blaine had left the Vurals quite well off, and though Harris Island had the most extravagant houses— Nisa and Demir had wanted a place where it was easier for three growing girls to stretch their wings and breathe. Considering that yards were rare on the island, the East End had been the obvious answer. So the forest was something of a sanctuary, a place that could be rife with danger, but also comfortingly hidden away. “That’s fair,” Nell commented. “There’s a lot to get used to in White Crest. What do you mean a few things to top it, though?” Had trouble been finding Grace? “Well you can’t tell me not to worry about you after you just said that,” she finished with a brief chuckle. “But it’s true. I guess we have truth serum to thank.”

Despite its miseries, White Crest had brought things to Grace’s surface. She had begun to think about things more clearly, and though she had originally taken refuge in a new town for the sake of wanting quiet, it was anything but. She could blame herself, sure, but she had the means to leave, to disappear into the night. Did she want to, though? Maybe whatever White Crest had to offer was a little more interesting than Grace had originally thought. She was curious, that was for certain. Maybe a little naive, too, but Renee’s words in her head, just live! Just live, Grace! It was what kept her moving forward. Grace gave Nell a sideways smile and shrugged, “I mean, you live here too, I’m sure you can imagine.” Truthfully, whatever it was that she had gone through, she couldn’t imagine it to be too wild, what with the stories she had heard. “Do you know Connor?” Grace asked as she stepped over another wayward branch, “I ran into him after-- well, after I saw my old friend, the one I mentioned.” Grace wasn’t sure if she trusted Nell because of their first meeting, or because she felt nothing ominous from her. “We saw some stuff, it was…” Grace shrugged, “it’s definitely an eye opener, I can tell you that much.” Grace carded her fingers through her hair as they came to a smaller trail that looked like it led off of the main path. “Do you want to go that way?” Grace asked, curious. 

At the mention of Connor, Nell tilted her head to the side in vague acknowledgement, not entirely sure if her one meeting with the exorcist counted as knowing him. “Yeah, I know him,” was what she settled on. Unconsciously, Nell slowed her walking, realizing the conversation might be about to take a rather serious turn. “Your friend…” she began tentatively. The one who had died? “The girl you mentioned when we were under the truth serum, right?” There was no need to rake over old wounds. “You saw her as a ghost?” There was no delicate way to put it, not with the world they lived in. Maybe it was best to say it outright and quickly, to rip the bandaid soundly off in one go. “Are you alright?” she asked as her follow up question, though she had a suspicion that the answer was no, regardless of what Grace might say. How would seeing your dead friend fall into the category of alright? Nell followed Grace’s question with her eyes, looking the trail over. It was one of the more secluded routes. Maybe the bigger and thicker trees would help Grace feel a little more sheltered. “Yeah, for sure.” It didn’t take long for things to change the further along the path the got, a thick fog quickly settling around them. Fog wasn’t an strange oddity in White Crest, but for it to have come on this quickly was possible cause for questioning. “Fog doesn’t usually come on that quick here…” Nell mused aloud, a frown tugging at the corners of her lips.

“Yeah, her.” Grace smoothed her fingers through her hair. She didn’t open up easily, and the majority of that had to do with her ability to figure out others’ emotions at the drop of a hat. It felt like cheating. She could see inside of them, but they couldn’t see into her. The truth serum had certainly helped pass that roadblock, and Grace couldn’t be sure if she was embarrassed or grateful for it. “Yeah, it was…” Grace forced out a laugh, “usually I’m all for a good scare, but--” She shrugged and cleared her throat. It suddenly felt thick. “I’m fine, but, you know it’s weird… she looked the same way when I identified her--” Grace’s sentence broke away as they stepped into thick fog. It pooled towards them quickly. Her eyebrows furrowed as she looked around. It was thick enough that if she weren’t standing directly next to Nell, she’d lose her line of sight. Grace tugged at the straps of her backpack nervously, tightening it against her. “Does this always happen?” Grace asked as she moved slightly closer to Nell. Just in case, she thought. 

As Grace spoke, Nell’s brows drew together in the beginnings of concern, the emotion flickering alive inside her as it woke, sensing that there was a friend in need. “I mean good scares are fun. It’s just a little different when it’s someone you know.” She hadn’t seen Bea’s ghost when she’d been dead, though it wasn’t for lack of trying. However, she’d seen it all when Evan had formed along with the cursed coins all those months ago. Nell knew firsthand that seeing that was the opposite of fine. “They do that. Ghosts. Appear as they did when they died. I’m sorry you had to see it, though. Both when you identified her and when you saw her as the ghost again.” Nell’s selfish curiosity wanted to ask what it was that had happened, but managed to bite her tongue this time around. But the fog was growing far too thick to be anything normal, and a frown was quick to form on Nell’s lips, her not liking this in the least. She could barely see her hand in front of her face, and being blind to her surroundings did nothing for the seemingly ever-present paranoia that someone was out there...waiting to attack...just like Montgomery had. “No. It doesn’t.” As Grace shuffled closed, Nell reached down to grasp the empath’s hand in her own, both for comfort and practicality. As Nell squinted into the fog, she finally spotted them— a set of fins forming from seemingly nothing as a fish’s face greeted them no more than a foot away. “Oh shit, it’s one of those fucking foggy fish or whatever.

Grace hadn’t told anyone about Renee, nobody but Connor. For Nell to know, too-- albeit originally, without prompting due to the truth serum, Grace had become afraid. She had become afraid to form friendships, or any connection for that matter. She had come to White Crest with the intent of silence, of solitude. The life she had thought out for herself, however, was turning into something entirely different than what she had pictured. “It wasn’t really--” Grace looked up to the canopy of trees, she let Nell take a hold of her hand. She squeezed it tightly as she looked at the fish that began to surround them. “I haven’t actually,” Grace gasped out, “I haven’t seen any of them, I’ve heard of them, but--” Grace stared at the fish, eyes wide as it began to float closer to them. “What do we do?” She asked Nell as she gave her a quick glance.

Nell wasn’t sure how to approach the fog fish, electing to stay where she was and not make any sudden movements. For the most part, they seemed docile. “I…” It was rare that she wasn’t sure how to proceed with the supernatural, but this wasn’t something she’d seen in her entire life. “I don’t think it’s...aggressive.” As if in answer, one of the fish swam closer to nudge the pair of them gently with its nose, almost seeming curious. Nell tensed when it did, still not trusting the foggy fish as magic began to instinctively pool and gather in her stomach. “I don’t know what it wants?” Another of its fish friends came up to prod Grace with its strange nose. “If we just stay here, and stay still— maybe it’ll just go away?”

“You don’t think?” Grace asked, tone maybe a little too accusative. She cleared her throat. “Sorry, I’m just-- This isn’t normal.” She whispered. Grace winced as the fish floated closer to them, its mouth and what she figured was its nose coming to touch against their forearms. “If we just stay here?” She asked uneasily. She watched the fish as it watched them warily, its eyes blinking slowly-- or did it even have eyelids? She couldn’t tell. Grace bit the inside of her cheek as she cast a glance Nell’s way. “You’re way too calm for this, does this happen to you a lot?” She asked.

“I mean I don’t know for sure,” Nell replied, just the smallest bit defensive. “No, it’s fine.” She couldn’t expect Grace to take every weird thing White Crest threw at her in stride. That would be vastly unfair. “It’s not normal. Even by White Crest standards.” Of course White Crest had seemed particularly active ever since she’d returned. “We could try and leave if you want?” Something about the fish was almost hypnotizing, making Nell want to stay and learn more about them. “I mean- this specifically doesn’t happen to me. But a lot of weird shit...does. I also sort of sought it out for five years before I came home.” Somewhere in the distance, another fish formed, though this one looked a little different. Sharper and leaner. 

“Good to know,” Grace shot back, a nervous smile pulling at the corners of her lips-- an involuntary reaction to the situation before them. She looked at the fish and did her best to avoid its eyes, as she was unsure of where to look. It looked sort of like the fish in her bowl at home, but with two eyes instead of one. “Do you think we can?” Grace asked under her breath, tugging the other girl alongside her, “they’re everywhere, aren’t they?” She had gone on the walk with Nell with no other intention other than stress relief, but it didn’t seem as though the Fog Fish were going to allow that, not now, at least. She blinked at them, disbelief settling on her features when another two fish formed behind the newest. “Maybe we should go?” Grace asked, a little more urgent as she pulled Nell backwards, down the path that the two had made their ways up. 

“Unclear,” Nell replied on the subject of whether or not the fish would allow them to pass. “I guess there’s only one way to find out, though,” she said as she too took a step back up the path they’d come. For a moment she hesitated, curiosity momentarily getting the better of her as the cloudy fish continued to sail the gentle breeze of the forest. The way they moved was nearly mesmerizing, and Nell wanted to know just what it was they were. The fish began to part, the fog once again gathering thickly around their pod as another fish began to form. This one was sharper, leaner, and apparently meaner as it moved aggressively towards the pair of girls, a overbite of sharp teeth somehow glinting in the lowlight. “Okay- definitely time to go!” Nell grabbed onto Grace’s hand once again in an effort to tug her along the trail, steps quickening into a run as the enormous barracuda gave chase. Standing to fight was Nell’s general instinct when it came to hostile parties, but it was glaringly apparent that fighting fog wasn’t going to be all the fruitful.

Grace arched a brow, “you’re not going to go pet it, are you?” She wouldn’t put it past Nell to do so, and then again, maybe Grace would too, but these were floating fish in the air surrounding them, fog following their tails. Grace’s attention was diverted to the mass of fog that hovered over the hoard of fish, and only when she saw the fish with the overbite head their way did Grace hear the fear in Nell’s voice. Finally, she thought. Grace let Nell guide her down the pathway from where they had come. “Do you think it can actually hurt us?” Grace yelled out as they ran, tossing a cautionary glance over her shoulder as they avoided branches and low hanging limbs from trees. The last thing she wanted to do was be eaten by a fog fish. Grace rarely ran, and her breath was already running ragged. “I don’t want to get eaten,” She whined out as they ran. The clearing was just ahead-- they hadn’t gotten very far, lucky enough for them. As soon as they broke from the fog of the woods, the sun kissed the crowns of their heads and Grace twisted around to look at the fog as it began to dissipate. “So it was just territorial. Cool.” 

The fish was hot on their trail as the gled through the forest, and Nell swore she could feel some sort of ghoul-ish breeze pass over the nape of her neck when it gnashed its teeth together a little too close for comfort. But as the crisp sun beat down on their skin, Nell turned to see that Grace had been correct. The fish was gone as quickly as it had appeared. “What the hell?” Nell asked no one in particular. It wasn’t all that often she came across a creature she couldn’t even begin to identify, but this was definitely something new for the catalogue. “Maybe it can’t leave the fog?” she pondered aloud. “Since it’s made up of it?” Either way, it was probably for the best that the thing was gone— even if she was a little too curious about the foggy fish. Turning back to Grace, she gave the girl a once over in an attempt to make sure her friend had escaped unscathed. Once she was satisfied with that she simply said, “Do you think it would make good fish sticks?”

“I don’t know,” Grace whispered, her heart thudding. She glanced towards Nell, “maybe?” She squinted into the fog, barely able to make out any other floating figures past them. “That’s…” Grace tugged on Nell’s hand, “we should go before we figure out if it can, right?” She let out a nervous laugh as she tried to guide Nell back towards where they had come from. “Fish sticks? I mean, probably not. I don’t think it has any substance.” Grace ran a shaky hand through her hair as she stepped over another fallen branch. She hadn’t expected today to turn into running away from a fog fish, or a few, but anything was possible in White Crest, she was seeming to notice. Grace took a deep breath, “at least we didn’t get hurt.” Grace laughed uneasily, finally letting go of Nell’s hand as they broke through the brush, back towards the open space. 

Despite Nell’s curiosity about the fish, she followed after Grace. Had she been along, she might have ventured back to explore further, but she wasn’t willing to potentially risk her friend’s safety. Of course...she could always come back later. “That’s what tartar sauce is for, then,” she quipped back playfully. “Of course we’d need a big container of it. Maybe just fill a pool and dunk the whole fish in.” Once they were out of the woods, Nell continued down the path towards town. “You know...I think I just made myself hungry.” And even if she wasn’t, Nell was always down for a good meal. “Let’s swing by Al’s and see if fish is on the menu today,” she laughed with Grace, apparently already recovered from their near brush with the strange creature. No doubt Grace would develop the skill as well once White Crest really got its hands on her. People always adjusted to the town one way or another.

[zeltricstudio]

'DEAD LAKE'

DAWN

MAY, 2011

“We’re finally here” Jacob Foster announced to his family – which consisted of his wife Maria and their two 16-year old kids Michael and Shelly – as they pulled up to the Cabin.

“Finally, my legs were killing me” Shelly announced as she stepped out and began stretching.

“I can breathe!” Michael said and began inhaling deeply.

“Enjoy your freedom while it lasts, because we only got the cabin for the weekend” Jacob said gleefully.

“Well if you are done stretching, let us move in. I need to get started on dinner right away” Maria said, and the family began hauling their luggage to the cabin.

Jacob and Maria Foster both had the weekend off, so they decided to travel to Dawn and spend the weekend in the forest. The main plan was to go fishing, biking, and hiking and spend the weekend just enjoying nature. Once they had moved in and unpacked, it was time for dinner.

“I was expecting something out of a horror movie, but this cabin is nice” Shelly said

“Same. I mean it is in the forest near the ocean. That is a recipe for horror” Michael added

“How did you hear about this?” Maria asked Jacob

“A mate of mine recommended it. Said he spent the weekend hiking. Apparently the forest is lovely” Jacob replied

“So what’s the plan for tomorrow?” Michael asked

“How does fishing sound?”

“Fishing sounds good” Shelly replied

“Yeah I can do fishing” Michael agreed

“How about you, honey?”

“Oh no thank you. The ocean terrifies me” Maria said

“It’s a lake” Michael jokingly said

“Well unless I’ve seen the bottom of it and can confirm there is nothing there, I am staying on land” Maria retorted

“Okay, so tomorrow us 3 will go fishing bright and early” Jacob said as he finished up.

The next morning, Jacob, Michael and Sally got dressed and headed out to the lake. The lake was ginormous, and they couldn’t even see the other side. The 3 got the boat into the water and drove into the ocean before stopping in the middle. The boat was a standard propulsion-engine boat and was big enough to seat 5 people, so they had a lot of leg room. Once the boat was settled, the 3 put the bait on their fishing rods and threw their lines into the ocean.

“So Michael, excited for the game next week?” Jacob asked, trying to break the silence.

“Yeah I am! We’ve been doing the football drills nonstop and the coach is working us extra hard” Michael said, secretly relieved to be relaxing for a weekend instead of training

“You’re going to crush them” Shelly said in support

“Thanks” Michael replied

Suddenly, Michael’s hook caught something, but his unpreparedness allowed his rod to fly off his hand and into the water.

“Damn it” Michael said as he reached over and picked it up from the water just before it sunk below his reach.

“Remember what I said? Always be prepared” Jacob laughed

“It must be a really big fish, it felt like a human was tugging my rod” Michael said, both confused and surprised at what had yanked his rod as he dried his hand.

“Maybe Dawn has some type of mega fish we don’t know about” Shelly joked

“I wouldn’t be surprised” Michael replied.

As time went on, they had yet to catch a single fish and didn’t notice that the fog had suddenly began seeping in.

“It’s been 2 hours and nothing” Michael said, slightly annoyed

“Yeah, aside from that mega fish nothing has happened” Shelly added, her disappointment in her voice

“I guess this spot might be a fluke” Jacob said, also defeated. “Want to head back and maybe get a quick hike in before we go back to the cabin?”

“Yeah” Both Michael and Shelly replied.

As Jacob started the engine up, they all heard a splash.

“What was that?” Jacob asked, looking around

“I heard it too” Shelly said

“Must be the mega fish, coming for us” Michael joked

“Well it gets to live to see another day” Jacob said as he tended to the engine again.

Jacob pulled and the engine sputtered. He tried to do it again, but another splash came, this time louder. Jacob stopped and looked around, before going back and pulling the engine cord again. This time something hit the boat.

“Woah! What was that?” Shelly asked, now scared

“I don’t know, but I am not sticking around to find out” Jacob replied and began pulling the engine cord

“Uh guys, what is that?” Michael asked and pointed to a creature in the fog.

The creature looked like a fish, except it had the shape of a human head. When all 3 turned to look at it, it went underneath.

“Dad?” Shelly turned to look a Jacob

“I don’t know sweetie” Jacob said, now scared.

As Michael put his hands on the edge of the boat to try and lean in, he quickly noticed that same creature underneath and pulled his head back in time before the creature could swipe him.

“Woah!” Michael said as he fell into the boat.

“What is that?” Shelly asked, now on the defense

“Damn it” Jacob said as he tried again with the engine, but another sputter came out.

The boat was rocked again as a creature hit it; this time much harder.

“Fuck it” Jacob said and picked up a paddle, planning on rowing back to shore.

“Michael, get the paddle and-“ Jacob was suddenly cut off as the creature jumped up and impaled Jacob’s arm with it’s fin. As Jacob screamed in pain, they all got a good look at the creature. It had the form of a human, but its skin was a dark green shade, with scales all over. It had fins on its head and elbows. Its eyes were hollowed out and it had no mouth. The creature was covered in vines and moss. Jacob instinctively punched the creature and its grip let go and fell into the water, making a splash.

“Dad, are you alright” Sally asked as she tended to his wounds.

“I’m fine, Michael try and get the engine working” Jacob commanded, and Michael got to pulling.

“Sally, get away from the edge” Jacob said and Sally moved to the center of the boat. Jacob picked up a paddle and held it firmly. A few more splashes were heard before another creature jumped onto the boat. Jacob quickly slapped it with the paddle before it could hoist itself up and the creature fell back into the water. The engine suddenly came to life and Michael pulled the trigger and off the boat went. As the trio sailed, they felt more and more bumps, each one with ferocity. To their fear they suddenly heard wood being ripped and Shelly spotted a creature hanging onto the boat. She picked up a paddle and pried it off. Unfortunately, the engine began stuttering, before coming to a halt.

“Oh no no no” Michael said, now scared. He looked over and noticed several claw marks on the engine, with a large one tearing into the engine and an oil leak.

“Those things, destroyed the engine!” Michael announced, now terrified.

“Michael take this” Jacob said and handed the paddle to Michael. Jacob pulled out a pocket knife and the 3 turned back-to-back as they waited. Eventually the water became still and silence became deafening.

“Daddy? What are those things?!” Shelly screamed, not realizing how scared she was”

“I don’t know!” Jacob replied. “I don’t know” Jacob repeated, now terrified as they were trapped.

As the three waited, a creature jumped into the boat, this time all the way and sat perched on the edge. The boat slightly rocked as Michael attempted to push the creature off with the paddle, except the creature swiped the paddle, cutting it in half. As Michael stood dumbfounded, Jacob went and kicked the creature, catching it off guard as it fell into the ocean. From behind, another creature jumped and stabbed Michael in both shoulders with its claws, before attempting to drag him down. Jacob instinctively grabbed Michael’s hands and tried to keep him from being dragged. As Shelly was about to help Michael, another creature jumped onto the boat, this time standing inside it. Shelly turned and tackled the creature over the boat.

“Ahhhh!” Michael screamed in pain, as Jacob tried pulling him up.

“Hold on son-“ Jacob tried comforting his son, but soon another pair of claws came through Michael’s abdomen. Jacob was forced to let go as the weight became too heavy and with his shoulder injury making him weaker. Michael fell into the water with a heavy splash.

“Michael!” Jacob screamed in shock. Shelly went over to Jacob to comfort him, but she was stopped when another creature hopped onto the boat. As Shelly ran to tackle it, the creature dug its feet into the boat and Shelly ran into it, but didn’t move it. It wasn’t till now did Shelly realize how big this thing was. It was easily over 6 feet and very muscular. As Shelly took a step back, the creature stabbed Shelly in her shoulder, causing her to scream in pain.

“Ahhhhhh!” Shelly’s scream pierced the silence. Jacob quickly recomposed himself but before he can rush to Sally’s aid, another creature jumped up and stabbed him in the back, before attempted to pull him in. Jacob took his pocket knife and stabbed the creature in the face repeatedly, causing it to release its grip on him. Shelly unfortunately was stabbed again, this time through the chin and her screams stopped. The creature then picked her up and threw her overboard, making a deafening splash as she hit the water.

“NO!” Jacob screamed and rushed the creature, with his knife going for the heart. The creature shrieked when the knife made an impact, sounding like a human scream underwater. The creature pushed Jacob backwards, before jumping back into the water. Jacob quickly got back up and kept his knife close to him, before moving to the center and turning around, making sure no creature got behind him. Jacob was suddenly aware of every sound being made. The peaceful silence was now terrifying as he knew it meant the creatures were waiting. As Jacob began panicking, 5 creatures jumped from the water at once. Jacob tried stabbing one, but its skin hardened and the knife just slid off. The creature slashed Jacobs stomach, causing him to stumble backwards to the front of the boat. The 5 creatures stood still, staring at Jacob, waiting for him to make the next move. Jacob stood at the edge, locked in an intense staring competition with these creatures. Suddenly a sixth creature jumped and stabbed both of Jacob’s knees from behind, causing him to buckle down. The other 5 creatures then ran and sunk their claws into his chest. The momentum and weight of all creatures was enough to push Jacob overboard.

“Arghhhggg” Jacob’s scream turned into muffled garbled as water quickly entered his lungs. The 6 creatures dragging him continued stabbing and after a grueling minute, Jacob stopped screaming, struggling, and moving. The creatures then began tearing the boat, causing enough damage and holes that it began sinking.

Maria woke up around 12:00 and was surprised to see that no one was back in the cabin. She walked down to the lake and noticed the boat was not back, so she assumed that they were still out. At around 5 they had not returned so she called the Ranger. They sent a crew out but they found nothing. A Search Party was formed and after a week, they were not able to find any evidence of what happened to her family. Maria had to return home, forever saddened that she never knew what happened to her family.

2 Weeks after the Foster Incident, the lake was closed off due to similar reports of disappearing people. “Yeah, do you think it’s time?” A man in a black suit said on his phone, standing behind the metal fencing closing off the shore. “Yes, people are beginning to ask questions and if the public knew what was in those waters, it would be hell” the man on the other end replied, sounding angry. “Affirmative, send in the S.E.C.T.” The agent replied, before hanging up.

[one-twisted-sister]

It you walk the path of the Mightnight Circus following the streets past the ghouls hanging out waiting to scare you, you'll come to a big building no windows, one way in and one way out a smile going in and a frown coming out, you wait in silence waiting for the lights to click on, there are several places there, several creatures hidden by a thick curtain. Finally a light turns on the spot light hitting one of the curtains, there’s a name on a wooden sign that reads Nereus Kairio what is that?, is that a name?, some weird language?, no you were right the first time as the curtains get drawn back  its-its and aquarium? a huge on at that!.  You look left then right you see fish of course different deep sea fish but, this was the Circus right?, the feeling that you got ripped off comes over you though it's not for long as the creature within finally makes his appearance. Nereus Kairio

Dressed in gold, why even his horns were gold!, you can hear everyone gasp as the Ringleader makes his gran entrance his can tapping on the glass, the creature within narrowing his eyes at the man before swimming to the rocks parking his ass there.. or tail?. The Ringleader clears his throat. “This creature, the last of his kind I assure you it’s kind hunted down for both fins and those sparking gold horns, hunted down just as the Limebloods were, I found it washed up on the shore after a terrible, terrible storm, it should be thanking me.” He spoke watching as the troll within narrowed his eyes . “They say if this creature is on land for to long it’ll grow legs and look just like you and me but completely submerged for 30 minutes and that tail will return.”  The Ringleader held his arms out. “ Nereus Kairio!, go a head step up to the glass don’t be shy now.” 

[takerfoxx]

Blood Island Fanfic (pt. 1)

magic5ball submitted:

(Well, long story short I started writing a little headcanon about one of your OCs and like last time, it kinda spiraled into a full fledged fanfic. Really not sure what to do with this, so I figured why not post it here, if only to see how much I got right. Anyways, enjoy.)

                                                    .   .   .

Ever since she was little, she knew something was wrong with her. Mama always insisted otherwise, that she was fine the way she was, and the others never made a fuss about her, but she could tell from the way they looked at her they thought she was a freak. From the way her eyes glowed green in the dark to her too pointy teeth to her too long tail; dark grey with fins sprouting all over the sides, instead of the triangle fin at the tip of the other mermaid’s tails, there was nothing normal about her.

She had a twin, once. A twin she had eaten in the womb. The matriarch had insisted there was nothing odd about that- these things happened sometimes- but she knew the others whispered about it behind her back. And her twin wasn’t entirely gone, either. Sometimes, her twin’s ghost whispered in her ear. You’re a demon, she would hiss, a depraved monster who ate her own sister. Why don’t you eat your own mother while you’re at it?

That was the hunger. She could feel it, always, deep in her stomach, gnawing at the edges, crying, demanding FOOD. A demon, the matriarch insisted, but one that could be forced out. So it came she was fed only jellyfish, kelp, and sometimes, bitter concoctions that would make her cough up all the contents of her belly. Mama promised it would make her better, that she would be cured. Mostly, though, it made her feel weak, and confused. Why couldn’t she eat fish like the others? Yet even without food, as years passed she grew longer, her body stretched thinner and thinner with each passing day.

But worse was when the others came after Mama, blaming her for infidelity and other sins she was too little to understand. She would yell at them to stop, but even her own Mother demanded she stay out of things while the grown-ups screamed at each other.

It wasn’t all bad, at least. There was Mama, who sang lullabies and told stories of the Papa she never met. Mama who made her a belt of sea silk and shark teeth while assuring her that she was wonderful as she was. Mama, who always hugged her when she was scared and pulled her along when she was too exhausted to swim.

 There was also, at times, flotsam. She loved looking through the strange wooden debris as it bobbed across the surface of the ocean, heading for an unknown destination. It would always be covered in strange barnacles, snails, and other hard shelled things she would try to collect, only to forget about later. If she was lucky, there would be things clambering across the top, too: brown hairy creatures with no fins and long tails, scaly green things that licked the air with forked tongues, and the things Mama called BIRDS!, which came in so many beautiful shapes and colors. These discoveries would always lead into tales from Mama about the things that lived out of the water, which were always her favorites because they were always, so odd, so strange, so DIFFERENT from her life of following currents across the ocean, even if she was certain Mama made them up.

The end began when Mama had a second baby. A precious little merboy with inky black hair, just like hers. A new baby for Mama to sing lullabies and tell stories too. A new baby for Mama to adore. One without a demon inside them. From that day forward, she swam a little further away from Mama, so she didn’t think of eating him, too.

Then came the fateful day her pod discovered a sunken ship. One by one the mermaid’s lithe bodies slipped through a crack in the ship’s hull, entering dark rooms coated in grime. The pod huddled together, weary. But her? She was FASINATED. What creatures had made this thing? Where did they live they? Did they have tails, like them? Or have hands where their tails should be, like the fuzzy things she’d seen on the driftwood? What did they eat? What were their families like? An older mermaid shushed her up real quick, saying they were to get a few important items, then GO. She nodded, but did not stop staring at everything they came across, until at last they reached a room the Matriarch referred to as the ‘Captain’s Quarters’. The mermaids ransacked the place, grabbing any seemingly useful thing they came across and jamming them into makeshift bags made of discarded shark eggs. But while the other mermaids made themselves busy, she sensed something… off. At first she thought it was just her- that sunken ships always felt this way, but then she smelled something odd, something… tasty. The walls of the room shimmered, revealing the largest octopus she had ever seen. The beast unfurled its’ tentacles, forcing the terrified pod into a corner, save one terrified individual who, trapped in the vice grip of a meaty red tentacle, found herself being drawn towards the beast’s massive beaked mouth. But while the others stared terrified, with a burst of speed she didn’t even know she had, LUNGED at the befuddled cephalopod, gripped the tentacle holding her podmate, and.. bit down. Later, the others would recount how they had seen a ten year old start ripping chunks out of the giant octopus with her teeth and swallowing them whole until, bewildered by this turn of events, the would be-monster had fled into the ocean. For her part, she mostly remembered the taste: a chewy and meaty texture, satisfying to bite into, with a clean, savory flavor. Afterward, she’d felt a soft, warm sensation radiating from her belly. So THIS was what feeling full felt like!

Victory, however, was short lived. From that day forward the rest of the pod kept a great deal of space between her and them, even the mermaid she’d rescued. Despite this, the Matriarch monitored her relentlessly, ensuring she only ate jellyfish and kelp. It was strange, really: even as they starved her, her tail grew longer and longer, her body thinner and thinner until, from head to fin tip, she was a full foot longer than Mama.

Face it freak, her sister whispered, there’s no place for you here. Best head out before Mama ends up in that belly of yours. And under the cover of night, that’s exactly what she did.

.   .   .

            So began a life of following the rich, fragrant smell of fish, travelling from island to island after vast silver schools, getting just enough energy to keep her going. She had mixed feelings about her predicament: on one hand, it was nice to be away from the judging eyes of her pod; never accidentally hurting someone she loved. And she liked travelling from island to island, seeing all the strange creatures she never would have seen if she’d just stayed with the pod: slugs the colors of rainbows, fish that jumped out of the water when she got too close, sharks with too long tails, just like hers, they snapped to stun their prey. Those were exciting.

But on the other, catching fish was much more difficult on her own than she had imagined. They were just so fast! It took all her energy just to snatch the tiniest morsel, and by then she’d be so exhausted she couldn’t hunt until the next day. At those times she’d sleep free floating with one eye open, so sharks couldn’t get her. There she would stay until her hunger woke her up again. Sometimes, a passing pod of dolphins would offer her something to eat, but their pity stung.

That all changed the day she found the sea turtle. The scent of mackerel had brought her right into a cloud of jellyfish, and as much as the things brought up bad memories, she was really in no condition to pass up a free, slow moving meal. Neither, it seemed, was the largest sea turtle she had ever seen. First she saw the head, easily big as her torso and wrinkled with age. Enormous black eyes gazed at nothing as it casually munched on jellyfish. Then the rest of the body revealed itself as it parted the cloud with massive gray flippers covered in large, stony scales. From these she carefully swam away from, lest a stray paddle accidentally shatter her bones. At first, she marveled at it- the thing must have been ancient! - and before long an idea popped into her head. Grabbing onto its’ barnacle coated shell, she consigned to letting the giant take her wherever it went. Tired, she let out a yawn, drifting with a barnacle grasped firmly in her hand.

.   .   .

She awoke to a very familiar, irresistible smell.

Octopus! Her stomach rumbled from the memory. Parting from the turtle, she sped off in the direction of the scent, licking her lips at the thought of her meal-to-be-! But she didn’t quite expect a school of some of the oddest things she had ever seen. Not octopus at all, but squid. They had tentacles, but these were short and close to the head. Bad for grabbing things (thank goodness) though opening and closing them seemed to move them through the water. And on top of their heads, they had a long, conical shell, perfect for cutting through the water. Or anything foolish enough to stand in their path, no doubt. Carefully, she navigated around the school, until she was directly behind one. With a kick of her tail, she lunged-

Only for the creature to shut its’ tentacles, darting away-

Right into the open maw of an even stranger creature.

When she saw it, her breath caught in her throat. They were in the open ocean! How could something so massive stay hidden?! Like a whale, it had smooth grey skin with a white belly and a long, sinuous body that ribboned up and down as it swam, like an eel’s. Opening a mouth of curved fangs (just like hers!) it bit down on the octopus-thing’s shell, shattering it into a thousand pieces. At the sound the rest of the shelled squids darted out into the ocean.

Great.

It wasn’t long before the whale-eel, sated by its’ meal, turned its’ attention to the strange intruder on its’ territory. She took the hint, swimming in the opposite direction of the beast as fast as she could go. Not fast, enough, apparently, because five seconds later the beast was ribboning after her, open jaws drawing incredibly close incredibly fast. She forced her long tail up and down as hard as it could go, but it wasn’t enough: the whale-eel was gaining. But desperation has a funny way of breeding ideas, and this moment was no different. Looking at the surface, she recalled the strange fish she had seen on her journey. With one final kick of her tail fin, she broke the surface of the water and launched into the air! Her heart beat quickly as, for the first time in her life, she felt the strange sensation of air on her skin. More importantly, though, she could see an island ahead of her, covered in lush jungle with mountains toward its’ center. And where an island was, there was bound to be shallow water. Too shallow for something the size of the whale-eel. Plunging back into the deep, she breached the surface, keeping up her momentum until, at last, the island loomed over her, vast and mysterious. But it wasn’t until she was nearly on the beach she finally checked behind her to find the whale-eel, thankfully, nowhere in sight.

She should have felt safe. She should have felt relief. But mostly she just felt exhausted. Exhausted, and hungry. With what little strength she had left, she swam across the shallows, trying to sense something moving through the sand.

.   .   .

For once, luck was on her side. Granted, the thing she uncovered scuttling beneath the sand- a flat oval with far too many eggs underneath- didn’t have much of the way of meat, but food was food, and there were more than plenty of them scuttling just beneath the sand. Now that there was food in her belly, and no danger in sight, she could let her situation sink in. Or rather, her sister.

So here you are, in an island full of ravenous monsters. Maybe one will eat you. Wouldn’t that be fitting?

She tried so swim, which usually helped her shake off bad thoughts, but these were firmly lodged in the back of her head.

Then again, better you get eaten than you hurt someone else.

But at the same time, she couldn’t just hide out in the tidal zone, she couldn’t just hide out in the surf scavenging for oval shaped crab-things forever. And so what if she died? Not like anyone would miss her. Which is how she found herself just a few days later, tepidly swimming back where she had come. The squids with shells were long gone, in their place a school of fishes whose heads seemed to be covered in hard bony plates she’d never seen before. They brushed past her, indifferent. Tailing them, she thought back to the squids, recalling their strange shells, and the odd crabs she had eaten near the shore. Seemed armor was a popular thing in these parts. Though considering what kinds of things they shared the sea with, it wasn’t hard to imagine why.

Speaking of the devil, surely enough the whale-eel couldn’t resist such a tasty looking school, and burst in, this time from the side to snare a hapless fish, biting down until it ceased struggling and then swallowing it whole. Part of her wondered what it must have tasted like, but at the moment she had bigger priorities. She screamed, and at first the beast ignored her, almost deliberately so. For better or worse, it didn’t. Soon they were squared off: on one side, a sharp toothed mermaid with an unusually long tail. On the other, an impossibly long killing machine that could easily shatter every bone in her body with a single flick of one of its’ flippers.

And they weren’t alone. From behind the mother happily swam another whale-eel, maybe a quarter a size of the other, staring with round, black eyes.

Her heart sunk. Mama.

The mother whale-eel tried to push her curious child away, to no avail. After all, who could resist the strange new potential playmate that had just come into the area? Of course, her mission had just become that much more complicated. It was one thing to face a monster, it was another to face her knowing she was a mama just looking after her baby. The scene was enough to make her consider going back to the seashore, when she noticed something rocketing out of the ocean depths. Like the whale-eel, it had flippers, a long tail; a pointed head full of teeth. But whereas the whale-eels were long and thin with smooth skin, this thing was covered in scales and absolutely massive. So much she felt herself being pushed upward by its’ movement. And it was headed right for the baby. Without a moment’s hesitation, she lunged for the baby, pushing the bewildered thing out of the path of danger. Once she slowed, she released the young whale-eel, who swam, panic-driven, away. Mama was nowhere to be seen. As for herself, she felt the glare of two baleful yellow eyes on her back, turning around just in time for the scaly monster to lunge again. But whereas she had qualms attacking a mother, she had no issues attacking a child hurting demon from the deep.

You’re a monster. Might as well act like it.

She charged the demon, stopping just before its’ wide, hungry jaws. Then, with breakneck timing, she spun around, flicking her long tail with a Snap! Right in the creature’s eye. An ocean-shaking howl rang out of the demon’s throat as she gripped its’ massive, muscular neck and bit down. HARD. The meat was too tendony and firm for her liking, breaking a few of her teeth, but she got her desired effect: blood seeping into the water.

Just like that, the energy left her body. It shouldn’t have been surprising, really, with how little food she’d been getting compared to how much energy she’d been using. Getting worn out was inevitable. And what better way to get worn out than by becoming part of the food chain? The last thing she felt before going unconscious was something powerful pushing against her.

.   .   .

            When she awoke, it was to the pleasant realization she wasn’t dead. Rather, she was being nuzzled by the very same baby whale-eel she had rescued earlier. Shoving its’ poking face away, she found herself riding on the back of none other than the mother. Somehow, the beast had carried her away from the scaly demon, into yet another strange school of creatures. They were not unlike the shelled squids, but their ridged shells coiled into a tight spiral rather than pointing forward. Her rescuer tossed her a dead one, its’ shell crushed by massive jaws, which she eagerly inhaled, the soft flesh sliding smoothly down her throat and into her belly. Sated, she clung to the back of the Mother whale-eel as it took her to the shallower waters on the coast of the island, where she’d (probably) be safe and sound. Letting go, she felt almost… sad to leave the majestic beast behind. Then again, maybe she didn’t have to. An idea raced through her head as she recalled her life back with her pod; how they would work together to catch fish.

But how to tell the whale-eel? She called for the creature, directing her attention to the sandy seafloor. Then, taking her index finger, stabbed it into the sand, drawing a picture of herself and the creature. The whale-eel and her child stared intently.

They understood. Good.

More drawings. Shelled squids. More whale eels. Herself.

They still looked, enraptured.

More complicated things. Movements. Ideas. Formations.

.   .   .

The dark grotto rested at the base of the island, and it was here she hesitated, its’ mouth ominous and disturbing. Still, this was where the whale-eel had directed her, and it was too late for her to back out on her word (metaphorically speaking). At the top of her lungs, she bellowed, surprised by how her voice vibrated off the grotto’s walls. It was strange, hearing her voice again after so long. Soon, another sound followed, this one the rapid movement of water as something vast as any whale but far more bloodthirsty surged through the grotto and eventually rocketing into the open sea. She did not wait for this moment to pass before she darted away fast as her sinuous tail could take her.

Long, tense moments passed. Maybe seconds, maybe minutes. She didn’t dare look behind her.

Justkeepswimmingjustkeepswimmingjustkeepswimming…

Until, at last, curiosity got the better of her, and she turned her head around to see those cavernous jaws wide open.

Now!

With a shriek she jerked upward, each flick of her tail rocketing her ever so close to the surface until-

Splash!

Her skin went cold as she popped into the open air. It was amazing how much she could see from her height, the vast ocean stretching out below her, birds circling some unseen prey above. Her heart beat ever so more quickly, all breath leaving her breathless. Crazy, how different everything looked from above!

A sharp pain rang out from the tip of her tail, dragging her away from ecstasy.

Oh. Right.

The force of a tidal wave dragged her back into the blue, no dount with the intent of swallowing the pesky girl whole.

It never got the chance.

From all sides lunged a quartet of whale-eels, the Mama and three others that had been coaxed into joining the plan. Normally, such a maneuver would have been reckless: the scaled demon would have easily ripped one of them to shreds. But with an adequate distraction, the four normally solitary predators rended the flesh of their adversary without mercy. A great bellow shook the ocean as the demon fled, massive plumes of blood spewing from its’ wounds.

Now, she wasn’t an expert on big, scaly demons, but she had a strong feeling it wouldn’t be coming around anytime soon.

As for the whale eels…

They formed a ring around her, staring intently in a way that made her nervous.

How fitting an end, to defeat monsters only to be betrayed by others. Can’t say I blame them; probably frightened to death of your grotesque, horrid…

But the whale-eels made no effort to devour her. Instead, they bowed their triangular heads, and went their separate ways, like friends at the end of a playdate.

.   .   ,

When the astonishment wore off, a single question bubbled to the surface of her mind:

What now?

Well, for starters, there was the vacant grotto, and it would be nice to have a place to hide out…

The floor of the dark cavern was littered with the pale bones of a thousand different types of sea creatures. Amongst them, he noticed several crab-things skittering about, picking what flesh they could from them. She smiled ever so slightly at this. Exploring the dark cavern with creepy crawlies was better than being alone. Fortunately, it seemed these would not be the only things keeping her company: there were fish here too, albeit ones with something… off about them. Maybe it was their large, fleshy fins, of which there seemed too many. Maybe it was their broad, spade-like tails. Maybe it was their scales, black peppered white like the night sky, or their large, milky eyes, round as a full moon. But they moved rarely, content to float in place, so she let them be.

The bones, on the other hand…

She had never seen so many. And from so many different creatures, too! Turtle shells and squid shells, the skulls of whales and of fearsome, carnivorous fish, it would take weeks to sort through them all. An especially large skull of some toothy predator caught her attention first, and with all her strength she dragged it to the entrance of her newfound home. She could already see those empty eye sockets gazing fiercely from above the grotto’s entrance. It was going to look awesome!

No sooner had she reached that point, however, than she noticed someone had beaten her there. Scattered about were large, colorful shells, along with hunks of meat from all a matter of creatures, so fresh their blood was still seeping into the water.

Her eyes lit up as the scent entered her nose. A moment later, her instincts kicked in.

.   .   .

A few minutes later, a very full and satisfied mermaid let out a belch; a fat, lazy bubble escaping her mouth and wobbling ever so slowly to the surface. As the effects of a food coma set in, she shut her eyes and grinned. Crazy as it seemed, even with all the monsters around, maybe, just maybe she could make a home in this crazy place. 

There’s some real good stuff here. Admittedly I don’t have much planned for the mermaid and thus haven’t given much thought to her backstory, but while I can’t promise that I’ll use all of this, some might make its way in.

[leahnar]

A Memory To Remind You....

My first memory that I can recall with my mother, it’s summer, not hot, sunset, burnt orange Camaro with a fin, we’re on New York Street.

My sister, Melissa lived off New York Street in many different houses with many different people, chaos, her life was chaos. Well get to her role In my story another day.

Mom was there for a reason I can’t remember, probably to drop off money or maybe to check and see if she was alive, again, well get to her another day.

We were pulling out of the driveway onto this busy road, New York Street. SMACK.

I remeber my forehead hitting the back on my moms seat. It hurt. I was scared. My first accident.

There my mom went, I remeber seeing her long brown hair blow by the side window I could barely see out of. Then I heard it. The screaming. It’s something I grow used to with time but at 6, it scared me.

I remeber seeing the vains in her neck popping out. Her right balled fist punching this strangers window. She was rage. She was Fear. I remember her screaming “my kids in the car you mother fucker!”

The same kid you didn’t even check on before you were out in the middle of New York Street threatening someone’s life over a dented bumper.

Thats mom, hot headed, knee jerk reactor, angry, means well, a bear of a mother or so it was. The good Lord and the Bible slowed her down.

I felt anxiety for the first time that day.

My first memory with my father is a doozy and a little boozy, but are we shocked in any way. Beer is what makes that guy go.

It was Saturday, I only remeber because those were the only days he’d see me, sometimes not even then.

It was a good day at his house. My step mom made breakfast and me and my step sister got to be outside all day. She was my best friend when I went over there. I remember wishing I had her life, that my dad would want to spend time with me like he did with her. It took me 29 years to realize he hurt his kids and my step moms too. Bitterness, well get there.

I remember my step mom had to work. She put on her apron and out the door she went. My dad grabbed a beer and then another and another.

Eminem was playing in the background. My step sister loves him. Then you hear the door, Little Jerry’s here And dads about to get tanked, while on his court ordered visitation to see me.

1 led to 2, which led to 4, which led to 7, I can still hear the cans crushing on the floorboard.

Oh we’re driving now, well dad is, with no driving’s license since before I was born.

He had to drop me off, his night was just getting started and I was in the way. He didn’t care about his kids, he didn’t care about my step moms kids, he cared about himself. Always has, Always will.

He hit the gas, hard. I was too little to see over the dash, I remeber his voice cracking as he reved the engine And hollered “yeehaw” as we flew over train tracks, airborn, Busch light cans flew from the backseat to the front seat when our tires touched the pavement again.

I didn’t want to upset him, I seen the fun he was having in his eyes, he looked happy, he never looked happy around me, but I was scared.

Anxiety, I felt it again.

The mind Is a funny thing, this organ that controls us. It controls us until the age we decide to control it.

I spent my whole life running from the memories and the feelings that came with those memories.

The same time I was running from them, I was slowing down and trying to find myself in the memories.

My first REAL fight, I was 14, she was short, chewed her gum like a horse eating hay and when she talked you we’re going to hear her I grew up in the city of Aurora, we all were like that, it’s the only way to survive it. The tension had grown, she elbowed me in my rib, in a basketball game, that you make physical contact with people for a reason for. 14 year old me couldn’t handle it. 14 year old Leahna raged, I called her every name in the book, I threw the ball right past her head, barely missing. She scowled back at me. I stood there my chest tightening, my nails cutting into my palm so hard it bleed. Black.

Its the color I seen, when I came to I was on top of her, my fist hitting her right cheek so hard her left cheek bounced off the hard wood floor in the gym. I couldn’t think, I couldnt breathe. Blood was gushing from her nose.The coach ripped my jersey pulling me off of her.

The anxiety was back.

Hello Mother, it’s come to my attention the anger you portrayed to the world I have it to, we’re just alike me and you.

I could start a story about my first beer but to save some face and not get anyone in trouble we’ll start with this one.

Im 15, I’m in Southern Illinois visiting a friend, summer break. My mom sent me off places like it was nothing, I was always at someone else house.

We got one of the boys to get us some booze ‘steal it’ we said. They did. While they were gone we raided my friends moms medicine cabinet and a coke can with a compartment for weed. At 15 we said, all in. My friends down there, man they were friends for life, we knew what home life was like, we knew what we were seeing, we knew the horrors of growing up like we did. We just wanted to be numb and for a bunch of kids that shouldn’t of know nothing about it, we sure knew a lot. The boys were back, no chasers, no cups. We were 15 we wanted red cups and for it to not burn going down are adolescent esophagus. We ran into town for a coke can from a vending machine on the side of the road, it’s southern Illinois, that’s normal.

We crushed the can into this odd shaped with a hole in the top. My friend crunching up the weed like a giant picking a flower. We were really about to do this, everything we’re feeling we just didn’t want to feel anymore.

We smoked weed all the time but we’d never drank a bottle of Hot Damn, a nug of dirt weed and a whole bunch of pills from her moms medicine cabinet.

Bottoms Up. Black.

Hello Father, it’s come to my attention that your Addiction has now become mine, I to like the feeling of not feeling anything, we are so alike me and you.

The mind is a funny thing.

Im working on myself. I’m 614 days sober. I use breathing techniques to bring my rage to a simmer. I pay a therapist 200 dollars a month to properly deal with my life.

They are just memories now.

Memories Hurt. Memories remind me why I’m paying my therapist 200 dollars a month to help me cope.

Everyone wants to talk about how memories are “life changing” and freeing.

Bullshit, they hurt. They suck to look at. To Remember is a human brain function I wish we didn’t have, like a gold fish. gold fish have no idea what day it is.

Itd be great to forget. But would it?

memories also remind us of our perseverance,our strength,our reasons.

damn you, memories.

[sunsent]

@craterkissed sent: how much can you change and get away with it, before you turn into someone else, before it’s some kind of murder? - from jecht of course B 3c

Jecht is Sin, and Auron is dead, and Auron rides Sin to Zanarkand...

----

Auron’s dreaming. He thinks he’s dreaming, anyways. Jecht and him are side by side standing on a beautiful fresco dais. Yevons symbols are glowing beneath their feet and across from them is a Yevvonite saint. It doesn’t need to make sense. Dreams rarely do. It’s hard to see what exactly happens in the dream. He knows he’s facing Lady Yunalesca. 

He knows they both die. That’s the end of the dream. He keeps trying to wake up from it and failing. There’s the end blow, and then Auron’s standing again like nothing happened yet, and Jecht’s still standing beside him. After the seventh time bleeding out, he loses track of what is supposed to happen, and crawls down the stairs into the ethereal black of the dream chamber.

This time, he wakes up and he remembers Sin attacking Bevelle from below the water. (It didn’t look like Sin. It didn’t seem like Sin- and no one panicked too much). He also remembers calling Jecht’s name, and swimming after him.

Auron turns onto his back with a wince. There’s a black sky above him with orange sunset painted clouds. The ground below him is rough, and moving. There’s a persistent lull in his head.

‘You still alive?!’

Auron looks down at his stomach and legs. There’s parts of him that haven’t decided if they’re bleeding out, falling out, or suturing themselves together with pyreflies. His clothing is destroyed. 

He watches the overhead dart of a fish hawk coast by and prays that it’s not going to land and start eating him.

“No,” he shoots back, choking up the words with another bout of bloody spit. His body can’t decide what it should do and he can’t move without feeling like he’s being ripped apart. The compromise was to lie here and grip at the creature moving them through the sea with a constant drone of noise. They must have been traveling for the entire day.

Auron wipes the bloody spittle off his mouth with the back of his hand.

‘Come on, you dead stiff. I want you to see this.’

Sin rumbles. Hellish whale songs. They don’t scare him anymore. His body can’t decide if its dead so when he sits up his side folds like a gutted fish’s under his armor. Jecht’s voice in between his ears rattles on as his vision blurs. He’d feel like vomiting if he could feel his stomach.

‘See that?! Told you- I told you it was there.’

“What-?” he chokes, swallowing and blinking with his left eye. The right one’s still clotted up with bandaging. 

“Zanarkand.”

‘Hell yeah, that’s my Zanarkand- believe me now?’

He didn’t have a choice.

There’s a line of buildings that look like polished silver marble. In each building there are rows and rows of windows lit from the inside. The entire coastline from what he can see is a gargantuan silhouette larger than the monster he’s riding on. The sky’s lit above the city like it’s on fire and he can hear... sound even from here.

It’s such a sight. It’s a sight that puts his feet under him and gets him to stand and brace on the monster’s fin. One of its huge eyes swiveled in place to watch him.

Sin stops in the ocean a mile from shore, the haze of the ocean swallowing them both.

Auron stood at the great height of Sin’s head and the wind caught his coat. The sun disappeared behind the monolithic buildings and the causeways caught the sliver of orange on their metal rims. The city lights up with one wave of brilliant light. 

It’s beautiful. He doesn’t have the language to describe it. All he has is the look on his bloody face. 

‘Pretty cool right?’

“How am I supposed to find your son?”

‘Wanna come back to my place?’

He could see the ghost of Jecht sneering at him and flipping his hair from the corner of his eye.

It deflated the moment and Auron smiled, which he was thankful for. Auron looked down at the side he was holding together, willing it closed. Pyreflies seeped from the inside and he watched the hole he’d ripped open gently erase itself. 

You’re dead. Be dead.

“Tell me where you live.”

There’s a gentle pulse in his head and there’s a vision of a boat- something on this coast. There’s streets and people he passes all lit with wild abandon. There’s a racket of noise, a blitzball game in the dark. Nightcrawlers. The information blazes through his head. A houseboat somewhere, then.

‘We should've slept together before I was a fucking whale.’

“Glad you can still act like nothing’s wrong,” Auron says, and Sin starts moving again, sinking. Jecht growls in his head.

‘Find my kid. His mom ain’t going to do it for him. He needs somebody like you.’

“Jecht- I’m not going to make it to shore if you--”

‘Aren’t you dead? Just walk on the bottom! I gotta go, Auron.’

Sin keeps sinking, and Auron holds on to the fin until the rush of water hits and tears him off. His body is caught in the undertow. 

‘Auron-- keep your promises.’

The buzz in his head lasts for precious few moments. It’s not enough, and he falls.

[thisgirlsays22]

Happy birthday @askmermanlevi!! Love you lots and I hope you know that me attempting my first mer!smut for you demonstrates that love. Thank you for being an amazing friend and for giving the fandom so so many amazing pieces of art <3

Chapters: 1/1 Rating: Explicit Relationships: Levi/Eren Yeager Additional Tags: Top Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Bottom Eren Yeager, mer Levi, Shifter Levi, Smut, Mer Smut, Fluff, pining eren, Oral Sex, Anal Fingering, Established Relationship, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Modern Era Summary:

It wasn’t as though Levi had completely shut down the idea of having sex when he shifted, it was that he needed time, and it would be wrong for Eren to keep pushing. So instead he waited, and yearned, and waited some more.

Plot inspired by the @ereriprompts Redamancy prompt <3

Thank you so much to @attraversiamo19 @zamiraruth @erensjaegerbombs for betaing/feedback <3

Eren loved to watch Levi swim. Body slicing through the lake’s clear water, the blues of his tail glittering when the sun hit them just right. This was their third visit to the Ackerman family’s lake house, and Eren looked forward to the quiet week ahead.

“Caught dinner.” The (mostly) human half of Levi’s body had emerged from the water and, with a small smirk, his webbed hands dropped a still flopping, gasping catfish down on the rocky ground in front of Eren. The gills on the side of Levi’s neck fluttered in the fresh air.

“I think we’ll need another,” Eren said, wanting to watch Levi dive back in, aquamarine tail rising to the surface as he disappeared below the water. Full of an odd longing, Eren tugged on the strings of his hoodie, pulling the fabric tighter to protect against the chilly November air.

That small smirk again. “Well, alright then.” Levi dove back under.

Eren put the fish out of its misery and began gutting it with Levi’s silver pocket knife as he waited.

The second time Levi emerged, he got out of the water the whole way, legs and all. No trace left of the his translucent fins, his shimmery tail. A flicker of disappointment went through Eren.

“You’re indecent,” Eren teased, catching sight of Levi’s cock. “No one wants to see that. Put it away!”

Levi chuckled, teeth chattering as he rooted around in his backpack for his towel and clothes.

“I could warm you up,” Eren offered lowly.

Seeing Levi in his mer form always got Eren worked up. His eyes roamed Levi’s body hungrily, wishing for once he’d let Eren love him in his other form. Levi didn’t acknowledge the comment.

Levi grabbed his bag. “Well, come on. What are you waiting for? I’m starving.”

Eren cast one final look out at the clear lake, nestled between the mountains. The sky beyond looked vast, and Eren felt a little hopeful as he gazed out at the horizon. Like the trip was full of promise and possibility.

He followed Levi back to the house.  

     It wasn’t as though Levi had completely shut down the idea of having sex when he shifted, it was that he needed time, and it would be wrong for Eren to keep pushing. So instead he waited, and yearned, and waited some more.

He understood. At first, Eren was wary of fucking Levi when he wasn’t entirely human. Would doing so make him a fish-loving, bestiality-inclined freak?

“You’re being an idiot,” Levi had said. “Besides, you’re the fucking animal.”

So yeah, Eren understood having hang-ups about the whole thing, but he didn’t quite understand what Levi’s were; they were clearly not one in the same.  

He didn’t even quite understand his fascination, his desire. Maybe it stemmed from the envy Eren felt that Levi had the chance to alter himself so thoroughly, to wear a new skin, whenever he pleased. Something Eren longed for too. Perhaps if he fused Levi and himself together, if it felt like they were one, then Eren could alter himself as well.

     Tonight was their first night at the lake house, so unsurprisingly Levi was dusting all the surfaces in his rapid, efficient way while the fish was in the oven.

Eren had joined in without much enthusiasm and kept getting distracted by how good Levi’s ass looked in his jeans. Maybe it’s better he won’t let me fuck him when he’s a mermaid--man. Shit. He’s going to kill me if I keep getting that wrong. Would he fuck me or would I have to figure out how to fuck him? I’d miss his ass. He has a great ass.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Levi had stopped cleaning and was staring at Eren in disbelief. “Now isn’t the time for daydreaming. Have you seen what a shithole this place is?”

“You’re the one who wanted to go for a swim first and then put dinner on,” Eren whined. “Now I’m tired.”

“Don’t be such a baby.”

“I told you we should have just hired a cleaner to come last week.”

Levi waved a hand. “Tch. Waste of money. Go get the vacuum or something. If you’ve got time for leaning, you’ve got time for cleaning.”

“I wasn’t leaning, I was standing up straight and admiring your ass.”

“Oh, thanks,” Levi’s voice was flat, but that wasn’t his sarcastic tone, so Eren took it as a win. “Now go vacuum.”

Eren paused in the doorway, biting his lower lip.

Levi turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow. “You okay?”

“I’ve just been thinking again. Since I saw you in the water,” Eren said haltingly. “Have you thought more about us--” he gestured between them, raising his eyebrows “--while you’ve shifted.”

“Mm.” Levi shrugged. “A little.”

“Oh,” Eren said. After a beat, he realised Levi wasn’t going to add anything. “So I’ll just...go get that vacuum then.” He turned on his heels, embarrassed at his lack of tact. Hoping to impress Levi, he vacuumed all the more diligently.

     On their third night at the lake house, apropos of nothing, Levi said, “You still want to be a fish fucker?” He was reorganising one of the bookshelves--“Kenny must have been here last, he never puts anything away in the right place.”--on the other side of the room, and Eren was sure he hadn’t heard him properly. Levi’s vague answer the other night had led Eren to believe the discussion would not be picked up for some time (or ever again.)

It was so out of the blue that Eren could only manage to pause his video game and stare blankly at Levi’s back. “What?”

“I’m not saying it again.” The tips of Levi’s ears had gone red, but he was still fussing with the bookshelf.

“Oh god,” Eren breathed, the implication of Levi’s words finally hitting him, “you’re really going to let me?”

“Yes.”

“Seriously?”

Now Levi turned to glare at him. “Yes.”

“No but like for real? You’re not fucking with me?”

“If you don’t knock it off, then it won’t be for real.”

“Sorry sorry! I’m just wow. Wow.” Though he was curious what was going on in Levi’s head right now, what was to thank or blame for his sudden change of heart, Eren feared if he started to push, Levi would rescind the offer. “So how do you want to do this?”

     Once the initial thrill wore off one thing became clear: logistically, it was a nightmare.

It made a sort of weird sense; their whole relationship had been a bit of a logistical nightmare. An innocent question like, “So how did you two meet?” required planning, the harmless twisting of facts, the synchronisation of stories.

Eren couldn’t exactly answer, “Well, I was swimming in the ocean when I was seventeen when a rip tide pulled me under out of nowhere, and then the lifeguard who was also part mermaid-- man damn it. Shit sorry--saved me. I couldn’t stay away from the beach after that and when I finally turned eighteen he fucked me silly on a beach towel and wouldn’t stop complaining about sand in his ass. Yep that’s the love of my life Levi Ackerman for ya. He comes from a long line of merfolk who seem to own a lot of waterfront properties. Great eye for real estate, those mer men and women. Levi and I have been together for about three years now and he still won’t let me fuck him in his mer form, which is a real bummer.”

Now that Levi had finally said yes after all this time, it became clear that the biggest problem was where and how they would do the deed.

“What about the lake?”

Levi snorted. “It’s too fucking cold, especially for you. Your dick’ll shrink to the size of a peanut.”

“Point taken. What about the bathtub?”

Levi scrubbed a hand over his face. “I’m fine outside of water for about two hours. I’ll shift in the tub and you can--” he cringed “--carry me to the bedroom. But put a towel down so the sheets don’t get wet and disgusting.”

Once they’d agreed on the bed, Levi ran a bath in the claw tub in the master bedroom’s bathroom. The loud rush of water filling the tub was the only sound between them until Eren said, “Do you want me to leave while you, you know?”

With a bored expression, Levi flicked his gaze to Eren. “Be a bit stupid of me to care if you see me shift at this point. You might as well stay. Maybe it’ll scare you off.”

“It won’t,” Eren said firmly. Levi shrugged one shoulder as if to say suit yourself.

As Levi had requested, Eren went to lay some of their dark towels down on the bed. When he returned the tub was full, and Levi stripped and lowered himself in the water. Eren licked his lips, nerves thrumming. His skin felt electrified with anticipation, goosebumps running up the length of his arms.

Submerged in water, Levi’s body was blurred, but Eren watched as his legs began to fuse together, slowly, at first and then suddenly they were one. That’s when the scales began to form, color blooming into different shades of blue along the tail. Smaller fins emerged at the point where his hip bones would have been and at the end of the tail. His gills were next, opening at the top of his throat as his ears contracted into sharp points, webs appearing between his fingers. Nails becoming clawed and black like a beast’s.   

“Is this really what you want?” Levi asked, the muscles of his abdomen flexing as he hoisted himself into an upright position. Eren caught sight of his sharp incisors as he spoke. There was something even more alluring about Levi like this, the ugliness and power mixed in with all that beauty. The lighter blue fins of his tail fanned themselves at the base of the tub as though testing the air, Levi’s eyes dark and suspicious as he studied Eren.   

A sharp intake of breath as Eren returned the scrutiny. His cock stirred and then strained against his jeans. “Yes.”  

“Well, what are you waiting for? I’m not fucking you like this if you make me army crawl to the bedroom.”

Eren lifted him from the tub, getting used to the new weight in his arms, the slippery feeling of Levi’s wet tail. In his human form, Levi was bulky and muscular already, but his tail was heavier than Eren had expected.

“Careful,” Levi said, voice gentle now. “My fins are sensitive. Make sure they don’t catch on anything.” His arms came up to wrap around Eren’s neck, and Eren could see flecks of gold in the piercing grey of his eyes. Eren swore the color looked different now; the dark grey of his irises lighter.

Eren swallowed and nodded, his mouth dry as he carefully maneuvered them through to the bedroom.

“You remembered the towels,” Levi said appreciatively. He reached for one to dry himself off, leaving another on top of the bed.

“I’m not fucking this up so easily,” Eren replied.

Due to his overeagerness in the past, Eren had accumulated an assortment of embarrassing situations: kneeing Levi in the balls, falling off the bed while changing positions, coming in his pants. This time he would be careful, smooth.

He moved so he was hovering over Levi, hesitant to let his hands wander or to rest his full weight down. But kissing, kissing he could do, so he started there. He slipped his tongue into Levi’s mouth, curious to explore the feel of the newly sharp points of Levi’s teeth, the otherness of it all. His cock throbbed as Levi responded in kind, running his nails down Eren’s back, sucking Eren’s tongue farther into his mouth. Wanting to feel Levi, to see if he was as turned on as Eren, he reached for him only to find...air.  

Eren pulled back and looked between them with a confused frown. “Where’s your dick?”

Levi snorted. “It’s in the slit. I mentioned it before.”

Eren had only a vague recollection of this. They’d never really gone into the mechanics of how this would work. “When does it come out of the slit?” Eren asked, furrowing his brow. He ran a curious finger along the soft edge of the slit, surprised and delighted when Levi gave a full body shiver.

“When you get me excited,” Levi replied.

“Does it excite you when I do this?” Eren murmured, dipping a second finger into the slit. He kissed Levi’s neck, just under his gills, and moved his fingers in slow circles. He could feel Levi’s pulse quickening under his tongue, and when Eren pulled back he could see that Levi had closed his eyes.

He could feel his cock now too, hard and wanting as it emerged from the slit. It was slick with Levi’s arousal and hotter to the touch than Eren had ever felt it before. Though the feeling was different, Eren was pleased to see that it was still recognisable as the same dick he worshiped regularly. He gave it an appreciative stroke, enjoying the warmth spreading through his hand as he glided up and down the slick shaft.

Levi’s tail came up to wrap around Eren’s ass, to pull him closer, and Eren let out a soft moan. The scales were cool and firm against Eren’s skin, a little uncomfortable actually, and it was strange not to be able to tangle his legs with Levi’s.    

“Your tail feels weirdly...strong.”

“There are muscles in there,” Levi said, and squeezed a little tighter. “You not enjoying it? Grass always greener?”

“It’s just taking some getting used to,” Eren admitted. “But no, I think I like it.” He ran his hand from Levi’s human waist down to where his tail began, fingers testing and pressing into the scaled, strong flesh. New and strange and Levi .

The corner of Levi’s lips quirked into a small, half-smile, and Eren bent forward to kiss him again. They stroked one another, rubbing their cocks together. He could tell Levi was being more careful with his touch than usual, careful to keep the hooks of his nails from hurting Eren.

“Would it feel good if I went down on you?”

Levi snorted. “What do you think? Don’t be a moron.”

“Be nice or I won’t suck you off,” Eren warned.  

Levi didn’t say a word.

It was strange not to be able to shift down between Levi’s legs. Instead, Eren knelt before Levi on his right side as he began to explore the slit with his tongue, running teasing circles around Levi’s dick.

He ran a hand up Levi’s tail, where his thigh would have been, and inadvertently provoked a full-body shiver from Levi.

With a hiss of pleasure, Levi said, “Do that again.”

“What did I--?”

“Around the fins.”

Eren moved his hand back down and ran his thumb around the soft fins, his tongue still running teasing circles around the base of Levi’s cock.

“Happy you decided to try this tonight?” Eren asked, lifting his head so he could see Levi.

Voice pitched low, Levi said, “I’m coming around.”

Levi’s hips jerked as Eren enveloped him into the tight heat of his mouth, cock ramming down the back of Eren’s throat in his surprised pleasure. It only took a few sucks before Levi tugged Eren’s head up, said, “I need to be inside you.”

Eren turned himself so that he was facing Levi’s tail and eased himself down onto his waiting cock, letting himself be filled to the brim.

Levi groaned softly. “You were ready for me already?”

“Yeah,” Eren said, voice breathless. He’d prepared himself earlier in anticipation for this, biting back his moans in the bathroom as he’d opened himself up, imagining this moment.

As he moved, he bent forward so that he could finger Levi. He timed his movements with Levi’s thrusts.

“Jesus fuck,” Levi gasped as Eren added a second finger. “I always thought it was fucked up that my asshole is on the front, but I’m starting to think I was wrong.”

Laughing softly, Eren shifted so he could gain more leverage with his knees and lift himself a little higher. Levi’s hands came to rest on his hips, and he was panting beneath Eren, thrusting up into him with barely contained strength.

“God, you feel so good,” Eren said, pausing his movements. “But I really want to see you now.” He slid off Levi’s cock and turned around to take in Levi, fucked out, forehead damp with perspiration, lips bitten red. His eyes were so dark with lust that Eren let out a soft, breathy moan. “You look so good too.”

He knew he was the only one who had seen Levi quite like this, and he understood what a gift it was. Eren drank him in, he trailed kisses across the part of Levi’s body where the human muscles ended and the blue hues of his tail began. Fingers rubbing that tender area at the base of his fins. It was rare that Levi was vocal in bed, but he kept whispering Eren’s name like it was a surprise each time Eren touched him just right.    

Eren nearly sobbed with pleasure when Levi was inside of him once more and he’d wrapped a hand around Eren’s cock.

“ Eren .” Levi gave a bitten-off moan, hips bucking up as he rutted into Eren desperately. The back of his head tipped back, tips of his pointed ears brushing against the headboard.  

Eren could barely formulate words, but he managed to choke out, “Christ you look so fucking beautiful like this. Fuck me harder, please, ” he begged, moving his hips to try to take Levi in deeper.

Maybe this was the only way he’d get Levi to accept a compliment without argument because there was no flippant reply, no changing of the subject. Instead, Levi pulled him forward into a searing kiss. His lips moving against Eren’s like a drowning man, and that was it for Eren. He came in hot, stick bursts all over Levi’s chest, and a moment later Levi gave one final, deep thrust and came too.

     “Why now?” Eren asked the next morning. Sunlight flooded the kitchen overlooking the shimmering lake. He was standing by the sink, waiting for his pot of coffee to brew when he’d finally worked up the courage to ask these questions. “Why never before?”

Sometimes Levi could be coaxed into talking about his feelings, but as the silence dragged on, Eren doubted this was one of those times.

Levi took a sip of his tea before finally saying, “I’ve never had sex in my mer form before.”

Eren already knew that piece of information, but he stayed silent and still as he waited for Levi to continue.

“I was afraid if we started you might hate it. It’s part of me, part of who I am. Who the Ackermans are.”

Puzzled, Eren said, “But that’s exactly why I love it. Love you.”

“You also might have loved it too much,” Levi said wryly.

“What do you mean?”

Levi crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair. Light cut across his face, streaking across his cheeks as he sighed. “There’s a world out there of people who are willing to pay good money to fuck someone like me. I don’t want to be someone’s fetish either.” 

They’d turned up the heat that morning, but the kitchen hadn’t yet warmed. Eren frowned down at his fuzzy slippers. He couldn’t possibly think of Levi that way, the thought of it completely alien. It pained him to think that Levi had believed that this whole time, that maybe Eren’s own worries had fed into Levi’s fears.

He spoke carefully, “You know it’s been three years, right? And that I’m in this, really in this. It’s not because you’re a shifter or in spite of you being a shifter. That’s irrelevant. I love you .”

“Alright,” Levi said, looking into his tea cup as though it was telling him something important.

“If that makes me a fish fucker so be it.”

Levi’s eyes cut to Eren’s and he laughed, his arms dropping by his sides as he relaxed.

Coming to stand before Levi, Eren rested his hands on his shoulders, made him put his tea down. “I meant what I said last night too.”

“What? ‘Fuck me harder, please’?”

“Yeah, and the part where I called you beautiful. You are. All the versions of you.”

“Thanks,” Levi said reluctantly, expression blank. “That’s...good.”

He probably was dying to tell Eren to fuck off, so Eren’s words must have really touched him if that was the reply. Eren grinned. “And I hope we can do it again so I can fuck you next time.”

“Idiot.” Levi tugged Eren onto his lap, laughing quietly as he rested his forehead against Eren’s arm. “We’ll see,” he said.

And that was enough for Eren.

[royalrastafariannaynays]

Laundry Pods, Ch 10/?

The fishy guy ended up giving you a list. He knows what eggs are, despite yours being strangely hard shelled, and he wants more of them. He also says to bring a few handfuls of seaweed, the gross tangly green kind, some clean sand from a tide pool, a thin knife, and... that was it.

You end up throwing a first aid kit into a couple waterproof ziplocs for the hell of it. And a bottle of clean, fresh water. To drink, in case you get stuck wherever the fuck this dude is hiding.

No one is downstairs to give you weird looks, thank fuck. When you venture beyond the first floor, no one is upstairs, either. Did they all go out?

Wait, Jake’s bedroom door is closed. Ah. Dirk is there to observe you, then. Or he’s uh... occupied. With what, you don’t even want to know. At most innocent, he’s sitting and pining over him in silence. The lack of crying noise is telling, however, and you’re really hoping he’s just sleeping.  

Blech.

The sand is spicy hot on your toes when you skid down off the last porch step again after inching the back door closed. Your satchel of random shit is heavy on your shoulder, and you make sure to be a bit careful. Don’t wanna break any eggs. 

Down at the beach, you feel the prod and welcome it fully into your mind. It retracts a tad from its next poke, and seems to sit respectfully just outside your surface thoughts. A series of locations and notions leads you to place the bag of stuff right on the end of the dock. You sit with it, eyeing the steep slope of the beach for a moment while you face the mental silence. 

“Uhm.” you feel. It’s not really the word so much as something like hesitation and stalling. You get the same feeling as a regular ‘um’ so you’ll just stick with that. 

“What?” you say out loud, still struggling in the translations and stuff. His language is so particular. Maybe like. Is it anything like hieroglyphics? Nah, can’t be. 

With some struggle on his part, FG (fish guy) admits that he can’t come out of wherever he is to retrieve the items. It takes him about five minutes of edging uncomfortably around his original statement, and then points out that with how he’s hurt, like. He can’t move to fish, so coming out to get the stuff is just short of impossible. 

“How am I supposed to get it to you, then?” you ask, frown tilting your brow. You drop your legs into the water, noting that with the level of the tide, it’s not that far from the top of the dock. 

“I think you’ll have to bring it to me,” FG says, with no small amount of fear and regret in his voice. So he’s scared of you, but he knows you have brittle bones and soft skin, and he could easily rip you apart for breakfast. 

There’s a deeper underlying fear there, too. It’s one that every sentient being sees. Maybe every being whose existence isn’t based on that fear. Death. He doesn’t want to die. Does he honestly think he’s going to die? 

“In case you didn’t notice, humans can’t breathe underwater,” you snark at him. 

The feeling you get next is long-suffering. 

“I’m aware, two-legs,” it tells you. “But fortunately I can breathe in both surface and ocean. So I am in a...” 

He hesitates. Either he’s not sure how to place it, or he doesn’t want to tell you. 

It seems to be a combination of both. 

He sends an image of the inside of a small cave, lit strangely blue. It’s bright, but damp and bare. 

“Please do not reveal this to other humans,” he... begs you. 

Oh God. 

“Yeah, yeah,” you say, not wanting to get into something too serious or dark. “I won’t. Show me how to get in there.” 

He probes a little further into your mind, laying down tiles of thought and mortar of intent and instruction. Images of the rock pile near the dock, and then a tunnel. Oh wow. There was a tunnel in there? That has to go down beneath the beach. Holy shit. 

Without delay, after trying your best to throw an affirmative his way, you drop the bag gently into the water. When you get in yourself, you dive, away from the bag. Its strings are harder to manipulate underwater, and you have to leave your shades on the dock, but when you get going, you feel like a regular fuckin merdude. 

Or somethin’. 

So anyways, FG is silent except for a few pointers on direction. Literal pointers. 

It’s hard holding your breath that long, and at one point you feel a little like you’re going to panic, but you give it one last shove through the two-foot-diameter, dark, rock passage. Surfacing feels like heaven, and you brace yourself on the edge of the water, gasping hoarsely. Okay, you need more breathing training. That’s going to be HELLA annoying to go back through. But at least you can just push off the bottom to get back to the dock. 

Once you’ve got some air back, though, you notice that the subterranean air pocket is a lot dimmer than FG showed you. It’s still lit enough to see, and still that same, strange blue. 

Something like a small and bubbling murmur touches your ears, and you look up. 

There he is. 

Fishy man sitting there, one arm held protectively over his middle. The other is bracing him up against the wall, claws digging harshly into the cave floor. There are a few scratches there already, leading away from the pool you’re still pruning in. 

“Hey,” you say. And he makes this bewildered face, ear-fins fanning out. His pupils are large in his eyes, which seem this weird purple-brown in the blue lighting. They don’t glow. 

But his entire body does. 

As you lift the satchel out of the water, you look him over from tail to hair. And man, he’s got a lot of hair. It’s just as wiry and scratchy-looking as it was behind the thin veil of bubbles. Other than that, and the single dorsal fin you see splayed out against the wall, same as his fanned ears, you can’t focus on anything but the glowing. 

Almost like they’re coming from beneath his skin, Fish Guy is covered in spots of brilliant luminescence. The spots range from teal to pink. Several ring his neck up and down like a necklace, or a collar, and the same trail up the sides of his face and back to his ears. Each tip of the earfins is spotted with little fragments of light. 

Those ones are red. But a majority of them are blue. Soft, blue, like glow-sticks if they were just given a little more ‘umph’. Constellations of little spots dot his torso in what’s probably interesting configurations if viewed from afar, and then all the way down his. 

Holy shit. 

His tail is like. It’s covered entirely by those same iridescent scales, like the one on your bedside table. The scales are also on his face, and neck, and everywhere that fins recede into his skin, like the backs of his arms and the webs of his fingers. 

No nipples, which is. 

Weird. 

Kyle XY shit with the lack of bellybutton, too. 

“Stop staring,” he says, and when you’re this close, it’s punctuated by a sharp snarl. It rolls from the back of his throat, and forward into his lungs, and even out the gill slits that dot the side of his torso. They seem plastered to him, just lines, right now. Maybe this is the...

“I said, stop!” he repeats. The prod turns to a knife for half a second, and you have to let go of the bag to hold the side of your head. 

The bag turns over, sliding a little open. The eggs tumble out, along with the chunk of seaweed. 

The seaweed which is immediately shoved into his mouth, and he begins to chew aggressively. It’s seconds before he’s done masticating it, and spits it out of his mouth, to press it to the hole on his tail that you hadn’t noticed until now. It’s kind of sitting there like a ripped sail, maybe eight inches of it. 

God, gross. Gross, yuck, augh.

“Will it grow back?” you ask him. He stares at you for a long moment. 

“Of course it’s going to grow back, coral-for-brains.”

“Alright, geez,” you say, and after a breath or two more, you heave yourself up out of the water. There’s enough room in here for the two of you to sit a good distance away from each other. So you set about unpacking shit. His stuff, including the eggs, none of which miraculously broken. 

And then your stuff, which is. The first aid kit. 

“You said your other wound re-opened, right?” you ask. FG pauses, egg shell crunching in his mouth and fingers poised to pick up another. 

“That’s none of your business, you can leave now.”

You huff out a soft noise of disbelief. “I brought something to help patch you up.”

“I am not a doll,” he says, hissing again. The hiss spatters you with tiny flakes of eggshell. 

“Okay,” you say, swiping some of it off your nose and mouth. “But I can help keep the thing closed so infection is less likely.” 

“I’m still mildly impressed you humans have made it this far,” he sneers at you. “How am I to know that your medicine isn’t just as deadly as your pollution? Or as useless as your lack of sharpteeth, which are perfect for meat.” 

“Uhm,” you say, like a real diplomat. That concept caught you off guard. You attempt to think it back at him, with a question attached. 

“You know, sharpteeth,” FG says. Like it’s obvious. 

“I just have regular teeth, man,” you say, waving your hands. 

FG frowns at that. He goes silent for another long moment, and contemplates while you just get radio static in every sense. And then he beckons you over. 

And, like only an idiot can do, you lean toward him and crawl a few feet. He’s so close he smells like heat and ocean. But not in the bad way, he smells... it’s odd. 

“What?” you ask, glaring at him to avoid just staring at his body again. That prick in the forehead was weird and nasty. “I just have regular tee-hhreaaugh-”

FG has his two first digits in your mouth. They hold it open, and his sharp claws are so close to vital parts of your face that you’re filled with a split second of fear so intense you’re surprised you don’t wet yourself. 

He pushes his hand forward, dragging sharply but not too sharply across your tongue, and the top of your two rows of what you think are pretty good fuckin’ teeth. The fingers are warm in your mouth, and they taste like brine and sand and something weirdly... oily that you can’t define, but doesn’t taste unpleasant. You can’t move, for fear of getting gored through the face or your gums cutting up. He’s caught you like a fish on a fucking hook, and he’s just leaning in to inspect your perfectly normal teeth. 

When he leans back, your face is so incredibly warm that you pull back as soon as his hands are clear of anything soft and fragile. “What the fuck!” 

“Turns out you don’t have sharpteeth, human. Very... odd.”

FG stares openly at you, then, dragging his eyes down your chest. His eyebrows go up with every new incredibly squishy feature you possess. 

“I guess two-legs are... weak.” 

You make what you hope is more of a noise of protest than a squeak. 

“We’re not that weak,” you splutter, and he imitates your complaint obnoxiously even as he shoves another egg into his mouth, biting down with... oh boy. His are uh. 

Sharp. 

Once that egg is gone, he faces you. FG slowly opens his mouth, pulling back his lips gruesomely to reveal a set of proper chompers. And now you know what he meant. All of his teeth are sharp, and you get the feeling they get more deadly with age. 

Blue, and also dotted with small glowing lines, a tongue darts out to run over his teeth in a way that really should not terrify you as much as it does. He sucks on the top row of shining ivory, making a smacking noise that makes you think less about kissing and more about how loudly your bones would crunch in his mouth. 

You edge toward the pool. 

Something like a hoarse coughing comes from FG’s throat, and he holds his stomach as he winces in pain. That was... a laugh. 

“I can’t believe I feared you, mere moments ago,” he tells you. And swallows another egg, this one whole. Ugh. Oh god. 

"I used to have longer canines, but I bit my brother with them and they got shaved off to dull when I was at the dentist,” you mumble, rubbing your shoulder as it twinges. 

FG’s tail relaxes once he’s done with the hilarity at your expense. And you see the wound, which weeps just so lightly with blood. It’s thinner than yours in color, almost like it’s diluted. 

“You can use your human medicine, or try,” he tells you, with a wave of his hand. “Why would you shave off a tooth? Are you insane?” 

“Humans have their own weapons, asshole,” you tell him, creeping over with the kit. There’s a suture set in here somewhere. You’ve given stitches to yourself plenty of times.

Despite him giving you permission and access, FG still growls defensively when you reach to dab at it with gauze. 

It starts with him snarling ferociously in pain at the first stitch, and then with him making soft and pathetic whimpering noises as you finish, while he sucks the insides pathetically from the remainder of the eggs. His stance is more relaxed by the end, though, fins laying down on his body, and glow just barely dimmer than before. 

He must have been really hungry. 

Looking at his half-closed eyes and perpetual grimace, one fang sticking up over his upper lip, you realize something important. 

You’re gonna need to learn how to catch fish. 

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