#it reminded me of the mermaids and made me think of you

[squirsquirrel]

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE okay been a while since I saw this beautiful piece again! ❤️ Just so so pretty!

I do wonder if there was more I could add to this small piece but it's okay. I was really happy you liked it so you can have it again here lol

Rana ran to the water's edge, following the coastline to the rocky formations situated beneath a cliff. The sun was high in the sky and beat down hot rays, burning the sand and their skin as hot feet kicked up hot sand into the air. They ran like their life depended on it and, in some ways, it did. To begin with, they had a secret no one could know about, not even their family or closest friends from the village could know.

As they clambered up the rocks and steadily peeked over the edge, white foam and salt spray filled their senses and they gazed at the deep blue depths beneath them, waiting. For a long time they had spent years staring up at the sky on these rocks, night or day watching stars and clouds roll by, but recently the world underwater beckoned to them and it was all they could think about now. More than one emotion drove them to come to this beach everyday: fascination, admiration, and love. Of these three, 'love' was what drove them the most hardest.

Eyes keenly searched for movement beneath the crashing waves, but they couldn't see much of anything. In spite of the sun's heat, the water and brusque wind bit at them and caused a slight shiver. The moment they huddled their arms for warmth, a giant wave came overhead and hit them right in the face. They fell backwards, shivering even more as gurgled laughter that sounded unusually melodious filled their ears.

"I got you good, didn't I?"

Rana gritted their teeth, a playful smirk forming, as they quickly sat up and flung themselves off the rocks. In the final moments between leaving the rocks and falling into the sea, a body that was half-fish, half-human appeared before them. There wasn't a moment to admire the purple, pink and blue hues of the mermaid's tail, or his arms that enveloped them in a cold embrace before falling under the ocean's surface. Eyes shut tight, they put their full trust into this mysterious person who gazed adoringly at them with bright amethyst eyes. With his powerful and long tail whose tailfin was almost as big as them, he pushed against the current and shot out of the water, making a loud slapping sound when they hit the rocks which contrasted with his graceful movements.

Feeling the chill of the wind and the warmth of the sun again, Rana looked up from their comfortable spot against Dae's chest and marvelled at his face decorated in pearl-like droplets; long, flowing white hair complemented his eyes and sharp facial features, softening his look which otherwise looked like they held contempt for anyone he encountered. Except them.

"Yeah, you got me." They finally answered his question, laughing gaily as Dae smiled. Webbed hands held their back and brought them closer into a hug, smothering Rana's face into his shoulder. "Mmph-ay! Mrmph nff!"

(Okay! That's enough!) They had said, but whether Dae understood them or not wasn't made certain. In any case, Dae let them go and laughed as they breathed in oxygen. "Don't ever do that again," he warns with a playful lilt in his tone. "Only if we're in safe waters can you do it."

"The water's safe enough with you there." Their flirtatious remark earned them nothing but another tight hug and they slapped Dae's back. "Hey! Quit choking me!"

"Only if you promise!" He didn't squeeze harder. Instead, he pulled away to get one good look at Rana's face, seeking sincerity in their eyes.

"Fine, I promise~" Maybe not as sincere as Dae had hoped, but it was enough for him to feel convinced before rolling onto his side and dragging Rana to lay beside him. As they stared up at the sky, Rana pointed out a few oddly shaped clouds and tried to make pictures out of them. "Doesn't that one remind you of a boat?"

"No."

"What!" They looked incredulously at their lover who looked back at them equally confused. "Then what about that one? Does it look like a dolphin?"

"No."

"Seriously..." Groaning, they turned their head again and glared at Dae. He smiled in turn. Huffing, Rana sought after another vaguely shaped cloud and grinned. "That one looks like you!"

"No, it doesn't."

His answer came too quick. Rana looked back to him, furious he wasn't playing along. "Are you even looking at where I'm pointing??"

"No," he replied, grinning.

"Then what are you looking at?"

"You."

Their face turns a deep shade of pink, their dark skin doing little to hide it. Their eyes waver, their lips quiver, and their mind goes completely blank! Or so Dae thought they would react.

Instead, after months of hanging out together, Rana had become used to Dae's antics and playfully slapped his arms and chest. "You think you're SO cheeky, don't you?! You think that will get my heart fluttering for you?!"

They will never admit that it did. Not out in the open where the water carries sounds for miles around. But later, when the sun is dipping below the horizon and they make their promise to see each other the next day too, Rana would lean in close and whisper, "Love you."

And Dae would reply, "I love you too."

MY PRETTY!! Dae as a pretty mermaid! And Rana finding him at the dock <3

Here you go @squirsquirrel, just for you! (but also you suggested this and I couldn't get it out of my mind)

[squarebracket-trickster]

I think it is very important that every Writeblr have one irl friend who also is moots with them on tumblr even though they both are on tumblr for very different reasons. Occasionally my carefully curated dash will just have math on it.

I would also like to take this opportunity to apologize to my Mathblr irl friend, and only my Mathblr irl friend, for the 20-something straight STS asks I reblogged. RIP your dash. Hope you can find all the math under there somewhere<3

The rest of you followed me for Writeblr content. I'm not sorry for what I've done.

[lotus-pear]

rewatched madoka magica again today bc i fucking hate myself and to absolutely no one’s surprise i went through all five stages of grief in a single evening

[andypantsx3]

SOMETHING IN THE WATER | 7 | SHOUTO x READER

SUMMARY: As a future marine biologist, you’ve scored big on your final internship: a summer in the tropics, researching the waters off the coast of a lush, sunny island. But what you thought would be all beach days and piña coladas turns out to be the revelation of a lifetime when you haul in a handsome merprince, and discover not everything in these waters is quite as it seems. TAGS/WARNINGS: mermaid au, interspecies relationships, mating rituals/courting behavior, (sort of) case fic, aged up characters, eventual smut, fem pronouns/afab reader LENGTH: 4.2k of est. 31k, 7th of 8 chapters NOTES: For @honehonn3honey, for reminding me how much I love this AU and inspiring me to hurry up and finish this chapter.

Shouto’s mouth was warm and soft, and he tasted like salt.

He was many other things too—many lovely, wonderful, absolutely delicious other things—but you hardly had the brain power to think them, too focused on the way his lips moved over yours, the way his tongue teased along yours.

You heard yourself let out a muffled noise of pleasure, shifting nearer. His chest was so warm and firm under your hand, and you felt clawed fingers gently tangle in your hair. Shouto carefully cupped the back of your head to pull you closer, and you could feel the restrained strength in the movement. It made you shiver and curl into him tighter.

Shouto groaned into your mouth, and then his hands were on your waist, tugging you insistently over him until you were perched in his lap. His scales brushed against the inside of your thigh, strangely smooth and shockingly warm. It made your brain fog to feel him against you like this, the firmness and heat of him.

There was also the utter strangeness of him, too. You had never kissed someone with such sharp teeth, or claws, or a strength you were beginning to suspect was terribly beyond human. But Shouto was gentle, attentive. His thumb smoothed along your jaw, carefully angling his claws away, his other hand pressing you down onto him.

He made every one of your thoughts slur and slide together, and you were so distracted you barely heard the series of taps on your door.

A cold spike of panic stabbed through you when the noise resolved itself into the sound of someone knocking. You shot up, nearly bashing Shouto in the mouth, and scrambled off of him.

“Uh—! Coming!” you yelled to your visitor, hurriedly yanking the comforter out of its nearly tucked corners, and rucking it up over as much of Shouto as you could. Shouto looked a little dazed, his mouth flushed from your kisses. It took him a minute to realize what you were doing, pulling it on over his tail. He looked equal parts mystified, ruffled, and concerned, and it was actually so cute you could have kissed him again—but now was not the time.

You gestured at him to stay in bed and stay quiet, then hurried to the door.

Yu stood on the other side of it, raising a pert blonde brow when you only cracked it a tiny bit to peer out.

“Am I interrupting something?” she asked, trying to look past you. You wedged yourself more bodily into the opening, trying to block her view.

“What—uh. What would you be interrupting?” you said quickly. “Did you, um, need something?”

Yu looked at you for a long minute, her hair ruffling softly in the sea breeze. “I came to see if you were feeling any better. And Death Arms says we’re leaving at eight thirty for Sunfish.”

Your brain was so muddled from the combination of Shouto’s kisses and your sheer panic that it took you a long moment to remember what Sunfish even was.

“Oh!” you said stupidly, nodding quickly. “Yeah, Sunfish. I will be ready then. And I’m definitely feeling better, thank you for checking on me.”

Yu’s eyes again darted past you into your room. A sly smile pulled at her mouth. “I bet you are.”

You stood up ramrod straight in your panic. There was no way she could know.

You garbled out a strangled-sounding goodbye, waving her off and ushering her quickly off your porch. You lingered in the doorway, not daring to move an inch until she disappeared into her own bungalow, then turned back to Shouto.

He looked so handsome spread out in your sheets, mouth swollen from your kisses, but you knew you were running too much of a risk to climb back over him and make good on the promises that had underlaid his kiss. Not now that Yu had come calling.

You sighed, scrubbing a hand along your face. “I’ve got to get you back down to the beach before she remembers something else. And we’ll need to talk about what…this just was more after Sunfish.” You valiantly fought down the flush that threatened to rise to your cheeks.

Shouto’s beautiful mouth turned down, but he nodded, blinking long and slow. “I will answer anything you wish to ask.”

You thought you’d probably need a little more time and space to come up with a coherent list of questions, your head swimming with the memory of his lips on yours. You vaguely remembered something about mating rituals, and you did not have the brainpower to think through all that right now.

“I’ll come meet you tomorrow?” you asked instead.

Shouto nodded, eyes pinned on you intently. You resisted the impulse to lean back down to him.

You grabbed a handle of the wheelbarrow instead and pushed it closer to the bed for him to climb back into, studiously ignoring the sinuous flex of his muscles as he slithered back in. You shoved the tarp back over him too, then poked your head out the door to make sure Yu wasn’t skulking about again before wheeling Shouto carefully back out the front door.

Shouto was unusually quiet on the journey back to the beach, and you couldn’t think of anything to say either that wouldn’t reveal just how much you wanted to turn around and wheel him back into your bungalow.

You slowly guided him down to the water instead, pushing him in until the waves gently lapped at your thighs, sloshing up over the sides of the wheelbarrow.

It was then that Shouto turned back to you, surprising you as he reached out a clawed hand. His fingers brushed ever so gently over your mouth, igniting another hot wave of something under your skin.

“Good night,” he murmured, his voice strangely deep. His eyes seemed glued to your mouth, and you could feel even the tips of your ears getting hot.

You nodded, cringing when your own “goodnight” came out far too breathy.

But that seemed to satisfy Shouto, the corner of his mouth flicking up. His thumb brushed over your bottom lip once more, with a little bit more intention than before. Your skin tingled, and you held yourself very still under his touch, willing your knees not to give out on you.

Slowly, Shouto drew his hand back to himself, and nodded, looking gratified. “I will see you tomorrow,” he promised, in his soft tone.

You nodded, not trusting yourself to speak.

And with that, Shouto slid out of the wheelbarrow into the water and disappeared into the dark sea.

Morning found you on the step to Yu’s bungalow, the early morning wind raising goose bumps along your skin. Fat clouds drifted lazily across the sky, and the palms rustled sleepily in the breeze.

When Yu poked her head out, you could tell she was not at all pleased to see you, blinking sleepily with her hair still mussed on one side.

“I’m sorry—did I wake you?” you asked. The crew was set to leave at eight thirty for Sunfish, as she’d informed you the night before, and you’d thought she’d be up already, getting ready.

She waved a hand at you to gesture you in, yawning. “I was up, just regretting my choice of career over a cup of coffee.”

You laughed nervously, following her into the room and shutting the door behind you. Her room looked like a tropical hurricane had torn through it, an explosion of clothes draped over every surface and her luggage laying open, as if ransacked, in convenient tripping locations.

“I had something I needed to show you, before we go to Sunfish,” you said, trying to not let your eyes linger too long on the mess.

Yu grunted, grabbing a brush off the bedside table and yanking it through her blonde mess of hair. She was still in sleep shorts and a pink button-up pajama top. There was no way she’d actually been up before you knocked.

“What is it, kid?” she asked absently, moving over to one of the open suitcases.

Your hand slipped into the pocket of your windbreaker, closing in on the vial you’d filled with the samples of coral from the lagoon.

“It’s—I’ve found something. While exploring the island,” you started slowly, watching her dig through her things with her foot while she finished off her hair with her hands.

She gave a sidelong glance as if gesturing for you to continue.

“There’s this lagoon, towards the northern side of the island,” you said.

Yu’s brows scrunched. “I don’t remember setting up at any lagoon.”

You shook your head. “It’s not accessible by boat. There is—or, was, a small underwater channel to get inside, under one of the cliffs. But it’s been dammed off.”

Yu finally stopped looking through her things, turning to you to give you her full attention. “Dammed off?”

You nodded. “A huge strip of metal plating. It looks recent and it’s definitely intentional—it’s drilled right into the rock. And um, the lagoon is not doing too well.” You pulled your hand from your pocket, laying out the samples of coral on her sitting table.

“The coral there is entirely bleached, and I’ve found traces of industrial processing chemicals after testing in the lab, most concerningly what looks like formalin. There’s a pipeline that looks new as well, dumping everything out into the lagoon. I didn’t trace it back as it’s too small to climb into, and it disappears underground a little ways away from the lagoon. But I think it’s most definitely Sunfish.”

Yu’s eyebrows nearly shot into her hairline. “Well well. You’ve been a busy girl.”

Your stomach churned. You couldn’t tell if she was pleased you’d taken the initiative, or annoyed you were only now looping her in.

“I’m sorry for not telling you first,” you said.

Yu watched you for a long moment, before a devious sort of smile touched her mouth. “Your beach boy help you find it?”

Your stomach lurched then, a motion like it was trying to throw itself right through the wall of your skin. “My—what?” you gasped, catching her sitting chair for balance.

There was no way she’d seen Shouto in your room last night, despite her obvious suspicions. You’d made sure you’d blocked up the entire doorway.

Yu looked smug. “Next time you answer the door after rolling around with someone, you might wanna take a look at your mouth and hair first.”

Your face flamed. “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.”

Yu just gave you a knowing look. “Red and white hair? Biceps like a Greek god? That ring any bells for you? If I hadn’t seen you out in the water with him the other night I would have almost believed you. But you were so obvious last night too.”

Your heart rate picked up, launching into a sprint. She’d seen Shouto! And she’d seen what he’d done to you!

You were simultaneously horrified and gratified—at least he wasn’t an insanely handsome figment of your overactive imagination. But you thought you’d been so careful! Had she seen any more than she should have?

Yu waved you off, laughing at the look of horror you knew was dawning on your face. “Relax, it’s not illegal to get friendly with the locals.”

You swallowed down a lump in your throat. “It’s not—I wasn’t—”

She padded over her sitting table, picking up the vial of coral samples. “You mind if I check this and log it before we head out?”

You fumbled, unnerved by the sudden change in conversational direction. “I—of course.”

Yu tossed her hair over her shoulder, then went back to her suitcase, digging through it with greater purpose. “If what you’re saying is true, we’ll want a paper trail showing we had this sample before setting foot on Sunfish property. Then we can get one there and see if it matches. That will be enough for local government to issue a search warrant and we can see if your pipeline really does link back.”

A shocked little thrill went through you. If that was true, you were close to closing this case out. The thought of leaving Shouto behind made you feel a little sick, but you quickly pushed it down.

You would talk to him later, once Sunfish was dealt with. And it wasn’t like you could delay. Sunfish was a danger to the local environment, and that included Shouto as well.

You’d rather have him alive and alone than sick and saddled with you.

“Take these to the lab and set everything up for me. I’ll be there when I’m done getting dressed,” Yu told you, flapping her hand at your coral samples again.

You nodded, grabbing them off the table. “Should I tell the rest of the team too?”

“Mmm,” she grunted. “They don’t know we know, but it will be good to have Death Arms cover for us in case we need to sample something they might not like. Make sure he, Kamui, and Masaki are up to speed.”

You dutifully went to the door, wrenching it open to step back out into the tropical sun.

Yu’s voice stopped you on the threshold, sounding warmer than she had before. “And kid?” she asked.

You looked back at her curiously. “Yeah?”

She smiled up at you from where she was still bent over her suitcase. “Good work. The team is gonna be proud of you.”

You felt your face flame again, building on the flush that her observations on Shouto had already left. Your first big job out of school, and your supervisor actually thought you were doing good. You tried not to feel too pleased with yourself, and with the way your relationship with Shouto had seemed to have brought you nothing but good things.

“Thanks,” you mumbled. Then you ducked out of the doorway, and darted into the sun, feeling ridiculous and shy.

Sunfish was a dominating presence on the northern edge of the island, clearly visible along the northern access road.

You’d seen it along the coast as you boated around, setting up the testing stations, but it looked even more comedically villainous up close—a corroding grey warehouse above which multiple vents and smoke stacks rose like castle turrets.

Izuku steered the jeep into the small parking lot, and you watched in the rearview as his normally kind face pinched. You hadn’t had a chance yet to catch him alone and ask exactly how long had he been hiding the fact that he knew fucking merpeople and what the hell was up with their mating rituals. And you wouldn’t dare to now, surrounded as you were by your science crew.

But you thought you caught a curious flash of those emerald eyes as you piled out behind your coworkers.

Death Arms thanked him for the ride, setting up a time for pickup, and then shepherded the rest of you towards the cannery. You wrinkled your nose as you approached, the smell of fish and low tide assaulting your nostrils.

There was a man in a suit waiting for you at the entrance, long-limbed and dark haired, with small, watery eyes. He introduced himself as Ikeda, the cannery manager, and walked you through the list of stops he planned to bring your group on your tour. He held a clipboard at his side, a pen clipped fastidiously to his jacket pocket, and his entire demeanor suggested he was eager to get you in and out as fast as possible, despite the welcoming smile he bestowed on you.

Death Arms nodded along as Ikeda spoke, then pointedly asked in an overly-friendly tone, “Sounds good. So, how long have you been the manager here?”

Ikeda blinked. “About seven years now.”

You couldn’t tell if it was your instant dislike of him, but you thought his tone was rather oily. The cannery manager for seven years—that meant there was no way this guy didn’t know what was going on in this plant. There was no way he’d missed out on a pipeline being installed for waste water disposal. No way he was missing what you were sure were thousands of gallons of waste material being pumped out and away from the facility.

Your mind flashed back to Shouto again, a surge of anger overcoming you. This guy had helped dam off a place of cultural significance to Shouto’s people, and Shouto had had to drag himself over easily a kilometer of forested land, only to then submerge himself into literal poisoned water to get you your coral.

If given enough time, more of Shouto’s people would probably have to undertake the same ritual, endangering more and more of his pod.

Your hand flew up to your neck, pressing over the coral chips that sat just underneath the collar of your shirt. You tried to suppress the wave of virulent dislike that overcame you, and hid yourself behind Yu to cover as much of your expression as you could as Ikeda gestured for your group to follow him.

You trailed along after your teammates as Ikeda led you into the building. The interior was freezing cold, a maze of industrial metals and cold fluorescence. It was a shock to your senses after the lush, humid tropicality outside, and the shiver that overtook you slid into the marrow of your bones, mixing with your sick dislike.

Ikeda led you to the processing lines first, a complex series of conveyor belts and machinery, dotted by workers in hairnets, gloves, and bright yellow aprons. He explained how the fish was sorted according to their type, then cleaned and prepared. He led you to each station as he spoke, walking you through how the fish was then packed into cans and vacuum-sealed, then heat treated to sterilize them, or treated with other preservatives if not canned.

He occasionally paused to let Masaki take samples, a strange stillness overcoming his face as Masaki did so. It made you even more sure of your dislike of him, and you couldn’t help but bring yourself to ask probing questions as Ikeda explained some of the chemicals used to preserve shelf life—salt, citric acid, potassium sorbate. All normal preservatives, and all chemicals you’d found in your samples of the coral from the lagoon—but not the most damning.

“Is that a comprehensive list, or does Sunfish use any other preservatives?” you asked, willing your voice to sound casual. Yu gave you a carefully neutral glance over her shoulder.

Ikeda paused, his eyes seeming to grow even smaller as he looked at you. You didn’t like the sharpness that lurked there, even as he smiled pleasantly. “Sunfish uses a variety of preservative ingredients, as I mentioned. The three I’ve mentioned are just a small subset.”

The statement was so carefully crafted, technically answering while saying absolutely nothing at all.

You realized you would not get an answer out of him unless you asked very directly—and doing so might alert Ikeda to the fact that you had more than just suspicions. You nodded vaguely instead, grateful when Death Arms asked another question, pulling Ikeda’s attention off of you.

Yu’s fingers delicately touched your wrist, and she leaned in, speaking quietly. “The samples Masaki got should match most of the chemical blends you found, and taking pictures of the lagoon will be enough for a warrant,” she said, then paused, lowering her lashes and cutting her magenta eyes to yours. “Although if we can confirm the formalin you mentioned, we can get production shut down immediately.”

You nodded.

Formalin—a solution containing varying amounts of formaldehyde—was a controversial method of preserving fish. Two commercially available formalin products were generally accepted by most food and health administrations, but its usage and storage was highly regulated. If the concentration of formaldehyde was high enough, drainage disposal would not be a legal option. Releasing it into a lagoon, where it would be subject to sunlight and high temperatures and was most definitely dangerous enough to get the entire operation cancelled.

Masaki politely insisted on getting a sample of all of the preservative solutions, and you helped him collect them, frowning over the neatly labeled name of each when you came across them—citric acid, potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate—but no formalin solution.

Yu’s frown was more pronounced as you were led into the administrative offices to meet some of the other executives, and to conduct what Ikeda pronounced a “quality sampling!”, smiling.

You could tell she was getting mildly annoyed, terrible at hiding her emotions, but she took a deep breath before grabbing your wrist.

“Ikeda-san, I’m afraid our newbie is feeling a little queasy after seeing everything. Become a marine biologist because she’s a sweet little animal lover. Could you point us towards the ladies’ room? I’ll take care of her.”

Ikeda blinked, turning his gaze to her, before his eyes darted to you. You had no idea what Yu was trying to do here, but you knew better than to disagree. You quickly hunched in on yourself a little, trying your best to look pale and peaky and pathetic.

“I—of course,” Ikeda said, pointing back out into the hall towards the main production line. “If you turn left out of here and follow the hallway further, they should be around the corner on your right.”

“Thank you,” Yu purred, then put her arm around you in an affectation of matronly concern you were sure she’d never actually felt once in her life. “Come on, sweetheart.”

You let her usher you out into the hall, turning to stare at her when the door closed behind you.

She rolled her eyes at your questioning expression, pulling you back down the hall towards the production line. “Come on, we only have a couple minutes. Formalin needs to be stored in a well ventilated area and it obviously isn’t in the main production area. We have to be quick if we’re gonna snoop—you take the left and I’ll take the right.”

You blinked. “You want to sneak around? Won’t they just say we planted evidence since we went off on our own?”

Yu’s mouth pulled up in a grin. “You got your phone on you? It’ll need to be stored labeled and with a spill kit. Hard for you to sneak an entire industrial spill kit in here, wouldn’t you agree? Just take a quick video of you sampling it and the conditions it’s stored in and that will be more than enough.”

You could feel a giddy sense of incredulity overtake you. She was serious. She wanted to go haring off without supervision, ostensibly breaking into parts of Sunfish without permission.

“Hurry up, time’s ticking,” she said, then tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder, disappearing down the hall almost as enigmatically as Shouto had disappeared into the dark water last night.

The thought of Shouto brought you back to yourself, a sense of urgency snapping over you.

You only had a few minutes to find and prove Sunfish’s guilt, and Shouto was dependent on the results. The faster you shut off the flow of chemical waste water to the lagoon, the safer Shouto would be.

You all but threw yourself down the hall, following it past the women’s room you’d ostensibly been on your way to, peeking into any unlocked room or storage closet on the way. The passage seemed to span the side of the building, letting onto various rooms laden with cleaning supplies, overflow product, and marketing materials.

Time seemed to fly past at sickening speeds, every minute on the clock like a millisecond. You checked the time your phone anxiously, over and over again, urging yourself to move faster, while not wanting to move so quick that you missed what was most important.

It was only as you neared what seemed like the end of the hall, that you came across a room labeled Preservative Storage, papered with various seals of certification and governmental health requirements. Your heartbeat hammered in your chest as you tried the door, finding it open.

The room itself was unassuming, a tidy, cool space with drainage set into the floor and wide vents that spanned the ceiling. A variety of personal protective equipments hung just inside the door, some sealed tightly in plastic, laminated and color-coded charts hanging beside them. A variety of industrial refrigerators dotted the room in intervals, drums of other solutions in between them, everything looking carefully stored and well-maintained.

It was thanks to this orderliness that you had almost no trouble finding exactly what you were looking for.

You followed the line of labeled containers down the room, picking over each one with eagle-eyed focus. And there, in the far corner of the room, next to a variety of spill-cleaning equipment, lay a dark container with a white label, printed clearly with blue ink. You took your phone out with a shaking hand, snapping the picture you knew would close the trap on Sunfish once and for all.

The picture was clear, despite the shakiness of your hands, the label plainly announcing the the drum’s contents:

FORMACIDE-B.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

even more tlm references

Part 1 (Episodes 1 + 2) / Part 2 (Episode 3) / This post covers Episodes 4 + 5, as well as references from the event boys' voice lines and vignettes (since those have also been unlocked now)!

OH MY GOD. Rook says he enjoyed a bath in the hotel's bathhouse. He and Malleus comment on the beautiful interior of it, mentioning a shell-themed bathtub and a carving of a fish. THEY'RE LITERALLY DESCRIBING THE BATHHOUSE THAT ARIEL WASHED IN???

While at an outdoor market, we spot a lady in a white dress secured with a rope. Jade explains that it is a fashion style unique to the Sunshine Lands. By simply changing the way you wrap the cloth and rope, you can make many different looks! This fashion originated from repurposing the cloth used to make sails and rope.

This might just be me buggin’ but 😳 Jade says the Coral Sea has high biodiversity, meaning when those animals and plants decay, they add a lot of minerals and nutrients that enrich the water. This makes rich, imami sea salt. I wonder if this is a reference to??? How the sea Ariel comes from is also very colorful and biodiverse, as we see in Under the Sea.

At the outdoor market, Malleus spots forks of a strange shape. These, Jade explains, are actually combs in the shape of forks. There is a legend about a mermaid that combed her hair with a fork because she had recently come to land, and at a time when her people and humans knew little of each other. She would go on to have a happy marriage. This is of course a reference to Ariel using a fork to comb her hair at dinner🍴(Jade also mentions the Atlantics Memorial Museum from book 3!! They have a replica of the fork the mermaid used on display.)

The market also has stuff salvaged from sunken ships! There’s precious antiques and things of value, but also tons of junk that can be refurbished or polished back up and made reusable again. This has to be a reference to Ariel’s grotto full of items collected from sunken ships!!! She has many things here, some useful, some not, but all interesting to her.

The people of the Sunshine Lands love song and music! An example, Jade gives is playing the flute on ships and the coast. You know who plays a flute??? ERIC. We see him playing one when Ariel sees him for the first time, as well as right before he spots Vanessa on the beach.

There are lots of clothes hung up to dry in the strong sun. There’s a scene in TLM where the maids of Eric’s castle are doing laundry!! Sebastian gets caught up in it.

The groom apparently works on ships and is quite familiar with the sea… LIKE ERIC.

The cove is the same as the one Eric and Ariel went in for Kiss the Girl!! Look at this neat new background and how they’ve nicely decorated it!!

The Eternity Float starts off with the groom gushing about the “first time [he] heard [the bride’s] name”. Definitely a callback to Eric guessing Ariel’s name on the rowboat 😭

Rook makes a thick fog by firing fire at water. Fog??? Like… THE FOG ON THE BEACH WHEN VANESSA APPEARS AND ENCHANTS ERIC?!!!!!?!?!

Riddle thinks to launch barrels at the bride and groom! This makes me think of when Ariel used a barrel to help herself catch up with the wedding ship departing with Eric on it.

Jade and Riddle get into a magic fight that produces fireworks. The couple reminiscence on the time they saw fireworks together. Fireworks appear over Eric’s ship on the night Ariel sees Eric for the first time!!

Malleus creates a mighty tornado with his wind magic. Is this maybe a reference to the powerful storm Ursula summons when she has all the powers of the sea at her disposal?!

THE BRiDE AND GRoOM ARE LITERALLY ArIEL AND ERiCCCCC (Side note: Jade leaping in his merform fr reminds me of that fucking leaping dolphin meme 🐬 which is funny because his fandom emoji IS the dolphin!)

The bride saves the groom by swimming with him to safety…! Like how Ariel rescued Eric after the storm at the start of the film!

Jade successfully capsizes their rowboat!! Similar shot to what appears in the film.

The event ends on a similar shot as the film too!!! 😭 The sea… the ship drifting out on it… the rainbow appearing… Even the font they use to write “The End” is similar to the font used for TLM title. This is setting off all kinds of nostalgia alarms for meeeeeeee 🌈

In Rook’s vignette, he and Malleus go fishing but catch nothing. Right as they’re about to leave, something snags on the line—and they fish up a fragment of a statue. They hear from a local that there is a sunken ship nearby, so it’s common to catch stuff from it. Rook is amused and wonders if the fragment once used to be part of a man with a strong will. This has GOTTA be talking about the statue of Eric that got busted up.

In Malleus’s vignettes, he practices maintaining balance while rowing. I don't think this refers to anything specific in TLM, but I'm thinking maybe it could refer to the scene where Eric's men are in those lifeboats during the storm and trying to keep afloat in the rough waves??

He has a voice line saying he would like to play violin at a wedding (and in the Sunshine Lands, they often take place on boats). We can see one of Eric's crewmates playing a fiddle on the night Ariel sees him for the first time!

Malleus also has a voice line about how they are many sunken ships at the bottom of the sea. This is pretty non-specific, but I'm sure all of us remember the film opening scene with Ariel exploring a sunken ship.

In Riddle’s vignettes, he mentions that a horse's demeanor can change depending on the handler. Then an incident occurs in which a horse gets spooked and runs off without anyone in its carriage; Riddle and Rook chase after it and are able to get in the carriage. With Riddle at the helm, they're able to get the horse to leap over a valley. THIS A NOD TO HOW WHEN ARIEL TOOK THE REINS TO THE CARRIAGE... and then she and Eric bolted off... AND THEN SHE GOT THE HORSE TO LEAP OVER A GAP.

In one of Jade's voice lines, he talks about how he used to look at the city longingly from the waters. JUST LIKE ARIEL... JUST LIKE ARIEL AS SHE SINGS PART OF YOUR WORLD REPRISE ON THAT ROCK AND THE WATER GOES SPLASH!!!!!!!

Finally!! In Jade’s vignettes, a storefront sells items imported from merfolk. Items include seaweed for fortune telling, musical instruments, and accessory cases made from shells, and seahorses with anemones on their heads. This calls to mind the general seashell accessories of the merfolk, musical instruments used in Under the Sea and the concert scenes, and Ursula's little potion ingredients cabinet + skrungly clients/prisoners.

He tells a tale of how he got caught in a whirlpool while chasing after something shiny that had fallen into the sea. Could this be a reference to Eric using glowing under the water to try and attack Ursula?? asjdhasdsalid I MIGHT BE OVERTHINKING THIS ONE AND IT'S NOTHING

Jade ends his vignettes by mentioning there may come a day where he “returns to the sea”… THE LITTLE MERMAID 2: RETURN TO THE SEA?!?!!

[thanergetic-hyperlinks]

Tamsyn Muir's writing beyond The Locked Tomb

Y'all, turns out there's lots of imagery and themes in TLT that Muir was already playing with in her earlier fiction. A lot of it is easily available online, in which case I'll link to it. (The short stories that aren't can also be easily read if googled, to be quite honest—that's how I read The Deepwater Bride and Why the Mermaids Left Boralus). • The House That Made the Sixteen Loops of Time (2011)

5K. Short sort-of-cozy romance (?) with (you guessed it) a time travel loop. Explores a very queer potential relationship. CamPal enjoyers might find a similar sweetness.

• The Magician's Apprentice (2012, Lightspeed Magazine)

5K. This is the one that stopped me dead on my tracks. It features an older, male mentor figure called John (a “very ordinary man” with “dark eyes”) who introduces the young, female main character to magic that has a terrible cost—and to literature such as Lolita. This excellent post by @familyabolisher does an incredible job of analyzing the very deliberate intertextual links between TLT and Lolita.

• The Woman in the Hill (2015, Lightspeed Magazine, originally for Dreams From the Witch House anthology of Lovecraftian horror by women)

4K. Possibly my favorite! It's a straightforward Lovecraftian horror, centered on the image of the woman (is it human though?) trapped in an unnatural pool inside a cursed cave. Chain imagery too. It does something different from Alecto, mind, but you can see links, ways of playing with facets of a strong central image. It's fun to consider how reliable the two narrators are. Here's an analysis and afterthought from Reactor Mag.

• Chew (2013) 4K. Zombie abuse and cannibalistic revenge story ft. an uncanny woman revenant, told from the eyes of a traumatized German boy. I was strongly reminded of Harrow's conversations with the Body. Tamsyn gave an interview on the themes and her intentions. Interesting to read in light of Alecto, I think, although I don't think she's going the same route in TLT: “the idea of post-war rebuilding connecting to rebuilding the body of the zombie; a Frankenstein who once rebuilt doesn’t act as planned or desired. […] I love cannibalism […] it’s innately spiritual […] any afterlife she goes to, he’s going too.”

• Apothecia (2014, published on Tumblr and tapas.io)

Short webcomic where an alien monster tries to corrupt the ruthless human girl who holds it captive. Musings on responsibility and murder, mention of child abuse. The alien's speech patterns remind me of a Resurrection Beast. You get wonderful dialogue like “Murder is a profession. Job. Employment, you tiny leg dog. There you are, walking along. Walk walk walk. Now you are a walker. Good job. Special child. Murder is like this.” Art by Shelby Cragg.

• The Deepwater Bride (2015, Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine)

The opening line is: “In the time of our crawling Night Lord's ascendancy, foretold by exodus of starlight into his sucking astral wounds, I turned sixteen and received Barbie's Dream Car.” Need I say more? Extremely fun. A novelette where a young queer girl from a clairvoyant family struggles with an apocalyptic event while being annoyed by another very plucky girl. Lots of descriptions with nerdy marine zoology terms. Close in tone to Gideon. In the background, someone dies EXACTLY like that one death at the end of Gideon, which makes me wonder what happened to make Tamsyn interested in this particular image. I also liked that Tamsyn is aware of Nightwish. No link, but you'll get a PDF immediately if you Google.

• Union (2015, Clarkesworld Magazine)

5.5K. Very weird, extremely Kiwi story about a town that gets sent lab-grown wives by the government, but they're not made the usual way so they're Weird and people have feelings about it. Fascinating and eerie description of non-human (in some people's eyes, sub-human) women (?) who cannot be observed to have recognizable feelings or thoughts, yet have some sort of inner life. Quite touching, very uncanny.

• Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower (2020)

Short novel (~200 pages). Very funny. I was reminded of Coronabeth because the whole plot is “princess finds herself branching out into decidedly non-princess-like activities”, but other than that—this is a fairytale for adults about people who make eachother worse. No particular links to TLT but a very fun read with some gut punches. Extremely Tamsyn through and through, what with the dubious morality and all.

• Why the Mermaids Left Boralus (2021, in Folk & Fairy Tales of Azeroth by Blizzard Entertainment)

Set in the World of Warcraft universe. Haven't read this one yet, will report back lmao. As with The Deepwater Bride, no link but I easily found a PDF of the entire compilation. It's illustrated!

• Undercover (2022, from Into Shadow, Amazon Original Collection)

Haven't read it either. Will edit once I do.

[nothing0fnothing]

Most parents decide they're going to use their child's innate naivety and trusting nature to instill a sense of wonder. Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, mermaids are real, Disneyland. All that.

My parents used it to create an invisible panopticon that only existed in my mind so they could easily deny its existence if I reported it to anybody.

Basically, was told at a very young age, that there were tiny hidden cameras I couldn't see everywhere in my home, and in my clothes, and in my school. They gave my stepdad 24/7 round the clock acsess to view me whenever he wanted to. He said these cameras could not only record my face, voice and actions, but that they had special technology that could read and translate my very thoughts.

I was at the "mermaids and unicorns are real" age, so not only did all of this seem totally plausible, it terrified me. I was changing under the covers of my bed, worried he could see me on the toilet or in the shower, and worst of all I started monitoring and censoring my own thoughts, convinced he could hear every one of them.

My mum noticed I had started taking longer to get dressed and ready than I used to, and asked why I was wasting time trying to get dressed in bed. When I told her about the cameras she tried to convince me they weren't there, and even did a sweep of my room to prove it to me, but I didn't believe her. I thought my step dad had so much power he could even hide these mind reading micro cameras from other adults. She just kind of brushed it off, assuming this was some silly thing I'd be over in a week.

I wasn't.

He kept reminding me of them, so I continued to be scared of them.

The second time my mother heard of these invisible cameras were when another parent, concerned, told her about it.

See I'd been playing at her daughters house, and I was asking her to call my step dad to ask permission for every minor thing I did.

"Can you call my dad and ask if I'm allowed to play in the garden?" "Can you call my dad and ask if I'm allowed to watch TV?" "Can you call my dad and ask if I'm allowed ketchup on my chips?"

She would assure me she'd asked my mum and my mum said it was fine, but I was adamant it be my step father she call. Eventually, she asked me why I was so concerned about his permission to do these things I'd been doing fine every other time I'd been at her house.

"Because he's the one with the cameras."

I said it so naturally. Like every family had a parent who had the cameras and another who was under surveillance by them. I was worried that if I conveyed the frozen still fear I felt over these hidden cameras, it would seem that I had something to hide.

"There's no cameras in our house so you don't have to worry about it." She tried to convince me.

"Oh no, they're in my clothes" I said. "They're so tiny they could be in a zip or a button or on my shoe laces and nobody would know."

She was, understandably, freaked out by this.

I'm not sure if she beleived my step dad had just sent me bugged into her home like a pervert or something, but I think when I started talking about how it can hear my thoughts like a regular camera can record voices, she realised that this was something else.

My mum pretended that I'd made it up and was lying for attention, even though she knew I wasn't. She knew that her husband had been terrorising me with these fake omnipotent cameras for weeks to the point I was losing sleep and dreaming about them. It was just easier for her to paint me as some kind of freakishly and manipulative child. It was really messed up, this woman's daughter was my only friend, I'd be friendless and alone if she decided she didn't want her daughter learning this behaviour from me.

The last time it was brought up to her was by my aunt. I'd had a bonding day out with her that ended in me crying on her couch after dinner. I vented about the cameras and how much pressure they were putting on me. I said I felt scared to be out with anyone, because if my daddy was watching and he heard their thoughts and he didn't like them, he could stop them from ever seeing me again. I knew she didn't like him, and he didn't like her. All he needed was video proof that she thought bad things about him and he'd have the perfect excuse to cut her out of my life. I didn't want that, I loved my aunt dearly.

My mum tried to pull the same "oh she's just making it up for attention" bit, but my aunt knew my step dad, and she knew he was exactly crazy and twisted enough to torture me like that. She believed me over my mother, and after that I never heard about the cameras again.

Over the weeks I wasn't threatened with them, I slowly started to think about them less and less. And by the time I stopped thinking about them entirely, I'd stopped believing in tooth fairies and unicorns and high tech invisible cameras that could hear my thoughts.

I never forgot about them though.

[yandere-sins]

The Octopodes' Tale - Chapter I

First Chapter! I am excited since we are meeting someone for the first time and get to make a new decision :3 Thank you everyone who promptly voted, I think we can do it with the three day polls ♥ Fandom: Original Content   Pairings: Yandere!Octopus Mermen x GN!AFAB!Reader Words: ~3k  Warnings: Yandere, Monsters (Tentacels, Oversized Mention, Mermaids, Monster Appearances), Violence (Thrashing Underwater, Almost Drowning, Panic), Fear of potential harm to human/animal, Long Post

You’ve made the right choice, human. I shall wait for my beloved’s return, so don’t forget your promise to me as you get to know and care for him in my stead until then!

Letting your head fall into your palm, you rubbed the tension points on your temple and forehead. It was hard enough to focus on the small script and the countless pages, so a headache wasn’t exactly helpful for the task. You had to keep reminding yourself to focus as your thoughts trailed off, your mind imagining strange voices speaking to you just so it could escape the exhausting task of reading the contract. You would have just up and left if you knew just how extensive and partly incomprehensible the contract was. With all the jargon embedded in it, who knew what you were really signing off on with it.

The clacking of a fresh glass of water being placed in front of you barely tore you out of the focus you tried desperately to hold on to. You merely mumbled, “Thank you,” and reached for it, taking a swig from the glass. With a sigh, you set it back down on the table, realizing how much you needed it. In fact, your body was already screaming for you to get up and walk a bit, maybe even go to the toilet and grab a snack afterward. By making sure everything was in order on the bureaucracy side, you had managed to neglect yourself completely, and you were now paying the price with your shoulders and neck aching from sitting and hovering over the contract for too long. 

Leaning back, you decided it was time for a much-needed break. With a sudden, energized jolt, you jumped to your feet, stretched towards the ceiling until you could hear your bones and muscles pop back into place, and turned towards the door. Walking over the pool to reach it, you peered into the water below your feet as it swayed calmly. There was no sign of your potential future protégé. Fine with you, after all, octopodes liked to hide. Yet, when your hand reached for the handle of the door leading outside the enclosure, gripping and pushing it down, for some reason, it wouldn’t budge. 

Furrowing your brows, you gave it a shake, and another one for good measure. “What the…” you mumbled, trying to open the door unsuccessfully. Looking up from the handle, you looked around to see any indicator of it being locked, until your eyes fell on a number pad to your left. Its numbers had a green glow all around them, proving they were active, and you realized only now that naturally they’d close off a room with a precious specimen inside. However, locking you in with the specimen seemed somewhat dangerous. 

Trying your luck, you pushed in the most basic codes you knew, like 1111 and 1234. You tried to remember if the Professor said anything about this specimen’s number or maybe the enclosure number that could work as a code, albeit much too easy to guess.

“7945,” you heard someone say behind you, and you promptly pushed it in, the known sound of correctness followed by the door unlocking, filling you with the feeling of accomplishment. You whirled around, starting to say, “Thank you!” again when your eyes met those of half a face peeking out of the water, gleaming with curiosity. 

You gasped loudly, your back hitting the cold wall behind you, and you even bumped your head. The creature made a small squeak, eyes widening before they let go of the pool’s edge they had held onto and slipped back into the water. It all happened so quickly that you wondered if you had just imagined it or hit your head too hard, so it was just an illusion. Your scientific instinct, trained from curiosity, the years of studies, and doing minor field work, prompted you to step up to the pool and look into it, ensuring that whatever lurked inside wasn’t as human as it had looked. But for some reason, your body protested. 

As soon as the door opened, you slipped out, slamming your hand against the number pad to initiate closing again before pressing your body against the wall on the other side, watching as nothing seemed to come after you. Your knees shook as if you had just been on the run, your body sending inexplicable signals of fleeing despite this facility being one of the safest places on earth. However, the mere glimpse of the bright yellow eyes beneath an unnatural shade of red surrounding them had been enough to send you running. Even your brain had trouble processing what it had seen, and you felt the headache throb as you strained yourself. 

Maybe you truly had just imagined it. 

Perhaps you were in dire need of getting some help with your basic necessities. Some fresh air, some food, and water. It felt like you had to walk a small eternity until you bumped into another person who pointed you towards the staffroom. Greeted by snacks and drinks for the employees, you immediately felt better, and some other researchers picked up a conversation with you until your headache was almost forgotten. It was exactly the break you needed, and yet, you felt yourself slowly space out while a possible future colleague of yours monologued about the new aquatic plants they acquired for their research. 

Holding a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice in your hand, you watched the color slosh back and forth, images of red and yellow hitting you again and again. So many strange things had already happened since you came here, including the peculiar NDAs, secretiveness, and voices you had heard. Someone brought you water, but you hadn’t even noticed someone coming or going from the room that was apparently locked and deadbolted without the right passcode. 

Your eyes widened.

“I’m sorry, I have to go,” you mumbled, leaving the puzzled researchers and your half-full glass of juice behind as you hurried out of the recreation room. That’s right, you thought. Someone did bring you water, and you drank from it. It had definitely been real. And if that was the case, then someone was with you in that room, which meant it was dangerous for either them or the giant octopus living there. If something happened to either, not only would it put your potential new job in danger, but it was also possible that it would be blamed on you. 

Hurrying down the corridors you came from, you tried to stop yourself from thinking about how much it would cost if they sued you for the death of a very delicate specimen. Even more so, the death of a human. Despite still being a rookie, you had the potential skills and knowledge to avoid potential harm, and you doubted anyone could have gotten back as fast to the enclosure as you had if you had to explain what was going on first. 

You almost missed your destination, coming to a fumbling stop when you reached the door. With all the adrenaline rushing through you, you punched the numbers into the number pad, not waiting for the door to open fully until you squeezed through the gap.

“Hello? HELLO!” you yelled into the giant enclosure, hoping to receive some kind of verbal feedback on where the other person could be. “Is someone there?!” 

Panicked, you ran across the walkway and to the other side, checking behind the working surfaces and machinery if someone was taking shelter, perhaps hurt or unconscious. But even after searching every nook and cranny, you found no one, the first rational thoughts returning to your mind as you wondered if you had imagined it after all. Suddenly, you heard the water splash loudly, and immediately raced back to see what was happening. Countless bubbles were going to the surface until suddenly, glaringly red tentacles shot out from them, the color a clear warning sign. Whatever was going on inside the pool, the octopus was either warning or fighting, its arms trying to find something to hold on to as if it wanted to pull itself up. 

To you, it looked like a struggle.

Without a second thought, you shrugged off your jacket and dove off the edge. The water pressure threatened to rob your lungs of all the air in them, but you prevailed. You used to train both your lung capacity and your swimming skills once you determined that marine biology was the job you wanted to pursue. After all, you never know what kind of situation you’d get into when researching. Still, the water stung in your eyes as you tried to keep them open, countless bubbles hitting your face and obscuring the view. 

You had to admit to yourself that it was reckless. Jumping into the habitat of a possibly dangerous creature without telling anyone, but you couldn’t have forgiven yourself if you didn’t try to save either of the two that needed rescuing. Even beneath the surface, you could hear the struggle, the loud whizzing of the arms through the water. You managed to avoid being hit by them for a long time, quickly descending towards the ground where you assumed the creature was. But when you suddenly felt a weight wrap around your ankle, sticking to your wet clothes, you realized your mistake. 

Your lungs tightened as they braced for impact that never came. You expected to be slammed down to the ground, now that the tentacle had latched on to you. From then on, it would be a matter of very few time if you could survive this. If the octopus was nice enough to let you go, you could have potentially breeched the surface when you were about to lose all the air left in you, but if it was panicking, you’d probably get stuck or attacked down there for too long, unable to save anyone after being the one in a predicament. 

Hands clasped over your mouth, you pressed your eyes shut, tensing all your muscles to survive the crash, but instead, the water suddenly calmed. You felt fewer bubbles caress you as the world quieted. Only the tentacle remained where it had first latched on, wrapped tightly around your ankle as you slowly opened your eyes. 

Only to find two bright yellow ones staring back at you. 

Out of surprise, you gasped, water suddenly flooding into your well-protected mouth as if you had forgotten where you were. You immediately shut it again, but the damage was already done as you had inhaled the water, unable to cough it up. Panicked, your body began to struggle. The years of training to stay calm seemed forgotten as you wanted nothing more than to get up and out of the water. You flailed wildly, staring upwards towards the ceiling light shining blurrily down into the water as the last bits of air rushed out of your mouth. 

Two big hands wrapped around your face, keeping your head steady as your heart skipped a beat. The touch was gentle, although you felt the resistance all around you. Was the octopus about to crush your head? Wait, hands?!

Next you knew, lips sealed yours, tightly, the water from your mouth disappearing in exchange for fresh air. Bubbles surrounded you again, but you paid them no mind as you clung to the strange air supply, more and more tentacles wrapping around your body. You almost felt like you were going crazy as you forced your eyes to open again, peering at the shiny yellow ones across from you, half-lidded and so very human and so little octopus, even though the animal still clung to your body. 

A tongue entered your mouth, its tip exploring your teeth until its prodding abruptly made you flinch, the taste of blood filling your senses.

And all of a sudden, your head breached the surface, bouncing out of it with vigor. 

“There, there,” someone mumbled gently, a hand rubbing your back and patting it lightly as you started to cough violently. Being back in the air was hardly enough, as waves kept crashing into you and making you sputter. You oriented yourself briefly before swimming towards the edge, reaching out and clinging to it once you were near enough, the other person following you. Even now, you could still feel the octopus’s suction cups all over you, sometimes popping off and finding different places to wrap around, one tip slipping beneath your t-shirt, steadying you, but also clinging to your exposed back.

“I told you to be nice!” you heard a familiar voice shout from your right, and suddenly, two pairs of arms hooked beneath your shoulders, pulling you out of the water. Most of the tentacles popped off you, although some remained, holding on steady like the one around your ankle, and making it much harder to get you away from the pool. 

There was a clatter as someone dropped to their knees next to you, giving your back a few very hard slaps as you kept sputtering out water. “Are you alright?” someone asked, and you looked up for the first time, glimpsing into the worried eyes of some of the researchers you had met on your break. 

“Take it easy,” the person beside you sighed, and you gave them a quick glance, seeing the Professor’s tense expression. You nodded, slowly stumbling to your feet as everyone seemed to release some of the tension. 

“I’m glad we made it in time.” Holding out towels and medikits, the researchers scrabbled around you, assisting you and pulling up a chair for you to sit in, while the Professor got back on his feet with a groan, picking up his walking stick and shooting you one last worried glance before turning around. 

“Stop holding on to them!” he commanded, slamming his stick into the ground. But what should have sounded like wood clonking on metal made a squishy sound instead, followed by a yelp and the release of the last remaining tentacle around your ankle. “What in the world were you thinking, pulling them beneath the water?!”

Slowly, your strength returned, the adrenaline leaving you, and in its place, only exhaustion remained. But regardless, you looked up to the Professor, only now realizing that two armed guards stood on either side of him, weapons pointed towards the water, and there…

A young man, with uncanny yet recognizable features, cradled one of the red tentacles in his hands. 

He was gigantic, much bigger than all the men in this room. His slicked-back hair fell in fiery red strands around his face, elevating his golden eyes that stared at the Professor sulkily. However, his gaze occasionally went lower. Instead of the Professor, he was looking at you ever so often, his features growing a little less tense, but curious and perhaps a little worried. The tentacle in his hold still had the same angry or wary red tone as before when you thought the octopus was in danger, and it was held by his large hands, the very same palms that you remembered gently cupping your face before… before… he kissed you. 

It wasn’t the time and place to feel ashamed all of a sudden, still the heat rose into your face, and you quickly wiped the towel over it as if to dry your skin. It had been your first kiss, although you expected that to go wildly different. You felt crazy to think about that right now, when you should be more concerned about what was happening around you, and you pinched your thigh to regain your focus. 

“Something was happening, and I was just trying to help, I swear!” the man in the water claimed, his voice restless. “I was just protecting them, I didn’t want to hurt them! Please, you have to believe me, I’ve been so good all this time! I always listen to what you tell me...”

A wave of guilt washed over you as you felt responsible. Surely, it wouldn’t put you in a good light with the facility to tell them you acted on some crazy thoughts of yours and freaked out over apparently nothing. Everything was calm, even the octopus seemed to have settled again while all of you were talking. But with the man still in the water, he was still in danger, especially with guns pointed at him, making it almost impossible to move. 

“Excuse me?” you called out, having to clear your throat as your voice cracked after all the coughing. As you stood up, the worried researchers followed your movements closely, not wanting you to faint or collapse from the strain. There was a real possibility that in a minute, they’d regret being so worried about you after the ruckus you caused. You’d probably never shake off the incident when you started working here. You would always be remembered as that person who almost drowned on their first day. Some would think you were out for attention or simply annoying and unsuited for your position. But it still wasn’t right not to at least admit your part in all of this, right? Even if it felt silly and embarrassing, you had to do something!

Thoughts and reasoning as always, is welcome! ♥

[444sturns]

⋮ bf!chris headcanons .ᐟ - first relationship. ⓘ fluff, angst, a lil smut, the whole package.

bf!chris... who jumped at the opportunity to ask you out the moment he built the courage. he made sure to do it perfectly and by the book— he asked for your friend's blessings beforehand. he insisted on picking you up at your front door, flowers in hand. was really corny and he knew it, but he wanted it to be perfect for you.

bf!chris… who was so eager to take you home to meet his parents. he knew they’d adore you— they did. 

bf!chris... who dedicates every friday night to taking you out somewhere. it doesn’t have to be someplace crazy, he just really loves showing you off as much as possible now that he can. 

bf!chris… who sends you a selfie of himself every single morning in the bathroom mirror, brushing his teeth, captioned “so that you have no excuse to not wanna kiss me.” 

bf!chris… who smothers you with affection — he’s forever covering your face with little kisses, mumbling soft “i love you”’s in between each one. always holding your hand or just simply keeping a hand on you at all times. the closeness isn’t something you’re used to, but it’s sweet. 

bf!chris… who has taken a liking to your skincare routine and loves to join in when he can. newsflash: he just likes to have you do it for him— gives him a good look at your face, all up close. kid’s a total goofball and so in love. 

bf!chris… who is a little worried, thinking he’s not good enough to be your first everything. so, he pours his everything into showing up for you, proving himself even when he doesn’t need to.

bf!chris… who always apologizes first, even though he never has to. he always wants to make things right. 

bf!chris… who tends to get a little bit of an attitude with you if you’ve had one with him. he drives you up the wall with the attitude, but my god, it kicks you back into gear every time. 

“listen, kid, you run your mouth and i run mine. if y’don’t like it, then don’t cop an attitude.”

“i copped an attitude because you’re being a dick, chris.”

“i’m never a dick for no good reason. you’re walkin’ around here huffin’ and puffin’ over what? don’t gotta take the bad mood out on me, y’know.”

bf!chris… who nuzzles his nose against your neck, all soft and sweet, when he knows he upset you. he makes it up to you every single time, but not without reminding you that you needed that attitude adjustment to begin with.

bf!chris… who, even after months of dating you, is absolutely wrecked by your praises when he’s doing something right. 

“you’re so good at that.” turns him into a puddle. always will.

© 444sturns

⨳ special thank u message to @oopsiedaisydeer for this cute ass idea — ily.

444sturns taglist!￤ഒ·°,

@zenithsturniolo @chrissbows @sturnsrecord @courta13 @sturns-mermaid @ifwdominicfike @moond0llie @bambisturns @madie4sturns @that1fangirll @conspiracy-ash

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hello! Can I ask for an Dream BBQ Ena with a reader who is a genie? Like maybe Ena finds a new door and thinks that the genie can help her find the boss. Reader is the genie of the door and is just like "???" at this strange but kinda endearing humanoid. IDK, I just think Genie!Reader's redaction to Ena would be funny.

This reminds me of that one Door that's hidden in the Lost Village (there's a pathway in the top right corner of the area). It's like a mermaid

Makes me wonder if the door itself just got abandoned here, or if there's a world inside it that's still ran by a Genie. But anyways I'm gonna base Reader off of what I think this Genie would've been like!

........

'Huh..another Door.' Ena mused as she came face-to-face with another blue entity. This time, it was a mermaid-shaped figure with the head of a fish, being only connected by a spine or backbone of some sort.

She had the feeling that she definitely shouldn't be here, but after wandering and looking for clues as to which house in the Lost Village was the correct one to enter.....she just happened to stumble upon this Door.

Something told her to use the humanboard to cross over to it, and that's exactly what she did, determined to explore this new "ocean of opportunity". She was always one to venture into the unknown.

It was still part of her job, after all--it could lead her to the Genie who could clear that smoke away.

Stepping onto what little platform was holding up the door, she was teetering on the edge, not daring to look down into the abyss, knowing it'd be staring back up at her.

After recalling her trusted companion tool, she looked at the head in-between her hands for a brief moment, thinking..

Should she be here?

Shouldn't she be heeding the words of Sir Frank?

Regardless, her curiosity won over...and it may be her undoing.

There was a cracking sound, like bones snapping, and she glanced up to see that the Door reattached its own head. It stared at her with one blinking eye, almost as if it was expecting something out of her...

The moment she reached out to make contact with it, the creature suddenly grabbed her arm and yanked her closer, aggressively wrapping its limbs and tail around her in a crushing embrace, before dragging her downwards into the blue--like she was being pulled underwater.

For a few seconds she gasped, fighting its hold on her....but it didn't take long for her vision to go black.

Next thing she knew, she was falling and hit the ground hard.

She could breathe again, and after coming to her sense, she found herself in a new place: A large room that resembled an abandoned swimming pool area. She looked around, finding faded motivational posters, a deflated beach ball or two floating in the air, and of course....a lot of mannequins who have somehow found this Door, too.

Some lied dead in their lounge chairs, holding empty martini glasses, others were trapped at the bottom of the pool, and a few took turns hopping off the diving platform, only to respawn on the board as soon as they touched the water.

It seemed like a lot of fun, but she ignored it.

She allowed it to distract her once, and look where that brought her....

Now she knew she definitely wasn't any closer to finding the Bathroom. But what else could be done except continue on?

Surely, there had to be another way.

Up ahead, she spotted a decrepit canopy that piqued her interest. It just screams "Genie Hideout Here" with flashing neon signs and red arrows all pointing to its entrance.

So she pressed on, stepping into the pool and realizing that she didn't sink right away. She was able to walk on the water, but it didn't bother her as she marched onwards with newfound determination.

When she made it to the other side, she drew back the curtain, discovering the canopy to be much bigger on the inside--not to mention more glamorous, full of shiny things and strange fish in aquatic tanks on all sides of her: left, right, up, down, and diagonal.

At the very end, you were sitting there, meditating in the middle of it all. You looked like a rather important figure, so she did the only sensible thing and walk right up to you with her request.

"Excuse my intrusion, but perhaps you could help me?"

Hearing the footsteps of a newcomer, you opened your eyes and looked up to see that you indeed had a visitor. It's an ENA, much to your surprise, but you welcome it.

"Hello, my friend. I don't know how you found this place, but I must say...I'm impressed." You rise up, your cloak swishing around your form. "I am the Genie of this Door, although...what you've seen is all that remains of it. Time has passed so quickly, I've even forgotten what its purpose was." Your earfins fold downwards as your smile becomes forlorn, a sentimental feeling washing over you.

"A Door...within a Door?!" Ena's Meanie side huffs, taking out a megaphone and shouting into it. "I'm sick of all these conundrums! I just want to find the Bathroom!!!" She was so worked up, she didn't even realize there was no force overtaking her--no higher power that was making her say "Bathroom" instead of "Genie"--anymore.

"..Bathroom? Ah..you must mean Theodora." You sigh. "The fact that you winded up here means you were close to reaching it....but you've fallen short. You won't find her here. Only her remnants, which the village has been protecting for a long time. If forgiveness is what you seek, unfortunately I cannot give you that blessing, for I've lost the power to do so."

"Grrahh..then what services can you provide for me, fish fry?" She sneered, tapping her foot, hands on her hips as her disconnected head tilts to the side.

Normally, you wouldn't tolerate anybody speaking to you like this. But this was the first time you've really gotten to know an ENA who was...stable. Her emotions seemed balanced, united in search of a common goal, instead of being an aimless wanderer like many before her and one side having an extreme overreaction at the drop of a hat.

She wasn't annoying, but interesting. And it's been a while since anything or anyone interesting has come to see you. So you decided to entertain her.

"Well, it'd be cruel to let you leave emptyhanded. So I will grant you one aspiration. No more, no less."

Your response satisfied Ena's Salesperson side, as she grinned, knowingly exactly what she must aspire for. She didn't need a moment longer to think about it.

It's not about what she truly wanted deep down, as only one thing mattered right now.

"Dear Genie, our target today is your Boss. They've been giving us trouble, but the smoke is in the way of our work. If it's within your power, would you kindly eradicate it for us?" She clasped her hands together. "Pretty please?"

"Hmm...are you asking on someone's behalf? Or out of your own volition? Is this what you really want?" You ponder out loud, but when she doesn't answer, you continue. "Ah...very well. Just know that a time will come that you'll earn the freedom you desire in your heart. Liberation. Happiness. Unburdened by responsibility. You'll no longer be a cog in the machine."

Again, she said nothing, although you could see it in her eyes....that she liked the idea of that.

You then gestured behind you. "Dive into the code behind me. It's a shortcut to the answer to your prayers, and a way back to your physical form."

Ena looked past you, seeing a small pool of blue code, layered in realistic watery textures. Then she gazed back at you one more time, her Meanie side almost looking like she wanted to say something else...

But instead, she makes another snarky business joke. "Should I hold my breath? I'm already drowning in debt here."

"That's up to you. May you find peace with yourself someday, my friend. If we cross paths again...hopefully it's under better circumstances."

Without saying anything further, she walked behind you and jumped into the pool of code. No hesitation.

And as white greeted her vision, your voice echoed in her mind--from somewhere beyond:

"Remember, ƎNA: All it takes is a place and the right food"

[ultravi0lence14]

HIGH TIDE

DEAN WINCHESTER X MERMAID!READER

WARNINGS: hurt/comfort, reader being a baddie

SUMMARY: back at the bunker, sam and dean learn that their fishy friend is more well versed than they assumed.

WORD COUNT: 1.3k

the sound of a whirling air conditioner and freezing cold air was the first thing you felt when you woke up. you were more than groggy; more or less feeling like you’d been hit by a bus none the less.

everything was a blur. you remembered saving that kid, watching as that man stared at you from his place in the ocean, but you couldn’t pin point what happened afterward. it was all blurs of pain, anguish, and a weird comfort followed by the feeling of smooth leather under your skin.

your eyes had yet to peel open, the throws of darkness keeping you company as you laid limp on a cold surface. as your senses started to come back, you could faintly hear voices arguing; two, to be exact.

“what are we going to do with her?” voice number one asked, voice lilted in that of slight anger. “we’ve never dealt with a problem like this before.”

“i don’t know, dean,” voice number two said, addressing voice number one as dean. “i’ve been researching the best i can, and nothing is coming up about mermaids losing their ‘magic’ or whatever you want to call it.”

dean, what a beautiful name — wait. losing magic?

at the exact time when the second voices words registered in your head, you felt yourself try and flap your tail. all that resulted was you smacking your leg against the table and searing pain to shoot up your body.

“ow.” you groaned, peeling your eyes open and then throwing your arm over them when the bright lights blinded you. you were so confused. yet slowly, everything was coming back to you in pieces.

the pain in your tail. the sea urchin attacking you. the words these two strangers were spewing. your magic had been ripped away from you, making you a mermaid no longer.

everything you’ve ever known had been ripped away from you. the liberation of the sea, your fishy friends. you didn’t have a family, not remembering ever having one, but the feeling of being torn away from your only home made salty tears leak from your eyes.

somehow, the salt from your sadness brought a semblance of comfort. a reminder of home.

“oh jesus. is she crying?” the voice that you recognized as dean had tore through your reins of sadness and made you slowly peel your arm away from your face. “sam, what the fuck do we do with a crying mermaid?”

not being able to lie to yourself, you couldn’t help but admire the attractive man standing above you. with wild green eyes, and golden skin like that of a sun god, you couldn’t help but stare at his stubbly jaw and attractive features as who you assumed to be sam also leaned over you.

his hair haloed around his face, and you wondered if these two were related from the similarities they bore.

“why are you crying?” sam asked, shifting an arm around your back as you tried to rise on your elbows into a sitting position.

“we’re not going to hurt you, i swear.” sam’s words did nothing to calm your racing heart, and you couldn’t help but glower at the man has he helped you sit at the edge of a wooden table.

“i’m crying because i just got my home and birthright ripped away from me jackass, not because i think you’re going to hurt me.” your words had sam’s eyebrows shooting up, and a snort leaving dean’s lips.

“i like her, sammy, she’s got spunk.” dean smirked over at you, and you couldn’t help but turn your cold glare onto him. pointing a finger at you, dean gave an incredulous look in your direction as he spoke with a hint of sarcasm in his tone. “don’t go all ursula on me, princess, i’m the one who saved you from being six feet under.”

a small shred of gratitude shone through your chest at his statement. for if it wasn’t for him, you’d be dead.

though you couldn’t help but narrow your eyes at him, jutting your chin in sam’s direction as you spoke to his companion. “thanks, i guess. but could you tell your friend over there to stop asking stupid questions like a total seaweed brain? i’m trying to grasp onto everything that just happened.”

with his hands in the air, sam took a step back from you and watched nervously as you kicked your feet back and forth, an expression of interest on your face. the flannel around your shoulders and the pair of boxer shorts on your hips had you staring in confusion, yet you decided not to dwell on one of these two changing you and focus on your new found legs.

you always had a tail, never becoming accustomed to legs in general. this was all new to you, and you realized then that you would need these two dopes help if you wanted to make it in the real world.

sighing, you scrubbed a hand down your face before turning to both of the men in front of you. “so sam and dean. . .”

“winchester,” sam replied, crossing his arms over his chest when he assumed you didn’t want to throttle him anymore. “we’re brothers.”

“thought so,” you shrugged, grimacing at the ugliness of the brown coloured shirt on your shoulders. “anyway, i’m very grateful that you two saved me, yet i can’t help but assume i’m not going to be turning back into a mermaid anytime soon. correct?”

sam sheepishly nodded, and dean couldn’t help but marvel at the pair of balls this assumedly innocent mermaid had on her.

“so, i thought maybe you two could help me.” your words left no room for questions, and dean couldn’t help but quirk a brow at your somewhat ridiculous statement.”

“help you?” he inquired, scratching at the stubble on his jaw as he stared at you with a smirk on his face. “i saved you from becoming sea food, isn’t that good enough?”

shrugging, you started combing your fingers through your hair. “in my books, no.” dean’s eyebrows shot up, and you held out a finger to him when he opened his mouth to speak. “i just need a bit of help getting on my feet; literally.” dean smirked at your joke, and you found it fair enough to continue.

“we could work together. maybe find something that could turn me back into a mermaid, maybe not. either way, help me become human for the time being, and i’ll try not to be annoying. deal?”

you spoke to the two brothers like you were making a gang negotiation, and both sam and dean wondered where you got this type of personality from living under the water all your life.

“i know what you’re thinking, and to answer your question, i am a very perceptive person. i see how you humans act and i create my own personality.” nudging sam’s knee with your foot, you grinned at the two men. “how am i doing so far?”

dean smirked at you, eyes racking up and down your frame as he watched you try and get down from the library table. “you’ve got yourself a deal, princess.” arm shooting out as you stumbled on your new found feet, dean steadied you into his chest so you wouldn’t completely fall on your ass. “first thing: try not to fall and break your neck before we could start though.”

“shut up.” you groaned, hands clutching dean’s shoulders as you stared into his sea foam eyes. “now, the first thing i want to deal with is this hideous thing you call clothes.”

“hey!” sam protested, speaking up for the first time in a couple of minutes. “that’s mine!”

“yeah, and it’s ugly.” you shot back, making dean snort and sam to drop his mouth like a gaping fish. “you guys got any dresses? i always saw the pretty girls on the beach wearing them.”

dean made eye contact with sam, silently giving each other an ‘oh dear lord’ look as dean slung his arm over your shoulder and helped you sit down in one of the library chairs.

‘yeah,’ dean thought, rubbing his brow slowly. ‘this is going to be a handful.’

TAGS: @starzify @whisperingdaze @titsout4jackles @daylighted @deansbeer @bluemerakis @gibson-g1rl @deanangel @sunsbaby @haunteres @honeyryewhiskey @florchids @figthoughts @misatxox @a-lil-pr1ncess @flow33didontsmoke @ilovedeanwinchester4 @whump-loverz @reluctanthalfwayoptimism @djudy99 @ryngzmn

NAT BABBLES: i wanted to make our girl whimsical but also a total princess and slight pain in the ass to both sam and dean (mostly dean)

[swarvey]

Can I ask for reactions to Farmer having real bad, MASSIVE, resting bit@% face. please 🙏

I don't care who you do it for, have fun with it. :3

when you have a resting bitch face | shane, haley (separate!) x gn!reader

summary -> your resting face has never been . . . the kindest, to say the least. it couldn't matter less to them, of course. warnings -> none! wc -> 502

a/n: this request is so funny and real i love it. i decided to do it with those who i headcanon to also have resting bitch faces. enjoy!! <3

shane

"fuckin' hell — what's up with them?"

as someone who also typically does not look the friendliest, shane feels like he has the right to judge

he's barely phased tho, thinks it's hilarious watching you go around town handing people gifts with such a stoic face

it all changes, tho, the day he sees you smile

he doesn't recall what made you laugh, only remembers thinking he wished it was because of him, bc damn

any thoughts he had about your resting face are gone

now, he only cares about being the one to break it

not that he'll ever admit it, ofc

(at least, not until you and him have matching mermaid's pendants)

it starts off with awkward small talk, as stuff typically does

"hey." | "um, hey." | "..." | "... do you need something?" | "no! no. nothing." | "okay." | "okay."

no one told him talking was hard, okay?

(the chickens usually think he's pretty funny, he swears)

something he said to you must have been right, tho, bc one day, he's on the way to joja and is stopped by you

and you have a container in your hands. for him. of pepper poppers.

"i heard you liked these ... so i decided to try and make them."

your typically hostile exterior is gone, replaced with ... is that embarrassment in your eyes??

he can't say shit, tho, he can feel a flush of heat creeping up his neck

"oh, uh, thanks, i guess. i mean, these are my favorite, so, yeah. thanks."

he wants to crawl away into a hole for the rest of his life.

his antics are rewarded nonetheless, seeing that he made you laugh for the first time

(which, in turn, gives him the chance to make you laugh for the rest of his life)

haley

"why is the new farmer looking at me like that? do they have a problem or something?"

definitely takes offense to it at first, disregarding her own major rbf

thinks you have something against her personally until emily reassures her it's just your resting face

she'll scoff and think it's stupid at first

but then she goes into the bathroom, looks into the mirror, and pretty much shrieks, scaring the hell out of her sister

"what, what?!" | "i have it, too!" | "have what?" | "the resting face! the one the farmer has!"

(emily reminds herself of inner peace before shutting the bathroom door and walking away)

after her monumental realization, haley is more understanding of you and decides to try and get to know you better

very pleasantly surprised to find your exterior doesn't match how you truly are

and when she finds a sunflower on her doorstep, along with a short letter written to her?

she's smitten.

haley's used to getting what she wants, and it's no different with you

"hey. you gave me this, right?" | "the sunflower? yeah, i heard you liked them..." | "so, wanna go on a date?" | "huh?!"

the rest is history

[poisoneevy]

I've replayed season 2 of ATHWTU and I am really like... shocked by the amount of nothing that is going on in this story. Like it really is kind of an amalgamation of the author just going "isn't this spooky what's happening right now?!" and well, girl... what is it? What is the spooky thing that is happening? I'd love to know. We get no answers about literally anything, which means that most things that happen are just filler episodes, because there isn't really any progression to the story or the status quo from the perception of Lada. Also, I like Lada as an MC but even she herself keep telling us that she knows nothing and she's tried of it and it's like ya girl me too, the fuck.

Also it's so funny that in the entirety of this story people go into the haze and they die immediately, there's no hope, no way to make it out. But in these last episodes literally anyone can just wonder in and out. Dragan goes in alone and comes out like nothing happened. He went on a 5 minute adventure to kill that mermaid, which we don't find out how he did that cause why would we, right? We don't need to know any of that. I mean maybe the Haze didn't want that motherfucker, which I guess I understand.

Most things that happen to Lada happen when she falls asleep and then wakes up in a secondary location with no explanation... sure, why not!

Novak apparently spent majority of his life in the haze so he should have some answers, right? Well guess what? Amnesia!... sure.

When Novak and Volot come back from their little side quest in the haze, Novak asked where Venciena is... girl... you weren't there when she made her appearance. Did the author forget?

Also?!?!? Hannah spoke? Does anyone remember that? The girl was mute and then spoke up for the first time in her life and the author was just like whatever... let's not talk about that anymore. Like, girl... please. Not to spoil the author playing this bizzare peek-a-boo with us but I think it begs to be reminded that a cliff hanger is only interesting because you get to find out what's beyond the cliff in the next episode. And in ATHWTU the answer is always nothing. Nothing happens in the next episode.

I think what's happening is that like... the author maybe had an idea for a story that would span maybe two seasons or something, like 10-20 episodes max. But the format of RC stories is three seasons. Because of that this whole shebang is being stretched out and we get SO much filler and I think the overall quality of the experience really suffers from this, because why has it been 19 episodes already and we don't have an answer to a single question that's been asked throughout this story. We have no leads, girl! The MC did not acquire any new skills. She just got a boyfriend or a girlfriend. Girl, hello? Our sister is dead, can we get PA Blom and the Copenhagen Police on the case maybe?

[ang3lofdivinity]

Warning: Lightly suggestive, can be seen as romantic or platonic.. BUTTTT…

I’m thinking about Calypso!Reader having some mermaid features whenever they got into the water.

The first time Jinx saw you step into the water, her jaw nearly hit the sand.

She’d been lazing on the rocky shore of your secluded island, sharpening her knife while keeping half an eye on you; because she always kept at least half an eye on you. You were fascinating, after all, with your calm demeanor, the way you hummed while walking barefoot across the sand, the way you somehow made her forget the chaos screaming in her head.

But when you waded into the shallows and the sunlight caught the iridescent scales creeping up your legs, Jinx FROZE. Her knife clattered to the ground.

You turned back to look at her, the water lapping gently at your thighs, and tilted your head in question.

“Something wrong?”

Jinx’s eyes widened, completely dumbfounded by your question. How the hell are you still acting so calm?

“What the hell is this?” she shouted, gesturing wildly toward you.

You blinked, then glanced down at yourself. The scales shimmered faintly in the sun, a mix of blues and greens like the ocean itself had gifted you its colors.

“Oh,” you said, as if this were the most casual thing in the world.

“This happens sometimes. When I’m in the water.”

Jinx was on her feet in seconds, sprinting toward the shoreline with a manic glint in her eye.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were part fish, toots?!”

“Because I’m not part fish,” you replied with a small laugh.

“It’s… complicated. Let’s just say the ocean likes me.”

The waves seemed to agree, brushing against your skin like they couldn’t bear to part from you. The wind picked up too, tugging at your hair as if to remind you it was part of your power, too.

Jinx, now up to her knees in the water, leaned in close, her gaze darting over your scales.

“Can you breathe underwater? Do you, like, grow a tail?”

You smiled at her excitement.

“You’ll figure it out eventually. When I tell you. Or, even show you if I feel nice enough.”

“That’s boring thoughhh!!” Jinx said, poking one of the scales on your arm with a curious finger.

Before you could reply, Jinx grabbed your hand and tugged you further into the water. The waves surged higher around your waist, and with every step, the scales spread further across your skin. It was as if the ocean itself was calling you home.

Jinx watched with rapt attention, her usual chaos momentarily subdued.

“Do something cool,” she urged.

Rolling your eyes, you motioned with a finger to let the wind swirl around you, sending ripples across the water. Then, with a flick of your wrist, the ocean rose in a small arc, splashing Jinx full in the face.

She sputtered, then burst into laughter, water dripping from her hair.

“You’re ridiculous,” she said, though the grin on her face betrayed how much fun she was having.

“You asked for it,” you replied, your tone light.

Jinx’s laughter softened, and she studied you with a rare gentleness in her eyes.

“Seriously, you really are a goddess. Never knew about this before..”

You felt a warmth in your chest at her words, though you tried to brush it off.

“I’m just me,” you said, stepping closer to her.

Jinx tilted her head, her grin returning, sharper now.

“Yeah, but ‘just you’ is my favorite thing I’ve ever found.”

. . .

“Do the scales also appear on your neck? Waist? Your—“

“Okay, enough questions for today about this!”

“BUT I’M CURIOUS!!”

Calypso!Reader and Jinx masterlist.

[squidsquidsquidsquidsquidgame]

erm haii can I uh get a oneshot of like family life w jiyong? very fluffy :3 family with jiyong, reader and maybe 2 girls ? thanksies xx

Little Lights

Pairing: G-Dragon (Kwon Ji-yong) x Reader Rating: G / Fluff Word Count: ~1,700 Genre: Family Life, Domestic Fluff, Soft!Dad Ji-yong

Summary: The world knows him as G-Dragon—bold, brilliant, larger-than-life. But at home, Ji-yong is just "Appa," the man who sings lullabies off-key, does ballet twirls in the living room, and gets glitter stuck in his hair. A quiet morning with Ru-na and Ji-na is all he needs to remember what truly matters.

Warnings: None, just soft fluff and domestic sweetness. Mentions of tired parenting and baby messes.

The morning starts with glitter on the bedsheets.

Again.

You wake to soft thuds down the hallway and the unmistakable sound of toddler giggling—mischief in stereo. Before you can even sit up, the bedroom door creaks open and Ru-na toddles in, pigtails askew, one sock missing, holding a sparkly pink wand like a weapon of mass destruction.

“Appaaaaa!” she yells, spotting the lump of blankets on the bed. “Magic time!”

You hear Ji-yong groan under the covers.

“No magic,” he mumbles. “Appa is sleepy.”

But Ru-na has no mercy. She launches herself onto the bed like a tiny missile, climbing over him and poking his cheek with the wand.

“Turn into a prince!”

“Appa already is a prince,” Ji-yong mutters, eyes barely open.

From the hallway, a second set of feet wobbles closer—Ji-na, still wobbly on her little legs, dragging a plush bunny half her size. She plops down by the edge of the bed and announces, “Ba-ba,” which could mean “bottle,” “bunny,” or possibly just "existence."

You slide out from the sheets and scoop her up. “Good morning, Ji-na bean.”

Ji-yong finally rolls onto his back, catching Ru-na mid-bounce.

He blinks at her. “Do you ever sleep?”

“Nope!” she chirps.

“Cool,” he deadpans. “Love that for us.”

You laugh and sit Ji-na next to him, watching as her tiny fingers immediately tug at the chain around his neck.

“Appa pretty,” she mumbles, pressing her face to his chest.

That gets him. Ji-yong melts instantly, wrapping an arm around her and kissing the top of her hair.

“Yeah? Appa pretty?”

She nods solemnly.

“I’m done,” he whispers, grinning at you over Ji-na’s head. “No encore. I peaked.”

You watch him—G-Dragon, the icon, the visionary—lying in bed with tangled hair and baby drool on his shirt, Ru-na bouncing on his stomach and Ji-na sucking her thumb against his chest.

This is the man no one sees.

Except you.

—

Later that morning, the four of you end up in the living room. Ji-na is happily gnawing on a rice cracker in her high chair while Ru-na dances in a tutu that Ji-yong swears he didn’t buy (he did). She insists on playing her favorite song—one of Ji-yong’s ballads—but on full blast, which causes Ji-na to shriek every time the chorus hits.

He watches them with a dazed sort of pride, sipping lukewarm coffee.

“You okay?” you ask, settling beside him.

“I’m… yeah.” He blinks slowly. “Just realizing how loud love can be.”

You smile. “You’re good at this.”

He snorts. “You mean parenting?”

You nod.

He looks over at the girls—Ru-na now spinning with reckless glee, Ji-na kicking her feet rhythmically to the music.

“I don’t know if I’m good at it,” he admits softly. “But I’m in love with it.”

You reach over, resting your hand on his thigh.

“They adore you.”

He leans into your touch. “I keep thinking... no concert, no award, no number-one chart… nothing ever made me feel the way Ru-na did when she said ‘I love you’ for the first time.”

“She also called you ‘Poop Appa’ yesterday,” you remind him.

“Balance,” he says solemnly.

—

That night, bath time is chaos, as usual. Ji-na refuses to be rinsed. Ru-na wants “mermaid hair.” Ji-yong ends up soaked, sitting on the tiled floor with a towel around his shoulders like a war casualty.

You kiss his cheek as you lift Ji-na from the tub. “Survived?”

“Barely,” he mutters.

He gets his revenge by reading their bedtime story in an overly dramatic stage voice, complete with funny accents. Ru-na laughs so hard she hiccups. Ji-na claps at random intervals, which seems encouraging enough.

By the time the lights are off and the girls are snuggled into their beds, Ji-yong is silent.

You find him standing in the doorway to their room, watching.

His arms are folded, expression soft.

“Can’t believe I get to have this,” he murmurs. “This life. With you. With them.”

You wrap your arms around his waist from behind.

“We built it,” you say.

He exhales deeply. “I was so scared, you know? That I’d be too much—or not enough. That I’d be… bad at this.”

“You’re not.”

“I love them,” he says suddenly. “Like it hurts, how much.”

You press a kiss between his shoulder blades. “I know.”

And for a while, you just stand there. Two parents, hearts full, feet tired, souls quiet.

Together.

Always.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

MISS RAVEN !!

First of all, hope your personal stuff is going as smooth as possible 🫂 Second of all: CORAL SEA EVENT WITH J WORD SSR !!! he came to cheer you up (or make things worse... we'll never know)

[Referencing the April 2025 JP schedule!]

Surgeon: Now remember to not strain yourself. No intense exercise, no heavy lifting. Don't let your heart rate get too elevated either. Me: Okay, that'll be easy!

Me, after seeing the April monthly schedule that dropped a few days after that operation:

FORGET WAITING UNTIL I'M FULLY RECOVERED TO REPLY TO NEW ASKS, THIS IS IMPORTANT NEWS AND IT HAS TO BE DISCUSSED RIGHT NOW

akjvdsvkasdlasd In all seriousness though, I think I'm recovering okay-ish! I won't get into the details (again, to maintain privacy) but 💦 it's definitely less painful and easier to keep food down.

The timing of this drop is so insane... 😭😭😭 The announcement came like... 2-3 days after my surgery??? AND THE EVENT IS SLATED FOR LATE APRIL???? That's roughly when my birthday is... THIS IS FATE, IT WAS DESTINED TO BE CSJ KAJGK FGWOt3g23573rq7fiqegeganyuiaegoaegoim.';kh,gj.dj,gaeinmegaufgFWUTQEKH QBGYUFAYUAGNOAGOIMOQEGTGYQENOYG J word really did appear to both cheer me up AND to make things worse... or he saw me starting to swerve for L*ona and felt that his position as #1 was being threatened and had to remind me about his presence/j

IT FR GIVES WEDDING... though my initial though when I saw the all black suit and the event name, Eternity Float, made me think "funeral"/a body set adrift in the sea). WEDDING DEFINITELY MAKES MORE SENSE THOUGH, those flower petals and the veil (?) are a dead giveaway. I did also notice that Jade is wearing his earring on the other ear in this art... Wonder if that has any meaning? Is Floyd maybe not going to the event and this is Jade's way of "including" his twin? Or maybe there's some other symbolism for it.

But I guess that brings up the question "who the heck is getting married????" 😭 Is it some Leech relative we haven't heard of before??? Or one of Rielle's older siblings (not confirmed to have siblings in canon, but Ariel has 6 older sisters so maybe Rielle has some too)??? (Malleus is a guest at the wedding so it's making me think a fellow royal is being hitched?) A business associate of Papa Leech??? Or maybe it's not an actual wedding at all, but a holiday that celebrates the marriage of the mermaid princess to a human prince--which has been brought up in lore multiple times. It was due to her efforts that the relationship between merfolk and humans was strengthened. Whatever the reason, I hope we can see the famous rainbow dessert soup with trident cookies that Ruggie talks about in his Halloween Dress vignettes... You use the cookie to stir the sky-blue soup, and then the soup turns 7 colors. It's a dish that's served only on special occasions in Coral Sea, one such occasion being weddings. Ruggie says that he used to work at a wedding venue, and it was very common for couples from the Coral Sea to request this soup at their weddings.

AaaaaaHhhhHhHhhhHhhhhhHhhhhHHHHHHH, I'm so excited!! I wonder who we'll meet???? Probably not both Leech parents since previous hometown events only included one new character... Their grandmother has also been mentioned, so she's a candidate as well. If my theory about it being a royal wedding or the celebration of the mermaid princess's marriage is true, then I see there being a strong case for Rielle's reveal as well. (Tamashina Mina/Cloudcalling on the Savanna confirmed that the new characters are not always family members.) There's no confirmation of a future RSA arc or any information about book 8, so it's probably best not to get our hopes up too high for Rielle. I think we'll have a better idea of who it might be once the event synopsis actually drops later this month! For now, I can see it going many different ways.