#mitsugiyuu | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

extra-v1rgin · 7 months ago

Text

Posting this on the last day of may just like I did last year 🫡 This was gonna be smut but I got 4k in and it was all fluff and we had one week of may left…

☆.。.:・°☆.。.:・°☆.。.:・°☆.。.:・°☆

Tomioka usually ignores the mermaids that stray too close to him. His coworkers are fascinated by the extravagant fins that float in their vision and tricks the creature perform but Giyuu focuses solely on the actual job. He checks water ph and measures kelp growth and checks fish levels.

The mermaids are very beautiful but they can be rather annoying too. Looking for attention they often interrupt him by plucking the plants or blowing bubbles into his goggles. After he continues to ignore the mermaids they eventually leave but then he must change his calculations.

Giyuu is not friendly with many of his coworkers. He goes to work, takes his lunch alone, and returns home without much fanfare. Every once in a while a newcomer will question why he doesn’t enjoy the aquatic company but eventually they learn like everyone else to not ask questions.

While Tomioka is not popular he is good at his job. His coworkers respect him at the very least and the higher ups don’t care that he is often solitary as long as he continues to produce good results.

The promotion they give him is probably supposed to be a reward then, but Giyuu doesn’t care for change. A steep increase in pay is the only reason he doesn’t turn down the offer.

“Aren’t you happy to get promoted Tomioka-san?” Shinobu is already aware of his distaste for the new position and takes any opportunity she can to tease him about it. “Everyone else is very jealous of you!”

The man doesn’t know how to answer. He continues to pack up his meager possessions scattered throughout the work space.

“Rehabilitation environment supervisor! Very exciting title. It’ll look great on your new badge.”

“Kocho-san… I need to get going.”’

“Ah I suppose I’ll let you. We’ll be seeing more of each other now after all.” He might actually be happy about that. Shinobu is one of the only people who doesn’t seem to despise him but she can also be rather confusing.

—-

Having people to guide is a rather odd experience. His team is full of younger employees who are too eager to work. They chat too long between Giyuu’s short pauses in instruction and ask questions that have already been answered.

“Will we get to interact with the mermaids?” Tomioka keeps ignoring the question but after the fifth ask he grows tired. His brow furrows, “Probably not. Most tanks will be cultured before the… patients even arrive.”

A loud sigh falls from every mouth in the group. Tomioka doesn’t understand their disappointment. The open ocean was certainly more beautiful but preparing an empty tank with no flashy interruptions seems like a fair trade.

“Can we see the mermaids after we finish the tanks?”

“Ah… I suppose it depends on the reason they’re being treated.”

Immediately the mood in the room soars again. Even though the answer was vague at best most of the group has taken it as a positive sign. The chatter increases as Giyuu guides the group towards their first project.

The warehouse is a large place. Though Giyuu supposes it’s not larger than the oceans he explored before. He’s briefly toured the place before— both as a newcomer and after his recent promotion —but mostly the man relies on his map and the signs hung up to get around. They pass several rehabilitation areas, each marked for different circumstances. Again the group behind him bursts into whispers whenever they catch glimpses of figures moving behind foggy glass.

Tomioka scans his badge and finally steps into view of his current project. His subordinates fly through the door and exclaim when they catch sight of the mermaid floating through the tank.

The creature is not a typical specimen. Instead of the usual fins and flippers her lower half morphs into arms and tentacles.

“Isn’t she beautiful?” Everyone else is mesmerized as the mermaid dances around the aquarium. Her lower half drags through the sand as she moves.

Giyuu watches for a moment. It is true that the woman is stunning, her human half at least. Though her tentacles are a new sight for a mermaid ultimately they are the same seen on cephalopod. He gives her a minute longer than he gives any other creature that interrupts his work.

While most everyone else is distracted Tomioka approaches one of the researches. “Will she be moved while the plants are transported in?” Luckily the younger workers are too focused on the mercreature’s movements to lament his question.

“There’s a smaller area of the tank we can keep her confined to for a bit. She needs to stretch out her tentacle and arms so they’ll heal. We can only do the smaller tank a few hours at a time, and only once or twice a week.” Another glance backwards reveals just how bad the injuries are. Though the appendages have been bandaged the wrappings are stained a dark red.

Giyuu purses his lips and resists the urge to frown (or frown deeper than his default expression). If he has to work at that pace it’ll take a full month to finish the tank.

“Oh but you can do some work while she’s in the tank too! Mitsuri-san is very friendly.”

The offer is not very compelling but he nods anyways. “Will she listen to instruction?”

“Oh yes she’s very intelligent! She doesn’t speak any human language but seems to understand Japanese very well.”

Tomioka turned out the speaking as soon as he got a yes. “We can start next week then.” There’s still a few orders he has to place and things to delegate.

“Tomioka-san.” One of the bolder workers approaches him. “Can we stay a little while to watch Mitsuri-san?”

The man makes an odd expression that perfectly captures his confusion.

“That’s her name,” the researcher informs him. “I said it earlier but I suppose it wasn’t a proper introduction.”

Giyuu isn’t very good with names. The mermaids that were frequently floating around their research sites also had names but he never bothered to remember any of them either. Mostly he identified the creatures as the “blue one” or “spiked finned mean one.” At least now he doesn’t have to bother with differentiating her from any other mermaids. “Ahh… thank you.” He likely won’t remember this name either, or at least not longer than whatever time the job takes.

“Do you have any other questions?” Surely the researchers are used to a myriad of them. Giyuu has none. All the details about saline level and ph and cuttlefish habitats are contained within a folder he already has.

It takes awhile to gather the young group of workers to leave. They all let out groans like a gaggle of schoolchildren. In all fairness many were barely out of college, some lucky ones accepted into the program while they were still studying. Tomioka is unpersuaded by the grim reaction. He easily sweeps them back out into the hallway and in towards the next job.

All the rest of the rooms are much simpler, to the students at least. They see fish habitats as an easy project despite the fact that they require the same amount of attention and care as the larger species and their semi-mammalian cousins. If anything they were the harder group to care for precisely because people underestimated them. Giyuu’s job was to find what everyone else had let slip through the cracks. He informs the group of his expectations regarding this much to their displeasure.

—-

It takes some time for Tomioka and his subordinates to properly get started. There is the matter of analyzing what vegetation would be suit the environment and the animals needs. From there it takes another few days for the shipments he’s placed to arrive. When possible they may have another team get plants from nearby oceans but that doesn’t speed up the process much either.

Mermaids like Mitsuri are rare. Most are similar to fish of some kind with sleek tails and scales winding up their bodies. To have one more similar to a cephalopod was rare. It wasn’t unheard of but having one up close in the rehabilitation center was incredible. The fact that Tomioka is assigned to her case for one of his first projects spoke much about managements opinion of him. It also meant he was under much scrutiny.

The man works hard to create a nice environment. Certain materials he would normally use were prohibited in this case. Without them he had to find other things to fill the tank with. Giyuu didn’t understand why everyone was so concerned. Mermaids were annoying but they were not stupid and most were not clumsy. Her injuries were not a death sentence. In the wild she would’ve survived just fine, even if one of the arms was ultimately lost. If this wasn’t his first job he’d certainly push back on the idea.

Instead Tomioka makes do without coral and jagged stones. He buys swathes of kelp and bubbles of algae to cycle oxygen properly. Smaller piles of rocks (carefully examined to be verified as smooth enough) could help hide fish and stimulate how the creature might hunt in the wild. It was a lot of work but it made the researchers happy.

Giyuu, as always, is the most productive person on his team. At least it makes sense now with his strange leadership position. That doesn’t make the fact any less annoying. Mitsuri is far friendlier than any of the other mermaids he’s interacting with which means she’s happy to spend time entertaining his subordinates.

It’s not helpful that Tomioka isn’t much of a commander. He’s happy to hand out write ups and scold his subordinates but those measures only get them to behave for so long. Upper management expects some level of distraction so even they get annoyed with the large influx of written reports. Now the man tries to limits his complaints to once or twice per shift.

It seems like his indifference has stirred up rumors too. The younger workers inquire about his apparent distaste but the man doesn’t have an interesting answer. Nobody can understand why plants and ocean currents are more appealing than a half human fish creature. At least it gets the trainees to leave the man alone.

Even with the extra time needed to cultivate the space it begins to blossom beautifully. Truthfully without coral there is not as much color but he can appreciate the subtle hues of green that scatter over the tank. Mitsuri too seems to appreciate their hard work. She attempts to thank Giyuu personally. Most mermaids don’t share any kind of language with humans but when she brings the man dead fish and shiny rocks the intent is clear. Usually he takes the objects until they’ve left the tank, where he subsequently throws them away.

This continues the whole time the decorate the tank, which is to say over several weeks. Some other hard workers get gifts too and brag eagerly. None get as many as Tomioka. The last day of work, where they simply observe to make sure everything has been installed properly, Mitsuri launches a rather large crab over the walls of the tank. It lands right at Giyuu’s feet and the rest of the researchers burst into friendly laughter.

—-

When the job is over Tomioka is happy to move on. They have more jobs with mermaids and his subordinates are still too often distracted but some experience helps the next assignments go quicker.

Only a month or two since the first job the researchers call Giyuu back. There was a small crack in the tank. It wasn’t big enough to throughly drain the tank but even loosing a little water and algae could upset the whole system.

The man makes the executive decision to handle the upset alone. It will only take a week or so of testing and observation. His current projects are mostly nearing completion and loosening the reins on his team will be an interesting exercise.

“What happened to the tank?” Tomioka has no interest in putting in hard work if they’re going to keep calling him to in.

“One of the feeders fell off the walkway. I think he’s been fired, the poor guy.”

Giyuu grunts and does mourn for a brief moment. It was unfortunate for such an incident to occur. “How much water was lost?” He’s already been filled in on the general details but with the rush to get everything fixed there was no official report yet.

The details are a little fuzzy, even when coming from the researchers. It appears in the chaos of everything they haven’t even properly measured the waste. At least the glass and water have been cleaned up. With a frown Giyuu nods and moves over to take a look for himself.

When he climbs to the top of the tank and dons his scuba gear Mitsuri moves right under his feet. She expresses much excitement of seeing him again, flipping over and over in the water. The man sighs right before he dives in.

Mitsuri follows him throughout the tank. Muffled chirps and bubbles of water reach his ears, but they’re easily ignored. The water is perfectly quiet around him. It’s actually an enjoyable experience when there’s not juniors to keep an eye on. All the researchers, even the mermaid and other fish, fade to the background.

First Tomioka checks on all the plants that had been jostled at the bottom of the tank. The quick suction of water had luckily left most plants undisturbed. He brushes sand over stray roots but doesn’t need to do much more.

The most clear problem is how much of the algae floating on top has been lost. Patches of green and yellow no longer cloud the water’s surface. It barely affects the ph by even a full point but left untouched it could continue to fluctuate further.

Tomioka shoots back to the surface and removes his heavy mask. Pulling the wetsuit hood of his head Giyuu shakes the water free from his ears. “There’s a shipment of algae being sent to another one of my jobs. It can be rerouted to here for now.” Everyone nods very seriously.

“Where was the break in the tank?”

“Close to the walkway, two feet to the left of it.”

Giyuu leaves his mask and hood off while he swims over to the area. He taps the thin line separating the old glass from the repaired area. A few slams of his fingers against the glass and it continues to maintain its stability. Behind him Mitsuri drifts back over, curious. Satisfied with the quality he moves to climb back out of the tank. The mermaid’s human hand reaches out to pull at one of his slick flippers. When he steps upwards it easily slips free from her grasp.

Wearing the gear for such a short swim makes the long process of taking it off even worse. His hair sticks like slime to the back of his neck.

Back at the bottom the head researcher waits. Though he is technically the expert between the pair the man still looks at Giyuu with some apprehension.

“What’s the current Ph level?”

The man smooths his hair back. “It’s been fluctuating between 8.07 and 8.02 for the most part. The glass just broke yesterday so everything is still settling down.”

“Why haven’t you moved her?” Tomioka vaguely gestures behind himself.

“The temporary tanks are just that. She already stayed in one while the glass was being patched up. Mitsuri-san is safer, and happier, in this ecosystem.”

Tomioka grunts and nods. While his expertise is in habitats and flora that doesn’t mean he is clueless about mermaids. She will survive the night, much longer if needed.

“I’ll be back in the morning then, early. I can’t completely leave behind my team so I’ll be here outside of usual hours.”

“Thank you Tomioka-san, we appreciate it. I’m sure Mitsuri-san is excited to see you again.”

Giyuu glances behind himself briefly. The mermaid is peeking out from behind a larger structure of stone. She ducks down when blue eyes focus on her form. It’s surprisingly human-like behavior. The researcher laughs while Tomioka shakes his head and gathers his things.

—-

Early in the mornings and late in the evenings the entire facility is much quieter. Most enclosures only have one or two staff members monitoring the area while others have none at all. The lights are all dimmed. Instead of workers and students filling the hallways it’s just the occasional janitor.

With the transplant of algae the Ph of Mitsuri’s tank had settled at 8.09. It was still a touch too low which meant Giyuu wasn’t finished with the side project. He introduced more kelp and seagrass but it wasn’t enough of a change to alter the acidity at all. The few researchers there when he was still thanked him for the progress.

The mercreature had started up her antics again. Though Giyuu didn’t entertain her any more than he did before (which was to say not at all) her affection for him had not waned at all. She followed him quietly while he tended to the plants and buried more into the sand. Almost annoyingly the woman could even be helpful at times. If fish were swarming around a certain spot or a tool slipped from her hands Mitsuri acted like an assistant of sorts. It meant that Tomioka couldn’t ignore her presence. He even cautiously accepted one of her gifts, a perfectly round and smooth stone. Everyone else coos and laughs.

Giyuu has to return to work late, or early. Either way it’s pitch black outside and he’s exhausted. By some miracle he’ll find his keys here and if not he can steal a cot in the medical room. Shinobu would never let him hear the end of it, but locked out of his apartment the only alternative is a damp park bench.

His keys aren’t in his locker or hidden within his gear so the man must go hunting through the halls. Tomioka checks every room he has access to along the way. Most of them are too big to properly search but even with a quick scan he can tell they’re not likely there.

The last room he checks is Mitsuri’s. The lights are dark with only a scattering of light to imitate stars. Her tank seems to glow. Only a black outline of shape gives him a clue to what’s going on inside. A big round heap in the corner is easily recognizable as the mermaid. Tomioka expects her to be asleep but as he enters the room two luminescent eyes focus on him.

He plans on his usual act of ignoring her. Quickly the man walks around the room’s border. There’s still no sign of his keys and Giyuu is already dreading the lecture he’ll get tomorrow.

Loud thumps sound from the glass. The man turns around to find Mitsuri still staring at him. The blue glow makes her look more like a monster. Her arms and tentacles fan out behind her to create a threatening silhouette.

Still personality shines through as she waves excitedly. Having captured the man’s attention Mitsuri moves to her small collection of shiny items and particularly interesting rocks. From the middle she fishes out a simple keyring with a few golden keys on it. An old charm, indistinguishable with age, marks it as the item of Giyuu’s search.

Tomioka has no idea if he dropped the keys in the tank or if the creature plotted to steal them. A mixture of relief and apprehension mixes in his stomach as he steps close to the glass. Mitsuri waves the keys around, excited by the way Tomioka’s eyes track the movement.

“I need those back.” The man isn’t sure if he can’t hear him or just doesn’t understand. He points to the keys and then himself. “Mine.” There’s still no sign of recognition.

Sighing Tomioka moves over to the ladder. He climbs slowly, calling over Mitsuri several times to see if she will listen now. Though she reactions to the sound of his voice the mermaid doesn’t listen to any individual words.

At the top his keys are just out of his grasp.

“Give them,” he grunts. It’s been an hour since he’s started searching and at this point the man is not interested in any sort of game.

Unfortunately for him Mitsuri’s playful personality has not dimmed even with the late hour. She holds the keys just under the water’s surface, darting lower each time his hand reaches out. Tomioka leans just a bit too low and his center of gravity shifts. Before he can react the man is toppling into the water.

The temperature is surprisingly warm to reflect tropical waters but that doesn’t do much to dampen the shock. Giyuu is an expert swimmer but the rush of water up his nose and bubbles around him are still a bit disorienting.

Mitsuri is quick to scoop the man into her arms and drag him towards the small landing platform. The mercreature doesn’t consider his need to breathe and while transporting him keeps Giyuu underwater. It means he gets another lungful of water. By the time he’s deposited onto dry ground Tomioka is hacking up half his lungs.

When he finally can breathe normally and his eyes regain focus Mitsuri has disappeared. Keys have been carefully deposited next to him. The man doesn’t move quite yet, curling onto his side. Of course his clothes are completely soaked through. He has a spare set in his locker but doing any more work feels like an impossible task.

“Come back.” His voice is raw.

Mitsuri approaches slowly. Her form is barely visible as it rises back upwards. Once her face is within proper view it’s easy to see just how distraught she looks. Giyuu still doesn’t feel entirely sympathetic but he’s not the type of man to be angry either. “I don’t enjoy teasing or that sort of thing so don’t do it again.” Whether or not she completely understands his words Mitsuri nods. She’s clearly still sorry and places a dead fish on the platform next to Giyuu.

“And I don’t have any use for these gifts.”

The mermaid blushes and hesitantly takes the fish back. When Tomioka doesn’t stop her she quickly eats the small treat. Her teeth are sharp and terrifying despite the woman’s generally peaceful nature. Tomioka’s stomach goes a little weak again. He should get out of the tank and pass out on a cot.

Giyuu finally forces himself upwards. He still feels winded but it won’t stop him from moving. As he stands a throbbing pain in his ankle reveals itself. “Shit.” There’s large gash on his ankle that hadn’t been felt until now. It’s not disabling but red blood is smeared over his sock. His shoe is floating in the water a few feet away.

Mitsuri notices too. Instead of reaching out with a human arm one of the fish-like ones with suckers and slime curls loosely around his leg. Oddly the cool smooth feeling is nice. Giyuu’s not to sure about how hygienic it is though.

The man isn’t exactly frightened. If Mitsuri was dangerous, human-eating or aggressive, her tank would’ve been sealed off long ago. The researchers and everyone else have characterized her as safe. She is still a wild animal however and there is always a chance she will behave unpredictably. He isn’t frightened but Tomioka moves slowly and carefully.

His cut is inspected. The creature runs her human fingers over the area carefully. She pats his leg and dips back into the water.

Giyuu should leave. He doesn’t like mermaids and would rather be in bed. He’s not quite tired anymore, has pushed past that threshold, but a nap would still be better than anything. It’s some mysterious force that keeps him rooted in place.

Mitsuri isn’t gone for long. She returns with a roll of waterproof gauze, the same kind used on her arms and tentacles. She looks very pleased with herself.

That pulls an actual smile from Giyuu’s lips (even if it is very small and looks strained). He sits back down and goes to grab the roll. Instead Mitsuri keeps it firmly in her hands and grabs his foot herself. She wraps his ankle with surprising expertise. It’s perfectly snug and the pain immediately dampens.

“Thank you.” Tomioka tries to sound nice even though he’s mostly thinking about the fact that this is still partially Mitsuri’s fault. “Can I have my shoe?” He doesn’t fancy taking another swim.

The mermaid reacts very enthusiastically When fetching the new object she takes a thorough assessment of the man’s show. It’s definitely unhygienic the way she tucks her entire hand into it and Tomioka wonders if he should tell the researchers about it.

As she hands over the object the mermaid plays no games. Giyuu pulls on the shoe in quick succession. It may be cliche for Mitsuri to be intrigued by his feet but one of her tentacles rises and pokes the rubber sole. Her interested noises are much more audible above the water and she grows rather loud with excitement.

He pats himself down. His keys are back in his pockets. Both shoes are back on. His hair slipped out of it’s tie but that’s-

It’s really one thing after another. The rubber band is a simple thing but if a fish ate it or it got stuck around something Giyuu would get fired. There’s a high chance he’ll get fired anyways.

“I need-“ He pauses and makes vague gestures. “It’s a little black circle.”

Mitsuri looks lost.

Tomioka sighs. “I’ll be back.” The man will have to commit to a night of no sleep. He climbs out of the tank, which accentuates the pain in his ankle. It’s easy to find a stray pair of goggles and a flashlight. Most of the nearby desks are surprisingly messy.

Really he should go back and get proper scuba gear but Tomioka doesn’t want to make this longer than needed. He can reach the tank floor within just a few seconds.

Giyuu proves so when he climbs up and dives back in. His ankle is soothed by the perfect temperature and the subtle cycling of the water helps push him downwards.

The searching seems hopeless for the most part. Mitsuri helps, able to jostle large areas with her many legs, but she also presents every oddity to his eyes. Tomioka is the only one actually searching and his range is much more limited. He wonders how hard it’ll be to find another job.

The mermaid very excitedly shows him a black loop but it’s just an odd wilted piece of kelp. With a sigh he boosts himself up back to the surface. Still wanting to help she goes back to carrying the man around, bringing him up within seconds. The tank isn’t deep enough for the change in pressure to be problematic but it’s still disorienting and strange. Giyuu is a little more prepared this time though and clings to her as soon as her arms wrap around his waist.

Even on top the woman hesitates to let go of him. Her tentacles weave in and out of his legs. She keeps him suspended in the middle of the tank instead of depositing him back at the platform. Like this Giyuu stays close enough to feel her slow heartbeat and cool skin.

There’s the matter of appearance too. It’s not like Tomioka is unaware of how beautiful Mitsuri is. She’s far more beautiful than any human he’s seen, even actors on tv. He is not blind but for the most part their beauty doesn’t matter to him.

When she is two inches away with her breasts pushing against his arm her beauty is much more apparent. She is topless, most mermaids are nude. He avoids looking too closely now. “I need to go down again.” Giyuu pats her arms lightly, feeling the strong muscle underneath.

It takes another hour of repeating the pattern to find his stray hair band loose in between a pile of rocks. Mitsuri cradles the man like a bride whenever Giyuu surfaces for air. Even the short distances she enjoys keeping him within her arms. After the third or fourth time he is more comfortable being paraded around. She does have a good sense of where to take Tomioka, depositing him back onto the exit platform when the whole affair is over.

“Thank you.” He expresses himself much more sincerely now. Mitsuri clings to his legs and rests her head in his lap. Her long braids spread outwards like rays of sun. Without the flashlight on or a dull sense of panic the experience is much nicer. It also brings back the need for sleep. Giyuu will have to call out of work tomorrow, or in a few hours.

“I’ll bring some fish or… something, sometime.” When he considers the gifts she’s given him he wonders if a shiny rock would do.

Mitsuri chirps and quickly leaps up beside him. She presses her lips against his cheek. It’s an odd feeling, not quite a kiss with the way the muscles work there. The following hug is suffocating. Human and fish arms alongside tentacles engulf the man completely. It’s another odd feeling with slime and suckers wrapping over and under his arms.

Giyuu feels warm all over. He isn’t sure what to do once the girl pulls away. The man mumbles something, probably a “goodnight,” and stumbles towards the ladder. He only realizes he’s blushing when he reaches the bottom.

Tomioka calls in sick the next day.

—-

Giyuu has to pay someone to have the security footage go missing or written over or however that works. Uzui, the head guard, makes a dozen perverted jokes and wraps an arm around Tomioka like they’re friends but eventually he does as told.

Everything else is exactly the same which is strange. The man feels like months have passed overnight. Having to go back to yelling at subordinates and drafting schedules is strange.

Of course the man’s opinions on all other mermaids has not changed. He gets tired quickly and shuns company when possible.

Still almost every night (or at least once a week) he slips Uzui a gift or wad of cash and visits the only mermaid he likes.

#kny #demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #tomioka giyuu #tomioka #mitsugiyuu #mitsuri #mitsuri kanroji #mitsuri x tomioka #mermay #mermay 2024

15 notes · View notes