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theinheriteddutchess · 1 month

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Tides of Affection

Summary: Bucky is acting fishy, and you start worrying he's drifting away from you. You find out what's going on soon though.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader

Word count: 1580

Warning: none, unbetad we die like Humans normally do in this mermaid au

Notes: would love to hear what you think💕

Masterlist

The beginning * Previous

🦪

Bucky has been busy. He told you he's looking for food, and he is bringing his catchings home to you, but… what he brings back is too little for the hours he's away.

He's being avoidant. He avoids looking at you when you question him. His upper body turned away from you. You're suspicious. What's going on? He's acting unlike himself.

Normally he can't stay away from you, likes to linger nearby just in case you need him. But he's leaving you alone now.

For long periods of time. You know this by the sun moving in the sky. No watches here. You don't miss time. Constantly having to be aware of how late it is seems more stressful now that the concept of it is gone.

The ocean never sleeps, but plenty of life does in the night, when everything is so much darker and colder.

But even without a sense of time, you know Bucky is gone longer than he should.

You know it's foolish, he's told you over and over how long he waited for you to join him, but there's a sneaking feeling of distress. What if he found someone else. There are merfolk, if you travel far enough. There are mermaids, born mermaids. What if he got bored of you already, tired of your slow swim, your bad hunting skills, your personality? You bite your lip. Bucky can change his mind.

He could look elsewhere. You changed, you can't go back. Even going on land for a short period of time will take years to learn, years to grow strong enough to even try. You'd be doomed down here without him. It wasn't your choice to be here, to become a mermaid, but you won't have a choice either if he deserts you.

Your thoughts are interrupted when a hand touches your arm and you swing your tail in reaction to the sudden attack.

“Ow, wait, it's me!” You hear Bucky's voice next to you, hands up in defense, then lowering to check his tail for injuries. “That was a good one.”

Your hands join him in seeing if there are cuts or bruises, even if you don't know what to look for because you don't know merfolk anatomy, your guilt taking over swiftly. “Sorry, I wasn't aware you got back. You startled me.”

He shrugged, and grinned boyishly at you. “It's fine, I'm glad I see you can look after yourself if anyone tries to hurt you.”

You lowered your gaze, feeling oddly proud at him saying that, maybe you were getting stronger. You didn't even need think to swing your tail instead of your hands, and it had looked like it was a good hit.

“Close your eyes.” He murmured suddenly.

You eyed him suspiciously, but did what he asked. You felt the water move around you as he circled you, his chest pressed against your back (and god his skin was slippery smooth against yours) while he was doing something you couldn't figure out.

Then his hands placed something on your chest, a string of some sort being tied behind your neck and his fingertips stroking your shoulders tenderly.

“Okay, look.”

You opened your eyes, looked down at what he put there. A necklace. Unlike any kind you ever saw. A band of…possibly seaweed? You couldn't really tell…and a mixture of shiny rocks (possibly glass or actual gems) and pearls, all collected and crafted together in a stunning necklace.

You touched it and lifted it carefully, to study it closely. Beautiful. And what mattered the most was that he made it himself. It looked carefully put together, and you instantly loved it. When you looked up his eyes were staring at you intensely, following your every expression.

“Buck…” you whispered. Too overwhelmed to express yourself for a moment.

“Do you like it?” His tone was strained, he was nervous.

“Yes!” You looked at it again, nodding. “...yes, it's beautiful, it's.. Did you make this?”

“Of course,” he huffed, like you had just insulted him. “Found every stone and selected only the best, crafted it carefully, it's sturdy, I checked. It will last a while.”

He sounded so proud, you wanted to laugh, but you were still so surprised by this thoughtful gift, you only let out a little breath of water. “It's so amazing, really pretty.. And shiny. You found pearls? Actual pearls!”

He shrugged. “Lots of those if you know where to find them. Humans have them too, though they string them all together for no reason. Why would you just want pearls? They look better with other rocks and shells.”

“You didn't use any shells,” you told him with a smile. He looked so adorably annoyed with your former humans. Like the things they did simply seemed ludicrous to him. And finding out more about his way of life, yes, humans often did look foolish in their behavior. But you didn't inform him his kind’s behavior was a little weird to you too.

“I didn't want you to cut your skin, they can be sharp, besides they break often and you shouldn't use them in a necklace unless you intend for your courting to not last.”

Your interest was piqued. “Does that happen? A courtship not lasting?”

He frowned. “Of course, you don't want to be with the first person you are with, do you? Some courtships last a few hours, some last forever. Shell necklaces break easily, so they're used for short matings a lot.”

You thought about it, everything was so difficult to understand. “So mermaid- I mean, merfolk don't mate forever?”

“Often no. It's just sex.” He shrugged, like it was no big deal. “When there's an urge, or attraction, or the need for babies. But you can't just grab someone. You need to…” he searched for words.

“Ease someone into it?” You suggested.

He nodded. “Yeah, hence, the shells. They're pretty but it won't last.”

“And for something more serious?”

“Stones, or pearls, human pieces of jewelry worked into your own craftings. Things that last.”

“These all seem sturdy,” you mentioned with a warm feeling inside.

“Of course, you're my mate.” He huffed again, like it should be obvious.

“You just say matings won't last.” It was urgent for you to find out what he meant, he seemed devoted to you, but whenever you found out more about his kind, the more you realized how different things worked in his world.

“A lot of them don't. They want sex, or companionship. But when you want, it does. When you choose, it does. You know .” He looked at your neck, where his bite was. “You got mine.”

“You choose to mate me? As kids?”

“It's not,” he looked frustrated, but calmed himself down to think about a better way to explain. “You have mating, which is sex, and you have mating when it's like a bonding ceremony? It's intent. It's instinct. You can mate with someone, but being a mate is different. It's sacred.”

“But we were kids.” How can you choose as a kid, you were both so very young then. Had just met, before he bit you.

“Because you were mine.” He simply said.

This would sound insane in the human world. You can't own anyone. But in theirs, they didn't think like humans. They thought in possession, in claiming and hunting. It was hard to understand, being so new to this.

“But you could have been disappointed in me.”

“No. I knew then. We were “friends” you called it. I saved you, your life is mine. And I chose you. I saved you.” He seemed to puff himself up, like you were going to somehow deny it, the thought clearly agitating him.

“What if you had just let me go unbitten?”

“I should have eaten you, it would have been expected. Your life was mine, to eat or to mate,” he told you. His fingers touching the necklace again softly, before dragging his fingers down your chest expertly.

You shivered, but tried to focus. “But you didn't seem to want to bite me at first.”

“We were playing. What? You never played with your food?” He grinned teasingly.

You slapped his peck, but got distracted by the firmness of it and it turned into more of a fondling session instead.

His eyes became darker as he followed your ministrations.

“You could have killed me in the sea, you saved me, you never intended to eat me.”

His arms wrapped around you to pull you close. “That's why I bit you. To keep you. Besides, you wanted to be with me.”

“I was scared, I didn't want to be alone.” You explained, but then remembered how you had this ache inside you your whole life until you reunited with him again,

“You liked me. You weren't scared of me. I just knew. It felt right.”

“Even then?”

“I can't explain,” he groaned in frustration. “Humans are lost, they barely feel. We know. We don't overthink, we make decisions and then…that's it.”

“You choose me.” You repeated, pleased.

He hummed. “Yes. And now you're here. For always.”

You laid your head on his chest, feeling his heartbeat pump steadily. Your hand stroking his side as the other laid on one of his pecs, fascinated by his dark nipple, near your mouth.

His finger lifted your chin after a peaceful moment, so you could stare into his eyes. “Next mating cycle you get to bite me.”

What?!

#Bucky Barnes x reader #merman!Bucky Barnes #merman!bucky barnes x mermaid reader #mermaid au #Bucky Barnes x female reader #pulling against the stream #tides of affection

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