#cerulean: haruka

[nilovalentine]

Happy April Fools, Milgram tumblr! Get homestucked!

[casteliacityramen]

Munday Side Stories - Subject 150 Mewtwo

Disclaimer: Gatekeeper idea made by Weapons Grade Waifus, formatting heavily inspired by SCP Foundation. ~3k Words

Subject 150 Mewtwo is an artificial pokemon created by criminal syndicate Team Rocket. Subject is a replication and/or amalgamation of genetic studies based on Mew (PKMN DEX # 151). Subject Mewtwo has been noted to be of extremely high intelligence and terrifying power, surpassing any known psychic entity in current and past history. Its His psychic abilities break the current known laws of telepathy and telekinesis. It’s He’s able to bypass solid material, such as steel and concrete, unless such material is treated with specific “dark” type coatings.

History: 

Subject 150 Mewtwo was created born on ██/██/██████ by criminal syndicate Team Rocket. When released to the rest of the world, Subject 150 Mewtwo fled to Cerulean Cave and stayed until the Subject he was pacified by Pokemon League Champion “Red”. Subject 150 Mewtwo has chosen to live in Cerulean Cave as of 2/18/1999 of his free will and continues to do so as of 5/22/2023 as its main inhabitant and protector.

Security Procedures:

Subject 150 Mewtwo is not to leave the area unless specific permission is granted by the current Secretary of Defense, or Ex-League Champion "Red." A team of high-performance military personnel will surround the inner and outer perimeter in constant combat readiness. Security personnel designation: Gatekeepers.

Gatekeepers will pass psychological evaluation and be re-evaluated every three months. Any abnormalities or severe changes in mental faculties will result in a release of duty from the Gatekeeper profession with full pay until the next fiscal year.

Interceptor Operator Teams with approved psy resistant gear will be on stand-by at all times. Inner ring perimeters will consist of four land-based phalanx weapon systems pointed at each cardinal direction. All stations are to be equipped with seismic recording devices for any underground movement. Pile-driven high-yield explosive charges are to be installed at ████████████, ██████, and ██████████ at minimum depths of 100 meters. All equipment will be inspected daily for wear.

Gatekeepers are to neutralize the Subject in the event of an inner perimeter breach.  Immediately inform the Secretary of Defense in the event of an inner or outer perimeter breach.

Gatekeepers are to provide any reasonable accommodations requested by Mewtwo by any means necessary.

[SEE BELOW FOR ADDENDUMS 150.1 - 150.6 - MESSAGES BETWEEN SUBJECT 150 MEWTWO AND GATEKEEPER STAFF]

Addendum 150.1: Gatekeeper Briefing

[Date: 3/15/1999]

To whomever it may concern, 

You have been assigned as a Gatekeeper. Your mission is dual purpose.  One: You are the first and last defense against anything and everything that comes from this cave.  Two: You are to defend the inhabitant of this cave with your life.  This job may seem like the menial day-to-day service required of many others in various military branches, but know that the subject of your occupation is the single most dangerous living being currently occupying the world.  You shall be rewarded handsomely for your efforts. Make your country proud. Commander-in-Chief and Prime Minister of Kanto: Haruka Nagumo

Addendum 150.2: Email Logs between General Takashi Shino and Commander-in-Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 4/12/2001]

Commander,  It has been brought to my attention that Subject 150 has not breached containment for the past three years. It’s always been aware of the surveillance equipment, but this might be the first time it’s acknowledged it. The subject seems to be interested in communication between the surveillance team. It's making motions towards its mouth and towards the cameras. What should be our next course of action? Respectfully, General Takashi Shino

[Date: 4/13/2001]

General, After deliberating with Cinnabar’s Gym Leader Blaine, Professor Samuel Oak, and members of the ICSR ethics committee, Subject 150 is to be treated as a sapient with rights. We will be sending specialized communication equipment and appropriate protection equipment for leaving it outside the cave. When Subject 150 makes contact, I want rifle barrels pointed at the heads of the surveillance team. We have no gauge on the capabilities of Subject 150. That includes whether or not the surveillance team can be put under telepathic suggestion via digital communication. You are to report to me every single detail of communication regarding Subject 150. Commander In Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 4/14/2001]

Commander,  We have successfully made contact with Subject 150. No casualties or suggestion of psy tampered personnel or equipment. Its first words with the surveillance team, and I quote, are the following: “I’m bored.” This doesn’t seem said out of defiance or malice, the Subject looks… well... bored out of its mind. I request that we send forms of entertainment via books, magazines, etc. if the science and ethics teams allow it. As always, the surveillance tapes are to follow in a separate file.  Respectfully, General Takashi Shino

[Date: 4/14/2001]

General,  You are to give Subject 150 whatever it wants from the list provided, below. - Television with approved pre-programmed channels  - Kantonese Encyclopedia Set and Dictionary  - MP3 Player with non radio functions and pre-installed music  - Children’s coloring book with 64-Crayon set.  - A set of tennis balls - A chess board with all pieces - Silph Co. Technological Magazine Given the history of Subject 150’s mistreatment from humanity, let’s pray to Mother Mew that it decides to spare us if it takes the MP3 player. If it has to listen to the Dugtrio Duds’ latest song, we might all be dead the next day.  Keep me posted, Commander In Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 4/14/2001]

Commander, The Subject has requested “all of the above.” General Takashi Shino

Afterword: Subject 150 has requested more items between the dates noted in Addendum 150.2 and 150.3. Such items include: the highest selling mystery novel written by up-and-coming Unovan author Shauntal; miscellaneous household items: blanket, mattress, pillows; and a grand piano. All items were delivered with no issues.

Addendum 150.3 - Instant Messenger Chat Log between Subject 150 and Captain Asuka Shinohara

[Date: 5/23/2001]

S-150: Hello. 

AS: Hello. Has the portable computer given you any problems?

S-150: None.

AS: How are your accommodations?

S-150: Lacking. The cave is not what I would consider ‘comfortable'. 

AS: I can put a request for more accommodations if you would like. 

S-150: That would be appreciated. Thank you.

[END OF LOG]

[Date: 5/24/2001]

S-150: Hello.

AS: Hello. How are the items we provided you yesterday?

S-150: I broke the lamp. 

AS: Broke the what?

S-150: I was not aware of the fragility of this “lava lamp” that was provided. May I request another one? 

AS: Of course. 

S-150: I am also curious about the slots in this portable computer. It seems that there is room for something to enter this device. 

*pause due to deliberation between surveillance team members*

AS: The slot is for something called a “computer disk” that contains data on various subjects such as movies, music, and games.

S-150: Games can be played digitally?

AS: Correct. However, the portable computer you possess does not have the capability to “run” anything with limited electricity and processing power. It is a device strictly for communication. 

S-150: I see. May I request electricity and a computer that can run these games?

AS: Stand by.

*pause due to deliberation between surveillance team members*

AS: The request will need to be sent to a higher staff member. 

S-150: I have nothing but time.

[END OF LOG]

Afterword: A nearby team of electricians were hired to provide electricity to the entrance to Cerulean Cave. Electricians refused to enter further than the entrance to the cave, reporting feelings of "pressure."

[Date: 5/27/2001]

S-150: Hello. 

AS: Hello. I apologize for the location of the electrical grid, we hired a civilian contractor that has no formal combat and psychic training. 

S-150: It is acceptable. The instructions and instrumentation provided are very impressive. 

AS: Have you experienced anything of the sort before?

S-150: In a lab.

AS: I apologize. 

S-150: Haha

AS: Haha?

S-150: A laugh.

AS: I didn't realize you had a dark sense of humor.

S-150: I feel insulted. Am I not a sapient being like the rest of you?

AS: You are, but you would be surprised at the amount of sapients that lack a sense of ANY kind of humor.

S-150: They must lead dull and uninteresting lives.

AS: Haha  

[END OF LOG]

Addendum 150.4 - Instant Message Chat Log between General Takashi Shino and Commander-In-Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 7/21/2001]

Commander,  All seems to be well over here. The surveillance team is in unusually high spirits. It seems that the monitored conversations have done well to improve the morale of both the team and the subject.  The subject, however, has requested an improvement in the technology provided within Cerulean Cave: heating, cooling, ventilation, electricity, lighting, and most worryingly, internet access. I highly advise against the last option.  Respectfully,  Captain Takashi Shino

[Date 7/22/2001]

Takashi,  For whatever fucking reason, the committee has decided to approve all items including the goddamn internet. Arceus help us all. Nagumo

Addendum 150.5 - IM Chat Logs between Subject 150 and Captain Asuka Shinohara

[Date: 7/29/2001]

AS: Did you seriously order a pizza party to Cerulean Cave?

S-150: Hello. 

S-150: Yes, I did. 

AS: You realize that this area is under constant military surveillance? With top-of-the-line weaponry and security? And that the facilities near Cerulean Cave are designed to be defended with the upmost discretion?

S-150: Yes. May I have them?

AS: Stand by.

*Extended pause for HEAVY deliberation by surveillance team*

AS: We are sending a team of operators to the cave entrance to deliver the pizzas.

S-150:  :) 

[END OF LOG]

Afterword: Subject 150 ordered the entirety of ‘Cerulean Pizzeria’s’ menu items meant for catering for large events. Such events as birthday parties and company-wide events. The delivery driver was sent back to his employer after signing a non-disclosure agreement drafted in short notice by Kanto Homeland Security.

[Date: 8/2/2001]

S-150: Hello. 

S-150: Are you somehow cheating at chess?

AS: The surveillance team doesn’t appreciate that you’re reading their minds, so we’re equipping our psy helmets. Commander Nagumo told us that this isn’t a misappropriation of personal protection equipment. 

S-150:  Booooo >:/

[END OF LOG]

Addendum 150.6.1 - Video Transcript 1 of Virtual Meeting Between Subject 150 - (New Designation: Mewtwo) and Commander-In-Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 8/5/2001]

HN: Hello. I was told by my staff that you requested an audience with me? 

MT: Yes, I did. 

HN: May I ask what for?

MT: Perspective. 

HN: I’m sorry?

MT: What are your goals in… all of this? The guards, the provisions, everything?

HN (pauses): Well, you pose an interesting situation for the nation. You are simultaneously the most dangerous entity in the world, and yet the international committee has agreed that you should be treated like any regular Kantonese citizen. 

MT: The accommodations have been appreciated by all of us.

HN: Hold on a second, us?

MT: I have other pokemon who suffered at the hands of Team Rocket Scientists. They are experiments, like me. They live deeper in the cave. 

HN: Was there a reason you kept this hidden from us until now?

MT: I was scared for them.

HN: Scared?

MT: There are claims that I am the strongest on the planet, yet I was humbled by one of your youngest to hold the title of "champion." I am not as strong as I had hoped. I was not sure if I could provide for the ones I call siblings.

HN: They’re not as strong as you?

MT: On the contrary. They’ve been hurt, abused, and tortured at the hands of people like you.

HN: … People like me?

MT: Your records are public, Commander-In-Chief Nagumo. I understand that you took part of the Kanto-Johto war as a commanding officer. 

HN: I did. 

MT: Then you know what humanity is capable of. What you are capable of. You were a part of it, after all.

HN: I like to think that I’ve passed that. 

MT: Oh? And actions like these are supposed to redeem the actions of your subordinates at Blackthorn City?

HN: ...The ones responsible were put on trial and summarily executed. 

MT: Who says you shouldn’t belong there in the grave with them?

HN: Because my nephew died in Blackthorn by the hands of those... excuses for human beings. He was eight years old. Eight. I personally made sure that those responsible were lined up against a wall, shot, and buried so deep that the earth will roll ten times over before their remains ever see the sun again.

Silence fills the room. Mewtwo leans forward, focusing extremely hard at the screen. Review suggests that Mewtwo was able to telepathically deduce that Commander Nagumo was telling the truth.

MT: You're not lying.

HN: The internet doesn’t have all of the answers, unfortunately. Journalists take advantage of topics like this all of the time, especially if their motives are to smear your reputation while you run for office. If you want public access to the documents, beyond the spoon-feeding speculation of a half-wit college undergraduate, I’m afraid that you have to spend more time than that before you have access to the truth.

MT: (silence)

Commander Nagumo stands to leave, knocking her chair back in the process.

HN: If all you wanted to do is anger me, I’m afraid that this conversation is over.

MT: Wait. 

Commander Nagumo stops.

MT: I apologize. I was not aware that I did not have all of the information. 

HN: ... Apology accepted.

Commander Nagumo sits back down.

MT: Clearly not.

HN: It’s a... touchy subject. I know that you are new to this, but incidents like that don’t get discussed in such an accusatory manner, unless one is on trial or under duress.

Silence. Mewtwo looks uncharacteristically uncomfortable.

MT: You say that the documents detailing this event are accessible. May I see them?

Commander Nagumo turns to the rest of the surveillance and science team. All of them are vehemently shaking their heads or making gestures of disapproval.

HN: Sure.

Surveillance Staff Member: Prime Minister-

HN: I don’t want to hear it. He has the right to know.

HN (turning to mewtwo): Against my advice, my cabinet seem to think that talking about our shame makes us weak. Although, their argument has some merit. The full details don’t paint a good picture of our actions during the Kanto-Johto war. You might not like what you see. 

MT: I have been subject to cruelty that you would not imagine. I feel that you will have to put forth tremendous effort to phase me.

HN: You’d be surprised at what I’ve watched soldiers do for the sake of themselves and their country. Human and pokemon alike.

MT: I see. May we continue this conversation after I’ve read the documents?

HN: If you learn how to be polite in conversation, perhaps. 

MT: You will have to be patient with me. I am only six years old, after all.

[END OF VIDEO CALL]

Addendum 150.6.2 - Video Transcript 2 of Virtual Meeting Between Mewtwo and Commander-In-Chief Haruka Nagumo

[Date: 8/6/2001]

HN: Good morning. 

MT: Hello. Good morning. I would like to apologize for my words the other day. 

Commander Nagumo takes a brief moment to take a sip of her coffee.

HN: I forgive you. I understand why you might be wary of people like me. Talking about Blackthorn is like reopening an old wound, but I should have kept my temper in check. I am also sorry.

MT: I understand and I forgive you. I still harbor resentment towards those who have wronged me. However, you are not one of them. It would be unfair to treat you as such. I let my emotions surface more than I wanted. I would like to continue our conversation, if you would allow it. 

HN: By all means. Before we do...

Commander Nagumo raises a binder to the screen.

HN: Since you had some files on me, I decided to take a deeper look into your time with Team Rocket. It’s all kinds of fucked. 

MT: Fucked?

A science team audibly groans in the background. Commander Nagumo sheepishly lowers the binder and clears her throat. 

HN: It’s an expletive. The science team decided to keep your education material elementary, but given all that’s happened between us, and between you and Team Rocket, I figure we can drop the kindergarten language. 

MT: That... is appreciated. I have to admit, I was beginning to feel that I was being talked down to. I feel that you and I, at the very least, can converse as equals. 

HN: Equals?

MT: The world has not been kind to us, Prime Minister. Given my current circumstance and your position of power, I believe that you and I have a lot in common. We both are responsible for people we care about. We both fought to be where we are and have made grave mistakes in doing so. We are both leaving behind the battlefield, where we thrive, to talk to each other for the sake of cooperation and peace.

HN (visibly surprised): Well, it’s good to see that the strongest pokemon in the world has the capacity of sympathy and empathy. 

MT: I am glad to see that someone in a high position, like yourself, don't see a conversation with a pokemon as beneath you. 

HN: On the contrary. I’m very pleased to let you know that Team Rocket’s views towards pokemon is very, very much out of the ordinary. I’ve see pokemon exhibit more “humanity” than what the best of humanity have to offer.

Commander Nagumo puts the binder away.

HN: Picking up from yesterday, I understand that you have companions in Cerulean Cave?

MT: Yes. In addition to the pokemon who previously inhabited this cave, I have fellow Rocket victims that are seeking refuge. The intent of our initial meeting was to request additional accommodations for them.

Commander Nagumo takes a pen and piece of paper from a nearby surveillance member.

HN: If there is anything that we can do to make your lives comfortable, list them. 

[CONVERSATION HAS BEEN EDITED TO RETAIN SECURITY AND PRIVACY OF THE INHABITANTS OF CERULEAN CAVE] 

MT: … May I ask what you are drinking?

HN: It’s coffee. 

MT: May I request that, as well?

HN: I don’t know, it might not be palatable for someone with a six-year-old tongue. 

MT: Try me.

[END OF VIDEO CALL]

[ADDENDUM 150.7 THRU 150.30 REMOVED FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE INHABITANTS OF CERULEAN CAVE AND IN-SERVICE GATEKEEPER STAFF]

END OF DOCUMENT

[datheetjoella]

You Make Everything Okay

Author: DatHeetJoella Fandom: Free! Pairing: MakoHaru Rating: M Summary: Unlike most people, Haruka wasn’t very eager to meet his soulmate. Half of the reason was his inexplicable infatuation with a stranger he saw on the train every morning, the other half was the words that were imprinted on his skin; the first words his soulmate would say to him. They were… ominous.

When Haruka’s absent-mindedness got him into trouble, he had to deal with the unforeseen - but not at all unpleasant - consequences. Or, how getting involved in a car accident became the best thing that ever happened to Haruka.

Word count: 5,884 (total: 31,592) Chapter: 5/32 Chapter summary: The word of Haruka meeting his soulmate spreads like a wildfire among his friends and their responses vary.

                                         -------------------------------                                 Chapter 5: The World Shouts Back

When Haruka arrived home, night had fallen. He kicked off his cerulean sneakers in the genkan and went inside a different man than he was when he left this morning.

It was absurd how much one event, one millisecond of unawareness, could flip his life upside down. He wasn’t complaining though. He felt roughly five kilos lighter and besides half of his body, the muscles in his face ached from smiling so much.

He dropped the fruits and vegetables Watanabe-san gave Makoto on the counter and sifted through his messenger bag in search of his lunchbox. It would be a waste to throw out a fine piece of mackerel and he didn’t feel like cooking, so he made himself a cup of oolong tea and had his lunch for dinner.

Read more on AO3

[sakuramidnight15]

-HSA OC Information-

Character Bio

Name: Sayoko Cerulean

(Japanese: 小夜子セルリアン)

Romaji: Sayoko Serurian

Quote: "Uh... I rather not to get any direct eye-contact from anyone for too long... It scares me a little..."

V/A: Haruka Yoshimura (Japanese)

Gender: Female

Age: 18

Birthday: November 3

Star Sign: Scorpio

Eye Color: Light Ocean Blue (Her Normal Eye Color)

Emerald Green (Second Eye Color and Half-Myth power activation)

Hair Color: Dark Jean Blue

Height: 169 cm

Race: Half Human, Half Myth/Hybrid

Species: Alp

Homeland: Wintergreen Village (The fourth country in the Island of Enchantment)

Family: Romero Whitefield (Father)

Opheliana Cerulean (Mother)

Kris Cerulean (Uncle)

______________________________________

School Status and Fun Facts

Dorm: Destopia (@terrovaniadorm)

School Year: Third

Class: 3-D (Same Class with Dorothea)

Student no. 3 (A transfer student)

Occupation: Student

Heiress to the Sayoko Family (Currently in training)

Closet Gamer (In secret)

Investigator Trainee of SIDC (Meaning: Supernaturals Investigation Department Center)

Club: Literature Club

Best Subject: History, Mathematics, and Science

Dominant Hand: Ambidextrous (Mostly her left)

Favorite Color: Dark Azure Blue and Dark Grey

Favorite Food: Matcha and Honey flavored desserts, Bittersweet Cocoa, Fried Shrimp Noddles (From Lynette's Family Restaurant),

Least Favorite Food: Too Much Cheese (Not on Pizza), Frog Meat, Green Lemons, Anything Too Sweet,

Likes: Positivity, Rainy Music, Novel Books (Mostly Crime, RPG, Detective and Horror Ones), Quiet Places, Video Games (Various In Secret), Comic Book Collecting,

Dislikes: Negativity, Loud Places, Being the center of attention, Luck (Mostly on suggestions towards a case), Making Direct Eye-Contact from someone (Mostly if she's too close), Too Much Workload,

Hobbies: Helping in an investigation, Non-stop debates challenges, Out-smart someone, Helping others, Suggestive thoughts (But never stated that they were either true or not), Playing Video Games (Mostly in secret), Reading Novels (Mostly),

Talents: Transforming into her half-myth form, Fast Levitation, Mind-reading, Third-eye, Invisibility, Split Doppelganger, Physical Sight-through,

Nicknames: Sayo-san or Sako (From her family and friends)

Sayoko-senpai or Cerulean-senpai (From the freshmen students and mostly for Lynn and her friends)

Miss Cerulean (From the SIDC workers and trainers)

Sa-chan or Sai-san (From Freya, Yaeko and Akio)

Sao-chan (From Khamari, Jovanni, Doremi and Aimi)

Other Nicknames:

Lady Sayoko or Milady (From the servants)

______________________________________

Appearance and Personality

Appearance: Sayoko has a normal average but slender female body build, she either chubby or a little skinny from a different POV. She has long and wavy dark jean blue cored hair which it's slightly dent after being tied up too many times. She has light ocean blue colored eyes but they can turn into emerald green whenever she uses her half-myth abilities. Sayoko is a very quiet person but she knows a lot in her head.

Personality: Born as an only child like some of her friends, Sayoko is also a high-class female noble and is also a heiress to her family's name but her aunt is slightly well-known alongside with Kiara, Sylvie and Valencia. Needless to say her family line runs rather about detectives, which her aunt is a top secret one and is still doing so.

Aspired by her aunt's current job during a young age, this slightly made Sayoko admire some detectives in some of the novels and games she had as a child during her studies as a heiress, though she's slightly secretive about it and somewhat became a closet gamer but her parents and aunt seem to know about but decided to pry it but they do support her since she did a good job on being heiress and a closet gamer separately.

Sayoko is slightly quiet, preserve and a little sensitive in herself, although she doesn't stutter whenever she speaks to someone but doesn't seem to like a close-up or direct eye-contact to anyone during a conversation which it would scare her for a bit, which she ends up ending the talk and then walk away pretty fast.

She's mostly seen with Freya, Yaeko, and Akio and the rest of her half-myth companions in the campus, her interaction with them are slightly different than interacting with either a stranger to not. Let's just say that she's slightly uncomfortable with someone to someone knew which it might take some time for her to get used to a close up eye-contact from someone she isn't familiar with.

Like some of her friends int he school, she too is a member of the SIDC company but is a trainee in Quinn's rank like Yaeko and Akio, Sayoko herself tends to be slightly serious when working there.

But aside from that, Sayoko seems to be friendly and sweet despite her timidity if you get close to her in a different method possible. She tends to hold all of her curiosity back whenever someone catches her eyes, it's either something she likes or just curious of but in the end she'll learn to like it. Either way, Sayoko herself couldn't help it after all.

Timidity is sometimes an act of a hidden mask, is what she secretly calls it. Sayoko being silent is another way of being cautious towards anyone who had intentions, either good or bad which she never seemed to have an opinion onto except she's a bit distance but if something snapped within herself, it's a split side of her that no one expects to see from her eventually.

Sometimes the act of her timidly and silence behavior is a bit of a weapon that is difficult to bring down to...

______________________________________

Trivia

-The name 'Sayoko' is primarily a female name of Japanese origin that means Small, Child, Generation. While her surname 'Cerulean' comes from Latin caeruleus, which means "dark blue" and is most likely from caelum, "sky."

-She's based on Shuichi Saihara.

-She's have met Kiara and Valencia in a banquet party, plus she's in a comfortable terms with the Main Trio and knows how to handle Quinn's tendencies.

-She and Yaeko can relate when it come towards luck, although she stated that Yaeko's luck is stronger in battle than hers but wouldn't mention it to her.

-Like Akio and Yaeko, she too is cautious of her dorm leader and seems aware of the dorm rivalry against Exodus as well.

-Doremi alongside with Aimi often teases her in a friendly manner, though it slightly embarrassed her for a bit.

-She dislikes eye-contact due to a stranger who glared at her and had violently sliced her front body with a knife after witnessing a murder from them. She was hospitalized for five weeks.

-Her past incident would explain why she's wearing a cap and would avoid meeting others gaze on herself.

-She's Khamari's buddy and partner for some cases in the SIDC company.

-As a closet gamer, she often plays video games with Freya in the Tetravania dorm.

-Her voice is slightly meek but the tone changes whenever she cautious. Which is why I chose Haruka Yoshimura to be her voice actor.

-Despite she knows too much after talking to someone, she kept it in her mouth and know not to spill a word and does it pretty well but can slip if necessary.

-Collects comic books and matcha or honey desserts on daily in the weekend.

-Has a pet chameleon and lizard back at home.

[harveywritings92]

Bnha dad scenarios: Child default names and background stories.

[Tw: mentions of abortion.]

Dabi's kid/Ayane Name meaning: Kanji (Aya) meaning "Color" and (Ne) meaning sound.

Don't need to tell you that his little Firefly wasn't exactly planned, in fact he was completely blindsided when he found his FWB (now common law wife) was pregnant, he ran away! but, not from her... He disappeared for a couple days then showed up a while later in disguise duffle-bag in hand telling her to hurry and start packing up whatever she can carry; cuz they were leaving! Dabi and your mom relocated to a very small town in the countryside where the population is very small.

(like you could fit the whole township into a Boeing 737 small, and your nearest neighbor was 15 minutes away....)

From there they opened and run a roadhouse bar/motel. Dabi didn't marry his Fairy just because she was pregnant, he caught the feelings a long time ago and had been planning to runaway with her way before Ayane was even a distant thought, her impending arrival just pushed his plans forward. Ayane looks like her mother but her [y/hc] hair has little red streaks and she has partial heterochromia in her eyes, they look like someone colored them cerulean, but remembered halfway through that they were supposed to be y/ec, she also has Dabi's cocky smirk.

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

Katsuki's kid/Haruka name meaning:  Distant blossom: Uses the Kanji "Haru" in the word "Distant"  combined with the kanji "Ka" in "blossom".

 Having kids was very distant thought in the back of Katsuki's mind not that he didn't want any, He just thought he wouldn't have any, so then his wife told him that they were having a baby. he was over the moon, he didn't care if it was boy or girl just so long as they were happy and healthy, however as soon as it was confirmed that the the baby in his wife's belly was a girl.

Katsuki went scorched-earth on any boys that went near his little girl and Haruka has him wrapped around her little finger. She's his spoiled princess. Haruka looks like a carbon copy of her mom, but has her dad's temperament and potty mouth, she has partial heterochromia both eyes they're half red-half [y/ec]. 

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

Shigaraki's kid/Kururi name meaning:  Black Emerald: "Ku" from the kanji "Black" and "Ruri" meaning "Emerald". (Ngl she was also named after Kurogiri)

 He was completely blindsided when he found out his queen was having his child, he didn't know what to do with it, he considered having it "taken care of" but his queen threatened to leave him if he ever suggested that again! he was huffy and pouty during the whole pregnancy.  

He was also very protective, usually lingering near by or stalking his wife when she was out and about being careful of in case any heroes or lesser NPCs messed with her, then when the baby was finally born... and he held her for the first time, it was like "Holy crap! I made this...!" and suddenly the world wasn't looking so bleak anymore... and now that his wife is gone (rip) Shigaraki's main focus (as aside villainy) was on his daughter and making the future bright for her.

Kururi though not touch starved she is a bit wary of physical affection, and very socially awkward often preferring to read and or play videogames over socializing with other humans, her only friend seems to be Ayane (their friendship is similar to Orin and April from Parks and rec), They hang out mainly because Shigaraki wanted her have some sense of normality that he was deprived as child. however due to her quirk's nature and the guilt she feels over her mother's death, she has a complex over her hands, she doesn't like it when people try holding them or touching them, often seen wearing gloves or keeping them in her pockets. 

Kururi looks like her mom but has a little mole under her chin and has heterochromia her left eye is red while her right [y/ec] and her [y/hc] hair has a single blueish-white streak in it.

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

Hawks-Keigo's kid/ Griffin or Finny: as in Griffin the mythical creature.

Keigo and his late wife chose that name because of their respective quirks, His wife had some feline traits cat eyes, and cat ears, it was kind of joke between their two names [Cheshire cat and a Hawk] then they first met, Keigo wasn't really interested in his wife at first, but that didn't stop her! so Keigo said if she could get Endeavor to laugh he'll take her on a date!

So she goes up to Endeavor and says "What happens when a hawk mates with a cat?..." The current number 1 looked at her bemused. "The English call it a Griffin, but I call it a cawk!" Hawks winced It was soo cringy, obscene and made no sense!... But it worked! Endeavor's lips twitched and he snorted! before breaking out in low chuckles, the rest is history.

Though his avian traits seemed to have overrode his wife's feline traits, I.e. {Finny has little red wings on her head instead of cat ears, and Keigo eye brows, However everything else is from his wife. the reality slip quirk {y/hc} hair and {y/eye} etc.

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

Kirishima's kid/Akara: Name meaning "Red Lightning" {Aka} meaning Red and [Ra] from the word Rai meaning lightning.

Eijirou and his wife thought they were having a boy so Akara's name was originally going to be Akahito "the red warrior" so when the baby that came out was obviously a girl, he and his wife panicked and couldn't figure out or agree on a new name, until Mina suggest a holding raffle everyone wrote a name down and put it in a hat. and the first name they pulled will be their daughter's name, they pulled out Denki's choice and settled on it and considering Akara's quirk: Hard-charge. it fits pretty well. 

(She can harden her skin like her dad. however, with every hit she takes, she can absorb kinetic energy from it, the energy turns into electricity which she can use to deliver powerful electric discharge attacks.) 

Her mom is Denki's cousin by the way... Her mom's Quirk is called Static pinch, she can store small amounts of static electricity and release tiny zaps from her thumb index and middle finger, if she gets close enough to an enemy she use the stored energy in her body like a taser via "Vulcan nerve pinch".

  Akara looks like her mother but has her dad's sharp teeth.

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

Shoto's kid/Koyuki name meaning "Little snow" kanji [Ko] meaning little and [Yuki] meaning snow.

Much like Katsuki children were a very touchy and distant subject for him, He was was always scared that he'll end up just like his father, he was adamant on having no kids, so when his wife announced that she was pregnant and keeping it, Shoto had a panic attack and ran off  for a couple days, until she calls Dabi who tracked him down and talked some sense into him...

(after punching him in the face for ditching his pregnant wife.) The his older brother pretty much told Shoto he's letting Enji win running off like that, and reminds him that they're both Endeavor's sons, but they are not their father, and will never be their father, they're better than him... and with that Dabi send his younger brother back his worried wife, Shoto apologizes and is working to prove he's not like his father. 

He keeps his daughter away from her grandfather who keeps badgering Shoto for another grandchild as he doesn't see Koyuki's quirk (Frost-breath) taking her anywhere in the future, Shoto has more or less politely told his father to go and pound sand.... as it was very difficult for Shoto's wife to conceive children and her pregnancy and birth was very stressful and traumatic for them, Koyuki was born prematurely and his wife had to stay in the hospital with a severe case of the flu.

Koyuki like  Shoto has bi-color hair on the left it's red and on the right it's [y/hc] she has her mom [y/ec] eyes she’s very happy and but timid child and often seen clinging to one of her parent's legs when stranger approaches, though she get's a bit more confident with time.

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

Izuku's kid/ Hinamori Name meaning: "sunshine forest" combines the kanji [Hina] for sunshine and the kanji [Mori] for Forest.

Not a surprise when he the number 1 hero's wife started showing a baby-bump a year and a half after their wedding, however what came as a surprise was how protective Izuku became when Reporters and his more eccentric fans didn't know how to keep their boundaries, they would not stop staring at his wife's boobs and trying to touch her belly, Izuku would block their view or slap their hands away and repeat. "Your not my mother or her (Relative.) Don't touch my wife..." he'd discharge his quirk a bit showing that he wasn't kidding around... 

The attention seem to blow over once Hinamori was born mainly due to Izuku buying a house in a gated community so the press couldn't get in so easily and bother the new family, Hinamori looks like her mom but she her y/hc hair is wild like Izuku's and she has his freckles, she likes reading and is often found in Izuku's study reading his old hero observation books. and has actually been working on some of her own, as Izuku has found her little dinosaur notebook with observations on Haruka, Koyuki and Akara. 

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

Denki's kid: Raika name meaning: Lightning flower uses the kanji [Rai] for lightning and the kanji [Ka] from flower. 

Raika wasn't exactly planned... See Denki and his little lady were on vacation see? there was this music festival in Niagara-falls, and well...He and his wife had few too many and well details are bit blurred, but... Raika may or may not have been conceived in a handicap stall, but if she ever were to ask everyone's been told to say it was after Denki recued his wife from a villain holding her hostage and Raika was the end result of his reward, luckily she doesn't seem really interested in knowing her parents sexual history.

So there's a good chance shell never know! Raika has her dad's quirk, her hair is y/hc with a yellow/black lighting bolt streaked into it and her y/ec eyes flash yellow when using her quirk. 

[aestheticsfandomsandmore]

PokéShipping ideas

So, as you all are probably aware, 1-7 November is Pokéshipping week, so here we go. Even though I ship these two since I was, like, twelve, this is the first time I’m celebrating and partecipating. 

I have so many ideas for PokéShipping fan fictions, but I’m going to write down the two I prefer:

# idea 1: Satoshi (Ash) is travelling in Kalos together with Serena, Citron (Clemont) and Yurika (Bonnie). At some point, Kenji (Tracey) or Takeshi (Brock) calls him with big terrifying news: Kasumi (Misty) got hurt, she’s in a coma at the Hanada Town (Cerulean City) hospital. She could die. Satoshi doesn’t even think about it twice: he takes the first flight to Kanto. Serena and the others decide to tag along, worried - but not as worried as him. Satoshi freaks out. He doesn’t speak to anyone in the airplane, lost in his fearful thoughts. 

When they arrive, he goes straight to the hospital and finds it quite crowded. Kenji, Takeshi and Kasumi’s sisters are there, as he expected, but also his mom, Professor Okido (Oak), Shigeru (Gary), Haruka (May), Masato (Max) and a couple of unknown faces, probably Kasumi’s fans. They all explain their reasons to be there. Satoshi doesn’t really care. All he wants to know is if Kasumi is going to be okay. She has to. 

Hikari (Dawn) calls, after a few days, once the news has spread. «Daijoubou (It’ll be fine)!» she reminds him, with a smile. He doesn’t reply with what he’s thinking («Will it, though?»), he just nods and smiles back. It’s going to be okay. It has to.

# idea 2: While Satoshi is travelling in Kalos, Serena goes to find some branches the gang needs for a nice fire. She meets a nasty pair of people who challenge her to a Pokémon battle and beat her pretty easily. They try to steal her Pokémon. She is in danger. 

At that right moment, four people step aside, coming out of nowhere, protecting her. A ginger tomboyish girl, a brunette girl with a red bandana, a blue-haired pretty girl and a dark-skinned girl with long purple hair. «Don’t you dare stealing other people’s Pokémon!» shouts the third girl on the right, with a Pochama (Piplup) on her hat. «You should be ashamed!» goes the second girl on the left. «You’re both very disrespectful kids. Learn how to behave!» says the fourth girl on the right, a Kibago (Axew) among her hair. «We all had to train them with love and patience. Stealing someone’s Pokémon... disgusting!» the first girl on the left is on fire. The four of them make the two run away and save the day.

Hikari, Haruka, Iris and Kasumi. They saved her. Serena feels so grateful. She hopes she’s going to be friends with them. Then Satoshi comes... and happens to know them all.

[dear-yandere]

a letter to my savior.

yandere! reader x haruka nanase.

Dear Haruka,

Your eyes put the ocean to shame.

The first time I gazed into them was like walking through a suffocatingly dark cave. Every heartbeat, every step, every breath was captured by those cavernous walls, forever lost in its depths. They created a hauntingly eerie sonata, a song which resonated against the walls and into my mind. My fears stirred from their slumber and danced to that sweet harmony, taking me with them. 

Help me. Your eyes felt like cave walls closing in.

The second time was like staring at a blank sheet of paper. Nerves rattled in trepidation, filling my mind with doubt and despair. Thoughts swam through in my head, mocking me with that which I cannot do, with that which I’m afraid to do. I’d cursed myself and clutch the eraser knowing that whatever I mar the paper with will be a mistake. 

Help me. Your eyes felt like the dread of the unknown.

The third time was like falling feet-first into the cold clutches of water. I cried out as the comfort of the sky slowly disappears only to be replaced by cerulean tides. They pulled me under, farther and farther away from the surface. Where was I? Where was I going? Will I even stay alive long enough to know? All I knew was the gently menacing lull of the ocean and the blood rushing in my ears. 

Help me. Your eyes felt like the cold of the ocean.

And in that moment, I realized I was drowning. Air bubbles flounced above me in a taunting dance, reminding me that it’s too late. I was drowning in your eyes and it was too late, I’m too far gone. My grave will rest at the bottom of the deep, unforgiving ocean, where no one will even notice I’m gone. All I could feel was the shackles around my feet and the asphyxiation in my core. And I could only hope that I’ll forever live on in the deep blue of your ocean eyes.

Help me.

But, like an angel, your hands found themselves around mine, and my body suddenly felt lighter. The shackles on my feet seemed to melt away as the comforting glow of the surface draws closer. I drink up the air with welcome relief, and I hear you say,

‘Don’t worry. I’ll always be here to save you.’

You gesture to the vast ocean before us and guide my hands, my arms, my body…my heart. And I realize…

Gazing into your eyes was like walking into a dark cave, but the sonata that once haunted me slowly dissipates in my ears, giving way to peace and wonder. For the first time, I ask myself, what’s at the end of the cave? I want to see it. I will see it. And I do. With tentative steps, I step into the cavern at the end and find myself amazed by the resplendent pool at its core and the colorful hues bouncing off its walls. The colors reflect off the water’s surface, and it takes me a minute to realize I’d stopped breathing. I hungrily inhale air and quickly threw aside my clothing to jump in, and I finally feel unfettered. The water surrounds me, but I no longer cry for help. 

I’m free. Your eyes feel like peace of mind.

Gazing into your eyes was like staring at a blank piece of paper, but the uncertainty that infected my mind blooms into potential. I grab the pencil and eagerly scribble across the surface, ideas restlessly coming to life before my eyes. And it occurs to me that I’m finally doing what I was afraid to do, what I thought I couldn’t do. I gasp and catch my breath, recollecting my thoughts. The blank slate that once taunted me has been graced with life, and when I look up, I see a proud smile on his lips and a loving lilt in his eyes. 

I’m free. Your eyes feel like an anthem.

Gazing into your eyes was like falling head-first into the cold embrace of water, but I don’t drown. I breathe underwater, but that’s the least of my amazement. Colorful fish and flora fill my vision, lighting up the dark depths I thought I’d known so well. I realized that the sun’s beams penetrate the ocean’s vast depths, and it isn’t as lonely as I thought. It isn’t as scary as I thought. Like second nature, I swim for what seems like miles, my heart full of excitement. 

I’m free. Your eyes feel like the act of simply being.

And in that moment, I realize I am alive. Your eyes feel like home. 

You feel like home. 

Your eyes put the ocean to shame for they hold a vastness far greater than any other. I never knew what it meant to drown until I saw your eyes -- you are my ocean, and for once, I’m no longer afraid.

Sincerely, yours.

Originally a vent fic posted on deviantArt for my thalassophobia.

[mizukixtsukiyomi]

first off: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! I HOPE ITS A GOOD DAY FOR YOU!! TY FOR OPENING REQUESTS!!! you're literally the coolest person ever UWU. second: someone before requested free x knb with Kagome as a manager of a swim team and one of of KnB teams wanted her to be their manager? Smth like that, but I thought it was super cool and wanted to request it in case the original asker didn't send it again. Please and thank you so much!!

At the blow of the whistle, eyes on the bleachers followed the swimmers dive into the clear water to run their laps. Back and forth, water splashed as they raced against the clock. Gleeful cheers from female college students could be heard as they saw the Hidaka University swim team showcase their skill in water. 

A tired sigh escaped the blonde’s lips, as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Phew, I don’t think I could survive doing that many laps in water! I mean,” he winked at his college basketball friends from the corner of his eyes, “we can all admit I would look good!” 

“Shut it, Kise.” Aomine huffed, sheathing his annoyance from the boredom he felt watching the swimmers. “Why are we even here, Akashi?” 

The rest of the Generation of Miracles turned their gazes onto their former basketball captain who sat one bleacher below theirs. All of them had been called for a “reunion”; a get-together as college students. All of them had entered Hidaka University, with the exception of Kagami. All of them held a basketball scholarship to their name and it was one they held with pride. They were becoming Hidaka’s supreme team in years. 

But Akashi felt the team incomplete. 

“Akashi-kun,” Kuroko spoke, having been the only one to sit beside the emperor of the court, “why did you bring us to watch the swim team?” 

“My question is the same.” Midorima sighed, crossing his arms. 

A stretched out yawn echoed as long legs rested on the bleachers Akashi sat on and long arms stretched above Murasakibara’s head. “Maybe Akachin wants to change sports.” 

A scoff blew from Aomine’s lips. “Like we could switch sports; we’ve been doing basketball for so long, idiot.” 

Ruby tint eyes followed the movements of the team member near the edge of the pool as they spoke to one of the swimmers. The swimmer himself was presented with a clipboard and was skimming through the notes that had been taken. Akashi chuckled under his breath. “I didn’t bring you here to see the swimmers; I brought you to observe the one who is in charge of their growth.” 

“Huh?” All of them whispered, following their line of sight. 

The group blinked watching as the female smiled at the dark-blue haired swimmer who had just finished his last lap. His breathing slowly regulating to a normal pace as he heard what they presumed to be the swim team’s manager. She had her long black hair held in a high ponytail wearing sport running shorts and a regular navy blue t-shirt. 

“Isn’t that Nanase Haruka?” Kuroko asked. 

“He became a star right away when he entered the university.” Midorima added, eyes narrowing on the duo. “The swim team has high hopes going far into their own tournament with him as the addition this year.” 

“But it’s also her.” Akashi smiled, eyes still glued on the girl. “She was recruited to become the swim team’s manager.” 

Aomine’s brow crooked up, “so?” 

“The coach himself,” Akashi turned his focus onto Haruka’s personal trainer - the tall and handsome brunette male - to see him standing next to the girl, “Azuma Ryuji asked for her to assist with Nanase’s training.” 

“Hm?” Kise titled his head to the side. “She’s cute, but is she that important?” 

“Azuma Ryuji is known to only work with those who have potential.” Midorima pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Akashi, are you saying he asked a university student to assist him training Nanase?” 

Akashi’s lips curved upwards as he saw Kagome squat down to speak with the said swimmer. A tender look in her eyes made his own expression narrow on her. “Apparently, she has an eye for athletes. Especially special ones. She watches very carefully how they move and comes up with regimes to improve their physique.” 

A scoff from Aomine was released as he rest his hands behind his head. “Sounds like Satsuki. We could just get Satsuki to work with us.” 

“True,” Akashi agreed, crossing his arms. And that was definitely true. Satsuki had the same skill with her observation skills, but, “she has close ties with the Taisho Corporation.” 

Eyes bulged at the name. 

“Say what?!” Aomine shouted, voice echoing inside the pool vicinity. 

Eyes of the public, swimmers and coaches included, were pulled to the Generation of Miracles. Whispers from the bleachers scattered. 

“Aominecchi! Keep your voice down!” Kise immediately slammed his hand over Aomine’s mouth. 

“Aomine-kun,” Kuroko blinked, looking at the former Touou ace over his shoulder, “learn to not attract attention.” 

A vein throbbed over his forehead. The hell?! 

“Ah~,” Murasakibara’s attention peaked, “she’s looking. That chick you’re curious about Akachin.” 

Their focus shifted over to the edge of the pool once again to see the pair of cerulean eyes on the girl glued on them. She blinked a few times before turning her attention to Azuma. He said something, inaudible to them, before giving out a grumpy look and her attention was back on them. 

Akashi stood from his seat, “I’ll go talk to her.” 

“E-Eh?!” Kise’s eyes flickered. “About what?!” 

Akashi made his way to the end of his row before stepping on the stairs leading down to the pool area. “About her becoming our manager; we need someone like her.” 

The five of them gave a round of perplexed wide looks when Akashi’s smirk stretched and he continued his way down. Wait...was he serious?! He was going to try to steal a team member onto their side?! 

Heavy hands clapped down onto knees; heads turned to see Murasakibara standing from his spot. Tall and proud made the others around shudder. 

“Alright, then I’ll use my height to intimidate her into the team.” 

“The hell!” Kise quickly sprung to try and pull him back down on this seat. “Did no one ever teach you not to intimidate a girl!?” 

Midorima crossed his arms, sighing as he felt all his energy being drained from the circus before him. Akashi was being serious, was he? Who were they to underestimate his plans? When he sought to do something or get something, he would do it. 

[zombriekid]

From the Shoreline [Haruka Nanase/Gender Neutral Reader]

Series: Free! 

Summary: request- “...can you write a beach scene w him (Haru) swimming w a reader insert? you dont have to make it romantic if you dont feel comfortable doing so” a day at the beach brings to light foreign emotions 

  You’ve always been content to watch from the shoreline, to bask in the peace that the hissing froth affords you as the silk of the cool waves lapses at your knees, and the fine granules of sand slip in between your toes. It’s there, where the land claws at the sea that you find your bedrock; able to enjoy the reaches of the ocean but you’re still fixed on a stable foundation of shell and stone. Sure you’ll find particles scratching at sensitive skin later in your rash guard, that’s a given when you’re sitting in perpetually shifting sand, however this way you’re never fully committing yourself to the depths.  

  Unlike Iwatobi’s residential Human Dolphin Haruka Nanase, who breaches the water’s glittery barrier with a flourish of his dark hair. In the past you’ve jokingly called him a “hydro-phile”, mostly because, be it a toddler’s inflatable kiddie pool or the expansive lanes meant for Olympic swimmers in training, if there’s a body of water caught in his crosshairs then the dude is already diving in before his pants are even off. You know better now, though.  

  It’s not so much that he has a rather odd (see: questionable) obsession with water; in actuality it’s the only way he can freely express himself, convey his thoughts and feelings properly to anyone willing to listen because there are no expectations when you’re swimming. Well, besides keeping yourself afloat at least. Admittedly it took you some time to understand this quirk of his- between Haru’s introverted nature and your inability to read people there were a few years of awkward, fumbling communication between you two that found resolution in sunshine incarnate Makoto.   

  Now you fancy yourself close enough to Haru that you don’t need many words to discern his intentions.  

  ...at least you did before the skin on the back of your neck starts to bristle and tingle, before the pit of your stomach flutters instinctually with the sudden attention set upon you, and nine years worth of friendship and experience quickly clues you in on the source. And sure enough, a brief glance up from your feet and out towards the ocean you notice him peeking at you over the surface with everything from his chin down totally submerged; there’s a glint in the intense blue of his eyes, and his long lashes sit heavy as if he’s lost in thought, like he’s staring absentmindedly at something, but he’s not because he’s focused entirely on you.  

  You don’t know this look.  

  It’s completely new on him. New for him? Or maybe it’s not. It’s just never have you been at the receiving end of it… and it’s twisting your heart into fluttery somersaults within the cage of your chest.  

  Before your mind can run wild, where the questions of “what if” and “could be” are already turning the gears of your over-active imagination, you disrupt the stare down with a hitch in your throat. “What’s up, Haru?” 

  Just like that the fog lifts from his pupils, and though they don’t stray from you they appear to be brighter now, like he’s just realized that you’re physically here. Now you can read the message in his expression. He gives you a quick once over that begins on the shoreline and ends on your face: in other words, “what are you doing?”    

  “I’m not much of a swimmer, remember?”  

  Which is not some feeble attempt to appear modest on your end, you understand enough to keep your head above the waterline and maybe splash a doggy paddle or two, but swimming? Authentic, genuine, complete a specified number of laps within an allotted time period swimming? That was all Haru’s territory- has been since the pool lessons from your kinder years, and even back then you knew that he was leagues ahead. Always will be.

  Never stopping, never looking back; the water doesn’t judge and it doesn’t expecting anything from him.

  It’s freedom. It’s his freedom, and you totally get it now.

  Good thing you’ve always been content to watch from the shoreline.

_______________________________________________________________________

  The expression is back, the brand new one that pours an invisible film over his eyes until the color dulls but sharpens the cognizance, and just like before he’s imposing all of that concentration on to you now. It’s unclear if this... look is intentional or not but either you’re inhaling a sort of icy warmth deep into your lungs as the hairs on your arm rise.

  Chapped lips peel apart yet no sound follows, a problem that stems from the fact that the tip of your tongue is sticking to the back of your incisors, and be it luckily or unluckily you don’t have to keep trying to decode the mystery that is Haruka Nanase because you notice the single but firm nod he gives. Moments after both of his hands begin to gently slice through the saltwater in large, swooping arcs, feet kicking and paddling behind him as his eyes actually seem to catch yours this time.

  And the message is... something? The meaning’s lost to you, though there’s no denying that it is there; still you can’t figure it out by the time he reaches the shore.

  Without a single word, and in the throes of a fierce, cerulean-tinted stare, he offers you a hand with the palm facing towards the sky- and this you absolutely can understand. “Thanks, Haru. But you won’t be able to actually swim if I join,” your left shoulder lifts in a shrug, “was always more of a spectator, ya know?”

  Spectating from the bleachers, spectating from the poolside, from the squeaky plastic of a floaty and the steps in the shallow end and the white foam melting into the sand of the shoreline.

  “I don’t mind.”

  And that statement- those three little words... they change everything.

  Because Haruka Nanase isn’t swimming right now, won’t be if you accept his offer, and he’s aware of that. He’s okay with that, that fact doesn’t bother him. He’s purposefully slowing his pace... so you can catch up.

  Goddammit you’re gonna miss the crap outta this dude.

  The sharp heat of tears stings in the flesh of your eyes but you’re quick to blink them away before you brandish a crooked, toothy grine: “don’t be upset when you gotta save my ass from drowning!”

  He smiles in return and there’s a kind of amusement found in the corners of his mouth- not that you’re focused on that, of course. And it’s not the first time that you’ve seen him like this, it’s just the first where you, and only you, are the cause. Makes you feel... warm. Fuzzy.

  Your fingers curl around his open palm until your grip is firm, and using the entirety of his body weight as an anchor you hoist yourself up on to your feet and follow him into the depths of the ocean. Away from the shoreline.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

  Later, when the horizon sits low on the horizon and the saltwater makes your lips itch, Haru asks you to make him a promise.

  “While I’m in Australia, and you’re starting your first semester at college... will you still talk to m- to us?”

  You don’t acknowledge that near slip of the tongue, and you completely ignore the fluttering in your stomach because of it, so instead with a squeeze of your hand over his, you say: “of course! You’re stuck with me for life, dude.” Platonically, that’s how you mean it. Right? Right.

Not right, not when his fingers squeezes yours back.

“Promise?” 

Swallow the lump in your throat; give him a big ol’ grin.

“Promise.”

a/u: i picture haru as the kind of person that doesn’t really build up an attraction to someone, it just kinda happens and it confuses him but he’s not afraid of it. homie has a hard time expressing himself though so he wouldn’t be the first to act on it, just drop hints here and there in his own unique way. hope y’all enjoy this piece, a bit light hearted than what i usually tackle, ne? hit a like, drop a comment, reblog this ish so that other cool cats can see it! and to the anon who requested this i’m so friggin sorry that it took me this long to fulfill it but still i hope you like it -3- 

[gruvia-lolu-nalu-jerza]

This I Promise You - Chapter 2

This I Promise You - Ch. 2/?

A/N:  I am SO SORRY for the extremely long hiatus of this fic!! Life has been insane, and I haven't had much inspiration/motivation to keep writing my stories for the longest time. But, hopefully, I am now back ^_^

Pairing:  RinHaru (of course, haha), with a side of MakoGou (super secondary)

**POST-SERIES**

**Part of the For The Future series – a set of stories set in the future, that will feature MakoGou kids Takashi and Hiroki**

Here on AO3 | Here on FFN | Chapter 1 on Tumblr

Chapter 2:  Back In The City Where It All Began, Pt. 1

Despite his best efforts to keep his plans a complete surprise, it hadn’t taken long for Haruka to become suspicious.  He had gone along with Rin’s announcement earlier that morning that Iwatobi and their long-awaited reunion with their friends was going to be pushed back a day or two with very little comment other than a curious rise of an eyebrow, but when they arrived at their departure gate at the airport and Haruka’s gaze landed on the city of their destination, Rin watched as his eyes widened.  Something - a spark of recognition - flickered behind those azure pools, as what had merely been vague curiosity up until that point morphed slowly into something unreadable.

“Rin, where are we-?” Haruka began, turning to glance at him.  His brow furrowed, as he silently studied the gleeful expression that Rin was having difficulty holding back.  “...Sydney? What are we-?”

“You ask too many questions,” Rin interrupted, with a low murmured chuckle.  “C’mon-” his arms slipped around Haruka’s waist, and he rested his chin on his shoulder.  “Didn’t I tell you it was gonna be a surprise?” He took in Haruka’s still-dubious gaze, and breathed out a dramatic sigh.  “You don’t have to look that suspicious, y’know…  You’ll see soon enough - you’ll love it!”

The look on Rin’s face clearly said Trust me…   The silent questions died on Haruka’s lips, his features relaxing into a faint smile.  Of course he did…

“...Lead the way.”

The plane ride lasted all of exactly an hour and twenty three minutes.  After that, it was a fifteen minute cab ride to the nearest bus terminal, and then from there, the two boarded a bus that was bound for the heart of the city.  When the bus finally rumbled to their destination stop twenty minutes later, it suddenly became glaringly-obvious where they were, and what Rin’s “plan” was.

“...You’re recreating our original trip to Australia?”

There was an odd catch to Haruka’s voice, as he stared up at the familiar stone fountain in the middle of Hyde Park.  The sunlight caught the water droplets as it rained down into the pool of water below, and it was still every bit as enchanting as the very first time Haruka had laid eyes on it a decade prior.

“There’s really no keeping surprises a secret from you, is there?” Rin chuckled.  “I just… I just thought that it’d be a nice tribute, you know? Kinda the whole full-circle thing - back in the city that meant so much to me and my dream when I was a kid.  The city where I lost sight of that dream, and thought it was gone forever… until you saved me, and gave that dream back to me…” Turning to face Haru, Rin’s eyes softened affectionately.  “And that’s something that I’m forever going to be indebted to you for. But no matter how many disappointments and regrets I faced here, it shaped me to be who I am today - helped me become stronger because of those experiences.  Haru…” Rin paused, his words trailing off as he stared into the spouting fountain. “This city… it- it’s special to me, not only because of my history with it, but because of you.  This was where I was able to show you that sight that I’d once promised you when we were kids, and where I was able to share some of my favorite places and memories with you.  This was also where I was able to help you decide of your own future, and where our dreams officially became one… Now, it’s ten years later, and-”

Rin cut off abruptly, when he felt the tips of Haruka’s fingers brush lightly against his arm.

“A-And…”

“I know…” Haruka whispered, a gentle smile in his quiet voice.  His fingers sought out Rin’s, and interlacing them together, he gave Rin’s hand a squeeze.  They were warm, and held a comforting familiarity, and were so, so… Rin.

“Rin.  Thank you for bringing us back here to Sydney one more time.  It’s perfect.”

“It’s just that…” Rin’s cheeks were flushed, but he nevertheless returned the hand squeeze.  “Tomorrow, we’ll be going home for good, Haru…  The last decade… everything- I wouldn’t trade my memories of you being there by my side for anything.”  One hand reached out to gently cup Haruka’s cheek, thumb tenderly caressing the porcelain skin.  Closing his eyes, Haruka leaned into the touch.

“I know…”  Once again, he breathed out those same two words, the whisper this time half-muffled by the fabric of Rin’s shirt.  The world around them vanished, and in that instant, it was just the two of them: two young men whose souls were bound to each other’s from the moment they first laid eyes on the other as children all those years ago.  Rin’s arm was tight and firm around Haruka’s slighter, more slender frame - strong, and warm, and safe.

Home.  Home meant Iwatobi, and all the familiarity of that tiny portside town.  Home meant seeing Makoto, Gou, Nagisa, and Rei again, after all this time…

Home meant Rin - Rin, and the promise of a future together with a man whom he loved beyond words…

“E-Excuse me…”

Opening his eyes at the sudden voice that seemed to be addressing them, Haruka blinked down at a teenage girl and the young boy who was with her.  The pair were staring up at himself and Rin in awe. Upon realizing that Haruka’s cerulean eyes were now focused upon her, the girl’s face immediately flushed crimson, and she took a half step back, averting her eyes in embarrassment at having been caught shamelessly staring.

“Are…  Are you Haruka Nanase and Rin Matsuoka?” She asked breathlessly, the question coming out sounding flustered and slightly high-pitched.  One hand held onto the young boy’s, the other clutched tightly at a cellphone with trembling fingers.

“Y-Yes…” Rin seemed equally surprised as how Haruka himself felt, as he answered the question in English.  “How can we help you?” The words rolled smoothly - comfortably - from Rin’s tongue, and Haruka once again couldn’t help but admire Rin’s complete mastery of the foreign language.  During their travels in the last ten years, and their constant exposure in English-speaking countries, Haruka had picked up phrases here and there. It had been enough to get by those occasionally-mandatory interviews and press conferences, but Rin’s level of proficiency was still far beyond his reach.

“I’m sorry to disturb you, but… well… c-could we get an autograph and a picture with you guys…?”  Reaching up with a hand, the girl fretted with a strand of hair as she shyly tucked it behind her flaming red ear.  “M-My brother is an avid swimmer, and we try to keep up with as many meets as possible, and ever since we first saw you make your debut, and the way that you tied… you guys have been our idols…!  Ever since then, we’ve followed all of your races, and cheered you on in both Beijing and London. We’re huge fans - you guys are amazing!  Oh my gosh-” she gushed excitedly.  “To think that we’d actually run into you guys here, of all places-!!”

“I-”  Haruka blinked, ever-growing confusion slipping into his expression the faster the girl rambled on.  The rapid flow of unfamiliar English words proved too much of a struggle for him to try and keep up, so he merely settled for silently withdrawing - just like he always did - and letting Rin take care of this one.  He stole a sidelong glance at Rin, and in those suddenly suspiciously-gleaming eyes, he saw a myriad of emotions flood into those red orbs. A deeply-stunned surprise at her words. Pride. But above all, as those eyes sought out and held his gaze, Haruka saw unadulterated and unmistakable love and affection radiating from them.

“Yeah- Of course!” Rin grinned, enthusiastically pulling Haruka closer to him.  One arm slung over Haruka’s shoulder, the other extending out to flash a peace sign at the camera.  They were starting to draw quite a crowd, as curious onlookers strolled over for a closer look, and people whispered excitedly behind their hands amongst themselves about whether or not it was the Matsuoka Rin and Nanase Haruka.  Almost as if sensing Haruka’s growing discomfort with the crowd, Rin gave an easy smile.

“Almost done, babe - I promise.”

The whisper came as a low murmur at Haruka’s ear, so quiet that the words were meant for him and him alone.  Rin flashed him a quick wink, before kneeling down to the child’s level.

“What is your name?”

“Brandon…” The young boy fidgeted shyly.  Holding the piece of paper and pen out to Rin, he watched wide-eyed as Rin signed it, and added an extra message underneath:

~To Brandon:  Dare to dream big, and reach for the stars!~

“Never let anyone tell you any different.”  Rin’s tone was gentle, as he ruffled Brandon’s hair.  “You can reach every single dream you put your mind to.  Work hard, and never give up.” Handing the autograph back to the excited and awestruck child, he wished both siblings well as they thanked them and went on their way.

“Cute kid,” Rin chuckled, the comment accompanied by a fond smile as he gazed after the two.  Turning to Haruka, he slung an affectionate arm around his shoulders. “Ready? I figured we could hit the beach, and then make it to Russell’s and Lori’s by about 4:30 or 5:00.  That’ll give us about an hour before dinner, and then, well…”

Rin waggled an eyebrow, a grin teasing the corner of his lips.  Haruka smiled back, knowing full well what Rin didn’t need to say aloud.  Fragmented memories of a time from long ago, when the two of them had spent a night together in an old historic Sydney hotel, came unbidden to them both.  Back then, the night had passed them by with the both of them being overly conscious of the space (or lack, thereof) between them in the single double bed that they shared, and nothing beyond a simple chat had occurred.  However, tonight…

Rin’s grin widened, as he stole a clandestine sidelong glance toward the small duffel bag that lay at their feet.  Tucked away safely inside was a very special item that, should everything go according to plan tonight, would elevate their relationship to the next level.  His fingers curled and tightened around Haruka’s hand, as he pulled the other man closer into his arms. Under the gentle rain of falling water from the fountain, he reached up with his free hand to gently cup Haruka’s cheek, their lips meeting in a searing kiss.  In that moment, it didn’t matter that they were standing in the middle of a very public park, with the gazes of onlookers and passersby that ranged from a whole spectrum of emotions and judgements trained upon them. It didn’t matter that the whisperings from the ever-growing crowd gathered around them buzzed at the back of his mind.  What mattered, more than anything in the world, was the man encircled in his arms -- the man with raven black hair and deep azure eyes, who had stayed firmly at his side through everything for the last ten years. The man who he’d loved his entire life…

When they pulled slowly apart at last - the kiss still lingering on both their lips - Rin’s hand reached out of its own accord, fingertips skimming over the surface of Haruka’s cheekbones, the touch warm and familiar and practiced.

“Mmm…” Haruka murmured softly.  His eyes slowly opened to focus in on Rin’s face, and a faint smile caused the corners of his eyes to crinkle slightly.  He sighed, gaze flickering upward to regard their surroundings with a warm, genuinely affectionate look, his smile taking on a melancholic note.  

“Being here with you again like this in Sydney after all this time…  I-” Haruka took in a deep breath, glancing away for a moment before returning to steadily meet Rin’s gaze once more.  He leaned into the hand that still lingered at his cheek, even as his own rose up to rest over Rin’s, fingers curling into the comforting warmth.

“...I’ll miss it.”

The quiet words of his simple confession echoed in the air around them, leaving them both to reflect silently for a moment on each’s own memories associated with this place, this city, and the vast depth of just how deeply the roots of influence of this country ran for the two of them.  Rin smiled, the arm that was over Haruka’s shoulder tightening slightly as he leaned to press a kiss to his temple.

We’ll definitely come back someday…  The kiss seemed to promise.  We can come back as many times as you’d like…

“...C’mon, Haru.  Let’s make this last day in Sydney count.”

A/N: Please like and ESPECIALLY reblog if you liked it, I’d love to know your thoughts on it!  (Do keep in mind, though, that this is my first fic that I’ve done for Free!/RinHaru, so please be gentle in your critiquing of it). The next chapter is already halfway done, so hopefully the next update won't take 3.5 years... lol. Thank ya'll so much for your patience and support!

Sneak Peek at Chapter 3: Special memories resurface as Rin and Haru continue their day in Sydney, leading up to an unforgettable night back in Room 25 ;-)

[dominaregina]

Poseidon’s Bounty: Chapter 9- The Contract

Summary:

Setsuna and Minako draft up her contract. Michiru’s longing for Haruka grows.

—

One moment it revealed her reflection: cerulean eyes that looked tired and worried, teal eyebrows furrowed in unflattering lines.

The next, there was only her heart’s desire. The woman she gave up her seat on the council for. The woman she would give up everything for. The council, the royals, her bloodline, Poseidon himself; Michiru would swear it all away for Haruka Tenoh.

The object of her desire, with her sweaty, windswept hair, was fast asleep in a filthy sleeping cot. Haruka’s cheeks were smeared with sand and dried blood. Across her angular jawline was a fresh wound. A clean slice, likely from a small blade.

“Oh, Haruka…”

—

Read More on Ao3

[casteliacityramen]

Side Characters

Stand / Unovan Specific Characters

Tai Ishikawa

Not much is known other than what you see. It's implied that he's no longer with us. He was humble, often reveling in the pride of feeding others and focused less on earning money. He taught Ray everything he knows about Ramen.

Ayumi Matsumoto

Ayumi worked the Ramen stand for a moment, making amends for the night her son stole from Ray. She's equally as loud and boisterous as she is caring and loving. She's missing one arm from a workplace accident at Skyarrow Electric Dam, and as much as she tries to carry herself with full confidence, she's revealed that she worries about how that will affect her family's well-being.

Overseer + Golurk Minions

Tasked with guarding the Abyssal Ruins, the Overseer is in command of an unknown amount of autonomous Golurk minions. He resides in perpetual slumber until the security of its most guarded secret is breached. Then, he will decide if the intruder is dispatched, authenticated, or deemed worthy of becoming a hero.

Characters belonging to the Order of Arceus

Steward Kon Minera Disguise of Choice: Lucario

Belonging to the Order of Arceus, Kon takes his job as a Steward of Sinnoh very seriously. When he felt that his territory was under threat by Rio's actions at the Gala, he confronted her. However, as hot headed as he is, he knew he was beat before a fight could break out. Instead, he left Rio with some choice words before she left.

Head Scholar Lok Disguise of Choice: None

Both figuratively and literally by-the-book, Lok holds the Order's oath and creed to its highest degree. He expects nothing less from anyone else in the Order, and is a very cautious man when dealing with anything that might threaten it.

Scribe, Artificer, and Warden Jay Disguise of Choice: ???

A fiery, passionate member of the order, Jay is responsible for the Orders' technological advancements. Certified cheerleader of humanity. Warden of Rio and Ray.

Side Story Characters

Subject 140 Mewtwo - "Saisho"

If you know the story behind Team Rocket's creation of a living, breathing superweapon, you know of him. Those close to him say he is quick witted, powerful, and confident. He was only bested by the league champion of Kanto: Red, to whom he holds in very high regard. He resides in Cerulean Cave where he takes care of those wronged by Team Rocket, but he has opened his gates to anyone seeking asylum from society.

Prime Minister Haruka Nagumo

Nagumo is a veteran of the Kanto Johto War and was respected by all sides of the conflict during its six month run. She led the country through the toughest economic period in Kanto's history post-war. She is technically the acting prime minister, limited to a provisional 30 year term after the end of the war. However, if it were up to the Kanto citizens, she'd be reelected with no running competition.

[datheetjoella]

From Pauper to Prince: chapter 14

Author: DatHeetJoella Fandom: Free! Pairing: MakoHaru (side Reigisa) Rating: T Summary: When Prince Nagisa hears that he is arranged to marry Prince Haruka of Iwatobi, he is more than a little upset. In order to take his mind off things, his tutor Rei decides to take him to the town near the palace, where they meet a poor boy with a heart of gold.

Little did they know that this meeting would change their lives forever.

Word count: 10,341 (total (178,751) Chapter summary: The trial commenced and Makoto faced lessons he always dreamt of, and lessons he never thought he'd need.

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

                                            Chapter 14: Trial and Error

With a rough tug, the draped cerulean curtains concealing the balcony doors parted, showering Makoto's face in a bright beam of sunlight.

His eyebrows knitted together like magnets drawn to the other's pull and confusion clouded his mind as he opened his eyes.

A man was standing a few meters away from his bed, an upbeat smile stretched across his familiar face. "Rise and shine, Your Highness."

The fog in his mind dissipated and he remembered where he was, how he got here and that the backlit man in front of him wasn't a stranger. "Sir Minami?" he asked nonetheless, because the why hadn't been cleared up yet. "What are you doing here?"

"I've come to wake you and serve you breakfast, Your Highness," Sir Minami said, gesturing to the tray on the nightstand. On it were various dishes among which a plate of croissants, biscuits, a bowl of berries and a small container of red jam, presumably strawberry - at least some things never changed.

Read more at: AO3 - FFn

[kiebs]

Whale Tales 8

Fandom: Free!

Genre: Modern Fantasy

Pairing: Soumako; MakoxOC; SouxOC; SoumakoxOC

Characters: Matsuoka Rin; Original Character; Tachibana Makoto, Yamazaki Sousuke; Nanase Haruka

Summary:  It all began with a storm that totaled a boat. And overly friendly mermen.

It’s been forever and a day, but I hope you enjoy this most recent chapter of Whale Tales!

Also on AO3

Rin crossed his arms, eyes looking out over the marina. "So, you're sure this is okay to do?"

"Sousuke said it was okay," Tohru responded, twisting a hair tie between her fingers.

"Yeah, but…just because he says so—"

"Rin, you were there, too. Did he look uncertain to you?"

"I don't want our friends getting hurt because a big dumb fish thinks he can get over his trauma by forcing himself to hang out with humans."

For a moment, only the seagulls answered him.

"…everything will be okay," she murmured. "Makoto-san and Haru-san will be there."

"Great, more fish."

"They're not fish. They're cetaceans."

"Don't you get all technical on me—"

"Cetaceans are mammals. Fish aren't. There is no technic—"

"They both swim!"

"Now you're being childish."

Before their bickering could go any farther, and both of them knew they were bickering only because they were nervous and this was how they sometimes made the other feel better, a bright, cheery voice rang through the air. Both turned towards the sound, a sense of levity immediately fluttering over them.

"Rin-channn! Tohru-channn!" A ball of energy and blond hair dashed across the dock, almost knocking both of them over in his haste to hug them. "I missed you!"

"Oof! Hey, Nagisa," Rin greeted. He ruffled their friend's fluffy locks. "We missed you too."

"How was your European adventure?" Tohru asked warmly.

It was good to see her friend again. It had been about a month or so since she last saw him and, well, he didn't look much different. Nagisa still stood only a couple centimeters taller than she did and he was as tan as she was, but he had cut his hair and a shiny bicolored ring glittered on his finger. Otherwise, he was the same old Nagisa, bubbly and cheerful and bringing sunshine wherever he went.

He clasped his hands together with sparkling eyes. "It was amazing. I didn't realize just how close all the countries were, so we just took a super long road trip!"

"And what about your budget?" Rin asked, but his eyes had lifted from the blond man to his husband.

Rei pushed up his glasses with a mild twisting of his mouth. "Stretched, but nothing too overboard."

"Did you have fun, though?" Rin asked.

A smile curved up their bespectacled friend's lips. His face immediately softened, looking as boyish as he did when he was in high school. In moments like this, Tohru saw the reason why Nagisa so loved Rei.

"I did, very much so," he admitted. "Even with the language barrier, I had fun."

"Yeah, yeah! Thankfully, Rei-chan could get around a little with his English!" Nagisa added happily. He bounced on his heels away from her and Rin. "But we picked up a lot! And souvenirs! We got you some cool things!"

He immediately began rifling through his bag and produced two gift bags. Rin and Tohru eyed them cautiously, remembering previous gifts and souvenirs that had been less than what they expected. And by that, she meant that they had been some really weird and esoteric thing that they didn't even know where or how he got them. Nevertheless, they took the bags.

Inside the bag sat a simple cardboard box. Tohru lifted it out and cautiously turned it in her hands. It was light, but had some weight to it so that it didn't feel like it was full of fluff. That didn't exactly ease her, but she opened the box anyway. Wrapped in paper and sparkling once uncovered, she found a pretty metal and glass statue of a stingray. The glass was a mixture of milky blues and grays, though a few places were clear and bright cerulean. It was beautiful and extremely thoughtful.

Rin had a similar piece, but his was a shark and red. Tears beaded in his eyes the moment he unearthed it from its paper cushion. He sniffed loudly, gently placing the shark back into the box so that he could rub furiously at his eyes. Tohru smiled indulgently at his actions, putting her own statuette away.

Seeing Rin cry was actually a good sign, all things considered. With the curse and the mermen, she was afraid he was going to fall into depression again, but he actually crying meant that he hadn't. He became remarkably aloof when he was depressed.

"Aww, Rin-chan!" Nagisa cooed, throwing his arms around his waist.

"I-I'm not crying!" Rin hiccoughed gruffly.

"Rin, that's never worked," Tohru teased, gently bumping his shoulder with hers. "We know you're crying."

"S-Shut up."

"You're going to make Rei-chan cry, Rin-chan!"

"I am not going to start crying, Nagisa-kun!"

Nagisa laughed joyfully, smiling up at his husband.

It felt weird to think of Rei and Nagisa like that, to think that they were married now. It felt like they would be boyfriends forever, though they had also felt married before they had even been engaged. Then again, Tohru couldn't imagine a time when the two weren't together and it was weird to think that there actually had been. She much preferred them now.

Rin pushed Nagisa away, but he kept his hand on the smaller man's shoulder. Tears still reddened his eyes, but he was smiling as he gestured to the boat. He cast a conspiratorial look towards her before speaking.

"Let's head off, all right?" he remarked, placing his box back in the bag. "We're losing daylight."

"It's not even ten yet!" Nagisa whined, but hurried onto The Shark nonetheless.

"Like you're not excited to go out," Rin returned with a grin.

"We went on a cruise, too!" their friend huffed, turning up his nose.

Tohru lifted an eyebrow and looked curiously at Rei. "Did you?"

"Mm. In Sweden," the glasses-wearing man explained. He gestured for her to go first; she did. "It was rather beautiful."

His voice was almost wistful, which was a surprise. Back in high school, he had refused to go near, let alone in, any water, and even in college, they were hard-pressed to actually get him to join them in the pool. (Teaching him to swim had been a nightmare.) She supposed Nagisa's and her work had something to do with his recent fondness to bodies of water. He still got horribly seasick, though.

Once Rei was on the boat, Rin untied it and hopped in himself. As he passed her, he dipped his head.

"You wanna bring it up or should I?" he asked softly.

Tohru tilted her head up accordingly. "I can. I won't mention the curse."

His smile was relieved in return. He nodded.

Now…the question was how to bring up the mermen.

Technically, her real question was if she would even get a chance to speak as Nagisa dominated the conversation the moment they had all settled in the cabin. He regaled them on his and Rei's European adventure, telling them about the food, the people, the cities, and just about anything else that he could remember. Sure, intermittently when he ran out of breath, Rei would add a few things or tell them about the architecture or simple beauty of the towns in Europe before Nagisa would continue his tale. And he was a very good speaker, always had been, and created such pretty imagery with his words alone. They could have been there with the way he was describing everything.

But Tohru needed to tell them about the mermen. She felt extremely guilty about even needing to do so, because she had promised the mermen—she had promised Sousuke—that she or Rin wouldn't tell anyone else. Yet here she was.

Sousuke's voice echoed through her mind, interrupting the images of some kind of German pastry Nagisa was describing.

"I understand. You can tell them."

Guilt still tied up her throat, but she would rather forewarn her friends than blindside them. There was just the very likely happenstance that neither Rei nor Nagisa would believe her. Nagisa might be a dreamer, might love fantasy, but he also knew the boundaries of reality. Even he would question her sanity.

She sighed softly, smiling despite her inner turmoil. Despite how nervous she felt, she was happy that she could share this with her friends. Even more so, she was happy that Sousuke understood why she had to bring them out. She had been extremely reckless to go diving without a partner; she recognized that now. Thankfully, Sousuke understood that, too. He had actually lectured her after she had explained why she needed to bring Nagisa. It was flattering.

"…ru…"

Being lectured had never been so enjoyable before.

"T…ru…n…"

Even Makoto had gotten huffy when she explained her recklessness.

"Toh…n…"

It was…cute.

"Tohru-chan!"

Tohru jolted from her daze.

"W-What?" she gasped, looking quickly between Nagisa and Rei.

Rin coughed sharply.

Rei raised an eyebrow while Nagisa pouted.

Oh. She must have really daydreamed hard.

"Were you even paying attention, Tohru-chan?" Nagisa huffed, crossing his arms. His bottom lip wobbled.

"Until Vienna, sorry," she admitted with a wince.

"You missed our whole adventure in Padua!"

"To be fair, Nagisa, you have been talking for a while," Rei murmured, touching his husband's knee. "I'm sure Tohru-san and Rin-san have had adventures while we were away."

Nagisa's eyes widened. His lips wobbled before he lunged onto Tohru's lap.

"I'm sorry, Tohru-chan! I didn't even ask how you were doing!" he wailed, looking up at her. "Especially about that storm!"

Ah, that had been the only time they interrupted their friends' honeymoon. Well, Kou had interrupted their honeymoon because Nagisa and Rei were two of her best friends and she needed to vent. They had almost returned, actually, if Rin hadn't given them a lecture about the romance of a honeymoon.

"We're doing okay," she answered with a smile. "Well, I'm getting better, but, well, Rin and I…had another adventure…"

Nagisa sat up quickly. "What happened?"

Rin snorted loudly.

Tohru took a breath.

"Okay, so…it…it kind of connected to the storm we were in," she began nervously. "Um, so…we…we kind of had help getting out of it and, uh…look, it's going to sound really weird and-and impossible, but you have to believe me, okay?"

Her friend narrowed his eyes at her, but nodded. Rei also nodded, looking skeptical.

"Go on," Rei encouraged.

She blew out loudly. "Okay, so. We were saved by mermen. Aaaand they've kinda been helping me out with the stingray research? And they visit us all the time when we go out now."

Unsurprisingly, silence answered her.

Her mouth was dry, her tongue gummy, her throat tight. Rei and Nagisa just stared at her, both with confused looks, though Rei's grew more and more concerned as the boat sailed on. She rubbed her clammy palms against her knees as she waited for one of them to respond.

After many long, excruciating minutes, Rei cleared his throat. He adjusted his glasses and then fixed the collar of his shirt. He took a breath. The whole preparation made Tohru sink farther down in her seat.

"Are you sure you didn't hurt yourself in the storm?" he asked in such a concerned voice that it embarrassed her. "Mermen don't exist."

"Doctor said I was fine," she muttered petulantly.

"Maybe you hallucinated…?" he continued, rubbing his chin. "Or created something to help you cope."

"But wouldn't mermen be so much cooler?" Nagisa interrupted. "Real live mermen! Think about it, Rei-chan!"

The bespectacled man offered his husband an indulgent smile. "As exciting as that would be, it's improbable."

"We've only explored like five percent of the oceans, Rei-chan!"

"I feel like we would have found something that was human sized by now."

Tohru cut in then, "Rei, we know very little about the blue whale and they get about thirty meters long! It's not farfetched that we could miss something the size of a human."

"She's got a point," Nagisa added excitedly. His bright gaze turned to her. "Did you really see mermen?"

"They were probably dolphins!" Rei argued huffily. "Tohru-san, Nagisa-kun, please."

“I mean, yeah, but it would be so much cooler if they really were mermen!” Nagisa gushed.

This was exactly how she expected it would go, to be honest. Nagisa had been the one to force her to join that folklore class, after all. He would be willing to believe in mermen. Rei was just too logical and rational for anything magical like this.

Tohru blew her hair out of her face angrily. Despite knowing this would happen, she was still frustrated. It was teaching Rei how to swim all over again, except harder. At least he had believed that swimming existed. Yeah, he had given a lecture on how humans had evolved to live on land and swimming was counterintuitive because of that, but he had very much knew the swimming was a real thing. She would have to take drastic measures with making him believe in the mermen then.

"I'm anchoring!" Rin called out. He turned around with a wicked grin. "Let's get this merman show on the road."

He picked up his stereo and headed out.

"Not you too, Rin-san!" Rei cried, standing up to follow. Nagisa was on his heels as they exited the cabin. "There's no such thing as mermen!"

The door swinging closed muffled their voices as they headed to the deck.

Her head pounded. She hadn't even realized the boat had stopped until Rin had spoken. Rubbing her forehead, she even wondered how any of this was going to work out with how vehemently Rei was denying the existence of the mermen. At least he hadn't resorted to saying they were tripping balls as Rin had done, but, well, the day was young.

As she changed into her wetsuit, her heart fluttered excitedly. Frustration with Rei aside, she was going to do her own research. Research that she had decided on. That was exciting. Even more exciting was all the equipment she could use. Like underwater cameras and recording devices and tags. Her grant allowed for that and she didn't have to go through her stupid cousin this time. No more hand recording her findings or trying to remember what she had seen. As it were, of course, most of the equipment wouldn't arrive to her apartment until next week, but she at least had an underwater camera already.

Grinning happily, Tohru skipped outside just as a large wave of water splashed a lecturing Rei. She gaped. Her friend was frozen for a solid few seconds before, abruptly, he screeched in shock. Nagisa immediately began cackling at his husband's sodden appearance.

Their loud responses broke whatever spell had descended on her and she giggled in surprise. Still snickering, she trotted over to the end of the boat and leaned over the rail.

"Hello, Sousuke," she greeted the nonplussed merman warmly.

He frowned up at her, though it really looked like he was pouting, before a slow, amused smile slipped onto his face. He looked rather pleased with himself she would have to say. Honestly, she was rather pleased with him, too.

Makoto, on the other hand, did not share their amusement, apparently. He surfaced next to his mate looking adorably annoyed. He shoved the larger merman.

"Was that necessary?" he asked exasperatedly.

Sousuke huffed. "I thought so."

"Rin was the same way!" Makoto groaned, covering his face.

"No, Rin kept insisting he was tripping balls," Sousuke retorted, lifting an eyebrow. He looked up towards Tohru. "Not started lecturing on why we couldn't exist."

"Do you want to come say 'hello'?" she asked with a grin.

The whale shark merman wrinkled his nose, as if the thought irritated him. Instead of bumming her out, the sight made her grin even more. She liked that she was able to interact with them like this. Those scant few days where she couldn't had left her feeling melancholic and the whole curse deal had saddened her, as well. Yet now, with their silly and sassy interactions, she felt so much better.

Makoto finally lowered his hands, but his exasperated look stayed on his face. Even more so when he saw his mate's distasteful expression.

"Sousuke…" he chastised lowly.

"Mm. All right. I'll come to you then," she announced. Almost immediately, wet arms hooked under hers and pulled her back. "Whoa!"

She looked up in surprise to find a flustered Rei staring down at her. His cheeks were pale, water droplets gleaming on his skin. His hair stuck to his forehead too.

"W-W-What do you t-think you're doing?" he exclaimed. "W-W-Who were those voices!?"

Nagisa suddenly appeared at her side. His eyes sparkled. "Was that—!?"

Music began playing behind them and the boat swayed.

"Tohru!" Makoto gasped, leaning over the side of the boat frantically.

Sousuke was scowling next to him, also hanging onto the ledge. Loud splashes sounded from behind both of them, which probably meant that their tails were thrashing back and forth.

Rei's arms dropped. He made a breathless noise, almost like a whimper, while Nagisa squealed in excitement. Tohru wasn't sure who to deal with first, though she turned quickly to catch Rei before his trembling legs gave out. Rin, thankfully, hurried over to help her.

"Yo," he called over their friend's shoulder to the mermen. "Where's your third wheel?"

"There's another one?" Rei whispered in horror.

His face was almost gray in shock. She gently nudged him over to one of the deck boxes and, with the help of Rin, eased him down. He pulled off his glasses and rubbed his face, groaning lowly. He sounded like he was going to be sick.

Hands latched onto her arm, shocking her to look up into the glowing face of Nagisa. His grin cut across his face like a crescent moon. He bounced excitedly.

"They're mermen!" he hissed excitedly. "Mermen! Me-e-e-e-ermen!"

"Yes, yes, they're dudes with fish tails," Rin remarked, ruffling the younger man's hair. "Give your husband some space."

"Sousuke is the only one with a fish tail," Tohru muttered, rubbing Rei's back. He groaned again.

"Is he okay?" Makoto called out nervously.

"He's seasick," Rin responded with a shrug.

"Whale shit," Sousuke responded, receiving an elbow jab from his mate.

Rin lifted an eyebrow, but grinned. He took a few steps towards the mermen.

"You miiight have freaked him out?" he amended with a shrug and hand wiggle. "You're supposed to be, mmm, improbable, did he say?"

He looked over his shoulder, probably to get Tohru's affirmation on his choice of words when a blur of blond hair sped past him and almost pushed the mermen back into the water. Sousuke lurched back, his grip on the railing the only thing preventing him from falling backwards. He gritted his teeth, eyes snapping past Nagisa towards her.

Tohru winced and hurried over to them just as her friend began to launch into a rapid barrage of questions. Sighing heavily, she gripped his shoulders and pulled him backwards, hoping to give the mermen space. Belatedly, she wondered what would happen if Sousuke had fallen backwards into the water. Did tonic immobility affect him like it did sharks and stingrays?

"Nagisa, give them some space," she scolded softly. "Also…you're speaking really fast."

"But Tohru-chan!" he gasped, whipping towards her and cracking their foreheads together.

They both yelped, jumping apart and clutching their heads. She whined lowly, a high-pitched version echoing hers as she pressed her hands to her wounded body part. Her equilibrium felt off and she knew she was swaying from the pain, so she squatted down to cut down her chances of falling. Slowly, the pain dulled.

"Honestly," Rin remarked, placing a hand on her back. "What am I going to do with you two?"

"Give us ice?" Nagisa begged.

Tohru squinted at him. "Did you bring a cooler?"

"This time. Hold on," Rin sighed, standing.

His footsteps hurried down the boat.

"Tohruuu…" Makoto whined plaintively and she shuffled closer to him.

Her eyes were still mostly closed, but she was now gently rubbing her forehead, wishing the ache to ebb. Cool fingers joined hers, coaxing her head to tip slightly back. Her hands dropped to savor the wonderful chill that Makoto's hand held. She hummed softly.

A tingling sensation spread across her skin, like the feeling of your muscles going numb. It fizzled and danced under and over her forehead until any pain she felt was gone. The tingling sensation disappeared with it. She blinked her eyes open in surprise, reaching upwards to touch the hand that still rested on her forehead.

"Wha…" was her intelligent response, eyes widening with the realization of what just happened. She tried tilting her head to the side to look up at Makoto. "Did you…was that…?"

"Magic? Yes," he offered. He lowered his hand. "How are you feeling?"

"The pain is gone," she remarked, gently touching her forehead where he had. Her skin was wet. "And I feel more alert somehow."

She looked up to catch him looking thoughtful. A faint glow rested in his eyes, much more so than the sunlight could allow. She suddenly remembered the bright and feral eyes of Sousuke not two days ago.

"That's a side effect," the whale shark merman said lowly. "Healing head injuries tends to make the patient more alert than they were."

"It won't last long, though," Makoto added with an apologetic smile. "Give it a bit."

"Magic is coooool," Nagisa slurred. "Ahhh, so nice and cold."

Tohru turned to see her friend pressing a large bundle to his forehead. Rin stood behind him with his hands on his hips and an expression that was a cross between disbelieving and combatant. However, he sighed instead of saying anything and shook his head.

"We're in a god damned fairytale," he muttered loudly, rubbing his neck. "Mermen and magic and sea witches…"

"Sea witches!? Ow…" Nagisa exclaimed before pressing the bundled icepack to his forehead again.

"Witch. Singular," Sousuke corrected. He laid his head on his arms. "Not that you're ever gonna meet her 'cause then we'd lose our tails."

There was a beat of silence.

"…like…cut in half or…you'd get legs...?" Rin asked in confusion.

Tohru would admit that she was curious too.

Sousuke grimaced, but he looked just as confused as they felt.

"It's…It's a saying," the merman explained. "We wouldn't actually lose our tails…"

"Like 'whale shit'?" Now Rin had a grin.

She covered her face with a groan. He was actually five, wasn't he? Totally and completely five.

"Yes, like that."

She was going to shove Sousuke off the boat.

Nagisa snickered.

That was it.

Collecting her wits about her, Tohru stood. They were wasting daylight and as much as she would love to spend the day talking to the mermen, she should start her job. The nice, fantastic job as a marine biologist which she slaved through university for and finally, finally, had a grant to do research outside of the Churaumi Aquarium.

"I have a job to do," she announced, placing her hands on her hips. "Nagisa, when you can, please suit up. We have a survey to do."

She used her best administrator voice and everything. Nagisa gave her a thumbs up.

"Yes, ma'am!" he chirped, struggling to his feet. He made his way to the cabin and closed himself inside.

"…remember when he used to strip right out on the deck?" Rin remarked almost fondly.

She raised an eyebrow and pointed at Rei. "Rei's literally right here, Rin."

Her best friend sputtered fantastically.

"Excuse you!" he managed to snap. "Like hell, I'd find Nagisa attractive!"

"But he's cute," she said, tilting her head. "Don't you like cute?"

"Not that kind of cute," he grumbled. "Besides," and his voice changed into a bad mimic of hers, "your guppies are literally right here."

And in English. For added injury.

Her cheeks burned at the insinuation. She didn't have that kind of relationship with either Makoto or Sousuke. She barely had a relationship with them at all. Even if they did visit all the time and helped them out despite getting in trouble with the sea witch.

"Again with the guppies," Sousuke remarked with huff.

"I still don't know what a guppy is," Makoto added a little petulantly.

The heat in her cheeks doubled in force.

A new voice spoke up.

"Wait, they know English?" Rei gasped and she turned her attention to him.

He still sat on the deck box and he still looked like he might pass out at any moment, but he was peering at them curiously, eyes squinted from taking off his glasses. His hair was tousled, probably from him running his hands through it the more they had been talking to the mermen. Still, despite his disheveled appearance and his grayish complexion, his natural curiosity had him asking questions.

Even Rei wasn’t immune to the allure of knowledge. Especially knowledge about something completely and utterly unknown to the rest of the world.

"We have a natural proficiency with languages," Makoto explained, just like he had so many days ago.

Gosh.

Had it been days? Hell, it had only been a couple weeks, hadn't it? So many things had happened that it felt like so much longer. Like months had passed. It was an odd thought that not a lot of time had passed.

She barely knew the mermen if she really thought about it. Even with all that happened, she didn't know them very well at all. Her head hurt again. She leaned on the railing of the boat, so that she didn't fall over.

"Is there a limit?" Rei asked and that too was like two weeks ago

Immediately, surprisingly, Tohru remembered what Makoto had said.

"Non c'é un limite," she sounded out, frowning at the foreign words in her mouth.

She should work on her Italian.

"That was very good," Makoto said warmly.

She quickly looked up at him, cheeks heating up. He had a bright smile on his face and a fonder look in his eyes. She wondered if he realized that she had remembered what he said.

"No limit?" Rei spoke up and she turned to look at her friend. He squinted at her. "Since when did you know Italian?"

"Well, mom taught me a few phrases should I ever go to Italy," she explained, "but, um, that's how Makoto-san responded last time we asked about languages."

Rei put his glasses back on, pushing them up in an all too familiar way. Violet irises sparkled despite the pallor of their owner's skin. He leaned forward, rubbing his chin.

"So the musical ability to which legends refer extends to languages as well," he remarked. "Is it a voluntary choice to use a certain language? Or involuntary, such that they hear a language being used and respond to it?"

Well, Rei's curiosity had been piqued. She was rather surprised, actually, at the swiftness in which his tune changed. Then again, he did have a natural curiosity like Nagisa and, if someone close to him reacted calmly to something, he too was likely to have a favorable reaction.

Maybe this would be easier than teaching him how to swim.

"Voluntary."

Sousuke's voice surprised her, mostly because she hadn't expected him to be the one to respond. She turned to the mermen.

"So you choose what language to use?" she pressed.

"Well, I feel like it's both?" Makoto responded this time, looking thoughtfully upwards. "Like, we are more likely to respond in a language we hear, rather than choose a different language. But we don't have to respond in that language. If that makes sense."

"Yeah, it does," Rin remarked with a nod. He looked towards them. "Do you ever mix languages?"

Sousuke raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"Not particularly." Makoto shrugged. "Since we're usually talking to other merfolk, we don't have to use anything but mermish."

"Mermish?" Rei asked.

"Our language," Makoto said with a smile just as the cabin door burst open.

Nagisa sprinted from the small room, sliding the last few feet to the mermen on his knees. He had something in his hands, which he thrust out towards the two. Again, Sousuke reared back.

Tohru stood from her leaning position to ease Nagisa away from them. She was sure Sousuke was already overloaded with human interaction. She didn't want him feeling anymore uncomfortable than he probably already did.

"It's cool that you guys speak so many languages, but check this out!" he chirped happily. "This is a guppy!"

He held up his tablet, which she only knew was his due to the bright pink case it had. Tohru covered her face in disbelief, hiding her reddening cheeks.

Rin began to snicker.

"…I don't understand," Makoto finally said. "How does that…?"

"Our tails look nothing like that," Sousuke huffed.

"What do your tails look like?" Nagisa asked brightly and excitedly.

Tohru took that as her cue.

"Suit up and you can see them in their natural environment," she ordered, nudging one of their air tanks with her foot. She smiled at the two mermen. "You two might want to move back."

Sousuke immediately dropped into the water. His actions were a bit abrupt, but she understood why. No doubt Nagisa had overwhelmed him. Care for him or not, her friend did tend to have that effect on people, even with all his good intentions. Besides, Sousuke shouldn't be forcing himself out of his comfort zone too much in too short a time. Makoto smiled indulgently at the water before dropping down himself.

Once they were gone, Tohru clapped her hands. She felt much better without an audience.

"All right. Nagisa and I will be down for an hour," she began explaining to Rin and Rei. "My camera is set up to immediately send any photos I take to my laptop, which you know the password to, Rei. We're just going down to take pictures and grab samples from the vegetation and silt for the control group and to analyze. Save for the mermen, nothing should bother us. Everyone got that?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Nagisa saluted her while Rin and Rei agreed.

"All right. Let's go!"

With a quickness that came from years of experience and practice, both she and Nagisa were in the water in record time. Blue stretched around them as they dived down towards the seafloor. Silence reigned as they explored, but Tohru felt much better now that she had a diving buddy. If they had radios, she might feel even safer, but that diving equipment was going to arrive with the rest of the equipment she had ordered. Nevertheless, she enjoyed her friend's presence in the great expanse of the ocean.

As they swam closer to the rocks, a dark shadow passed above her and Makoto appeared in her peripheral vision. She waved at him, ignoring Nagisa's excited fist shaking and finger pointing at the sight of the orca merman's tail.

"Sousuke's taking a nap," he reported, swimming around them with ease. He came back to her left side.

Tohru tilted her head, wishing she could ask if he was okay. Makoto, thankfully, seemed to understand.

"He's all right," he said with a smile. "Too much human interaction. He'll probably stop by again, once he recovers. He gets lost easily, y'know."

A snort bubbled up her throat, forcing her to press a hand to her mouthpiece so she wouldn't spit it out from laughing. Of all things, a whale shark getting lost was not what she had expected. Her shoulders shook from her suppressed laughter, which eased when she caught sight of the way Makoto's eyes crinkled with his smile. Suddenly, the hand against her mouthpiece was to prevent a startled gasp from drowning her. In that moment, he was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Cheeks warming, she quickly returned her gaze forward so that she could get to work, rather than ogle the merman. There would be other times for more covert staring, better times than when she was underwater. Right now, she had research to do. Of course, it would be a while until they got close enough to the bottom so it would be rude to ignore him the whole time, but she really should focus.

Nagisa seemed not to care, gesturing excitedly to Makoto. He was trying to say something or maybe it was ask, but she couldn't understand it. Neither did the merman, honestly, as he looked confused, but he swam over to her partner's side nonetheless. Nagisa resorted to pointing at random body parts to emphasize his questions. Both she and Makoto caught on at that.

Nagisa pointed first to the merman's tail.

"I have the tail of an orca, yes," Makoto explained. Nagisa's finger remained pointing at his tail. "Ah, um, I have a lot of qualities like an orca, too. Um, like, echolocation is one."

Nodding, Nagisa then pointed at his hands. The merman frowned, looking confused as he held up his hands for them. Pale gray webbing connected his fingers together, which admittedly was the only weird thing about his hands. That and the black flesh on the back of them when he flipped them around to prove that his hands were totally normal. He even put his palm against Nagisa's when her fellow scientist reached forward eagerly.

"They're just like yours," Makoto said in confusion. Nagisa's fingers barely passed the first joint of the merman's fingers. "Maybe a little bigger..."

Nagisa pointed at the webbing. Tohru inched a little closer to see it, fascinated by the opaque membrane. The more reasonable part of her brain told her that she should be swimming lower, as there was still almost ten meters left to dive until they reached the bottom. The excitable scientist in her, however, wanted to examine and learn more about the merman in front of her. Especially since he was so willing to teach her.

He glanced up at her, catching her off guard, and then offered his other hand to her. Tentatively, she took his hand, running her gloved fingers over his palm before gently spreading his fingers to touch the webbing. She couldn't really feel anything, though, too eager in her excitement to remove her gloves. Frustrated at the lack of sensation, she released his hand to tug off her right glove, which she shoved into her belt. She then held his hand again and ran her bare fingers over the membrane.

It felt odd, simultaneously like human skin and something much smoother. Considering the difference between his patterns and the more human skin, this made sense, but the sensation of touching it nevertheless confused her. She stroked both sides of the webbing and found that they felt the same before she indulged her curiosity.

Turning his hand, she pressed their palms together and, like Nagisa, her fingertips barely passed his first joint. She supposed that made sense since she and Nagisa were almost the same size; she, admittedly, was heavier than he was and much curvier. Nevertheless, the size difference made her blush because she had never really been anything but the big girl. She liked that her hand was so much smaller than his was.

Her cheeks felt a little warm and awareness came back to her with a jolt. Maybe a little too fast, she pulled her hand away. Her mask covered her expression so Makoto would thankfully not see her distress, but that still didn't stop her from dropping her eyes to her hands. Her fingers shook as she fumbled to put her right glove back on. As much as she wanted to look up, she stayed focused on her task, as she was still too flustered to face either her partner or the merman. Even when she did lift her head, she looked between them and brusquely pointed to sandy seafloor. Then she turned and returned to her descent as quickly as she healthily could.

She was acting weird. She knew she was. Since when did she get so flustered over someone being bigger than her? When did she ever get flustered over anyone, period? Well, there was that one time when her idol, Professor Nishiyama, came for a lecture at her university, but that was different. That was a celebrity. Most people became flustered around celebrities. That was expected. A merman, however, wasn't a celebrity. A merman—well, a merman wasn't supposed to exist. It was illogical to get flustered about a mythical creature.

And yet, here she was acting like a school girl, swimming away because she got excited over the simple fact that her hand was smaller. Her hand was smaller than a lot of people's. Like Rin. He had bigger hands than she did. So did Rei and Seijuurou. She took as deep a breath to calm down, more sensing than seeing that Nagisa had joined her. She wasn't sure if Makoto had followed her or not. No matter, she had a job to do.

***

Makoto kept his distance as Tohru and Nagisa did their work. He half-watched the humans, more focused on his hand to give them more than an occasional glance. He kept flipping it back and forth, fascinated by the skin and bones and tendons that he had seen all his life. His palm still tingled from where Tohru had pressed hers to his. Only Sousuke had ever caused such a reaction in him and he was so fascinated that a human could cause the same reaction.

Maybe...Maybe he should be worried that she could.

After all, Sousuke was his mate and, yes, they had known each for years now. Yes, they were familiar, but that didn't mean palms touching and bodies touching and his skin on his skin couldn't cause excited shivers and sparks dancing down his arms and bones. Familiarity meant that they knew what excited the other, even if they were young and a little inexperienced. But he had only just met Tohru and her fingers on his skin and her palm against his tickled his nerves with the same intensity that Sousuke did. That meant something; he was sure of it.

He flipped his hand again, glancing up at a shadow passing overhead. Sousuke swam above him, gazing out towards where the humans were carefully doing something by the rocks and corals, before he swerved downwards to lie next to him. His mate kissed his shoulder in greeting, the brush of his lips making his skin prickle from the attention. A shiver followed not a moment later. Makoto shifted closer to the other merman, seeking more contact. Their shoulders bumped together and even Sousuke's rough skin couldn't deter him in his hunt for the buzzing heat.

His skin felt just as it had when Tohru pressed their palms together.

"How is Tohru and her...friend doing?" Sousuke asked.

"All right," Makoto hummed. "Nagisa is very excited about us. He kept asking questions."

He belatedly realized how that sounded.

"...how?"

"Oh, he just would point rather vigorously at anything he wanted to know." Makoto grinned a little sheepishly. "I think Tohru got annoyed, though."

Sousuke propped his head up. "She did say she had a job to do. Which, technically, we do too."

Makoto huffed as he slid down the rock. His chin rested on an uncomfortable edge, but that didn't matter. He pouted, but now that Sousuke mentioned their job, he did feel guilty. He had just been more focused on helping Tohru and Rin than protecting his town. Which was bad, especially for a so-called guardian, but he was curious and he already thought of them as part of his pod. And they were in more danger than the town at the moment.

Sousuke brushed his fingers down his back, derailing his thoughts. Shivers erupted where their skin touched. The fingers did not stop, instead swirling around in patterns up and down his spine and over his lower back and shoulder blades. They left heat in their wake and the heat pooled in his cheeks.

Makoto whipped up from his lying position and twisted his head around to stare at his mate when the sensations grew too much. Sousuke looked placidly at him, his chin on his palm and the other hand hovering in the water. He slowly blinked as a smile grew on his face.

"Is now the time?" Makoto hissed.

Nevertheless, he wanted more.

His mate hummed. "I wasn't doing anything."

"Uh-huh..." he grumbled before settling much, much closer to him. “Don't make me flip you."

"Mm, is now the time?" Sousuke teased, raising his eyebrows and settling his arm around Makoto's waist. He grinned at Makoto's displeasure before nudging their foreheads together. "Seriously, though, it wasn't my intention to rile you up."

Makoto pouted, narrowing his eyes, before he sighed.

"Sorry. Maybe I riled myself up," he murmured.

"How so?"

He glanced down at his hands, idly moving his fingers. He flipped one to see his palm.

"...Tohru...pressed her palm to mine and..." he trailed off with a sigh of bubbles and a rush of heat to his cheeks.

"And?" Sousuke pressed.

"...and I don't know," Makoto confessed with a frown. "I don't know how to explain it. It was...It was like when you touch me...or-or something."

Fingers trailed up his shoulder.

"Like...when I touch you?" Sousuke echoed. "Does...it bother you...when I...?"

Makoto laughed softly. "No, no. If it does, only ever pleasantly. Which is why...why I'm so confused."

All was silent save for the faintest clicking noise, which he assumed was from the humans. The sunbeams dappled Sousuke's already spotted skin with more spots. Makoto walked his fingers between the shifting light.

"I didn't think you fell so easily," his mate remarked. His voice was guarded.

"Don't be ridiculous," he huffed, tapping Sousuke's nose. "I'm not in love with her. I love you. I'm just...I'm curious..."

Teal eyes regarded him intensely before fluttering closed. Bubbles spewed between them.

"I can't blame you," Sousuke grumbled. He glanced towards where the humans were. "I'm curious too. ...a mermaid would have been easier, though."

Makoto snorted before nudging his face against the other merman's neck. Sousuke jumped and sputtered something incoherent as his chuckles popped against his skin. His shoulders sagged until he was almost completely flat against his mate, almost pushing him onto his back. Sousuke's grip on the rock was the only thing preventing that.

They couldn't rightly form that kind of relationship with Tohru. After all, how would it work between a human and a merman? Tohru couldn't breathe underwater without help from some apparatus and, well, they had tails. Besides, human mating and courting rituals were a mystery to them. For all they knew, Tohru and Rin might already be together. They certainly never seemed to be apart these last few weeks. Maybe...Maybe he was getting ahead of himself...

Before Makoto could follow that any further, Sousuke stiffened against him. He needed nothing else to alert him of danger as he swiftly moved away from his mate and began surveying their surroundings. His gaze didn't go very far when it landed on a group of four medium-sized sharks meandering around and between Tohru and Nagisa. He bristled, despite the relative calm both sharks and humans exuded. He swallowed a click of distress.

One of the sharks bumped Tohru and he almost darted forward at that. The only thing that stopped him was the ease with which the human woman dropped her hand and patted the nose and back of the shark. It wiggled and spun around her, bumping into her waiting hand excitedly. Slowly, she brought up her other hand and let it hover under the shark's chin as she rubbed its nose. She had to move it, however, when one of the other sharks came up to her other side, bumping against her. That too received a nose rub to appease it. Nagisa was doing the same with the remaining two sharks, though the animals frequently switched between the two humans despite their new sluggish behavior.

Makoto stared in shock, sinking down as he watched the two humans pet the sharks. He didn't want to remove his eyes, in case something happened, but he blindly reached out and patted Sousuke's shoulder. His mate gave his hand a squeeze before his spotted tail headed towards the divers. Breathless and shell-shocked, he followed him.

The sharks were unperturbed at their arrival. Tohru did look up briefly at their shadows, her shoulders tensing for the briefest of moments until she realized the shadows belonged to them. Makoto smiled at her and her shoulders lowered a little before she returned her attention to the strangely affectionate sharks. Sousuke floated down to them, glancing over the humans, but paying the most attention to the animals, which gave little acknowledgment to them. His eyes began to glow before he tapped each shark between the eyes. They froze and he began swimming away.

The sharks sluggishly began following him, abandoning the humans with little mind. With a glance towards his mate, Sousuke sped off with his new entourage. It didn't take long for them to disappear after him.

After several moments, wherein Makoto swam protectively around the two humans, Sousuke finally reappeared. He looked significantly drained, but otherwise was no worse for wear. His eyes no longer glowed as he rejoined them.

"Are you all right?" he asked once he reached them.

Makoto turned to see Tohru nod and then point upwards. With little other warning, she and Nagisa began their ascent back towards their boat. They seemed unperturbed by the encounter, but that didn't stop Makoto from encouraging Sousuke to follow them with him in case more sharks showed up.

They surfaced just a few strokes away from the boat. Both the humans removed their eye coverings and mouthpieces. Nagisa's eyes were wide and they seemed to sparkle as he took in Makoto and Sousuke. For coming face to face with sharks just moments ago, he was remarkably unfazed. A big grin formed on his face despite Tohru urging him to return to the boat.

"You're a whale shark!" he was saying, as he tried to both climb the boat and look at Sousuke.

"Nagisa, you're gonna fall," Tohru scolded.

"Oh, don't worry!" he laughed, waving his hand. "How many times have we made this climb?"

She rolled her eyes, but she kept a watchful eye on him as he clambered over the railing of the boat. Makoto didn't blame her, considering all that had happened to her and Rin. He himself was swimming worriedly behind her as they watched her friend scramble over the side of the boat.

However, she didn't immediately follow. Instead, she shifted closer to him, eyeing the boat before she leaned her face close to his. Makoto stiffened at her nearness and his cheeks heated up. A serious and nervous look decorated her face when she looked into his eyes.

Bringing up her hand to the side of her mouth, she whispered, "Nagisa and Rei don't know about the curse. I…I would like to keep it that way for the moment."

He frowned.

"Are you sure?" he whispered back, inclining his head towards her.

"One big surprise at a time," she murmured and her smile was a little wry and a little sad.

"What about the sharks? Won't he wonder about that?" he pressed.

Her mouth twisted as she thought, glancing back at the boat. She hummed before looking back at him. Another wry smile sat on her mouth.

"Probably not," she answered. "He might just think of it as an exciting occurrence. We have swum with sharks before, so..."

"What do you mean you've swum with sharks before?" Sousuke cut in.

"It's no big deal," she insisted and she turned back to the boat. "We weren't by ourselves."

"That—you're a human."

Tohru began climbing the side of the boat. She tilted her head curiously before she slid over the rail. Pulling her goggles and black hood back, she leaned back over to flash them a puzzled look.

"What does that have to do with this?" she asked, leaning her elbows against the railing.

Sousuke leaned closer to the boat. "You live on land! You're prey!"

Her eyes flashed and she opened her mouth to retort before pausing. Again, her mouth twisted as she thought over what he said. A mildly irritated hum sounded from her throat.

"...you're not wrong," she grumbled before huffing, "but it's not like we swam with them when they were hunting or anything. We were careful."

Sousuke scowled.

"Even still, you could get hurt," Makoto said, hoping to disrupt the ire growing on his mate's face. "Promise us you won't anymore?"

Tohru winced.

"I...can't really make that promise," she confessed. She glanced behind her before sighing. "Y'see...I work at an aquarium and I work with sharks there. And I have to go into their tank to make sure that they're healthy."

He frowned, confused.

"An aquarium?" he echoed. The word sounded familiar, but he wasn't sure why. "What's that?"

She hesitated, looking conflicted. Again, she glanced behind her before she grimaced.

"It's, uh... It's a...a building and..." Her fingers rapped against the railing before she began tugging at them. "Well, we display fish and-and similar animals there. O-Of course, Churaumi—er, that is the aquarium I work at, has taken the turn to rehab center in recent years so m-most of our animals only stay until they recover, b-but we do have some permanent residents, l-like Jinta because he's half blind, but most are released once they've healed!"

For some reason, she looked distressed as she explained what an aquarium was. Though the rehab part didn't sound too bad, whatever that meant, he couldn't help focusing on one particular word.

"Display?" both he and Sousuke echoed.

"What do you mean by that?" Makoto pressed, feeling more and more concerned.

Her mouth twisted and her shoulders rose to her ears. She looked away from them, but before she could speak, Nagisa jumped up to her side.

"They're in tanks relative to their size so that people can admire them," he explained, looking remarkably serious. "We take great care in making sure our animals are comfortable and stress free and, besides, any animal that isn't in the rehab program was born in captivity and even then, it's only our really tiny fish."

Just like aquarium, the word tank sounded familiar and hearing that they kept fish in them made him shiver a little. What was the point of that? The fish had to be miserable, even if the tanks were big enough to fit them. Nothing could compare to the sea. Nothing could compare to seeing them in the sea.

A brief flash of Lady Miho's lecturing face filled his mind, a lecture from a while ago, back when they were children. Warnings about humans, warnings about humans called scientists with greed burning in their eyes and mysterious tanks to hold captured creatures and other horrors she hadn't said, but alluded to with meaningful glares and looks into the distance.

Tohru, however, had never looked upon them with greed. She had never tried or alluded to capturing them, had never wanted more than to just know. This had been the first time she even mentioned an aquarium or tanks and even then, even now, she looked worried...worried about their response.

Despite himself, a smile lifted his cheeks. He should feel more wary, especially now with this new knowledge, but he couldn't find it in him to be. Not with how distraught Tohru looked and the seriousness on Nagisa's face.

"I may not agree with it. Fish belong in the sea," he began, considering his words, "but you seem sincere about the good that your aquarium does, so...I guess...it's okay?"

The glance towards Sousuke was instinctual, checking to see how his mate would react. He didn't appear upset, a carefully blank look on his face, but he was still scrutinizing the humans. It would be good to give him the space to consider his own opinion.

Makoto returned his gaze upwards. Thankfully, Tohru looked less upset and even she had a small smile on her face. His heart lurched when she leaned against the railing and reached over, her hand dangling downwards. Without much thought, he slid his fingers around hers.

"I don't much like having the animals in tanks myself," she confessed. "I much prefer seeing them in their natural environments, but...well, humans are arrogant and us scientists are trying to fix the damage caused by other humans. Sadly, that often requires tanks and aquariums to protect them. Especially the animals that have been injured beyond recovery."

"Like the one you mentioned?" he asked and her smile grew.

"Yes, like Jinta," she agreed. She gently bobbed their hands. "He has cataracts on his eyes and, though we removed most of them, he still has some issues seeing. He's been with us a while, so he at least knows the parameters of his tank so he doesn't get hurt. He's a good boy."

"...she says about a ten meter shark," Rin remarked from behind the two scientists.

Makoto tilted his head at that. From the way he said, that must be big. He wondered how big, though.

"He's closer to twelve, actually," Nagisa corrected, twisting to look behind him before quickly looking back at Tohru. "It is twelve, right?"

She nodded. "Mmhm. Last physical we did had him at twelve point twelve, which we thought was amusing. Samemaru is a little smaller at ten point seventy-five and Bei-Bei is eleven exactly, so they're all fully grown. Or, at least, as fully grown as they'll get in an aquarium."

Murmuring in understanding, Nagisa nodded.

Makoto was still horribly confused. A quick glance to his mate proved that he wasn't the only one confused.

Sousuke leaned his head close to his and, softly in mermish, whispered, "They're saying words and I have no idea what they mean."

"Don't be rude," Makoto scolded back, also in mermish. "...they're talking about sharks, I think."

"What do the numbers mean?"

He frowned thoughtfully. "...size, maybe?"

"Tohru, don't forget to take your gear off," Rin spoke up again, drawing their attention upwards.

"Oh, I forgot," Tohru murmured and her hand slipped from Makoto's. She disappeared from view.

Nagisa, however, stayed in sight. His attention was on his fellow humans.

"How do you forget? Your tank alone is like thirteen kilos."

"When I'm not moving too much, I don't notice. Besides, it's more like eleven," she answered and a few clunking noises followed. "I've lifted heavier. You've lifted heavier."

"Yeah, but it's not me wearing it, is it?"

"Am I going to have to give you another lecture on sexism? Do not test me, Matsuoka."

"Tohru can judo throw you, Rin-chan," Nagisa added with a grin. "Hell, she can judo throw Sei-chan. Twenty kilos of scuba gear is cake."

"They're saying numbers and words again," Sousuke grumbled.

Makoto nudged him before asking loudly, "What are meters and kilos?"

"Oh!" Tohru's face immediately popped up over the railing. "Meters are a human measure for length and kilos are a measure of weight."

"Yeah, and thirteen kilos is heavy," Rin chimed in.

She rolled her eyes before her face brightened. Quickly, she twisted around and something made faint clinking noises. When she turned around again, a big grin sat on her face.

"Tell me if this is heavy," she said before hefting her air tank over the side of the boat. She was careful to ease it down between him and Sousuke. "It's actually lighter at the moment, since it's not full anymore, but it does have a heft to it since I have a steel tank."

The tank was long, but still shorter than his arm. It was thin, too, or at least, thin enough that Makoto could grab it relatively easily with one hand. He still brought up his other hand to hold it, but as he passed it between his hands, bringing it a little into the water, he would hardly call it 'hefty'. Bringing it up out of the water again, he held it out one-handedly to Sousuke with a shrug.

Sousuke took it with a faint wrinkle of his nose. Still, he rolled the tank just like Makoto had, looking more and more confused. At least Makoto wasn't alone in his confusion. The tank wasn't all that heavy, barely heavy at all. Balancing the tank on one hand on one of its narrow ends, Sousuke lifted the tank back up to Tohru.

Both she and Nagisa were gaping at them. It took them a moment to even move, let alone take the offered tank. Nagisa was even mouthing words as Tohru pulled the tank closer to her, finally pulling it over the railing. Oddly enough, her cheeks were red.

"It's not that heavy," Sousuke remarked.

Makoto nodded. "It's not like it's a tuna or grouper."

"T-Those are significantly heavier!" Tohru squeaked. Her cheeks darkened.

"Exactly," Sousuke said. From his tone, Makoto knew he was lifting an incredulous eyebrow. "You weren't that heavy either."

Tohru began sputtering, her whole face an unhealthy shade of red. The noises she made almost sounded like the shrill cries of seagulls. She covered her face with her hands and sunk down behind the railing.

Nagisa lurched over the railing with wide eyes and grin. He dangled there and fluttered his hands before he could even speak.

"When did you pick up Tohru-chan!?" he exclaimed.

Makoto slapped Sousuke's hip fin before he could speak.

"She fell overboard one day and we helped her back onto the boat," he explained with a smile. "The water had been a little choppy that day."

"Tohru-chan, how clumsy!" Nagisa cackled.

Makoto smiled a little. He felt a little bad having to lie to them, but explaining how Tohru had almost died that day would be a feat. Besides, a promise was a promise, even a nonverbal one, and he wasn't going to break it just minutes after she asked.

Sousuke shifted next to him before he disappeared in his peripheral. A quick glance told him that his mate was swimming below the surface. At least he was staying nearby. He would really rather not look for his mate once they said goodbye to the humans.

A shadow covered the water. Makoto looked up to find Rin leaning over the railing where Tohru had been. He looked very serious.

"You broke Tohru," he accused before Makoto could open his mouth.

Makoto sputtered, feeling his eyes widen. How did he break her? What did Rin even mean by that?

A grin split across Rin's face, which made him look decidedly wicked. Or shark-like, really.

"Such guppies," he teased.

That made Makoto's cheeks warm.

"I don't know what you even mean with that!" he cried. He frowned. "And what do you mean I broke Tohru?"

"Sou-chan said she wasn't that heavy," Nagisa pointed out with his own wicked grin.

"Well, she wasn't," Makoto insisted.

A shrill noise followed his words. The two human men looked positively gleeful at the sound.

Makoto didn't share their glee. He was much more worried about Tohru. If Rin wasn’t leaning so close to the railing and Nagisa wasn’t leaning on it, he would pull himself up to make sure she was okay.

"Let's just say that Tohru doesn't often get that, eh, statement in regards to her weight from human men," Rin explained with shrug.

"And, by human standards, you and Sou-chan are very, very handsome," Nagisa added. "So hearing that she barely weighs a thing to you guys… Well…"

Both human men wiggled their eyebrows. For some reason, that made Makoto’s cheeks burn.

"Please, can we not talk about this?" Tohru begged abruptly from her hiding place. "Can't you guys focus on something else?"

"But they're super strong, Tohru-chan!" Nagisa laughed. "That's really fascinating, right? As far as I know, there are no myths about mermaids being super strong!"

"What about the myths about drowning sailors?" Rin asked.

Makoto frowned and flicked his tail in agitation. That was one of the few things he knew about humans, about how they feared merfolk because of tales such as that. The sirens were the ones at fault for those…for the most part.

"Oh, I guess that could be an example of super strength…" Nagisa amended with a hum. "Seeing as a lot sailors tend to be on the burly side…"

"Merfolk don't drown humans," Makoto spoke up. He couldn't help the sour expression from coming out. "It's against our code."

Nagisa's eyes widened while Rin grimaced.

Finally, Tohru peeked over the railing. Her cheeks were still red, but from what he could see of her face, she looked more composed. Seeing her eased the angry ball in his stomach.

"That makes sense," she murmured. "Otherwise you and Sousuke wouldn't have saved me and Rin."

"Then why do we have so many myths about mermaids drowning sailors?" Nagisa whined, flailing his hands.

Makoto couldn't help sinking into the water until his chin rested on the surface. The same reason they had all those myths was also the reason that Rin and Tohru were cursed. The same reason he didn't venture far into the depths alone.

"Sirens," Sousuke answered for him as he surfaced.

Rin's face contorted again, but Nagisa's eyes only seemed to get bigger. The smaller human leaned farther over the railing and only Rin's hand on his shoulder kept him from falling into Makoto and Sousuke.

Comparatively, Tohru remained mostly hidden by the side of the boat. Only the top part of her head was visible. Her eyebrows furrowed over her eyes when their gazes met.

"Sirens…" she echoed softly, lifting herself until her chin rested on the railing. “…what differentiates them from merfolk?"

"Appetite, mostly," Sousuke said. Water sloshed as he shrugged. "They're more…magical than we are. They…ugh, what is it again? Desires? They make desires seem real."

She hummed and leaned away from the railing. Her fingers ran over her lips as she took in this information.

Makoto wanted to change the subject. Sirens had always bothered him, had always made him fear going out alone. They were vicious and coldhearted and cared little for who or what they seduced. And worst of all, it was because of a siren that Rin and Tohru were cursed. He swung his tail in agitation, slipping under the water to lap the boat a couple times. Bubbles spiraled around him and danced in the sunlight and the shadow of the boat.

Once he had calmed down, once he no longer felt like fear was going to choke him, a tug of guilt had him return to his mate's side. How rude of him to disappear like that. The humans wouldn’t understand, even if Tohru was very accommodating with their quirks.

When he resurfaced, Tohru was conversing softly with Sousuke and both of her friends were gone. That guilt shot through his chest. He hoped he hadn’t offended Rin or Nagisa. Sirens just…made him uncomfortable.

"How are you feeling? Are you okay?" she was asking, tentatively reaching out to him.

Sousuke brushed his fingers against hers, letting her stroke his knuckles. He tilted his head a little.

"…I'll be all right," he confessed and both she and Makoto huffed.

The noise drew her attention to Sousuke’s right. She jumped a little, but happiness decorated her face rather than surprise.

"Oh! Makoto-san!" A smile bloomed on her face before it was again replaced by worry. "Are you okay? We're not overwhelming both of you, are we?"

He managed a small smile.

"I'm fine," he said before assenting at her pout and Sousuke's nudge. "Sirens are…a bit of a phobia of mine. They…someone close to me…"

Tohru offered her other hand to him immediately.

"You don't have to explain," she said when he took her hand. "I'm sorry that we brought up bad memories. I'm sorry to both of you."

"Why?" he asked. He rocked their hands. "What could you be sorry about?"

Her smile reeked of regret. His heart ached at the sight.

"That you got involved with us," she admitted, albeit quietly.

"I'd probably do it again," he countered and felt his cheeks warm at her surprised face. "Uh, I, that is…"

Her next smile glowed. It took him a moment to remember how to speak or what to speak or who he was. His tail stilled for a moment and he went under, surging back up a second later. His cheeks felt like his skin was boiling.

Sousuke snorted.

Tohru's smile became giggles.

"Are you okay?" she asked again.

"I, uh, yeah, I'm all right," he stuttered.

He swatted his mate's hip when he didn't stop snickering. He would bet that he too had been stunned for a moment by her smile. He just had the more embarrassing reaction.

Tohru laid her head on her crossed arms.

"Okay. I'll believe you," she said and he didn't think she really believed him. "…and let me know whenever you're uncomfortable. I know…I know I get caught up in…in the science and discovery of you guys and…I've made you uncomfortable before. Nope, don't try to say you weren't. I literally just ran my hands over you the first time we met."

Makoto couldn't argue with that, but the memory of her hands running along his arms no longer made him feel uncomfortable. Instead, his skin tingled at the memory, wanting more of that attention.

"All right. We'll let you know," Sousuke spoke for him. "Likewise."

She smiled at that.

"I don't think you've made me uncomfortable," she admitted.

"Not even the fiery comment?"

She laughed.

"Not even that."

"Mm. You're still pretty fiery."

"I'm still amazed you know what fire is."

Makoto smiled at their interaction, enjoying the teasing tone that Sousuke had adopted. Out of all the humans, he was probably most comfortable with Tohru, if only because she was just so willing to listen and learn. It made his heart soar that his mate was so comfortable around maybe his favorite human.

Just like before, a shadow fell over them. Just past Tohru was Rin, who cleared his throat loudly.

"As much as I enjoy your obvious flirting," here he ignored Tohru's attempts to contradict him, "we need to head back to land."

"Eh? But—!" Tohru began, twisting to look up at her friend.

Rin gave her a look.

"We didn't pack lunch or anything kind of food," he reasoned. "The only thing in the cooler is bottles of water and Pocari."

"It's…It's only been…" she trailed off, looking down with a frown. “…I don't know how long it's been."

"It takes about an hour or so to get out here and then you go down for about an hour," he explained counting on his fingers. "And we left at nine this morning, rather than eight because Nagisa and Rei are still jetlagged. So it's almost noon now."

"An hour did not pass from us just talking!" she argued, but her cheeks reddened all the same.

Rin raised an eyebrow and held up some kind of rectangle. There were symbols on the screen and Makoto thought they might be numbers. He had seen something before in some of the shipwrecks he and Haru had explored in their youth, but written language was a mystery to him. Haru probably would know what they meant.

Whatever the symbols meant, they made Tohru gasp.

"Say goodbye to your guppies and go get changed," Rin instructed.

Tohru floundered for words. She didn’t move.

"I-I don't need to get changed!"

Her friend crossed his arms. He honestly looked a little like a father in that moment. For a long moment, neither moved.

She pouted and looked between him and Makoto. She looked torn.

"Okay, fine," she relented after a moment of silence. "But I'll say goodbye after I change."

She stood and stalked down the boat. A door slammed and the music stuttered. Her other friends made confused and worried comments at that.

Rin clicked his tongue. He watched her for a moment before turning back to them.

Makoto straightened at his sharp look. He immediately began planning out an apology and explanation for everything he had done since meeting the humans.

"Okay," the human man began, kneeling down next to the railing. "Just what are your intentions with Tohru?"

That…hadn’t been what he was expecting.

"Eh?"

"You guys flirt with her, but you two are obviously together," Rin explained, pointing between them. His eyes narrowed. "I don't know about merfolk, but humans tend to be monogamous. So what's your intention?"

Makoto shared a look with Sousuke. His mate raised his eyebrows before looking back towards Rin. He followed suit, feeling an odd mix of emotions.

"Is Tohru your mate?" Sousuke asked. "We don't mean to intrude if—”

He stopped abruptly.

Rin's face had become alarmingly red after his question. His mouth opened and closed for a minute or two, but no sound came out. Quickly, he shook his head.

"Agh, no way!" he hissed. "She's like my sister! I'm asking because of-of brotherly worry! Not because we're dating!"

A surprising amount of relief flooded Makoto's body. So Tohru wasn't in a relationship with Rin.

"We, uh, that is, merfolk are open to many forms of relationships," Makoto explained. His tail swished faster. "Many have multiple mates and some only have one. And. Uh. That is, I-I didn't mean, um, well, a-a-about us f-flirting."

He really didn't know where he was going with this. He hadn’t thought he had been flirting with Tohru. He hadn’t thought either he or Sousuke had been flirting with Tohru. All he knew was that he was disproportionately happy that Rin and Tohru were not mates. He covered his face to hide the incoming panicked whine.

Rin hummed incredulously.

Sousuke brushed his shoulder as he moved closer. His fingers ghosted over his side.

"It's way too early for us—.” Sousuke's mouth snapped closed with an audible click of teeth.

"Why does Makoto-san look so uncomfortable? And why is Sousuke so serious? Rin, what did you do?"

Makoto whipped his head up to see Tohru standing next to Rin. Her fists were on her hips and she was wearing those softer clothes again. Unlike her wetsuit, they covered up her curves and made her look almost a little formless, but she looked incredibly soft. Like a seal or a dugong. He wanted to hug her.

Rin grimaced before turning to look up at her. Her eyes narrowed at what no doubt was an attempt at a placating grin.

"Don't worry about," he said with a blasé flip of his hand. "Just something between us guys."

He shot a quick, threatening glare at them.

Tohru crossed her arms and frowned down at him.

"Uh-huh..." she said slowly. “Just you guys, huh?"

"Yeah, so, don't worry about it."

She hummed and it was a very similar sound to Rin's own incredulous hum. Her gaze switched from her friend to Makoto and Sousuke, the former of which jumped at the attention.

He could feel the heat of his blush increase at her staring and his traitorous heart skipped a beat or two. Sousuke cleared his throat nervously. They ended up holding hands because for some reason her quiet stare was both intimidating and attractive.

She sighed.

"All right. Fine," she admitted. She ruffled her hair. "Well, let me say goodbye so we can head back for lunch. But! Next time, we're bringing lunch!"

"You're the boss," Rin chirped. He flicked his fingers from his forehead outwards at Makoto. "See you guppies later!"

"We-We're not guppies!" Makoto cried, but the human man was already gone.

Tohru had wrinkled her nose at her friend before sighing again. Her smile was lopsided when she turned back to them. Again, she knelt by the railing and leaned over it towards them.

"I guess I'll see you later?" she said, but it sounded more like a question.

Her eyes darted between them.

"Of course," Makoto said.

He smiled despite his hot cheeks.

"Just...stay safe," Sousuke added. "We've...become a bit attached to you."

Tohru's smile grew. Her cheeks became rosy and she giggled.

"I'll do my best," she answered. "I'll keep an eye out for Rin too. And...I've become a bit attached to you guys, too."

Her words and her accompanying soft smile made Makoto's heart dance. His mouth felt a little dry, which was such an odd concept, and Sousuke's words from earlier flashed through his mind.

He didn't fall that easily...did he?

[deepaqua]

MEET THE MUSE

► Name ➔ michiru kaioh ► Are you single ➔ no ► Are you happy ➔ yes ► Are you angry? ➔ no ► Are your parents still married ➔ yes

NINE FACTS

► Birth Place ➔ france ► Hair Color ➔ cerulean ► Eye Color ➔ green ► Birthday ➔ march 6th ► Mood ➔ tranquil ► Gender ➔ female ► Summer or winter ➔ summer ► Morning or afternoon ➔ afternoon

EIGHT THINGS ABOUT YOUR LOVE LIFE

► Are you in love ➔ yes ► Do you believe in love at first sight ➔ yes ► Who ended your last relationship ➔ me ► Have you ever broken someone’s heart ➔ yes ► Are you afraid of commitments ➔ no ► Have you hugged someone within the last week? ➔ yes ► Have you ever had a secret admirer ➔ yes ► Have you ever broken your own heart? ➔ no ► Love or lust ➔ love ► Lemonade or iced tea ➔ iced tea ► Cats or Dogs ➔ cats ► A few best friends or many regular friends ➔ a few best friends ► Wild night out or romantic night in ➔ romantic night in ► Day or night ➔ night

FIVE (???) HAVE YOU EVERS

► Been caught sneaking out ➔ yes ► Fallen down/up the stairs ➔ no ► Wanted something/someone so badly it hurt? ➔ yes ► Wanted to disappear ➔ yes

FOUR PREFERENCES

► Smile or eyes ➔ eyes ► Shorter or Taller ➔ taller ► Intelligence or Attraction ➔ why not both? ► Hook-up or Relationship ➔ relationship

FAMILY

► Do you and your family get along ➔ fine enough ► Would you say you have a “messed up life” ➔ no ► Have you ever ran away from home ➔ no ► Have you ever gotten kicked out ➔ no

FRIENDS

► Do you secretly hate one of your friends ➔ no ► Do you consider all of your friends good friends ➔ yes ► Who is your best friend(s) ➔ haruka, setsuna ► Who knows everything about you ➔ i’d dare say haruka although not even they know me i fear. not that i’d expect them to- that’d be quite cruel to expect.

[mccnreign]

“Let’s go dress shopping together!” / Michiru x Usagi

Lost the meme, oops! || @featherchan { not accepting }

      ☾☆ – CERULEAN ORBS WIDEN TO the size of golf balls, happiness && surprise swirling round in a cesspool of emotion at the very inkling that Michiru might want to hang out with her / much less go dress shopping. Perhaps the older, more experienced woman can pick something ELEGANT out for her princess - at least that way, Usagi would know that the other would like it. 

Ah, even better for Haruka to see the teen as more than just a  k i t t e n   but a real princess / someone she could be proud of / admire / take on dates. The last thought elicits a bright BLUSH from the blonde as she holds her school book closer, off in her own little  d a y d r e a m  where she gets to go on a date with Haruka && Michiru at the same time. Is that appropriate? // “Yes, let’s! I’ve been wanting to go for awhile now but the others wouldn’t come with me.”