#pipe reef

[sitting-on-me-bum]

'Pipe reef' (Taken in Loch Fyne, Scotland)

Langoustines (Nephrops norvegicus) 

by Dan Bolt

Underwater Photographer of the Year 2023

[neon-glowing-rainbow-stims]

🍏 ~ Pipe Organ Coral ~ 🍏 (marine_farmers)

(Credit if you use) (ko-fi)

[all-purpose-dish-soap]

hi hello!! i love both your mer aus theyre wonderful omg

could we mayhaps have more of gaz seeing through remora readers shit and being so over it? like (if i remember correctly) he likes annoying the real her out when he feels like shes sunken too deep into the brainless lil fishy thing, but what exactly does he do? now that im actually thinking abt it i lowkey just wanna see them sass each other lmao

-- monstie >:3

pspspsps mer Gaz enjoyers @thoseofmonsters @persephone-kore-law @cod-z

47 / 1.2k

...

You peek out of the water's surface next to Gaz. He's laid out on a smooth, flat rock, sunning. You'd think he's indulging himself, but he does this all the time.

"Gaz?" you pipe up. "Aren't you drying out?"

Gaz peels an eyelid open, squinting in the sunlight as he glances over to you. The motion is lazy in the heat of the day. "Nah."

You glance up at the gulls gliding by overhead. You don't trust them. "Well... aren't you hot?"

"S'pose. Not uncomfortable, though." Gaz closes his eyes again, basking leisurely. He pats the rock next to him, offering the open space. "Sit with me."

"No, thank you."

Gaz cracks a single eye open at that, frowning. "Why not?"

You clutch the edge of the rock with nervous hands and glance over your shoulder. "There are boats over there. Humans."

"So? You like humans.”

"When they're in the water," you mutter. You eye the boats in the distance. They're small, but they're not diving boats. "But not like that."

Gaz rolls onto his side, propping himself up on an elbow to look at you. He doesn't so much as glance in the direction you're looking. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you if that's what you're worried about."

"Don't they look at you funny? When they see you up here?"

"Maybe." He rolls onto his back again, stretches his arms overhead, arches his back, and lets out a content sigh. Then he laces his fingers behind his head. "Don’t care. I like being out here. They can ogle me as much as they want."

You notice the boats aren't coming too close, either. "They don't try to talk to you?"

"They do." The corners of Gaz’s eyes crinkle. "I ignore them. Most get the message pretty quick and steer clear.” He glances at you. “What's wrong? You're more skittish than usual.”

You grab his hand and tug it. "Come on, we need to go back to the reef now."

Gaz peers down at you over the ridge of his bicep. "Not quite yet." He closes his eyes again. "I’m comfy."

"Please?" You rummage around your brainthoughts trying to come up with a reason. "I need your help with something."

"With what something?"

"With something. And you're the only one who can do it."

"Yeah?"

"And it has to be now."

He smirks at your pitiful efforts to budge him. Your persistence is cute. "And what is this it that I have to do right this instant?"

"It's... taking me to the cliffs where the seabirds nest."

"You know how to get there."

"But Ghost will get mad if I go alone.”

"Then say I took you. He's asleep. He won't know."

You huff. "Gaz, that's lying."

Gaz rolls onto his side again to look down at you. "Oh, tsk, tsk. Poor little thing. Always so honest and forthcoming yourself, aren’t you?"

Heat pinches the hollow of your throat. He's shaming you.

Gaz leans in, his voice low and lazy. "Tell me something, darling. Do you pretend your head is empty because you can’t help yourself, or because you’re afraid not to?"

You sink down into the water until only your eyes peek out. Heat licks all the way down your chest, radiating against the cold water. "You're being mean."

"Am I?" he croons, his lips curled smug. "I don’t like it when you play dumb. Makes me want to be mean."

If you were a bolder creature, you'd call him a brute.

He reaches out and gives your ear a fond flick.  "S’cute when you pout."

"So you're not coming with me?" you mumble.

"Mm, I didn't say that." Gaz glances up at the sky as he pretends to consider your wants. The corners of his mouth tug up into that dimpled smile of his that never quite disappears. "I'll take you there if you lay with me."

You grasp the edge of the rock again, pulling yourself closer again in relief. "You will? By the cliffs?"

"No." He pats his sunning rock again. "Here."

You look down at the salty, ocean-smoothed stone. "But people will see."

"Don’t care." He pats again, more firmly this time. "Come up. Get warm. You're worrying so much it’s wearing me out just watching you.”

You glance over your shoulder again. It's not like you haven't laid out in the sun before. You like to snooze in the sun as much as any mer. But it always seems to attract attention. Human attention. You're not scary-looking to them like Gaz is. You're more like a novelty. A bauble. Something from old sailing stories.

Humans get way too close to you if you give them the opportunity.

Gaz watches you. “You really think I’d let anyone lay a hand on you?”

"No, but..."

Gaz reaches out and gently grips your face, turning you to look at him again. “Now," he says calmly.

You nod at the command. "Okay. Now. Yes." For Gaz. Your fingers flutter over the edge of the rock as you look for a place to pull yourself up. You try to tune out the ambient human noise behind you.

Gaz helps you pull yourself up out of the water, depositing you on the sun-warmed rock next to him. You end up on your side, mirroring him chest-to-chest.

You stare at his collarbone. "Hi."

He slides a warm, rough-skinned palm up under your jaw to tilt your chin. “Hi yourself.”

His sharkshin feels strange when it’s dry. Not bad, but... strange. Still smooth, but grainy with salt. And it's cold up here. Even in the sun, the breeze makes you shiver and duck into Gaz's chest. You still feel so exposed with your bare back to the busy shallows.

“Relax. Fussy thing.” Price’s words. Gaz pulls you against him, one arm curled over you. Then he stretches out on his back, bringing you with him to sprawl over his chest. He drapes his hand over the fin that trails down the base of your spine, rubbing his thumb over the arch of your lower back.

"Better?" he asks, his voice barely above a rumble against your ear.

"I guess so." Not really.

"Don’t pout. No one’s gonna come up to you while I’m here, you know. Only thing snatching you off these rocks is me. That make you feel safe? Cuddling up with the most dangerous thing here?”

You give him a flat look, still feeling your earlier embarrassment. You’d push him off this stupid rock if you could.

His grin widens. "Don't look at me like that. You started this."

"I'm telling Ghost."

"Tattle-tale."

"Hmph." You wriggle over until you slide into the crook of his other arm with your hand on his chest. This way, you can see the humans and their boats over him, but you're mostly hidden from view.

"Sullen little…" Gaz's other arm slides over your back, holding you snugly to him. One big hand comes up to cup the back of your neck, his thumb rubbing in a way that makes your eyelids flutter. His mouth is right next to your ear. "Now will you stop flinching every time a boat passes?"

“Okay."

"Good. Now stay," he orders in a low voice, "and stop wriggling."

...

more mer au / more Gaz / masterlist

[vestaignis]

Рог тритона , или харония тритон , или тритонов рог— брю­хоногий моллюск из рода Charonia . В древнегреческой ми­фологии существует легенда, что Зевс наг­радил Пана рогом Три­тона, который издавал громкие звуки, слу­жа сигнальной трубой.

Раковина Тритониса одна из самых больших ракушек в мире - ее длина до 45 см. Имеет ба­шневидную форму, с крупным последним оборотом и стройной заострённ­ой вершиной. Общая окраска раковины харонии— бежевая, с множеств­ом С-образных пятен и линий коричневого цвета. Спиральные бо­роздки оранжевые, за­родышевая раковина фиолетовая. Окраска ноги моллюска ярко-жёлтая с широ­кими поперечными чер­ными полосами.

Тритонов рог обитает на глубине 5—30 м. Насе­ляет коралловые рифы и мелководья. Этот брю­хоногий моллюск хищни­к. Питается в основн­ом морской звездой «терновый венец», мор­скими ежами, гребешк­ами. Слюнные железы моллюска вырабатывают секрет, содержащий 3—4 % свободной се­рной кислоты, а также аспарагиновую кисл­оту, приводящую игло­кожих в состояние оц­епенения.

Распространена харония тритон в Тропическом Индо-Тих­оокеанском районе - от Филиппинских остров­ов до Окинавы. На островах Океании раковины этого моллю­ска применяли в каче­стве музыкального ин­струмента — трубы. Островитяне высверли­вали отверстие в вер­хних оборотах завитк­а, что позволяло пол­учать звуки различных тональностей и исп­олнять мелодии.

Triton's horn, or Charonia triton, or Triton's horn is a gastropod mollusk of the genus Charonia. In ancient Greek mythology, there is a legend that Zeus awarded Pan with Triton's horn, which made loud sounds, serving as a signal trumpet.

Triton's shell is one of the largest shells in the world - its length is up to 45 cm. It has a tower-shaped shape, with a large last whorl and a slender pointed apex. The general color of the Charonia shell is beige, with many C-shaped spots and lines of brown color. Spiral grooves are orange, the embryonic shell is purple. The color of the mollusk's foot is bright yellow with wide transverse black stripes.

Triton's horn lives at a depth of 5-30 m. It inhabits coral reefs and shallow waters. This gastropod is a predator. It feeds mainly on the crown-of-thorns starfish, sea urchins, and scallops. The salivary glands of the mollusk produce a secretion containing 3-4% free sulfuric acid, as well as aspartic acid, which causes echinoderms to become stupefied.

The triton charonia is widespread in the tropical Indo-Pacific region - from the Philippines to Okinawa. On the islands of Oceania, the shells of this mollusk were used as a musical instrument - a pipe. The islanders drilled a hole in the upper turns of the curl, which allowed them to produce sounds of various tonalities and perform melodies.

Источник: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=lV1D_QmbehA&ab_ channel =JamesKregness, //dzen.ru/a/X5nMW5A3CFgh7EpC, /animals.pibig.info/37363-haronija-triton.html,//i-prize.ru /products / charonia-tritonis,/seaforum.aqualogo.ru/topic/54178-улитка-рог-тритона-charonia-tritonis/,http://www.underwaterkwaj.com /shell/ triton/Charonia-tritonis.htm.

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

I’m slowly easing back into playing Animal Crossing New Horizons every now and then, here’s my dearly beloved AC home! Hasn’t really changed in years but it clearly doesn’t need to, as you’ll see :D

The main room! Mostly meant to be a shallow reef-like area of the seafloor, though I wanted to have some hydrothermal vent inspiration with the hot bath. Don’t ask me why the vents would be in the shallows shhh. Marine Song 2001 plays here!

The upstairs, the surface of the water! Changes with the seasons, here’s the cold season and warm season variants. Comrade K.K. plays here!

The basement! Naturally the deep sea. K.K. Swing plays here. Added some Crumploids in the mix because I wanted some eerie crunching sounds too, like there’s a whale carcass being devoured somewhere in the dark.

To the left from the main room, a sunken city with lost treasure (perhaps this room could use the blue lighting too, hmm..)! Cafe K.K plays here.

Finally, the room at the back of the main room. I call this “fish birthday” room, it started out as an ominous room you could only access through the Mario pipes when they were added (my sister had pipes as a shortcut and I wanted to prank her a bit) but now the room is always accessible. This is where I put all my fish models I don’t know where else to place. Naturally, K.K. Birthday plays here.

[lostgirlmuseum]

🐳Chapter 3

Mini Series Masterlist ❤️

Summary: Bucky and Miles fight for your attention takes a turn for the worse. You can't put up with this anymore.

Pairing: BestFriend!Bucky x f!Reader

Words: 3.4k

Warnings: Honestly probably pacing problems 😭, Miles being awful and saying disgusting things, less funnies in this one, things get a bit tense

A/N: p.s. the moment in the bathroom and the bonfire is what inspired this entire thing lol. I don't have a taglist, but you can follow updates at @lostgirl-library instead

(Divider credit: @firefly-graphics)

DAY 3 - SUNDAY 🏄🏻

Bucky was compelled into the kitchen by the smell of bacon. Vision was standing by the stove in a “Kiss the Synthezoid” apron, and Wanda was standing just behind him in a “Kiss the Witch” apron, watching over the cooking process. You were sitting at the barstool cradling a mug in both hands. Bucky took the seat next to you and nudged you good morning. You smiled back at him. It appeared they had just been talking about Wanda and Vision's early night departure tonight to make it back home in time for a friends birthday.

“Good Morning, Bucky,” Vision greeted at the same time Wanda threw a small wave.

“Mornin,” He yawned. 

“Nice to see you up. Bacon?” The red-head asked, gesturing to the pan.

“If you have enough, I wouldn’t mind some, thanks.”

“How is Miles feeling?” Vision asked over his shoulder to you as Wanda started plating the bacon.

“He’s feeling a lot better. He’s just resting right now.” You nodded, bringing the warm drink to your lips.

“That’s good.” 

“Yeah, poor guy,” you continued, wiping your upper lip, “the rain last night wasn’t helping either, but I think he eventually fell asleep around 2 A.M.”

Wanda gave you a sympathetic smile and handed Bucky a plate of bacon.

“Do you think he’ll be feeling well enough to go out to dinner tonight? I was talking to Vis and we were thinking about making reservations at a fancy restaurant for all of us, just a couple miles away.”

“That sounds like fun! I’m sure he’ll be back to normal by then.”

“Seeing as tonight will be our last night here, are we going to have a bonfire and participate in s’mores?” Vision asked.

“Can you believe Vis has never made a s’more before?” Wanda looked at Vision amazed.

“Well, I have no use for food.” He shrugged.

“Fair enough.”

“Bonfire on the beach, what could be better?” You piped, lightly punching Bucky’s arm in excitement.

“Not much.” He conceded.

Bucky could smell the trouble before he saw it. This morning was too peaceful, of course Miles had to ruin it by joining.

“Miles, good morning,” you smiled. 

That’s not your real smile, Bucky thought. Shut up. I’m just reading into things.

After a short chorus of “good mornings” to which Bucky contributed a grunt—what? That’s honestly the best he could do, especially so early in the day—Miles leaned over your shoulder and gave you a chaste kiss. 

“Have you brushed your teeth yet this morning?” You grimaced.

“No,” Miles smirked, leaning in for another kiss.

You dodged it, saying, “Your breath stinks,”

“Babe,” Miles groaned.

Bucky didn’t want to see anymore. He took his plate and silently left the room. He didn’t see you staring after him. 

The rest of the day was calm. Bucky had spent a good deal of it walking up and down the beach, shuffling his feet in the sand, and inspecting something every so often. Miles had mostly continued to take it easy, you napped and hung out in the hammock on the porch, and Wanda and Vision took a trip to visit the hotel and take advantage of the pools and lazy river. 

Eventually, dinner time rolled around, and the group got dressed and left for their early reservation at “Gilded Reef,” the most recommended restaurant in town, according to Wanda.

It was hard for Bucky not to stare at you in your gorgeous white lace halter dress. He found himself glued to the single pearl that sat on a string across your neck, wondering if it was real.

Wanda also looked beautiful in her teal dress next to Vision who sported a similar teal suit. 

You convinced Bucky to bring a nice outfit in case the occasion arose, and he was glad he listened, unlike Miles. Because while Bucky was looking dashing in his slacks and white dress shirt, Miles looked out of place with his palm tree and flamingo themed Hawaiian shirt. To Miles’ credit, he did put in the effort of gelling his hair back, but it really made him look like more of a douche.

Idiot. 

The five of you were placed at a circular table and given menus.

After the drinks arrived, and the food was ordered, there came a lull in the conversation. Miles, of course, took the opportunity to try and embarrass Bucky.

“I saw you walking around the beach by yourself for a long while today. What were you doing?”

“It’s nothing really,” Bucky shrugged, reaching into his front pocket, “I was just looking for one of these.”

Bucky pulled out a small disk and held it out for everyone to see.

“Oh my God, Bucky, you found a sand dollar? And it’s fully intact!” You gasped, grabbing Bucky’s hand and bringing it to you for a closer look.

Wanda made a couple of her own noises of admiration while swirling her wine.

“Cool, right?” Bucky said, trying to contain his smile at your reaction.

“The coolest! Look Miles,” you pointed to Bucky’s hand. 

“Yes, very neat.” He grit. 

“I’ll hold onto it for now, but when we get back we can add it to your collection.” Bucky suggested, sliding it carefully back into his pocket. 

Your jaw dropped. 

“You’re letting me keep it?” 

“Of course,” 

How could I not give it to you? I would give you anything, do anything, just to see you light up again.

Dinner was filled with great food and fun stories, but eventually it got late enough that the group knew they should be getting back. Wanda had tricked everyone into letting her pay the check, Miles told everyone he’d be right back, and Bucky went to wash his hands before leaving.

But as Bucky made his way to the restroom, he noticed a familiar Hawaiian shirt flirting with a waitress.

Motherfucker.

Bucky didn’t say anything as he ‘accidentally’ bumped into Miles while sliding past him.

He didn’t bother to look back for his reaction, and continued his way to the men’s restroom. 

Bucky had just turned the faucet on when the door opened.

“Hey, bud,” Miles smirked.

Bucky kept quiet, and focused on washing his hands.

“That girl was cute, huh?” 

Miles made his way behind Bucky, and stared at him through the glass.

Bucky grunted.

“You should’ve seen her ass,”

Bucky looked up and glared at Miles through the mirror so hard he felt the start of a headache.

“You know I’m not intimidated by you, right?” Miles snickered.

Bucky grabbed the paper towel and dried his hands. 

“You know what, Miles?” He started, calmly throwing the paper in the trash can. He finally turned to face him, and casually rested on the marble counter of the sink.

“Humor me.” He rolled his eyes.

“You act so smug, thinking you’ve won. You get off on thinking you’ve bested me. Because you got the girl.” Bucky stood up straighter and crossed his arms, speaking with an even tone. “But there’s one thing you just don’t know.”

“And what’s that, Barnes?” Miles asked, and mirrored Bucky’s crossed arms.

“You might be her boyfriend, but she loves me in ways she will never love you.” Bucky let it linger in the air a moment before continuing. 

“She loves me in the only way that matters. Because when she finds a new book she likes, she calls me. She tells me of how it reminds her of me, or summer, or childhood. And when she’s struggling, and she needs someone to pull her out of the darkness, she calls me, not you. I’m the one who talks her down, holds her close, and reminds her of how powerful she is. And when she’s bored out of her mind, even if you’re around, she calls me.”

Bucky took a calculated step forward. Miles took two steps back.

“I’m the one who knows all of her secrets, who held her when she couldn’t breathe, who was there for her, and still is there for her when she needs me. So I promise you, when you inevitably fuck things up with her,” Bucky continued stepping closer, “because trust me, you will fuck up, she’ll call me.” 

Miles bumped into the wall. He had run out of space to back up, and Bucky was now inches away from his face, towering over him, caging him like the animal he was.

“And I’ll be the one comforting her, kissing the tears away, and telling her everything will be alright. Not you.” Bucky took Miles' silence as an invitation to go on. “You’re right, Sweets,” Bucky started, acting as if he was conversing with you, “Miles is an asshole. He’s a fucking idiot for treating you that way, because no sane person would even flirt with the idea of losing you.”

“Shut up,” Miles wobbled, finally gaining an ounce of confidence after Bucky had already turned for the exit. 

Bucky stopped in his tracks and turned back around. 

“They say there is no such thing as perfect,” Bucky shook his head, “but I swear to any and every god listening, she is as fucking close to perfect as there is. That’s why I’m not worried about you, Miles. I’m worried about what you’ll do to her.”

And with that, Bucky left the room.

The drive home was quick. The sun was only half-way down by the time Wanda got the bonfire started. Five logs were set up around the fire in a circle, all of them taken except one. You were still inside grabbing the s’mores materials. Between Bucky and Miles sat an empty log, your seat, and across from yours was Wanda and Vision. Bucky saw you step off of the back porch and stood up to meet you halfway. 

“Hey—” You started, but squealed when Bucky picked you up, and swung you over his left shoulder. “Bucky, what are you doing?” You laughed, trying not to drop the marshmallows. 

“You’re taking too long,” he joked, and started carrying you over to your seat. He made sure to watch for Miles' reaction. He was satisfied with the tick in Miles’ jaw.

“S’mores time!” You cheered once Bucky put you down on your seat. You started handing out the sticks and marshmallows. Everyone gathered in close and held their sticks over the fire. Except for Vision, he claimed he didn’t trust the marshmallow to not get stuck in a gear, or something.

“Damnit,” you cursed, after you dropped your nearly complete s’more in the sand, chocolate and everything.

“Here,” both Bucky and Miles said at the same time, handing you theirs.

“That’s okay, I can just make another one,”

“I’ll make another one, you can go ahead and have mine,” Bucky offered. 

“No, babe, you can take mine,” Miles insisted, practically shoving it into your hands.

“Oh—okay, thank you,” you stuttered.

Bucky held back a scowl.

“Y/N,” Wanda spoke, pausing to lick off some chocolate that stuck to her lips, “what was that story you were trying to tell me about earlier?”

“Oh yeah!” You glowed. “So when I was a teenager, and I was working at this grocery store, there was this one time I was in charge of cleaning the bathrooms, and that included the mens. While I was cleaning one of the toilets, I saw something move, and I freaked out. It was a freaking lizard in the toilet!”

“Oh yeah, and then you found that it had laid eggs in the urinals,” Miles quickly added, and laughed. 

“I was getting there,” you briefly pouted. 

What kind of game are you playing Miles? You think you know her stories more than me? I know these too.

“Okay, fine, new story.” You took another bite of your s’more. “One time, I was behind the register, and this older woman skipped the line behind the cashier counter and came right up to me wearing this heavy wool sweater with a christmas tree on it. Keep in mind, this is the middle of June. She turns around at the line of people behind her, shushes them when they start complaining, and turns back to me with a worried look on her face. So then this woman tells me that her—”

“That her credit card had been stolen on her way into the store—” Bucky jumped in.

“No,” you shook your head, “it was actually a man who had his card stolen, and this is a different story—” 

“Yeah, the one where the woman told you that she worked for the Illuminati as an undercover banker—” Miles interrupted.

“Wrong, I’m talking about when—”

“When a woman came up to you and challenged you to a thumb war for free groceries,” Bucky said.

“No, I—”

“The one where the woman walked behind the counter and started chanting that pumpkin spice lattes should be all season!” Bucky and Miles chanted in almost perfect synchronization.

“No, that’s a different story. Jeez, can’t a girl tell a story around here?” You awkwardly laughed.

“Sorry, go on.” Bucky apologized. 

“Anyways, so this woman tells me that she’s concerned because she’s noticed that her son—”

Miles jumped up in excitement and interrupted you.

“Because her son goes to the store everyday for hours, and she was concerned he was a part of some druggy group, but it turned out that her son was your manager Pat, and that’s how you confirmed Pat was still living with his mom, and that he lied about being uber-successful and owning his own party boat and mansion!” 

Everyone went silent.

“Way to ruin the story, Miles.” You sighed.

Wanda and Vision shared a look between each other.

“I’m getting drinks, anyone want anything?” You stood and tried to brush the sand off your legs with your dejection.

“We’re okay,” Wanda nodded, referencing herself and Vision.

“No thanks,” Miles said.

Bucky didn’t say anything.

“Okay.” 

You made your way inside, and Bucky aptly followed.

“I’m sorry Miles is being an ass.” Bucky left the back door cracked and followed you to the refrigerator.

“You kind of are too. What’s up with everyone tonight? I feel like I can’t finish a thought without being interrupted.” You grabbed a beer and shut the fridge door.

Bucky relented.

“You’re right, I’m sorry.”

“No,” you sighed, and shook your head, “don’t apologize Bucky. I’m sorry I called you an ass, you aren’t. I’m just frustrated.” 

Miles entered the kitchen and shut the door behind him.

“Babe, I’m sorry.” 

“It’s fine.” You gave a weak smile, and grabbed the bottle opener.

“Here, I can help you open that.” Miles gestured.

“It’s fine, I got it.” You said.

“No, really, I got this. I’m really good at it,” Miles started reaching for the bottle.

“I can open my own damn beer,” you slammed your fist on the counter.

“Okay, okay.” Miles held his hands up in defense and backed off a little.

“Ugh,” you groaned, dragging your hands across your face, “I’m going to go take a shower.”

Miles perked up.

“Gimme a minute and I’ll join–-”

“Alone. I’m taking a shower alone.” You emphasized. 

You left the beer on the counter and trudged out. Miles turned to see Bucky staring right back at him.

“What are you looking at, dick?” 

“Nothing.” Bucky shrugged. 

“Wipe that smirk off your face or I’ll fucking do it myself.” 

“No you won’t.”

“That’s it, I’ve had enough of you.” Miles put his fists up. “Hit me. C’mon, hit me. I dare you.” 

“You dare me? What are you, twelve?”

“Just hit me.”

“I’m not going to hit you.” Bucky stated calmly.

“Scared?”

“Me? Scared of you? Have you seen yourself? You’re as strong as you are good at keeping your girlfriend happy, which in case you haven’t noticed, you’re pretty shit at.”

“You fucking—” Miles started running and very quickly reached Bucky, but Bucky was faster. He dodged out of the way, leaving Miles nearly tripping onto the floor.

“Watch it,” Bucky warned, but Miles was already up again, and headed for him.

Miles swung at him, but Bucky caught the punch and sent Miles stumbling back.

“Miles! Miles, stop! Bucky!” Your voice called, and Bucky swung his head to locate you, giving Miles just enough time to land a hit on Bucky’s left eye.

“What the actual hell!” You screamed, running to stand in between them.

You pushed on Miles' chest to get him to back away from Bucky. Miles was struggling to contain his anger as you pushed him back, his chest heaving with leftover adrenaline. 

“What happened? I heard yelling,” Wanda panted, bursting into the room, Vision trailing behind her.

“Wanda, please stay with Miles to cool off,” you begged, still using your body to keep Miles from attacking again.

Wanda nodded, and took your place. 

“Bucky, outside. Now.” You pointed to the back door.

He knew better than to question you. 

Fuck. She’s really mad.

Bucky obeyed, and closed the door behind him. He followed the wooden porch to the stairs, and sat on the last step, digging his feet into the cool sand. Wanda and Vision had put out the fire, great billowing smoke greeting the starry sky. He liked the quiet out there. The waves softly meeting the shore was a lullaby for him.

The creak of a door alerted him to your presence. You sighed, and sat down right next to him with an ice pack in hand.

Neither of you said a word as you gently brought the pack to just above his left eye. Luckily, Miles was off by enough that Bucky’s eye was safe, just not the area around his eyebrow.

After a couple moments of quiet, you spoke.

“You’re not in the clear either, you know that?” Your voice was soft, despite the words.

Bucky nodded.

“There is no good excuse for him attacking you,” You started, and made sure Bucky was hearing you, “however, I know Miles, and I also know you. And I don't know what you did, or said, but I know you did something to antagonize him.”

He mumbled something. You didn’t bother asking him what it was.

“Look at me,” you begged. 

He did. You carefully removed the ice pack and he winced. 

You looked straight into his eyes, your brows slightly furrowed, your lips slightly down turned. He couldn’t look away, waiting with bated breath for you to say something. Anything.

“Bucky,” was all you said. 

That was all you had to say. He knew what you meant. He knew you were asking him “what happened?” he knew you meant you felt guilty, he knew you wanted to cry.

You looked at him expectantly.

“Doll, I—I’m sorry.”

“What’s going on with you?” You brought the ice back to his rapidly darkening bruise.

Bucky sucked in a breath. He wasn’t sure how to answer. 

Make the wave, Bucky. Make the wave.

“I need to tell you something.” He brought his hand up to yours and made you lower the ice pack.

“What?”

“Doll, for a very long time I’ve been feeling…” The words died off. He tried again. “You’re my best friend, and I love you.”

“I love you too, Bucky. Always.” 

“I know, but Doll I’m in—”

The crash of a door closing stopped him.

“Babe, will you come talk to me now?” Miles whined, attempting a pout.

“Miles, just give me a minute. What were you saying, Bucky?” Your eyes sparkled, looking intently in his.

Bucky sighed.

“It’s not important right now, I’ll tell you later.”

You looked away and nodded sadly.

“Okay.”

It was 12am, and Bucky couldn’t sleep. He was only thinking about how close he was to telling you the truth. 

Giving up on sleep for the time being, he slid out of bed to get some water. But on his way to the kitchen, he passed the couch, and there you laid. He instantly forgot about the water and kneeled in front of you. Your eyes were shut, but you didn’t look peaceful. Your eyebrows were drawn together, and Bucky fought the instinct to smooth them out.

“Doll,” he whispered, resting his palm on your shoulder. “Doll?”

“Mhuh?” You mumbled, blinking your eyes open. 

“Why are you sleeping on the couch?”

“Because,”

“Is that actually comfortable for you?” He asked, noting the way you curled in on yourself under the small blanket.

“It works.”

“Do you want to come lay in my bed?”

“No.”

“Okay.” He turned to walk away.

“Fine,” you grumbled, reaching for his hand.

You slowly got up, and sluggishly followed Bucky to his bed. You crawled in and under the blankets, and he filed in behind you.

“G’night,” you mumbled, heavy eyes already falling shut.

“Goodnight, Doll,” he tenderly whispered, blushing at how soft you were.

Bucky laid a small kiss on your forehead. He didn’t miss the faint upturn of your lips.

I love you, Doll.

A/N: Thank you my loves for reading! ONLY ONE MORE PART TO GO WOOHOO! I appreciate each and every one of you. Now get out there and make the wave!!

[empressgeekt]

Trolls - Accidental Knight and the end of the world (Field of Forget-me-nots au - what if?) -PART 3!!!!

Okay, so this is a what if off of second movie of the FoF au (this post), where Barb won. This was inspired by the fic "The Beginning of the End" by AnimationFan2006 on Ao3. Pls go give it a read. I highly recommend that anyone go to look at the rest of the Field of Forgetmenots au. And I had to split it in half because I posted the first one at 2:00 am. Here is that first post! and here's part 2

Now on to the plot...

Lets jump into the ocean and at the rubble of the techno kingdom. Synth wasn't sure to count himself horribly unfortunate or incredibly lucky. He had rushed off to the restroom, during the last rave. Said rest room had been destroyed by the Rock troll subs and Synth was left unconscious after the ceiling caved in on him. He wakes up to his home destroyed and a pounding headache. For about an hour or too, he flits around looking for any other survivors. Eventually, Sharks chase him out of the reef, now that there's no guards on duty or music playing, predators are flooding into the place.

The open Ocean is tough, Synth feels tiny with all the giant fish, whales and sharks. Also very lonely, he had grow up always surrounded by people, now there was no one. He doesn't remember much of the attack, but he does remember the Rock music. Usually other tribe music wasn't played in the reef, but the few records they did have were used in school so children could learn how to identify the difference between them. Well, all the tribes but pop and the sub-genres. If Rock had turned Synth needed to find help. So he just kept swimming....and swimming...and swimming.

Its after who know how long of dodging Fish, Squids, sharks, whales, and Dolphins (He thought they were friends, yo!), exhaustion and nearly starving to death, that he decides to find fresh water. Most land creatures lived by fresh water sources right? And even better he wouldn't have to deal with sharks....Well Swimming in land had it's own issues. Fresh water had Frogs, and alligators, and unknown plants. But that wasn't even the worse part. In land rivers were flooded with Zombified techno trolls. Synth is horrified by these monsters with the faces of his friends. Thankfully however the zombies aren't as good with their hydrokinesis as Synth was, so he could defend himself. However, by this point he was running on fumes. After a particularly bad fight, he passes out and the river current carries him into the lake, where he's sucked up into a bunch of pipes and is spit out in Bridget's bathroom sink.

Bridget has had a hard few weeks. There was still no word from Poppy, and she was getting really worried. Gristle was her rock, and she loved him to bits for it, but still she found that she didn't like no knowing what was going on outside. Word of Mount Rageous falling and Vacay island was shocking and scary news, especially when you consider how big those cities are in comparison to troll village. They still weren't sure what exactly was attacking them, but Gristle has put in mass emergency protocols in to place. Meaning, stocking up on water, food and other supplies, fortifying defenses and putting up a curfew to keep their people safe. All the stress of the passed couple weeks, has Bridget unable to sleep, so she tries to calm her self with a water cup, only to turn on the sink and shriek when something other then water falls out of the faucet. Gristle is running into the bathroom hearing her shout, and they both marvel at the tiny creature that infiltrated the castle. At first Bridget thought it was troll, but the glowing skin and fins didn't fit with the troll they know. Still they notice that the little creature is wounded, so Gristle orders for a physician for the creature and a plumper to check the pipe filters, because they are clearly not doing their job.

The doctor can't really do much for the creature, as they don't know much about their physiology. However, they do try to wrap their wounds (a challenging task with the small limbs and delicate/super slippery skin) and recommend to the King and queen-in-waiting that they set up the creature in a shallow water filled tray with a padded bottom. Bridget does her best to follow the doctors orders, padded a water tray and laying the creature in the water leaving their face above water and the rest of their body submerged.

Synth eventually wakes up after a few days. He's sore and hungry, but he's alive. Even better, someone had wrapped up his wounds. He had finally found help! It takes a little effort, but Synth figures out how to flop of the lovely water dish he woke up in and walk on his fins. Bridget finds him like this and after some initial shock on both sides the two get to talking. Synth talks about how Rock trolls attacked his people and he's looking for help. Bridget learns a lot more about the troll world and with answers in hand she takes Synth and they go talk to Gristle. The Bergen king is a little unsure about what to do with the new information. Bridget wants to go out and find the rock trolls, but Gristle once more has to hold her back, since they have no idea where the rock trolls are. Still Gristle does allow Synth to stay as long as he needs, and if they every come up with a plan to save his people they'd help. At this moment, Chad and Todd enter the room, and inform Gristle and Bridget that their are some Vacationers outside of the gate asking for sanctuary.

Brandy has had a hard few weeks. She and the other mothers (plus a few single dads) had spent a few weeks on the open water, before beaching on the main land and moving on foot. Her little ones are in different states of shock. The older ones (and Labreezy), are scared but they're putting on brave faces for their younger siblings, who are missing their daddy, and about three steps from a meltdown at all times. All the mothers and single dads are pulling together to keep all the kids safe, a fact that Brandy is grateful for since nearly half of the children there are hers. She listens to the radio every night after the kids are asleep, the other's used to listen too, but when they hear of the fall of Vacay island, they stop. Brandy never stops.

Eventually, after long weeks of traveling they come across BergenTown. The rest of the group is eager to ask for aid after their food and water supplies have been completely depleted, however Brandy is hesitant. Her children are half troll. There were many nights when she and Bruce had first gotten together when she would hear him wake up crying from nightmares about the place. Living as livestock, even from just hearing about it, is no way to live. Brandy wasn't sure she could take her children in there and watch these creatures feed off her husband's people with out going mad. However, they had no more food or water. Her babies need a proper meal and a good night's rest. Brandy reluctantly agrees, but makes the other's swear not to mention her husband. Her babies might not be troll sized but she doesn't want to take chances.

After speaking with the guards, they're told that only one may come in to plead with the king. The other adults decide that Brandy should go in. She is by far the smartest of them, and she knew about bergens before coming here. Inside she is a raging kermit (seriously just because she knew about them, doesn't mean she knows how to talk to creatures who ate her children's grandparents!), however she keeps all that inside and lets the guards lead her through the town. Bergentown isn't like Vacay island. The colors are dulled and leaned more towards green then yellow and blue. The People make her feel small, Vacationers being only half the size of Bergens at best, and she couldn't imagine what it was like for Bruce to grow up here. In the corner of her eye she sees what could only be the troll tree, and she looks away quickly, not wanting to see her love's people trapped, but at the same time missing that the cage is gone and the tree is empty.

To her relief, The Bergen King is a young man, and on the smaller side. A little less intimidating then she thought he would be. Brandy thinks she's doing alright, until another bergen walks in. A girl around the same age as the king, in a fancy pink dress. The look she shares with the king is one that Brandy recognizes, young love. Then she notices what the girl is holding. A tray with a Techno troll on it. Techno Trolls usually stopped by the island every now and again, but Brandy knew they never came this far inland. For a moment she fears that she's about to witness a troll losing their lives, but then said troll speaks up, asking her name. When she answers, The Troll asked if she ran the cantina, and upon confirming she did, to her shock the troll advocates for her and the King listens. The king and the girl leaves for a moment, and Brandy approaches the troll asking if he was alright. Synth, after introducing himself, says he's as good as he's going to get. Bridget and Gristle are good hosts, and from him Brandy learns about how there's supposedly peace between the trolls and them, and from her Synth learns about the whole eating trolls thing. Which he is grossed out by but he'd been there for over a week, most of which he was unconscious for, and nothing bad has happened. Still he'll ask. The King returns and says that her people will be given sanctuary, and since he knew that she worked in the restaurant he offers for Brandy to work in the kitchens while her family is housed in the castle. She accepts the offer a little skeptical, and vows that if any trolls enter that kitchen she'd let them go.

After two weeks, Brandy is relieved to find that the peace was an actually true thing, and the kitchen staff was treated very well in BergenTown. She forms a quick friendship with Bridget, who has a habit of cleaning when stressed so she helps Brandy after dinner is served, despite practically being a princess. The Bergen girl is sweet, and it isn't too long before, Brandy is handing out advise to her that could be described as motherly. IT also helps that Bridget loves playing with the children (yea, Gristle was a little shocked by the sheer number of children he just invited into the castle). Things seem to start to settle by this point. Brandy has a way to keep a stable life for her and the kids, and for now their safe. She still misses Bruce, but she hasn't given up hope on him yet. Especially when she starts getting morning sickness. When she figures out that kid number fourteen is on the way, she laughs, because of course she and Bruce would have a child in the middle of the apocalypse. Still she keeps calm and carries on, hoping for another girl.

Back at the golf course, Demo excitedly reveals that the letter is from Hickory and that he has opened a line of communication with Pop troll prisoners, including Queen Poppy. Viva jumps on that, she wants to know everything about what's happening to her sister, and if they had seen her Dad. There's nothing in the letter about Peppy, much to her distress, and all that's on Poppy is that she was being tortured and that they want her out sooner then later. Viva is horrified, and wants to get her sister out right now, but everyone has to tell her to slow down. They need a plan first. Keith asks if they can get Branch out and the letter does mention him but Queen Barb is keeping him close, so they might not be able to. Keith is heavily disappointed.

For now all they can do is keep sending letters back and forth, slowly forming a plan to get the prisoners out. They do get something solid going. It's a long shot but it could work. However, when the subject of leave the golf course comes up, Clay becomes very vocal about not leaving, and surprisingly Viva doesn't back him up. This causes the two of them to argue, Clay wanting to know why Viva has changed her mind and suddenly wants to abandon everything they've worked for, and Viva cant' lose her sister again. Especially if she's out there being tortured (basically reversing their movie roles).

John Dory Floyd and Bruce all pull him out of the room, and start a long over due conversation. This only serves to piss Clay further off, especially when John and Bruce are agreeing that he's out of line. The middle brother just loses it at them, screaming about how he had finally found a place where he was respected as a leader, and now John has come running into his life trying to control everything, and that everyone is blind to what JD is doing, controlling them, trying to get his band back together, with made up story.

Bruce: Whoa whoa whoa, what are you talking about?

Clay: Oh so now you want to listen?!

JD: do you really think I would orchestrate the end of the world just to get Brozone back together?

Clay: Of course you would! All you've ever done is try to ruin my life with that stupid band of yours!! You did it when we were kids, but that wasn't enough for you ! You had to come back and do it again! Well guess what I'm not going to let you trick everyone and ruin everything again!

JD: I never wanted to ruin everything Clay! I want you all safe.

Clay: pfff, yeah right. You just want me to be your dancing fun boy puppet. Keep me in a little box! Never take me seriously!

JD: I didn't mean to put you in a box...

Clay: Oh, yeah then what did you mean to do? Make me into a doll?

JD: no! it was to keep you safe and get food on the table!

Clay: Don't try to make yourself into a hero here, John Dory, you were just a bossy controlling parasite. How in the world would making me a 'fun boy' keep me safe!

JD: Because the Chef never took trolls that made the others Happy! That was the whole point of the band! To make you all more important alive then on a platter! So ,you wouldn't get taken like...like...

Silence....

Floyd: John?

JD: *sigh* The last thing mom and dad told me was to take care of you.

Bruce: and the band was your way of doing that.

JD: yeah...I first I thought it would just be me, doing shows, earning money, putting food on the table. One by one you each wanted in and...*shrugges*

Clay: W-what about Grandma, she had money you didn't need to sacrifice our childhoods to put "food on the table"

JD: She was retired, sure her pension was enough for her to live off of but plus five growing boys? And that's not even covering the house bills or ya'lls school.

Clay: well, what about the perfect family harmony?

JD: What?

Clay: You know perfect family harmony? The thing we failed and then you abandoned us for !

JD: Oh...that...it wasn't my idea originally.

Clay: What?

JD: yeah, King Peppy asked me to do it. It was supposed break the cage...so we could escape...

Clay: what?!

Floyd: That's why you were so stressed...you were trying to save us...

Bruce: why did you say anything. I could've helped you. If I had understood what was going on....

JD: you would've panicked. Besides it wasn't your job to help me. I was the oldest, I had to be the leader, I had to be the one to worry, so the rest of you didn't have to.

Clay: *rolling his eyes* yeah real good job you did there.

Bruce: Clay...

Clay: Oh please, sure he's not as big of a jerk as I thought, but don't tell me you've forgotten all he did to us! He shoved us in to roles and made life hell! Floyd had issues talking about his own problems, because he was so busy dealing with ours! I couldn't even keep my hair its natural color! You couldn't even look at yourself in the mirror without having horrible thoughts about your body!

Bruce: Clay I-

JD: I'm sorry...I-I never wanted to hurt you.

Clay: Then why did you?

JD: Because I thought if I gave you roles then you wouldn't have to change yourselves. Bruce was young, handsome and obsessed with romance novels. Floyd could cry at the drop of a hat. You were always laughing or jumping onto something. I thought if I gave you labels then you wouldn't have to change for the fans. I was trying to make it easier for you. If you were wild no one would judge you. If Floyd cried no one would call him names. If Bruce flirted with a random girl it wouldn't be seen as weird. I-I just didn't think you'd out grow them so quickly....I'm sorry.

Bruce: Oh Johnny...

Clay: You-you should've told us all this.

JD: I know.

Clay: So, you really aren't here to ruin everything, to force me back...now that i'm serious?

JD: Of course not! Clay you could be and evil psychopathic murderer, and i could care less! I'm just happy you're alive! I mean after I went back and the tree was empty...

Floyd: You went back? Even after 'goodbye forever'?

JD: I didn't mean it...I always meant to come back...but when i did...no one was there. *sigh* But enough about me, there's one other critter in the room we need to address. Clay what's your issue with Keith?

Clay: Issue I don't have an issue.

Bruce: Clay, tell us what's going on.

Clay: Nothing's going on! So, what if I fucked up so bad that Branch had to go live with a foster parent and got saddled with a kid and then got turned by psycho evil queen! It's fine!

Floyd: Clay you didn't fuck up...

Clay: I did! I never left the tree! I just moved to a different pod and...never talked to Branch or grandma...I wanted to after the escape...but...I should've been there, I should've stayed with them...Branch had to find a new family and it's all my fault...

Floyd: It's not just you're fault Clay, we all left. Hell, I promised I'd go back and I never did! now Branch is gone and...*Weeps*

JD: We're gonna get him back *hugs Floyd* and nothing's going to keep us apart again. This family's going to stick together best we can from now on.

Bruce: Keith included.

Clay: I need to apologize to him...

JD: We all do...to both of them...

(wow that segment took way too long)

With the air cleared between the bio-brothers things move on a little smoother, Clay is still hesitant to leave the golf course considering the threat but he wants Branch back now two. The apology to Keith didn't go great, kid still hated all of them, but Clay wasn't hostile anymore.

Demo continued to keep writing Jovi, and soon they had a plan in place. Demo would sneak back into the city, and help Jovi move the prisoners outside the boarders, hiding them in stage equipment and shipping them out to an out of city venue for an obsure band that hired Demo as a manager. The out of city venue would be Rhonda, where a team of select trolls would be waiting to receive the escapees. Along with Jovi since it's getting harder to hide his mixed nature and he's worried about getting Zombified. The date and place is set...

What they don't know is that Debbie had intercepted their fruit bat and Barb knows all about the deal. Originally she wanted to take out Jovi immediately, however Riff suggests that she waits so she can crush all of the rebellion at the exchange. She likes this idea better, after all she had been looking for the perfect place to execute the pop queen, what better then to do so in front of her allies with the blade of her noble knight. Hickory catches wind of this, and manages to send the large amount of Rockers that Barb originally wants to intercept the trade off on a wild goose chase. He thinks he's saved the mission.

Demo enters the city with a sick stomach, he's now and enemy of the state. it's hard to interact with Val and Petra after everything. He's really glad when he meets up with Jovi to get the other's out. The prisoners or Snackpack as they were called her honestly really sweet, and he felt bad about what they went through. And shockingly amongst them was the funk princes, unturned.

Poppy isn't so sure of the hope that bubbles in her belly at the sight of two trolls that sneak into her cell late at night. Jovi has proven to be kind but she's still wary of this Demo guy, though he is amusing with all his formalities around her. Seeing her brother and friends was a balm her soul needed, though it didn't settle her fear as they were sneaked out the city. It isn't until the heat of the sun and fresh air, hit her skin outside of the city and she sees the little green trolling running into her arms do her colors begin to brighten. Poppy would Hug Keith with all she had. In the back ground she could hear the others talking with the trolls that Demo had found and came in contact with, but she didn't pay them any mind well until the whislte of and arrow shots past and someone screams. Poppy would look up and whisper in horror, "Branch?"

----

There will be a part 4

[eddiemunsonsmum]

Holiday Antics (Eddie Munson x OC)

Eddie Munson x OC | Eddie Munson x Karmen Jones

Summary: Delighted by the sound of their Father screaming, Eddie's children torment him with the new toys he bought them for Christmas.

Tags: Dad!Eddie, Mom!Karmen, The Munson Children, Uncle Wayne, Family Fun, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, Pranks, Joking, Banter, Comedy (I hope), Children's laughter etc.

Words: 3.2K

~~

Eddie skidded down the hallway, gasping in pain as he clipped his hip against the doorframe of the bedroom. He continued on regardless, flying through it, hand covering the source of the pain as he locked his eyes on his target. 

The closet was in sight, taking up entirely too much of his attention as he tripped on the edge of the rug. He swore under his breath, regaining his balance and murmuring about ‘fixing that’ as he reached for the handle to the walk-in.

He was supposed to be dressed already but he’d left it to the last minute as was customary these days. He’s gotten caught up building Lego and hadn’t realized the time until Karmen had stopped by the playroom and questioned why he wasn’t ready.

Guests were due to start arriving in the next ten minutes and he had sworn black and blue that if he opened his new Lego this afternoon he would still be more than ready to greet them at the door by the time they did so.

He was going to be ready. It was fine. He knew exactly what he was wearing…

He just had to find it.

He pulled on the handle, reefing the door open and completely missing the set of eyes that shot open as soon as they were exposed to light.

“Hey!”

“Ahhh!” Eddie screamed, the ferocity of his own yelp scaring even himself as he jumped out of his skin. Clutching at his chest as he stumbled backwards. Foot catching on the mat for a second time and lurching him back further. The back of his knees hitting against the edge of the bed and sending him crashing down like a felled hardwood. 

He landed on the old mattress with a thump. Squeaky springs protesting under his weight as he gasped in a broken breath at the way his back twinged from the landing.

“May-may Oo-nye!” Said the voice from the closet. The sound of mechanical whirring echoing in the small space as Eddie stared at the creature with wide, frightened eyes. Chest heaving, breathing shaky as pointed, furry ears moved up and down and large dead eyes blinked in his direction.

“I h-hate you.” He hissed, venom in his tone as the sound of children’s laughter came barrelling into the room.

“We got you again!” Evie squealed, rushing towards the closet and wrapping eager hands around the gray and pink Furby that giggled in response. It’s stupid little beak moving as it spoke nonsense in his direction. Its lashed eyelids drooped briefly as it was picked up. One of them opened again and the other got stuck, leaving it looking frazzled as his daughter held her arms out straight in front of her and shoved the toy in his face.

“May-may Oo-nye!” The Furby repeated, just an inch from Eddie’s nose.

“That means he loves you!” The little boy at his feet piped up. His own monstrosity was black and white and resting on the floor where he was crouched. Looking up at his Dad with a cheeky expression.

“Kids!” Karmen shouted from somewhere outside the room. “Stop scaring your Dad with the Furbys!” Her words grew closer, along with heavy footsteps that made the children scatter.

Evie clambered towards the closet, tripping on the same corner of the rug he had moments earlier and slamming into the wall. She recovered faster than Eddie could cringe. Flinging herself into the hanging clothes and yanking the door closed in front of her. 

She settled down in the shoes to hide while the other child flattened himself and tried to roll under the bed. Getting caught on Eddie’s feet as he went and slapping at his Dad’s shins until he lifted them out of the way to aid the escape.

Karmen appeared in the doorway. Shoulders slumping as she looked around at the seemingly kid free room. Her eyes narrowing as they landed on Eddie and despite his heart being in his throat and his stomach being in his ass he shrugged nonchalantly as if he didn’t know where they’d gone.

“Did Evie hide that thing in the closet again?” She asked, frustration in her tone as he tried to lie to her. Shaking his head as casually as he could manage. Not daring to speak in front of her lest the fright brought on his stutter and gave him away

It was New Years Eve 1998 and Eddie’s thirty three year old body felt fifty after he’d had the life scared out of him for the 25th time in seven days.

They’d been torturing him for a week now.

Making him regret the family pack of batteries he’d insisted upon because:

“The kids are going to love these things!” 

And love them they did.

What Eddie hadn’t anticipated however, was his utter horror at sound of the little fucker’s voices.

The Furbys. Not the children.

The rough nasally whine of an inanimate object that spoke like a person but couldn’t feel things. That could seemingly understand him and learn but didn’t possess a sense of empathy.

They hadn’t seemed so atrocious on the TV. The kids in the ads were laughing and the toy’s little voices hadn���t been anywhere near as grating. 

But in real life, the Uncanny Valley was instantaneous and powerful. 

Unfortunately for Eddie, so was the love the kids felt for their new toys. Their little eyes turned dark and possessive when he had suggested they put them away for a while.

“Let them play, we don’t have anywhere to be.” Karmen had argued, her fingers stroking over the mohawk style mane of one of the creatures and making him want to gag at how comfortable she was with it.

“How do you turn them off?” Eddie had asked her quietly a little while later. While the children were getting ready to go outside and make a snowman with Grandpa Wayne. 

Their fluffy abominations forgotten for now and chittering to one another on the coffee table in front of their parents.

“Uh, I think they have to go to sleep.” She had answered, looking up briefly from her gameboy.

“Sleep?” Eddie had croaked. “Like a baby? You can’t just turn them off?”

“Awww look at this one!” Karmen had cooed, seemingly oblivious to his distress as she pointed the screen of her device in his face and showed him a Vulpix. “He’s a widdle fox!” 

Eddie had stared at the little creature on the screen. A sense of dread filled him as the kids had rushed back into the room and picked up their toys while Karmen went back to her game.

“Leave them inside guys, they’ll stop working if you get them wet.” She’d said absently, the chorus of disappointed whining not phasing her as she threw a virtual ball at a little monster on her screen.

“I’m sure it’s fine.” Eddie had chuckled uncomfortably, jumping out of his skin as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder and the Furby closest to him seemed to laugh at his expense.

He wondered if that was possible as he looked up and locked eyes with Uncle Wayne. 

“Leave those terrifying critters in here or I’m going home.” He said flatly, the kids screeching with glee at the thought that someone as tough as Grandpa Wayne was scared of such a silly looking kid’s toy.

Eddie had taken it upon himself to clean up that morning. Gathering all the gift wrap and empty packages and hiding behind the trash cans outside to read the back of the Furby box to try and figure out how to turn them off. 

Karmen was right.

It said that they had a light sensor in their forehead and if they spent long enough in the dark they would go to sleep. So he’d done the only rational thing he could think of. Picked them both up, shuddered as their little ears moved against his hands and shoved them in the pantry.

Karmen had eyed him suspiciously from her place on the couch. But ultimately she was too enthralled by Pokemon Red to really care. Grateful when he offered to get breakfast started as a way to take the heat off himself.

He’d dug his own grave already. He just didn’t know it.

The muffled yammering of the toys simmered down after a few minutes in the cupboard and Eddie had moved on to thinking about other things like which Lego set he was going to build first. 

His relief at the silence had been short lived as the kids came rushing back inside complaining about being freezing.

Karmen had begrudgingly turned off her game, taking over lunch and making Wayne a coffee while Eddie took the kids to the bathroom to have a warm shower. 

They’d returned twenty minutes later and as they entered the living room from the hallway Karmen had called out for Eddie to grab the condiments from the pantry to help her set the table.

He’d opened the door without thinking. A shriek flying from his lips as the light hit the little vermin he’d decided for some God forsaken reason, to leave at head height and both sets of eyes flew open to blink at him lazily.

“Dah-ay-loh-oo-tye!” They shouted in unison as Eddie leaped backwards, his shoulder blade connecting with the opposite wall and making him take in a rattling gasp of a breath as he slowly slid down the wall and onto the floor.

Breathing heavy through the pain in his joints as he sat, defeated, for a long moment. Before he finally mustered the courage to lol his head to the side. Fully aware that the entire family was watching him and waiting to see what would happen next.

The silence would have been deafening if not for the janky hum of the mechanics inside the toys as they blinked at nothing. Repeating the same phrase over and over until one of them yawned and they both started snoring.

The comical drag of the whistling snort made him close his eyes as he waited for someone to say something.

“Dad’s scared of Furby.” Evie stage whispered, looking at Karmen with concern in her big beautiful eyes as her Mother frowned in his direction.

“Mmm.” She hummed. The room fell silent once again until the tight purse of Wayne’s lips could be contained no longer and he spat out a laugh so hearty that it startled the kids.

Both of them turned to him with the same fearful eyes he recognized as Eddie’s before they realized what was happening and laughed along with him. 

They locked eyes with one another quickly. Pupils dilated as their little faces lit up with glee. Both of them turning to Eddie with borderline unhinged expressions of pure delight that reminded him somehow of when he’d looked back at Steve in 1986. Snapping the wires in his fingers together and finally getting to say ‘Fuck you Maureen’ by stealing her house.

“Dad’s scared of Furby.” Evie repeated, barely contained excitement dripping from her tone as the children stared at one another with unrestrained joy and silently schemed on how to best take advantage of this new, hilarious and highly unusual situation.

Dad wasn’t scared of anything.

Except yes Dad was. 

He was scared of so many things all the time.

But he’d never admit it to the children.

“Well it sure is a shame that there’s no children in here.” Karmen said loudly, in the present time as she stepped inside the bedroom. “Because any toys that are still on the floor in the living room when the guests start arriving are going in the trash.” She continued as she stopped in front of Eddie and crossed her arms over her chest. 

“Kah-mee-mee-noo-loo!” The closest exclaimed, muffled shushing and the rustling of clothing not enough to prevent the toy under the bed from responding to its friend. 

“Dah-doo-ay-wah!” It shouted happily. Eddie scrunching up his nose at the sound as Karmen tried not to laugh at the little hands she could see fumbling with the furry thing under the bed.

“Kids, seriously. It’s not funny anymore. Leave Dad alone.” She said as firmly as she could. The absurdity of the situation making it hard to be sincere.

“I’m fine!” Eddie lied as the kids slowly showed themselves, reappearing beside their Mother. 

Mischievous grins on their faces until they caught her eye and had the humility to look half apologetic.

“Sorry Daddy.” Evie said softly, eyes twinkling under long fluttery lashes that rivaled the Furby’s as she blinked at him. Feigning innocence while knowing exactly what she was doing. She was nearly twelve now. She never called him Daddy anymore unless she really wanted to tug at the heartstrings. 

“You too.” Karmen gestured at their other child. The little boy, the picture of Eddie as a child, stared up at him with eyes that were somehow bigger and even more like his than Evie’s had ever been.

“Sowwy.” He murmured, pouting his lips as Eddie looked between them both tiredly. He was too big now to be forgoing his R’s. 

He couldn’t blame them. They were twice as clever as he had been at their ages. But he had been twice as manipulative.

“Thank you.” He ground out. Deciding to accept the apology and move on instead of continuing to pretend as though they hadn’t scared him. 

“Good job. Go and pick up your toys.” Karmen said wearily, sick of repeating herself.

She turned back to Eddie as they left. Sitting herself down on the bed next to him and placing her hands on his thigh. She leaned on them heavily, staring deeply into his eyes as he relished in her undivided attention.

It was rare these days but it still made him flush like it had the night they met. His heart beating like crazy as he took in the sight of her fully dressed and ready to host.

She looked delicious.

“For the love of God, please get dressed.” She said simply. Making him throw his head back and scoff.

She chuckled, fisting a hand in his hair and pulling him in for the kiss he’d been hoping for. His hands groped greedily at her as she pulled away. “Ah ah, we don’t have time.” She warned him quickly, placing a finger over his lips to quiet him as he tried to argue about how quick he could be. “Get dressed.” She repeated, as Eddie grumbled about not really wanting to make any more babies anyway since all they did was bully him.

“Woah!” Said a voice from the floor. Both of them jumping but Karmen yipping in surprise and kicking out her high heel clad foot in reflex.

The black and white Furby that had been left behind was hurled across the carpet. Hitting the closed door of the closet hard and rolling back towards them. Stopping in the middle of the rug, its ear half hanging off and his grainy little robot voice skipping as it tried to tell them how much it loved them.

Karmen brought her hands up to cover her face. Tears springing to her eyes as she realized what she had done.

Eddie stared at the toy open mouthed. It’s skipping voice and hanging ear making it look a sorry sight as it jittered around on the rug.

His eyes slowly slid from the malfunctioning toy to her. They locked gazes for a quick second. Eddie registering the shock and sadness in her emerald orbs and jumping into action. Diving for the creature and pulling it to him as he clicked the ear back in place, good as new.

He leaned to the side, craning to try and see if the kids were on their way up the hall as he put his finger in the bastard thing’s mouth and pressed down on its tongue. Gagging as it stopped trying to talk and made slurping and sucking sounds as if it was being fed. 

It was eating him.

He pushed through the disgust, pressing and holding another button on the bottom at the same time and after a few seconds the thing turned off, successfully reset. He flipped it on its head and then held it upright on his hand as they both waited with baited breath.

The toy came back to life suddenly. Bidding Eddie good morning without stuttering in the gibberish language it spoke and they both let go of a sigh of relief. 

“Thank you.” Karmen breathed as Eddie put the critter back on the floor. 

“You gave it the Eddie Special.” He laughed, making her whimper at the reference to his speech disorder.

Eddie chuckled at his own joke. Flopping back on the bed and groaning long and loud.

Goddammit. 

Why did he have to love his damn kids so much?

He should have left it broken.

“Wait.” Karmen said suddenly, staring down at the demon toy with confusion on her face before turning to him. “You know how to turn them off?” She asked incredulously. Slapping him on the thigh and watching as his shoulders shook with a dramatic, yet quiet, fake cry in response.

He did.

He did know how to turn them off.

It had been on the back of the box he’d read Christmas morning and he’d considered it many, many times since the point when he was hunched in the snow reading about it.

But when he had seen the glint in his children’s eyes after the first time he’d frightened himself, he hadn’t had the heart to do that to them. He knew, deep down in his heart of hearts, that if it made his kids happy he would continue to be voluntarily startled for the rest of his life.

Wayne could have thrown many rubber snakes and fake poos in the trash over the years but he never did. He always reacted with the appropriate shock or disgust and gave Eddie the show he’d been hoping for when he spent a good twenty minutes rigging them up to fall from his bedroom door or finding the perfect hiding spot to scare him the most.

Looking back, he knew logically that there was no way he’d actually surprised the man every single time. But he was allowed to feel like he did when he was a kid and those were some of the memories he cherished the most from when he was little.

It just so happened that Eddie’s kids had accidentally found the perfect toy to terrorize him with. One that provoked an actual fear response every single time and kept them coming after him.

Although, he had to admit. Seeing it all broken on the floor after Karmen had kicked it had taken some of the power away from it. Reminding him that after all it was just a toy and making him almost feel sorry for it in a strange way.

It looked kind of pathetic and evoked his sense of empathy.

He guessed he kind of did understand now why Karmen had stayed with him all these years.

He sighed heavily. Closing his eyes and listening to the string of nonsense coming out of the toy's mouth. His eyes shooting open suddenly as he gasped in realization, sitting bolt upright and grinning at his wife with the same unhinged smile she’d seen on their kid’s faces on Christmas Day.

“Kids!” He shouted, making her jump. “Mum’s scared of Furby!”

~~

A/N: In 2020 Evie texts Eddie a picture of a Long Furby and he cries about it.

So apparently I'm the only person ever that loves the original Furby and doesn't want it to burn in hell? 🤷‍♀️

Furby doesn't actually wake up in a light room but it never shuts the fuck up either so the chances of them just not hearing it talking were slim. I needed to add a feature.

My shirt:

Read the rest of the series here :)

This series is so personal to me, so it means the world to me when someone let’s me know they enjoy a work from this series. If you guys liked this please pleaseee consider letting me know via comment, reblog, message, anon ask etc.  

Tags: @3ddi3-daydreamer @micheledawn1975 @munson-blurbs @wheels-of-despair @browneyes528 @stevemunsons

[ashensgrotto]

A Merfolk's Melody (Part 3)

Characters: Yan!Floyd x Reader, Yan!Jade x Reader, Yan!Azul x Reader

Word Count: 13.5k

Intro   Floyd Leech Jade Leech (You Are Here)  Azul Ashengrotto Epilogue

Synopsis: The sea always calls to those who feel lost and alone, wanting to fill the empty part of their soul until they are loved and full… and as such, it’s only fair that the strange creatures that live beneath its depths would want the same as well…

Author’s Note: Another 4-part fanfiction courtesy of @merakiui ‘s headcanon of the reader being stuck in a room/wall (I’m sorry, but I just enjoy your headcanons and they always give me these ideas) -> https://www.tumblr.com/merakiui/722393818829373440/in-addition-to-being-stuck-in-a-locked-room?source=share & https://www.tumblr.com/merakiui/722677892623056896/about-the-stuck-in-a-wall-trope-in-the-oceani?source=share

Here’s how it’s going to work: each character is going to get their own part following the intro. It is going to focus on the Octrio again (bc it’s my current liking, sorry guys). If you want to read a certain character’s part, feel free to jump around and select the one you’re most interested in. 

Again, as stated before, this is a work of fiction; I disagree with any and all behaviors that are represented in this story.

****

During your earlier days in college, you and another of your close friends had once discussed the difference between coral and mushrooms - as there were some fungi corals that lived in the coral reefs, even though they were not classified in the fungi family. You both agreed that fungi and coral played huge parts in their own ecosystems, providing both nutrition and hiding areas for the wildlife that inhabited the area around them. Both were made up of microscopic organisms - as most plants and other wildlife are - but while one shot spores, the other grew polyps on top of each other over time. 

Your friend had asked if you knew if there was a coral reef back in your childhood home - to which you responded that you weren’t sure. You had been told by someone once long ago that beyond the crashing waves of the sea outside of your family’s cabin that there were coral structures the size of Burj Khalifa - the world’s tallest building - and a few that were wider than the Aerium - the world’s widest building. Imagining the depth and how big the ocean was already a monstrous task as it is, but the knowledge that some coral was as large and as wide as two of the world’s biggest buildings was mind-blowing.

Now, a few years later as you dipped beneath the surface as the waves pulled you further into its depths, an amazing sight greeted you.

Colorful coral of all shapes, sizes, and types spread before you - elkhorn coral, fungia and pocillopora corals spread along the ocean floor as pillar and staghorn coral reached for the sky. Sun coral and sea anemones waved with the current of the tide while bubble corals and zoanthids peered out from dark crevices. The colors of neon in pink, green, teal, orange, and yellow shifted together with the darkness of the water here and there, making everything seem like a blacklight room from one of the city’s downtown clubs.

But the coral and plants weren't the only thing colorful within the dark waters.

Bright colorful fish of all shapes and sizes surrounded you from all angles - clownfish peered out from behind the sea anemone as the occasional blue or yellow tang fish passed between the coral walls alongside lionfish and butterfly fish while nudibranch slugs crept along the edges with starfish as seahorses perched among the organ pipe corals and the carnation corals. You saw banded pipefish hidden in the crevices between rock and coral while moon jelly swam out to deeper waters, their nearly opaque bodies hiding their forms in the shifting waters that crashed against the waves. Manta rays swam close to the bottom of the hidden paradise, one occasionally coming up to you and brushing along the side as your light-weight tank top fluttered in the water around you, the feeling of soft smooth skin coated in a slick film surprisingly pleasant.

The colors of the deep dazzled you - pulling you into deeper waters as you held your breath for as long as you could before your lungs would force you to the surface, gasping out deep breaths as you floated above the surface world for a few moments before diving back down to stay for as long as you could in the peaceful paradise that existed beneath the waves, amazed by everything that surrounds you. You swam along the coral beds, fingers grazing over the pieces of coral polyps as you passed - as beautiful as the structures were, you could never break a piece off. The same person from your past had warned of doing such things as a child - breaking off pieces of coral can take years to grow back, and if they are broken off consistently, the coral eventually dies. Seeing the bright beautiful healthy green coloring of the coral beneath you reminded you of that memory - a smile tugging on your lips as you dived deeper. 

Lost in thought, you didn’t even realize you had swam as deep as you did until you felt your lungs struggling to hold your breath until your sides ached. You had traveled between some coral beds and were now surrounded completely by it, the coral twisting around you like thorns on a rose bush and every time you would attempt to get through, the coral would dig into your skin - cuts forming along your arms, face, and legs. 

You looked around desperately - but there appeared to be no way out.

“Poor child…” you heard a voice then, something soft and sickly sweet that tickled your eardrum, “Poor sweet child…”

Your head turned in the direction of said voice, seeing nothing in the darkness. Fear ran along your spine as you did your best to keep calm, the anxiety eating away at you as you struggled to think of a way out as well as struggled to keep yourself from falling into exhaustion from losing oxygen.

A shadow shifted then as a pair of heterochromia eyes - one brown, one gold - peered out at you from the darkness beneath you. You watched as a figure appeared before you, their form coming into the light that shone in between the coral that surrounded you.

The figure was that of a very large creature that was half man and half fish - the pale sunlight reflecting off of his pale teal skin that was the color of sea water; his tail was long, making him approximately six or seven feet in length, and swayed with the water as he propelled himself toward you, slowly and filled with caution while his hands - which you thought may have been webbed - clenched at his sides, the claws digging into the flesh of his palms. His facial features appeared strong and sharp, eyes clear and calculating, as his lips spread in what appeared to be a friendly smile that was anything but; his dark hair - nearly the same color of his body - framed the strong features, though one long strand - nearly the color of deep seaweed green - fell over his left eye as the golden hue began to glow the closer he came to you. 

It was then that you realized you were looking at a mer - a moray mer, to be exact.

Moray eels were known to attack when provoked, but the mers were known to hunt anything that trespassed into their territory - watching from the darkness before striking unexpectedly. You had heard stories about them when you were a child - the locals believing that they typically traveled in pairs, meaning that there was likely a secondary one close by and you had to tread carefully now that one of them had found you.

The mer only smiled, teeth sharper than a shark’s gleaming in the darkness as his body began to glow; the large teal stripes that lined his hips, arms, and face began to glow in the darkness, his left gold eye nearly turning yellow as he gazed upon you.

“You seem to have a very serious problem,” the mer spoke, his voice sounding like sweet honey dripping down from a hive on a hot summer day, “... There might be something I can do to help you.”

You were beginning to slowly lose consciousness, the edges of your vision fading into darkness as you struggled to stay awake - to stay aware. The mer seemed to sense this as he drifted even closer, slipping through the water like a water snake as he stopped in front of you, looking down as his smirk grew wider. The moray mer’s features were now mere inches from your face, his webbed hands closing in to cup your face in between his palms before he pulled your face up to look at him, your body slowly becoming numb as your eyes drifted closed - the oxygen nearly out.

Something soft and surprisingly warm pressed against your lips before a sudden rush of air filled your lungs. 

Your chest heaved as your eyes snapped open to see the mer pressing his lips to yours, pulling the water out and breathing for the both of you as the gills behind his finned ears fluttered with the current. You pressed your hands against his chest, trying and failing to push him away before one hand moved to wrap around your waist, pulling you closer to him as his other hand tangled into your hair, keeping your head still as he pressed his lips harder against yours - no longer breathing for you, but kissing you. You felt his long tail curl around your legs, keeping you trapped within his hold.

When he pulled away, his pupils had dilated; hunger reflecting within them.

“I saved your life, little pearl,” he whispered, “and now… I will take something from you as payment.”

You struggled, wanting nothing more to do with the mer that now wrapped completely around you.

However, the moray pulled you down into the depths of the coral enclosure, pressing the front of your against a large stone with one hand on your shoulders and the other holding your hands together above your head. You held your newfound breath between your lips before cool lips pressed against the nape of your neck, drawing the skin into the mer’s mouth as he lapped and sucked on it like a newborn babe. You shuddered with every lap of his tongue and whimpered with every nip that you barely registered his hands releasing you before something dug on either side of your neck, deep enough to draw blood.

You cried out, bubbles escaping from your lips before the mer pressed his lips against yours again, breathing for you as he turned you to face him - webbed hands and claws creating small cuts in the fabric of your cotton capris before the fabric was removed along with your bottoms. You threw your head back as one thumb rubbed circles against your entrance - a musty-sweet odor slipping into the salty waters around you before something fleshy and hot pressed against it. You mewled as the mer flicked over your entrance, slipping one, then two fingers within - thrusting them in and out at a leisurely pace as the glowing on his body increased, his eyes never leaving yours. You whimpered softly, one hand reaching out and clasping onto his dark hair, his eyes closing and humming against you as a fire began to build in your thighs and lower belly - threatening to consume you as your body twitched with want.

As he worked you over and over, you shuddered and groaned, arching your back away from the stone as your muscles clenched. He pulled away after a few moments, the loss of contact making your body grasp at nothing. You whimpered in need before something long, thick, and rigid rub between your legs.

“Ah… mine,” the moray mer sighed as he bared his teeth at you in a mocking grin, grabbing a hold of your ankles and pushing them into your chest as he leaned against you, moving his hips and rubbing himself against you, “Mine… my precious little pearl… Do you know what you’ve done to me?”

You can only quiver in response as he leans close, his nose nearly touching yours as his length continues to tease you, making your insides squirm with anticipation.

“How long I’ve waited for you, little pearl,” he brushes his nose against yours, his voice soft and sugary-sweet, “I’ve waited over six years… six years for you to come back to me. And now that you’re here… I can never let you go.”

Then, you feel him thrust hard and fast inside you, pushing your stomach into your throat as a silent cry leaves your mouth. The mer is merciless against you, pressing you hard into the stone beneath you and keeping a firm grip on your ankles as he pounds into you, each thrust making the precious air that still exists within you leave in the form of tiny bubbles from your mouth and nose. 

He presses his lips to yours again as his eyes close, breathing for the both of you again before pulling away to lavish at your neck, his tongue flicking over the scratches he made as you feel something rise up and down from your skin. Both of your chests heave together, the pounding of your hearts argue in your rib cages as he presses his lips against yours, no longer breathing as his thrusts become more urgent. He releases his grip on your ankles and hauls you up by your waist, moving your position around so you may settle onto his lap, your thighs resting on either side of his hips as he presses deeper into your core.

The change caused you to gasp again, feeling him practically nudge into your stomach. The mer slows, allowing to adjust to this new position as he kisses your features - your forehead, your nose, eyelids, brows, cheeks, and lips - as if he is completely worshiping you.

“Sweet, precious little pearl…” he whispers, snapping his hips in urgency against you after a few moments, “Let me lay you… keep them safe for me, for us…”

You whimper softly, a name long forgotten now bubbling forward, “J-Jade…”

Jade lets out a low growl in response, thrusting hard and fast against you, “That’s r-right, little pearl… my precious (Y/N)...”

You let out a cry as your entrance grips onto Jade’s member, the muscles in your lower body spamming wildly as something thick and heavy slips between your legs.

Jade presses his forehead in the juncture between your neck and shoulder, his breath caressing your skin, billowing the tank top you’re still wearing, gasping, “...not enough, little pearl. Not enough, yet…”

***

Jade has carried you to his corner of the shadows, curled beside you as you laid on his bed of seaweed surrounded by coral. His hand cups your cheek and follows the curve of your cheekbones before pressing another kiss to your lips and resting his forehead against yours. 

It had been years since he had last seen you - the two of you plus his twin had been thick as thieves, frolicing along the shore lines and had taught you to swim. He had gathered many pieces of coral during that time and presented them to you when you all met up each and every day - the giggles that slipped past your lips making him smile with pride and puffed out his chest like a seagull. Eventually though, those days of spending time with one another along the shores became fewer and fewer. 

Floyd had moved on, now more interested in antagonizing Azul verses waiting on the rocky shoreline for you to come out to play - but Jade was more patient than his twin, his tail swaying with anticipation along with the tide as he watched from his spot on the rocks, his heterochromia eyes never straying from the shoreline. Eventually, his patience thinned to the thickness of a thread, going to Azul to test out his latest potion that would allow him to take on the form of a human for an hour. He headed into the village, searching high and low for your family. One of the village members had been kind enough to explain that your family had moved to the nearest city where you had been accepted into college.

Jade felt his heart break. There was no way he could follow you - and even if he did, how would he find you?

Azul noticed his sour mood upon his return, the typical Jade he knew would never lounge on the rocks among the coral like his brother did unless something happened. Jade had stayed silent about what he had heard on the surface above - merely going through his life day by day as the heartache festered and grew within, making him irritable - once snapping at Floyd which made the younger of the two surprised. It didn’t take long after that incident that Jade decided to move away to another part of the coral city, hiding within the darkness of the crevices as thoughts of you consumed him day and night.

He was about ready to give up on himself when you came swimming back into his life - quite literally. 

Jade tucked his head under your chin, arms wrapping around your waist as he hummed. Tomorrow, he would go to Azul to find a potion to make you more like him… even threaten the octomer with becoming fish bait if he refused.

But, for now… Jade was content to have you in his arms, back in his life. His precious little pearl…

[idcbabyialreadylostmymind]

Rebellion Pt.3

Word Count: 10.8k

Pairing- Sully family x f!sullyreader x na’vi oc (kinda)

Summary- Your going through a rebellion and how easy can it be for your siblings to keep all the stuff they see you doing a secret.

Warnings- argument with a parent, underage drug usage, underage drinking, kissing

Pt.1 Pt.2 Pt.3 (Discontinued)

A/N- i know i know its been a while for this one, but i hope you guys like it I plan of finishing it for you guys in like a week or two def more parts coming and if you like Tsm’siyu in this I have a masterlist for him two things written and feel free to req 💋

»»————-　♔　————-««

Music blazed through the forest as drinks went around your small circle. Tonight would be the last night with the Omatikaya, your siblings managed to get kidnapped by some avatars and to keep you ‘safe’ your father is moving you all. Pulling you out of your mind Ao’zuk stumbled up holding what seemed to be his sixth cup of nectar. “Can’t believe it’s our last night partying with the Y/N Sully.” Ao’zuk said. It was a small group hangout, well not small, about twenty people smaller than usual talking and other things. “Oh shut up.” You say as he passes the pipe taking a deep hit, the burn hits the back of your throat spreading to your lungs. The smoke let out of your mouth clearing your throat afterward. Sitting the burnt out pipe down you watch as Ao’zuk pulls a bag out of his satchel and hands it to you. “What’s this?” You ask. “Some pollen in case that reef shit doesn't hit good.” He laughs as you let out a light hum. “Thank you Ao’.” You say before getting up and walking home.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that your father has decided that a reef clan would be safer rather than a forest clan. Forest clans will be the first place the RDA would look so naturally your father decided a reef clan would be best. You couldn’t say you were thrilled but you needed a change of scenery anyways.

When the morning came around you hadn’t gone to sleep when you got back so all of your bags were packed. You and your family walked away from the Tree of Spirits after the ceremony after your father transferred the responsibility and title of Olo’eyktan. Mounting your ikran Khal you look back at your friends, Ao’zuk stood in the front bringing his hand up waving you off with a tight smile on his face, giving him a grin you bow your head. Jake watched the interaction as he mounted his ikran, Bob. ''Y/N.'' He said and you turned to him. ''Time to go.'' He said, rolling your eyes you look back at the boy and say a silent farewell as you follow your family.

The weather getting to the reef clan was brutal, but you still rode through rain and wind. And finally it seemed you made it to the reef clan as your mother and father landed on a shore you and your siblings not long after. You were the last off of your ikran holding your satchel close to yourself as you observed your surroundings. Your father talked with the Olo'eyktan, it seemed the Tsahik wanted you to leave, but your father persisted. And then Ronal stepped forward grabbing Lo'ak' by the arm saying how weak you all would be, moving to Kiri she tugged on her tail, saying you would be slow. She made her way over to you and you straighten your back with a small smile on your face.

You were her height so you stared deep into her eyes. Her gaze was cold and penetrating as she finally lifted it off of you turning back to her husband. After a while you quit paying attention as you just look off into space, after a while the world went quiet and you couldn't see it was blurry. Those two seconds of peace quickly vanished as Lo'ak tapped your shoulder bringing you back to your mind. ''Hm?'' You reply, ''They granted uturu (sanctuary).'' He replied and you nodded and you got your bags off of Khal giving him a few love taps on his back making him purr. You laugh before following the chief's daughter, Tsireya, who would also be teaching you the way of water, whatever that meant.

''Here you go, I'll leave you to get comfortable, have a good day.'' She replied and you saw the way Lo'aks eyes lingered on the girl and that made you smile a little bit. ''This is good, this is great.'' Jake said the thudding of the carpets thrown down by Neytiri made everyone look at her as she went to sit down.

The following day your father sat everyone down before your first lesson and day on the island. He went over the rules, to be honest you weren't really listening to anything he was saying missing the parties and your friends, ''Sully's stick together.'' Everyone around you said and you pulled your eyes from the floor are rushed out of the mauri.

Tsireya was standing at the edge of the beach you ducked out before she could see you and walked in the opposite direction. ''Y/N?'' You hear Neteyam walk behind you and you turn around face with no readable emotion written on it. ''Yeah?'' You ask, he points to the others who were walking with Tsireya. ''Uh, yeah I'd rather be eaten by a palulukan.'' You say and he sighs. ''Just tell everyone to pretend I was there today.'' You tell him.

''And what will you be doing while the rest of us at least try and adapt?''

''Dunno might explore, y'know.'' You say as you begin to walk away.

''Tsk.'' Neteyam shook his head as you disappeared into the forest and out of his sight.

»»————-　♔　————-««

Your arms held onto the branch as the fruit was in your mouth held onto by your teeth, your fingers began to slip and you looked down and sure of it there was at least a ten-foot drop. You take in a deep breath, breathing in the scent of the trees, the salty smell of the ocean, and your swing your legs letting go of the branch and jumping onto the tree that would ensure your safety. The fruit falls from my mouth and you curse, all that trouble just for it to be lost at the last second. Jumping down from the tree and to the solid ground you look at the sky and deem that it's time to head back to the village before everyone else makes it home.

As you make it to the home your siblings are walking up at the same time. Jumping behind them as if you've been there the entire time you all walk throughout the entryway.

Your father looks up and glances over all of you not suspecting a thing. Your mother picked up Tuk as she ran up to her and smiled before returning to the dinner she was preparing.

Kiri walked over to help your mother as Neteyam and Lo’ak sit down around the fire just like your father and talk about all the stuff that happened today.

“So what do you think of Awa’atlu Y/N?” Jake asked and your pulled from your thoughts that you dwelled in. “Oh, uh, it's cool if you like total isolation from.” You say making Tuk laugh and run to you jumping in your lap.

“Not funny.” Jake says.

“Really? Tuk thinks its pretty funny, don’t you Tuk?” You ask as you begin to tickle her sides unrelenting until she agrees. As she runs to your mother a huge smile plastered on her face.

“Can you at least try and make an effort to fit in.”

“I am.” You reply and he shakes his head.

“Then why did Neteyam tell me that you didn’t go to your lessons today.” He says, raising his eyebrows up in frustration. “It’s your first day!”

You turn your head to Neteyam and look at him and click your teeth. He tries to talk again but you just turn away and close the curtain not wanting this ‘talk’ to end in yet another screaming match between you and your father because you're ‘immature and selfish’.

Your mother tried to call you for dinner but you pretend to be asleep. You couldn't handle being in a room with both Neteyam and your father or you would actually combust with anger. Instead you laid on your sleeping mat getting comfortable for a short nap.

»»————-　♔　————-««

Your eyes peeled open as you awoke for your nap. You get up quietly and look at your surroundings as best you can with the light the moon graces you. Four other bodies laid around you, your siblings obviously, breaking from your check around a twig snaps from outside your marui. Your ears perk in high alert, you crouch towards the window and open it slightly and to your surprise, no ranging animal or sky person, just a pair of teens going to a….. party.

The sides of your lips twitch up in excitement, you grab your bag and make sure your clothes look presentable before you go off.

It wasn’t hard finding the metkiyina teens as the music they played was loud enough for the clan to hear, it seems no one cares. “Cool…” you whisper as you step out of the dark trees into a clearing that was lit by a great bonfire as teens danced around along with the traditional music and drinks were passed and a few people took what looked to be blue and green pollen.

You walked around as if you belonged and no one seemed to care as a girl and boy danced around with you pulling you into the dance circle, you watched them dance and listened to the music letting you move as you pleased. Your peers around looked at you as you danced with them, a boy hands you a drink and makes a toast about something you have no clue about but you shoot the drink back and get to the girl that pulled you into the circle dancing with her until the song ended.

Sitting down on a bench with some random guys sitting next to you breathing heavily and really, really drunk. “You were good out there.” A deep voice catches you off guard as your cheeks heat up.

The man looked to be your age and he definitely was, big. Just one centimeter shorter than your father, and a tattoo wrapped around his large bicep that crawled up his neck. His hair long and curly only a small part kept up out of his face. And he was beautiful, his jawline sharp but his face soft and content.

“Thank you.” you reply.

“So, you do pollen?” One next to him asked.

The Metkayina definitely aren't shy when it comes to asking questions.

“Bro I told you to stop bringing that stuff.” The taller one scolds him but the other one just rolls his eyes. and then smiles at you.

“No it's fine, I do.”’I nonchalantly said, his smile widened and seemed to glow in the light the fire gave off.

His hand digs in a bag that you had not known was next to him, he hands you four small flowers, the same as the ones you saw before, blue and green. He gets himself the same amount, you tilt your head down once before taking the pollen. The other boy just shakes his head side to side. The taste wasn’t great, but you sat still waiting for the effects to kick in.

»»————-　♔　————-««

The world's colors mixed and you felt as if you walked on air, the captivity of gravity no longer weighing you down. Your head, light as a feather, felt as if it was going to roll off your neck. “You like it?” The boy sitting next to you asked, the one who gave you the pollen was up playing a drinking game with a few others.

Looking at him your pupils blown so wide you couldn’t see the yellow in your eyes anymore. You smile lazily as you shake your head yes. He laughs before getting up and lending his hand out for you to take it. You look at his hand for a second noticing the jagged scar on his palm before you take his hand and get up, arms intertwined, the rest of the party follows, walking through the vast trees.

You could tell you were getting close to the village as the salty smell of the ocean became more fragrant the closer you got.

As you all step out of the trees you aren’t meeted with the maruis that were on the island but rather a secluded spot with nothing but a diving board and the ocean and a deep part of it.

A loud splash is what brought your attention from your surroundings. Following the one splash many more until almost everyone was in the water. The boy, you still hadn’t learned his name, he dragged you to the dock before looking at you sending a happy smile, his aquatic skin glimmering in the moonlight along with his freckles that were scattered along his body.

He jumped in the water splashing up against the dock. You looked down into the water and it was too dark to see anything.

“Come on forest girl, jump!” Someone yells and you step back a little before running and jumping off into the water.

When you made contact with the water and came up for air you sick in oxygen as the natural chill of the water surrounded your body.

You swam to the boy and used his shoulders as an anchor. “That was, that was….” you try to formalize what you were trying to say but you couldn’t. “Fun?” He asked and I looked at him and nodded, “Yeah fun.” You say over the louder people around you. You and him looked at each other and your eyes switched from his captivating blue iris boring into your soul to his full lips and his hands on your hips made your body heat up.

He leaned in and so did you, and finally you connected your lips to his. You know this probably isn’t a good idea because you're under the influence and he’s drunk but you couldn’t care less as your lips danced with his.

After a minute you pull away and he looks shocked and surprised which made you giggle. “What's your name?” You ask and he smiles once again. “Tsm’siyu, what about you?” He replies to you with a question of his own. “Y/N.”

“Beautiful.” Tsm’siyu says under his breath as he moves a loose hair out of your face making your smile drop and your stomach twist.

You ignored it and pulled him into another kiss hopefully to calm the new summons of nerves.

»»————-　♔　————-««

As you all get out of the water and squeeze the excess water off of yourselves. As everyone left to their own homes except for Tsm’siyu who told you he was going to walk you home.

You obviously denied but he wasn’t listening to the protest. “C’mon can’t have you passed out on the beach.” He says and you roll your eyes. “Fine.” you mutter, too out of it now.

As you made it a few feet from the back of your home you stop him. “Okay you stay here I’m gonna go in from the front.” You say and he nods and just before you go away he gives you a tiny kiss on the top of your wet hair.

You walked in the sand and onto the floor in front of your marui. And to your surprise your father, hands on his hips and a scowl on his face, was waiting for you. You sigh as you realize life here isn’t gonna be any easier.

»»————-　♔　————-««

Taglist- @jojo-munson @ellabellabus07 @ihonestlydontknowwhattonamethis @ssc7514 @neteyamforlife @tejas-kris @kurogxrix @liyahsocorro @c0meandgetyourl0ve @universal-slut @elegantkidfansoul @im-in-a-pansexual-panik @jakesullywife @oceanstar19 @navs-bhat

If you don’t see your blog its because i couldn’t find it sorry for the inconvenience

[elizaditton]

Too Small To Be Afraid (Chapter 13)

Links:

Cover / Master Post / Previous Chapter / Next Chapter

- - - - - - - - - -

I hardly absorbed any information at all during seventh period Koronian since I was so fixated on Derrick knowing about my fear. How long has he known about it? What does 'helping' me mean? What does he have planned for when we meet behind the school? Questions like these continue to bounce around in my mind as I stand on the balcony beside Brittney, not at all engaged in the conversation she's having with our deskmates.

I've only known Derrick for about a week, and he's already found out about my fear. I feel like an idiot. If my fear was this obvious to him, how obvious has it been to other pertheans?

What about the receptionist in the perthean lobby at the apartment? Did evading nearly all her questions make it obvious that I have a fear?

What about Mrs. Hudson, the perthean co-principal? Could she tell how frightened I was when I entered her office for the first time? Then again, I wouldn't be surprised if Dad told her about my fear, since they've been friends since they were deskmates in high school.

What about Kevin? I haven't been able to stop myself from shaking whenever he's around! And the way he looks at me... it's always like he's staring straight into my soul! Does he know I have a fear? Does he resent me for it? And not only is he Brittney's boyfriend—he's friends with Derrick, too... would either Brittney or Derrick tell him about my fear?

Kevin looks up from his phone, and his narrowed brown eyes pierce right through me. I'm unable to tear my eyes away from his as my whole nervous system is overtaken by relentless shuddering. What's he going to think now?

A hand rests on my shoulder, catching me completely off guard and causing me to flinch. I gasp and turn to the side to find an irritated looking Brittney.

"Hello?!" She says. "Earth to Kaylin!"

I blink a few times, trying to wrap my head around what she just said. "...Earth?" I finally ask.

"Well, I guess here it would be 'Perthea to Kaylin,' but you know what I mean!"

I slowly shake my head, not having the slightest clue as to what Brittney means at all. I look to Derrick to see if he has any idea what she's talking about. He shrugs.

Kevin sighs. "You and your Earthling vernacular."

"Hey!" Brittney says, stomping, "it's not my fault that I don't know which planet to use which phrases on!"

"You should still be careful with phrases like that, especially on Earth," Kevin says. "If a fed on Earth heard you say something was 'as red as a rotizelle,' they'd be all over you."

"Yeah, well... at least that won't be a problem soon," Brittney says with a sorrowful look in her eye as she crosses her arms.

Brittney, Kevin, and Derrick share a knowing look. I remember Brittney telling me back in stage two that she was from Earth, but aside from that, I have no idea what anyone's talking about.

"Um..." I pipe up, awkwardly breaking the silence between the four of us. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Oh! Well, it's a long story... I can fill you in later," Brittney says, pulling out her phone. "Great Barrier Reef! It's already 3:17! I better get going! Bye, you guys!"

Brittney waves at Kevin, Derrick and I briefly before speeding off.

"Brittney!" I call out to no avail. "What's a barrier reef?!"

"Well," Kevin says, eyes glued to his phone again, "I better get going, too. You know how my mom gets."

He fist bumps Derrick and turns away, not even sparing me a passing glance as I stand on the balcony wondering how it is his mom gets.

Once Kevin and Brittney are gone, Derrick turns to me and smiles. "I'll see you out back," he says with a wink before turning and walking away from the balcony.

I gulp, shivers running down my spine. What is it I signed up for?

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

I glance at myself in the mirror I hung inside my locker. I don't look that nervous, do I? My twitching eyes and trembling lip say otherwise. I heave a shuddering sigh and close my locker door. It's useless. I don't know how I'll ever get over this stupid fear. I don't know what Derrick had in mind when he said he wanted to help me, but whatever it is, what good could it possibly do? After years upon years of journaling, meditation, and not to mention therapy, I've found that nothing has helped to cure me of my fear. So whatever Derrick has in mind, I'm almost certain it won't do me any good. I'm going to be afraid of pertheans forever!

With every step I take on the path to my destination, I grow more and more faint. My legs wobble like jelly, and my insides reduce to mush. My mind swarms with questions and anxieties about this meeting. Is it really safe for a human to be meeting with a perthean alone? Does Derrick really want to help me, or does he have it in for me? Am I going to make it out of this meeting alive?

I shake my head. Of course I'm going to make it out of this meeting alive! Derrick and I are friends after all, and I'm sure he has no intent to hurt me. He probably just wants to help, like he said.

As I'm thinking through these things, the image of that twisted grin plastered across my deskmate's face comes to my mind.

"Let me help you, Kaylin," I imagine Derrick saying. "When I'm through with you, you won't feel a thing ever again!"

My head quickly twists from side to side. I can't go through with this! I can't go out there and let him do whatever he wants to me! I have to get away now while I still can! I stop dead in my tracks, turning away from the hallway that leads to behind the school and run as fast as I can to the elevators that go down to the lobby.

After a moment of standing around, a mechanical whirr reaches my ears. A tone sounds on the overhead speaker, and the door in front of me slides open. Keeping my head down, I board the elevator with some other students.

My heart sinks as I step into the cabin. I'm running away. Again. Is this all I know how to do?

The image of Derrick smiling flashes in my mind. This time, it's the smile he gave me when he told me he wanted to help me. There was compassion in his eyes. I could see it. I could feel it. I think back to his words. 'Let me help you...'

I place a hand on the elevator door as it begins to shut, to the surprise of the other students.

"Sorry," I say. "I... forgot something."

I exit the elevator, turn the corner, and head straight down the hall until I happen upon a set of doors. Doors like these that lead outside of buildings are usually marked as emergency exits, since humans usually dwell in the undercity unless they leave through a proper exit. These doors, however, don't share any markings with the emergency exits I've seen around this school. So, if I'm right, they shouldn't sound an alarm.

I take a deep breath and exhale. This is it. No more running away. I crack open one of the doors and peer into the outside world, wondering what awaits me on the other side.

I immediately shield my eyes. It's so bright out here! Right when I think I'm adjusted to this foreign place, a wind carrying the early spring chill blows right through me, leaving me covered in goosebumps. I wince, rubbing my arms forcefully. I didn't miss being above ground.

"I was starting to think you wouldn't come," Derrick says.

My heartbeat quickens as I look up at my deskmate. He's standing a few perthean yards away from the balcony, which I find a bit strange. His hands are tucked away in his pockets, and his gaze is fixed on the ground.

"I-I..." I cough, hoping it'll stop my stuttering. "I had some trouble finding the exit."

"I see," Derrick says.

He keeps his eyes fixated on the ground, and only looks up at me for a brief moment before turning his eyes back to the concrete. He takes a deep breath and holds it in briefly before exhaling.

"Um," he finally says, breaking the silence between us. "I already asked you this before, but... I want to hear your answer."

Derrick shifts in place before locking eyes with me. I already know what he's going to ask, yet I can't stop my heart from pounding and pounding! And I don't know if it's because of the cold Carmen air or just because I'm so nervous, but I can't stop shivering!

"Kaylin," Derrick asks, "are you afraid of me?"

My insides contort into a knot. Why am I so nervous? I already told him earlier! Maybe it's just that I don't want to tell a perthean about my fear directly. Whatever the case, I have to tell him. I can't go back now.

I look down at the balcony floor, unsure of how I should go about confessing my fear. Should I apologize? I already did that before, so maybe I shouldn't do it again. Should I try to justify it? He's just so tall, after all! Then again, I don't want to make him angry. Maybe I should just come out and say it. But standing here with my legs wobbling, my shoulders shuddering, and my throat drier than a desert, how can I?

"Kaylin?" Derrick says.

"I-I—" I stutter helplessly under my deskmate's gaze. I hold my breath, only for my lungs to scream at me to let the air go so they can take in more oxygen at an ever-accelerating pace. My heart skips a beat. I release the breath I was holding in and try to look my deskmate in the eyes.

Derrick looks at me blankly. I can't help but wonder what's going through his mind.

Unable to keep eye contact, I tear my gaze away from Derrick's and settle it back on the balcony floor. "Yes," I say.

There's a silence between us. The wind rustles through the nearby trees and blows through the grass that surrounds our empty portion of the school grounds. I'm relieved to have gotten my answer out, but I'm worried about what's on Derrick's mind as a result. Did he really mean what he said about helping me? Is he really sensitive like Brittney said? Did I hurt him by telling him I'm afraid? Does he want to hurt me?

I look back up at Derrick. His lips are pursed and his eyes, fixed on the ground, move back and forth as if he's deep in contemplation.

"When did this start?" he asks.

I gulp. Visuals I don't want to remember come flooding back to my mind. A short walk past the undercity exit through an enormous city above ground. A dark, unsuspecting alleyway. A tall perthean man with narrowed brown eyes.

I shake the thoughts away. I'm not going back there. "It's... always been this way, ever since I was little."

"But can you pinpoint a specific memory?" Derrick asks.

"I-I...!" I stutter again as I fall victim to my own thoughts.

The tall perthean man in the alleyway turns to me with a devilish grin. He's approaching me! His hands are coming for me, and I'm glued to the ground! I can't move! My heart slams against my ribcage, and my lungs gasp for air as I stand in place, unable to snap out of the trance I'm in!

"Anything at all?" my deskmate asks.

I grip the railing in front of me tightly, my brows furrowed in anger as I blink back the tears that threaten to fall from my eyes. "You... you need to mind your own business," I say through gritted teeth.

"What?" Derrick asks, confused.

"Mind your own business!" I shout, the tears I so desperately tried to blink back now streaming down my face one by one. I grip the railing in front of me even tighter than before, it being the only thing keeping me grounded in reality and away from the memories my mind wants to force on me so desperately.

"I'm... sorry I upset you," Derrick says, taking a step backward. "I... I should go," he says, turning around and hurrying away.

I look up to see Derrick walking away, his head down and his hands hidden away in his pockets. A burning guilt builds in my chest. What have I done? My friend offers to help me with my fear, and I chase him away? I look at my hands. What kind of monster am I? What's he going to think of me now?

"Derrick, wait! Please!" I call out. I just hope he can hear me!

My deskmate stops only a few more perthean yards from where he once stood. My heartbeat rings in my ears. I have his attention? What do I say now?!

"I...! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to snap at you like that!" I shout.

Derrick remains motionless. What I said must have really gotten to him. I feel horrible!

I breathe in and out. "When you told me you wanted to help me, I didn't know what to think. I thought maybe it was a joke, or maybe you wanted to give me a piece of your mind for being afraid of your people, but... I've been scared for so long."

I shift in place, not really sure what I'm saying or where I'm going with this. Derrick stays in place, only turning his head back towards me slightly.

"I... I don't know where else to turn," I say, gripping the railing in front of me again. "I could never ask this of anyone else, so...!"

I lean over the balcony as far as I'm able to, eyes fixated on Derrick's distant figure. Yes, I'm terrified of pertheans. No, I'd rather not be attending a deskmate school. But this one awkward perthean boy... he's somehow managed to sneak his way into my heart in spite of those things, and I'm finding that I don't want to lose him. Not over something as stupid as this!

"I need your help, Derrick!" I shout. "Please, help me!"

I stare onward at my deskmate, who is still glued to the same spot as before. Nothing. I guess he's not going to forgive me this time. I look down to the balcony floor in defeat. I knew this was too good to be true. An opportunity like Derrick offered me only comes once in a lifetime, and I crushed it. My fear became too much to handle in the moment, and in front of a perthean? Forget it. It was only a matter of time before I lashed out like this. I'll be lucky if Derrick ever talks to me again after this.

Footsteps, one by one, make their way towards the balcony. Anxiety swelling in my gut, I keep my head down as a massive shadow overtakes my little frame.

"Kaylin..." Derrick says, his voice trailing off.

I look up at him, not sure what to expect but fearing the worst. His eyes are full of wonder, and his mouth is left agape. He blinks at me a few times and smiles.

"I'll do it," he says, "I'll help you overcome your fear!"

I gasp. Maybe it's the chill of the cooler surface world air. Maybe it's the cold early spring wind blowing through my hair. Maybe it's the slightest bit of warmth from the sun peaking through the clouds. Whatever it is, it washes over me, relieving my anxiety.

"Th-thank you," I say, wiping my tears away. "Really."

"Don't mention it," Derrick says. "Now, getting back to the matter at hand..."

He lifts his hand and moves it towards me. What's he doing?! I stumble backward, almost tripping over my own two feet in the process. Derrick rests his hand over the balcony railing in front of me, his palm facing upwards. Shivering and shielding myself with my arms, I struggle to catch my breath after such an unexpected movement. I look at his hand, confused, and then look at him. This isn't balcony etiquette. Why is he offering me his whole hand?

"Shall we get started?" my deskmate says with a smile.

[bleedingichorhearts]

𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐌𝐚𝐲: 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬

𝕬𝖚𝖙𝖍𝖔𝖗: Have the long lost Mini Marines. They cute until they are not.

𝕿𝖆𝖌𝖌𝖊𝖉: @kit-williams, @egrets-not-regrets, @bispecsual, @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan, @sleepyfan-blog.

TW // Monster Kisses?

|°𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬°| |°ᴛᴀɢ ʟɪꜱᴛ ᴀᴘᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ°| • {𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧} • {𝐗𝐞𝐫𝐱𝐞𝐬} • {𝐙𝐚𝐝𝐤𝐢𝐞𝐥}

Picking up a tiny rock from the ocean floor. I observed it for its importance, bubbles surrounding my view while I exhaled carbon from my mask. A slight churr-like sound going though the bright and clear blue waters of the coral reefs.

It was a dull and dirty looking rock, but if cracked or cleaned it might prove to be more than what it perceived itself to be. It could be some vintage gem fallen overboard from a shipwreck thousands of years ago, or it could simply just be a a plain, old rock.

Testing to see if it’s a real gem or not. I rubbed the rock between my gloved, pointer finger and thumb. A layer of grime coming off the rock with a shine to it, but nothing of a certain glimmer. It was just a plain rock amongst the colorful corals like: staghorn coral, flower coral, pillar coral, organ pipe coral and few other beautiful species.

Tossing the rock away. I turned away from it, looking for a more… expensive rock as the previous rock slowly floated down in the water from the direction I threw it. My power underwater doing nothing like from up above, too pressurized to do much of anything in the water than open air that was way lighter to move in.

Alerted by feeling a small tug near my belt line, I twisted in the water to look down at my waist. Briefly checking up on my bag of trinkets, and noticing a small and peculiar sea monster putting some actual gems into my bag. A little chirp coming out of the little egyptian blue and gold creature as they pat the bag closed, ensuring their security.

Such small yet powerful creatures they were. Fooling anybody and anything with their size, considering they were much more gigantic in their original size. They just chose to be small for the most part to attract pray and look undeniably cute like a seahorse; likes to wrap around your arm like one too.

It how one of them… attracted me. Pulling me into their place of hiding with their vibrant, flashing colors of their scales. Swimming around me in circles if they deemed I was a little too slow for them, but they were patient enough not to disrupt their mission on scaring the absolute hell out of me.

They did that by having me follow their cute little shows of swimming around me and pulling me in into some sort of water cave. Little and big trinkets of treasury decorating the cave with a big beds of kelp being in perfect circles in selective places. It had made me think it was an unnatural phenomenon going on until this way bigger sea creature came out of nowhere and trapped me up in their crimson scales. Their helm pressing up against my forehead; rumbling some sort of language I couldn’t understand underneath water nor above.

I really should have known not to follow such vibrant creatures into a… nest of sorts. It either meant they were in really good health or they were poisonous. Which in my case, I took them as very healthy. Not thinking I could be led and wrapped into an impossibly bigger version of the little sea monsters. I had thought they were just small and cute! Not big and snarly!

Oh, but that’s where they liked to puzzle me on. Watch the confusion and discomfort on my face as their bones would grow and pop into place in order to become bigger or smaller. Sometimes they even make it look like they continuously grow bigger and bigger, bamboozling me even more just when I had thought they were at their max growth. The navy blue sea monster with an electric blue lateral line thought it was pretty funny on his end.

Speaking of the sea creature that laughs at my discomfort. He was swimming from coral to coral behind the egyptian blue creature, chasing down a blue tang that he probably deemed too blue for his tastes. Only liking to be the only blue besides his other… species? That runs within the pod with him.

Watching him hunt after the rather swift fish. It’s flat body rounds a coral then swims around the navy blue creature, confusing him when he does a 360° himself twice before bolting after the tricky fish again. Swimming straight into my open hands.

Gently grabbing onto the little blue terror, I bring him up to my mask while he lightly struggles in my grip. A squeak coming out of him when I exhale carbon from my mask, more bubbles going through the water; greatly affecting the tiny terror in my hands as he wiggles with much more ferocity and escapes my grasp. A muffled laugh escaping me while he hides behind his egyptian blue podmate.

So much for being a terror if he is so easily affected by some bubbles.

Trying to cool off my laughing as to not use up too much oxygen. I shake my head; barely noticing a big shadow off to my side and a shadow blocking the natural light above me. A small and muffled shriek leaving me at the sight of the crimson sea creature charging me. Taking no time to wrap around my body like the first time he did, lowly purring at me in his way of greeting.

With a huff, I patted the man-sea-creature-thing on its hard scales. Feeling another nuzzle being pressed up against my cheek. An Artichoke green taking up half side of my view while crimson had taken my other half of my view.

In attempt to hopefully escape the grip of the crimson sea creature and the hovering green artichoke creature. I gave the green one the best chin scritches I could in my confiscating position, my fingers scratching just right underneath his helm. A deep purring coming out of them as their finrot tail twitched. With the crimson one, I slowly rubbed my fingers on his ripped dorsal fins, petting them down carefully, relaxing the big creature.

Having enough wiggle room to get out of their grasp. I swam up a little, hoping for a bit more space to deal with the big creatures before finding myself in yet another grip of a sea monster. Navy blue blocking my view as I suddenly find myself above the sea water. Seagulls squawking in the distance at one of the many lone islands that hasn’t been touched by anyone but me.

“Saveth.” I muffly groan the creatures name as he rumbles down at me. His arms holding me in place by wrapping his tail around me while he comes forward to nuzzle my cheek. A coo sliding out from his helm as he pulled off my scuba mask. “Saveth!”

“I need that you—!” I started then choked. Saveths’ dark blue tongue pressing against my lips and into my mouth, wrapping around my own tongue with a groan before pulling away. Chuckling at my surprised and breathless form.

It was a weird feeling. Having a much bigger tongue in your mouth that absolutely dominates your own, that produces much more saliva. One would be grossed out by it if it was their first time, but these creatures liked to… surprise me.

Wiping his excess saliva off my lips, I heard a chirp behind me. My torso twisting in Saveths’ grip to look at the noise of the egyptian blue creature: Scarab, now all big too with the other two popping up from the water for behind him.

Oh, shoot.

“Now, hold on a minute!” I panic, wiggling in Saveths’ hold. Desperate to at least be in a different position! Yet the damn terror just held me in place! Cooing not so innocently down at me as the rest of the pod comes ever closer with Scarabs lighter blue tongue trailing across my lips.

They in fact, didn’t hold on for a minute. They took their time.

[lorre-verie]

⇢ ˗ˏˋ 𝐌𝐲 𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐡. 𝟐 ࿐ྂ

summary: (part 2 of the ‘my sanctuary’ series) It’s the first day of training with the Sully siblings, and all is going well, except for the fact that Neteyam, the oldest, has captured your heart. But what will happen when he crosses a boundary he didn’t know existed, causing you to lash out?

word count: 5.3k words EXACTLY

pairings: neteyam x gn! ao'nung's older twin! reader, lo’ak x tsireya

warnings: mentions of stress, being tired of life, etc, Neteyam may or may not be ooc (pushing my flirty neteyam agenda so hard), violence (not that much but fighting still ensues but its just a tiny little part yk), crying, physical touch.

note: most of the time when words are in italics in dialogue that means those words are being said in english

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | part 5 | masterlist

To say you weren’t absolutely delighted with the Sully family's arrival would be a complete, absolute lie. A lie so bad anyone could have seen through it. The type of lie that wouldn’t even be considered a lie because it was so bad. 

Your father had excused you from your training and your duties so that you could focus your time on helping the family get settled into their new environment, and you were ecstatic. This would be the first break you’d ever officially gotten that would last for more than a few fleeting moments. 

The first thing you all planned to do together was try and swim in the ocean; to test what you had to work with. You walked along the damp walkways of Awa’atlu with your younger siblings Tsireya and Ao’nung, discussing the many activities you could teach them. “We could teach them how to stand on their hands in the water, perhaps?” you suggested, Tsireya nodding in agreement. 

“Oh! We could show them the glittering coral reef! Or how to weave cloth using seaweed?” Tsireya piped up, hands clasped together in excitement. Ao’nung scoffed behind you both, and you sent him a glare. “What?” you raised a nonexistent eyebrow. He rolled his eyes in response. 

“Can those tree huggers even swim? I’ll be surprised if they can even match the speed of a- OW!” he yelled, after you shut him up by pulling his ear for the second day in a row.. You crossed your arms, giving Ao’nung a disapproving glare as Tsireya giggled at his reaction, him rubbing his ear trying to soothe the pain. 

“Y/n, don’t you love me?? Don’t you care about your younger brother?? Why are you doing this to me?” he whined, being ridiculous as usual. 

“Oh shut up, you buffoon.” you sighed, getting tired of your brother's consistent efforts of trying to get you to apologize as you walked to the agreed upon meeting place near the Sully’s marui. Even Tsireya was annoyed at this point. 

Past the broad leaves of the trees that surrounded the walkway, you saw the 4 dark blue na’vi sitting in the sand by the water and a smile creeped up on your face as you noticed the youngest playing with the sand, and seeming to build a little structure out of it. 

“You’re supposed to be my older sibling, my protector, not hurt me!” Ao’nung fake cried, before opening his eyes and realising both you and Tsireya had already ran over to them. He immediately stopped his wailing and put on his serious face, walking over to all of you. 

“Morning, Kiri, Tuk, Lo’ak, Neteyam.” you smiled at them, Kiri sending a wave of her hand to greet you back paired with a slightly awkward smile, Lo’ak simply nodding in response and Neteyam sending you a sweet smile in return. 

“What are you making, Tuk?” you asked, crouching down to observe her . “It’s called a sandcastle! It’s a home made out of sand for tiny people!” she exclaimed happily, molding the sand together, her braids flying around in the air and she ran back and forth to cup water in her hands and poured it on the mound. The foreign word and the concept altogether made you confused, but you decided to just smile and nod.

“Hey, uhm. Tsireya.” Lo’ak croaked out, his voice cracking as he said your sister's name. He covered his mouth and looked like he wanted to punch himself in the face, but your sister did not seem to notice. “Yes, Lo’ak?” she smiled bashfully, putting her hands behind her back. 

You grinned at the sight. Those two were adorable together. As you looked at them having their conversation, your mind wandered. Would you ever find that type of love with anyone? It only seemed impossible for you.

Sudden sounds of gagging and throwing up behind you interrupted your train of thought. Ao’nung, you rolled your eyes. To others it would seem like he was just being bothersome per usual, but you knew that he was just being protective of your little sister in his own little way. 

Recently he’d been more vigilant in his task of watching over Tsireya, especially when she talked to other boys, probably because she was approaching the time to begin her rites of passage. 

You stood up and tilted your head backwards to look at Ao’nung, followed closely by Rotxo. You did a quick head count as Rotxo went to talk to Kiri before announcing, “Alright, now that everyone’s here we can get to the diving rock.” 

“Diving rock?” Neteyam said, standing up. “Yes, it's that rock over there.” you pointed at a large rock in the distance. He walked over next to you, bending down to see properly where you were pointing at. He put his hand on your shoulder, and you tensed up at the sudden contact. His hand was warm. 

Although his touch was foreign, it just felt right somehow.  “Can you see it?” you said, letting out a breath you didn’t realize you were holding.

“Yea, I can see it just fine now.” he whispered, his omaticayan accent stirring something deep in your stomach. You could feel his warm breath on your neck, sending shivers down your spine. 

You turned to look at him out of impulse, and your breath hitched when you found that he was already looking at you, golden eyes boring into yours, as if he was searching for something. 

It’s as if the world went silent. Your surroundings melted into nothing, leaving just you and Neteyam. Time had stopped, the only sign that the universe hadn’t paused being your heartbeat, pumping in time. 

You were pulled out of your daze when Neteyam took his hand off your shoulder and started conversing with Kiri. Thankfully, it seemed that nobody had noticed your little interaction, being too immersed in their own conversations– and Tuk’s “san cashu’ul”.

You grabbed Kiri’s arm and helped her onto the diving rock, and you both sauntered towards Tsireya and the others who were already standing at the very top of it. 

“I take it that you all know how to dive and swim?” Tsireya asked, the question directed to the omaticayans. They all nodded in response, all but Tuk. She craned her neck to look past the edge of the rock, examining how big the jump would be. Once she saw that it was about 3 times her own height, she slowly backed away from the ledge in fear, ears folded downwards. 

Lo’ak saw this, and was determined to make his baby sister less terrified. He wanted to be the older brother for once, and he considered this to be the perfect moment. He moved towards the girl and got down on one knee. “Hey sis, look at me.” he said, in a voice so low that only she could hear him. She turned her head towards him, bottom lip turned outwards in a pout.

He put a hand on her head. “You can do this alright? You are the brave warrior Tuktirey, and you are not going to let a small cliff stop you.” he encouraged her in english, but to no avail. “But I’m not a warrior… I’m only 7…” she said, head lowered and eyes not meeting his.

“Hey, we can’t let age stop us like that. Do you want to be a brave warrior? Or nah. Cause y’know it’s really fine if you don’t. You can just, I dunno, weave tents.” 

Tuk furrowed her nonexistent eyebrows, slightly outraged by her brother's statement. “Yes I do! I don’t wanna weave tents my whole life!” she argued. 

You shared a look with Ao’nung. You had no idea what they were saying. Kiri and Neteyam on the other hand, their eyes were wide open. Lo’ak? Being a good brother? Unheard of!

“Well then, are you gonna let a stupid cliff intimidate you?” Lo’ak asked, smirking. “No!” Tuk shouted. “Lemme hear you say it louder!” he said, spurring her on. Tuk giggled, shouting “No!” even louder. 

“That’s right! You are gonna dive like you never have before, you hear me!” he yelled while getting up. “Yeah!” she shouted, pumping a hand into the air. “LOUDERR!” he bellowed, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify the sound, eyes screwed shut and head tilted backwards towards the sky. “HELL YEAH!!!” she screamed, jumping up and down in excitement. 

You glanced at Neteyam, who was now sharing the same impressed look with Kiri. You couldn’t understand the conversation, but you knew it was a good thing. Tsireya was giggling, her eyes solely focused on Lo’ak. Rotxo and Ao’nung were just laughing, entertained by the two siblings’ howling.

Lo’ak took a deep breath, before bellowing again. “LLLOOOOUUUDDERRRRR!” “HELL! YEAHHHHHHHH!” she waved her hands high up in the air, cheering for herself. They both just started screaming nonsense, and all of you excluding Lo’ak and Tuk were grimacing, covering your ears. 

Somewhere, Neytiri was laying and chatting with Ronal near the beach, rays of light shining onto them. They were sunbathing. “Right, and the only way to truly control your children sometimes is to just-” Neytiri stopped, suddenly hearing the loud sounds of familiar screaming. “AAAAAGHHHH”

Their ears both pointed into the direction of the source of the screaming. Ronal sighed, expecting Neytiri to leave her in concern of her children. The omaticayan looked back at her.

“I’m…sure they’ll be fine. Neteyam will have it covered. If not, then my mate for once.” she dismissed, continuing with her previous sentence, Ronal humming in agreement.

Just as Neteyam was about to stop them and their insolent behavior, Tuk ran to the edge of the rock, still screaming, and jumped. “DO A FLIP!” Lo’ak called. And she did. 

You all crowded towards the ledge, peering down to see if she would resurface. It was silent for a few moments, the white foam and bubbles on top of the cerulean ocean showing no sign of her. Lo’ak being in front, got nervous and jumped into the water.

You waited for about 5 more seconds with bated breath. Just then, Tuk erupted from underneath the water with a big smile on her face, shaking the water out of her face. Everyone burst out in cheers. She was followed closely by Lo’ak, who nodded his head in beaming approval. “Lo’ak! I did it! I really did it” she screamed, her smile stretching across her face. “Never doubted you, sis.” he smirked, and they both high-fived. 

After Tsireya, Kiri, Ao’nung and Rotxo dived in, it was Neteyam’s turn. “Go on, forest boy. Show me what you can do.” you teased with a smile, arms crossed. He cocked his head, looking down at you. “No no, I’d much prefer it if you could teach me.” He gave you a sincere smile, but you could see the mirth dancing and twirling around in his eyes. 

“Teach you? Didn’t you say you already knew how to dive?” you questioned, looking up at him. He was so close, chest pressed against your folded arms. 

Since that interaction at the shore, you couldn’t tell what his deal was. He seemed sweet and polite to you when around others, but when you were alone, he was cocky and confident, always gazing at you in amusement.

“Well yes, but I noticed that you guys dive differently. You all stretched in some way before diving with perfect posture.” he responded, making unwavering eye contact with you. “Mmm. Alright then. I’ll teach you. But I will not be kind.” you muttered. “Perfect.” he smiled, leaning forward slightly.

“Straighter back.” you demanded, hitting the arch of his spine. “Cut me some slack…” he groaned. Your teaching reminded him of back when he had to learn how to wield his bow properly, except this was much harder. You pursed your lips into a straight line. “I do not know what that means. You know this.” you said nonchalantly, using your hands to fix his waist in order to do the stretching movement properly. 

Ao’nung burst out of the water, looking up at you two. “Hey! What are you guys doing??” he yelled. His eyes turned to slits as he saw you holding Neteyams waist behind him. That was not a good position to be caught in. 

“Do not worry about it! I’m teaching Neteyam how to dive in the metkayina way.” you yelled back. He rolled his eyes before dipping back into the water. “It means cut me some slack, y/n.” Neteyam resumed, voice slightly strained because he was not comfortable in the slightest.

You scoffed, backing away from him. The way he was trying to stretch flexed his muscles (emphasis on trying), and you were silently admiring his body. The light from the sky shone on his back, accentuating the curves on his arms and waist. “Y/n? Can I please stop this..” he practically begged. 

An idea popped into your head. “Yes, you may.” you smiled. “There is just one last thing I must teach you. Just relax your body,” you said. He relaxed his muscles in relief. “Forest boy?” you mumbled, placing your hands on his back. “Yeah?” he responded, and you felt him shudder under your gentle touch. 

“Fly.” you whispered, pushing him forward. He screamed while falling messily into the water, and you couldn’t contain your laughter. You followed him shortly after, not before executing a flawless twisted somersault in the air and landing in the water with a splash, looking around to figure out where he was. You couldn’t find him among the sea life, and started to panic, worry etched into every part of your face. Had you gone too far?

Just as you were about to swim up to the surface you felt someone pull you down by the waist. 

It was him. His grip tightened, and you thrashed around trying to fight your way back up for some air. The bubbles in the water from your movements surrounded you, obscuring your vision. Despite this, you weren’t upset. Or mad at him. You were smiling, trying your best to not laugh, else you’d swallow water. 

Your tail swished around behind you, and you felt it hit something, probably his face. Neteyam’s hand released you, allowing you to finally float up to the top of the ocean. Taking a deep breath of the salty air when you finally made it back up, you laughed to yourself and dipped your head back in to take a look at where he might be. You almost inhaled the seawater when you opened your eyes, because he was literally right in front of you. 

With your quick instincts you immediately whipped your head out, and when you were done wiping the water from your face, Neteyam was already face to face with you, a bold smirk plastered on his face when he saw how flustered you were from the closeness. 

“That good looking am I?” he chuckled, taking in your form. You simply gave him an unamused look, even though deep down inside you really just wanted to kick him away from you. But you weren’t going to let him know that he was getting to you. “Let’s just go swim with the others.” you said, swimming away from him, motioning for him to follow. 

You met up with Tsireya, Rotxo and Ao’nung catching up to them. Tsireya’s mouth curved into a smile when she saw you, and she signed “You are late.” with a mischievous glint in her eye. Your stomach did backflips at what she was suggesting. You swiftly played it off and signed back, “Nothing happened.” putting a normal look on your face like you didn’t get what she was trying to say. But Tsireya wasn’t dumb, she knew that you knew. 

But she decided to let it go, for now, because she was more concerned about the omaticayans behind you, who were at the top of the water, floating. Lo’ak submerged his head back into the water and looked at Tsireya who was signing, “Swim with us.” with a kind smile. You whirled around in the water to take a look at Neteyam, Lo’ak and Tuk. You noticed Kiri’s absence, asking Tsireya “Where is Kiri?” to which she shrugged as a response. “Maybe she swam ahead.” your sister suggested.

You all tread in the water a little more, turning yet again to wait for the omaticayans. But they swam up to the surface again to take in more air. Ao’nung signed, “What’s wrong with them?” with an annoyed expression on his face. At times like this you very subtly wanted to strangle your younger brother. 

“They are lousy divers.” Rotxo added. “Stop.” you and Tsireya both signed at the same time. “They are learning.” she signed, clicking her tongue, and you nodded in agreement. Ao’nung rolled his eyes and you pinched his neck out of irritation. Being the drama queen he was, he feigned death as if you had stabbed him in the heart with a spear. You and Tsireya swam up to talk to the omaticayans as Rotxo put Ao’nung in a headlock, the two fighting under the water.

This time both Neteyam and Lo’ak submerged their face in the water, looking at the both of you (followed by Rotxo and Ao’nung who were frantically scrambling to the surface to get some air because they were fighting like idiots prior) floating up gracefully to meet them. “Are you alright?” Tsireya asked softly, looking genuinely concerned.

“You’re too fast! Wait for us!” Tuk groaned, rubbing her eyes as Ao’nung and Rotxo came from under the water with a splash, shaking the water out of their hair and laughing at each other. Your brother looked at each of the omaticayans, all out of breath. “You are not good divers–” he sniggered, chuckling at his own joke he hadn’t even said yet– “Maybe good at swimming through trees but-” his sentence was interrupted by Tsireya, who gave him a smack on the back of his head. He gave her an offended look.

“C’mon bro.” Lo’ak sighed, eyebrows furrowed. He was clearly getting tired of Ao’nung’s relentless comments about their differences, as were you. “We don’t speak this “finger talk”, we don’t know what you’re saying.” Neteyam said, earning a slightly annoyed look from Tsireya when he said “finger talk”. However, she dismissed it. “I will teach you.” she acknowledged. 

“Where is Kiri?” Rotxo asked, his words laced with concern. Everyone including you started calling out her name and looking for any sign of her, with the exception of Ao’nung, who was too busy trying to figure out who “Kiri” was.

At long last, the day’s activities had ended. It was going to be eclipse soon, and you all decided it would be best to leave the ilu riding and teaching for the next day. You and Tsireya guided the Sully family back to their marui, met with smiles from Jake and Neytiri who thanked you both. “You must stay for dinner.” Neytiri insisted, with a kind smile on her face. 

Even as enamoured as you were, being face to face with a famous and fierce warrior (and Toruk Makto of course) who was inviting you for dinner, you had to politely decline as there was some place that you wanted to go to more. 

Tsireya, on the other hand, excitedly accepted the invitation, asking you to notify your parents on your way back. You gave her a knowing smirk, pointedly looking towards Lo’ak. Her ears turned purple, and she hurriedly shooed you away from the Sullys’ marui. 

You stopped quickly at your family's marui, telling your mother and father that you and Tsireya would not be joining them for dinner. “Oh? Why not, my child?” Ronal asked, holding a basket of food that was to be roasted. “Tsireya is joining the Sully family for dinner,” you paused, noticing your mother’s face hardening slightly at the mention of them, “and I’m going to go and clear my mind for a bit.” Your father simply hummed okay, taking a sip of water.

“Where to?” she asked, a glint of something that you couldn’t quite place your finger on, lurking in her eyes. Your dad swallowed the water quickly, “Yes- Where to?” he asked with her, trying to be just as attentive and caring as his mate. “Just along the reefs. I will not go far.” you answered with a smile. 

You expected your mother to ask more questions, she usually did, but this time she simply nodded for you to go. You waved a quick goodbye before excitedly scampering off to your second home. 

However, in your haste, you did not notice your mother peering at your retreating figure, following you with her eyes. Technically, you never lied to her, but you weren’t being as truthful. She saw you heading in the direction of the reef you always went to, and a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth.

“Tonowari,” she breathed out. “Yes, love?” he responded. “I believe y/n has found it.” she said, still looking out from under the marui flap. “Didn’t you say that a while ago?” he asked, a little confused. “Yes….but I believe they have also found it.” she replied, gazing at the figure of a certain dark blue na’vi running to follow you.

You were knees deep into the water when you heard someone call your name. “Hey y/n! Are you about to run away or something?” Neteyam yelled, not far behind you. You whirled around in shock and disbelief. He had followed you here? The audacity! He walked towards you, that signature smirk plastered on his face. He was not aware at all of the boundary he had just breached.

You glared at him, anger written all over your face. “What’s wrong?” he asked, tilting his head to the left. You didn’t know whether he was asking out of concern or just teasing you, and you didn’t care. Who would he tell that he saw you going in this direction? What if he blabbed to the whole village, and everyone would have an idea of where you went everyday, going here to wait for you?

“Y/n-” he said, putting a hand on your shoulder. You responded with a right hook to his stomach, sending him toppling into the water with a splash. You straddled him, raising your hand to punch him again, arm shaking. You were unable to contain yourself. Anger consumed you. All the pent up frustration from your past responsibilities and what you had to endure came flooding back into your head, as well as all the guilt. 

It wasn’t rational of you to act this way, but you just couldn’t think of anything else you could do.

His hand stopped yours, and he grabbed your waist to flip you both around, turning the tables. You thrashed against his hold, this reminding you of when you were in the water, but a whole lot different. Before, you were fighting him playfully, happily, but now you were just a mess. He picked you up and flung you over his shoulder (this man is STRONG as hell), pinning you to a tree. 

You were truly a mess now. Your attempts to get out of his hold turned into pathetic slaps, punches and cries, tears flowing down your face. You tried to stop, but you simply couldn’t. To you it felt as if Eywa stripped you bare and exposed you to the world, as you hadn’t cried in front of anyone in years. 

“I’m- I’m so, so sorry, so sorry, Neteyam. So-" you hiccuped- "so sorry…” you cried, leaning against the tree and wiping the tears from your face. “Shhh, it’s alright. Just calm down, calm down.” he comforted you, hands on your shoulders and still holding you against the tree, lest you run away from him.

You opened your teary eyes, looking into his. To your surprise, he didn’t look angry, or annoyed, or upset. He looked at you, calm and comforting. Your crying had reduced to sniffles, and you turned your gaze to the spot on his stomach which you striked earlier. He noticed this, and he smirked. “You may have gone through olo’eyktan training but I have too, y/n. It’ll take more than a little punch to injure me.” he said, trying to lighten up the mood (even though inside he felt like you knocked the living daylights out of him).

You didn’t respond, standing up straight. He let you go, wondering if he said the wrong thing. Instead of running, you pulled him into a hug. He froze, not knowing what to do, but after a few seconds he leaned into the hug, patting your back and ensuring you that everything would be fine. 

Now, you were both sitting on the shore silently, looking at the night sky and the luminescent plantlife glowing from underneath the water. You couldn't believe how ridiculous the outburst you just had just was. The water touched your feet, and you wrapped your arms around your legs as you sat. He sat about a few inches away from you, similarly staring into the sky.

“Do you..want to talk about it?” he asked, his voice sincere. 

“Only if you promise not to utter a word to anyone else," you inhaled, "And to not think of me as a monster after this.” the last words spoken in a mumble.

“Pinky promise.” he said, holding out his smallest finger, and you looked at him in confusion. “Oh right- I’ll teach you that later.” he dismissed, putting his hand back on the sand.

“There’s...there's a later?” your ears perked up, your eyes turned to look at him. “Of course. You can’t scare me away that easily.” he laughed. 

You sighed, “Okay, I’ll tell you.” You pivoted on your spot, whole body turned towards him. You told him the story of how you felt stressed of having to shoulder the responsibilities of your clan at such a young age, and the guilt of running away from them. You knew it wasn’t right, that you should have taken responsibility for your actions or had a talk with your parents about it. But you kept running back to the cave, as it kept you happy and comforted you, it was your safe space. 

“It’s not like I couldn’t help them, I was very capable of it. I was weak, lazy, irresponsible and stupid. The guilt has been eating away at me for forever, but I keep shoving it down. Maybe…maybe I just don’t deserve to be the next olo’eyktan.” you muttered, finishing your story.

 “It’s not your fault, y/n. You were just a kid when you had all that attention and those expectations pushed onto you, there was nothing else that you could do. And it’s not like you ran away from them completely, you just took a simple break every once in a while.” he said softly, putting his hand on your knee. Now that you both were calm, you could feel how exhilarating his touch was.

 “You know, I also had to endure tough training from my dad and stuff. The more I accomplished the more he expected from me,” he began.

“I wish I could have escaped like you did, every once in a while.” His golden eyes glowed in the night, and if you didn’t know who he was you would have thought he was a spirit staring into your soul. 

“I think that you were brave for doing that.” he mumbled, gently squeezing your knee. Your mind wandered back to when he grabbed you by the waist in the water, or how he picked you up in the fight before. Your cheeks turned purple, and you prayed to Eywa he didn’t notice it before you looked down.

A few more moments of silence passed by, you both heard nothing but the waves crashing softly against the sand, and the little taps of the tiny creatures burrowing their homes in the shore. You got up, stepping into the water once more. Neteyam watched you, confused. You were waist deep in the water when you turned back to him. 

“Well? Are you coming or not?” you yelled, and he quickly scurried to where you were, following you. You swam across the surface of the water, being considerate of the fact he couldn’t hold his breath for long. Eventually, you brought him a gill mantle so that he could breathe properly. Once he properly made the bond with it, you held his hand, guiding him to the tunnel. 

When you revealed what was past the seaweed he almost gasped the same way you did when you first saw it, and you smiled at his reaction. You let go of his hand, slightly wishing you didn’t, and began the descent into the tunnel, checking behind you to make sure he was following you. 

Once you made it into the cave, you immediately stepped out of the water, pulling out a new seashell you brought from out of your pouch, placing it on the wall. This is what you did every time you visited, bringing something special to add to the cave. Some of the items would be lost, probably as a result of the little creatures scuttling in to steal them, but you didn’t mind.

Neteyam poked his head out of the water, and he marvelled at the beauty of the cave, lips parted in shock. You smiled, sitting down on the smooth steps and dipping your legs into the water. “I told you, it’s stunning right?” you said, swishing the water around with your hand. 

“Well I can think of something that’s even more stunning-” he said with a suggestive smile, before you splashed him. “Okay okay! I surrender!” he laughed, before disattaching the bond with the gill mantle, letting it float around freely in the small water pool until it was needed again.

He sat next to you, his leg touching yours. You shivered from the contact. Everytime he touched you, or you touched him, it sent a tingle through your body, and you didn’t understand why. “I get why you keep coming back here.” he looked at you, “It’s beautiful.” You nodded, unsure of what else to say.

“..Do you want to play 20 questions?” he asked. You gave him a confused look (the na’vi only count until 16 because of the total amount of their toes and fingers, anything larger than that they just say ‘many’ so 20 here is said in english). “In English, they have words for every single number, all the way up to as many stars there are in the sky, or as many days have existed on Pandora.” he explained, and you looked at him with great interest.

“Twenty, is 16 and 4 together,” he added. You repeated the word in your mouth softly, ‘Twenty’. “Hey you got it! You don’t even have an accent.” he smiled, and you smiled back. It didn’t seem to be that hard to pronounce english words, if you were being honest. Like it was easy for you to learn how to speak in perfect sentences back when you were only 5.

“But what is twenty questions?” you asked, voice dripping with curiosity. Since you were a child, you wanted to know everything about everything that there was on Pandora. And you had learned everything that anyone could teach you, until now. 

“It’s a game where we can both ask twenty questions about each other, so we can get to know each other better,” he responded. That didn’t seem like such a bad idea, you thought. 

part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | part 5 | masterlist That’s all for now! Tysm for reading to the end, as always if there's any mistakes please feel free to point them out! Next part is going to be super fun, it also involves my own little headcanons of what Neteyam is like. Feedback is much much appreciated and I hope you enjoyed it! Please lmk if there was anything less than satisfactory, improvement is always something I strive for 💚

Taglist: @strawberryclouds22 @assistantquail @st4rrry @neteyamforlife @heaven1oo4 @spicycloudsalad @1ntefly @laylasbunbunny

[thatonegaycactus]

Do Y'all remember my pixel art of the fish swarm? Yeah have a more updated one since the last one! I've added quite a few fish since then, all fishes under cut as usual

If you have a fish suggestion feel free to let me know!

the 65 fishes in this:

Common carp, Electric Eel, Brook Trout, White sturgeon, Oman bullhead shark, Banded pipe fish, Sand tigershark, Hagfish, Devil's hole pupfish, Brown Trout, Regal Angelfish, Burbot, Cobia, Black-tip reef shark, redtail catfish, Golden trout, Sockeye salmon, Rainbow trout, Zebra moray eel, American eel, Goliath Grouper, Blackfin tuna, Longbill spearfish, Roosterfish, European perch, Blue parrotfish ,Halibut, Snowflake moray eel, Mahi-Mahi, Reef triggerfish, Atlantic Wolffish, California Sheephead, Sea lamprey, Giant oarfish, West indian AND Indonesian Coelacanth, Goblin shark, White spotted puffer, Reef Manta ray, Saddleback clownfish, Tiger shark, Gulper eel, Pacific Barreleye, White-tip reef shark, Reef stonefish, Telescopefish, Striped bass, Spotted gar, North atlantic Opah, Louvar, Ocean sunfish, Common remora, Slender sunfish, Silver cheeked toadfish, Great barracuda, Ribbon eel, Australlian angelshark, Tripod fish, Great hammerhead, Arapaima, Striated frogfish, Spotted ratfish, Leafy seadragon, Whaleshark, Southern stingray

[isleofdarkness]

Warnings- desperation, implied/referenced- starvation, genocide, forced famine, eating of pets, death, cannibalism, pollution, murder, massacre

"By the way," Maverick finally said, voice quiet and filled with something... if Ben hadn't known better, he would call it hopelessness. "We haven't gotten a barge in a month. The last one we got was full of livestock, but every single one of them was rabid. We had to euthanize and securely dispose of all of it, because we can't risk another outbreak and we don't want to take the chance you can get rabies from eating a rabid animal. Your dad didn't like that we checked them over before releasing them. All barges are now routed, by official orders, to Maleficent, and she distributes supplies as she sees fit.

"I can only manifest so much under the barrier and even if that weren't a problem, we have no way to distribute food. We would need carts, and those carts would need battalions we don't have to protect them because believe me, we tried, but Maleficent attacked what we sent out and stole everything before it could be distributed. Assuming we did have battalions, we would need an irregular drop schedule because Maleficent has the numbers to overpower us, and that irregular schedule would impair the amount of food we'd be able to hand out. We wouldn't be able to hand out anything in Villain's Keep of Barricade, because she can respond too quickly. We're using the ships to distribute, but that's not effective. Maleficent's men will attack people they notice going to the ships for food, kill them. If they see anyone carrying food, they take the food and kill the person. People are too scared to get food or supplies.

"It's only a matter of time before she starts attacking the ships. The Hope and the Secret are docked in places she can't get to yet, but it's only a matter of time before she sets her sights on the Roger, the Revenge, and even the Hurricane. The only one of those that's almost completely protected from her is the Hurricane. The Revenge is well-guarded but there's no way for them to cut off an enemy's access to the ship- the only way to access the Hurricane is a pipe, and that pipe can be blown the second Harriet give the order, but the Revenge is on the docks and the only way to cut off access would be to set sail. The Roger has pretty much zero protection- she's unable to sail, so if she gets attacked there's no way out. Also, the Hurricane is the only ship that has functioning long-range weapons. If the Hurricane is attacked while out at sea, they can fight back with more than just bows and arrows. The Revenge has no canons. As long as the Revenge is anywhere near the Isle, we run the risk of losing that one, too. And if we lose both of those, the only distributor will be Harriet and the Hurricane will be Maleficent's main target. And there would be a monumental loss of life.

"We could use the Broken Arrow, but Maleficent can still kill people going there for food and either way, we're monumentally fucked if the Arrow falls into her hands because she has a functioning model of the Tsar Bomba. Yeah, you heard me right.

"So really, we don't have an effective way of distributing food. Most of the Isle is reliant on barges, which they no longer have access to. It's only been a month but people are already getting desperate. I recovered seventeen corpses from The Woods last week alone.

"You have to realize that food on the Isle is entirely reliant on barges. Your father had the soil cursed so that it can't be farmed. The pollution kills sealife and plants, the only way we can fish is diving to the reef nearly two miles off the coast but the reef has sharks and a billion other hazards. We can't hunt unless we hunt rats and cats, because stepping into The Woods or the Wilds is a death sentence unless Tarzan or Mara happen to find you in time. We only have one source of fresh water, a well in Villain's Keep, and Maleficent controls access to it. We don't have ways to make our own textiles or other equipment, we don't have working electricity or gas to cook, and we don't have the equipment or knowledge required to build agricultural things in our basements. Don't even get me started on the hospital. Your father made us entirely reliant on his good grace and we're out of it for not letting another rabies outbreak happen.

"In two more weeks, people will get desperate. I've seen visions of it. They'll eat pets first, then, when they run out of those, they'll start eating other people. I see..." her eyes closed, "I see corpses, stripped of their flesh, left to rot in the streets. I see people being dragged out of their homes, dismembered, and cooked. I see thousands flocking to the few sources of food only to be murdered before they can even see the ships. Senseless murder, long, slow deaths, disease running rampant, innocent people being slaughtered in droves. I see mass exodus to the Isle of Exile, and I see the crazed eventually following us there. I see our last true refuge filled with thousands of people without room for thousands more suffering and dying.

"I see the end of everything we've built. I see our society crumbling under desperation. I see us being forced to leave our home because of your father's cruelty. And I see nothing I can do about it without giving your father an excuse to begin to massacre us.

"And I'm gonna be honest, what I see terrifies the fuck out of me. Because I don't know how to prevent it. I don't even know if it's possible to prevent." She finally looked him in the eyes, anxiety and desperation so strong it took Ben's breath away. "I want you to remember what I've said. And I want you to know that I've done what I've had to do. This is the only way forward I see, the only one where we have even the tiniest chance of survival. If you remember nothing else, remember that, Fenris."

[kinopioa]

Various Echidna tribes/civilizations (Part 2)

This part focuses on the other half of Echidna locales. Part 1: https://www.tumblr.com/kinopioa/752652998715572224/various-echidna-tribes?source=share

Mushroom Hill

This area doesn't seem to have much evidence of an existing civilization, but don't be fooled!

For one, these passageways are not natural, blatantly supported by wooden columns

Incidentally, one leading to the giant ring that warps to Hidden Palace

Other smaller evidence of a tribe here include...

Rope swings, metal bars. It's fairly little, possibly because the trees offered more than the valley/hill

Though this pulley machine might be Eggman's to extract resources. The site already was decaying from it's lush greenness due to the environment machine (it is NOT a weather machine)

It's unknown if these gliders are intentional, but the area has pits with updrafts

Sandopolis/Desert

A heavily decorated site, we see many pyramids in the horizon, along with fancy brickwork and heiroglyphics. Sandopolis in particular also rests ontop of a volcanic vent

The residents have many ways to traverse this scorched area, including arranged platforms, sand slides, floating conveyers, and a controlled climber's pulley. But the residents seem to be aware of another ancient entity, and I suspect the boss golem situated was to ensure no one goes in there to disturb them

The Hyudoro (literal translation as whooshing creeps) exist as morphing ghosts in the pyramid, growing stronger in the darkness. There are a series of timer based locks and light switches to scare them off, but if one fails to activate them, they grow into a horned appearance and swarm visciously

As mentioned previously, this site exists on top of a volcanic vent in the lower chambers. Maybe it's a way to punish wrongdoers?

Lava Reef/Red Mountain/Hidden Palace

Even more hellish than the desert, this next site plunges directly into the lava

Despite this, it seems the residents here were not only able to survive, but flat out embrace ways to control the lava. Pipes and channels can control the flow of lava directly, along with huge metal borders and crystalline structures deeper in passages. There are numerous tools and platforms to get around

There are also a significant amount of traps and spikes in the area, especially deeper in. This is likely to protect Hidden Palace

Unfortunately, Eggman's environment machine and the Death Egg crashing has dusturbed the area, causing the lava flow to be irregular. If Adventure is any indication, it's still got a ways to stabilize

Red Mountain focuses more on the outside of the volcano, again having systems to move across the site. Though Eggman's industrialism overtakes most of it during the events of Adventure

Still, there are some things not by him that were there originally, such as this prison holding these ghosts, along with skull shaped grave markers

Wonder what they did...

Going back deeper, Hidden palace, the intricately decorated and protected haven of several on the island for the Master Emerald

It's a lot less heavily littered with traps contained in prior areas, focusing more on symbolic imagery and beautiful interior architecture. We have the famous mural that predicts the events of this game

It does get me people are annoyed Knuckles no longer stores the Master Emerald here, but it isn't really "Hidden" anymore

It is pretty though

There's a direct connection with ancient tech to...Sky Sanctuary!

Image limit reached, see you in part 3!