#slippery slimy little goop.

[artilite]

oldd doodle back when s4 dropped in english 👀 ep 1 in cn already hooked me on the inkies but inky mk rewired my brain

[butterflyinthewell]

To autistic people who are starting to menstruate...

Okay I’m gonna go all auntie Cyndi on all my younger autistic followers who are new to having periods. I’ve been having my periods for over 20 years now, so I’m experienced in this.

First off, you may have your first period and not have another one for a few months. Your periods may start and happen like clockwork. Your periods may always be irregular.

It’s normal for your ovulation and menstruation to shift throughout the year just like the seasons shift the sun’s position in the sky.

On average, your period comes about two weeks after you ovulate. I’ve pinned mine down enough to know I bleed exactly 19 days after I ovulate, so I can look at a calendar and figure out within a four day margin of when to expect my period. Note that I said on average, some people may have a shorter or longer menstrual cycle.

You’ll know you’re ovulating when you produce a lot of mucus from your vagina that looks and feels like raw egg white. It’s clear, a little more viscous than your spit, it’s very slippery and it will drip out in long strings. I produce a lot, another person may not produce much. If you notice you’re really slimy down there when you’re wiping after you pee, and the toilet paper comes away with stringy slimy stuff on it, take note of the date you saw that and note the date again when get your period. Keep taking notes and a pattern may emerge. That’s your menstrual cycle.

NOTE: If you have unprotected sex during this time, you have a strong chance of getting pregnant. Sperm can swim a long way and survive a long time in the Fallopian tubes, waiting for an egg to come down. Always assume you can get pregnant between the time of finishing a period and starting the next one.

(And I hope this second one never happens to you, but...)

If you were raped during this time, and if they ejaculated inside you or on your vulva, you may get pregnant.

Always practice safe sex and use birth control if you want to avoid pregnancy, and if you were raped you need to assume they got you pregnant and get help to deal with it ASAP.

Now, lemme tell you a little about periods and autism going together.

PMS and your period can really mess with your sensory issues, your meltdown / shutdown threshold, your tolerance for socializing and your ability to control emotions.

You might have brain fog and just feel yucky and groggy.

You might find you want to sleep more or can’t sleep at all.

You might wake up with your armpits sweating heavily.

You may notice you start sweating with less exertion, or you walk into a warm room and swear you’re standing on the sun.

On the flipside, you may feel colder than usual, so walking into a cooler place will feel like walking into Antarctica.

Your skin may get more oily and that may mean greasier hair and more pimples. I know that feels unfair if you already have a lot of acne and problems with hygiene. If your hair length permits washing your hair in a sink, you can do that if a shower is too much. Try to wash your face gently with a wet washcloth when you wake up and before going to bed. Make sure to remove all your makeup before retiring to sleep if you wear any, because it will clog your pores even more if you don’t.

Your body odor may intensify, so keep baby wipes and deodorant / antiperspirant around if showering is hard. Hand sanitizer wiped on your pits can help in a situation where you realize you reek and can’t wash off, but only use that in emergencies.

You may experience some constipation and gas. That’s progesterone’s fault, sometimes it slows down your colon.

You may go from constipated to having huge, greasy poops or even some diarrhea. That’s your hormones shifting. Sometimes a period is a natural laxative because your intestines move a little faster thanks to the hormones that make your uterus contract (prostaglandins) to push out the endometrium. So if you have issues with fecal incontinence, you may have to deal with extra odors and messes when you change your incontinence protection.

Once your period starts, you’ll probably have to pee a lot more often. This is your body getting rid of the water it retained. If you deal with urinary incontinence, this might mean you need to change your incontinence protection more often to avoid infections, skin breakdown and odors.

Btw, you can dehydrate a little as your body sheds the excess water, so make sure to stay hydrated. I take three small sips or one big gulp from my water bottle after I use the bathroom during my period. It’s a helpful routine.

You may have food cravings and appetite changes. You may feel always hungry or not want to eat much or at all. Your desire to samefood might increase. (Mine is currently the cheese pizza flavored Cheez-Its.) Increased hunger is your body getting ready to lose nutrients through your menstrual flow. If you don’t feel your hunger signals, notice if you feel irritable or weak more often, it may mean you need to eat.

Your boobs may get a little bigger and get achy-feeling, so much that you can’t stand a bra or binder. You may get achy feelings in your joints or muscles. It’s likely water retention.

You may put on some weight. This is also water retention. You may find you always gain around the same about of weight each time you’re close to your period.

You may be really impulsive or take risks you wouldn’t usually take, sometimes to the point of recklessness.

You may feel restless like you want to climb out of your skin. Your frustration threshold might plummet to nothing, so everything is aggravating.

If you have self injurious meltdowns, you may have more SIB than usual. You might also notice an increased need to stim, and sometimes stimming doesn’t help you feel better or calm down.

If you’re physically able, try to do something that makes you exert yourself, like jogging, moving heavy things or some other kind of vigorous exercise. Even dance is good if that’s what you enjoy. Think of it as venting excess energy so it’s not stuck in your chest.

If you’re not physically able to exert yourself, try snuggling under a weighted blanket and pressure stimming. Think of it as drawing excess energy to where you’re putting pressure so it’s not stuck in your chest.

You may have mood swings and default to a certain mood so much that you feel stuck in it.

If you’re prone to migraines, you’re more likely to have one when you’re premenstrual.

All of this can be scary if you’re still new to having periods.

See a doctor if your bad feelings are so bad that you get super depressed and have suicidal thoughts two or more periods in a row, It could be PMDD, which is the nasty older sister of PMS.

PMDD is premenstrual dysphoric disorder, or a very extreme version of PMS.

It’s kinda normal for PMS symptoms to vary in intensity from month to month, but if you find yourself consistently in a very bad mental state before your period, you may need extra help to handle it.

Once your flow starts, you might have bursts of feeling REALLY good or affectionate: that’s because of oxytocin and maybe some serotonin, enjoy it.

Your flow may be fairly light, get heavy and then lighten again. You may start with a lot of gushes and then it lightens up until it stops. If you normally have a light flow and suddenly it turns heavy with an increase in cramping, there may be a problem that needs a doctor to check out. If your heavy flow gets even heavier, to the point that you’re soaking through the thickest pads, there may be a problem. Don’t let them blow you off, be firm. “I don’t normally bleed this much or have this much cramping, something is up.”

Things like stress, weight gain or weight loss can affect your period. Being sick can sometimes throw it off. Periods are fickle, annoying and weird things. Keep track of them, take note of the color and amount of your flow and get to know it. Knowing your body at its baseline will help you recognize it later if something goes wrong. It may take your cycles time to find their “normal” as your body figures out how to handle having periods.

It never hurts to always have a pad, tampon, menstrual cup or whatever you use to catch your flow. Keep it in your backpack, purse, pocket, etc.. If you prefer pads, it’s always a good idea to put one in your underwear if you’re expecting your period and you go out somewhere. That way it won’t be a huge emergency if your flow starts. Putting one in when you go to sleep at the time you expect your period flow can also help you sleep easy and not worry about making a mess in your bed.

(I personally prefer thick pads, so it feels like I won’t leak, but I know that may be a sensory yuck for someone else. Try different things till you find what works.)

Those little gushes you feel occasionally are normal. Yeah, sometimes you will feel your period goop coming out. Some advice: when you’re using the toilet, push a bit and then do a kegel, which is squeezing the muscles in your vagina that stop your pee from flowing— you might push a lot of period stuff out. It’ll help you not have to change your pad as often.

I’m cis, so I can’t speak on how taking testosterone will affect periods. I will leave this open for an autistic person who is taking T to add to this if they want. 👍🏻

Now that I said all that, it’s possible you may have zero premenstrual issues and your period won’t cause you much trouble at all. Every uterus-owning body is different. People already dealing with depression or other mood disorders may have more trouble during their period, or their period may even boost their mood for a short time. As I said, everyone is different.

❤️ Take care! ❤️

[debiteful]

Exploring the Deep

Shay agrees to let her shy seal friend explore her digestive system up close after watching a documentary. 

Content warning: soft vore, safe vore, size difference, female anthro shark pred, male anthro seal prey, implied full tour (might be comfortable writing that someday, but today is not that day)

Around 1.8k words, with the first ⅔ being build up. He's a timid fellow.

Shay leaned back on the couch, arm outstretched on the back of the seat. Her smol friend was nestled close to her, but scooted away as the show ended. His big dark eyes were bright against his dappled skin. "Wasn't that incredible?" He proclaimed with satisfaction.

She nodded, "Yeah it was pretty cool. I'm surprised you were such a fan though."

His brow furrowed then relaxed as he laughed, "Oh just because I'm a seal doesn't mean I'm bothered by wild seals being hunted by wild sharks. I mean come on, we're best friends!"

She smiled and nodded, then her face got serious as she held her hand to her heart, "I promise I would never hunt you."

He giggled and picked at the last of the popcorn in the bowl, "What now?"

She considered, fingers slipping up to tangle in her long mohawk. Her tail slapped the floor as she got an idea, "Why don't we go in my hot tub for a bit? I know you like the water as much as I do!"

He nodded enthusiastically, "Let's do it. I always bring my swim trunks over when I visit, just in case."

She chuckled and shook her head, giving his soft shoulder a little shove, "Go on and get changed then."

After a few minutes, they were both in the hot tub, soaking in the warm water. She sat on a low seat, up to her waist in water, while he perched on a raised portion, just about level with the top of her tail, the water lapping at his chest. His eyes wandered along her body, admiring her lean muscles. She noticed his gaze and smirked, splashing a little water to catch his attention, "Whatcha looking at? You've seen me in a swimsuit before."

He blushed and nodded, mumbling, "Sorry. Was just thinking that you're a lot like those sharks in the doc. Powerful, strong, you would make a fine hunter." 

She grinned, "Is that so?"

"Yeah," he said, gaze fixed on the water infront of him. The swaying movement of her tail below the surface caught his attention. He watched it wave slowly in the current from jets. Slowly, he reached out and touched the part of it above the surface with his finger tips. A quick glance at her face revealed she either didn't notice or didn't care. Her head was tilted back to rest on the edge of the hot tub and her eyes were closed.

He put his hand on it, feeling the smooth, tough skin, not unlike his own. His eyes wandered to her belly, which was relatively soft compared to the rest of her. His mind wandered back to the documentary, but he snapped it back into order quickly. 

He sunk lower in the water, hoping to hide his blush as she glanced at him. "You alright? You're uncharacteristically quiet tonight," she noted.

He could hear the concern in her voice and shook his head, chin splashing water. "Its nothing. I'm just thinking about that cool show," he explained, the words tumbling from his mouth. After a moment, he continued slowly, "I do wonder what it's like."

"What what's like?" She asked, leaning forward.

He reached out, brushing her belly lightly, "In there." His words started slow, but eventually came to a normal pace, "They show plenty of the outside of sharks, and they show them hunting and eating, but we never see the inside. At least, not of an alive one."

She nodded along as he spoke, "This is true."

He pushed off from the ledge, swimming over to sit in her lap, which was roughly the same height. He leaned back against her soft belly. Not for the first time he appreciated the soft cushion it gave his back and head. He listened to it gurgle softly as it worked on the last remnants of popcorn. This was his favourite time to sit here, just after she had eaten. 

Her hand cupped around him gently, holding his soft little body close. It was comforting and gentle, but his mind was distracted by other things. He absently reached back to rub her tummy, once again enjoying the smooth skin and marvelling at how different it felt from her muscular tail. He could feel her eyes on him, but he ignored them. Still, he kept his face tilted down so she couldn't see his reddening face. 

Finally, he worked up the courage to ask, "Can you hold me up? I," he hesitated and his voice dropped to a timid whisper, "I want to see if your teeth are like the wild shark's teeth."

She didn't respond immediately. Just as he was about to apologize, her hands tightened around him and lifted him carefully, holding him above the water as it dripped from him. He let her turn him in her hold, drawing in a deep breath as she held him close to her face. She gave him a toothy grin and he gazed at the pointed white teeth. 

Heart racing, he stammered, "Could you open up? Just a little. Yknow, so I can see better."

She obliged without a word, her smile growing. He leaned forward in her grasp to touch the teeth, fingers tracing the edges. His gaze wandered over her soft pink tongue towards her darker throat. Saliva reflected the light from nearly every surface. Her warm breath washed over him and he shivered. He sighed softly as she closed her mouth and lowered him to her lap once again.

"Well? What's the verdict good sir?"

"What? Oh! Um well they're certainly sharp. Though you only have one row and I doubt they regrow like a wild sharks."

She frowned and considered, then nodded with a smile, "This is true."

He nodded too, looking down again. This left his gaze right on her belly again. It lingered more than long enough for her to notice. She lifted his chin with her finger. Her eyebrows arched, "Is it just me, or do you seem interested in a little more than just my teeth. Perhaps you'd like to see a little further?"

His eyes widened as he looked at her, face burning and turning bright red instantly. He was speechless, only barely managing to nod. She smiled and scooped him up, holding her hand to her chin. "Go on then. I won't bite," she giggled at her own silly joke before opening her mouth wide. 

He crawled in enthusiastically, carefully passing her teeth to lay on her big tongue. It squirmed beneath him, almost as if it had a mind of it's own. Her jaw hung open and he felt saliva gush up around him from below. He shivered in timid pleasure, feeling the moist air from her breath eb and flow around him. He tilted his head back to look at her throat, nose bumping her soft uvula. It left a little wet patch on his snout. 

Heart racing, he took a deep breath and said, "You can close your mouth."

She couldn't really respond, but after a moment her jaws closed around him. He was nearly dizzy with euphoria, on the cusp of a longtime dream.

He flattened his hands, palms down, on her tongue. His fingers curled around the edges, squished gently between her tongue and teeth. He ran them up and down a little, feeling the tiny flexible bumps of her tastebuds. He was rewarded with a fresh flow of saliva, soaking him rather thoroughly.

Next, he reached up, wriggling a bit to get his arms away from his sides, and felt the roof of her mouth. Her hard palate was smooth and firm, giving way to the soft palate when he reached above his head.  He reached back and touched her uvula, intentionally this time. There was little left to explore here.

With a small kick, he pushed off of her front teeth, his head sliding into her throat. She coughed then gulped reflexively, the muscles of her esophagus flexing around his face and dragging his whole body down. "Oh my gosh, yes," he moaned quietly.

The pleased words reassured her and she gave a few more hard swallows to finish the job, completely swallowing him up. His hands trailed along the slimy walls as he descended, careful not to squirm until he reached her belly.

A rumble heralded his entrance, and her stomach flexed around him, forcing out the air that came with him in a small burp. He felt pressure from the outside, squishing him between the belly walls. Her hand was pressed to the firm bulge in her gut. She looked down at it, her voice thundering around him, "Did you mean to do that?"

He nodded, then realized that was meaningless in here. "Yeah!" He called, then added, "You can whisper, I'm quite close to all the sound."

Indeed, he could hear everything. All those muffled gurgles were around him now, like a symphony to him. He could hear her heart pounding, no doubt a little alarmed at his sudden choice to descend. His own heart was racing with exhilaration. He tried to move but found her hand had him pinned. While the helplessness gave him a heady rush, he really did want to explore. "Please lift your hand," he requested loudly.

He flopped forward as the pressure disappeared. The bottom of her stomach cradled him softly. Both he and the lining were slick with a mixture of fluids. He struggled to sit up, then ran his hands up along the wall. Her stomach flexed in response and a giggle boomed around him. 

"What was that?" She whispered between little laughs.

"I'm feeling the texture. The lining is smooth but made of all these little folds; its an incredible feeling," he called, punctuating it with a sigh as he flopped back, letting his back run along the odd wall.

He ran his fingers through the goop that came up to his waist, relieved it was not fast acting. It clung to itself, falling from his hand in long, wet strings. He supposed most of it was saliva. It was slippery, making it easy to run his hands along the lining, but hard to stay upright, especially with the natural movement of her stomach.

 It was all he imagined and more! The warmth, the confinement, the feel of it all, it was amazing. He couldn't wait to see what else he gut had for him to discover.

[ryik-the-writer]

Fic: Smooth Scaling

For maydaymenagerie

For the lovely and dedicated Rumbeller:  magnoliatatoo

Due to technical errors that erased my first fic, I rewrote this to fit with my Salt Water Series, which you don’t have to read all the way through in order to understand this piece. 

Special thanks to @annythecat allowing me to use their mer!rumple manip in my cover page (upper left image)! Kisses! Here’s her original!

I hope you enjoy it!

A03

-,-,-,-

The waters of Storybrooke were warmer, signaling the change in the seasons. This wouldn’t have bothered the young merman if it weren’t for the tingling sensation creeping through his tail and gills which undoubtedly meant that it was the beginning of mating season, not just for the creatures of the sea, but also for the very few merfolk left in the oceans.

Rumple frowned at the thought of the upcoming season. He had never been very successful when it came to finding a mate. Mermaids were very finnicky when it came to choosing their mates, being that they mated for life and had countless offspring. They strived for the mermen with the thickest arms and shiniest tales which Rumple, with his strong but wiry arms and torn tail with missing scales, lacked.

After countless years of rejections and sneering from the stronger mermen, Rumple had given up on ever finding a mate to spend the rest of his days with. He had learned to live in a lonely but not unsatisfying existence among the sea life, protecting the turtles and dolphins from nets and trash the humans carelessly dumped, ignoring the tingles and trembling that signaled it was time to mate.

That is, until a year ago when a beautiful marine biologist and bibliophile named Belle French sat on his secluded square of beach and changed the mundane system of his life.

It was the thought of her that made his urge to mate stronger than ever.

Belle was so beautiful, with her pearl-white skin and eyes blue as the distant sea, but it was her understanding of him that was truly beautiful. When they first met, he had been destroying boats and fishing equipment to protect the harbor, but Belle had stepped in and worked out an arrangement with the humans and the destruction of his harbor decreased significantly.

After that, they spent months learning about each other, going on adventures here and there, and Rumple had irrevocably, but platonically, fallen in love with her.

It wasn’t until the stirrings began that the love he felt for her had turned into an instinctual lust.

When he realized his new feelings for Belle, he was disturbed that he could feel such a thing for her. A human! Beautiful, smart, amazing Belle at that!

Then, as thoughts of her became muddled with his instincts, he thought, why not?

He loved Belle, and knew with certainty that she was attracted to him. She was always raving how beautiful a swimmer he was or how his scales looked like gold coins in the sunlight. She wasn’t afraid to touch him or even ride atop his back when they went on their watery adventures. They shared kisses and cuddled all the time.

He pondered exactly how he could approach the subject of Belle being his mate as he sunned behind the cluster of rocks at their place, the little cluster of beach ignored by the people of Storybrooke but miraculously found by Belle. It was as if nature wanted them together.

He heard sand shifting above and sat up, smiling gleefully as Belle tried not to roll down the hill, flip-flops and sunglasses dangling from one hand while she used her other to try and balance her giant beach bag. She stumbled down the dune, making an ungraceful jump to steady ground.

“Hi Rumple!” she gasped as she reached the shore, spreading out her blanket.

Rumple crawled through the sand until he was lying beside the blanket. “Hi Be…” he trailed off as Belle pulled off her tank top, her pearl-white breasts bouncing in her tight swimsuit top.

“Whoa, it’s hot today!” Belle whooped as she fell back on the blanket.  

Rumple gaped at her peeking breasts and long, silky legs. Though he admired her features, his attention had never been focused directly on them. But now with his hormones raging…

“Belle!” Rumple gasped desperately. “I need to ask you something!”

Belle stared at him. “You okay?”

“Yes!” Rumple nodded. “I just wanted to know if…” Rumple stared into her eyes, blue as the ocean in the early morning sun. So full of love for him, of acceptance.

So unsuspecting and undeserving of his lustful instincts.

“If you’d…” he sighed, courage evaporating like puddles on a hot day. “If you’d like to go swimming with dolphins today.”

Belle gleamed with excitement. “Oh Rumple that sounds beautiful! Now?”

He nodded, mentally beating himself for his lapse of courage as Belle trifled through her bag.

“Could you rub the sunscreen on my back?” she inquired as she started to undo the string of her swimsuit top.

Oh Poseidon’s trident why!?

Rumple pulled himself up, curling his tail under, struggling with the cap of SPF 100 until he squirted a fat blob into his scaly palm.

“Um…”

“It’s fine.” Belle commented. “Just spread it out as evenly as you can.”

Rumple stared at her glistening back, eyes trailing over the adorable moles and blemishes. The cool glop became heavy in his palm as he continued to hesitate.

Belle glanced back, holding her brown curls out of the way. “Rumple?”

The merman slapped her back, causing the goop to ooze between his fingers.

“Ouch! Careful!”

“S-sorry.” He muttered, circling the sunscreen, mesmerized by how the white oil faded into her pores and left a slick residue on her beautiful porcelain skin. Oh and it smelled so good mixed with her scent: salt and coconuts and warmth.

Belle sighed as Rumple rubbed the sunscreen into her skin. His rough, scaly hands felt erotic on her back and shoulders, relaxing her yet sending a tingling pleasure through her nerves. She wondered what they would feel like on other parts of her body…

Belle tensed at a flash of Rumple’s hand running over her thighs.

What was she thinking! She couldn’t look at Rumple…like that.

She loved Rumple, and knew with certainty that he was attracted to her. She saw the love in his eyes every time she came to visit him. He was always offering her little gifts from his cave and touching her. Not inappropriately or against her will, just running his fingers through her hair or intertwining their fingers. They even shared kisses and cuddled.

Those touches had never incited the feelings they were now. She felt warmer somehow, more weighed down.

“I…think you’re ready…Belle.” Rumple said suddenly, pulling Belle out of her daze.

Belle gasped, pulling regretfully from the merman’s grip. “T-thanks.”

Rumple nodded, not quite meeting her eyes. “I’ll…be right back.”

Belle followed Rumple until they were waist-deep, then watched him duck into the waters to summon the dolphins.

“He really is magical.” Belle thought aloud. He was clever, maliciously so, but still greatly intelligent. He was devoted to the ocean and all who inhabited it, and just as devoted to her.

He loved her. It was such a beautifully painful realization because Belle felt the same way. He was everything she ever wanted in a companion. But Belle also knew that expressing her love for him would only confuse him, and she never wanted to hurt him.

Rumple resurfaced and Belle forced a smile.

“There they are.” Rumple whispered, pointing to the distance.

Belle watched in wonder as several dolphins cruised a in the water, coming up for air and chasing each other around, waiting for the couple.

Belle met Rumple in the water and slid onto his back. She locked her legs around his waist and arms around his neck, resting her chin on the space between his shoulder and neck.

They swam deeper into the harbor, picking up speed.

“Whoooo-whoo!” Belle exclaimed as she and Rumple sped on the surface of the water alongside the myriad of dolphins. The mighty dolphins certainly had her mer-boyfriend beat with balance due to his torn fin, but his wiry yet surprisingly strong arms had them beat in speed.

“Should I get off?” Belle yelled over the wind as they began lagging behind.

“No!” Rumple shouted out. “Hang on tight; rough waves!”

Belle clenched her thighs harder down around the waist of his tail. Though Rumple’s scales weren’t slimy, they were still slippery when wet and Belle was having a hard time staying on. She kept adjusting herself, unintentionally rubbing herself up and down his tale until heat started pooling in her lower belly.

Belle blushed at the feeling, not sure if she should be ashamed or aroused. Why was she feeling these things all of a sudden? She and Rumple did things like this all the time and it had never affected her this way.

So consumed with her thoughts that she didn’t see the giant wave racing to them. Rumple jumped to miss it and immediately felt Belle’s weight lift from his back and collide back down sharply before she screamed and fell into the ocean.

“Belle!”

Rumple dove after her, finding her instantly and pulling her to the surface, rushing her to calmer waters.

It took a moment to realize what had happened. One second she was struggling not to let the tingling in her loins overpower her and the next she was having an orgasm so intense that she lost momentary control of her limbs. The aftershocks of it continued to shake her even as she plunged into the ocean and took in a large gulp of salt water. She felt Rumple’s arm wrap around her and pull her urgently to shore, holding her up by her shoulders as he examined her.

“Belle! Oh Belle are you alright? Did you hurt anything?” he pleaded as he checked her arms.

Belle coughed and blew the salty water from her senses and nodded.

“Fine.” She wheezed.

Behind them he dolphins began to cackle, mocking them for their wipeout and defeat.

Rumple hissed at them. “I’ll let the humans turn you into canned goods!”

One of the dolphins cackled again before leading its pack back into the depths of the ocean, leaving the couple alone.

Rumple humped. Majestic dolphins? Prissy peacocks was more like it.

Another cough from Belle led him from is annoyance. He circled an arm around her waist and helped her climb back on his back.

“Let’s get you dried off.”

“Just…take it slow, okay?” Belle inquired shakily, the dregs of her surprise orgasm still dying away.

Rumple nodded, doing his best to ignore the pressure of her delicate weight on his tail.

He got her back to shore without too much of a fuss and crawled up the sand beside her as she pulled her towel out of her bag.

Rumple watched her run her fingers through her salt-coated hair, working out the tangles. She was indeed more beautiful than any creature in the sea. Oh he loved her, every bit of her, even the parts unattainable to him.

No you shark! Don’t think about her parts!

He drummed his fingers on a seashell, keeping his eyes away from her.

“Rumple,” Belle asked suddenly, “can I ask you something?”

Rumple startled. “Of course Belle. You know you can ask me anything.”

Belle chewed worriedly on her withered lip. “How…how do you feel about me?”

Rumple blinked, his mouth going dry. If only she knew…

“I love you Belle. I…thought you knew that.”

Belle giggled. “I do Rumple I do. I just…” she rubbed her hands nervously across her sand-coated knees. “What do you think of me physically?”

Rumple gulped, his pulse and hormones racing all the more. “I…you’re beautiful…”

Belle scooted closer to him. “Rumple,” she began as she lifted his chin. “please look at me.”

Rumple grasped the hand under his chin and brought it to his mouth, holding it while he inhaled the scent of the ocean from her skin. The smell alone stirred the fire inside of him. He lowered his hand to his mouth and ran his tongue along her skin and between her fingers

“Belle…”

Belle stared at her mer-boyfriend in curious astonishment.  “Rum…”

“Belle Belle Belle…” he groaned as he rubbed his face against her palm.

The merman finally looked up at her impossibly blue eyes. She was afraid, not of him, but for him.

“Something’s changed between us Rumple.” Belle affirmed.

“It’s me Belle.” Rumple answered, focusing his gaze on her collar bone.

“What’s you? What’s going on Rumple?”

“It’s mating season Belle.” He admitted at last. “And I…I feel things for you that I shouldn’t…”

Belle paused as she let the vague information set in. She was aware that it was mating season for the sea life of Storybrooke, as she had learned their patterns during her stay, but she hadn’t given Rumple’s nature a lot of thought. It pained her to think that her friend was going through a similar sexual crisis like her.

“Rumple, it’s okay.” Belle reassured gently. “You can’t help biology.”

“But Belle,” Rumple groaned, squirming in the shallow waters. “I feel things for you! I love you, I have for so long, but it’s not love I’m feeling now. It’s lust. And…I’m ashamed.”

Belle took hold of his shoulders and helped him sit up so that she could properly straddle his tail.

“Do you believe that I love you?” Belle asked him, rubbing his shoulders soothingly.

Rumple gulped, his pulse racing and hormones pulsing. “Of course.”

Belle placed a hand over his racing heart. “Then please trust me when I say that I feel the same things for you. And though I’m…confused…I’m not ashamed, and you shouldn’t be either.”

Rumple stared at her in surprise, but then felt a rush of gratefulness. His desire was becoming unbearable and he was relieved that she would be willing to consent to his proposal.

“Are you sure of your feelings are towards me?”

“Of course I’m sure. I know how I feel. Don’t you?”

“I want to be with you Belle but should know…merfolk take their mating rituals very seriously.”

Belle shrugged. “Some humans do too. I for one do.”

“We mate for life Belle.” Rumple confided, taking hold of one of her hands and intertwining their fingers. “We can’t separate from our mates once we choose them.”

Belle tilted her head. “Have you been with another merperson before?”

Rumple grimaced. “No. I never…it just never worked out for me.”

Belle laughed humorlessly. “Tell me about it.”

Rumple’s thumb soothed over her smooth palm. “And you?”

Belle shook her head, looking almost sad. “Almost, a few times. But…it just never worked out.”

Rumple frowned at the thought of the sharks that had dared denied his Belle. They could have had the most amazing woman by their side!

“But it’s better this way.” Belle continued. “I have you.”

Heat coursed through his chest. He smiled lovingly at her and kissed her hand.

“I do love you Belle.”

“Then let’s do it!” Belle said excitedly. “Let’s be together always.”

Rumple leaned up and kissed her, slow and sensational. He petted her damp hair as he pulled back, sighing as he kissed the corners of her mouth and her chin.

“Just let me lead you Belle. Let me lead.”

Belle nodded and let him pull her into the water until she had to climb on his back. He took them deep into the waters, near a patch of coral reef that was starting to bloom with the summer life. When he stopped, he pulled her around to his chest and helped her float.

“Traditionally, this is done underwater.” Rumple explained. “Unless…”

“No.” Belle shook her head, nervous but excited too.  And a little warm even in the cool waters. “I want to do it the way your kind does it. I trust you.”

She kissed Rumple back when he put his lips to hers, but was surprised when his lips didn’t move against hers in response. Instead, he began breathing air into her lungs as he pulled them into the water.

Belle moaned into Rumple’s mouth, breathing in the air he was sending to her lungs. She pulled away briefly to look into his lustful, golden eyes, her eyes barely burning from the salt water thanks to the thicker contacts she had switched to.

Rumple’s hands scaled down her naked sides to her hips and buttock, firm from years of intense swimming. He gently grasped her hips and encouraged her to wrap her legs around his waist, pulling at the string of her bikini bottoms while his other hand undid the top.

Belle allowed him to maneuver her and gasped into his mouth when his scaly tail erotically rubbed against her clit. Her arms swayed by his sides, unsure where or what to grasp in her mission for completion.

Rumple made sure he had a firm grip on her before he began to slowly circle them, creating a sort of dance, all the while applying small thrusts against her pelvis. He felt heat greater than the one flushing through his body collect in the center of his tail, level at the place where Belle’s mating parts were. He glanced down long enough to see a phallus extend from his tale, scale-less but gold like the rest of his tail, brushing against Belle’s thigh.

He was nervous then. He didn’t know the extent of what would happen next, didn’t know if once it happened if everything between them would change. But brave Belle’s gentle touches encouraged him to press on and swallow his uncertainties.

Carefully and uncertainly, he leveled himself with Belle’s parts. Her hands covered his, helping him position himself in her comfortably. As soon as he was incased in her spongey, warm cave, Belle began moving them, and Rumple placed a wedge between his need to shoot off and to take care of her. He scaled his hands everywhere he could. Her pulse was racing under his fingertips, her hands holding his waist against her to discourage separation.

Her hand removed one of his from her waist, placing it where they were joined. Rumple felt around, grazing her parts and his, unsure of what she wanted him to do. Thankfully, Belle patiently moved his fingers where she wanted them to be: on top of a spongy button. Each time he pressed on it or moved it around, Belle would moan into his mouth or her thighs would twitch.

Suddenly Belle pulled from his mouth, leaning her forehead against his. Her eyes bore into his and Rumple could see t lust in her dilated pupils. Her hips began to grind against his frantically, creating small whirlpools around their hips. Rumple’s talons began to pierce Belle’s thighs as his release escalated to its strongest point.

Belle’s sex clenched him so tight Rumple released a vibrating cry, his eyes rolling as is seed shot into her. Belle pulled back from him, her mouth screwing in a gasp, the oxygen she had been containing leaving her at a rapid pace.

Still blurry-minded, Rumple gripped her hips and shot through the surface, Belle panting and Rumple shaking.

“B-belle?” Rumple husked, holding her up.

Belle leaned her head against her mer-boyfriend’s chest, feeling boneless from the low quantity of oxygen and sex.

“Hmm?”

“Are you alright?” he murmured, kissing her wet hair.

Belle yawned, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Just tired. Can you get us back to shore?”

Rumple giggled, filled to the brim with pride and love for his darling Belle and relief for himself. He felt lighter than he had in days, free from the pressing weight of instinctual lust. But he also felt fuller than ever before.

He’d been so lonely before he met Belle, so lonely that he hadn’t known at first just how to be with someone else. She had showed him how, showed him how to let affection and love in and give it back.

Now he had a future because he and Belle were connected in a way no one could take away from them.

They were mated for life.

-,-,-,-,

“Rumple?”

Rumple opened his tired eyes, turning on his side and smiling at his mate. “Yes my love?”

“Did you grab my swimsuit?”

-,-,-,-,-,-

Okay…I have no idea how mermaids do it.

I barely know how fish do it, and I frankly don’ want to explore any further.

I barely barely know how people do it.

So…I did my best.

Good day all.