#there are few things i love drawing more than mermaids

[klausysworld]

Could I ask a smut with klaus and a mermaid reader? She comes to the surface and he shows her the pleasures of the human body (and what is between the legs she just got

Dream come true

Klaus was prone to secrets so when he started taking day trips each week without any explanation, his family knew it was best to just pretend it wasn’t happening. They assumed he was probably out slaughtering innocents, none of them would have guessed he was sneaking off to the coast of Louisiana to see a mermaid.

The rare few times the originals had encountered mermaids…well they had been rather viscous creatures, sirens.

But y/n was a creature of delicacy and grace. She was shy and skittish, not Klaus’s usual type at all and yet he didn’t even want to deny that he had fallen for her.

Klaus had been down there at the very least once a week if not more. They had a cave they would meet at where the water was shallow enough for him to just reach the bottom if he wanted to and still deep enough for her to swim around freely.

Sometimes he would just sit on the ledge and let his legs float in the water while she laid on her back and spoke to him of the ocean drama. He loved to listen to how the other mer-people behaved, or even better when she began to speak of the animals. It never failed to impress him how comfortable the dolphins were with her. A few times now, at night when nobody was out, Klaus would have each hand on a fin of a two dolphins as she giggled and brought him further out.

Sometimes he managed to swim himself out but would his body would often get tired despite his supernatural abilities, because he hadn’t been feeding when he was with her it made him weaker. He initially underestimated how strong her rail was until he had grown tired of treading water and she wrapped her arms around his midsection, keeping him above the surface for another hour before holding his hand and swimming him back to land.

Klaus had never owned so many swimming trunks before. He also learned that most of his gifts weren’t very incredible to someone like her. Most jewels were in the ocean which meant a pearl necklace from him was just another tacky accessory for a mermaid. She never told him that of course, always showed her appreciation and wore the items each time he saw her but after a while he realised that she already owned an excessive amount and tried to get her things she didn’t yet have.

He found that something as simple as a hand carved, stone mermaid meant so much more to her than anything he could buy her. Framed drawings and human clothes were also of her interest.

Klaus had bought her a variety of pretty bras and bikini tops which always seemed to make her beam up at him and go behind the rocks to change into. Until, after a while, he had sat behind her on the edge of the rocks to slip the make-shift, shell bra off of her chest so he could pull the new patterned one on.

Once they knew each other well and saw one another more and more often, Klaus would pick her up, wrap her in a blanket and carry her around for a while so she could see some things on land. Often they would just sit up on the beach during the very early hours of the morning before anyone came by.

And it was one of those mornings where their usual sweet kisses became passionate making out and then his hands had snapped the material of her bra and he was gripping them desperately. She had no idea what he was doing but it felt indescribable to her and she couldn’t help the sounds she was producing when his lips pulled at her nipple and her tail began to lift and hit the sand. His hands rubbed down her scales smoothly and he forgot what she was for a moment as he went to open her nonexistent legs making her pull away in pain when he pulled at her tail.

He had apologised of course and put her sparkly bra back on. Klaus pulled her onto his lap and gently stroked her hips down as he whispered his “sorry”s over and over.

It was difficult not being able to have her the way he dreamt of. All he fantasised about was being able to make love to her. He wouldn’t be able to count the amount of times he had gotten off to a painting of her, the thought of her.

One day when they were down at the beach and they laid with each other on the sand, allowing the water to wash over them both every few seconds, her fingers had been stroking up and down his body lovingly when she came in contact with something unfamiliar.

———————————————————————

Her brows furrowed and his eyes squeezed shut as he kept in the grunt that threatened to escape him. She lifted her head in curiosity to look at the outline of the hard object in his swim shorts, a smile grew on her lips

“Did you get me another present?” She asked, surprised and excited but he only groaned softly and lifted her hand away when she tried to feel for what it was.

“No princess” he murmured “I’m sorry that’s not…fuck that’s not for you right now, my love” he told her while sitting up. She frowned a little in confusion but kept a smile on her face as to not show any disappointment that it wasn’t something for her.

“Is it… for someone else?” She asked quietly, trying to sound unbothered but he knew she was thinking he had bought someone else something

“Oh no no, it’s not…it’s not for anyone…it’s mine” he muttered while clearing his throat. His face was beat red as she asked her next question.

“Can I see it?” She smiled brightly he could feel himself twitch. His wolf was howling at him to take advantage of this moment and let her see his poor cock.

“It’s…it’s apart of me, love” he explained but she only got more confused. The water flowing up and down him wasn’t helping his situation, as well as her close proximity and lack of coverage for her top half. She had become much more comfortable with not wearing anything around him when she realised how good he could make her feel and how much he seemed to love the sight since that first morning.

“Well what is it?” She questioned with the slightest tilt of her head.

“It’s…something special that I suppose most sea creatures might not have…or it might not be as visible I’m not sure but mermen don’t have them sweetheart just human men.” He tried to give a short answer but everything he said brought more curiosity.

“Well I love human things and I love you so I’ll love this too I promise” she beamed at him and he couldn’t help the groan he let out as he banged the back of his head against the ground making her frown and worry. “You don’t have to share it” she told him quickly, not wanting him to hurt himself if she was upsetting him “I’m sorry, if it’s special then-“

“No..It’s not that I don’t want you to see Princess, because believe me, I would love you to have a look…it’s just…” he took a breath as he tried to think of a way to explain this too her. “It can make me feel a lot of things…it’s very sensitive and…precious?” He pinched himself at his own choice of words and sat up making her pull herself up too. She looked up at him with wide eyes when he shifted higher up the beach.

“I won’t ask anything else if you don’t want, just don’t leave yet please” she whispered thinking he was getting up to go, her eyes desperately looking to him so he would stay another hour.

“No…I’m not going, I’m just…thinking” he told her softly. She nodded and reached forward to hold his hand gently with a small smile on her face as she tried to stop herself from looking down at the mysterious thing in his shorts. He pursed his lips before coming to a decision and nodding. “Alright my love, I’m going to show you okay?” He announced while cupping her cheek with one hand and watching her face light up.

“Really?” She grinned and he nodded

“Just looking for now okay?”

“Mhm”

He kissed her lips briefly before hesitantly pulling his shorts down enough to let his cock aping out of them. Her eyes followed it with interest as it appeared even bigger then she had thought. She looked it over closely making his brows furrow as she did so. He wasn’t sure how to behave in this position, he definitely wasn’t prepared for her hand to wrap around it and pull it in curiosity

“Y/n!” He quickly grabbed her wrist “let’s not be so aggressive sweetheart” he told her, his eyes wide as she immediately let go and began to apologise. “It’s alright, just-“ he brought her hand back to it and slowly guided her to stroke him up and down. “Slow and steady” he whispered and she followed his lead. His breathing shallowed as she kept up the action after he let her wrist go and instead stroked her hair gently while telling her to go faster or slower every now and then.

She leaned her head down when a bead of white fluid trickled down one side “what’s that?” She whispered and he groaned at the feel of her hot breath over his tip.

“It just- it means you’re doing good princess” he grunted and she smiled.

“Really?” She stroked him a little faster, enjoying how his face twisted in pleasure and his body shuddered and arched.

Klaus’s mouth dropped open when he felt the heat of her tongue on his cock, pure ecstasy on his face as his eyes fluttered. Y/n hadn’t thought twice about the action, she just wanted to taste the liquid that meant he was happy. And oh was she glad she tried it, she liked it so much that she decided if she sucked harder then she would get more out of him. Which in all fairness she wasn’t wrong but it took Klaus and his body by surprise as he was forced into a much needed orgasm. If the situation had been different then he would have been embarrassed by how quick he came but it wasn’t like she knew how long most men lasted anyway. All she cared amount was gulping him down until he was milked dry.

Klaus nearly had to drag her off his cock when she kept sucking,

“I want some more” she whined while using her hand to make his dick big and hard again

“Princess- it’s sensitive, be gentle” he reminded and she nodded.

“Sorry” she whispered and slowly stroked him again, smiling when his hands cupped her face and guided her lips back down to his tip.

And from that day her mouth on his cock seemed to become more and more common. Whenever to noticed him to be hard, she was happy to make him feel better and drink his…milk.

Often Klaus would toy with her breasts while she licked his dick and played with his balls with interest. He couldn’t help but love the way she found everything about his body so incredibly fascinating, how eager she was to please him and watch his reactions. The louder he was, the more enthusiastic she felt.

She was always needing and he could only imagine what would happen if she ever had a human form.

It was topic that came up rather often actually. She had asked him once if there were any spells he knew of to let her be human, even just for a day. Y/n had made it very much clear that even though she dreamt have the ability to turn human, she wouldn’t trade her tail to be permanently human and Klaus understood that. He wouldn’t ask her to give who she was up. Just like he wouldn’t abandon his family to be a merman, but he would still entertain the idea of having fins for a day.

There had been so many nights in the water, both floating on their backs and looking up at the stars, fingers interlaced as they spoke about what they would do if one of them were able to become the other.

Klaus had told Y/n of all the different places in the world and Y/n told Klaus of the world below. Both sounded unbelievable to the other and Klaus had even brought her paintings and souvenirs from different countries while Y/n gave him shells and pearls from different oceans. Once or twice Klaus had set up a canvas on the beach and had Y/n explain the sea kingdom so he could try and envision it.

Y/n had tried to look for possible ways to turn one way or the other in the sea world, asking other mer-people and enchantresses. She was able to locate and come into possession of a special shell necklace that needed to be spelled by both a sea witch and a land witch to bind the magic and allow the being to wear it to turn into a mer-person in the water and a human when dry. So she brought it to Klaus on their next day together and he took it back home with him and found the most powerful witch he could to ensure the spell would work.

She had tried to convince him to wear it first but he shook his head and claimed that she deserved it more. He knew she had wanted to experience human life since young and so she should get to first. He promised when she had seen the perks of humanity then he would come with her to meet her family and friends as well.

But for the time being, he wanted her dreams to come true.

Which brought us to now.

———————————————————————

Klaus carried Y/n to the steps at the very top of the beach, he grabbed a towel from the car and gently dried her tail until both of them felt the buzz of magic in the air and the mermaid features vanished from her body. A scream left her as legs formed in place on her tail and his hand quickly covered her mouth as to not alarm locals.

“Sh sh sweetheart it’s okay” he chuckled watching her struggle to move them individual instead of together. Her eyes were wide and her breathing was fast. It didn’t register to him that she was naked, he didn’t care at that moment either, he was just so happy to see her having this experience.

Klaus lifted her onto her feet, instantly catching her when she failed to balance herself and fell backwards. Instead he shook his head with a laugh and carried her to the car. She had never been in a ‘moving thing’ before, only seen them parked and was petrified the whole time.

Klaus had let her scroll through his Spotify and find the artists she had favoured over their time together until they got to a hotel that klaus had pre booked for the week. They were in agreement that they would alternate in a week to wear the shell necklace so they both got the full experience of the other.

So he came prepared and had a suitcase of flowy dressed ready for her. He didn’t want anything too tight on her new legs and he wanted her to feel both pretty and comfortable.

But for the time being he pulled a top over her head and with much confusion on her end, a pair of panties up her legs. That was when she realised she had something between her legs, but not the same as what he had which only baffled her further. So when he went to get her some food, she decided to touch it. Turns out it was just as sensitive as his seemed to be, just as addictive as she rubbed her fingers against herself and tried to stop herself from making such needy sounds.

Klaus’s eyes almost fell out of his head when he found her squirming amongst the blankets, moaning and whining with her hand between her legs.

He shoved the takeaway bags on the side and kicked the door shut. She was clearly not paying attention as her hips thrust up and her legs shook. Only when her wrists were grabbed ahold of and she lost ahold of that intense pleasure she was chasing did she seem to come back to reality. Her eyes found his as she panted like a dog in heat. Klaus let out a chuckle at her behaviour and shook his head

“Couldn’t wait just 10 minutes could you sweetheart?” He murmured as he lifted her soaked hands to his mouth and licked them clean. She couldn’t help the moan that left her as he did so.

She looked up at him with glassy eyes as he kept her still. “I want to touch” she whispered and he hummed

“Feels good doesn’t it princess?” He teased and she nodded

“Does it feel like that when I touch you there?” She asked quietly and he nodded

“A little different but the overall outcome is pretty much the same.” He told her and she nodded in understanding. He let go of her hands and watched as she looked to his for permission before rubbing her fingers against her swollen clit. He shifted to kneel between her legs and placed a hand on each thigh. She let out a whine as he pushed them as far apart as she could manage before leaning down and blowing air over her core.

She moved her fingers away when she noticed his mouth inching closer and closer. After seeing how Klaus had writhed in pleasure when she put her mouth in him, she couldn’t wait for him to do it back.

As soon as his tongue laid flat against her bundle of nerves, she was a mess. He rubbed it back and forth against her, rolled it through her folds and back up to her pulsing pearl. Her fingers curled into his curls and nearly yanked them out of his head as his tongue went inside her and his nose rubbed her clit.

Klaus continued to lap at her her only a minute before she was cumming all over his face and screaming at the overwhelming rush.

He kissed from her soft little pussy, up to her face as she whimpered pleasantly. Her licks locked with his as his hands slid up under her t-shirt to squeeze her breasts the way he always did.

“Can you do it again?” She whispered needily and he chuckled with a smile as he pulled away and looked down at her.

“I’m going to give you something better” he told her and she tilted her head in question but he only grinned back at her.

He kept a hand on her knee, keeping it pressed against the bed so her legs were open while he kicked his jeans and boxers off and onto the floor. Her eyes lit up at the sight of his hard cock and her hand’s immediately reached forward to stroke it. He groaned softly in response and reluctantly tapped her wrist so she would stop

“Thank you sweetheart but you don’t need to do that this time” he whispered and she hesitantly nodded and took her hands away. “Good girl, now just relax a moment and close you eyes” he guided and she did so.

Though it didn’t last long for her eyes flew open when he thrust his whole cock inside her with one abrupt thrust. The stretch stung and a cry left her lips as she tried to push him away.

“Sh sh princess, it’s okay, it’s gonna feel much better in a minute” he told her gently, trying to calm her down as her cunt squeezed him unbearably tight for the next few moments.

Slowly, he began to rock his hips back and forth. His mouth hung open at the feel and sound of her sopping pussy gripping him as he slid within her. His hands grabbed onto the sheets beside her head as he moved a little faster. His mind was spinning with pleasure, he had fucked a lot of women in his time, a lot of virgins too but never had he fucked someone so wet and tight, not someone as loud as she was.

Neither one of them registered the banging coming from the other side of the wall as she screamed and moaned as though her life depended on it. His hand coming down to rub his thumb against her clit only made her louder as she seemed to only get tighter.

He continued to thrust himself in and out of her through her orgasm, his groans became dragged out moans as he kept fucking into her desperately. Klaus pulled her legs over his shoulders causing her to cry out over and over for him to go faster. She could barely comprehend anything when he went at his max speed, having her cum again without warning. Her sounds and words were a blur as he kept up his pace until he was unable to stop the wave of pleasure running through him. He came with a broken gasp, his hands grabbing onto her and holding her right against him as he slowed his movements and pumped her full of him.

They both laid still, his body trapping hers underneath him as they came down from their highs.

“I love having legs” she whispered, eyes wide with wonder. Klaus let out a laugh and nodded in agreement

“I love your legs too sweetheart” he told her in amusement.

They both laid there for a while, he cleaned her up of course so she wasn’t sticky, and then they both relaxed in one another’s hold.

His hands pet her hair gently, her touch as loving as he had ever been and his words were innocent ramblings of what they would do the next few days while she was in human form and where she wanted to go.

She looked up at him with a frown

“How am I supposed to top this?” She asked him and he furrowed his brows

“What do you mean?”

“Well you just gave me the best feeling in the world…how am I supposed to replicate that when you become a merman for a week?” She questioned and he laughed

“That’s what you’re nervous about?” He grinned and she nodded. “Sweetheart, you’ve been giving me the best feeling of my life since that day on the beach” he whispered and she smiled with a blush.

“Am I still allowed to do that?” She whispered and he nodded.

“Of course you can princess” he smiled and she beamed back. It never failed to please him with how eager she was to suck him off, even after giving everything he had to her, she still found her own pleasure in seeing him happy.

He smiled as she snuggled closer onto him, her legs tangling with his and her face in his chest as she began to drift to sleep.

The next morning he had arranged to take her out for brunch before letting her choose anywhere on the map where she wanted to go see.

He was determined to make her time on land worth it.

[edslacefront]

I wanna talk about how surprised yet refreshed I felt seeing Ed and Stede's reunion. Cause I half expected like the whole beach scene except Ed runs after him trying to kill him, or something super dramatic like Stede pleading with him, and from what I've seen I think a lot of us thought that way. And then we got petty jabs over dinner we got eye rolls and waiting to have a talk and pretending to not care and it felt.. so much more real than anything I expected ? It physically hurt me when Stede said "I wasn't looking for you by the way" as if we hadn't just seen him spend the last few (months?) saving money and drawing his own maps in a desperate attempt to find Ed. Like I wanted that man to CRAWL ON HIS KNEES back to Ed. I wanted to HURL when Ed said "whatever" like he hadn't spent night after night sobbing over Stede, I wanted him to have an immediate OUTBURST on that man. That being said I am so grateful that they could have easily gone for the route of Stede begs for forgiveness thing but instead chose to put them on equal footing for an open and real conversation. I love that they put the fantasy reunion moment, the mermaid scene, in the gravy basket so we could have that magical reunion and the realistic reunion simultaneously

[anangelwhodidntfall]

Part Of Your World: Prince Eric

The Little Mermaid Masterlist

 word count: 1.2k 

description: You and Eric are childhood sweethearts who share a love for the ocean and the unknown. 

The queen had always disliked you even as a child, all because of who you're parents were, since your dad was a pirate and your mom was a high lady turned pirate and you were very much like the both of them but that didn't matter to you or Eric.

You and Eric had grown up together, the love of the ocean and the unknown drawing you two together, you two were always together and you may or may not have had a crush on him as you grew older. When you reached the age your dad let you come on some of his voyages and sometimes Eric joined you but more often than not the queen tried to keep ashore or provide him his own boat away from you and your father.

It had been a few months since you last saw him, and you were excited to return to shore and see him and you hoped that maybe this time something would happen between you two.

"Ready to see your little boy toy?" Your dad asked with a teasing tone.

"Daaadddd." You said with a groan.

"What I see is the way you both look at each other. It reminds me of me and your mother when we were your age." He said making you smile.

"Really?" You asked him as thunder cracked.

"Yes. Take a chance on him, don't worry about his mom, he would be lucky to have someone like you as his queen." He said squeezing your hand.

A few hours later the small storm had turned into a much more serve storm making it difficult for the boat to navigate. Soon enough the boat overturned due to the winds, and you swam up to the surface level searching around for the crew.

"Dad!" You called out.

"I'm right here angel." He said as he hugged you.

You two swam around trying to get out of the storm, since you were a much better swimmer than your dad, you could navigate the waters easier. You turned around and noticed that your dad was no longer with you, making your panic.

"Dad! Dad!" You called swimming around looking for him.

The last thing you remember was reaching the shoreline before everything went black.

When you woke up, you slowly sat up looking around realizing that you were in a room and no longer on the shore. You stood up and walked over to the window and saw that you were in the castle, making you wonder how you got here.

"Oh thank god, you're awake." Eric said walking into the room making you turn and see him.

You walked over to where he was and hugged him, glad to see a familiar face, the only one person who you truly cared about in this world. You two stood there silently hugging grateful that you were here.

"Eric, how did I get here?" You asked him.

"I was gonna ask the same thing. I was walking Max and he was the one who found you unconscious on the shore. I brought you back here immediately." He said as everything started to make sense.

"Y/n what happened?" He asked concerned as you two took a seat on the bed.

"There was a really bad storm, the boat got overturned and I remember being with my father one minute but then the next he was gone. I kept searching for him but I couldn't find him, I barely remember making it to shore." You said sadly.

"We can search party and start checking around for your dad, I promise you, that we will find him." He said squeezing your hand as Max jumped on the bed.

"Max buddy!" You said hugging him as he kissed your face making Eric smile.

"You are more than welcome to stay here while you heal and we search for your dad." Eric said making you look at him.

"Eric what about your mom? You know she doesn't like me." You said looking at him.

"As mother and queen, she should never want a child out on the streets. I'm sure she will be upset about it at first, I'll leave you to rest before dinner." He said standing up and leaving.

"See y/n, this why I don't like my Eric going out on those ships. The sea gods aren't our friends." The queen said as you and Eric shared a look.

"One bad storm isn't a reason to stop exploring. And as for the sea gods, they may not be your friends but they are certainly mine." You said making Eric smile as you continued eating.

Over the next few days, you and Eric spent some much time together which was a great distraction for you. It made you realize just how much you truly did love Eric and how you wished that he saw you that way. The following morning, after breakfast, you ran into Grimsby.

"Anything Grimsby?" You asked him.

"I'm afraid not Miss y/n. But we will keep searching." He said giving you a small smile.

"Thank you, Grimsby." You said sadly before leaving and heading down to the beach with Max hot on your trails.

You had been sitting by the shore scratching Max's back as he rested in your lap, wondering if your father was still out there somewhere or if he was lost at sea forever.  Eric who hadn't been able to find you or Max all afternoon finally sees you guys sitting down on the shore making his heartbreak that you had to go through the same thing he did.

"I remember us always coming out here to see if we could see your dad." He said making you smile as you leaned into him.

"That was the best, or when we would try and guess the stories of the ships that were passing through or coming in." You said with a smile.

"You know even if on the off chance we don't find him, you will always have a place here with me." He said lacing a hand with yours.

"Eric, what are you saying?" You asked looking at him in shock.

"Y/n, I have always been in love with you. I hated whenever you would leave and would go for months at a time, I would anxiously wait for your letters or for you to come back. I always hated when my mother would try to set me up on dates because all I could focus on was you and search for you in them. Your love for history and the water is one of the main things, that drew to me not to mention your beauty. I understand if I am..." He said as you pressed a kiss to his lips.

"I have always loved you, Eric." You said smiling at him as you two pulled apart.

"I think that they make a rather lovely couple, don't you think your majesty?" Grimsby asked the Queen as they watched the young couple on the shore.

"I'm afraid you are right Grimsby. I have been a bit harsh to her over the years, haven't I?" The Queen asked.

"Just a little. I think an apology would be a good start to mending the relationship but for now, let's leave them be." Grimsby said as the Queen agreed.

[the-s1lly-corner]

May I request the cast of Tadc x reader, whose y/n is a mermaid? I already imagine that yn would be right in the digital lake, singing or combing her hair like Ariel-

TADC cast x mermaid!reader !

this one may be a little short since my back is already starting to get all... stiff... sobs.... might go lay down for a few minutes then come back and knock out the other request that got sent in !!

CAINE:

caine is a little perplexed as to why you stay at the lake all the time, your room does have water... though, to be fair, your room is blocked off and small. i think it would take him a while to directly interact with you but just know that every night when you sing hes listening to you... actually now that i think about it, i dont think it would take him long to make himself known, he would probably clap and applaud you after one of your personal performances... probably makes sailor jokes, because, you know, sea stuff and mermaid lore... wants to include you more in stuff so he probably does IHAs that are lake themed, or perhaps makes something sort of like a portable tank..

POMNI:

she probably mistakes you for an NPC for a moment LMAO... i was going to go with an idea that pomni would be into mythology and stuff but now that i think about it, i actually see the opposite now thats more of something i can see zooble and gangle being into... not many ideas for pomni, unfortunately, but i think she would be friendly around you for manners

RAGATHA:

she thinks your really pretty, i think... while ragatha doesnt strike me as the type to be into mythology and stuff, i think she subconsciously is attracted to you because she grew up on stories about mermaids, fairies, and princesses... sure she doesnt remember all that since shes gotten stuck in the digital world, but the instinct to be near you is still there... i think if she got caught listening to you sing she would be so embarrassed, probably tries to excuse herself unless you tell her she can stay.. having someone come by down to the lake is nice, to finally have company

JAX:

has probably snagged your comb and darted to the shore of the lake far enough so that you cant reasonably crawl out of the water and grab it back, assuming you actively need water to survive instead of mobility... but either is really mean in my opinion.. toss him into the water/j actually i dont think he can swim, jax doesnt look like the kind of person to swim.. omg omg bonding moment for when you two get closer, imagine teaching him how to (admin never learned how to swim so theyre unqualified to write this </3)

KINGER:

rarely leaves the tent but lets say he goes down to the lake one day while you happen to be out.. similar to pomni i think he would mistake you for an NPC simply because you are almost never in the tent... i think he would enjoy your singing, though, very calming and it eases him.. quietly listens and returns a few times when he sees youre out. meek apologies when hes caught, hes almost sheepish about it and admits that he should have asked before getting up in your business.. ooo i love this man

ZOOBLE:

"so like, do you drown people," just straight up, probably asks this after a day of jax being more annoying than usual... as mentioned earlier i think they would be really into mythological creatures and lore, as well as cryptids, both before and after joining the circus... sure you probably arent lore accurate to mermaid stories in the real world, but i think they would like to learn about youre whole deal.. sometimes helps you get stuff out of your hair if things get tangled up

GANGLE:

gangle is what gets tangled up in your hair^/j

no but i think she would also be very interested in your whole deal, but is less blunt about it unlike zooble... also thinks your pretty.. i think she would bring stuff down to the lake for you guys to do together, like games and drawing stuff... its nice for the both of you to be away from everyone else but still have company in someone who knows what its like to be cast to the side; be it due to shyness or being locked to a place

[teejaystumbles]

Idea/Ask for Mermay?

I love the line: "A bird may love a fish but where would they live?" With mermaid/dreamling twist?

Thanks! :)

this made me go feral over the idea of harpy!Dream and merman Hob! I wrote this in about two-three hours and it's not edited or anything but I hope you like it even if the question where they would live is not answered 😅

I may write more for them/expand on this scene or draw them, but it won't be today.

Anyway Happy Mermay everybody! Let's gooooooo!

Dream sees the glint of scales under the waves and veers in its direction. With a smirk he drops down, claws outstretched-

When he realises his mistake it is too late. He cannot break his descent without risking dropping into the sea. His claws glance off the coppery scales, leaving long sharp scratches behind. A long copper coloured fishtail rises from the water and slaps at him, missing Dream's right wing only by a few centimetres. He hastily pulls himself up into the air again with a heavy flap of his wings and stares down in disbelief.

A dark-haired man's head rises from the waves and yells at him, "Oi, mate, watch it! I'm not a fucking sturgeon!"

A merman! Dream has heard of such creatures before but he has never seen one in his life. Admittedly, he has not been around these shores for long. He cocks his head, curious. The merman frowns and shouts, "Hey, I've never seen you around here before. Aren't harpies usually living in the South? Where it's warmer?"

Dream scoffs and flaps his wings again to stay in the air.

"If you want to interrogate me, perhaps you can accompany me to a place where I can rest my wings. I'm not a seagull, I can't just land on the water."

The merman stares at him open-mouthed, a perplexed look on his face. Dream frowns. Has he not used the correct language? But then the merman nods and flaps his tail. There's a blush on his cheeks and he pulls at the fin on the side of his head where an ear would be.

"Yeah, sorry, 'course. Follow me. It's not far, there's a rock close by."

Dream had seen the rock earlier and nods before steering towards it. The merman ducks back into the water and with a flash of his brown-golden fin he is off, faster than Dream expected. He follows, pondering his decision. What is he doing, seeking conversation with this being? He is not usually one for social interaction. He came here to be alone.

--

Hob notices the shadow above and thinks it’s just a gull flying overhead. He doesn’t look up, there’s no flying predator large enough for a merman to worry about. When suddenly a sharp line of pain is scored into his flesh he thrashes his tail on instinct, trying to knock the attacker down. What the fuck?

He surfaces quickly and looks up. There’s a giant bird flying above him, flapping its black wings to gain some height and distance from Hob’s fin. Except it’s not a bird. It’s a man with bird wings! A harpy, his memory supplies.

Angry and shocked, he shouts the first thing that comes to mind: "Oi, mate, watch it! I'm not a fucking sturgeon!"

He feels stupid straight afterwards, talking to a stranger like that, what if the harpy can’t even understand him?

Hob has heard about harpies. They don’t live in these colder climates, though, or at least that’s what he’s been told. They stick to the Mediterranean, being sensitive to cold. Shows how much there is to learn still. Hob loves to learn new things. 

The bird man cocks his head as if considering Hob’s words. He shouts again, testing if the creature can understand him, "Hey, I've never seen you around here before. Aren't harpies usually living in the South? Where it's warmer?"

The harpy scoffs, a very human sound and says, "If you want to interrogate me, perhaps you can accompany me to a place where I can rest my wings. I'm not a seagull, I can't just land on the water."

Hob gapes at the man. So he can understand him! The harpy’s voice is deep and carries far without being raised. Hob stares at the harpy’s sharp face, his plush lips pouting at him. He narrows his piercing blue eyes at Hob and Hob hastily jerks himself out of his stupor. Embarrassed, he pulls his ear fin.

"Yeah, sorry, 'course. Follow me. It's not far, there's a rock close by."

The creature nods and Hob dives, swimming towards the rocks a few hundred metres away. They are close to the shore and there are plenty of cliffs and rocks nearby.

Hob reaches the rock first and watches the harpy approach. The being lands gracefully, its sharp black claws gripping the rock for support. It has black wings instead of arms and the feathers shimmer purple and blue in the sunlight. Its legs are also densely feathered, plumage covering its body up to the hips. The man’s torso is white, his face human and beautiful with a shock of unruly black hair framing his sharp cheeks and falling over his brows. Hob knows he’s staring but the harpy is the most stunning thing he has ever seen. Dangerous and beautiful, all sharp claws and bones and feathers that look both sharp enough to cut and so soft that Hob desperately wants to touch them to find out how they feel. He restlessly jerks his tail and hisses when he feels the sting of the wound the harpy gave him. He had completely forgotten about it. He lifts his body to the surface to inspect the wound. It’s not that bad, just a shallow scratch. The harpy shifts restlessly behind him.

“I apologise for my error. Do you require medical assistance?”

The harpy’s deep and dulcet voice rolls over Hob like a wave of warm water and he sighs, temporarily forgetting that he has been asked a question. He stares back up at the bird man, lost in a fuzzy haze.

“Are you alright?” the being’s inquiring voice draws him back to reality. Hob blinks and then frowns. He ducks a bit deeper into the water, eyeing the other warily.

“Sorry, I…I’m fine, it’s just a scratch. But tell me,” he says, deciding that it’s better to set things straight right away, “are you a siren? Your voice, it’s…it’s messing with my head.”

--

Dream’s back stiffens when the merman asks him if he’s a siren. Has he been involuntarily charming the other? He curses himself and carefully focuses on stopping any latent magic from entering his voice when he answers, “I apologise. Again. I was not aware I was doing it. It’s been a long time since I…talked to anyone.”

The merman raises an eyebrow but seems mollified and ready to listen, rather than just swimming off. He seems to be a very curious person, too curious for his own good. Dream sighs and shuffles his wings nervously.

“There is indeed a siren in my family line. Some of her magic has been passed down…to me. And some of my siblings. I do not use it…intentionally.”

No need to tell the merman that the mentioned siren is his mother and that Dream has indeed inherited quite a lot of her powers. He truly is not in the habit of using his voice to charm others. He prefers to not be around others anyway.

The merman blinks, seemingly fascinated. Dream studies him more closely. He is an adult male with copper skin and dark brown, almost black hair that flows over his shoulders and down his chest into the water. Dream wonders how long it is. The man’s face is handsome, with a strong nose that would make any harpy envious and amber eyes that look kindly up at Dream, shining with curiosity and intelligence.

“Apology accepted. Just please don’t use it on me anymore,” the merman says easily and draws himself a bit more onto the rock. Dream notes the length of his hair, the wet ends curling just around his dark brown nipples. The feathers at Dream’s neck stand up as he fights his irritation at the alluring display. He draws his gaze away from the merman’s chest to meet his eyes again. The man is smiling guilelessly.

“My name is Hob,” he says brightly, “can I ask your name, stranger?”

Dream straightens and tries to answer with dignity, hoping the other has not noticed his staring.

“I am called Dream. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Hob.”

He is surprised that he means it.

[justmediocrewriting]

Oh hello!! I read your koby writing and loved it!! You have a talent for writing 🩷 I was wondering if you could do a zoro x mermaid!reader who tries to lure them with a siren song but it only works on men so nami and robin fight back but not before reader can get her hands on zoro and steal him away! Maybe some steamy scenes back at her home/cave or something 😏😏

Lost In The Siren’s Song {r.z}

Summary: every creature has to eat. It’s the law of nature — and some creatures don’t have the most humane diets. You were more than aware of this, and even though you weren’t proud of what you had to do, you also knew it was a necessity, albeit one that was hard for you to stand — but it was made a bit more endurable when your prey was this alluring.

Genre: fantasy, smut, please do not read if you are not 18+!

Pairing: Zoro x fem!siren!reader

Word Count: 1.6k

Requested: ✅

Warnings: sexual content (fairly explicit), non-con elements, language, themes of violence and/or gore, please let me know if you noticed any that I missed

A/n: before diving into this, I first want to say thank you so much for this request nonnie! It was such a pleasure (wink wink) to write, and I’ve never actually written anything in a prospect of a creature that isn’t human, and the fantasy element was definitely a joy to indulge in! Also, in folklore, sirens are creatures that lure men, so in my mind (and for the ease of this fic), I decided that sirens as a species feed on the desire of human men (much like a succubus), and therefore do not need to kill men after feeding (most do, however). I did have the OPLA!Zoro in mind when writing this, but I tried to write the story in a way in which you can imagine it as his anime counterpart instead. I really had fun tweaking this around and creating the world for it, so again, thank you so much! I hope everyone can enjoy this ❤️❤️

{=================================}

You’d never before had a victim that was so receptive.

The swordsman was panting, soaked trousers clinging to the shape of his tenting dick, his tan skin flushed so prettily and pupils blown wide as he stared at you with something akin to reverence; it was truly a sight, and the lust pouring from his pores and seeping into yours was the warmest and most satiating you’d ever had.

The man’s expression wasn’t exactly one that you hadn’t seen before — nearly every man you’d lured to your cave wore the same one when under the entrancement of your voice, but somehow, the expression was just breathtaking on this man’s face, and it had your skin flaming in ways you’d never experienced before. Perhaps it was due to him being quite possibly the most attractive mortal you’d ever captured — his cropped green hair accentuated his tan skin, and his shoulders and chest were broad, leading down to slim but well muscled abdomen. The rather large cock standing straight at attention in his trousers was just a bonus.

You swallowed thickly as arousal stirred in your gut, the sensation throwing you slightly off-kilter; you’d fed many times, but that’s all it had ever been to you: feeding. A simple necessity for your survival, and one that you found rather unpleasant. Luring men from ships and dragging them all the way to your den (and the subsequent act of touching them to draw out the most lust you could) wasn’t the easiest thing, and this catch was much harder to retrieve, given that the swordsman’s crew had two women on board, which was not something you encountered often — being as they were resistant to your voice, it was difficult to snatch the man, but somehow you had managed and returned to your cave with minor wounds, just a few scratches and bruises to lick later.

“I won’t kill you,” you assured the man. Even though you knew he wouldn’t be able to truly decipher your words in his current state, nor would he feel anything other than burning need, you always made sure to promise your victims that their lives were not forfeit by you; unlike most of your kind, you knew that killing off the prey was not a necessity, so you didn’t indulge in it. The man simply blinked at you, eyes hazy and unfocused and swirling with arousal, never moving from your figure. Even as hazy and unfocused as they were, they practically seemed to pierce through you, and the onyx hue was entrancing in a way that you’d never seen a mortal possess.

Your hand twitched with the sudden urge to feel him, to roam over his body and pull the clothes off of his skin, and so you did — your scales were long gone by now, replaced instead by smooth, soft legs, which you used to shuffle yourself closer to the man. It was a little known fact about sirens, that you were not, in fact, stuck in one form; it changed, and after enough exposure to dry air you could easily pass as a human.

The swordsman sucked in a sharp breath when your fingers danced along his collar bone, and his hips thrust wildly into the air, a groan slipping past his lips as his hardened member grazed against the confines of his wet trousers. You felt a pang of sympathy for the man. Being under the effects of your song was akin to being under the effects of powerful aphrodisiacs, and you had no doubt that the poor man was in a lot of pain from it — especially since he wouldn’t be able to touch you, not unless you gave him explicit command to.

“Do you want me to touch you?” You whispered into the swordsman’s ear, fingers still trailing along the jut of his collarbone and just barely dipping into the collar of his shirt, and from your close proximity to him, you felt more than saw his eager nodding. His breathy little pants and desperate hip undulations were really beginning to affect you, your cunt feeling extremely wet and hot, and you were taken aback by the sheer amount of desperate want you felt coursing through your veins.

You’d never before wanted your prey so carnally.

“I’ll make it better, as long as you keep wanting me.” You purred into the man’s ear, finding that you were the labored rise and fall of his breaths beneath your fingertips as you used one of your sharp nails to slice through the fabric of his shirt, careful not to damage the taut skin beneath. As your hand slithered further down his torso, the lust being pumped into the air gradually increased, and the man let out small, breathy whimpers and pleas under his breath that had your hips tingling.

“Shh,” you cooed, half because you wanted to comfort him and half because hearing his voice was doing things, and it felt too dangerous for you — there was a sinking wonderment in your gut of who was more entranced by who.

When your hand finally enclosed around the damp bulge of the man’s dick, many things happened simultaneously — the man’s hips arched up in a desperate thrust, a loud, guttural groan slipping past his lips, and you gasped when your entire body flooded with warmth as lust filled you nearly to bursting, lighting your nerves in a way that made you feel as if you were feeling what the man was.

“Please, please, need you — so beautiful, need you so bad.” The man’s voice was hoarse and broken, and it was the first real sentence he’d said, and his voice sounded so beautiful, so tantalizing, and the way his lips curved around each word filled you with a desire that you’d never had before — and you were but a helpless victim to it.

Electricity skirted across every inch of your skin when you pressed your lips against the man’s in a hungry kiss, swallowing every groan and pant and moan down like a beast starved. Goaded and fueled by the lust swirling under your skin — lust that you recognized as the man’s, and even more frighteningly, your own — you swung a leg over him and clambered atop his lap, settling your overheated core directly on the bulge of his dick. You couldn’t help the moan that the sensation pulled from your chest, and the man drank it down like the sweetest nectar, and his tongue plunged into your mouth, seeking your own.

The sensation of his wet tongue wrestling with yours completely wiped away any coherent thoughts your brain would have managed as the lust brimming within your body hit a spilling point, and you began to gyrate your hips at a rapid pace. The drag of your clit against the fabric of his trousers was rough but rich with friction, and the heat of his clothed cock seemed to radiate into your lower half completely. With how fogged your mind and body was, it didn’t even occur to you to wonder how the man had somehow broken from his frozen state without your command when his hands bruised your hips in a vice grip — all you could think was that it felt good, and your entire lower half exploded with harsh tingles when he took control over your movement, dragging you down harshly against his cock in time with his own desperate thrusts.

“So good, so fucking good — gonna explode, gonna fucking blow—” the man’s voice was harsh and ragged against your lips, his words somewhat hard to understand due to his reluctance to disengage his lips from the dance they were performing with yours, but they went straight to your core anyway, flushing your entire body with excitement and eagerness.

“Cum, cum, I want you to cum.” You moaned into his mouth, tongue licking into the crevice, and the man reciprocated your eagerness by removing his hands from your hips and instead wrapping them around your shoulders for a better grip — before you could fully prepare yourself, the man was bucking his hips with abandon, the friction against your clit fast and unrelenting, and you threw your head back with a moan. The swordsman took advantage of the access to your throat, and he began licking and biting the tender flesh, the ministrations adding more fuel to the fire within your belly.

There was a foreign tightening within your gut, something akin to a coil being wound, and it was something you’d never felt before — it was frightening but exhilarating, and though unfamiliar, you just knew that the snapping would lead to something amazing. So you allowed your body to relax and fall limp in the man’s hold, eyes fluttering closed as you let yourself fall into the sensations abusing your body.

“Fuck, so good, you feel so fucking good — so warm and soft, fuck—” with every hot word panted into the flesh of your neck that coil wound tighter, and with a few more harsh thrusts your vision exploded with white stars as your entire body clenched up, your clit bursting with pleasure and throbbing as an orgasm — your first ever — was pulled from your body. The swordsman was quick to follow, a liquid that was even hotter than his cock coating the front of trousers and seeping through to melt into your skin, and the groan he released into your jugular was so filthy that it was nearly enough to rip another orgasm from you.

Your legs were a trembling cage around his thigh, and as you sit recovering from what was probably the most amazingly intense experience of your life, you debated going against your long standing moral code and keeping the man in your lair forever.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Regarding the great seven, did they win in Twisted Wonderland? Like, for example, did Jafar became sultan and the current royal family of the Scalding Sands are his descendants? Did Aladdin die because of him?

No, that's (largely) not the case! Twisted Wonderland is simply a world in which the characters we know of irl as villains that did heinous stuff are just viewed in Twisted Wonderland as historical figures who contributed greatly to society. It's no different than how we may study our own historical figures and their accomplishments in social studies/history class.

While we do hear stories about the Great Seven and their powers, we rarely hear stories which would imply they somehow "won" in the end as opposed to the heroes. For example, Jasmine and Aladdin are implied to still very much be in love, as Jamil tells the tale of a street rat that married a princess. (If Jafar had "won", wouldn't he have been the one to marry the princess?) However, there ALSO exists a tale concurrent to that one in which we're told the Sorcerer of the Sands revealed that someone had lied about their social standing to trick a princess. There are no indications that these two stories are one and the same, so in the world of TWST it seems they're two separate instances that both draw inspiration from Aladdin. There are also no indications (ever) of the Disney heroes dying because of the Great Seven. In fact, it seems like many of them still got their original happy endings. (ADDENDUM: as a commenter pointed out, it’s also possible that multiple tales or versions of the tale came from the same initial story, something which happens irl as well.) Similarly, we know that the mermaid princess married a human prince, thus alleviating tensions between merfolk and humans with their union. This would not have been possible if Ursula had "won", as that would mean that Ariel would have reverted back to being a mermaid (or that little squishy thing Ursula has a garden of) and would "belong" to the Sea Witch forever. Ariel wouldn't have been able to stay on land and marry Eric in that state. Furthermore, Ursula may have gone on to become Queen of the Seas if Triton still intervened to save his daughter... but then why is Triton still honored as King of the Seas in the Atlantica Memorial Museum in book 3?

There are a few instances I can think of which would imply the villain "won", the main one being that Scar ruled the Pridelands as a wise and benevolent king (which is not true of The Lion King movie). I don't consider this Scar "winning", but more like... a twisted or exaggerated retelling of the actual event. For the villain to "win", that would also imply the heroes are gone or in a position to not stop them, right? Yet there are zero mentions of Mufasa or Simba being out of the picture, or even of Scar banishing family members that opposed his rule.

This all points to there being an alternate telling of history in TWST; it seems that the "evil" deeds of the Great Seven were censored and/or retold in such a way to paint them in a beneficial light, since the deeds of the traditional heroes also exist and are also considered true in Twisted Wonderland's history. (For example, Scar letting the hyenas into the Pridelands is reframed as a good thing, since he promoted the integration of a previously marginalized group into the country; Ursula is actually believed to have "mended all her ways" rather than it being a lie to deceive others.) Lilia even specifically mentions that it's possible to "change" history just by telling it a certain way.

On a related note, it seems that this year's birthday series (Platinum Jacket) will delve more into TWST's history and how the NRC boys feel or think about various classic Disney characters. I'm really looking forward to seeing how those expand the lore~

[netherworldpost]

2024 is the year of unabashed self love and honesty and joy in this love and honesty in every form possible

2024 is the year of so much radical enjoyment of being alive that we all ought gaze into the inner clockwork of our very souls and say

"oh, my gentleness, you are wonderful"

(the cane is new)

and then clip a small taco pouch

(from nerdwax)

which serves to carry small things

(and nerdwax) (it's for glasses)

(btw, smugly I say, to myself, to the me a bit younger,

(the cane is new) (my ol' legs are not)

glasses, too, are life aids that you have been wearing since you were six)

2024 is the year we take a bitter hatred of capitalism and realize an enjoyment of being alive lets you hate capitalism more make more art make more delicious crepes caramel read more books laugh more, longer, louder

this is a good life

there is much to this life that is awe inspiring

cheers my fellows, I'm going to go cook a ridiculously delicious meal

make up another batch of caramel

and then get to the hard work of (checking notes) drawing mermaids blushing at sea witches blushing at mermaids because they each think the other is deliriously adorable but they themselves are too shy (for a few heartbeats) to say hello

(the cane is new) (my ol' legs are not) (nor is the queer art)

this is a magnificent life

(the cane is new) (my ol' legs are not) (nor is the queer art)

tomorrow I will awake with more queer art than I went to sleep over

a blessing

[gildedoak]

When I was rewatching the 1989 Little Mermaid earlier this year, I watched the fire reach the kegs marked "Powder" and I went, "Oh hey look, it's a Fluffernutter!"

So I had to draw it. Skipped a few frames, but I enjoyed the practice!

The Mighty Nein have such bad luck with their ships. I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE MIGHTY NEIN ANIMATED SERIES - I TEAR UP EVERY TIME I SEE THE COMMERCIAL.

Image descriptions and a small rant below the cut!

[Image Description Start: a sketchy series of Mighty Nein (Xhorhas outfits from Level 10) storyboards mimicking Eric's ship crashing in the 1989 Little Mermaid.

PICTURE ONE: Panel 1: Beau and Caleb stand aboard a ship as the clouds beyond grow darker and a bolt of lightning streaks across the sky.

Panel 2: "STAND FAST! SECURE THE RIGGING!" Yasha yells from above.

Panel 3: Another bolt of lightning hits the mainmast, and the sails catch fire.

Panel 4: "JUMP NOTT! JUMP!" Caleb stands amid the pouring rain, holding his arms upward.

Panel 5: "YASHA - YASHA HELP!" "I got you! Hold on!" Nott flounders in the water next to the lifeboat, and Yasha scoops her up in one giant arm.

Panel 6: Caleb tugs at his leg, his foot stuck in a broken part of the deck. The fire is spreading around him, and the rain continues to pour in torrents.

Panel 7: "CALEB!" Caduceus, Jester and Nott look up from the lifeboat.

Panel 8: Caleb turns to look back, as the fire reaches the quarter deck.

Panel 9: Two kegs marked "Fluffernutter" in Jester's calligraphy and the Tusktooth logo start to catch fire.

Panel 10: The deck of the ship explodes.

Panel 11: Yasha, Beau, Caduceus, Jester and Nott gape in horror, the light of the explosion illuminating their faces.

Panel 12: In the water below, Fjord gasps.

PICTURE TWO: Uk'otoa the Sea Serpent rises up above the waves, his multiple eyes glowing in the darkness. "SO MUCH FOR TRUE LOVE!!"

End Image Description]

TRIGGER WARNING FOR A SHORT DISCUSSION OF HOSPITALIZATION AND SURGERY

Soooo the last half of this year was a freakin' STRUGGLE. I got into a car accident in August, which then triggered a hiatal hernia that led to me getting emergency stomach surgery. I swear it was one thing after another for WEEKS, and I was exhausted. Thankfully, I didn't have any loss of motor function, but I didn't do art for a solid three months. My creativity was at an all-time low, and I was focused on mastering walking around on crutches more than I was at holding a pencil.

Getting back into the swing of it was a little shaky, but it's improving! Hoping to do more art and posting it online. Expect more doodly sketches this coming year instead of finished pieces. But also, look for new designs coming to my RedBubble account!

[skulla-rxcks]

🧸CHAPTER ONE} I like you more than a roommate

Next chapter

Paring: roommate!Hyunjin X fem reader

Rating: mature (eventually explicit)

Genre: friends to lovers, fluff, eventual smut

Chapter Warnings/things: storms

!THIS IS PURE FICTION, NOTHING IN THIS IS REAL ITS JUST A STORY!

Your roommate Hyunjin is slowly catching feelings for you. You get more clingy to him as he helps you through your needs and issues, he loves you but doesn’t know how to show it.

A/n: I’ve been working on this for a bit and I can’t be bothered finishing majority of this chapter since I wanna get it out.

P.s: I haven’t edited this chapter and probably won’t bc I can’t be bothered, also no TWS for this chapter.

I sit back, focusing on the sound of my paint brush sweeping across the canvas, creating a beautiful image of a mermaid in a lagoon. I haven’t slept all night due to working on this painting, though I did steal this plain canvas from my roommate, he probably wouldn’t mind.

“I’m back! Dance practice was really tiring.. my shoulder hurts..” And there he is. My roommate himself, Hyunjin. I laugh slightly, moving away from my art to greet him. “Couldn’t you just take a break from dancing? Have sometime to yourself maybe, you know.. I’m always here if you feel like hanging out. it’s break after all. “

He looks at me, tilting his head to the side and scratching his neck. “I’m down for hanging out. I’m pretty sure today was our last dance session anyways" i gasp in joy after hearing that he'll finally have time to rest. "Yay! I guess we can do some art stuff then, I’ll show you what I've been doing" a warm smile forms on my face as i take his hand in mine, leading him over to the painting I’m currently working on.

“Wow.. the background blends so nicely!” He gasps, rubbing my shoulder with pride.

I feel my cheeks flush slightly, but smile.

"It’s nothing much. Just my usual style, I’m not sure if I like how the water looks or not"

Hyunjin 's hand stays on my shoulder for a few seconds longer before he parts his lips to speak again. “The water looks incredible, i would say I could do better but i can’t.”

My face heats up once again after listening to his pitiful, yet comfortable comments being thrown at me.

I walk out of our art closet, (which is basically a small closet we made into a mini art studio) and gently place my painting on the windowsill. The breeze is slightly cold, i close the window to keep warm. Shivering, I grab one of Hyunjin’s hoodies and slide it over my shirt, it’s a bit baggy but whatever. “What are you drawing?” I ask as i sit beside him again, hugging my knees to my chest due to the sudden change of the weather.

“Just someone” he mumbles. My eyes can’t help but look at how pretty he is when concentrating; hair tied back, eyebrows slightly frowned. I notice his face looking pale, i shuffle closer, lightly touching his cheek with my knuckle. “Your cold.. give me a minute.” I stand up, making my way to the kitchen and turning the kettle on. I get out two mugs, pouring in warm milk, coco, sugar and adding some marshmallows for each one. Two hot chocolates coming up!u

I waddle back into the room slowly stumbling as I hold the drinks that are filled to the brim.

“Here you go!” I giggle, handing him one of the hot chocolates, receiving a hug in response.

“Ah thanks .. I’m gonna get into bed, it’s gonna storm later. You can join me if you’d like, I know you don’t like storms.” He groans, chucking his sketchbook on the ground and pulling the covers over him. My eyes watch his movements, he sips his drink and puts it on a small table next to his bed.

I get in my own bed, admiring his features from a far.

A few hours past, he’s asleep already. I sigh, staring at the ceiling. It’s already raining and the storm is gliding over to us, *buzz.. buzz* the light starts flickering as the power goes out.

“N-no..please don’t do this to me tonight.. n-no.. no..” i clench my sheets and cry softly.

“J-Jinnieee.. w-wake up, it’s scary..”

I sob louder, shaking from the cold and my fears.

“Jinnie…” I lay down under the sheets with him

“Hm?.. Hey Shh, you’re okay. Come here.” Hyunjin moves closer to me, hugging me tightly as my tears soak through his shirt. “The storm is outside. You’re safe in here with me. It’s not gonna get us”

“B-but what if it d-“ My words are cut off as my head pushes into his chest, before I know it he’s leaving soft kisses on my head while continuing to soothe me. “I… I..” I let my eyes look at his lips for a sec then back to his eyes. My arms tighten around him as i cry myself to sleep.

© 2023 skulla_rxcks

[spitdrunken]

currently i'm really busy with writing for my thesis, which unfortunately leaves me with little creative juice... ive been engaging with other people's creations a lot more rather than writing for myself, but have some assorted thoughts on things ive enjoyed recently below, for anyone who is interested. feel free to send me asks about anything that's mentioned, but because of the above, might take me a bit to get back to u <3!

these aren't really x reader thoughts, just rambling! if you read this, thank u, i am giving you a kiss on your forehead/hug/fistbump/handshake/whatever words of affirmation you have been wanting to hear today. pick your favorite!

(Pokephilia mention) Pokémon Legends Z's announcement!! It'll be forever until it's released (which, as a true Pokémon fan, I'm very happy about BAHAHAH), but I'm so excited! Very curious how they are planning to implement, what seems to be, citybuilder elements... If Emmet shows up in this game, I'm going to be super delighted, but I honestly doubt it. Either way, it's made me think a bit more about the twins, and Poképhilia stuff in general as well! It's such a shame/pain the main tag is blocked... one day I will start and stick to my intention to write, like, porn about all the Pokémon, haha. A dream...

(cannibalism(????) monster eating??? mention. consensual!) Dungeon Meshi really was as much fun as everyone mentioned! Don't really see myself writing fic about it, except for a very specific idea I had... I like the thought of Laois 'obsessed with eating monsters' Touden got to meet a monster (AKA Reader) who is equally obsessed with the idea of being eaten!! Maybe a mermaid, or something like that? It's his one chance to eat a humanoid monster! Though the others probably won't believe him when they tell him that it was 100% consensual, and are judging him harshly LMAO

Welcome Home updated! Very happy about this. Though I don't connect them publically, I actually have written quite a bit of WH fic and my sfw sideblog for it used to have more followers than this one LMAOO. Maybe one day I'll write NSFW works for it, but I dunno if there's interest... Plus, I very much fall underneath people the creator would consider 'unwelcome' in their squeaky-clean fandom or whatever, but they have like a quarter million followers now, lol. Anyway, Wally is, as has been said many times before, the Most! He draws me in <3

And also, poor Eddie, lmao. It's very interesting to me, with the inclusion of the Narrator, that the characters seem to be forced to steer in a specific direction, if that makes sense? To upkeep a certain mask. I wonder if 'as above, so below' is a reference to that, in the sense that whatever is dictated by the stronger forces of narrative, is what shall occur 'below'-- In their world. Like, the animosity some of these puppets have for each other!!!!! Some of them are just straight up Not Friends, lmao.

I need to play more of it, but if anyone is reading this, go play I Was A Teenage Exocolonist. I expected it to be waaaay more popular, especially on Tumblr, but it's so underrated? The writing is wonderful, the characters are well-defined, and the art is breathtaking! Please take a look at the trigger warnings, cuz there are a few that are definitely applicable, but it's soooo good... If it has to be said, I romanced Dys first, lmao.

I am watching The Apothecary Diaries right now, just started today, and can I jsut say... I'm such a fan of all the women in this show!! I love the perspective it gives on court life a lot! Maomao definitely is pulling in all the men AND women, huh.... i appreciate that. Jinshi also 100% wants to get degraded by her, huh. Maomao is the sexywoman of this show.

[mightymizora]

WIP: The Portrait

This is the most self indulgent thing I'm writing, but I'm putting this opener out to see if it works at all... feedback welcome.

Lord Gortash requests a portrait of his paramour. The pay is good, the contract legitimate. It seems almost too good to be true...

The request came to the guild house with gold already attached. Wanted, portrait artist. Female subject, three sittings. Half pay upfront. He did not recognise the seal, but Darcus told him it was from the newly minted Lord Gortash, also known as Enver Flymm, also known in certain parts of the back cities as Flymm the Bloody, where they still dared to say such things. The purse held more gold than Guy had ever seen, and Litton laughed at his face when he opened it.

“Oh, dear boy!” he chided, drawing the string again and placing it in the middle of the table. “You are too swayed by money. What of passion? What of love of the craft?”

It was easy, thought Guy, to care only of craft, of passion or love or whatever else you might want when you were the third son of a Patriar, and mummy dearest paid for your garret upfront for the year so you could slum it a little, just for fun. When you had a real life, a real wife, a real child, love started to mean something very different.

“Give it here,” he said. “I’ll take it. If it’s Kerrie Lovelace again, I still have the sketches from the Ravengard commission.”

Lovelace was popular with the Patriars. A half-elf with the wettest eyes he’d ever seen and a permanently quivering, full lip. She was the lover or some, and the favoured subject of far more since Litton had painted her as a beautiful mermaid to mark The Breaking a few years before. The last piece Guy had painted of her had been a garish facsimile of the original with only surface changes, but it had paid fairly. Money seemed to disappear these days. Between clothing and food for little Eva, new dresses for Sal and keeping up with all of these idiots, he was running dry again.

“I’d be careful if I were you,” said Darcus, his tankard resting against his belly. The moon was barely up and he was already deep in his cups. “These new Lords, they ain’t to be trusted. No honour between them.”

“And I’d take it,” said Litton. “Not personally, of course. But you should take it now before Fevras gets wind. At least you might make something worth hanging.”

And so he finds himself being ushered into full halls of the home of Lord Gortash, a surprisingly unassuming and tasteful villa in the new style, all white stone and iron-wrought glass, every wall crammed to the ceiling with art and curios. There are paintings here from the old masters that must have cost a fortune, plenty of Litton’s best (including The Mermaid, he notes, last in the possession of the Jannath’s), and odd pieces of fine mechanica and automata the likes of which the Halls of Wonder would envy. He almost wishes to stop, take it in, but his patron’s pace is unrelenting as he strides through to the very end of the house. It does not seem wise to keep him waiting. 

“I hope it is sufficient light,” says Gortash, opening the door himself to a handsome chamber with full glass windows, a handsome solid desk and a nicely appointed parlour. “You are seeing into the most intimate parts of my estate. I will be present tending to some business while you work, if that is alright with you. I do so like to see a master at their craft.”

“Thank you, my Lord,” Guy says as he hands his cloak to a dwarf standing in the centre of the room, who does not move to bow as she takes it. The woman looks at him with some curiosity, and looks over to her Lord with a sharp smile.

“Ah,” starts Gortash, taking the cloak from her and holding it out. An elf in fine brocade sweeps in to take it, and the woman watches with still amusement as they depart. “This, Saer Ceasebourne, is your subject.”

He feels his stomach churn as he looks at her again. She cocks her head in curiosity as she stares back at him. She does not look angry, but now he looks again she does not look amused. No, the look in her eye is something else entirely, and it makes him feel rather sick.

“My apologies, my Lord, I didn’t-”

“Oh dear fellow, do not fret. Though I keep my servants in better finery than this one wears, for future reference.”

“You forget yourself, Lord Gortash.”

The woman’s voice is dark, deep as the Chionthar, and dripping in threat as her eyes flick from him to Gortash. He takes the momentary reprieve from her gaze to cast an eye over her properly. It is hard to see her body under her plain dark red robes, but he can tell from what flesh is exposed at her neck and down her forearms that she is likely to be freckled all over her pale skin. Copper hair is heaped atop her head in a neat bun, her face marked with long lines of a tattoo that traces her strong jaw and pulls into her eyes. 

Her eyes. They are quite extraordinary. At a first glance brown, but as the light pulls into them they shine an almost pinkish hue. Like unblooded meat.

Gortash smiles at her, bowing his head ever so slightly. "I apologise for the perceived slight. You are my guest here today. And I hope we will both show proper decorum, for the occasion."

[starkstruck27]

One last little mermay fic because it's the last day and I thought it would be cute (also I may be posting on June 1st technically, but I wrote the bulk of it yesterday so...).

Steve hadn't been working at the aquarium for long, but he loved every second of it. He'd moved out to California a while ago and he'd been down on his luck when Dustin came out one time to visit, all jazzed up about marine life, since it was his latest obsession, and he'd suckered him into a trip to the place before he left again for Hawkins. Steve had never had much interest in undersea life before, but as Dustin dragged him through the exhibits, he found himself in awe of all the beautiful creatures. At the end of their tour, he was buying Dustin a souvenir in the gift shop, when a large "Help Wanted!" sign caught his eye.

"That, uh, that sign," he asked the girl who was scanning the barcode on Dustin's stuffed seahorse and new San Diego Aquarium cap, "Is that just for the gift shop or is it the aquarium in general?"

"No, it's for the whole place. We are looking for a few people to be cashiers in here and the food court, but we're also looking for tour guides and trainers. The trainers have to have some kind of prior experience working with animals though, so just keep that in mind. Would you like an application?" She asked, her smile bright as she handed the younger boy the bag.

"Yes, please," Steve smiled back, and the girl handed him a small packet of papers fill out before smiling and greeting the next customer.

By the time they left, Steve had already returned the packet, completely filled out, to the right box, and two days later, he got a call to come in for an interview. He went, and an hour later, walked out with a job as a tour guide and a date to come in for his first day of training.

By now, nearly two months later, he knew the ins and outs of the entire place, and he could spit facts about sharks or jellyfish or anemone or sea cucumbers like he was listing the days of the week. He was one of the favorites among the tour groups, since he often made stupid dad jokes and gave out aquatic themed stickers to the kids. It was a hands-on aquarium, and a lot of the parents liked the gentle encouragements he would give their kids if they were scared to touch a certain animal, and the kind ways he would explain how to do it properly so as not to hurt the animals so that everything went smoothly. He was often handed tips from appreciative parents, and even though he always tried to refuse them, they always insisted he take them for helping their young kids to have such a positive experience. His fridge in his apartment was running out of room on the front of it from the amount of drawings kids would do for him, and he had made a note to get himself a little scrapbook or binder or something to keep them in so that he didn't have to throw them away to make room for new ones.

So yeah, Steve absolutely loved his job.

And when his boss pulled him aside one day and said that he wanted him to be the one to help launch the newest attraction on May 1st, he was more than happy to do it. He was just supposed to lead the families into the amphitheater that faced the biggest tank in the aquarium and get them pumped up to see some kind of show involving mermaids. He had no idea what it was or how it was going to work, but he was excited to do it, so he did.

Finally, May 1st rolled around and Steve was about to do his first presentation for a packed theater. He scrounged up some of the old confidence he'd had in high school and put on a huge smile as he walked out in front of the tank with his notes, quieting the families and greeting them before asking if they were ready to see some mermaids.

That's what the whole thing was about. It was supposed to be like that one attraction in Weeki Wachee, Florida, where they had the actresses that dressed up like mermaids and entertained families in while swimming under water. It was pretty much the same as that, but while the actors and actresses were swimming around, Steve was supposed to give a presentation on some fun facts about mermaids and then, at the very end, the families would get to pose for pictures with the actors while they were still in the tank. They were going to be going down with air nozzles from oxygen tanks in their hands, so that they could make cool bubble effects, but also so they could still breathe as they were underwater. It was actually really cool, in Steve's opinion, and he was excited to be giving the presentation.

"Okay, so as long as you're ready to meet our merpeople, we have to try and call to them so that they'll come out to see us. Merpeople are king of shy, so we have to be really loud when we call their names, okay? We have a lot of merpeople here at our aquarium, but the ones you're going to see today are named Pearl and Nero, so on the count of three, we're all going to say really loudly 'Hi, Pearl and Nero!', okay?" Steve said as he continued his opening, smiling wide along with a lot of the kids. They all nodded as he counted to three, and they shouted out for the two actors, and they swam over from where they'd dropped into the tank, somewhere off to the side where the audience wouldn't see them going in.

The first 'mermaid', a girl with curly dark hair and tan skin, swam over, wearing a bright red shell bra and a shimmering red tail that caught the light beautifully. She pretended to be shy as she swam over, but she smiled as a manta ray came up to her, and she pet it gently as the kids all oohed and aahed.

"Everybody, this is Pearl," Steve said, gesturing at the tank, and the actress waved back at the audience, flicking her tail as she swam all around and did little tricks. She could hold her breath for an incredible amount of time, only having to use the breathing tube thing once or twice in the past couple of minutes.

"Now, Pearl is a little bit more brave than our other merman, so we have to call out for him again to get him to come out, okay?" Steve said, and the kids all called out for the guy again. The actress in the water even gestured over to someone with her hand as she swam around and played with the fish and other creatures in the tank with her. Finally, the kids all cheered as another actor swam over, looking more timid as he did.

"Everybody, this is Nero," Steve said, and he gestured at the tank, almost forgetting his next bit in the script when he saw the man. He had blonde hair that flowed around his face in ringlets. He had a tiny hint of a mustache on his top lip and the most striking blue eyes Steve had ever seen. His tail was also blue, probably to match his eyes, and as he waved to the audience and smiled, Steve nearly fainted. He was muscular, but not overly so, and his arms looked strong and sturdy, much like the rest of him. And his smile was bright enough to light up the entire ocean if he wanted to.

Steve made himself refocus on his presentation as the actors played under the water, swimming around and playing with both each other and the creatures in the tank with them. They interacted with the crowd as Steve gave his presentation, doing certain motions to go along with the fun facts Steve was spouting, and just seeming to have fun with it. Steve was too, once he got over the initial shock of that gorgeous man swimming around behind him, and when the presentation was over, he both happy and sad about it. The next show was going to be done by another one of his coworkers, and two other actors would be playing the merpeople, so Steve decided to head back to where he knew the actors would be taking their breaks to see if he could get a chance to talk to the guy.

He found him and the other girl laughing backstage as they ate lunch and gossiped, and he was almost afraid to go in and talk to them. They both had towels wrapped around their heads to keep their long, wet hair out of the way as they ate, and they both still had their tails on, since they had one more show to do before they got to leave for the day.

"Oh, speak of the devil," the girl said to the guy, and she gestured to the door that Steve was standing at, smiling widely. "You're our presenter, right? We were just talking about you. You did a great job hyping up the kids for us. Although, your jokes were absolutely terrible. I'm Heather."

"Oh, uh, yeah, I'm Steve," the man said, walking further into the room with them and tucking some hair behind his ears nervously. "Sorry to interrupt, I just figured that I should probably introduce myself to you guys at some point since we'll be doing a lot of shows together. And I wanted to compliment you on your performance, it was really, really cool. I don't know how you can hold your breath for that long and keep your eyes open underwater and still to all those tricks and stuff. It was just really amazing."

"Thanks," Heather replied, taking another bite of her sandwich, "And to tell you the truth, it's really nothing special. Just lots and lots of practice."

"And the oxygen tanks help a lot," the man said, the first time he'd spoken since Steve first entered the room. He didn't seem like he'd be a quiet person, but Steve figured that maybe he just didn't really like new people. He could understand that. Still, he'd hoped that maybe he'd have more to say than just that. Heather seemed to notice this, because she looked between them for a second, rolled her eyes at the man, and then reached down to unzip a part of her tail and stick her feet out so that she could shuffle off into another part of the room, saying something about needing to use the bathroom and leaving the two alone.

"I meant what I said," Steve said, stepping closer to the other man, "Your performance was really good. I've never seen so many happy kids in one room before. And you didn't even seem like an actor half the time there. You actually seemed like you lived in the water for real. And I'll tell you, you got a set of balls on you, too. I'd never have the courage to swim straight up to a hammerhead and just start petting it like you did."

"Thank you," the man finally cracked a smile as a cute little blush rose to his cheeks. "Yeah, I've always loved the ocean and anything having to do with it. And normally, I wouldn't have the balls to swim right up to a shark, but we keep them pretty well fed here, so I had nothing to worry about. But still, thanks for the compliments." The man paused again, setting down his sandwich, wiping his hands on a napkin, and training those striking blue eyes on Steve while he stuck out his hand and said, "I'm Billy."

Steve shook his hand, and he could feel his own face lighting up with a smile.

"Nice to meet you," he said, his heart fluttering when the other man's face finally broke into a full grin.

"Likewise," he said, and they began to slip into a more casual conversation as Heather returned and she and Billy finished their lunches and got ready for the next performance. Steve would have to leave soon to get his microphone and his notes sheet again, but he stayed for as long as he could, quickly becoming friends with the two actors and making a few plans to make their next show an even bigger hit than the last one was. Finally, it was just a few minutes before Steve would have to start welcoming families back into the theater, and Billy went off somewhere to do one last thing before the show.

"Oh, and hey Steve, I have a quick question for you," Heather said, just before he left.

"Yeah?" Steve asked, stopping just short of the doorway.

"Can I get your number?" She asked, thrusting a napkin and pen into his hands. "It's not for me, though, it's for Billy. Y'know, just in case you were wondering. He nearly choked in the tank earlier when he first saw you through the glass, however blurry. And he said you had a nice voice. But he's too much of a wimp to ask you himself, so write a corny little note and leave him your number so that I don't have to hear about how out of his league you are for the next fifty years, because he will complain for that long."

Steve was taken aback at first, but he was flattered, and he liked the other guy, too, so he decided, why the heck not? He scribbled down a note and his phone number quickly, then high-tailed it out of the room to be in the theater for his cue, just as Billy came back over.

"Steve asked me to give this to you," Heather grinned like a shark, handing him the note. Billy took it, puzzled, and almost missed his own cue to get in the water as he read and reread it to make sure it sunk in.

Steve left him his number. And a terrible dad joke, but mostly his number, and said he wanted to go out with him sometime. He'd said he wanted to be 'part of his world', and as much as the pun made Billy roll his eyes, he couldn't help but find it cute. He could definitely arrange that. But first, he had to get back in the water, and hopefully nobody would notice as he stared at Steve's ass through the glass.

And if they did, he could just pass it off as a merman curious about how the humans walked around on their two large fins.

[yuriko-mukami]

The Extended Mukami Family Headcanons

Eri

Sends Insta reels in everyone's DMs. While others are okay with it, Ruki doesn't quite know what to make of it.

Wants to bring bunnies in the garden. So far, Yuma hasn't allowed it.

Has art making girls' nights with Maria. Laito has asked several times both to draw more lewd stuff.

Yuma

Is sure that Eri and Yuriko are sometimes messing with the garden. Knows that Yuriko naps there as a fox but suspects she isn't the only one.

Is damn happy that Azusa has settled down with Christine.

Sometimes loses his cool with Kou and Kazemi.

Kazemi

Is the quiet one and might be a bit snarky bit she secretly enjoys having family around. She doesn't admit it.

Occupies the garden pool during summer and the inside pool during colder seasons.

Has a certain tone of voice when talking to Kou that alerts everyone else to change the room just before their next argument starts.

Kou

Call all the girls as his fans. And makes sure that everyone hears his new songs as soon as possible.

Tries to bribe girls to make him Vongole Bianco whenever Ruki is away. Yuriko sometimes agrees but doesn't want anything back.

Keeps touch through the family group chat when he is away because of work. Always sends tons of photos.

Christine

The most outgoing of the girls but still enjoys her quiet time, too. She manages to balance these perfectly.

Talks about poetry with Yuriko. Sometimes Ruki joins them, sometimes he simply enjoys monitoring and listening to the girls talking.

A coffee drinker who likes dates in cozy cafes and knows how to dress for the occasion. Azusa never thought he would like to go to cafe dates, but he adores those moments with his Rose.

Azusa

Adores everyone and is genuinely happy that there is so much love in the manor these days.

Has become healthier because of his relationship with Christine. She is his first priority, and he always puts her before anyone else.

Always answer a bit too late to the texts in the family group chat.

Yuriko

Secretly admires other girls' long hair and wonders if her short hair is okay. She also thinks everyone dresses better than she.

Teases Eri and Kazemi about their relationships with Yuma and Kou because she finds their reactions cute.

Sends book quotes in the family group chat in random times. Reads everything there but might say nothing for days.

Ruki

Tries to make sure everyone does their share in the household and keeps things organized even though it's even more a hassle than it was before.

Loves cooking for the family. It's important to him that there is a family dinner at least a few times of the week. But sometimes, he is happy to eat alone with Yuriko, and he also enjoys retreating into the silence of their library bedroom.

Is a bit confused with the family group chat at times since people are texting too much. But he has realized it's useful for giving tasks and reminds everyone about important things.

I just had to write these down. I hope you guys won't mind. And it's okay if you don't agree with all of these.

Also, if you want to add yours, I would be happy to read them.

@eri-talks @mermaid--bride @seaoflove07 @askazusablog @mr-laito-sakamaki @ruki-mukami-dl

[singswan-springswan]

Behold: a little plot bunny that's been bouncing around my head. Another Kanera mermaid AU because I'm obsessed with mermaids and Kanera is love Kanera is life. Kanan's trying desperately not to blow his cover on land but gaslighting his human partner Hera is harder than he thought, especially when he can't help but save her from drowning on the occasion.

words: 1174

~

Hera knew Kanan was a skeptic—and in all fairness, she’d been one too. But before all that, he was supposed to trust her. That’d been the first thing to connect them. Her wild ideas, and his fascinated willingness to go along with them. Of course, Hera knew that he had boundaries, but they’d been difficult to find in the two years he’d been her best friend, and the fact that they existed in the first place was something of a vague notion. In any case, she never thought he’d draw the line here.

“This isn’t me being radical, Kanan.” Hera huffed, smacking the meter stick into her other hand. These days, it felt like a necessary thing to have him take her side, even if there was no solid opposition to take sides against, and even if the argument didn’t involve him. Hera just liked when he supported her, if she was honest. Which was silly. As if he didn’t support her by default as it was, here she stood now, demanding he agree with the one assertion that made him dig his heels in. 

But really, wasn’t he used to her crazy ideas by now? Surely he couldn’t be putting this past her. He should have seen it coming. She should have seen it coming too. Kriff, maybe she really was crazy, but could he at least agree with her?

Kanan propped a handsome cheekbone on his fist, elbow slanted lazily atop the messy table. Hera could stand to tidy things up in here; the galley of her beloved ship was something that should be clean on the regular. But she’d been down here all night with her murder board, and there hadn’t been time before Kanan wandered in for breakfast. He looked bored, having finished his bagel by now. There was a closed-off tolerance behind his eyes: a look so rare it made Hera frantic to have him understand.

She pointed the stick to the whiteboard on her right, where she’d pinned up photographs and newspaper clippings and a flaky array of sticky notes—all very neatly organized from her point of view, though a small voice in her head said that Kanan and perhaps a Hera who wasn’t sleep deprived would not see it the same way.

“This is me being logical. Look, I have it all thought out.”

Kanan—bless him—didn’t patronize her with a pointed sweep of the room. Hera really ought to clean up.

“There’s nothing logical about what happened.” He said in a blunt tone. At least he was focused on her, not indulging the rant with presence alone. 

“Exactly! There’s no logical explanation. Which can only mean my survival was supernatural. We both know I should have died that night—there was no chance for me to make it through the storm on my own, even with all my skill and experience—so whoever rescued me must have been specially gifted and enhanced individuals like that simply don’t exist within the human understanding of the world. Besides, I saw—”

“You imagined.” Kanan interrupted, frowning a little now, to Hera’s immense frustration. “You were half drowned by the time you made it back to shore, and that much more exhausted. On top of that, your imagination is one of the more impressive ones out there.”

Hera glared at him. “I saw,” She insisted. “Things that can’t be explained by a human understanding of the world. And you know me. I’m adaptable.”

Kanan sighed heavily and rubbed a hand against his brow. He was certainly being firm about this line, and not crossing it and such. And that was maddening to Hera. It didn’t fit his pattern of behavior to be so adamant about not believing her. Sure, this might be her craziest idea to date, but a few of her past conspiracy theories came pretty darn close and as she recalled, he’d jumped on board without a second thought. So why was this any different?

Outside, a boat motor rumbled past the marina, and the Ghost creaked pleasantly while it rocked on the wake coming in. Hera could hear the bustle of other mariners on the docks too, mingled with seagull chatter and clanging equipment. This late in the morning, the first round of fishermen were coming to port already. And she still hadn’t convinced Kanan.

“Okay,” He dropped the hands from his face and held them pressed together, fingers pointed her direction. “This is what we know.”

Hera narrowed her eyes, but she let him talk.

“You were stupid enough to take the Phantom out without me when you knew the forecast was bad, and you were caught on the open ocean when a storm rolled in. The dinghy capsized, probably on the seabed by now, with all your equipment—and you were lucky enough to wash up on shore before you drowned completely. Does that sound about right?”

Hera swung the meter stick down to smack a pile of papers in front of Kanan, eliciting a sharp noise and no reaction but an unimpressed raise of the eyebrow. “What I know,” She snapped. “Is that I should be dead. And I have one very specific person to thank for that. I was rescued, Kanan. Someone saved me: someone not human. Someone from the sea.” 

She wouldn’t have believed it if she hadn’t seen it herself. And although the memories from that night were fuzzy around the edges, she distinctly recalled the moment on the beach, vomiting sea water in the pouring rain, tucked into a pair of strong arms. She remembered babbling in confusion, and she remembered her rescuer vanishing in a brilliant blur of green and gold, before she could properly register the feel of scales beneath her hand. These memories weren’t products of an exhausted brain or overstimulated imagination. She knew she sounded crazy otherwise, but she couldn’t betray herself. Maybe for that reason, she was so determined to convince Kanan. She didn’t want to be crazy and alone.

But he was unimpressed with her stubborn insistence. He wasn’t patronizing, or indulgent—which would have made his disbelief worse—so small miracles. At least he had the decency to be straight with her.

“Hera,” Kanan gave her a flat look. “You know mermaids aren’t real, right?”

There was no budging on that line of his. Hera wanted to pout, cross her arms, insist that no actually she didn’t know that, and neither did he really. But they’d been at this for hours already. She’d started her rant the moment he strolled in—hair still a beautiful mess from sleep—and she’d meticulously explained every node on her murder board with fine detail, so if that hadn’t convinced him even a smidge, then whining definitely wouldn’t.

Instead, Hera drew herself up and gave him her best calculating stare. “What would it take?” She asked slowly, carefully. “To make you believe?”

Kanan crossed his arms and leaned back: the foreign picture of closed off. His lips pinched. His eyes had a wall behind them. “You couldn’t convince me.” He said plainly. “Fairytales don’t exist.”

[teejaystumbles]

⭐  give us the bonus features/making of for your big bang fic!

Ooooh! OK!

For "Hell or High Water" it all started with a poll I made in May 2023 to decide which kind of fish half to give merman Hob. The British or Common Skate won and my merman Hob was born. The rest is kinda history lol.

For months I drew sketches and came up with a few scenes, like Morpheus being a freediver and dropping the ruby for Hob to find. I watched a documentary on freediving ("The Deepest Breath"), and skates of course. I talked a lot to mutuals like @amielot who helped me come up with some ideas for the story and whose drawings of Hob and Johanna shaped the way I wrote their relationship a lot.

Thinking about mermaids and movies with mermaids made me remember "Dagon", which has an ending scene that has very much made a lasting impression on me (and made me realise that I am quite a bit thalassophobic), and so I thought - "let's make it a bit creepy, a bit Lovecraftian."

I listened to "The Shadow over Innsmouth" and a lot of other Lovecraft over the next months, put together a playlist for writing and got to work on gathering more information to build my world. I decided to go with Lovecraft's love for ancient cultures as the cradle of weird/inhuman cults and made Hob's ancestors be descendents of Tiamat, originally living in the Mediterranean and Red Sea, using Accadian and Cuneiform writing as their form of communication. I have a whole Gdoc dedicated to notes for the fic, and another one for the story outline. I really put in a lot of effort but it was worth it. I love research and world building, I loved learning about freediving and revisiting my knowledge about Accadian language (I did two semesters of "Oriental studies" at the beginning of my time as a university student). At that point I don't think that I had decided to write the fic for the Big Bang, but then I thought, "why not? The pressure will help me actually write it." And it worked!

While writing I think I changed a few ideas of the story. For example, I had debated to let Thessaly try and romance Morpheus and make Hob even more jealous, but I decided to cut that short and let her focus on the ruby. I also needed a lot of time to figure out what to do about Johanna's selkie skin, there were different ideas, like have Morpheus stumble upon it where Jo had simply forgotten it. I think the final solution came to me fairly late into writing, but I'm very glad I thought of Rachel. It was my first time taking part in a Big Bang and I hope to take part in the next. There's nothing better for me than a project deadline actually forcing me to focus on one thing, as I tend to let my creativity wander and drop things halfway if I don't have to finish something.

Thank you for asking, I hope this was a bit interesting. 🥰