#yeah the whole world thinks mermaids are stupid but listen

[artificialgrinder]

THE DARK SEEPING IN (BRATZ FASHION PIXIEZ REIMAGINING) CH. 5

After one biology class, Cloe and Yasmin start to notice how off Cymbeline has been. And Breeana has another vision.

AN:  Ah yes, as we can see, it's starting to get into the part of the story we see in the movie

"Alright, class. These are just a few of the elements that make our world so enchanting."

Mr Del Rio's voice was enough to put Cymbeline to sleep. The science teacher wasn't paid enough to be here, clearly. He hated this job. He was probably thinking about something else – a sandwich, the NFL, how his wife wouldn't give in to his back massage the night before.

But Cymbeline didn't want to be here either. 

She'd seen things now, learned so much over the last few weeks, things that made her realise that all this educational bullshit...it didn't matter. There was a great big world out there, ready to be explored.

But here she was – listening to this old crow ramble on in his borderline suicidal tone.

"...which brings us to something truly fascinating," Mr Del Rio whipped the elements poster stuck to the board. "Zinc; atomic number 30 on the periodic table of elements. Zinc has six times…."

Cymbeline's forehead could have made painful contact with the table if it weren't for Mr Del Rio slapping the poster again. Why did he have to be so violent?

Glimpsing over her shoulder to see if Yasmin was still reading that stupid fairytale book, Cloe noticed the sleeping Devlin sister. For fuck's sake.

"That bird tryna beef with me," Dylan, also sitting at the table, chuckled, stealing Cloe's attention away from Cymbeline.

"What?" Cloe asked.

"The bird," Dylan nodded towards the window where a crow was staring right into his soul.

"Dylan, it's a fucking bird. Pay attention," Cloe whispered, leaning forward in her seat.

Dylan sulked, his eyes turning to Mr Del Rio.

"Alright, class. Start your experiments." Mr Del Rio then retired behind his desk, probably going to look for a bottle of liquor in his drawers.

"Cymbeline," Cloe barked.

The redhead finally jolted, her eyes bloodshot from how close she came to slumbering off.

"Turn your brain on. It's time for the experiment." Cloe said as if Cymbeline didn't know that was the point of this lesson.

"Right, yeah," Cymbeline straightened up in her seat.

"Dylan, stop looking at the crow," Cloe scolded the boy.

Indeed, he was looking at the animal again, flipping it off.

"Yasmin," Cloe squinted, "why are you reading fairytale books? How old are we?"

Yasmin flushed, hiding her book behind the chemistry textbook, "They're not exactly fairytales. They're darker…slightly more accurate and believable."

"But they're still fairytales." Cloe teased. "What's this one about? Mermaids?" She tried to peek at the pages.

"Shut up," Yasmin shimmied away, "You wouldn't get it."

"Yasmin?"

Hearing Mr Del Rio's voice, Cloe stopped teasing and put her head in her book.

Yasmin's stomach twisted, trying to hide the book as the teacher crept up behind her.

"That doesn't look like a chemistry book to me." Mr Del Rio put all his energy and dedication into this statement.

Yasmin was about to get her ass handed to her.

But as knocking sounded from the other side of the classroom door, the girl knew some higher power was looking out for her.

The door opened, and in walked Principal Byrne with a young girl following behind.

"Good afternoon, Mr Del Rio," Byrne nodded before looking to the students, "afternoon, class."

A few murmured their hellos, Dylan saying quietly, "Sup, bitch."

Cloe nudged him into silence.

"I just came to introduce you to our new transfer student," this Principal beckoned the new girl forward. "This is Lina. Lina…uhhh…”

"Crawford," the girl answered for him.

Cloe eyed the girl from her seat, taking in those bright green eyes against heavy makeup. Her hair was sleek and black, reaching to her navel, with only a few red streaks running through. She was pulling the whole look off – all that dark eye makeup and mahogany red lipstick standing out against her alabaster skin. Then there was the outfit. Cloe had seen her fair share of fashionable bitches in this school who came so close to violating the dress code. But this girl? She was definitely breaking some rules. Yes, she had her black denim jeans, which was fine. But the rips in the knees? The fishnets underneath? The cropped t-shirt with studded shoulder pads? How was this allowed?

"She's one of those wiccan bitches from TikTok. I know it." Cloe's eyes travelled Lina up and down.

"Bitch, don't make assumptions." Now that she was distracted, Yasmin quickly hid her book.

"I didn't say it was a bad thing," Cloe then raised a brow, "besides, I think you and her would get along pretty well, you and your fairytales."

"Shut up, Cloe. And Dyl'? Close your mouth; you're drooling," Yasmin flicked the boy on the ear.

Having been staring at Lina shamelessly, Dylan hoped she'd answer his telepathic calls to look back at him. But luck wasn't on his side this day. "I don't know, girl. There's something about alternative-looking chicks, you know?"

“Simp,” Yasmin jested.

"I don't know. Maybe she's not into Forever 21 rejects like you," Cloe teased.

As for Cymbeline, who had remained silent since Lina's arrival, she also stared shamelessly, a hot flush of pink staining her cheeks.

She bit her lip, and that's when Lina finally turned her attention away from Mr Del Rio and the Principal…turning her fullest attention right back at Cymbeline. A smile grew on the goth girl's lips.

And Cymbeline reciprocated, maintaining eye contact.

"Ooh, something LGBT is happening," Yasmin whispered, squeezing Cymbeline's shoulders.

Finally, Cymbeline looked away, pretending to be interested in the experiment. Yet, the red blush remained.

"Nah, Cymbeline. You gotta let me talk to her first, a'ight?" Dylan leaned across the table, speaking quietly.

"Ugh, she's not a prize to be won, Dylan," Cymbeline rolled her eyes, briefly glimpsing in Lina's direction as she was led to the desk beside them.

"Well, no offence, Cymb', but sometimes with you, that's what it feels like. A competition," Dylan countered.

"Don't be a sore loser, sweetie." Cymbeline jested.

"Okay, shut up already. Everybody do their equations?" Cloe asked.

"Yep," Dylan said.

"Right here," Yasmin showed her book, proving the fairytale book was long gone.

"Sorry. Kind of forgot," Cymbeline feigned shame.

"Cymbeline," Cloe started. Everyone at the table collectively sighed. This was about to become one of the blonde's legendary tantrums. "Are you crazy? I've gotta get an A on this class!"

"Cloe, relax. It's just one assignment. God," Cymbeline leaned back in her chair, playing with her red locks as she thought of something more interesting. "You need to smoke something."

Cloe was seething, her anxiety not helping the matter. But before losing her shit, she breathed out deeply, her shoulders relaxing. She wouldn't cause a scene…Not yet, at least.

Dylan stole quick glances at Lina, the new girl only noticing the third time.

"So…" Dylan said quietly, deciding he wouldn't let Cymbeline get to Lina before he could, "Do you…listen to Korn…or something like that?"

Lina held his gaze for only two seconds before quickly averting her eyes. Her face was unreadable, yet simultaneously screamed, "Never speak to me again."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

As soon as the bell rang, Breeana practically ran to her locker. She rarely used it, only to store some cheap perfume and tampons for when Mother Nature decided to show up. But only during English class, whilst mindlessly staring at her charm bracelet, did she realise her locker was the only place she had yet to search for the missing charm.

Swinging it open, she found more in there than she remembered – a few textbooks from the year before, forgotten candy that was probably past its expiry date and a few different coloured pens. 

But as she rummaged around, there was no charm to be found.

"Fuck," she sighed, setting her tote bag on the ground. The library probably appreciated these old books more than her locker.

As she pulled each one out, she stacked them in her arms until one slipped from her grasp, falling to the ground.

Breeana quickly bent down to retrieve the fallen text, only noticing the black boots on the other side of her locker door and the maroon-taloned hand also reaching for the book. She blushed, quickly standing again as the other person picked the book up.

She began to close the door to get a look at the helpful student, "Ugh, thank you. I appre - -"

And Breeana froze. 

The green-eyed girl…the one from Nevra's party…

The one she saw with Cymbeline.

Here she was, still looking down at Breeana like she had at the party – emotionless, yet just the slightest hint of hostility.

The mystery girl held the book out to which Breeana took it. But the youngest Devlin couldn't tear her gaze away from this girl's.

When the book was handed over, the corner of the stranger's mouth curved up into a smirk. She winked. And walked away.

Breeana let her eyes follow the girl as she walked down the hall, unlike the other students around her, in no hurry to get to her next class. The raven-haired girl stopped at the water machine, scooping up her hair in a fist as she dipped her head down to sip the cold water.

"What in the world?" Breeana squinted her eyes. What was with this passive aggression? Had she done something to this girl in the past, something that conjured up an ongoing grudge? Then again, this was the first time she had ever seen the raven-haired teen in school. 

Coming to no conclusion as to what was going on with the girl, Breeana gave up. She closed her locker, turning to make it on time for her next class.

But in her hurry, she ran face-first into someone's chest.

"Damn it! I'm so sorry!" Breeana flinched away, having dropped her books again. Ducking down, she gathered them up. Some part of her brain told her she'd look up and see the gothy girl standing before her again, making her giggle.

The person also bent down, helping retrieve the books. "No worries, shawty."

Hearing the voice, Breeana's head whipped up.

Dylan was standing now; therefore, so did she.

"How's it going, Bree'?" Dylan handed the books back. "You ain't texting me. You still got my number?"

Fuck . "Ugh, y-yeah. I've just been, you know, busy, and…stuff," Breeana tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Nah, I feel, girl. School is for the suffering, right?"

"Exactly," Breeana giggled, feeling her cheeks flare up. This was when she should've said her thank you's and moved on. But her feet remained planted. "So…Dylan, I was just wondering if…" she looked away from his eyes for a moment, missing as he caught sight of something down the hallway, "Um…if you're going to - -"

"Hang on a minute," Dylan held his hand up, silencing the girl, "I'll be back in a sec. Wait up on me, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Breeana replied dejectedly, not that Dylan heard. He was already walking away from her, all the way down to the water machine, heading straight for the new girl.

Her stomach turned, watching her crush talk to the black-haired beauty, only to be shooed away.

And Dylan didn't come back to her. 

Of course…he was into someone that wasn't Breeana.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Look at that. Pathetic," Cymbeline laughed, walking down the corridor with Yasmin and Cloe. The sight of Dylan being waved off by Lina provided just the right amount of serotonin she needed.

"Okay, but can we talk about that experiment?" Cloe's brows were furrowed, "We're lucky we made it through to the end."

"Exactly. Nothing to worry about, bitch," Cymbeline stopped at her locker, the scent of Versace perfume wafting out when she opened the door.

"I meant, we're lucky the rest of us knew what to do!"

Yasmin touched Cloe's shoulder, "Girl, chill out."

"You done, Cloe?" Cymbeline fired back, quickly swapping her books over and closing her locker. "Later, bitches."

Before she could get too far, however, Yasmin caught up. "Cymbeline, wait. Look, I know chemistry isn't your favourite subject. And, you know what? Me too. I fucking hate it. I mean, fuck, I bring books to read just to keep it interesting. But I stay with it. And if you don't, you're gonna fail."

Cloe could have fallen to the ground and wept. Thank God for Yasmin.

"Look. I got it from her," Cymbeline's eyes flickered to Cloe and back again, "And now I'm getting it from you. I don't need to hear this lecture again. So get off my back, okay?" She smiled fakely.

Yasmin was silent for a moment. Of all the years she'd known this girl, she'd never heard her talk like this. "Okay, fuck it. What's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Cymbeline squinted her eyes. 

"Well, I guess, like… You're kind of," and Yasmin sighed, best not to beat around the bush, "Fuck it, you're different. I've noticed it for a while now, the last few weeks, actually. You're just…changed."

Cymbeline laughed through a scoff, "With all due respect, Yasmin, I am almost a legal adult. You think I give a shit about all of this?" She gestured to the school around her. "Shit, that doesn't matter? Do yourself a favour and open your eyes, bitch. Maybe then you won't still be stuck in the mind of a fifteen-year-old." Turning her gaze to Cloe, it was clear that the last part was aimed more at her.

Having said her part, Cymbeline turned again. "Sorry, gotta fly," and she struts down the corridor like a royal queen, too regal to even look at her subjects.

Yasmin and Cloe stood dumbfounded, watching their friend walk down the hallway…

All the way down to meet Lina at the water machine.

Cymbeline embraced the new girl, an embrace too intimate to be between two people who just met each other.

"Yo, does Cymbeline know her?" Dylan rejoined the girls, watching the scene in disappointment.

"I don't know. Maybe?" Cole shrugged, watching Lina wrap an arm around Cymbeline's shoulder, the black-haired girl giggling at something the redhead said. "But…how? She's new."

"I don't know," Yasmin shook her head, finally forcing her gaze away from the situation. "But I'm not wrong, though, right? Something's been going on with her."

Before Cloe could even agree, Dylan just had to speak again, "Y'all, I don't know. She probably just tryna score the chick for the Magnolia Ball."

And the three began to move on in the hallway, saying no more of the matter.

Breeana remained in her place. However, one moment glancing at Dylan, feeling her disappointment worsen, and then looking at Cymbeline and the new girl, adding to all her fears and worries.

The death glares from the new girl…the crushing feeling of being reduced to the smallest being…Cymbeline avoiding Breeana at all costs…Cymbeline being so cruel…

This can't be a coincidence.

As Breeana finally made her way through the hallways, she just couldn't bring herself to go to her next class. She wasn't the type to skip one, but her stomach was in knots at that moment.

This new bitch…She had to be responsible. The first time Breeana met her was at Nevra's party. And so did Cymbeline. But thinking back to that night, Breeana couldn't pinpoint any strange or bizarre behaviour from her big sister.

Then again, maybe that was because Cymbeline was absolutely smashed.

And the day after, yeah, she was a bit on the snappier side. But…hangovers… Yeah. She was just hungover.

But the day after…it was as if a switch had flipped.

Sighing deeply, Breeana's feet stopped beside a glass cabinet filled with pictures and newspaper articles detailing all the school's most notable events. And there in the middle was a picture of Cymbeline, sitting at a beautifully crafted booth, selling a whole bunch of books she collected from the town's only thrift shop. The small store was closing, therefore, would see so many precious items thrown in the trash. Cymbeline would talk about how she wished she could have saved everything. But books were her biggest passion, therefore rescued as many as possible, selling them in the school to raise money for charity.

She inspired many, always so humble when people praised her name. 

But was the Cymbeline in the picture the same Cymbeline Breeana saw today?

Breeana raised her hand, touching her fingertips to the glass, sweeping over her sister's face. And she whispered, "I miss you."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Melvino called his girls for dinner, Breeana wasn't at all surprised when Cymbeline took her plate and retreated to her room without a word. She also wasn't surprised that her father didn't stop her.

But it still hurt, seeing the man who raised his two daughters alone already so defeated.

As bad as it was at school, having to deal with Cymbeline ignoring her, it was worse at home. Because Breeana would have to see her Dad like this.

Only a few nights before, whilst grabbing a glass of water in the night, she found Melvino sitting on the couch, sobbing quietly. In his hand was a sheet of paper. At first, Breeana had no idea what was on it. But sneaking closer, she recognised it instantly.

A letter twelve-year-old Cymbeline wrote for her father.

The last line always stayed with Breeana.

My Dad is my superhero.

And Breeana rushed back to her room, a choked sob escaping as the door shut.

Now, sitting in front of him at the dinner table, she hated that she could see the red rimming his eyes.

"So, um…" Breeana tucked a pink strand of hair behind her ear before biting into a meatball, "how're things on the other side, Daddy?"

Melvino could barely lift his gaze to her, "Fine."

"Okay."

More silence…

"Well, I watched that Jeffrey Dahmer series," Breeana tried again, "you were right. It's interesting. Messed up, though."

Finally, Melvino met her gaze, a small smile playing on his lips. "Your Dad's always right."

Breeana returned the smile before playing with her spaghetti again. "And…then I found this documentary about…um, premonitions. It's quite interesting, actually. I mean, do you think we can do that too?" She lifted her head up slightly, searching for any hint of suspicion on her father's face.

"Premonitions?" Melvino sipped from his glass of ice-cold water.

"Yeah. Like, if humans have that sort of power, then maybe… we  do too." Breeana tucked her hair behind her ear, twirling her fork and gathering spaghetti.

Melvino stared at his daughter, almost as if he could read her mind. He knew there was something more than just curiosity to these questions, and yet he didn't ask questions. "Like humans, only some do. I've had my fair share of premonitions, but they stopped when I turned twelve." He turned his attention back to his meal before sparing her one more glance, "Why?"

Breeana's demeanour shifted as if she really didn't care about the subject. "Oh, just…was wondering, is all." And she went back to playing with her dinner.

She could have left it at that, choosing to be satisfied with her father's answer. But she was still so curious but also didn't want to raise his suspicions. So later that night, after finishing her nighttime skincare routine, she stared at her reflection.

She focused all her energy on nothing but herself, her head cycling over the images presented to her in her first vision. It made her head hurt and probably wouldn't amount to anything. 

But the teenager was still so intrigued by the things she could possibly see – something that would give her answers.

After staring for a whole minute, her eyes grew tired, and it was clear nothing would happen.

"Fuck this," she whispered under her breath.

Clasping her hands over the edge of the sink, she turned her gaze to her bracelet. Still one charm short. Every time she was reminded, she told herself that it was gone and there was nothing she could do about it. She should just accept it and move on. It was just a piece of metal…

And yet her stomach still churned, reminding her of a time so long ago.

Staring at it now, Breeana blinked…

And the images surfaced.

Cymbeline standing in a crowd bathed in neon pink lights. Cymbeline inhaled a white powdery substance into her nostril. Cymbeline dancing in the crowd. Cymbeline blinking with black pools for eyes. Cymbeline kissing an unidentifiable boy. Cymbeline flying. Cymbeline kissing the new girl.

"Stop!" Breeana jolted. With a single blink, she was brought back to the present.

Her chest heaved, eyes wide as the image of her sister making out with that strange girl burned in her brain.

That girl…she had to be responsible for Cymbeline's new attitude.

Breeana was sure of it now.

[zesty-kuma]

Dun dun duuuuuunnnn,

SH SH SH SHHH SHOWER THOUGHT SUNDAYYYYY! Paazaaaa!

That’s right, you herd it here first folks, it’s Sunday therefore its showed thought Sunday (because I’m a sucker for alliteration) saying that, i didn’t even sower today! But I still be thinkin! Anywho, I’m your host, the (no so) one and only MONOKUMA! (And yes the kind with fingers ). And here’s our first ever shower thought!!

Why do embarrasing memorys remain in your head longer then most others?

As someone with the attention span as short as a.. well as a bear! I often ask my self “WHY OH WHY DID I DO THAT THING 5 YEARS AGO!” When I can’t even remember what I ate this morning!

Like for example, i once built a small boat with monomi in the aim of getting to the end of the pool with out it falling a part and win first price against these random losers I was competing with, well me and monomi called our team the “Idget midgets” (idget meaning stupid, and midget meaning short duh cuz were both a very respectable tall and lengthy height of course). And then we built our triangle boat and planed to set sail but i not a very strong swimmer at the time and was nervous but couldnt let my slight bit more of a stronger swimmer sister know my weakness so I decided to do the most important part of the boat riding, sit on top and look sexy like a mermaid or something! But monomi was a terrible triangle boat piloter and the boat fliped over with me ontop and I was submerged into the water.. it wasn’t deep.. it was like less then sholder high but I was scared so I let out the biggest screech of my life and the entireCompetition  stoped because I was screeching like a baby not only once but when I breathed in to catch my breath, I let out another even louder screech, we then was disqualified from the commition and the guy running it said “you must be so embarrassed, everyone was laughing at you” I was too cold and scared to notice that fact so my whole world shattered when he told me, and ever since then I haven’t been able to get that thought out of my head, thankfully monomi is the only soal left rembering such a sad incident, but im sure she won’t be telling anyone anytime soon, CUZ I JUST DID! Now why am i telling you this story? Well I mainly got side tracked from my main point, but.. that’s cool! Thats what we’re here for and frankly I have many many more embarrasing storys but there for another time, im here to talk about the whys and the hows, mainly the whys I ain’t no scientist ya know! But yes.. why oh why dose that image of me screaming at the top of my lungs because I got dunked in in a pool haunt me everyday, well it’s because embarrasment is such a strong emotion! (And its one that usually can’t be resolved) Just like a few others I can think off the top of my head for example.. jelously.. and uh despair perhaps (woaaaw didn’t see that coming at all ), and usualy its the negative emotions really that linger with you because they make you feel so much more so much quicker I guess it’s a primal thing, well everything is a primal instinct at the end of the day but yeah, that feeling of wanting to revert time and Change things around is just natural for anyone because wanting to change things is only to benefit you, and deep down that’s all we life for!

But I dunno! I ain’t no sientist as I said!

Im conclution of todays shower thought, don’t listen to monomi when she says to make an raft in a triangle shape, its stoopid, make it the shape of a boat dummy!

[wherethegravelsthin]

actually im coming to like a whole acceptance thing about this with the tlou remake lmao. like, i can’t get screwed over again as hard as i did with tlou2. it’s just not possible. like, look at it this way: they’re remaking my favorite video game of all time with updated graphics and models and environments and worlds and gameplay, like, obviously the constant remake question of “how badly is this needed” always applies bc it’s a question worth having but also oh my god i am getting fed

like, what’s the worst that could happen. the worst that could happen, imo, is that they shoehorn in tlou2 stuff. i mean, like, yeah. but how bad can that get, really? joel canonically cannot die until part 2 so, like, even if we have to see *bby which if they make story changes, which i’m kinda hoping we maybe see, they will add *bby, but y’know, like, i’ll live. i have watched so many speedruns of part two, including abby% runs, even the shitty parts. i think i’ve built up a resistance. i’m numb to it now

because, like, the other half of “they add new stuff to tlou1 remake” is... like, if one half is adding abby and doing more of the soft retconning of the fireflies that goes on in part 2, like, fine, because that’ll almost all but certainly mean that at some point after i’d have been playing all night on launch day, all of a sudden Joel will hop across some barrier and then it’ll be a whole new area we’ve never even seen before and they’re speaking new dialogue, it’s Joel and Ellie having conversations again --- but new conversations -- o h my goD what if they. what if they used some of the fucking. the old unused lines sob. like when joel nearly combusts at the thought of an espresso. when joel muses that maybe in jackson they’ll have hot water, a place to live and stay and belong. we’re wandering through the university and joel all of a sudden optimistically posits that “you and me, kiddo... we deserve a break.” and and and and and

i think i’d die if that happened. i hope that’s what happens. god. gimmie my father daughter comfort game in 4k. i’ll buy the overpriced fucking stupid fucking piece of shit fucking ps5. while it’s STILL overpriced and HARD TO GET by the way, fuck you for nothing sony, but i’ll STILL be giving you my fucking money by September 2nd and aaaaaAAAAAAAAAAHAHHGDHKGSJKNBSGNLKSGDBGKL

i’m gonna go back to the last of us. curls up in a ball. tries not to cry. thinks about how it’s currently tlou season and i just got a big reason to go all nostalgic. title screen fades in, gustavo santaolalla’s music blends seamlessly with wind blowing through the open window, the flies buzzing. goodnight, and i’m fourteen again and i’m going to art camp in connecticut. it’s the summer before i enter high school and my life changes forever but i don’t know it yet. i’m just entering this world of video games and a lot of it seems kinda hostile towards people like me but here’s this game with a girl like me in it, my age and everything. vanishing grace, childhood. summer. this is the beginning of the rest of my life. the weeds seemed especially vibrant that year. so much green. wild chicory flowers dotted the road to camp. i made two friends there whose names i don’t remember, 16 year olds who loved the latest video game everyone was talking about, that i for once knew something about, that we all talked about together. i sculpted a mermaid from clay. the teacher of the class really liked me and my art and encouraged me to find out about ap studio art and continue with it because she said i had a lot of talent. if i listen to all gone for long enough i swear to god i can feel the hot summer sun on my skin if i close my eyes for just long enough, that summer... that i never went back and picked up my mermaid. the summer that i made two friends and never spoke to them again once the two weeks were gone. home fades in and i’m going home, but it’ll never be the warm summer sun on my skin, hope for high school, and the naiveté that can only come with being fourteen.

cries a lot.

[equestrianwritingsstuff]

In recognition of 200 followers.....

I composed a list of 200 hero x villain dialogue prompts for you guys to ask me or reblog it and ask your own followers or if you take inspiration.

Thank you so much! It means a whole lot!

1. "I wish I had longer to love you."

2. "Sometimes being the greatest is being the worse."

3. "I will kill you if you die on me."

4. "Bury me... under a willow tree... with tulips and lilies to blossom in the spring and a small stream to keep me company."

5. "Villains aren't capable of love; yet, here I am crying over your grave."

6. "The kitten's name is Max."

7. "I'm going to get a beer."

8. "There is only one way to kill me, but you could never muster the strength to pull through."

9. "I'm dizzy with love for you."

10. "Hero, you are drunk not a toddler."

11. "I pledge to serve you willingly, butthead."

12. "Ride the waves with me." "You are a mermaid, no thanks."

13. "Stay awake for me; it's only a little farther."

14. "I can't carry you!"

15. "He isn't much, but we'll make do."

16. "I WANT TO SEE HER! LET ME SEE HER PLEASE. Please..."

17. "George Washington never told a fib, and I am greater than him, so trust me, Hero, when I say I am telling the truth."

18. "Eggs and butter make dough, knives and guns make death."

19. "You are insane."

20. "The bomb is going off in twenty seconds, Hero. Run now. I-I'm going to stop it."

21. "What is love?"

22. "I don't get the function of hugs."

23. "Mentally I'm good, but physically..."

24. "I only wished for happiness from that genie. I guess it was evil."

25. "Break him, shatter him, destroy him."

26. "Sing with me."

27. "Villain you are touch starved, not dying."

28. "What the heck did you do to your hair." "What? You don't like it?" "It looks like my cat's litterbox."

29. "Don't give me hope."

30. "I am not a disease or a parasite. I am a human. I am one of those millions you swore to protect."

31. "Kiss, marry, kill?" "Kill, kill, kill."

32. "You created me."

33. "Villain don't you dare pass out."

34. "I like the look of blood on you, compliments your eyes."

35. "I kinda dropped Hero through space."

36. "Power exhaustion sucks."

37. "Time to save the world. Yay!" *says in sarcasm*

38. "Let me feed you Hero."

39. "You do not have AC?!"

40. "Villain you have a fever."

41. "Am I drunk?"

42. "Movies. Nine o'clock. Don't be late."

43. "Lemme grab a beer and we are good to go."

44. "Don't. Look. At. Me."

45. "He just had his wisdom teeth out sooo." "How bad can it be? Villain has been shot with twenty tranq darts at one and didn't pass out... immediately anyway, took a good twenty minutes." "Well, you see-" "THE KITTEN IS TRYING TO KILL ME!!!!!"

46. "She needs surgery."

47. "It's a panic attack..." "KISS HIM!"

48. "Blood, gore, madness... this was made for me."

49. "Quit drooling on me and sit up."

50. "There's only one bed."

51. "He looks so cute when he sleeps."

52. "Of all the places to live, you had to choose a heavily fortified medieval castle two thousand years in the past?"

53. "You are a peacock Hero."

54. "Let's see who will drown first. You or me. One, two, three... let's go!"

55. "I wasn't always like this."

56. "Madness is for geniuses, not for me."

57. "It's just a sedative that's going to make you nice and docile."

58. "He's out." "Good, let him rest, villainy is hardwork."

59. "I love her, but she doesn't love me."

60. "If I had a choice to save you or me, I'd pick me."

61. "Gag her."

62. "They aren't made for this, give them mercy."

63. "Talk now or she dies."

64. "Broken ribs, broken jaw, broken arm... are you sure you want me to continue." "No." "Then tell me your name."

65. "Get me some thread and a needle. Just don't touch me."

66. "The police are coming."

67. "Tell me where she is. TELL ME WHERE IS SHE OR I WILL SLASH YOUR THROAT AND TOSS YOU IN THE SEWER!!!!!"

68. "I love you." "I don't."

69. "Hug me just one last time."

70. "Villain hey hey hey. Calm down. You've been in a pretty bad accident."

71. "They won't be able to walk again."

72. "Tell me... just tell if they made it."

73. "Can't you just poof me another arm?"

74. "If you saved all of them, you can save me."

75. "I'm really tired..."

76. "Sleep. I will stay with you."

77. "She is sixteen years old." "All musicians start young." "This isn't a concert, this is life. Stop ruining it."

78. "He"s been in an accident." "Where?" "Five minutes away from your place."

79. "I wish he wasn't unconscious, so I could talk to him. So I could thank him."

80. "It's been four months now. I have came everyday and, uh, I dunno what to say. Hero, I need you to wake up. I can't function knowing you are right here."

81. "I have a date." "Hmm with who?" "Supervillain." "When and where honey?"

82. "Shhhhhhh. Be quiet. We are still being hunted."

83. "Desert?" "What are you trying to do? Kill me?"

84. "I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you." "I know, I know dear and I so sorry, but I need you to help me. I need you to help them."

85. "Villain just sleep. Allow the drugs to take you under. Don't fight it, don't resist... just sleep. In the morning, we will be safe."

86. "Being lost in the woods isn't ideal."

87. "An injection of valium will do it."

88. "There's no anesthesia."

89. "Wouldn't it be great if we never met each other?"

90. "Bless you." "I didn't sneeze." "Yeah right. Now go sit down, you're sick."

91. "It's called insomnia you dim-wit."

92. "Join me and we can be great."

93. "You didn't bring me here for the cake." "No, dear, but you are so gullible. I brought you here for a sacrifice." "My life?" "Why yes."

94. "I don't know. I never had someone collapse on my doorstep before."

95. "I have nothing to lose. No family, no friends, just my meaningless life."

96. "That's my daughter, not the villain's... so give me her back before I rip your eyes out."

97. "How long was I out for?!" "Ten minutes, but you were drifting. I don't think you had that good of rest." "Oh, I thought I was asleep for hours."

98. "I know, I know you are going to hate me after this, but trust me when I say it's for the best."

99. "I know everything about you."

100. "I think narcissism is contagious because after watching you for a couple hours, I think I may have developed a little crush on the mirror..."

101. "What did you give me?"

102. "Is she screams, I'm going to scream, and then we are going to die."

103. "No fighting today, my cat just died."

104. "How hard did you punch me?"

105. "Not gonna lie, being delirious was epic."

106. "I am cooking for you. You aren't my servant, so stop thinking it."

107. "My old masters made me into a weapon and called me Villain, but if you desire a lapdog I am going to need to be refurnished to fit your needs."

108. "What is his deal?" "I think he's just crazy."

109. "Love is not what I had in mind when I agreed to go on a date with you."

110. "Hugs are overrated."

111. "Are you too hot or too cold?" "Both."

112. "I wish we could turn back time."

113. "I lost the game." "What do you mean? Hero is dead." "Precisely."

114. "Make a wish." "That you live."

115. "Villain has been acting exceptional! Today we granted them a break from the machine. Go ahead Hero and take him for some ice cream."

116. (Sleepy murmurs) "Don't go. I neeeed you." "Yeah yeah I know Villain."

117. "Villain was the one who hurt me, not Hero."

118. "Supervillain is in danger!"

119. "If everyone is scared of me, I might as well be alone."

120. "My head is killing me."

121. "Don't call an ambulance. Just... hold me."

122. "You don't have to do this. It's going to hurt you more than me." "Anything for you dearest, anything at all."

123. "Hero, go wash your hands before dinner."

124. "You have PTSD?" "I don't know?"

125. "I have soap in my eyes!' "Rinse it out." "Mm no I'm permanently mortally blinded." "Uh huh."

126. "We need to cuddle to keep warm."

127. "Take care of them for me, will you?"

128. "When I'm gone, promise to tell my mother, please."

129. "Drug him and then bring him to me."

130. "Superheroes are for children. In all honesty, we are all villains."

131. "Oh my gosh, Hero, what happened?" "Poisoned."

132. "Wouldn't it be nice?" "I don't fancy prosthetics."

133. "Just shut up and listen!"

134. "There is a memorial parade for Hero tomorrow. They asked you to lead it."

135. "She turned it around... at the end."

136. "I wish that he understood how much I care for him."

137. "Civilian! He fell asleep in my lap last night, like totally zooted. It was so cute, but also very tempting. I stuck a french fry up his nose." "Wow. Did he wake up then?" "Yeah, I am sorta kidnapped right now..."

138. "The book, the sword... all pieces of the puzzle huh." "No, darling, all pieces of my game."

139. "Their death is my fault! Not your's, but mine, so quit trying to make me feel better."

140. "Once upon a time-" "Oh please, not another fairytale."

141. "If only it was that easy."

142. "We are stuck in a maze, how can you be so joyful?"

143. "Celebrate Hero, eat your cake, party into the night... but just know, I will be back."

144. "Call 911!" "Why?" "I stubbed my toe."

145. "Your jawline looks like it was gauzed over in lard." "It looks better than your hay for hair."

146. "You're my best friend." "Villain? Are you on drugs?"

147. "Lay him there and leave him. Let the rats dine on him."

148. "The point of the cow suit?" "Oh, uh, I was at a Halloween parade. You know, for children."

149. "I-i never wanted to hurt you." "I know, I wanted you to, so I allowed it."

150. "Favorite movie?" "Your death." "Ooo never heard of it, let's watch it." "*groans* Oh my gosh, you are stupid."

151. "Being a flutist is my only superpower. And being modest apparently."

152. "Your head will join my collection if yoi don't watch out."

153. "Hey, hey! Wake up, buddy. It's just a nightmare."

154. "Meh head hurts." "Yeah, you hit it pretty hard."

155. "Let's go for a ride." "On that yellow miniature school bus?" "It's a ranger you idiot."

156. "No painkillers, no bandages, perfect environment for infection to settle... I'm just gonna leave you here Villain."

157. "I save you and this is how you repay me? A prison?"

158. "What are you doing?" "Climbing a tree? No Hero, I am breaking into your house to kidnap you."

159. "I formally apologize."

160. "Of all places, Hero, you had to teleport us to a desert. A DESERT."

161. "Supervillain won't stop unless we team up." "I don't think our alliance will stop them, I think it'll just make them angrier."

162. "Stop singing or I will blow this place until even the last atom is broken into itty-bitty molecules!" "That... that is scientifically impossible."

163. "I'm a genius! Yippee!"

164. "Life isn't perfect and nor is your morals."

165. "Control yourself before you kill everyone around you."

166. "Say your goodbyes."

167. "Of all the ways I've died, drowning was by far the nicest."

168. "Love the collar. Is it for fashion purposes?" "Uh, um, uh, er, no?"

169. "You look lonely. Want some hot coco?"

170. "It is negative million out there and you expect me to come in toasty warm after fixing your power?"

171. "Are you sick?" "Yeh." "Come on in then."

172. "Civilian, don't even bother trying to save him."

173. "We have a breach!"

174. "What makes a villain's life less important than your's?"

175. "Enjoy your soup." "You poisoned it." "And you're delusional, eat up."

176. "I hate 99% of the population." "According to a meme I found, you are therefore a cat."

177. "Don't overuse your powers."

178. "This is just an unfortunate event."

179. "You look so cute when you are sleepy and barely conscious."

180. "His fever is rising."

181. "Save her, leave me. I'll-i'll get out of this somehow."

182. "Sometimes self-sacrifice isn't noble, it's selfish."

183. "You are so funny that I need my inhaler to kill you with." "That sentence was so discombobulated that I am leaving."

184. "Just for your information, I hate oranges but love grapes."

185. "Walking down the stairs shouldn't be a momental effort." "You broke both your legs."

186. "You just destroyed my life's work, don't expect me to give you a huge bear hug."

187. "Is it true that you have telekinesis?" "Yes, why?" "Go steal me a donut."

188. "You are so incredibly touch starved, Villain." "Mmm." "Tired? Go ahead and sleep, I'm here."

189. "This is for your own good, I promise."

190. "I'm cold."

191. "I don't want to move and you can't make me."

192. "I AM RETIRED! YOU DON'T NEED TO CONTINUE TO SEND ME PAMPHLETS OF THE HOTTEST HERO OF THE YEAR!"

193. "He's unconscious." "That tired, huh." "No, he passed out from blood loss."

194. "I want a kitten."

195. "I'm no scared of you, so stop acting like I am."

196. "He isn't dangerous, just scared."

197. "They won't be going anywhere for a long, long time."

198. "Hero? Hero? Oh my goodness, please wake up."

199. "Life is too short for pleasures."

200. "I hope you are happy, in the end."

[whencartoonsruletheworld]

Disney Songs That Hit Different™ When You’re Autistic, a full Spotify Playlist

Open to updates should anyone notice a song I missed!

Tracklist and specific lyrics that fuck me up under the cut: 

The World Above - The Little Mermaid Broadway Production

“It’s like my life was wrong And somehow, now, at last I’m in My own skin Up here in the world above!”

“The sun’s so bright here Upon my face! It feels so right here Warm as love... Life seems to be Almost calling to me...” - stimmy 

Belle - Beauty and the Beast 

“The bookshop. I just finished the most wonderful story. About a beanstalk and an ogre and a—” - y’all ever been interrupted on an infodump and then realize nobody cared? yeah that feeling 

“Look there she goes, that girl is strange, no question Dazed and distracted, can't you tell? Never part of any crowd Cause her head's up on some cloud No denying she’s a funny girl, that Belle...”

“[That one? But you've read it twice!] It's my favorite. Far-off places, daring swordfights, magic spells, a prince in disguise...” - SPECIAL INTEREST 

“Look there she goes, that girl is so peculiar I wonder if she's feeling well With a dreamy, far-off look And her nose stuck in a book What a puzzle to the rest of us is Belle...”

“Oh, isn't this amazing? It's my favorite part because you'll see Here's where she meets Prince Charming But she won't discover that it's him till chapter three...” - IF NOBODY LISTENS TO MY INFODUMP I SHALL INFODUMP TO SHEEP

“But behind that fair façade I'm afraid she's rather odd Very diff'rent from the rest of us She's nothing like the rest of us...”

More - deleted song from Moana

honestly the entire song is a bit “want to break off and learn about special interest / be in my own world / be myself” mood 

“The other kids just dance and play How can you play? There's so much out there to explore...”

“She stares at the sky, she stumbles down the beaches She mumbles all the names that her Gramma Tala teaches With one foot here and another in a distant past She’s growing up too fast...”

Part of Your World - The Little Mermaid 

not only a BIG SPECIAL INTEREST MOOD... big “i don’t belong here” mood...

“Look at this trove, treasures untold How many wonders can one cavern hold? Looking around here, you'd think Sure, she's got everything” “I've got gadgets and gizmos a-plenty I've got whooz-its and whats-its galore You want thing-a-mabobs? I've got twenty But who cares? No big deal. I want more!”

“Betcha on land, they understand Bet they don't reprimand their daughters Bright young women, sick of swimmin', Ready to stand...”

“When's it my turn? Wouldn't I love, Love to explore that shore up above?”

More Than Just the Spare - deleted song from Frozen 

“I'm not part of the town, not born to be queen Just somebody hopelessly in-between She's the scholar, athlete, poet I'm the screw up, don't I know it...”

“I may lack style and I may lack grace And once in a while I fall on my face But this little button deserves a place in the sky This button wants to fly- Wait, buttons can't fly, it doesn't make any sense!”

“And maybe I can't be the perfect one And maybe I err on the side of fun...”

“Someday I'll find my thing, a thing that's all my own That thing that makes me part of something, not just all alone If only all this feeling I have in my heart, could mean something to someone, how I'd love to play that part!”

“Like a button, like a horseshoe Like a girl who's bad at metaphors!”

Proud of Your Boy - Aladdin Broadway Production 

“So say I'm slow for my age A late bloomer, Okay, I agree...”

“But I'll get over these lousin' up Messin' up, screwin' up times You'll see, Ma, now comes the better part Someone's gonna make good, cross his stupid heart Make good and finally make you proud of your boy...”

“Say I'm a goldbrick, a good-off, no good But that couldn't be all that I am...”

“Though I can't make myself taller Or smarter or handsome or wise I'll do my best, what else can I do? Since I wasn't born perfect like Dad or you Mom, I will try to try hard to make you Proud of your boy...”

Let Me Make You Proud - Tangled: The Series

“Maybe I make things a mess And maybe you're right to have doubts in me Maybe, but nevertheless If you for once could just trust me...”

“And when I return And I'm more than you dreamt I'd be Maybe then you will realize That you never actually knew me at all...”

“Cause I long for that look of surprise When you see your son rising at last...”

Almost There - The Princess and the Frog 

“Ain't got time for messin' around And it's not my style...”

“But I know exactly where I'm going Getting closer and closer every day...”

“People down here think I'm crazy But I don't care Trials and tribulations, I've had my share...”

Home - deleted song from Frozen 2 

BIG routine song

“Wandering through the town with everyone doing all of their stuff Somewhere in my heart I feel I've not yet done enough For these people I know, this place that I love so...”

“I know how fragile things can be. If I lost them, I'd lose me They're my ocean, they're my shore. I wanna give them more...”

In a World of My Own / Very Good Advice - mashup cover of Alice in Wonderland 

“They would sit and talk to me for hours When I'm lonely in a world of my own...”

“I could listen to a babbling brook And hear a song that I could understand I keep wishing it could be that way Because my world would be a wonderland...”

“I give myself very good advice But I very seldom follow it That explains the trouble that I'm always in...”

“Be patient is very good advice But the waiting makes me curious And I'd love the change Should something strange begin...”

“Will I ever learn to do the things I should?” 

Reflection - Mulan

“Now I see that if I were truly to be myself I would break my family's heart...”

“Somehow I cannot hide Who I am, though I've tried...”

“How I pray that a time will come I can free myself from their expectations On that day, I'll discover someway to be myself And to make my family proud...”

“They want a docile lamb, no-one knows who I am Must there be a secret me I'm forced to hide? Must I pretend that I'm someone else for all time?”

If I Wasn’t So Small - Piglet’s Big Movie 

“It's not as if I want to rule the world Or even the forest, or even one tree I suppose I could be happy, if I could be helpful With just a little bit of noticing me...”

“I'd be needed and useful More each passing day...”

Jack’s Lament - The Nightmare Before Christmas 

“Oh somewhere deep inside of these bones An emptiness began to grow There's something out there far from my home A longing that I've never known...”

Everything I Ever Thought I Knew - Tangled: The Series

“I thought no one could love me And how could I have known? I was wrong, oh so wrong...” “Then I thought I found it, a dream that I could share I thought I was so lucky, it almost wasn't fair I thought I knew my purpose, I thought that I knew where I belong But I was wrong...”

“Now that it's all crumbling, help me understand If none of it was really me then who am I supposed to be?”

“I guess my life meant nothing I guess it was a sham I guess I'm someone else now I wonder who I am...”

I’ll Try - Return to Neverland

“I am not a child now I can take care of myself I mustn't let them down now Mustn't let them see me cry...”

“My whole world is changing I don't know where to turn I can't leave you waiting But I can't stay and watch the city burn...”

Waiting in the Wings (Reprise) - Tangled: The Series

“I craved so much, and yet I kept on waiting One glance, one touch, and I just kept on waiting...”

Waiting in the Wings - Tangled: The Series 

“Guess we all are born with parts to play Some of us are stars, and some are just in the way I know I was meant for glory But that's never what my story brings And yet I keep on waiting...”

“When you have the passion and the drive You expect your moment centre stage to arrive I show up with heart ablazing Ready to achieve amazing things But I'm left waiting in the wings...”

“It's always someone else who sings While I'm left waiting in the wings...”

“Always overlooked unfairly, while pretending that it barely stings But it stings, yes, it stings...” 

I’m Still Here (Jim Theme) - Treasure Planet

“I am a question to the world, not an answer to be heard Or a moment that's held in your arms...”

“And how can you learn what's never shown Yeah, you stand here on your own They don't know me, cause I'm not here...”

“And I want to tell you who I am Can you help me be a man? They can't break me As long as I know who I am...”

“They can't tell me who to be Cause I'm not what they see Yeah, the world is still sleeping While I keep on dreaming for me And their words are just whispers and lies That I'll never believe...”

“And I want a moment to be real Want to touch things I don't feel Wanna hold on, and feel I belong And how can you say I'll never change They're the ones that stay the same I'm the one now Cause I'm still here!”

God Help the Outcasts - The Hunchback of Notre Dame 

“Yes, I know I'm just an outcast I shouldn't speak to You Still, I see Your face and wonder Were You once an outcast, too?”

“God help the outcasts, hungry from birth Show them the mercy they don't find on earth God help my people - we look to You, still God help the outcasts or nobody will...”

“Please help my people, the poor and downtrod I thought we all were the children of God?”

So Close - Enchanted 

honestly the entirety of enchanted is an autism mood but, 

“So close to reaching That famous happy end Almost believing This one's not pretend...”

Into the Unknown - cover of Frozen 2

“There's a thousand reasons I should go about my day And ignore your whisper which I wish would go away...”

“I’ve had my adventure, I don’t need something new...”

“Or are you someone out there who's a little bit like me? Who knows deep down I'm not where I am really meant to be?“

“Are you out there? [Do you know me?]  Can you feel me? Can you show me?”

Someone’s Waiting For You - The Rescuers 

“Don't cry, little one There'll be a smile where a frown use to be You'll be part of the love that you see...”

Sally’s Song - The Nightmare Before Christmas 

“I sense there's something in the wind That feels like tragedy's at hand And though I'd like to stand by him Can't shake this feeling that I have...”

“Although I'd like to join the crowd In their enthusiastic cloud Try as I may, it doesn't last...”

Someday - The Hunchback of Notre Dame Off-Broadway Production 

“Someday, when we are wiser When the world's older, when we have learned I pray someday we may yet live To live and let live...”

“Someday, these dreams will all be real Til then we'll wish upon the moon Change will come, one day  Someday soon...”

Where Do I Go From Here - Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World

“They do what they must for now And trust in their plan If I trust in mine, somehow I might find who I am...”

“The path ahead's so hard to see It winds and bends but where it ends Depends on only me In my heart I don't feel part of so much I've known Now it seems it's time to start A new life on my own...”

Wherever You Are - Pooh’s Grand Adventure: The Search for Christopher Robin 

“I'm out here in the dark, all alone and wide awake Come and find me I'm empty and I'm cold, and my heart's about to break Come and find me...”

“I need you to come here and find me Cause without you, I'm totally lost I've hung a wish on every star It hasn't done much good so far...”

“I used to believe in forever, But forever’s too good to be true...”

Belle (Reprise) - Beauty and the Beast 

“And for once it might be grand To have someone understand I want so much more than they've got planned...”

Endless Night - The Lion King Broadway Production 

“Home is an empty dream Lost to the night Father, I feel so alone...”

“I know that the night must end I know that the sun will rise...”

Set Yourself Free - Tangled: The Series 

“Locked inside a tower, kept behind a wall Sheltered from a world you’ve barely known That’s the way they treat you...”

“There's much more inside of you than anyone can see And now the choice is yours, life waits beyond the doors So step on through, the time has come And only you can set yourself free!”

“So use the gifts you're given Make the world your own Look inside your heart and find the key...”

“Bound up by your worries Trapped by your mistakes Forced to play a role you never chose...”

“No more letting someone else define you to a T You know that you are strong You've known it all along...”

Let it Go - Frozen Broadway Production

“The wind is howling like this swirling storm inside Couldn't keep it in, heaven knows I've tried Don't let them in, don't let them see Be the good girl you always have to be Conceal, don't feel, don't let them know Well, now they know!”

“I don't care what they're going to say Let the storm rage on The cold never bothered me anyway...”

“It’s time to see what I can do  To test the limits and break through  No right, no wrong, no rules for me  I’m free!”

“Let it go, let it go And I’ll rise like the break of dawn! Let it go, let it go  That perfect girl is gone!”

How Far I’ll Go (Reprise) - Moana 

“All that time wondering where I need to be is behind me I'm on my own to worlds unknown...”

Colors of the Wind - Pocahontas 

“You think the only people who are people Are the people who look and think like you But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger You'll learn things you never knew, you never knew...”

Strangers Like Me - Tarzan 

when u meet another autistic person.... 

“Whatever you do, I'll do it, too Show me everything and tell me how It all means something And yet nothing to me...”

“I can see there's so much to learn It's all so close and yet so far I see myself as people see me Oh, I just know there's something bigger out there...”

Beyond My Wildest Dreams - The Little Mermaid Broadway Production 

“Look over there! Oh my god! How very odd! And what might they be? Something splendid, maybe! Look over here! Could you bust? Isn't it just bedazzling, dazing, utterly amazing! Gazing 'round, it's like, to die! Just seeing it feels so good, I'd scream if I only could!”

“Just keeps on gawking- Weird how she's not talking!”

“I'd hoped and wished My life would feel enchanted! Wished and prayed The fates would hear my plea...”

Watch What Happens - Newsies Broadway Production 

“’Write what you know’ So they say, all I know is I don't know what to write Or the right way to write it...”

“It could practically write itself And let's pray it does, cause as I may have mentioned I have no clue what I'm doing!”

“Speak up, take a stand, and there's someone to write about it That's how things get better...”

[also. the squeal.]

“Like someone said, "Power tends to corrupt" And absolute power, wait, wait, corrupts? Absolutely, that is genius! But give me some time, I'll be twice as good as that six months from never...”

“Just look around at the world we're inheriting And think of the one we'll create...”

“Give those kids and me the brand new century and watch what happens It's David and Goliath, do or die The fight is on and I can't watch what happens But all I know is nothing happens if you just give in It can't be any worse than how it's been And it just so happens that we just might win So whatever happens, let's begin!”

Son of Man - Tarzan 

“Oh, the power to be strong and the wisdom to be wise All these things will come to you in time On this journey that you're making, there'll be answers that you'll seek And it's you who'll climb the mountain It's you who'll reach the peak...”

“Though there's no one there to guide you, no one to take your hand But with faith and understanding You will journey from boy to man...”

“In learning you will teach and in teaching you will learn You'll find your place beside the ones you love Oh, and all the things you dreamed of, the visions that you saw Well, the time is drawing near now It's yours to claim it all!”

Strange Sight - Tinkerbell and the Legend of the Neverbeast 

“You stand in the light You're wrong, but you're right And my heart's beating wildly Strange how I'm scared but delighted Afraid, but excited too!”

“Do you long to be left all alone? Set apart with a heart made of stone? Let me help, let's begin Let me learn, won't you let me in? All the light, let it show...”

“You are a strange sight, some new kind of wonder With good hidden under, I'm sure that it's true Strange how your dark doesn't faze me...”

Wind in My Hair - Tangled: The Series 

“What if the doors began to open? What if the knots became untied? What if one day, nothing stood in my way And the world was mine?”

“Plenty of mysteries to unravel Tons of mistakes to not regret So much to see, and to do and to be A whole life to spend And it doesn't end...”

For a Moment - The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea 

“This way is left, but which way is right? Well, now I'll be circling in circles all night...” - direction problems amirite

“This is more than my thoughts ever thought it could be For a moment, just a moment, lucky me...”

“For a moment, I can feel, All the dreams I've been dreaming are real, Wish my mother could hear it, the sea is my song For a moment, just a moment I belong...”

Speechless - Aladdin 2019 Remake

i would like to send this song to autism $peaks (hate group) underlined in red and with a photo attached of me with a middle finger up 

“Here comes a wave meant to wash me away A tide that is taking me under Swallowing sand, left with nothing to say. My voice drowned out in the thunder...”

“Written in stone, every rule, every word Centuries old and unbending ‘Stay in your place, better seen and not heard.’ Well, now that story is ending!”

“Let the storm in! I cannot be broken! No, I won't live unspoken! Cause I know that I won't go speechless!”

“Try to lock me in this cage! I won't just lay me down and die! I will take these broken wings And watch me burn across the sky!”

“I won't be silenced! Though you wanna see me tremble when you try it, All I know is I won't go speechless, speechless! Cause I'll breathe when they try to suffocate me! Don't you underestimate me! Cause I know that I won't go speechless!”

Show Yourself - Frozen 2 

the siren call... stimmy

“Something is familiar, like a dream I can reach but not quite hold I can sense you there, like a friend I've always known I'm arriving, it feels like I am home...”

“I have always been a fortress Cold secrets deep inside...”

“Are you the one I've been looking for all of my life? Show yourself! I'm ready to learn...”

“I've never felt so certain! All my life, I've been torn But I'm here for a reason- could it be the reason I was born? I have always been so different, normal rules did not apply Is this the day? Are you the way I finally find out why?”

“I am found!”

“You are the one you've been waiting for All of your life...”

Here I Am - Camp Rock 

“They tell you a good girl is quiet and that you should never ask why Cause it only makes it harder to fit in And you should be happy, excited, even if you're just invited Cause the winners need someone to clap for them...”

“It's so hard just waiting in a line that never moves It's time you started making your own rules...”

“If how you’re living isn't working there's one thing that'll help You got to finally just stop searching and find yourself...”

“The world better make some room Yea move over, over Cause you’re coming through!”

“You gotta scream until there's nothing left With your last breath Say here I am! Here I am! Make em listen Cause there is no way you'll be ignored Not anymore...”

Us Against the Universe - Phineas and Ferb: The Movie - Candace Against the Universe

“I used to feel alone, just me against the raging tide, But I guess I should've known that you were always on my side. Now I don't have to be an island, cause you've been there all the while, and Now I realize my fears weren't justified!”

“Cause as long as we're together, We can stand and face whatever Kind of trouble this world tries to put us in. If you're out there on your own, You just might take it on the chin Cause if it's us against the universe, we win!”

[curiousscientistkae]

oh yeah since I have new peeps here is a rundown of myshe ra kiddos +finally adding some i never talked about. Ages are just to show gaps between kids, they are not "canon". Under the cut stuff. I uh....ramble

Glimmadora:

Harper-20, eldest daughter/child. Born Feb 1st. She/Her, Demi-Bi. Heir to Brightmoon, gets called 'AJ' (Adora Jr) a lot by Glimmer since she looks and acts a lot like Adora. Has shoulder length two toned blonde hair (top half light like She-ra, bottom darker like Adora) with sparkles at the edns, sparkling purple eyes shaped like Adora's, tan skin like Glimmer, glasses, sometimes wears a hearing aid in her right ear. Has cream/purple wing markings on her back that later will turn into feathery cream wings with purple tips.

Sound based powers (cause my brain was like light and sound) but still can create light stuff they just make sounds also. Also can turn invisible. Being unable to control the powers as a toddler, she lost her hearing in her right ear. Everyone in the family knows sign language.

Smart af, witty, as the eldest of all the kids can be protective to a fault, anxious, wants to not fuck up and be a great queen. Will overwork herself and is a perfectionist, though can be forgetful. Is a great shoulder to lean on/be listened to.

Grows to 6' (she got them angella genes (who is alive in this au, not micah) and athletic build like Adora. Named to match the 'er' at Glimmer's name, her sound powers, and the Lyra constellation. Glimmer was the one to have her.

Mira-13, youngest daughter eldest twin. Born July 9th. She/Her, Lesbian, about 5 mins older than Micah. Powerless Princess. Got her great aunt and grandpa's hair color, pale skin (same as Adora), ice blue eyes shaped like Adora's, freckles on face. Usually has hair in ponytail held up by that butterfly pin from princess prom. Also almost always has a red cloak around her. Called 'Mimi'

Born with no magic and not connected to the moonstone (long story short in my au, First Ones cannot use magic without help or it will kill them. Mira got the most FO genes thus she cannot use magic. Whole ass idea i need to explore). Tries to make up for it with fighting skills. While she doesn't show it a lot, she hates the fact she is powerless and will not grow wings either.

Clever, rebellious, loves to explore. Can have a temper to her, wears her heart on her sleeve. Natural born leader. Butts heads with her mothers the most and has run away a few times (once for a very very long time heh). At the end of the day, she doesn't want to be in the shadow of anyone/wants to make her own mark.

Grows to 5'6", chubby build like Glimmer. Named to match the 'ra' in Adora's name and the 'Mi' in Micah's name. OG she was going to have healing powers before I got rid of that so it was also sort for Miracles. 'Mira' is a star, one that is an actual shooting star. Adora was the one to have her

Micah-13, youngest child only son. Born July 9th. He/Him and They/Them. Demi-Boy. Bi, about 5 mins younger than Mira. Has spell powers. Messy, chin length dark purple hair (the same shade as the bottom half of Glimmer's hair), sky blue eyes with sparkles and shaped like Glimmer's, freckles on face. Light tan skin (between his sisters). Has purple wing markings on back and later will get purple feathered wings. Called MJ (Micah Jr) or Mickey

Like his grandfather, great aunt, and Ma before him, he can use spells. Struggles with it but eventually learns he is best at defensive ones. They look up to many of the guards in the castle and wants to be one when he grows up.

Quiet, soft spoken, nervous boy. Def keeps his twin sister from doing something totally stupid. Trusting, sometimes too much, can hold grudges if wronged badly. Tries to see the best in others. Named to honor his grandfather, they want to live up to them and be a great sorcerer

Grows to 5'11, more avg/a bit stocky build. Named to match the 'Mi' with Mira and as Micah is dead in this still (i made them a long time ago) after him. Adora was the one to have them.

Scorpia's Kid

Onca-13, only child of Scorpia. Born May 4th. They/Them. Non-binary Pan. Magicat/Scorpion. OG a scorptra kid but Catra no longer with Scorpia. Has medium length snow white hair, usually in a small pony tail, light brown skin, amber eyes (only iris has the color not the whole eye). Cat fangs and white cat tail. Has those scorpion shouler pads and venom their fangs (not as strong as their mother's) and blue blood. No fur. Called 'Onc' or by Scorpia her 'Lil' Kitling'

Has electrical powers like Scorpia. Venom will only make the part they bite numb, does not fully knock anyone out. Is quick on their feet.

Laid back, quick to adapt, resting bitch face, can be a little lazy, sometimes acts without thinking, and easily distracted. Before growth spurt, they were small and grew a hatred of being seen as always needing help. Just a gentle giant really.

Grows to 6'3, strong build like Scorpia. Named after the latin species name of the Jaguar.

(i so need to work and the following kids more rip)

Bowfuma

Robin-18, eldest son/child of Bow and Perfuma. Born March 20th, He/Him. Gay. Dark brown skin, dark brown, short hair, dark brown eyes. Wears glasses. Has plant powers. Called Robby. Heir to Plumeria.

Plant powers are a WIP kind of, might be like Perfuma or a little dif but is connected to the Runestone. Knows some archery but prefers a crossbow.

Self assured, he knows who he is and what he wants to do, fair-takes both sides of an argument into account. Is the least likely to cause shit. Can be messy and hates when his things are moved. Procrastinator.

Grows to 6', lean build. Named after both Robin Hood, the archer, and the bird

Eliza-16, only daughter. Born Sept 15th, She/Her, Aro/Ace. Dark brown skin, dark brown hair in two braids, dark brown eyes, freckles. Needs glasses but wears contacts. Powers allows her to talk to animals. Called 'Liza'.

Also connected to the runestone, Eliza and talk to animals. She actually started to talk to them before speaking to her parents. When she talks to them, to others it sounds like she is making the animal sounds.

Passionate and loves animals. While her cousin Mira puts her energy into trouble, she puts it into being outside and building things or helping her mom and dad. Hates being stuck inside. Can be whimsical. Loves to be challenged and doesn't back down from stuff, even when maybe she should. Can be a bit dense.

Grows to 5'8", lean build. Named after Eliza Thornberry.

Ash-15, youngest of their siblings. Born Nov 23rd. He/She/They genderfluid. No real label-uses queer. Medium brown skin, medium length, wavy blonde hair, dark brown eyes. Freckles. Has no powers but does not mind it at all.

Unlike his younger cousin, Mira, Ash does not care they do not have powers or are not next in line for the thorn. They are happy to just learn from their father or others. Kind of a jack of all trades.

Has a big heart and a love for all life. Once she is set on something, she sees it through to the end. Very observant of the world and what goes on in it. Can be impatient and doesn’t always take things seriously. Jokes way to often. Free-spirit

Grows to 5'10", thin build like his mom. Named after the type of tree which you could use to make a bow.

Seamista

Newt-18, oldest and only son of Sea Hawk and Mermista. Born Dec 11th, Trans Man He/Him, Pan ace. Dark brown skin, dark brown eyes, short blue hair. Has no runestone powers but can still turn into a merman when in the water.

Newt was next in line for the throne but stepped down, not liking the idea of being a king. He likes to spend time at the beach, swimming, and enjoying being in the sun. Usually keeps his sisters from killing each other.

Hard worker, does not usually slack off, does hate being in the spotlight. Humble. Good at reading emotions. Can lose track of time easily. Has his mother's dry sense of humor. Will faint at the sight of blood

Grows to 5'7", build like Sea Hawk. Named for the salamander that is associate with fire. And with it being an amphibian and transitioning from one stage to another, kind of works there also.

Sandra-15, oldest daughter. Born Mar 7th, She/Her, Pan. Medium brown skin, brown eyes, dark long brown curly hair. Has water based powers (still a WIP whoops). Can turn into a mermaid when in the water.

After her brother stepped down, she is now the heir to her kingdom. Still working a bit on her powers but is connected to the runestone. FIGHTS with her sister all the time.

Very much a girly girl, loves pink, skirts, sparkles, all that jazz. Takes her role as princess seriously. Dutiful and punctual. Hates messes, likes things to be neat. Does not like things randomly being dropped on her.

Grows to 5'8", Mermista's body build. Nickname is Sandy and is called that the most. Named cause yeah....sandy.

Yamuna-12, youngest child/daughter. Born Apr 13th, She/Her, Greyromo/sexual Lesbian. Long blue hair though will dye it many colors, usually orange, light brown skin, brown eyes. Water powers. Cannot fully turn into a mermaid when in the water, just gets webbing and gills.

She can control the temperature of the water around her, freezing it or boiling it at will. Is a great sailor

Pure Sea Hawk child, pretty much his clone. Wild, hyper, will set shit on fire. Takes pride in everything she does. Will blurt out things without thinking and can be pushy. Doesn't like to be told to do things. Zero filter.

Grows to 5'2", small body build. Named after one of the largest rivers in India.

(these guys are VERY WIP so not much to them)

Ada-Entrapta child, on the younger end. Adopted, trans woman, het. Does love robots and what not, helps their mom out a lot. Probably can run on little sleep and still be fine. Name was given to me by my good friend Dorku named after Ada Lovelace, a mathematician and first computer programmer. Very close with Onca

Luka and Felix-Catra's sons, adopted. Both magicats. Catra moves away from everyone and wouldnt really come into focus until much much later when Mira runs off. Luka and Felix idk ages yet but are only a year apart in age. Luka means light (he is one of Catra's lights now) and Felix is a cartoon cat. Would become close friends with Mira later on

(im too lazy to proof lmao and free to ask questions or change stuff up lmao god)

[blackberry-gingham]

Got to be honest... I love the mermaidau! theme too. Could you pls give us a pt2 cause I need to know how is their rlp gonna evolve. (Feel like even writing a hole 2k word fanfic with this au and im not ashamed 😂)

(Pst, anon is referring to this request!)

Mwaaaha yeeees... YEEEEES !!!! I'm so glad you guys like this au lmao 😂😂 All I have to say is, I hope y'all can come through with this mermaid au when summer hits, bc that's my JAM 😤

Even if I don't get another mermaid au request until then, like please y'all, I'm begging you lol

But anyways, tumblr has decided that doing all four on here is too long, so I’m posting half now and I’ll link Paul and Ringo before the day’s over! (Also bc I lost like half of Ringo's story last night, and I have to rewrite it, so rip :') ) Enjoy!

Paul and Ringo this way!

George

It's quite a bit before George can see you again

He had to take up a job, even with school, and practice, and family, and friends, and the occasional gig... just to save up

But when he finally got enough to buy that bike... It was all worth it

It's almost as prized a possession as his guitar, and the very next day after purchasing it, he loads up a blanket and some food and heads off for the lake

The ride from home to the water is a bit long, but nothing he can't handle

At long last, he arrives at the tiny pier and he can hardly contain himself as he sets the kickstand and grabs his things

He rushes down and sets up shop

In his excitement, George has forgotten to consider whether or not you'll even show...

But he doesn't want to give up yet

So he waits

And waits

And after a few hours pass by, he decides he might as well have his lunch instead of skipping rocks and wading in the water all afternoon

George swims over to the edge of the pier and clasps into the plank to hoist himself up

But before he can complete the maneuver, he finds himself jerked back down again

It's gentle enough that he doesn't get submerged, but it's certainly enough to give him a start

He splutters and flails a little, turning around as quick as he can to see...

Oh, it's you...

George breathes a sigh of relief, even as your eyes watch him from just above the water line, your hair floating on the surface like an angel

Your eyes go wide in excitement, and you peak your head all the way above the water, giving a soft gasp of surprise

"It is you! I can't believe you came back!"

George's heart hammers in his chest, whether it's from the surprise, the physical activity, or something else... He doesn't know

"O-of course I am! I said I would, didn't I?"

You laugh, "So you did! ...By the way, what have you got up there?"

George looks over his shoulder to the picnic basket that's clearly in view, then back at you

He waves you over and pulls himself up at last

When he's turned around, you've disappeared and George's heart drops

Well, not for long. A moment passes, followed by a huge splash as you jump from the water to the pier

It's not a perfect jump, as you need to pull yourself up a bit, but you make it well enough

George is halfway through unloading the basket, but he finds himself incredibly distracted by your tail

He doesn't mean to be rude it's just... It's almost like you weren't real before now

The tail is nearly twice the length that human legs would be. It tapers all the way down to a fine and delicate point that flares out into a transparent, forked fin

There are smaller fins like this along the rest of your tail, George notes, providing gorgeous accents to your shimmering iridescent scales

You swish your tail behind you, feeling a bit shy

George shakes himself out of his stupor, "Oh, sorry! I just... Wow"

You huff a laugh and mumble a thanks, not quite out of the awkwardness

"Um, here, I brought you something", George hands you a carefully wrapped sandwich

You give it a sniff and wait for George to taste his first

It tastes fantastic. Unlike anything you've ever had before

George tells you it's called a "ham and cheese"

Before you know it, the two of you jump into a whole conversation about life above and below water

You talk all afternoon and into the evening. George, doesn't even realize how low the sun's set until he takes a moment to stretch and look up

"Oh, I suppose you should be going..."

"Yeah..."

George looks at you and then the water one more time

It's like a pool of gold out there, the orange and yellow reflecting so beautifully on the water

"Say, how about one more swim?", George nods towards the water

Needless to say, you both race in for a last dip

You swim laps around George as he move slowly through the water, and you find yourself growing bored rather quick

"Ugh, here hold on!", You laugh and roll your eyes as you latch onto George from beneath

He doesn't protest, and you tow him easily back and forth through the water

It's not as fast as you could go, but it's faster then George has ever achieved on his own

It's actually great fun, but all things must end, and after a few rounds you glide to a stop surrounded by golden ripples

You sigh and look around, letting him go, "Sorry, it's late. I didn't mean to get so carried away..."

George wades just inches away from you, "No no, it's alright! I um, I had fun"

"Really?", You smile

"Really...", George floats a little closer to you, and you can feel his warm breath caress your hair, "In fact, m-maybe we could do this again sometime?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah..."

Before he even gives a thought to what he's doing George's lips meet yours halfway, pressing far softer then you'd expect from a rough teddy boy like himself

It's one of those kisses where you don't even have to think, or give subtle hints

Everything just feels right

Your heart does a flip when you separate, and George sticks by his promise

It gets to the point where you have a schedule to meet each other, getting the most out of your daylight hours

From now on, no more waiting

Just you, and him.

John

John's been visiting you for quite some time now, bringing you shiny things on occasion, but mostly just enjoying your company

You're on a first name basis and everything

It's strange almost, John feels quite special

After all, he might be the only lad in all of England to befriend a mermaid!

Although lately, he's been feeling... Different about you

He must be mad

But it's just...

You're so sweet, and kind, and you listen and understand him like no one else ever has before, an-

Ugh

He must be going mad

That would certainly explain why he's buying you a locket with his latest savings

It may be from a second hand store, but he knows you'll love it

The locket is shaped like a heart and made of brass

The metal is a bit tarnished but the small heart shaped ruby in the center is bright as ever

It's perfect

John takes it home and hides it away from Mimi

She doesn't know about you, but she has some suspicions about a girl...

That's certainly not something John wants to talk about, so he's trying to be as covert about you and him as possible

But before he can hand off his gift to you, he needs to sneak one of Mimi's pictures of him

She has a few up in the attic, which John is easily able to swipe and cut out to fit in your locket

There. Now it's perfect

John gets a good night's rest and heads out bright and early to your cove the very next day

He arrives to find you splayed out on a bed of shells and trinkets, sun bathing

"Hello birdy!"

You spring up and turn to face him, "Johnny!"

Patches of sand stick to your skin, shimmering like glitter in the sun

John whips off his leather jacket and shirt as he goes to sit beside you before removing his boots and socks as well

It's a bit of a custom for him ever since he started feeling comfortable around you

The beach is rather hot, yes, but more so, he likes that you make him feel confident enough to take all that off in the first place

You don't know this, but it's a huge sign of the trust he has in you

The two of you talk and catch up a bit on the few days you were apart

John tells you about school, and you about your adventures at sea

Both of you are equally fascinated about each other's worlds, and both wish a bit that they could live like the other does

You've offered to take John out to sea, but he's not to keen on wading that far out in the ocean

When the conversation starts to run dry, John remembers his gift at last

"Oh by the way, I brought you something..."

You perk up, not suspecting anything other then the usual shiny pebble or coin

But then again, John seems... Different

You could swear you see a blush climbing his cheeks

"I uh, saw this and thought of you...", He holds out an old, worn locket. The Ruby heart and tarnished brass flash and glint in the sunlight, mesmerizing you

You gasp softly, and reach for it slowly, as though you're dreaming

"Do you fancy it?", John asks nervously

"John, this is beautiful..."

You click the heart open and reveal a raggedly cut picture of John smirking back at you from behind a heart shaped lid of glass

You trace your finger along the picture's edge, a trance like glaze over your eyes

"I um, I thought maybe you could wear this one... You know, that way you could always have me with you when you go out to sea... Or... Something", John mumbles, wondering if he sounds even half as stupid as he thinks he does

He peaks over at you once, then twice as you look at it in silence

"It's alright, you don't have to-"

"Could you put it on me?"

John looks stunned, as though he's surprised you actually like his well thought out gift

"Uh, I- sure"

You hand him the necklace and turn

John lifts it over your head and lowers it slowly

The metal is warm from John's hands as it touches your skin, and John fastens the clasp in a jiffy

"There you are..."

You turn around again, eyes shining brightly with joy, the heart clasped in the palm of your hand

A knot forms in John's stomach, seeing you look so happy with him like that, and suddenly he feels sick

He has to say it

He knows be does

He has to tell you now, or it's going to kill him

And yet, if he does tell you, that might kill him too

"Ugh, I must be mad..."

You quirk an eyebrow, "Wha-?"

"I love you", John blurts it out as though it was tortured out of him

It's not very sweet, or romantic, or charming...

No, it's actually much more like he just spat on the sand and continued on

But you know John by now, and to you, it's more then enough

You put your hand over his and lean in to press a gentle kiss to his burning cheek

"I love you too Johnny"

John's breath hitches in his throat, and looks at you with a gaze he's never given any other woman in the world

"Really?" His voice is the barest of whispers

But you don't need to answer, John is already pulling you in for a kiss as he lays back on your small pile of treasure

It's not his first make out session, and it won't be his last

But with you? Right here, on the beach, in the warm sun, laying cozied up on his bare torso?

It's the one he remembers most, for all his life

[spaceskam]

being good isn’t always easy

Happy birthday @prouvaireafterdark ! I hope you have a wonderful day and I hope you enjoy this little fic!

ao3

Michael couldn’t be blamed and he refused to justify himself.

He watched Alex Manes reach up to shelve a book that was almost out of reach, fingertips tapping the spine to tuck it into place. Michael offered a little telekinetic push to slide it into place easier. Alex didn’t seem to notice, simply going to the next book in his cart. Michael bit into his cheek as he made the choice to cause a book on the edge of the top shelf to fall over. Alex huffed and went to grab it, reaching up to put it back.

He did this a lot. Probably too much. But, hey, if messing with the cute library assistant was the thing keeping him out of trouble, who could blame him? No one, that’s who.

Occasionally, Alex would look around and Michael would pretend to be invested in his book so he wouldn’t get self conscious or wouldn’t find him suspicious, but that was as subtle as he got. It was just too much fun.

Alex would eventually disappear out of sight, though, and he would have to actually focus on his homework. Stupid homework.

“What are you doing?”

Michael looked up at the voice to see Isobel standing there with that expression that said she knew exactly what he was doing. He put on his most innocent smile.

“Nothing.”

“Mm, and I’m the queen of England,” she said, sitting beside him, “Whatever you’re doing, stop it.”

“Stop doing my homework? Well, I mean, if you say so.”

“Michael.”

He rolled his eyes and dropped his chin in his hand as he looked down at his homework. It was all stupidly easy and so boring that he hated wasting his time to focus on it. Every time he’d tried to explain to his teachers that it was too easy and boring, they would simply say that he should actually do it for once. He stopped complaining.

“Help me with this, I don’t understand this shit,” Isobel said, scooting closer so he could see what she was stuck on. It was balancing chemical equations which is what he’d helped her with yesterday and helped Max with over the weekend. But he leaned closer anyway and went over it for a third time.

Halfway through the second question, though, he felt a pair of eyes on him. When he glanced up, he caught sight of Alex Manes looking through one of the stacks of books right at him. He flashed a smile and huffed a laugh when he very quickly looked away.

“Stop laughing at me,” Isobel scolded. He shook his head and wrapped his arm around the back of her chair.

“I’m not, I promise. Alright, next question.”

-

Michael was actually, for once, reading a whole book this time when another book slammed down in front of him.

He jumped and looked up to see Alex Manes standing there. An easy, cocky smile found his lips and he tilted his head. They never actually spoke. He just fucked with him from afar. Now, though, it felt like all those clandestine encounters were worth it.

“You fuck with my books today and I will throw you out,” Alex said. Michael’s stomach dropped and his eyes widened, his heart stalling mid-beat. “I know it’s you. It only happens when you can see me. I’m not stupid.”

“I…”

“I don’t care. But it’s annoying, so stop,” he said, sliding the book a little closer, “Peace offering.”

The book was on the pseudo-science of telekinesis and how to induce a psychic awakening. From the cover alone, Michael couldn’t tell if it was a joke book or not. It didn’t really matter. He knew. Michael had thought he was being subtle and Alex knew.

“What the fuck?” Michael breathed before he could catch himself and even pretend to play it off. Alex smirked to himself and patted the top of the book before walking away.

Michael watched him leave with even more intrigue than he’d ever had before. Which was saying something because he was usually pretty damn intrigued.

He quickly reached for the book and opened it, scanning the pages to see if it held any weight. It didn’t take long to see that it was indeed just bullshit and something that someone created to fulfil their own personal wish to be telekinetic. It wasn’t real. But… Alex still knew. Or maybe it was a joke to talk to him? Did his reaction give it away? Should he talk to him about it or would that make it worse?

Michael couldn’t find it in him to be playful as he sat there in his own head for a solid hour or so, trying to think of how to properly handle this situation. He couldn’t ask Isobel or Max because they would be so angry at him for outting himself like that. He was supposed to be just playing.

He eventually decided that he couldn’t handle this situation, not today, so he grabbed his bag and started to speed walk out of the library. His brain was too full and he didn’t know what this meant. Alex said he didn’t care, but did he understand what he was actually saying? Did he understand that this wasn’t a joke?

Michael almost made it to his truck before a hand grabbed his arm. He whirled around, eyes wide and far too on edge for all of this. Alex stood there with his hands up in surrender.

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Alex said, “I’m sorry if I did or if I scared you.”

“Please don’t say anything. I’m sorry for messing with you, I won’t do it anymore, but please don’t say anything,” Michael said. Alex’s face didn’t change at all which made Michael feel even more like he was being closed in on. “I’m sorry, okay? I-I just thought you were cute. I won’t do it anymore.”

Alex waited far too many seconds before he said, “I’m not going to say anything. Why would I?”

“Because this isn’t, like, a small thing,” Michael said, “I don’t even understand how you figured it out. Like, why was that your first assumption? Are you that observative? Are you like a secret genius or something?”

“I’m not going to say anything,” Alex said again instead of answering any of his questions, “We’re all entitled to our secrets even if we’re bad at keeping them to ourselves.”

“I was subtle!”

“You made me think I was haunted for, like, a week,” Alex said, laughing softly. Michael took a slow breath. “Listen, sorry for stressing you out. How about I make it up to you by taking you for coffee?”

It took a solid thirty seconds of rebooting his mind for Michael to realize he was being asked on a date. Alex clearly wasn’t great at timing. Michael huffed a laugh and tried to relax his shoulders.

“Are you seriously asking me out after casually telling me you know my deepest secret?”

“Well, if you say yes, maybe I’ll let you dissect what my deepest secret is.”

“Is it not that you’re gay?”

“Since when is that a secret?”

“Fair enough,” Michael said, actually laughing a little despite the previous panic that still had him a little shaken up. He sniffled and looked around. “Um, can I say ask me again later?”

“Yeah,” Alex said without question, “Probably bad timing to ask you after saying I know your big secret.”

“Yeah.”

They stood there awkwardly for a minute and Michael highly considered just slamming his face into the side of the truck to make this shit a little more bearable. He pulled his sleeves over his hands and balled up his fists, trying to ease the tension in his stomach. It didn’t really help.

“I promise I won’t say anything,” he said, “You have my word.” 

Michael nodded. “Thanks.”

“I’ll see you around.”

Michael watched as Alex walked back into the library. Then he very quietly got into the driver’s seat of his truck, peacefully started the engine, casually pulled onto the main road.

And then let himself scream until his throat was sore.

-

As it turns out, Alex actually kept his word.

Two weeks after he not-so-subtly admitted to knowing Michael’s secret, no one had said anything. No one looked at him weird, no one tried to get him to do a cool trick, and even Isobel and Max had managed not to notice that something was up. It was enough time for Michael to realize that maybe he was actually trustworthy.

It still took Michael another week to go back to the library.

He sat at his normal table and Alex was re-shelving books from his little cart. His back was turned to Michael’s table as if he wasn’t expecting him to be there. Which was fair enough. Michael tapped anxiously on the table and then focused on the book on the edge of the top shelf.

When it fell over, Alex didn’t even pick it up. He just turned to face him. Michael gave a small wave and he smiled right back, waving before he went to pick up the book. He reshelved it and Michael gave it a little push. 

They did that a couple times, Michael assisting him. Eventually, though, he got fed up with waiting for Alex to come talk to him, so he stood up and walked over to him.

“Hey,” he said. Alex looked over his shoulder at him and smiled softly.

“Hey.”

“You didn’t tell anyone.”

“Wasn’t really my secret to tell,” Alex said, “And, besides, who would I tell? And, if I did tell, why would they believe me? And why would I want to? I’m not stupid enough to think there aren’t things in this world we don’t know about or that isn’t talked about. You’re just one of those things and I’m not going to ruin the fun of anonymity.”

“Oh, yeah?” Michael asked. Alex nodded, nimble fingers sliding a book into place. 

“Can’t tell me vampires and mermaids aren’t real if I can convince myself that there are people like me who know and simply keep it to themselves.”

“So you think I’m a vampire or a mermaid?” Michael wondered, a playful tone in his voice. Alex look at him.

“I don’t know what you are and I don’t know you well enough to deserve an answer,” he said simply, “But I know you’re cute.”

Michael stared at him and wondered how he could even be real. Was he joking? Was this just him playing his cards right? Alex was too good to be true.

And yet… It seemed to be real.

“How about that coffee?” Michael asked.

“Mm, can I also get help with biology?” he wondered. Michael huffed a laugh and nodded.

“Absolutely.”

[anathewierdo]

Call of the Ocean  Chapter 13: When Reality Hits

Pairing: CEO!Mechanic!Dean Winchester x Mermaid!Reader

Word count: 6260

Chapter summary: After Y/N’s incident, Thasman is wary towards Dean. Dean finds out just how little time he has to be with Y/N. Thasman begins his driving lessons.

Series summary: CEO of Winchester Auto Dean Winchester has had enough of the office life. With his father keeping him from what he wants to do, which is work on the plant floor, Dean decides to leave for a quiet life. In Matagorda, Texas, he finds something he never thought he would, a chance encounter with a mythical creature.

Call of the Ocean Masterlist

A/N: God I love Saturday’s. This series is a collaboration with @flamencodiva​ , the text dividers were made by the awesome @talesmaniac89​ 

Next chapter will be posted on Wednesday, September 30

Y/N took a bite of a pastry called an eclair. The sweet taste of the chocolate, mixed with flakey pastry and the cream on the inside made her moan in delight. 

“Dis is goof!” she forgot her manners for a few seconds speaking with her mouth open.

“I know,” Dean smiled at how cute she looked. He was reminded of himself. While pie’s will always be his favorite, he did have a sweet tooth for other sweets. 

“Sorry,” She blushed, swallowing the last bit of the eclair. “Ellen did say I have to mind my manners.”   

Dean shrugged it off. “It’s fine. After all, it is your first time trying all of this, so might as well enjoy it!”

“How many are there left?” she asked around the last piece of the eclair.

“Well”, Dean began, “You still have… two whole boxes to go.” he chuckled.

Y/N slumped into her chair, groaning, “So much good sweetness, and not enough space in me to eat it.”

Dean snorted at her choice of words, laughing his ass off and making Y/N start laughing too. 

After a few moments, Dean was able to get a grip on himself and sighed away the remains of his laughter. “Ok, I think we should go back to Ellen. She–” he chuckled again, recalling Y/N’s comment once more. “She’s gonna be pissed if we’re not there on time.”

Y/N nodded and stood up to help carry the small boxes filled with pastries to Baby while Dean went ahead to keep the door open so she could put them in the seat. 

“This was fun,” she smiled at him. “Thank you.” 

“It was--” Dean cleared his throat as he looked over at her. His heart seemed to skip a beat as he watched her tuck some of her hair behind her ear. “It was nothing. Although you did scare me last night. Are you sure you’re okay now?” 

“Yes. Thasman and Ellen took care of me… Thank you for helping me, Dean."

“It was nothing,” Dean shook his head. “I was just worried, you seemed to have been running a high fever. Not even Sam gets that hot when he’s sick.” 

“Sam?” Y/N tilted her head at him. 

“My brother,” Dean beamed. “I used to help my mom take care of him whenever he was sick.” 

Y/N nodded, “I see. The closest thing I have to a sibling is Thasman. We have both known the other from a very young age.” 

“Huh,” Dean licked his lips. “So you two really aren’t--” he trailed off. 

“Aren’t what?’ Y/N tilted her head to the side. It gave her the most innocent look Dean had ever seen on a girl. 

 “A couple,” Dean breathed. “He’s… he seems very attached to you and… maybe he might even--” 

Y/N bursted out in laughter. “Thasman and me?” She continued to laugh. “I’m sorry,” she wiped away a stray tear of laughter. “No, I promise Thasman is only a really good friend. Albeit a bit overprotective, but he and I will never be more than friends. I think I told you that, right? When we met?” 

“Oh,” Dean chuckled at her reaction. “Yeah you did. I-- I guess he must be a really good friend to get a reaction like that. But I am glad you are doing better. You did scare me there for a minute.” 

She shook her head, smiling softly. “Don’t be. I’m ok now.”

“Alright, then let’s get you back to Ellen’s,” Dean turned on the ignition and backed out of the parking spot. 

The drive back to Ellen, Dean turned on the radio singing to the song. 

“This is fun!” Y/N yelled over the music. “I never heard this kind of music before!” 

“You’ve never really lived until you know Rock music, sweetheart. It’s the best thing ever.”

“I would love to listen to more of this!” She smiled brightly. 

Just hearing her say that made Dean smile to the point that his cheeks hurt. Not even Cassie tolerated his music, and to find someone like Y/N made it seem like a dream. 

They arrived at Ellen’s a little too soon for his liking. “Alright,” he took the keys out of the ignition. “We’re here, Y/N.”

Ellen received them with a knowing smile and a hug. “You guys had a good time at Al’s?”

“We did,” Y/N held up the two boxes full of pastries. “We have snacks to last a long while!” 

“Did you buy the whole bakery, Dean?” Ellen raised an eyebrow at him. “Or are you trying to fatten up my little Y/N, here?” 

He helped her set the boxes down on the kitchen table and showed his hands in surrender. “She had never tried any kind of pastries! What was I supposed to do? I couldn’t let her live one more day without knowing about the existence of pie, Ellen!”

Ellen laughed and nodded, “Well I do have to give you that.” she looked between Y/N and Dean and smiled. “I’m going to go call Bobby and check on Thasman. I’ll leave you two to continue talking.” 

“But what about the homemade pizza?” Y/N called after her. “You’re still going to show us how to make that, right?”

“I will, you just have some more fun with Dean. I’ll be back.” Ellen disappeared into her room. 

“So Ellen is going to show you how to make Pizza?” Dean rocked on his heels. 

“Yeah,” she affirmed. “Thasman and I have been wanting to make one for days now.”

“So let me get this straight: no rock music, no pastries, no sweets, no cars like Baby, and you don’t know how to make a pizza.” he counted. “Well, to be fair, I don’t know how to make one either, but sweetheart, how did you even get here from someplace that sounds completely cut off from the world?”

“I-- well,” Y/N licked her lips. “Thasman and I traveled by boat. And honestly, our customs and traditions are very archaic. I mean… in just six days I have to go back and well… pick a husband--” 

Just like that, reality had smacked Dean across the face. Because of course, of fucking course everything that had been going so great would have to be taken away from him when it came to her. 

“You’re shitting me.” he found himself mumbling in shock.

“I don’t want to,” she whispered. “I hate the stupid tradition and would love nothing more than to stay here and live. But--” she licked her lips, “But I’m next in line to become an important person for our community and… I can’t… I want to name someone else but I know it would be difficult.” 

“So what is this?” he gestured around her. “Some sort of last wish vacation before responsibility takes over?”

“I don’t know,” she avoided his gaze. “I just wanted to experience something different and bring back what I have learned.” She closed her eyes before opening them to gaze into his green ones. “I didn’t mean to insult you or offend you. I just… It was nice of you to show me Al’s. I-- I’m sorry.” she could feel the tears begin to form in her eyes. 

“Hey, no,” he rushed towards her, “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m not mad at you. You didn’t insult me. I just find it really hard to believe that you are going to be forced to marry someone in the twentyfirst century.” he explained. “And how does it work? Do they just put a bunch of people in line and tell you to go nuts?”

Y/N wiped her eyes and smiled, “No, I guess. They have a tournament of sorts. So the winner gets to marry me I guess.” she frowned. “It’s archaic and I hate it.” 

“Because you’re the prize.” he realized. “And you can’t just… not marry anyone and go on with your life doing whatever it is you have to do back home?”

“I wish it were that simple,” she turned away from him and walked towards Ellen’s porch to look out to the sea. “Everything I do, I do to make my father happy. He knows I hate it, but I’m his only daughter and there is no one else.” 

“Now that I get,” he grumbled. “It sucks. I’m sorry, Y/N.”

Y/N sniffled a bit, “Not your fault. I--” she let out a laugh. “I guess it’s the tides that control my life. There is no changing them.” 

He nudged her softly. “Hey, if you guys are leaving, would you mind if I hang out with you and Ellen tonight? Help you guys make some pizza? I could use the cooking lessons.”

Y/N laughed, “I think that would be nice. You can never have too many friends.” She reached out her hand for Dean to shake. “At least that’s what Ellen says.” 

Dean laughed as he took her hand in his, ignoring the familiar electricity flowing through him. The way her hand just seemed to fit right in his made his heart skip a beat. The look in her eyes, he wanted nothing more than to keep that happy, smiling look on them. Neither of them noticed Ellen watching them with a smile on her face before barging in. 

“Alright you two,” She poked her head out the door. “Thasman’s going to be a bit late. His driving lesson is um… well let’s say it took an interesting turn.” Ellen chuckled. 

Y/N’s eyes widened. “Is he alright?”

“He’s fine,” Ellen waved her off. “Now, let’s start making some pizzas!”

Y/N and Dean made their way back into the house and towards the kitchen where Ellen was grabbing what they needed. Y/N couldn’t shake the giddy feeling that overwhelmed her. She could feel her heart pound in her chest. She wasn’t sure what she was feeling, but whatever it was, she didn’t want it to end. 

“Hey,” Ellen snapped her out of her thoughts, “come back to Earth darlin, we need you to measure out the flour,” she looked to Dean. “You’re going to grate the cheese and cut up the pepperoni into slices. And don’t be stingy on the cheese; I want to see lots of it!” 

“Yes ma’am!” he smiled. 

Y/N grabbed the measuring cups and began measuring out the ingredients needed for the dough. She looked at the small packet labeled ‘yeast’. And tilted her head. 

“Not flour,” she mumbled. “Where is it?”

“Here it is hun, but you are going to need that yeast to help the dough rise,” Ellen pointed to the packet after putting the container of flour in front of her. 

Y/N nodded, looking at the flour and yeast like they were the strangest things ever. “Ok”

Y/N let her tongue stick out of her mouth as she looked at the recipe that Ellen had laid out. She grabbed the luke warm water that Ellen set out and followed the instructions for the yeast.  Following the rest of it she grabbed a separate bowl for the flour measuring the ingredients as the yeast mixture began to froth up. 

“Hey, Y/N,” Dean called out to her as he was cutting the pepperoni. 

“Ye--” as she was answering him, Dean placed a piece in her mouth. 

“How’s that?”

Y/N held back her laughter as she chewed on the piece, “It’s delicious!” 

“I know,” he nodded, popping a piece into his own mouth. “Ellen got us the good stuff.”

“She knows just how to get the best meat,” Y/N smiled. Moving closer to Dean, Y/N began mixing the flour into the yeast mixture. “I wonder how this will taste when it’s done?” 

“Amazing.” He answered. “Pizza is always amazing.”

“I can’t wait,” she smiled. “Most of the food we eat are fish, seaweed soup and kale.” she sighed. “If we hadn’t met Ellen, I never would have tasted Prime Rib.” 

Dean stood in silence for a moment and turned to give her an incredulous look. “No sushi?” 

“Do you need a tissue?” Y/N reached for the box of tissues that Ellen kept by the sink. 

“What?” Dean let out a chuckle. 

“You just sneezed, didn’t you? Do you want a tissue?”

“No! No. I’m talking about sushi. It’s food.” Dean stopped cutting the pepperoni and mimicked what Sushi looked like with his hands. “ It’s food rolled up in kale and rice and you’ve eaten fish and kale your whole life but no sushi. I’m not the biggest fan but it’s decent… Oh man, Sam would freak if he met you.” He laughed.

“Well, we eat raw fish, but we do not have any rice. It can’t grow where we’re from.” She smiled and continued to knead the dough.  

Dean could see she was having trouble and moved behind her. 

“Here let me help. I used to watch my mom do this and she always used the heel of her palms. Like this.” he demonstrated. “Now you try it.” 

He put his hands on her shoulders, sliding them down to her forearms. “Use more force. You got this, sweetheart.” 

Y/N felt a shiver down her spine as he touched her. She remembered the recipe said to add more flour if the dough was too sticky. As she went to reach for it, she could feel she grabbed too much and flour went everywhere. 

“Oh no,” she gasped. “I’m sorry I--” she stopped and laughed at the flour that covered Dean. “That’s-- wow.” 

Part of his face had ended up covered in flour somehow, along with his wrists and hands. She watched him blink away some of the flour that had ended up in his eye.

“Wha?” he asked, giving her an accusing smile. “Are you laughing at me sweetheart?” 

“No,” Y/N shook her head but failed at suppressing her laugh. 

“Why don’t I believe you?” he commented sarcastically, reaching out a hand towards the bag of flour. “Ya know what? I think you could use a little bit more white. It suits you.”

He threw the flour to her face, making Y/N squeal as she tried in vain to save herself from the attack from there it turned into a small flour war. With Dean and Y/N throwing small bits of flour at each other. Dean and Y/N began chasing each other around Ellen’s kitchen island. It didn’t take long for Dean to catch her and begin tickling her sides. 

“Would you two children stop messing with my kitchen?!” Ellen laughed, interrupting their fight even if she couldn’t exactly see them with her back turned due to her cutting up another chunks of meat. “You’ve had your fun, but this pizza is not gonna make itself.”

They froze in place, Dean’s arms still around her his face close to hers. They both stared at each other for what seemed to be an eternity. Dean reached up and cupped her face, his thumb cleaning off a bit of flour from her face. His eyes shifted  from her lips back to gaze into her eyes. Licking his lips, Dean could feel himself leaning forward, bringing his face closer to hers.

“Sweetie, are you done with the dough? We have to put it in a bowl to let it rise.” Ellen called again.

Y/N broke out of her trance and gently pushed away from Dean. “Yes, Ellen! I have it in the bowl ready to rise.” 

“Thank you, hun. Dean? You got those pepperonis nice and sliced?”

Dean blushed at the thought of what was about to happen between them, “Yeah Ellen, although I might be eating a few if you don’t get in here.”  

Ellen turned around, giving him her best glare and toughest mom voice. “You will do no such thing if you want to eat pizza, Campbell.”

“Okay, okay,” Dean gave her a devilish smirk as he placed the pepperoni into a bowl and placed it in the fridge.

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

Thasman adjusted his low bun and sighed as Bobby stared at him. The lessons were not going off to a good start. Plus Bobby was upset that Thasman doesn’t have what the humans called a ‘learners permit’. Apparently it’s what would help them learn to drive large metal deathtraps. 

“Ellen has some nerve,” Bobby huffed. “Alright, so, we need to start with baby steps. Now Ellen says you are leaving in six days back to your home?” 

“Yes sir,” Thasman nodded. “The Pr… I mean Y/N has her birthday celebration back home.”

“Well, I have my work cut out for me, don’t I?” Bobby ran a hand across his face before grabbing Thasman and sitting him in front of the computer he owned. “You need to learn the rules of the road and get your learner's permit. Now, I’m going to call Ellen and get your info from you. Mind you, all this will be coming out of your pay.” 

“I--” Thasman sighed. These humans had strange customs and traditions. “How long will it take?” 

“Longer than what you are here for,” Bobby sighed. “Do you have a birth certificate with you? Or even a passport. Your country had to have given you a form of identification so you could get your license right?”

“Well… we… our country is very late in receiving modern things like identification.” Thasman tried to cover. 

“What country did you say you were from again?” Bobby crossed his arms as he raised an eyebrow at Thasman.  

“Sindarta,” The young merman said as he smiled. “It’s very remote and a very small community.” 

“I bet,” Bobby huffed. 

“I think maybe I should head back to Ellen’s,” Thasman sighed. “I’m sorry to be a burden to you.” Thasman offered him a sad smile before making his way towards the door. 

The old man rushed to his side, putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him. “Boy, don’t be like that. I didn’t mean anything by what I said. I’m just surprised.”

“I’m surprised by your way of life too, you know?” Thasman frowned. “Y/N and I have only known a tiny part of your ways, and it is really confusing, scary and exciting at the same time for us.”

Bobby’s expression softened. “I know,” he conceded. “I guess I forgot that not everyone gets to live like us here.”

“Yeah,” Thasman nodded. “It happens.”

Bobby guided him back towards the old machine he was trying to get Thasman to drive. “I never did show you each part and how it works, right?” Thasman shook his head. “Ok. Let’s start from scratch.”

As Bobby pointed to the different things in the car, he couldn’t help but smile at how Thasman absorbed the information. The kid was as sharp as a whip. As they worked together, Bobby saw a small gleam of metal hanging around Thasman’s neck. It looked familiar to him somehow. The chain seemed to be silver with a small medallion at the end. The chain itself was threaded through a ring of aquamarine gems. Clearing his throat Bobby looked at the time and sighed. 

“I think that’s enough looking under the hood for one day,” Bobby grumbled as he stretched his back. “You seem to be getting the hang of how to look under the hood.”   

Thasman chuckled nervously. “I’m not really sure of what I’m doing, Bobby.”

“Let’s get you back to Ellen’s,” Bobby tossed him the keys to the truck. “You’re going to drive nice and easy. I think you can handle it.” 

He nodded, opening the driver’s door and getting into the car. He mumbled to himself with every action that would wake the metal beast and smiled excitedly when he heard the engine come to life. 

“That’s it, boy,” Bobby praised. “Now, go slow. No pressure.”

As they drove down the road, Bobby glanced over at thasman. The poor boy was too tense and driving at the speed of a snail. 

“You’re doing fine,” he’d assured every once in a while. “By the time you have to leave you’ll be a natural at this. Maybe we can get Y/N to drive too.”

Thasman smiled, “I think she will like that.” 

“So,” Bobby tapped a finger on the dashboard as Thasman slowly picked up speed as he gained more confidence. “What’s your mother like? Must have been one heck of a woman to raise a good son like you.” 

Thasman gulped and felt his grip on the wheel tightened. “I actually never met her.” He confessed. “I asked questions… how I got there, who was she… It was like I just… appeared. There was no sign of her.”

“So Y/N’s family took you in?” Bobby inquired.

The young merman shook his head. “Not exactly. Some time after I showed up, this woman, a friend of my mother apparently, returned from a trip. They assigned her to take care of me and she couldn’t exactly refuse, but she wasn’t opposed to the idea either.”

They had reached another one of the lights that humans put in the streets. The circle on the top glowing a bright red, indicating that Thasman had to stop the metal beast. Trying to follow Bobby’s instructions and lessons from before, he stopped the car. He took his hands off the wheel when the car fully stopped, running them through his hair. 

Bobby’s frown seemed to get bigger in confusion and concern. 

“So, this woman… she at least treats you right?”

Thasman let out a big smile, “She’s tough,” he admitted. “But she is the only mother figure I ever knew. She always cared for me and was proud when I was chosen to be Y/N’s bodyguard.” 

“The light’s green again, boy,” Bobby pointed out.

“Oh, right! So… yeah. That’s all there is to know about that. You said the turn to Ellen’s house was where again?”

“Just take the next left, Thas,” Bobby said as he pointed the way. “You’re Y/N’s bodyguard? Is she important where you’re from?” 

“Very,” he confirmed. “Her father is… they’re important. I’m not just a guard. I’m her friend. But it’s my duty to make sure she’s alright. That nothing happens to her.”

Bobby hummed. “I guess that’s where you get your strength from.” 

“Comes with the job,” he shrugged. “I’m– ok, you said I’m supposed to do what now?”

“Turn the wheel to your left right here, and do it gently. Brake slowly and just turn the wheel.” Bobby instructed as he pointed to the turn.  

Thasman did, and in no time, man and merman found themselves once again outside of Ellen’s house.

“Do I just– do I turn it off now?”

Bubby grumbled, “Well it isn't going to turn itself off.” 

Thasman nodded as he turned the truck off after putting the car on ‘P’. Giving Bobby the keys, Thasman got out of the car and made his way up Ellen’s porch followed by Bobby. As they opened the door, Thasman and Bobby came in to see Y/N and Dean cleaning up the flour from the small fight they had. 

“Poseidon’s fury!” Thasman exclaimed as he walked up to Y/N and touched the flour in her hair. “What happened?” 

The green-eyed man put a rag back in the sink, smiling as he crossed his arms. “We had a little bit of a disagreement. You came in just in time to see us get the pizza really started.”

Thasman frowned at the man as he walked to Y/N and leaned in to whisper in her ear. “Princess, are you alright? Did he hurt you? What is this stuff?” 

“I’m fine, Thas,” she whispered back and shrugged him off. “It’s just this powder. It’s completely harmless, I promise. We used it for the pizza dough!” 

“Why is he here?” Thasman had yet to trust the green-eyed man. “Shouldn’t he be in his own dwelling?” 

The last bit seemed to be caught by said intruder. “Ellen and Y/N invited me. I could still go if you want?” 

“No!” Y/N shouted and cleared her throat as she blushed. “Please stay. You helped in making the pizza it’s only fair that you get to enjoy it as well.” 

“Y/N…” Thasman looked at his friend. 

“Do you have a problem with me?” Dean huffed and looked at Thasman. “I have not nor will I ever hurt her. You keep looking at me as if I’m going to attack her or something?”  

“Last time you were with her she got sick.” 

“You know very well that it wasn’t his fault Thasman!” Y/N growled. “Stop it now.” 

Thasman took her forearm, and gently led her away from the prying eyes of the humans, stating they would be right back. 

“What do you actually know about him?” He prodded. “Besides his name, besides the fact that you have seen him once before we got here. Y/N/N, please think about it. We barely know him.” Thasman closed his eyes in frustration and sighed, already knowing he wouldn’t win this. “I don’t trust him.”

“He has a brother named Sam,” she countered. “He drives a beautiful ‘67 Chevy Impala that he calls Baby, and he listens to what they call Rock Music. Which I found I liked. Thasman he is just becoming my friend please. He helped me last night, he probably saved my life.” 

A tense silence settled between them. Y/N watched as little by little, her friend’s face went from rock hard seriousness to defeat. Thasman groaned, and watched her with a deadpan look.

“You know, you make me look like the worst guard to ever exist. What would your father say if he knew this?” He asked himself.

“You are not the worst guard to exist!” Y/N said as she punched him. “And besides, you are helping me experience a bit of freedom before I am forced to stay in the ocean forever.” she sighed dramatically. 

Thasman chuckled at her theatrics. “If they ever know about this, I’m dead.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Y/N said as she made her way inside. “He would imprison you in the dark caverns.” she joked and rushed inside laughing.  

“Oh, so much more comforting.” 

Dean tilted his head at the interaction between the two. He could tell Thasman was not liking him. He didn’t want to be a wedge between the two friends, and he liked Y/N. He really, really liked her. As Y/N made her way to him, Dean motioned for her to come over. 

“Are you two okay? I don’t want you to lose your friend.” Dean looked at Thasman and offered him a small smile.  

Thasman rolled his eyes, although Dean was able to catch a small smile there this time. “Yeah, we’re fine.”

“You want to roll out the dough, Thasman?” Ellen offered trying to ease the tension. 

Thasman nodded, heading over to her, already immersed in her instructions to do it correctly. 

Dean watched as Ellen guided Thasman on how to roll out the dough. The merman smiled as he saw how easy it was. Dean couldn’t help but smile at the fact that the man who could despise him, was having fun rolling out pizza dough. He looked over at Y/N who seemed to be studying Thasman’s work. There was something intriguing and innocent about how Y/N would observe something new. He wondered what it would be like to show her how to work on a car?

“Okay,” Ellen smiled. “How about we put some topping on this pizza!”

“Oh!” Y/N exclaimed excitedly. “What goes first?” 

Dean laughed, finding her excitement completely adorable. “The sauce, then we put the cheese, and then we go from there.”

Thasman and Y/N nodded, the latter mumbling “awesome” to herself.

Time seemed to fly when you had eight hands and a running commentary from Bobby to help get the pizza done. Thasman preferred to stay quiet for the most part, focusing on doing things right and every single movement Dean made. 

He noticed, of course. It was hard to ignore the blank stare that seemed to be trying to look into his very soul as he tried to talk to Y/N and listen to Bobby’s jokes. Eventually, the pizza was put in the oven, and Ellen popped open a few bags of chips for everyone to munch on while they waited.

“Thasman,” Bobby called, “how did you end up as Y/N’s bodyguard?”

“Bodyguard?” Dean looked from Thasman to Y/N. “You said your dad was an important man, but I didn’t realize he was that important that you needed a bodyguard.” 

Thasman wasn’t pleased at Bobby’s question. The old man was just curious, he knew that. The unexpected guest was the problem.

“Y/N’s family is very important back home.” He answered.

“Thasman had to go through rigorous training at first,” Y/N smiled remembering when Thasman was at the academy to become a guard. 

“It was a nightmare,” he recognized, still somewhat reluctant. “I went from being a simple boy to a guard in training. It took a few years for me to be officially named a guard.”

“It was on my 21st birthday when Thasman was appointed to me. It was funny. I kept running away!” Y/N laughed at the memory of swimming away from Thasman and hiding to get away.

“Yeah,” he sighed smiling, “I thought it wouldn’t be so hard, since I’ve known her my whole life… but no. Little Miss Rebel made it clear the second I showed up it wouldn’t be easy.”

“Oh?” Dean straightened at that. “She’s a rebel, is she?” 

“She is. To an extent, she is.” Thasman looked at her, a fond smile on his face as he spoke. “Us being here is her biggest scheme yet.”

Bobby whistled at that. “How did you get the money to get here?”

“I--” Y/N looked to Ellen for help. 

“I know a friend of theirs!” Ellen smiled. “Thasman’s guardian is a good friend of mine and she told me of them coming over. We arranged for it. Since Y/N’s father is a big shot on that Island of theirs.” She passed a quick wink to Y/N. 

“Yes,” Thasman smiled. “Ellen knows my guardian Liara.” 

“So, you took a plane or a boat?” Dean asked as he took a bite of a chip. 

“A plane.”

“A boat.”

Thasman and Y/N shared a look as their answers collided, then turned to Ellen for help. She could only mirror their expressions, and urged them to think fast with her eyes. 

“We took a boat to land,” Y/N took over, “it was a short journey to the nearest island with an airport, then took a plane to America and we just… we pointed at random and landed here.”

“Uh-huh,” Dean and Bobby both responded at the same time. 

Dean cleared his throat as he looked at Y/N. “So you had a really long trip?” 

“It wasn’t as bad as it sounds,” Thasman stepped in. “It felt a lot shorter than it actually was.”

“I’m not big on flying on planes,” Dean smiled. “I prefer to be closer to the ground.” 

“That I can agree on.” Thasman grumbled. 

“Didn’t you say the trip wasn’t that bad Thasman?” Bobby pressed.

He shrugged. “I never said I was conscious for most of it.” 

“I had to put him to sleep for a good amount of the trip,” Y/N smiled as she winked at Thasman. 

Before anyone could ask anything else, a loud ding sounded through the house, alerting everyone that the pizza was finally ready. Dean helped Ellen take the pizza to the table and before long everyone was enjoying the home cooked meal. Dean tried to talk to Thasman more but realized that the young man would not become his friend easily. With the pizza gone, Dean realized he had to go home. Benny and Cas would most likely ask him questions about his day.  He was headed to the door when Y/N appeared behind him. 

“Can I walk you home? I think it’s only fair since you helped with everything today.” She blushed slightly ignoring the looks Thasman gave her.

The huge smile that made its way across his face was inevitable. He opened the door, then stepped back, motioning for Y/N to go through. “After you, sweetheart.”

“Thank you,” she smiled as she walked down the porch steps and waited for him. “I hope it’s okay though. I know it’s usually the man who walks the woman home.” She brushed a hair behind her ear. 

“I promise you, Y/N.” He said as he gestured between the two of them. “This is more than okay with me.”

“Then on to your dwelling!” she laughed and skipped a bit in front of him. The sea air blew in her hair as she laughed. 

“Why do you call houses' ‘dwellings’?” Dean asked as he watched her having fun. Her laugh was music to his ears. 

She turned back to him with her hand on her hip, “why do you call dwellings ‘houses’?” 

“Shit,” he laughed, “touché, sweetheart. I have no fucking clue.”

“Maybe we can find out together someday,” She waited for him to reach her before she took his hand in hers. “You have big hands! And they are not smooth.” She studied them for a bit. “What do you do that makes them slightly hard?” 

Dean snorted at her remarks, “I like working with my hands. I work on cars mostly.” 

“Cars like Baby?�� Y/N asked as they stopped right in front of the black Impala. 

“Among other things,” He said as he turned to her. “I had a really good day today. You helped me relax and forget some of my troubles.” 

“I enjoyed today as well,” Y/N sighed contently. “I have six more days before I must return home.” she whispered sadly. 

“Then maybe I can find some time to take you out. And you know, Thasman could join in too.”

“He is my bodyguard,” she chuckled. “Maybe we can find him someone nice to distract him?” 

“That’s not what I meant, sweetheart.” 

“Oh? How did you mean it?” Y/N tilted her head innocently. 

“He’s your bodyguard, yeah, but he’s your friend too, right? He cares a lot about you from what I could see today alone.” He gently ran his thumb along the back of her hand as he held it. “I just thought, you’re not the only one who needs to try all the pastries we bought.” he said giving her a small smirk and a wink. “I wanna show him around too, so you can both have fun and… well, if I get a few brownie points on the way, what’s the harm in that?

“Brownie points?” Y/N whispered. “Do I need to give you brownies?” 

Dean chuckled, “no, no, sweetheart. It’s a figure of speech. It refers to getting into someone’s good side.”

“Oh!” Y/N let out a laugh and blushed. “Well,” she bit her lip and glanced at him. “You have gained a good amount of brownie points for today.” 

“Hopefully,” he sighed, “You know? We start renovations tomorrow. It’s gonna take two whole days– maybe three, if we really want to open the garage before you guys leave. Maybe you could come around? Bobby and Thasman will be there, most likely, and my friends too.”

Y/N nodded. “I’ll try to, what’s that you say? Swing by if I can.”

“I would like that,” Dean said as he took a step towards her. 

He lifted his hand and reached out to caress her cheek. Her skin was soft against his calloused hand. 

“Y/N?” Dean whispered as he brought his face close to hers. 

“Yes, Dean,” Y/N whispered as the tip of his nose touched hers. 

“I’m starting to really like you,” His green eyes looked into her Y/E/C/ eyes. 

Y/N’s heart clenched at his words. “Me too, Dean,” she sighed, “I’m really going to miss you when I go back.”

The reminder of her leaving felt heavier this time. For a moment, they were back at Ellen’s house, and he could still see the hurt in her eyes at the thought of marrying whoever she’d have to marry when she got home. She was leaving in five days, and Dean had really, truly realised just now, that it would most likely be the forever kind of leaving.

Last wish vacation, her biggest scheme so far… they took a very different meaning once he truly understood how trapped she really was.

Instead of letting himself go and find out what the lips of the woman of his dreams felt like, he kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly against him. 

“I’m really going to miss you too, Y/N.” Dean muttered into her hair as he squeezed her once more.

“I should head back,” Y/N whispered before kissing his cheek. “I’ll talk to Ellen about swinging by tomorrow.”  

Dean pulled away and smiled as she began to walk back towards Ellen’s house. Taking a deep breath, he walked up the steps and opened the front door in time to see Benny and Cas rushing away from the window. 

“Not a word,” he grumbled as he made his way towards his room.

Well holy crap! We’re thirteen chapters in already! I wanna thank everyone who has liked, reblogged, commented and sent asks about the story. Every single one of you has made my day <3

Any and all types of feedback is greatly appreciated :D

My asks are open in case you wanna send feedback, have questions or wanna be added to the tag list :)

Call of the Ocean tag list: (if your username is in bold italics, that means tumblr didn’t let me tag you)

@67-chevy-baby @tmiships4life @cloudyskylines @chelsea072498 @carryon-doctor-lock @samanddeanwinchester67 @thatgirl1456 @satans-0-spawn @waywardrose13 @secretsthathauntus @parinarain @swagfancroissantpizza @roonyxx @roxytheimmortal @starryeyeseunbyul @rintheemolion @abeautifuldiaster124 @lovely-lynns-likes @ladyofmaidensandwine @starchildwild @peachyafshawn @idksupernatural @mimzy1994​ @winchest09​ @katehuntington​ @superfanficnatural​ @waywardbeanie​ @janicho88​ @malfoysqueen14​ @whatareyousearchingfordean​ @talesmaniac89​ @emoryhemsworth​ @jensengirl83​ @atc74​ @deanwanddamons​ @crashdevlin​ @hobby27​ @eliwinchester99​ @notyourtypicalrose​ @babykalika2001 @deanmonandnegansbitch​ @kickingitwithkirk​ @sandlee44​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​ @desertmoths​ @cookiechipdough​ @akshi8278​ @theflamecrystal​ @tessellaneous @invisiblexnobodyximportant​ @supernatural-love14​ @itsdesiree86​ @teresa-67​ @beabutterfly987​ @sev3nruby​

Supernatural tag list:

@bi-danvers0​

[ericsonclan]

The Mystery Snack

Summary: Renata and Sophie prepare to sneak up to the surface when suddenly another merperson appears wanting to see the land dwellers again.

Word Count: 2876

Read on AO3:

Renata swam forward, her yellow tail cutting through the water with ease as she twirled amongst the seaweed. A large grin was on her face as she continued onward, not a care in the world. Her brown eyes glanced up at the waters above, noticing the small schools of fish and the warm sunlight that pierced through the surface of the ocean and highlighted the waters below. There really was no place to live like under the sea. Still, the surface was so mysterious with the land dwellers running around on things that looked like sticks and with their weird food. Renata still wasn’t over how disappointing that black block tasted.

“Stupid stale box,” Renata flicked her tail and did another small spin, instantly regaining her joy. Whatever, she was planning on meeting up with Allison today and after that she would finally go on that stealth mission that she and Sophie had been playing for ages. In fact, Renata was already forgetting sections of the three hour old plan. Her nose scrunched up in concentration as she continued forward before she shrugged it off. It couldn’t be that important if she forgot it.

With a happy, upbeat tune Renata made her way forward, dancing upon the small little pulls of the ocean below. Until her eyes caught sight of Allision; her blood red tail stuck out clearly in the water as it moved this way and that. The ends of her fins brushed against the sands of the ocean floor, moving at such an anxious pace that Renata grew curious at what could be getting her friend in such a mood. With a playful smile she swam forward and tackled Allison with a hug. “Surprise hug attack!” Renata declared loudly and spun the two of them around in the water for a few seconds.

“Renata!” Allison squirmed around in her friend’s arms for a moment. “You distracted me from the hunt!”

“Oops, sorry there. Whatcha hunting?” Renata’s eyes scanned the area and her smile faltered for a second when she saw a big shark. Without thinking twice she guided her and Allison into a hollowed out rock. “That was close! Mr. Grumpy Teeth almost saw us,”

“That's what I was hunting,” Allison mumbled, her tail flicking in anticipation of Renata’s disapproval.

“Allie, just because you got a badass shark tooth necklace doesn’t mean you won’t be this grump’s appetizer,”

Renata’s words made Allison glance down at the necklace that Renata had gifted her during their travels together before they found the place that they now called home.

“I know,”

“I mean, we snagged that off some shark that was totally dead. I’m pretty sure a whale sat on that shark or something but this one is bad news.” Renata’s tail curled around a little rock and began to whack it softly up and down.

“It could be a threat though,” Allison’s eyes watched the shark for a moment then looked over at Renata.

“It could or it could just be passing through. Best thing we can do is stay here for a little bit then head back home. If it decides to show its ugly mug in our home, then it's gonna learn what merpeople can really do!”

Allison was quiet for a moment, her hand playing with her necklace. She trusted Renata’s judgement here; she usually always listened to Renata’s decision when they revolved around things like this. Not when it came to dumbass matters though - that’s when Allison knew to not have a fin in those sort of things. Usually. “Okay, fine,”

“Wooo! Alright, I found some neato sticks so we’re playing tic-tac-toe!” Renata beamed over at Allison who nodded and took the stick.

It was an hour or so before the shark moved far away from them and off in a direction opposite to their home. Once the coast was clear Renata led the way before swimming around and around Allison. “Glad we made this a game day and not a hunting day!” Renata smiled over at her friend. The red-tailed mermaid gave a small smile in response.

“Yeah, I guess it wasn’t bad,”

“That’s the spirit! Now come on, let's get back home!” Renata grabbed Allison’s hand and pulled her forward as she swam. Soon the two friends were swimming side by side, happy and carefree. It wasn’t a long swim before they arrived back home to the giant sea stone that held dozens of caves that the merpeople had turned into a beautiful home with the help of rocks, shiny shells and the occasional hermit crab.

As Renata and Allison made their way through the entrance they spotted Oakley who was staring rather intently at a patch of seaweed. The merperson’s chestnut brown tail swayed slowly, moving with the ebb and flow of the thought process of their inner mind. After a moment or two of pondering Oakley opened their mouth with a pronounced ‘Ah’ sound and bit down on the seaweed. Chewing thoughtfully, Oakley went from a somewhat blank expression to one of disgust. With a ‘bleh’ sound, bits of seaweed swooshed away with a well-timed current. “Bad seaweed.”

Before Renata could go over and comfort her friend for their terrible loss of potentially good seaweed, a new merperson spiraled forward. His firetruck red tail stood out loudly against the softer colors of the creatures nearby him.

“Knox!” Duck moved forward, abruptly stopping and causing a small whirlwind of water with his tail nearby. “I found a new patch of seaweed that we haven’t explored yet! Wanna go?” Oakley gave a small nod which made a happy smile appear on Duck’s lips. Interlocking his pinky with Oakley’s, Duck swam forward, slowly guiding his love away. Renata and Allison watched them for a moment when suddenly a loud voice appeared nearby.

“Allie!” Willy swam forward, his hands cupped together. “I found a super cool stone!” Revealing the stone, Willy watched as awe danced around in Allison’s eyes as she studied the smooth blue rock that changed from lighter shades to darker ones. “Pretty cool, huh?”

“Yeah, really cool,” Allison carefully took the rock and examined it for a moment longer before pressing a kiss to Willy’s cheek. That romantic gesture made Willy beam with happiness and twirl in a circle a few times in a row.

“I found a whole area like this! Come on, we gotta check it out!” Willy grasped Allison’s hand. The positive smile on his face made a new smile appear on hers.

“Okay,” Allison began to swim away then looked back at Renata. “See you later,”

“Okay! See ya!” Renata gave a wave then was off like a shot after moving her tail with a strong flick.

Twirling about, Renata made her way through the merpeople’s land. As she swam by, she noticed Nurgul’s lavender tail and saw that she was making seashell necklaces with Gabe before stealing a quick kiss from him. Both of them were overwhelmed by that action and their faces only became redder when Gabe returned Nurgul’s affection with a kiss of his own. Nurgul smiled softly at that and swam around Gabe and his orange and yellow tail twice then took his hand in hers. Renata smiled at the happy couple then swayed her tail back and forth at a fast pace, propelling herself forward.

Her eyes caught sight of Ruby who was beside Aasim, her azure tail curled around his black tail that held red accents. Ruby watched Aasim with a warm smile as he tried to carve some sort of writing into stone. After a moment she caught sight of Renata and gave a small wave. Renata returned it in kind then continued forward, her gaze turning to the water above and picking up on the fact that night was fast approaching. She had to find Minnie for some quality snuggling time before she went on this top secret mission with Sophie.

Moving her fin at an alarming rate Renata cut through the water and made a beeline right towards her and Minnie’s home. There, already relaxing, was Minnie. The redhead’s eyes brightened immediately when she spotted Renata, her smokey grey tail happily swaying. “Hey there, Ren,”

“Minnow!” Renata swam forward and immediately wrapped her arms around Minnie. Peppering Minnie’s face with kisses, Renata pulled back with a warm smile. “Did you miss me?”

“Yeah, I did,” Minnie held onto the hug. “Did you have a nice time with Allison?”

“Yep! But now I want cuddles!” Renata nuzzled her face against Minnie’s. The action made MInnie’s face heat up.

“Oh, okay. Yeah, I’m down for that,”

Minnie’s answer made Renata’s smile grow and soon the two of them were cuddling up close to each other, their tails gently intertwined as Minnie gave Renata a kiss before falling asleep.

Renata’s eyes fluttered open and she gave a loud yawn, smacking her lips together for a moment. Glancing over, she saw that Minnie was fast asleep. It would be tough to sneak out now. Minnie wasn’t exactly a heavy sleeper. Giving a soft kiss to her girlfriend, Renata then got to work, wiggling and squishing her body together to slip out of Minnie’s arms. It took some awkward movements and a weird sound or two but soon Renata was free.

Giving a gentle goodbye kiss so as to not wake up Minnie, she started to swim off. Then she suddenly paused. Her eyes traveled over to Minnie and she resisted the urge to give her love another kiss. She quickly failed. Renata swam over and kissed Minnie one more time then used the end of her fin to tickle her face before leaving.

It didn’t take Renata long to spot her best friend. Sophie’s shimmery white tail swayed ecstatically with her anticipation for this secret mission. Her eyes soon found Renata and a smile appeared on her lips. “Heya, Ren! I see you succeeded in step one,” Sophie swam over to meet up with Renata.

“Yep! And I only gave Minnie two goodbye kisses so she won’t be waking up unlike last time.”

“Yeah, midnight swimming with dolphins would’ve been a blast,” Sophie’s tail stopped for a moment. “Oh well, that will be the next mission but this one first! I gotta see if this black block was really stale or if you’ve been hiding secret tasty land dweller food,” Sophie’s eyes narrowed at Renata playfully.

Renata gasped. “I would never do that to my best friend! That black block is gross but I guess we'll just have to go up to the surface to prove it to you,” She shared an excited smile with Sophie until suddenly the two mermaids heard the flick of a fin slicing through the water. Spinning around, the two of them spotted the familiar evergreen tail and the freckled chest of Louis.

“Hey, I’m here for the mission!” Louis grinned over at the two mermaids, his tail swaying excitedly.

“Hmm, I don’t know,” Sophie crossed her arms and shared a secret look with Renata. “Can we trust him?”

“Hmmm, nah,” Renata answered and swam away with Sophie for a second before turning around and grabbing Louis’ hand. “Kidding! Okay, let’s go lick some weird land dweller food and see that stick lady that Louis likes!”

Louis sputtered a response but neither of his friends heard him in their excitement.

“Okay!” Sophie smiled and led the way. The three of them tried to be stealthy as they snuck out. They were less than successful. Sophie ran into a rock structure, accidentally knocking it over, and Renata got distracted by a funny looking crab while Louis tried to grab a fish in his teeth as a gift for the land dweller he was sweet on. Luckily for them though none of the merpeople woke up and so the trio soon swam up to the surface and towards the spot where Renata, Louis and Violet had run into those two weird-speaking land dwellers. Once they arrived though it was clear that the two stick folks as Renata called them and the stale black block were nowhere to be seen.

“Are they hiding?” Sophie’s face was barely above the water as she scanned the area.

“No, they love to be out and about,” Renata looked around. Louis nodded and started to speak but the fish in his mouth muffled his words. Spitting it out, Louis tried to speak again.

“Renata is right. Maybe they have a sleeping spot though. These rocks don’t look comfortable,”

“Yeah they look like real jerkfaces,” Sophie nodded in agreement to Louis’ words.

“Well if they do have cool sleeping rocks, then I wanna find them. That’s gotta be where their stash of stale food is too,” Renata dove down underwater and soon Sophie and Louis followed suit. The three of them searched around the area for a little bit before Sophie spotted a weird-looking wooden log in the sea. It had sticks poking out of it draped with strange white long seaweed. Without hesitating Renata and Sophie dashed forward, jumping and splashing into the water as they made their way forward. Meanwhile Louis was studying his fish gift.

“This is stupid, I can’t give a fish twice!” Louis frowned and tossed the fish over his shoulder. The dead fish plopped into the water then traveled along the surface’s currents. Louis thought deeply about what he wanted to give the land dweller who made him feel all warm and fuzzy. After a moment his eyes shone with the answer. “A jellyfish!” Louis jumped up in the air and dove back down into the water, determined to find the new gift.

Sophie struggled to get onto the weird floating wooden log. Her fin floundered about as she tried to get her full body onto its flat top. Once she was on the log she leaned over and helped Renata who gave herself small encouragements as she struggled along with Sophie to get onto the floating log. It took a few more moments but soon both of them were on the log and rolling about to see what they could find.

Sophie’s light blue eyes looked around for the supposed snack Renata had licked. Looking back and forth and back and forth as she rolled around, Sophie finally found it - the black block. “Heheh, found ya!” Sophie grinned then licked the shiny black item. Her smile immediately faded though and a small pout pulled on her lips. Renata was right, it was stale. Sophie continued to pout, upset by this news when suddenly she found a white, tiny three-pronged item. “Ooo! Ren! I found something!” Sophie whisper hissed over to her best friend who was currently busy sniffing a bag full of what looked like pebbles and sand. Rolling over, Renata stopped by Sophie.

“Look! Look! I think this is a tiny weapon!” Sophie held out the three pronged item.

“Ooo! Or a thing to help your hair be super smooth!”

Renata’s suggestion made Sophie’s eyes grow large and the redhead immediately began to run the three pronged item through her long red hair. She made a happy sound as she continued to brush her hair while Renata clapped along. Sophie was about to start up another round of brushing when her eyes caught sight of the bag again. “What's that?”

Renata followed her friend’s gaze and looked at the bag. “I don’t know but I hope it's tasty!” She pulled open the bag and dug around. Tossing a handful in her mouth, Renata let out a small gasp. “It’s good! It's tasty sand!”

Sophie immediately snatched some up and her tastebuds were bombarded with distinct sweet, salty and crunchy sensations. “It is tasty sand! This is amazing!” She smiled over at Renata who returned it and the two began to high five again and again and again. When suddenly they heard some sounds from inside the log and the strange dialect of the land dwellers.

“We’ve been compromised!” Renata yelled. She and Sophie began to roll over to the edge of the log. Both of them were in the middle of helping each other escape when Louis emerged from the water, a small pink jellyfish covering his eyes.

“Guys! Bad news! Jellyfish aren’t good gifts!”

“Not now, Louis! We have to get back home with the tasty sand!” Sophie jumped into the water, the food in the bag closed and secured.

“Okay! I just need help getting Mr. Jelly off my face!” Louis blindly swam forward, bonking his head on a rock a moment later. Sophie quickly pulled off the jellyfish then looked back to see that Renata had the three pronged item in her mouth. With a jump that Renata would describe as nothing short of godliness, although in actuality it was anything but that, Renata belly flopped into the sea.

“Ren!” Sophie called out to her best friend as she slowly sunk into the sea below.

“Haul ass, ladies! Back home we go!” Louis led the way back under the sea once Sophie had successfully grabbed Renata. The three of them successfully disappeared without being seen by the land dwellers. As they swam forward all three of them had one single hope: that they wouldn’t get caught sneaking back into the merpeople’s land.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #395

“suicide? i’ve already died  /  it’s just the funeral i’ve been waiting for”

Have you ever met a famous political figure? No. Have you slept for longer than usual today? Ugh, no. I officially have my APAP mask for my sleep apnea, and I chose the one that covers my nose and mouth considering it varies which I breathe from when I sleep depending on congestion. It is very hard to get used to. When is the last time that you experienced rejection–literal or imagined? Hm. Is there an artist or celebrity whom you admire for their craft but take issue with their personality or politics? Yeah, such as Marilyn Manson. He's a pretty gross person but by god do I love his music. What’s the last thing you made out of clay? An anatomically correct heart. Do you like bacon bits on your salad? Yes. What do you do to celebrate Earth Day? Nothing. :/ I wish I could think of something to do for it. Have you ever had someone try to intentionally bully you to suicide? Bro what the actual fuck. No. Who are your favorite kids that you’ve babysat? My nephew Ryder. Would you feel funny if you kissed somebody of the same sex? I've kissed a girl and it felt pretty great, so. Name three things in your room that others probably don’t have in theirs: 1.) a snake; 2.) a huge meerkat collection; and 3.) an APAP machine. Besides furniture, what’s the biggest thing in your bedroom? My snake, I think. Describe your feet: Ugh, the worst. My feet are horribly callused from when I used to walk all the time. I have small toes. What’s a pretty bird? Peacocks. Besides sleeping, what do you do in bed? Just about everything. .-. How do you like your hoodies? Loose/oversized. Can grills be sexy on a guy? They're hideous, if you want my honest opinion. Have you ever been in a Catholic confessional? Yes. How fucked up are those, honestly... I really hate the concept of teaching children that they have to tell some random guy things they feel bad about and let him ask God to forgive you or else you're going to Hell. What color was the hair of the last person you kissed? Brown. Can you do a backflip? No. Where are the last three places you went? The TMS office, a gas station, and my sister's house. Do you consider yourself a flirt? No. How old is the oldest person you’ve dated? I actually don't know, but at least close to 30 now for sure. I just know we were both in high school, but he failed I think two years. What’s something that makes you feel more creative? Music. Who has the best personality on YouTube? Guess who, lmao. Which YouTuber seems uber-confident? Mark is a very confident person. I envy 'im for that. What is the funniest YouTube video you have ever seen? I watch YouTube like... constantly, so I've seen thousands upon thousands by now. I really don't know. Have you ever been inside a Victorian mansion? No, but that's like a dream marriage venue for me. What was the most boring field trip you ever want on? I don't think I ever had a boring one. Man, I miss those. Do you enjoy watching videos of babies being born? NO FUCKING THANK YOU. Does ANYBODY? Are you a hoarder? No. If you were rich, what things would you get done cosmetically? I would say liposuction, but I honestly want to lose the weight myself. If/when I lose the weight I want to, I am 110% getting loose skin removal at LEAST on my stomach because I feel hideous with it. Also if I achieve my weight loss goals, I want to get a breast lift. Weight loss-related things aside, I'm pretty serious about getting laser hair removal on my legs because I HATE shaving and my legs are VERY hairy, and the hair is dark, so I'm extremely self-conscious about it. Are you the type of person who asks a lot of questions? It depends on who I'm asking. With some people, I'm afraid to look stupid if I ask too many. How many states have you visited in your lifetime? If you're excluding the ones I've merely driven through as well as lived in (which is only one), I've visited Ohio, New York, Florida, Virginia, Tennessee, and Illinois, so six. I MAY have been to Michigan as a baby, but I don't remember. What is your biggest fear for the future? Ending up homeless after Mom passes. I'm scared my family will give up on me, which is completely unrealistic, but I'm terrified of living on the streets. Do you like seafood, or not so much? I only like shrimp. Have you ever cried from being so nervous? Oh, certainly. What is your favorite book series, if you have one? Hm... of all series I've ever read, probably the Shiloh trilogy. I adored the books and the movies. Have you ever had a parasite before? NO NO NO NO NO, DON'T MAKE ME IMAGINE THIS. I am PETRIFIED of parasites. Do you have a big heart when it comes to animals? Absolutely! Have you ever put your pets in a kennel for a while? I actually don't remember? It's possible when we've gone on an extended vacation, but I'm unsure. Whenever we've gone somewhere, friends have normally taken care of our animals. Where is your favorite place to buy clothing? Hot Topic or Rebel's Market. Do you enjoy listening to older music? I love classic rock and metal. What do you think is the most stupid song out there right now? "WAP" for fucking sure. I haven't even heard the whole thing, and I don't EVER want to. As a child, did you ever want to become a mermaid? Nah. Ariel was my favorite princess, but I wasn't obsessed with mermaids or anything. Can you compose sentences in any other language than your own? Some German, yes. Mainly just the basics. Have you ever met someone who was really racist before? Yes, many. -_- Do you have any celebrity autographs? No. If you could be a Disney character for a day, who would you be? Maybe Kiara from TLK. What is your favorite color of clothing to wear? Black. Did you ever build furniture forts as a child? Oh yeah, lots of times! I sometimes even pretended they were burrows and I was a meerkat, ha ha. What kind of dog is your favorite? I have a beagle bias. Do you prefer water or land? Land. Have you ever had a seizure? No. Do you plan on losing weight any time soon? Hunny, I've been trying to since 2016. -_- I lost like 70-ish pounds through 2017-2018, but recently I've gained almost like... all the weight back and it is upsetting beyond words. Have you ever been in a heated pool? Uh, a hot tub? Yes. Are you looking forward to anything? Getting Venus' terrarium, finishing TMS so I can maybe get a job, visiting Sara again... What was your GPA in high school? Over 4.0. Do you require a lot of private time? OH yes. What do you plan on doing with the rest of your life? I hope achieving a sense of accomplishment and becoming content with my hopeful career, marrying a fantastic partner, and having a family of lovely pets. If you have a favorite television show, who’s your favorite character? I'll go through the very few I deeply enjoy: 1.) Mozart in Meerkat Manor; 2.) probably Hyde from That '70s Show; 3.) perhaps Envy from Fullmetal Alchemist; 4.) Jerome from Ginga Densetsu Weed; and 5.) Shiro from Deadman Wonderland. Did you use to watch Blue's Clues? OH yes. I loved that show as a kid. Do you stutter when you get nervous? BADLY. Your lunch consisted of...? What DID I have... uhhh OH leftover pizza. What is your favorite kind of chips? Hot, crunchy Cheetos. What is the best way to tell someone that they stink? I wouldn't. Do you have any embarrassing usernames? Some from the past, yeah. Do you have a backpack in a shape of an animal? No. I found a meerkat one once, but it was way too small for me to use in school. :( I was so disappointed. Have you ever waxed your legs? No. I've waxed my upper lip and eyebrows, but especially with how long and thick my leg hair is, I think waxing there would be excruciating, so no thanks. Do you own any shirts with a peace symbol on it? No, but I would if it had a cool design. Have you ever taught a little kid to flick people off? No, and I wouldn't. Children generally don't have a strong enough grasp on when profanity is appropriate and not. Have you ever itched yourself until your skin was raw? This is VERY common. Like right now, my right arm is the Sahara with how dry and raw it is. Do you always clear your history after using the computer? Nah, got no reason to. Have you ever eaten a Big Mac? No, because I know I wouldn't like it; I don't like lettuce on my burgers. Do you feel like you’re judged for your looks? For my weight, yes. Name one world issue that upsets you. Just one? Poverty is high on the list. Just... no one should have to live like that. Do you like Wendy’s frosties? After they thaw a little bit, oh yeah. It's physically impossible to drink them for a good few minutes because they're so damn thick.

[junglejelly]

Prompt fill - Xichen Week Day 7(+11): Himbo/Seachen

(On AO3)

One day.

Jiang Cheng just wanted one day of peace and quiet, away from home, away from his responsibilities, away from his idiot brother and his nutcases of a mother and father. Just a few hours alone — him and a boat and nothing else.

Clearly, that was too much to ask for.

His solitary little fishing expedition had lasted exactly two hours, and then everything went to shit. This day off must have been more sorely needed than he thought, because he had fallen asleep right there in his little boat, in the middle of the river, fishing rod hanging out the side and face baking in the morning sun.

As a man who grew up his whole life on a lakeshore, he should have known better — and he did, he did, goddammit, it wasn’t his fault that his stupid body betrayed him and abandoned him to drift on the currents like an absolute amateur, dead to the world, until his boat literally crashed into a clump of rocks.

That was half an hour ago. And now…

Jiang Cheng stomped angrily through the underbrush, slapping away any branches that dared cross his path. The fact that the ground was made up of dead leaves and soft moss only served to make him angrier, as they cushioned his steps so as to render them almost silent and thus robbed him of his god-given right to express his rage via the soles of his boots. Which, incidentally, were damp and squishing with every step. As was the rest of him. Because, as if getting stranded in the middle of a forest tributary wasn’t embarrassing enough, he obviously also had to be pitched overboard at the impact, lose his oars, and get his boat hopelessly stuck on the rocks.

So there he was, half an hour later, trawling the woods in search of a branch thick and sturdy enough to act as a lever and hope it would be sufficient to lift the (thankfully undamaged) boat out of its rocky trap.

He was having no luck so far, though. No likely candidates were presenting themselves on the ground, and any branches he had tried to pry loose from a living tree had resisted his attempts.

His stomach growled.

Well, great. It must be nearing midday. Good thing he’d thought to set up his net before leaving the scene of the disaster. Maybe, he if was lucky, some fish would —

Just then, a twig slapped him in the face, making him yelp and jump back in surprise.

That’s it, he thought vengefully, spitting out a mouthful of leaves, his pulse rocketing up in indescribable fury. Fuck this. FUCK it. I am DONE.

“Fine. FINE! Keep your shitty branches!” he shrilled into the forest.

The forest did not answer.

He whirled around and stomped (soundlessly, goddammit) back the way he came.

As he neared the bank again, a splashing sound  made him quicken his footsteps. Finally, some good fortune! Judging from the noise, he definitely wasn’t going to go hungry in the next few hours.

Actually, it was a bit strange that he could hear it so clearly from all the way over here. Just how big was this fish, exactly?!

He stepped out of the underbrush.

… And stared. That’s it, he thought. I’ve finally lost it. Finally gone off the deep end. It had to happen eventually, right?

In front of him, the mermaid kept struggling.

After a few moments, when Jiang Cheng was sure this hallucination wasn’t going to suddenly disappear, he stepped forward and called out.

“Hey. You there. You, uh… you need a hand?”

The mermaid immediately flailed upright (well… the parts of it that weren’t a giant fish tail, holy fucking shit, anyway) and its eyes snapped to Jiang Cheng’s.

It looked… male? Probably? Hard to tell, with all that hair sticking everywhere and all those… well. Fins. And scales. (Scales! What the fuck!)

Jiang Cheng was spared from his imminent meltdown when the mermaid’s eyes creased in a smile and he (it? did mermaids even have genders?) exhaled in relief. “Oh, would you? I seem to have gotten myself in quite the predicament…”

Yep, definitely male, going by that voice. Jiang Cheng stared some more. Well, if this guy was going to act so chill, who was he to do otherwise?

“Right. Sure. Let me just… Hang on.”

Feeling like he was having an out-of-body experience, Jiang Cheng unsheathed his knife from his belt and approached, before a thought struck him and he stopped abruptly.

“Wait.” The mermaid looked at him questioningly. “Is this a trap? Are you gonna eat me?”

The creature tilted his head. “...Eat you?”

“Or drown me, or abduct me, or whatever,” Jiang Cheng amended hurriedly. Okay, that was dumb, nobody had ever heard of a mermaid eating its victims, but give him a break, he was under a lot of pressure here. He just said the first thing that popped into his mind!

Either way, the mermaid seemed offended. “Drown you? I would never!” He splashed his tail agitatedly. “We’re not savages, you know!”

“Well, forgive me for assuming,” Jiang Cheng muttered. “Never met a fucking mermaid before.”

“Mer, actually,” the mermaid — mer — corrected, politely but firmly. “Merman, if you must.”

“...Right,” Jiang Cheng managed, before he stepped closer (close enough to touch, and to see that tail right there in front of this face, what was his life) and attacked the thick netting with his knife.

It was, sadly, unsalvageable. Jiang Cheng didn’t even want to know how the… merman… had managed to get himself that badly tangled up into it, though it did use to be a good, strong fishing net, wide enough to get a generous catch in one go, if luck was in your favor. As it was, though, it was about to be turned into a pile of frayed rope bits. He could kiss his much-anticipated lunch goodbye, Jiang Cheng thought morosely.

“I was just trying to free the fish inside,” the merman said then, apparently feeling the need to explain himself and unknowingly adding insult to injury. “The poor things had gotten themselves trapped, I just couldn’t leave them that way.”

“Yeah, no, obviously,” Jiang Cheng forced out. “Wouldn’t want them to remain trapped in a fishing net, in case any old fisherman happening nearby could just lift them out and eat them for lunch, huh? No way, that’d be ridiculous,” he added, perhaps a little more hysterically than necessary.

“...”

Jiang Cheng didn’t look up, forcefully focusing on his task, but he could still feel the moment when the penny dropped and the merman gasped in realization.

“Oh! Oh no! Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t — I really… I simply thought —”

Obviously distressed, the merman continued to babble and wring his hands for a while while Jiang Cheng worked on the last few threads digging into his tail.

“Oh, how awful of me! How thoughtless! Of course it was your net, I didn’t realize…” He trailed off for a moment, then seemed to reach a conclusion. “I must make amends,” he declared. “I shall catch you some fish. Bigger fish. Better fish,” he added, nodding to himself.

Jiang Cheng snorted. “Isn’t that, like, fratricide for you?”

The merman looked miffed, but, considering the circumstances, he must have felt like he owed it to Jiang Cheng to tone down the disapproval. “Of course not. We do eat fish, you know.”

“You do? Huh. Well, either way, don’t bother. I don’t think I could even stomach it, at this point,” he replied dejectedly. “I just wanna go home. And then maybe sleep for the next three weeks and hope that’s enough to forget this horrible, horrible day.”

This appeared to distress the merman. “Truly? Then you must allow me to repay you in another way. Anything you wish, that I am able to offer you. Name it, and it is yours.”

Jiang Cheng laughed ruefully. “Can you magically lift my boat from those rocks?”

He couldn’t. There was no way. That boat was well and truly wedged in there, stuck in between jagged boulders and buried in a tangle of driftwood.

“Oh! Of course! I didn’t see it there,” the merman replied happily.

...What? Jiang Cheng checked again, to see if the boat had moved from its previous immovable position.

Nope. Still there.

“Listen,” he started doubtfully, “thanks for offering, but I don’t think anyone can move that thing. I’ll probably have to come back with a few people,” he sighed.

“Nonsense,” the merman smiled. “Just get me out of here, and we’ll have it down in a flash.”

Jiang Cheng still doubted that, but whatever. No skin off his back if the merman tried and failed to rescue his stupid boat from the stupid rocks.

“You’re pretty trusting for a mermaid — sorry, merman — aren’t you?”

“Why wouldn’t I be? Our peoples have coexisted peacefully for a very long time, you know. Just because meetings between us are rare, does not mean I should feel threatened by your presence.” With a wide grin, he continued, “Quite the opposite, in fact — I am delighted to have made your acquaintance! Circumstances notwithstanding, of course.”

Jiang Cheng considered that. “You know, I thought Wei Wuxian was shitting me all this time, but…” He observed the merman critically. The pretty face, the silky hair held back by a glistening white ribbon… “Are you… are you that Lan Zhan guy, by any chance?”

The merman perked up. “Wangji? You know my brother?”

“He’s your brother?” Well then. Small world, huh. “I don’t know him, but my brother won’t shut up about him.”

“Really?” The merman clearly found this piece of information fascinating. “Where do they know each other from? Do you know?”

“Sorry, no clue. Honestly, I thought your brother didn’t even exist until a second ago. All I know is that my idiot of a brother claimed to have met a mermaid a few years ago and hasn’t shut up about him since.”

“Merman,” the other corrected again, absently. He seemed to be absorbed by the revelation.

“So?”

The merman snapped to attention again. “Hm?”

“Your name,” Jiang Chengs reminded him pointedly.

“Oh!” He drew himself straighter at that, a sunny smile settling on his features. “My name, yes. My name is Lan Xichen. A pleasure to meet you.” He dipped his head.

Lan Xichen. How… mundane. Boring, even. It was almost offensive, that such an exotic creature could have such an utterly normal name.

The creature in question kept beaming, completely unaware of Jiang Cheng’s uncharitable inner monologue.

Jiang Cheng blinked, slightly perturbed by the (frankly alarming) degree of cheeriness being displayed by the man — Lan Xichen, he reminded himself — while he was still restrained and a total stranger was brandishing a knife near his delicate fish parts.

Whatever. This guy probably wouldn’t live past thirty, with survival instincts like those, but that wasn’t his problem.

“Right. Well, I’m Jiang Cheng.”

At that point, Jiang Cheng’s intense sawing efforts finally paid off, and the last knot fell loose. He carefully picked at the threads digging into the fragile-looking membrane until every last scrap of rope fell away. He had half a second to survey his work — some areas looked a bit bruised, but at least no blood had been drawn — before Lan Xichen retracted his tail out of reach and under the surface. Jiang Cheng thought he could see him swish his tail a few times, cautiously testing it against the current, checking it for injuries. The river water was clean and crystalline there, and the sun danced off the merman’s light, silvery blue scales in undulating patterns.

When Lan Xichen refocused on Jiang Cheng, his smile was blinding. “Thank you! You have my gratitude, and that of the Lan clan.”

“...Yeah,” Jiang Cheng managed, dazed by the combination of glittering scales and beaming smile.

“Well! Let’s get to it, then,” the merman said cheerfully, already swimming away. Jiang Cheng stared.

Now that the urgency was gone, he was struck all over again by how utterly bonkers the whole encounter was. Would people back home even believe him, if he told them about this? Well, Wei Wuxian would, at least, he thought manically, gawking at the delicate fins rippling all along the merman’s tail as he swam away.

Wait. Away? Was he leaving already?

He ripped himself out of his trance just as the merman broke the surface again, long hair plastered to his neck and shoulders, and hoisted himself up on a boulder near the stranded boat.

He hummed thoughtfully, prodding at the thing and testing his grip.

“Wait,” Jiang Cheng started, “be careful, don’t —”

Too late. Lan Xichen gave a mighty heave, and with a grunt, the boat slid free of the rocks.

“— ...hurt yourself,” Jiang Cheng finished lamely, once again reduced to staring idiotically as his boat rocked slightly from the momentum, scraped but unharmed.

Somewhere on his periphery, Lan Xichen laughed brightly. “See? I told you it wouldn’t be an issue.”

“You sure did,” Jiang Cheng replied automatically, still not sure if he should believe his eyes. What, did merpeople have super-strength, or something? Or was he just that dumb, and the damn thing was never actually stuck in the first place?

Oblivious to his distress, the merman slipped back into the water soundlessly and took it upon himself to steer the boat toward the shore where Jiang Cheng was still kneeling like a useless moron.

When it bumped against the grassy bank, Jiang Cheng unfolded himself enough to find the anchor and tie it to a nearby sapling — not exactly secure, but good enough for the few minutes it would take for him to depart. Probably. Hopefully.

“Thanks,” he threw at Lan Xichen. The words felt inadequate, but he wasn’t sure what else he could say.

The merman watched as Jiang Cheng bent to retrieve the sad remains of the fishing net. It was completely ruined, but hey, he wasn’t about to leave it here and litter the woods like a barbarian. He threw the tangled mess into the boat, where it flopped with a pathetic, wet thunk.

A low whine drew his gaze toward Lan Xichen. “I’m sorry,” the merman said in a tortured voice, looking for all the world like a kicked puppy — and wasn’t that a feat, Jiang Cheng thought, considering he was a fucking fish. “I’m so sorry.”

“Are you seriously apologizing to me right now? For a stupid fishing net?” He demanded. “You could have stayed stuck and literally died.”

The merman pouted. “Still.”

“I give up,” Jiang Cheng signed, stepping into the boat to investigate the damage.

No holes, no water accumulated at the bottom, not even any scratches bigger than a hand-span. A miracle, really. Or rather, just compensation for all the rotten luck, Jiang Cheng thought grumpily. As if to prove him right, he also remembered — the oars. Those were still gone. Ugh. Seriously, fuck his life.

As he walked around, he caught the merman tracking his lower body with interest. His legs, he supposed — must look pretty weird to him, really. “So, have you ever actually met another human before?”

“Not up close, no,” Lan Xichen hummed.

“And yet you let me approach you without a single misgiving.”

“Well… yes?”

Jiang Cheng couldn’t help it — he dropped his face into his hands. “Oh my god,” he muttered. “You actually have zero sense of self-preservation.”

“Hey!”

“Don’t ‘hey’ me, you weirdo!  Seriously, what the fuck! How are you still alive? How old are you, even?”

“Twenty-nine,” the merman grumbled, sinking lower into the water until his nose barely peeked out over the surface, but otherwise taking the chastisement without protest. Something told Jiang Cheng that this must not be his first time being admonished for this particular reason.

“Twenty-nine! That’s older than I am!” (Barely by two or three years, but Lan Xichen didn’t need to know that…) “Even I know better than to be so trusting, and I’m not the one from a rare species and with a tail so gorgeous people would probably kill to get their hands on it!”

Lan Xichen popped back up. “You think my tail is gorgeous?”

“...!” Jiang Cheng was pretty sure he was about to burst a blood vessel somewhere in his brain. “That is so not the point! Are you kidding me right now? That’s your takeaway from everything I just said?!”

“You think my tail is gorgeous,” Lan Xichen repeated, his lips stretching into a grin so wide Jiang Cheng wouldn’t have hesitated to call it shit-eating on any other face. Not this one, though. It was much too pretty and delicate. “You like my tail,” he said again, looking much too pleased with himself, and then — “Thank you. I like your legs, too. They’re quite nice.”

Jiang Cheng spluttered. “You —!”

The merman laughed, a tinkling, delighted sound, before diving underneath the surface and into a series of gleeful rolls and spins and splashes.

Okay, Jiang Cheng thought resignedly, that’s fucking adorable.

He braced himself for Lan Xichen coming back up, but despite that, he was still slightly stunned by the sheer brilliance of the merman’s smile when he reemerged.

“I like you,” the merman said without preamble, effectively shocking Jiang Cheng into a stupefied stillness and thoroughly frying his brain, all in one fell swoop. “Can we meet again?”

“I — I, I, uh...” Jiang Cheng stuttered.

Lan Xichen just hooked his fingers over the lip of the boat and let himself float there, smiling patiently, his eyes shining with a gentle mirth. Golden, Jiang Cheng thought distractedly. They’re golden. Huh. He hadn’t even noticed that. How did he miss that? And since when was gold even a real eye color that actually existed?

“Jiang Cheng?” the merman prompted gently.

“What?” Jiang Cheng startled. “Yes? I mean… What?”

“Can I see you again?” he asked once more, hopefully.

“...”

Jiang Cheng was pretty sure he was dreaming, at this point — but in that case, he figured, might as well go all the way, huh? What could it hurt? Nothing, that’s what.

“...Sure. Yes. We can… do that. If you want.”

Lan Xichen’s soft smile grew into a full-blown grin again, his eyes almost disappearing into happy creases.

“But,” Jiang Cheng continued, trying to distract himself from the sight, “for that to happen, I’m going to need to go home first. Which is not looking likely right now,” he finished ruefully.

The merman tilted his head. “Why is that? Is there something wrong with your boat?” He drew himself from the edge and gave the boat an appraising look — not that he was likely to know anything about them, Jiang Cheng surmised. Silly fish.

“There’s nothing wrong with it,” he sighed, “except that it doesn’t have any oars. They got lost when I hit the rocks earlier. Probably floating somewhere far away downstream.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“Well…” Lan Xichen hedged.

Jiang Cheng met his gaze. “What? You got another miracle up your sleeve?”

“Not a miracle, but…” Lan Xichen diverted his glance sideways, towards a fallen tree resting on the bank. Its long-dead branches hung halfway into the water, gnarled and sturdy against the current. “Would one of these do?”

“Already tried those,” Jiang Cheng replied. “Don’t waste your time. They’re way, way too thick, no one could possibly —”

— aaand there he went again. Oh well, Jiang Cheng decided, settling in for the show. Maybe at least this way he could get revenge for earlier. He would sit there and point and laugh at Lan Xichen’s attempts, because there was no way in hell —

CRAAAAACK!

Jiang Cheng knew his eyes were bugging out of his head, okay, he knew, but listen. Listen. This time, he was positive he couldn’t have made a mistake, like he might have with the boat. This time, the branches were obviously enormous and obviously very, very securely attached to their trunk. He had checked. He had gone and touched those branches with his own two hands, and he knew —

Lan Xichen came back then, and lifted the thing out of the water to present it for his appraisal. A huge fucking tree limb, the straightest and smoothest he could probably find on that dead tree, which he had just snapped clean off with his bare fucking hands. And was now bringing to Jiang Cheng, like a proud puppy with a ridiculously oversized stick. Seriously. Seriously.

Jiang Cheng wanted to scream.

Instead, he very carefully grabbed the branch to deposit it inside the boat. Damn, but that thing was huge.

“So, is this one enough, or do you need anoth—”

“Shut up.”

Lan Xichen’s mouth snapped shut.

Jiang Cheng held out his hand imperiously. “Give me your arm.”

The merman raised wide eyes toward Jiang Cheng, a confused little frown pulling at his lips. “What —”

“I said,” Jiang Cheng growled, “give. Me. Your. Arm.” When the merman just kept staring at him uncertainly, he burst out, “Oh my god, you ridiculous dolphin, just come here already!”

Apparently deciding to trust Jiang Cheng despite his obvious bout of temporary insanity, Lan Xichen slowly approached and extended one of his arms towards him. With a wary look, he mumbled, “Dolphins aren’t even —”

“Shut up! I know they’re not,” Jiang Cheng snapped. With a tug, Lan Xichen’s arm was promptly brought over the edge of the boat for closer inspection, forcing the merman to grab the rim with his other hand for balance. He took the rough treatment without complaint, looking perplexed.

Jianf Cheng started with his hand, working his way up to the shoulder progressively. He carefully examined the webbed fingers (hadn’t noticed that, either), then poked and prodded at the wrist (all normal, same rotation as a human’s), the forearm (pale and muscular), the elbow (yup, just a regular elbow), the upper arm… Hm. Well, outside of it being pretty thickly toned, he couldn’t find anything. Why couldn’t he find anything? There was clearly something funky going on with this man’s arms, because no one, human or merman, should be able to win a contest with a boulder or rip an entire trunk off of a —

The merman cleared his throat.

It was then that Jiang Cheng realized with horror that he’d been… he’d been groping the poor man for several minutes, holding him in place and squeezing his biceps and just generally pawing at him like —

He dropped the limb immediately, feeling his face heat up with a vengeance and trying to hide it behind a scowl. “What?” he barked. “Don’t look at me like that! You’re the one who’s freaky!”

Unruffled, Lan Xichen offered, “Perhaps if you told me what you were looking for…?”

Jiang Cheng gaped. “Well, your —!” He paused, then flailed in the general direction of the fallen tree. “That thing you did! Twice! With the tree, and the… the rocks!”

“Ah,” the merman nodded in dawning comprehension. “Yes. It has been said that we of the Lan family have been blessed with unusual arm strength.”

“Excuse me, ‘unusual’? More like fucking monstrous, let’s be honest here — but I, uh, mean that in the best way, of course,” he amended hurriedly when Lan Xichen sent him a stricken look.

The merman lowered his gaze, lips wobbling.

Ah, shit. Goddammit, Jiang Cheng had really stepped in it this time. Calling a merman a monster, not even two seconds after molesting him, and after he’d been so disgustingly nice to him, too? Pathetic. Disgraceful. Despicable.

“Come on, I didn’t mean it like that. I’m sorry,” he tried.

A tiny sniff, barely audible behind the curtain of hair that fell before the merman’s bowed face.

Oh, no. “Lan Xichen, please,” Jiang Cheng coaxed, quickly getting desperate. “I’m sorry, I promise that’s not… It’s not what I…” He scrubbed his hands over his face “Ugh! I don’t know what to say,” he lamented.

Lan Xichen peeked at him shyly from behind his sleek tresses. “Maybe if you gave me another compliment…?”

Jiang Cheng opened his mouth, the words already halfway out, before he snapped it shut and squinted suspiciously at the merman.

He braced his hands on the edge of the boat and leaned even closer.

There! That glimmer in his eye, that was —!

“Lan Xichen! Are you screwing with me right now?!”

But the merman was incapable of answering, already howling with laughter, his façade collapsing in less than an instant. Jiang Cheng stared. Lan Xichen’s laugh was loud and uncontrolled, little snorts slipping out now and then, though he tried to hide them behind his slightly webbed hands — all for naught, as the crinkle in his eyes betrayed his glee with no hope of concealment.

Jiang Cheng was mesmerized. As Lan Xichen’s laughter settled into quieter giggles, he felt something take flight in his heart, or in his gut, or maybe in some other, equally ridiculous internal organ with asinine romantic connotations.

Whatever.

He felt like he should be mad — the little shit had emotionally manipulated him just now, and so skillfully too! He’d bought into his charade hook, line and sinker (ha!) — but no. He felt… proud, maybe? Fond, definitely. And awed, maybe, by this creature, by this meeting, by the improbable set or circumstances that had led to it.

He shook his head, his lips tugging up in a helpless smile, never taking his eyes off the merman now clinging to his boat once more.

“Lan Xichen,” he breathed, almost reverently, “you are something else.”

When the merman reached for his hand, he didn’t offer any resistance (turnabout was fair play, after all). Lan Xichen laced their fingers together over the edge of the boat, right in the middle, like a symbol. “But you mean that in the best way, of course,” he stated solemnly, his voice wobbling with yet more laughter.

Jiang Cheng couldn’t help the incredulous laugh that escaped him then, or the grin that settled over his face. He took a moment to marvel at that, and squeezed the hand clutching his. “Of course. The very best.”

[parkkrys]

Hello! I'm new to your blog and I was going through your star wars tag and I came across the 30 au star wars request of yours?. I wonder if you ever heard of Mermaid au? it's okay if you don't BUT can I request Cody/Rex and(or) Jesse/Kix? I have to gather my self for a long time before typing this as fast as I can AFGSHDHDH HNGGGGG--

You are adorable!! I apologize for the late answer but here you are! I hope you enjoy!

Kix has always been fascinated by the surface even when he was a small baby Mer. His mother would always smile as she held him, listening to everything he would say about the topic and chime in a few words as she would do his hair. He would even listen to what his older siblings would say about the surface with wide eyes for hours.

“How old does humans live for buir?”

She chuckled as she kissed his forehead. “They have short lifespans compared to us Mers. They only live up to a hundred years while we live for thousands. It’s interesting isn’t it?” She whispered as she pulled the soft sea leaf around him.

“Be careful Kix, that mind of yours will get you into trouble one day.” She whispered as she tucked him into bed. “Ni kar'tayl gar darasuum ad’ika.”

It was only a few days after that he lost his mother to humans. He was struck by the thought of something so wonderous, something so breathtaking could be so evil. But as he grew older, he had the thought that if some Mer’s can be bad but some are good then it must apply to the humans as well. Some are bad and do horrible things, but most of them must be good in some way.

It was tradition in the Mer-folk culture that once a Mer turns a certain age they were allowed to go up to the surface, just to see how dangerous the ‘man’ can really be. Most Mer-people feared the man that wandered on the surface from the stories that the older Mer-folk would tell when they were young.

Kix has heard all the stories and it always worried the others with just how fascinated he was with them. He didn’t scream and cower like the other Mers, instead he would ask questions. But through it all Kix could always count on one person to be there beside him.

Rex has always been his best friend throughout the years and even Kix had to admit that he grew into a beautiful Mer with his buzzed blonde hair and his dark royal blue tail. He wasn’t surprised at all when Rex announced that he was being courted by the second in commands Ghost clan. He has met Cody with his stupid golden tail that took his breath away, but he knew that they would compliment each other very well.

“Rex?”

Rex hummed as he looked up from the collection that Kix has collected over the years. “What’s up?”

Kix hesitated as he laid on the sand, soaking up the warmth as he stared up at the never-ending blue of the ocean. “What did you do on your day to the surface?”

Rex snorted as he looked over towards him. “I observed, I analyzed and I saw what I saw. I told you this, I didn’t see what they told me. I saw people laughing, dancing, walking on two legs. I saw a whole new world that doesn’t make sense to me.”

Kix smiled as he listened to Rex ramble trying to picture it. “Look, Kix I know you are excited for your day on the surface but please do be careful. Your curiosity could get you into trouble.”

“I know.” Kix said as he rolled over, settling his chin on his crossed arms as he looked up at Rex. “I just can’t wait to see it.”

“Just be careful. I can’t lose you.”

Kix groaned as he pushed himself up, swimming over to settle down beside him. He always envied the easy way that Rex could admit things and to show emotions as well as he did. Well lately he hasn’t considering how many times Kix had to listen to him gush about Cody but he saw the way how emotionless Cody would brighten up when he saw Rex. It was sweet Kix has decided when he met Cody for the first time.

“I know vod, I wouldn’t leave you without a fight.” Kix muttered as he wrapped an arm around him. Rex hummed as he leaned his head on top of Kix’s, a move that always annoyed Kix to no end as he shoved a laughing Rex away from him. “I am leaving now.” He huffed out as he moved to swim towards the exit but was trapped as Rex threw his arms around him, giving him a squeeze before letting go.

“Just try to stay safe tomorrow yeah?”

“Yeah, of course. Don’t worry about its Rex or you will make yourself sick like you usually do.” He made sure to give him a stern look, smirking lightly at Rex’s sheepish look. He knew exactly what Kix was talking about considering how he made himself sick for hours when he thought Kix has gotten himself kidnapped by another clan. Which he clearly didn’t because he had everything in control thank you very much.

When the day finally came for Kix to make his first and only trip (we will see about that Kix snorted mentally) to the surface. He couldn’t keep his nerves calm as he listened to everything the elder was babbling on about. Stay safe, don’t go near humans, you only get to stay up there for one hour, all the basic rules that every Mer knows when it is their time to go up to the surface.

“Just be careful verd’ika.” The elder eventually signed, knowing that Kix was not listening to him. It wasn’t long until Kix was making his way to the surface, stopping briefly to wonder at the ship that was sailing up above. He has gone through the ships on the ocean floor but seeing one that was above on the surface was a new wonder as he swam forward.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly breached the surface of the water, breathing lightly to test the air as he watched the bright lights on the ship and the soft looking sails move with the breeze. He shivered lightly when the cool breeze brushed along his skin, making him feel chilled in a different way that he wasn’t used to.

The thought didn’t last long as he heard music playing and he couldn’t help but to silently and very carefully climb up onto the ropes to peak over the edge to see what was happening on the deck, gasping lightly at the sight of people dancing, laughing, smiling. It was a sight that he knew would never forget or stop thinking about as he continued watching.

He didn’t know how this man got his attention but he stopped as he noticed one of the humans silently watching the crowd, smiling at what the others were saying to him and his breath hitched. The human was different from the others with the black ink that marked along his skin, maybe a symbol for something important Kix would have guessed but it was his gentle eyes that had his attention.

The way that he watched his people, those soft golden eyes that were gentle but firm and, in some cases, mischievous as well.

He has never seen someone express so many emotions with their eyes before and he couldn’t help but to lean closer.

“Hey Jesse! Stop standing around and get your ass over here!”

He flailed slightly as he darted quickly to hide, his breaths hard as he listened to footsteps wondering overhead. It wasn’t like he was scared of them, more like he was worried he would actually get caught but as he once again looked over the edge he watched as Jesse moved, smiled, laughed and maybe he was in more trouble then he thought. There was no way he was only going to the surface today, he had to see him more, needed to know more about him. He just needed to figure out where exactly he lived.

“Hey boys! Keep an eye out! Looks like there is a storm coming!”

Kix breathed in sharply as he whipped around to see the dark clouds rolling in and he knew something bad was going to happen. Ships weren’t meant to outlast a storm that made the ocean turn against the sailors, Kix really has to wonder why the humans don’t just build them better but it wasn’t up to him. He at least gets the things inside them when they make it to the ocean floor.

He let himself dive into the water, swimming quickly to watch how bad this one could be and he wasn’t surprised to see the storm already making its presence known when he popped back up to the surface.

He knew he should swim under, letting the sailors meet their fate but he remained frozen. He has heard the tales about how wind will whip about, the sky thundering and bright flashes of light will appear across the sky and it was beautiful. What wasn’t beautiful was how the ocean responded to said storm as he ducked back underwater, swimming quickly to avoid a wave crashing into him.

He may be a water creature but he has heard stories of how much it hurts to be caught by one of those waves and he wasn’t going to test it out to see if it actually does. But he does need to make sure Jesse is okay and reluctantly the other humans since they were probably Jesse’s friends.

By the time he made his way back to the ship it was on fire and he stopped and just stared. How the kriff did the thing catch on fire he shall never know. Snapping out of his bewilderment, he twisted around eyes darting to catch any sign of Jesse as he swam, desperate to know if he was alive or not.

It wasn’t long until he caught sight of him for only a moment as he slipped underwater. “Kriff.” Kix muttered as he dived back underwater, swimming as hard as he could to get to Jesse.

Grunting, Kix slipped his arms around him, flipping his tail towards the surface as he moved the humans head to his shoulder once they were up above the water.

“You’re heavier than you look.” He grunted and it was a slow-going process as he panted, dragging himself along the shore while trying his best to not jostle Jesse to much as he collapsed beside him on the rough sand in exhaustion.

Laying there beside him staring up the blue sky, watching the birds fly he yearned to be apart of this world. He wanted to dance, he wanted to walk, run jump anything that a person with two legs can do. He turned to look at the man beside him, watching as his chest moved with every breath he took, his eyelashes flutter. He was beautiful.

He also broke several laws with saving him but he couldn’t find it in him to care. He wanted to be a part of this man’s world even if he didn’t know him. Slowly he brought his hand closer, using his fingers to trace the silly tattoo he had printed on his face.

“You are so beautiful” He whispered to himself as he let his finger trace along the bridge of his nose, lifting his finger to trace his lips. What he would do to get to know this man. He knew at that moment he was going to give his elders even more headaches if he was ever caught going back up to the surface to see him. And maybe, just maybe he would gather the courage to call out to him and talk to him.

He froze when he watched Jesse’s body shift, groaning as he moved his head and Kix scrambled to get back to the water. He didn’t hesitate once he slipped back into the water, swimming farther away in an attempt to not be seen. He breathed heavily once he thought he was a safe distance away, slowly moving back to the surface to take a peek to see if his human was gone.

His fear disappeared as he watched Jesse sit up, staring out to the water before calls rang out and several people appeared to take him away hopefully to a safe place.

By the time that he finally got back to where he was supposed to be despite being several hours late, the first person he tries to find is Rex. He couldn’t wait to tell him everything. And maybe he can figure out how exactly he can walk on land, maybe the sea witch will know of a spell to let him walk on land. He would do it, no matter the cost and no matter how how it could hurt, he would go through any pain to be able to live a life with Jesse.

[mythical-song-wolf]

Not Again

Inspired by another fic’s vague line about a Mermaid World and Petra saying, “Not again” When Ivor was washed into another portal

They had gone into this world because Ivor got knocked into its portal after exiting another one. But now Jesse was pretty sure she didn’t want to leave.

She was a goddamn mermaid in a beautiful ocean world! Her tail is a vibrant iridescent blue that shifts between blueish-purples and blueish-greens everytime she moves it. She can’t help but move it side to side and swim around in small circles to see how the colours change and glitter everytime she moves.

Off to the side, Lukas and Petra briefly ogle at their own tails. Petra has a gold and white striped tail, with some extra fins off to the side that fan out when she’s not swimming. Lukas has the tail of a betta fish, stunning and beautiful with fins that shine an array of colours of oranges, blues, and yellows. If one weren’t paying attention closely, one would assume his tail is iridescent like Jesse’s.

Even their outfits and armour changed to accommodate their new forms. Their armour has shortened to cover the parts of their torso not covered in scales, tightening up and changing in material for easier mobility under the water while still being as flexible. To accommodate some of the new fins and such on their arms, their sleeves are gone but still leave the elbow and shoulder pads on. Even their ears changed to look a bit like fins, letting them hear as if they were above ground.

“Are you three done looking yet?” Ivor asks, swimming up to them with a green tail that turns darker the further it goes down, “As fascinating as this transformation is, we were just in a water world and I don’t plan on staying here long.”

“Relax Ivor, we did just get here. Besides,” Lukas directs their attention to Jesse, who’s still happily swimming in awe at her transformation, “Jesse’s having too much fun for us to ruin it now. I think this is the first world I think she really likes.”

Petra rolls her eyes, “Just wait until something like giant sharks or an empire we’ve offended come and get us.”

Lukas ignores her and opts to swim up to Jesse, “Hey, I’m guessing you like this one?”

She finally looks away from her own tail to meet his eyes with a bright smile, “Yeah,” She says, her tone giddy and light before her smile drops, “But we need to get on finding that portal.”

Lukas nods, letting that faded smile go by for now, as the other two approach, “Yeah, but where do we even begin?” He says, gesturing to the vast ocean around them, “There’s not really clear ground or directions we can follow.”

“We could split up, teams of two. One going east, another west. The portal shouldn’t be too far so let’s search around a thousand blocks away before heading back and meet back here.”

“Where exactly is here?” Petra asks, fauxing a calm tone despite her flaring fins giving her emotions away.

Jesse points to a batch of coral in front of a cave, “Just find the rainbow coral with the patch of seaweed in front of a cave.”

The four split up into groups of two, Jesse with Ivor and Lukas with Petra.

“So... how do you like the tails?” Jesse asks, a smug assumed smile on her face. Ivor smiles before going on a whole tangent that Jesse happily listens and adds onto.

~~~~~

Lukas and Petra swim and observe in silence, with the former occasionally stopping to take note of what they see.

“What are you even putting in there?” Petra asks after the twelfth time Lukas has stopped to write something.

“Taking notes. This place, the hallway, the other worlds, everything, it’s all been so fascinating and different. I’m writing this down so we can keep track of the portals, and maybe be able to revisit some of these worlds when we get home.”

“If.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s if we get home Lukas, not when.”

“Petra—” He tries to place a hand on her shoulder, only for her to turn, fins flaring.

“Let’s face it Lukas! We might never find the right portal home! This hallway goes one for who knows how long. We’ve been here for what? A week? And we’ve gone through how many portals to try and find the right one—?”

“Thirty three.”

“See! See what I mean! We’ve gone through thirty three portals in the past week, and we haven’t even made a dent in that stupid hallway! We might end up like Cassie Rose at this point, either trapped in the hall or trapped in one of the worlds because we can’t find that stupid portal.” Petra sighs, before swimming away from him to try and calm down, but he follows. “I just want to go home, Lukas.”

“I think we all do... Jesse was right, we really should’ve turned back and gone to the Sky City’s world when we had the chance. Rest up, restock...” Lukas trails off, his thoughts wander to how the Ocelots— Blaze Rods would’ve taken them staying longer than expected. With the citizens of Sky City being on land for the first time, they didn’t have anything. No shelters, buildings, nothing. The Blaze Rods would’ve been tied up or kept in a temporary makeshift prison until a proper one was made.

Would Maya feel betrayed over how he let them get arrested by the Sky people? Would Gill try to worm his way out because in the end it was all Aiden’s idea and fault? Would Aiden even resist imprisonment? Or would his pride make it so he faces the consequences without showing weakness?

In the end, it was because of Lukas that they ended up there. The Blaze Rods were targeting him, so they also targeted his friends. Aiden felt like it was all the New Order’s fault somehow. How he and Aiden broke up. How Aiden wasn’t lined up to be the hero. How Aiden lost the battle as the city was crumbling around them. He took no blame until he was taken away by the guards.

Jesse told him that she took on Aiden and let Lukas save the founder because she knew Aiden was after him more than anyone and she didn’t want to take the risk of Aiden doing something he’d regret (whether she was saying this as a threat to Aiden or not, Lukas can’t tell).

What would they have tried if they stayed? Would they even try anything? Knowing three people with more training and with weapons more heavily enchanted are there to keep them in line? If they had stayed, would they have wanted to leave?

He knows Jesse would’ve tried to keep all of them away from the Blaze Rods, especially him. Ivor would complain about how his tree punching days were behind him. Petra would grumble but listen to Jesse because she’s the leader for reasons Lukas knows but reasons the others aren’t consciously aware of. What would he do? What would he have done had they stayed to get rest? Would he avoid the Blaze Rods like the plague while trying to help the people? Would he try and talk to them? To him?

“The sun’s setting, we should head back,” Petra points out, snapping him out of his head and turning his attention to the dimming sky.

~~~~~

When the two get back and head to the cave Jesse was pointing at, Ivor and Jesse are already set up with... a fire?

“How—?”

“Guys! What took you too so long?” Jesse asks, rushing over to check on them.

“We’re fine Jesse, we just got a bit distracted by all the amazing things around here. Speaking of... how...?” Lukas points to the blue fire at the centre of their camp.

“Oh! The flint & steel apparently also works under water.”

“Huh.”

“How did your search go?”

Petra sighs, sitting down and hugging her tail, “We didn’t find the portal, or anything really interesting for that matter outside of some pretty fish.”

“Well, that’s good,” Jesse chuckles at Lukas and Petra’s confusion, “Because we found the portal, but you guys took so long with getting back that we decided to set up camp.”

Petra smiles for the first time since they got here. The team gets settled for the night and by sunrise in this world, they’re already back in the portal hall.

Note: This was not the direction I was hoping to take this but this is the msot writing motivation I’ve had in ages so I’ll let it do its thing

[kumeko]

breathers

 Characters/Pairings: Naminé/Riku

A/N: Written for the @khrarepairszine charity zine! I picked Naminé/Riku, I’ve had a soft spot for them since CoM. Take a look at the other contributors or pick up a copy. :)

Summary: Naminé had none of Sora’s laziness or Kairi’s relaxed attitude, and honestly, Riku would have left the islands years ago if she’d been around. Still, everyone needed a break, Nobodies included.

…

…

…

…

“Mmmmmm, mmmm, mmmmm,mmm.”

 A delicate humming filled the white house and Riku didn’t have to look to know where it was coming from. He’d recognize Naminé’s soft voice anywhere. Automatically, his feet followed a familiar path to her room. As he got closer, he heard the soft scratch of her crayons, the sharp flip of a page.

 Spotting her familiar silhouette, he stopped at the doorway. As usual, she was sitting at the table, her head bent as she drew scene after scene. The walls were filled with images, with memories, and Riku scanned the colourful pictures. There was the time he raced with Sora, making the raft with Kairi, sleeping under the stars. Other, unknown memories filled with mermaids and warriors and constellations he didn’t know.

 He never did have a chance to talk to Sora after all was said and done, to boast about adventures and swap tales. Quietly, so as not to disturb Naminé, Riku drifted from picture to picture. A boy with a monkey smirked mischievously in one. Another had a bear with his head caught in a honey pot. Riku’s fingers brushed against one of Kairi giving Sora the paopu fruit.

“I had to make sure that memory was returned,” Naminé said apologetically, slowly setting down her sketchpad.

 Resisting the urge to jump, Riku withdrew his hand. “It is an important one.”

 “Yeah.” Pushing her chair back, Naminé slipped off and joined him. Her sad eyes took in the scene and she smiled softly. “That fruit was the basis of everything.”

 “Everything?” Riku asked, cocking his head in confusion.

 “For our ‘friendship’.” She touched the paopu fruit lightly. Her fingers slowly slid off the picture and she turned around and pointed at a few other sketches. The golden fruit was prominent in each of them. “This fruit was important to you. Both of you. So I used that to insert myself.”

 Both of you. Riku didn’t have to ask what she meant by that. It was impossible to forget the sight of his death, of his body choking and gasping for its last breath. “There’s a story on my island, that if two people share one—”

 “Their destinies are intertwined,” Naminé completed. She chuckled at his surprised expression. “You have no idea how often you guys said that in his memories.”

 Riku flushed. Had they really talked about it that much? About this old wife’s tale, with no basis in reality? It was stupid, really. A thing that couldn’t be true in any way. A thing that he spent several years wishing for, a connection that was permanent. A connection that would stay. The dark part of his heart that Ansem had slipped into. “Really?”

 “Really,” she confirmed with a grin, smiling whole-heartedly for once. “You say it a lot.”

 “Not that often,” he disputed, crossing his arms and looking away. “Just to tease Sora with.”

 “Hmm…that may be so.” A serious expression slipped back onto her face and Riku felt a pang of regret. It had been rare enough that she laughed. “Still.” She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “I’m sorry you didn’t get it.”

 Caught off guard, Riku stared at her. None of his wisecracks came to him, none of his taunts. He was utterly speechless. “I…”

 Naminé said nothing, just giving him a knowing look before letting go. She turned back to her table. “I have almost finished removing the altered memories.”

 Riku glanced at the picture one last time before following her. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he peered at her sketchbook. It was thin now, with only a few pages left. A testament to how hard she worked. “Do you take breaks?” he asked without thinking.

 “Huh?” Naminé blinked, staring at her notepad and then back at him. Confusion shone in her eyes and she cocked her head. “Breaks?”

 “Vacations? Rest? Time off?” Riku rolled his eyes as he clarified. “You’ve been in Sora’s memories, so you have to know what a break is. That’s all the slacker did.”

 “Yeah, of course I do! But…” Naminé’s skin flushed a bright red, and she nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I just…I didn’t.”

 “After all that work?” Riku raised a brow. Gesturing with his head at all the pictures, he frowned. “No one should work that long without a break.”

 “Oh no, it’s okay. I’m fine.” She rubbed her wrist, her shoulders hunching till she looked even smaller than usual. “I don’t—I don’t need a break. It’s fine.”

 “Everyone needs a break.” Riku reached out and grabbed her hand. Yanking her behind him, he headed to the door. “Even you.”

 “No, I—” Naminé protested, digging in her heels. “I can’t, not after what I did.”

 “You’ve apologized enough for that,” Riku rebutted, firmly pulling her along. “Sora’s forgiven you. And even if my clone can’t, I’ve forgiven you. It’s enough.”

 “It isn’t,” she muttered softly.

 “…don’t you think I deserve it even less than you?” Riku asked, looking over his shoulder. When she didn’t say anything, he smirked. “Besides, Sora likes sleeping more than anything. He’ll be fine sleeping for a few extra hours.”

 She stared at him for a long moment before finally giving in. “There’s nowhere to go, the mansion doesn’t really have that much in it.”

 “Hmm, that’s true,” Riku muttered, scratching his chin. Aside from the basement, the mansion was fairly lightly furnished. Even the garden outside was barebones, and whatever little plants grew there had gone wild. “Then we can explore the city.”

 “The city?” Naminé shook her head. “I couldn’t possibly—”

 “It’s a break,” Riku cut her off wryly. Really, there was none of Sora’s or Kairi’s laziness in her. It was almost refreshing to see someone take things seriously for once. “Where were you when I was making that raft? I would have left the islands years ago.”

 Reaching the front door, he let go of her hand and opened it. Bright sunlight filtered through and he shaded his eyes as he stepped out. A soft breeze rustled his hair, a bird chirped nearby, and he had almost forgotten what spring was like. There hadn’t been much time during his journey to just enjoy the places he went to, the seasons the worlds experienced. Turning back, he held out his hand for Naminé. “You coming or do I have to drag you out?”

 “I…” Naminé hesitated, fiddling with her hands nervously as she stared at him. Biting her lip, she took a step outside. Her shoulders hunched, her body braced for some sort of reaction. For someone to drag her back in and put the sketchpad back into her hands.

 “You can leave the entrance, you know,” Riku encouraged gently, his hands still held out.

 “Y-yeah.” Emboldened when nothing happened, she grabbed his hand tightly and took another step. And then another. She squinted up at the sky, at the clouds that littered the blue expanse. “It’s…beautiful.”

 Riku shrugged. He’d seen better skies on his island. “I guess.”

 “I…” Naminé’s head darted left and right, taking in the tall grasses and wild roses that made up the front lawn. “I’d seen it all from his memories. And I think I might have come through here once. But…I didn’t get to see it myself before. Not really.”

 “Never?” Riku jerked his head to her, surprised.

 “Nobodies, we’re not really born like everyone else.” Naminé stared down at the grass, slipping a foot out of her sandals to touch it. Delighted by the ticklish sensation, she set her foot down on the squishy ground and wiggled her toes. “I kinda just came to be, at that castle. And then I was taken here, but that was through a warp gate.”

 “Huh.” Riku rubbed the back of his neck. They were more similar than he’d thought. “So your island was that castle, then.”

 “Hmm?” Naminé peered up at him curiously.

 He shook his head. “Nothing. Put your shoes back on, we’re going to town.”

 “Right. Town.” Naminé set her jaw determinedly. Pressing her foot one last time on the grass, she slipped her sandal back on. “Ready.”

 Riku resisted the urge to laugh at the image in front of him. She looked so determined, like she was off to fight a battle rather than just walk into a small town. But her hand was sweaty in his, her nails digging into his skin lightly, and maybe for her this was a fight. “Alright. Since this is your first time, I’ll guide you.”

 -x-

 “They have scents.” Naminé stared at the rose in her hand, twirling between her fingers. Raising it to her nose, she sniffed it again. “Actual scents.”

 “And thorns.” Gently, he pulled the flower away from her hand. Luckily, she had gripped the stem at the exact right spot to avoid the sharp defense system. Glancing at the house in front of them, he carefully pushed the branch back in place. “Let’s not invade someone’s garden.”

 Not paying him any heed, Naminé wandered to the house next door, to a creeping vine of morning glories. “This one smells so different!”

 “Did you hear me?” Riku groaned, staring down at the long line of houses ahead of them. Maybe he should have taken a different route into town. Not that it would have made much of a difference, there were going to be flowers no matter what path they took.

 Sniffing a peony, Naminé chirped, “This one too!”

 It was going to be a long walk.

 -x-

 A bird chirped. Naminé cupped her ears as they walked, listening to the sounds around her.  Riku watched her from the corner of his eye as she tried to identify the owners of different sounds: birds, dogs, other villagers. Her head craned left and right, and there was something endearing about how she pivoted at each new sound.

 “It’s so noisy,” she murmured, looking excited despite her words.

 “Compared to the mansion, sure,” he refuted, crossing his arms behind his head as he slowed his pace. “If you think this is loud, wait till you see a city.”

 -x-

 “Here.” Riku held out a popsicle, plopping the other one in his mouth. Immediately, a cold, sweet flavour hit his tongue, with a salty kick after.

 “For me?” Naminé awkwardly accepted, staring at the blue popsicle. The wooden handle was slightly slippery and she pinched it with two fingers, trying to save the rest of her hand from the sticky substance. “A popsicle?”

 “It’s the town’s specialty. Might as well try it.” Riku pulled his treat out of his mouth before he could get a brain freeze. “Take a lick, it’s pretty good.”

 “Alright.” Scrunching her face, Naminé hesitantly stuck out her tongue and licked it. She squeezed her eyes shut, considering the flavour, before opening them with surprise. “It’s sweet.”

 “And at a normal level.” Riku shuddered, remembering the frozen treats Sora and Kairi used to have. It was like having pure sugar dissolve on his tongue. “Though I could do without the salt.”

 “You just want to—” Naminé glanced at him and immediately covered her mouth. It couldn’t completely muffle the sound of her laughter and Riku glared at her.

 “What?”

 “Just…your tongue. And lips.” Naminé’s shoulders shook as she tried to compose herself. “It’s all blue.”

 -x-

 “It’s cold!” Naminé yelped, taking a step back. There weren’t many ways to access the shore in Twilight town; the lack of beaches and frosty waters deterred even the most adventures of visitors.

 Sitting on a rock, Riku raised a brow. “What did you think it was gonna be? Warm?”

 “A little.” Naminé shivered, her feet still in the water. The barest edges of the water. The tide lapped at her feet, tiny waves crashing down on her ankles, and she took yet another step back. Looking back at him, she frowned. “The waters in your home were pleasant.”

 “Yeah, because we lived in the tropics.” Riku rolled his eyes. Then again, Sora had never bothered to pay attention to any class, even geography, so maybe she wouldn’t know that.

 A more powerful wave charged up the shore, enveloping her feet, and she darted back even further. “I’m good for now.”

 “You sure?” Riku smirked, gesturing at the water. “You were only in it for a few minutes.”

 “No, definitely, definitely good.” Naminé broke into a run as another crash sounded behind her.

 -x-

 “I hear this has the best view of the sunset,” Riku explained, opening the door on the top of the clock tower. A soft breeze ruffled his hair and he shielded his eyes as the sun’s last rays hit him. “We’re on time at least.”

 Following him out, Naminé peered around him. “Ohhh.” Amazed, she pushed past him and hurried to the railing. Her mouth slack, she watched as the pink and orange hues bled into the blue sky, the sun heading down into the water. “Amazing!”

 “Yeah. I guess.” Riku had seen this sight more often than he cared to remember. It was strange to watch it alone, without Sora’s stupid remarks or Kairi’s sharp jabs.

 “I didn’t know it could be so beautiful,” Naminé breathed, her eyes fixed on the sun.

 Riku smiled. Right, he wasn’t alone. Not now. Leaning on the railing next to her, he glanced at Naminé. “It?”

 “The sky.” Naminé paused, then shook her head. “The world. Everything, really. I saw them in your memories, but…it’s something else to see them for yourself. I never knew such bright blue existed. Or such soft pinks. What else is the universe hiding?”

 “Underwater worlds, worlds ruled by animals,” Riku listed, ticking them off with his finger. “A lot, really. You’ll just have to visit more worlds. Take more breaks.”

 “Visit…” Naminé mused, lowering her eyes slightly. With a sad smile, she shook her head. “No, this is enough. More than enough.”

 “Why?” Riku frowned.

 “I can’t leave the manor like this again—I have too much to do.” She beamed at him, but it didn’t meet her eyes. “I got a lot of memories from this, it can tide me over.” When he opened his mouth to argue, she covered his lips with a finger, her expression stern. “No, really. Thank you. This is more than enough for someone like me.”

 Someone like me. He hated how much that sounded like a curse.

 -x-

 “Thanks for today.” Naminé stretched her arms behind her as she sauntered into her room. Glowing, she beamed brightly at him. “It was a lot of fun, having a break.”

 “Yeah, it’s not bad every once in a while.” Riku rested a hand on his hip, a smirk on his face. “Just don’t take it as often as Sora does.”

 “Maybe he wanted you to take more breaks.” Laughing, she glanced at one of the drawings on the wall. A picture of a boy sleeping on the sand, without a care in the world. “Or maybe he’s just lazy.”

 “The latter. Definitely the latter.” On the wall next to him, Riku spotted one of Sora’s terrible drawings. A picture of Sora’s and Kairi’s head, a paopu fruit passed from one to the other. It was strange. He felt so detached looking at it now. Yet when he’d first saw it, a tidal wave of rage had overcome him. Enough to destroy his world. Enough to destroy many worlds.

 At some point, the wave broke, the rage ebbing away. All that was left was a sense of fondness, of his two dense, idiotic friends and a scenario he should have seen eons ago. He glanced behind him. Naminé was humming again as she picked up her sketch pad. There was one more thing he could do for her.

 “Gimme a sheet.” Walking over to the table, Riku picked up a golden crayon. He rolled it in his hand; the colour was just right.

 “You’re going to draw?” Mystified, Naminé carefully tore out a page for him. “I thought you weren’t good at that.”

 Riku shot her a baleful glare. The downside of her combing through Sora’s memories—his past was an open book to her. Including all of his art classes. “I’m just not interested in it.”

 “That wasn’t what—”

 “I’m just not interested,” he repeated forcefully, grumpily glaring at her. It wasn’t a lie. He wasn’t good, so he wasn’t interested. There was no point in doing something that even Sora, the class idiot, got higher marks than him in. Spreading the sheet of paper, he stared at it for a long moment. Maybe this was a bad idea. Even a simple shape ended up distorted in his hands.

 “If you say so,” Naminé acquiesced, covering her mouth to hide her laughter.

 Riku peeked at her from the corner of his eyes. Shoulders shaking, eyes full of mirth, Naminé looked like an ordinary girl. Nothing like the sad Nobody he usually saw, counting down the days till she disappeared. Determined, he started drawing, straight confident lines into the shape of a star.

 “So, what are you drawing?” Naminé tried to peek over his shoulder, but he blocked her.

 “Just wait.” Biting his cheek, he glanced at her artwork on the walls. Yep. He was right. He was no good at this and he was definitely never doing it again. Finishing the piece, he instructed, “Hold out your hand.”

 Naminé cocked her head. “My hand?”

 “Just hold it out,” he ordered. When she held out her right hand, he placed the sheet on her hands.

 “What?” Naminé stared at it, realization dawning in her expression. “This is…”

 “You didn’t get one either, right?” Riku shrugged, looking away in embarrassment as she stared at him. “It might not be as good as yours, but even I can draw a paopu fruit.”

 “It’s not that. I…I can’t…” Naminé looked back at the paper, her hand still flat and rejecting it entirely. “I’m…I’m not real. I’ll go away.”

 She really wasn’t like any of his friends: softer, more awkward, more nervous. And completely unable to let herself be happy. “Didn’t I say I wouldn’t forget?” Riku reminded her. He reached out and squeezed her shoulder. Her bones felt fragile under his hand. “You’re real to me. You’re here.”

 Stricken, she shook her head. “But I….”

 He folded the paper and curled her hand over the hard edges. It crinkled at the touch. “And now you’ll always be real, because our destinies are intertwined.”

 She bit her lip before slowly nodding. Wiping a tear from her eyes, she chuckled. “You’re really bad at drawing.”

 “Oh, shut up.” Riku turned around, his ears burning hot. “Like I said, I’m just not interested in it.”

[bodytoflame-ao3]

falling from the start

did i write more wlw percabeth? you bet your ass i did!!!!!! i accidentally deleted the ask but for the anon who asked for fem!percy asking her mom for advice here it is :^) this takes place in the summer between botl and tlo. i absolutely want to write more in this same universe please give me more prompts omfg im begging this is so fun

Ao3 Link

“So how's Annabeth?”

Percy pushes the last few peas around her plate absentmindedly, “I don't know.” She doesn't, and she hates it. Ever since the end of summer, things had been so… weird. She didn't know what Annabeth's deal was. First off, for whatever reason, she hated Rachel. Percy didn't get it. Rachel was kind, and funny, and caring, and a really good friend to Percy (even if she was a mortal and didn’t understand some of the nuances of being a half-blood). It made her wonder what Rachel could've possibly done to upset her.

In any case, she didn’t know what��she did to upset Annabeth either. Which brings her mind to the one thing she's been trying to push away since it happened: Annabeth kissing her. Because, right, Annabeth kissed her. It threatens to turn Percy's brain to mush every time she thinks about it. She daydreamed about kissing her, probably more than she should, so she should be crazy about it actually happening, but something in her gut just feels… wrong. For lack of a better description, Annabeth kissing her confuses the hell out of her. She loved Luke. She said so herself. She obviously didn't like Percy like that, so then why did she kiss her?

“I thought you were going to try to talk every weekend.”

Percy shrugs. That’s right. #2 on the list of weird things. They were. Annabeth wanted to know everything about her mom's wedding. But it’s been three weeks and she hasn’t made a single attempt to contact Percy; she’d worry she was in trouble if she didn’t know any better.

“Did you two get in a fight?”

“I don't know!” The fork clatters against the plate. She can’t stop her thoughts from spiraling out of control, and she hates herself for it.

“Percy,” her mom sits down next to her at the table and places a reassuring hand on her back.

“I don't know… I mean, there was the whole thing with the Labyrinth, and when I came back she just… she was so annoyed at me. Which, I mean, yeah that makes sense, it's totally like her to be annoyed that she thought I was dead, because that's exactly what she told me not to do, and since when do I ever listen to her?” She can't stop the flood of thoughts from coming out of her mouth. “I thought she would get over it, and she'd just tease me about it for a week like always and then everything would be fine, but then she was really mean to Rachel, even though she was just trying to help! She's never done anything to her, and I… I don't want my friends to fight. We're supposed to be fighting monsters, not each other.”

“Have you tried talking to her?”

“No but… she would’ve called if she wanted to talk to me.”

“I don’t know about that. You picked a stubborn one.”

Her mom decides movie night is the best way to mitigate her worries. Percy’s always loved The Little Mermaid (Sally’s always thought that was hilarious). Yeah, it’s ironic. You don’t need to tell her that twice, she’s been teased enough by her mom. To be perfectly fair, she always thought Ariel was stupid for leaving the ocean, because duh, it’s awesome, but she loved the music, and that was enough to make a toddler obsessed with something. By the time she realized how ridiculous it was for it to be the daughter of Poseidon’s favorite movie, it was already too big a part of her.

Usually, it’s easy for her to sit down and lose herself in it. She knows every scene almost word for word, and she loves every second of it, so there isn’t anywhere her mind wants to wander to. Nothing to analyze, nothing to be confused over. Tonight, however, she can’t concentrate. That is to say, even worse than usual. Her brain feels like the static of dead air on a TV. Fuzzy. Tingling? Buzzing. Just… stuck. As much as she wants to just lay down and have a normal, quiet movie night with her mom she doubts it’ll actually happen, because the only thing on her mind is Annabeth. She thinks about way she smirks when she has an idea, how her grey eyes shine against the moonlight, and the slight change in the cadence in her voice when she’s teasing Percy.

“Mom?” Percy needs to tell someone or she’s going to explode. Possibly literally. “I think I'm in love with Annabeth.”

“Mhm?”

Really? Percy glares at her, pouting. She’s not surprised, because she’s convinced her mom can practically read her mind, and she's teased her about it to no end.

“Do you want me to act like I didn't know?” She wonders if it would be easier that way. Sally furrows her eyebrows and sighs, “Percy…”

Percy almost whispers her response: “No… I want you to tell me everything’s gonna work out.” But it’s not. It won’t. “I want you to tell me she’s not going to hate me and I’m not going to lose one of the most important people in my life!” As her frustration builds, so does her voice, reaching a crescendo as her final words echo off the walls of the apartment.

“Come here,” she pats the couch cushion, and Percy drags herself off the chair to sit next to her. “I know it’s not easy.”

Percy’s not sure she knows what easy is.

“I had a crush on one of my best friends once.”

“It’s not the same! She’s—”

“A girl?” Sally offers quietly. Percy didn’t make it a habit to talk about these kinds of things, despite how close she was with her mom. She’d be lying if she said it didn’t scare her a bit at first; it’s not like the idea of liking girls was something she came to terms with easily. But it had been a whole hell of a lot easier than grappling with the fact that she liked Annabeth.

“No… I mean yes, but… I mean… she’s Annabeth.” She’s my best friend, and she’s smart, and wise, and tough, and she’s beautiful without even trying, and she doesn’t even know it, but her hair shines in the sun like it’s dusted with gold, and her eyes could stare into the depths of your soul and you’d ask her to do it again.

It happened slowly. Sure, her first thought when she woke up at Camp Half-Blood, Annabeth’s curls hanging down into her face, was, infact, ‘wow, she’s pretty.’ (She’s still not sure if that was the concussion talking or not, she digresses), but she was twelve, and wasn't thinking about things like that, not really. Soon, 'wow, she's pretty' turned into 'wow, she's tough' and 'maybe she can help me find my mom', and then they were a team, the three of them. By the time she realized she may have a teensy tiny crush on her, they were already bantering like old friends; and Annabeth was a clingy friend, so while Percy's heart would beat a little faster when she'd grab her hand, she knew Annabeth wouldn't fuss over something so simple. She finally had a friend, a girl (because there were just some things Grover didn’t need, or want to know) who she could talk to and share her secrets with (well, not all of them), and she wasn't about to ruin that by saying something stupid and fleeting.

Percy thought it would pass, after all it was just a stupid crush. She'd get over it. That's what always happened. But this time it didn't, and it just got worse. Now there was something different in the way her breath hitched when Annabeth would lean close to her; a change in the sense that her heart now fluttered when she called her Seaweed Brain.

She hated that her brain was betraying her like this. She wasn’t supposed to fall in love with her best friend. She was supposed to save the world, not complicate it with her messy relationship drama — not that you could even call it that.

“Oh, honey,” Sally wraps her arms around Percy, pulling her close, “She cares about you. And I know you care about her.”

“But what if she hates me?”

“Do you really think she could?”

She was right. She always was.

“She’ll come around. Give her some time. And give her a call — I’m sure she misses you.”