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minhosimthings · 8 months

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Icarus's Lament: A Hyunjin oneshot

Synopsis: A siren falls in obsessive love with a human, and it mimics the story of Icarus and Apollo

Pairings: Hyunjin × Fem!Siren!Reader, includes rest of Skz, and an original character

Warnings: fluff to angst, fem!reader, just suggestive towards the end, don't read if you don't want your heart broken, ANGSTY AT THE END, forbiddened love, one sided love, obsessive love

A/N: Kay, finally finished this and I AM OBSESSED. look im a simp for mythology and lore and all that stuff, so yeah writing this was very theurapeutic. im sorry I haven't posted in a long time, but i've kinda been busy with work and stuff so i couldn't find time to write. BUT this baby's out so simp on this while i work on some of my other wips.

PLEASE READ: So this fic is based off of the myth of Icarus and Apollo. you should probably read a bit about it if you want to understand why it has a significance to this fic. And by Icarus and Apollo, i mean the romantisized version of the two forbiddened lovers. Also also also shoutout to my darlings @iutdwae and @1-800-shedevil who are as obsessed with mythology as I am.

Mythology is so pretty isn't it? It's amazing how humans have made stories out of deities whose existence they made up simply because they were too afraid of being authoritarian of themselves. The Gods were made up to fulfill human desire, to tell them that someone is always watching. And the people who defied the existence of a robed man, carrying a cross or some other wooden thing, were burnt to death, no matter if God was watching or not. All so paradoxical isn't it? The Gods were greedy beings, or atleast that was your philosophy. You had Aphrodite, greedy for love, so greedy that the roses were stained with her blood when a lover was shot. Then you had Zeus, greedy for his women, so greedy that he couldn't notice his wife's burning wrath. You had Kore, the flower girl, so greedy for freedom, that she became Persephone for a man who took her from her flowers. Yet you questioned why they weren't reprimanded for their greed. Why were the beings below them scolded for wanting more than they could salvage, while The Gods had statues built of them, overflowing with wine and bread? Why must there always be a punishment for greed, no mater human, selkie or dragon?

"My sister, what are you doing near that mirror again?" Your older sister, Menthe's voice broke you out of your stupor from staring at a jewel encrusted mirror. It was a pretty one indeed, filled with magic and glitter near its seams. "Are you looking at the humans again, darling?" Menthe scoffed and wrapped her arms around your waist, her tail colliding with yours, sending a bolt of electricity through to your scales. "Menthe let me go." You fidgeted in her tight grasp, but you knew you couldn't win. Menthe wasn't the Queen's best soldier for nothing after all. "Stop looking at the humans and maybe I'll let you go." Menthe chuckled, seeing you give up and sink into her hold, feeling the seaweed coat the scales in her arms, protecting them. "Sister when will we be going up by the way? You said we could go together today." Menthe finally let go of you and swam away from you as fast as she could. "Menthe! Don't you run from me!" You chased after her, silently summoning the water to take you faster. Of course the ocean obliged. It always was sympathetic to you. To a siren who got turned when she was pushed into the water, by a man who was jealous of her love. By a ruthless human who hated her for something she had no control over. But still, it confused your sister and the entire mermaid population as to how you didn't remember anything about the incident or that you used to be human. You had woken up on a bed in the castle of the Mermaid Queen, surrounded by a bunch of beautiful tailed creatures. Amnesia, was how they explained. Menthe had taken you in, calling you her own sister and spoiling you rotten, because apparently you were too adorable. Your love for humanity remained though. Every day you would get your magical mirror out, a girl from the Princess of Mermaids, and stare at the humans passing on the beach above. They were fascinating, with how they could jump and run so easily. Even though you could turn into a human and walk on land, you could never jump or run like they did, lest you accidentally rip your beautiful tail, embroidered with glittering scales and the prettiest gradient of colours. You rarely took trips to the land, and whenever you did, you were always sent heavily guarded. The fact of why exactly you were special was still unknown to you, as no one ever had the courage to tell you that you used to human. Humans who were turned into mermaids or sirens, to be more specific, were always special, having the power to control the sea with the mere notes of their voices. But the only problem was that they never knew that, courtesy to siren rule being that the special ones couldn't be told that they were special. Weird rule, you always thought, not knowing that you were one of the special ones.

"Menthe come out from there I can see you hiding." You called out to your sister, who was trying to hide behind her wardrobe. She groaned and came out from behind, flipping her hair behind her, and dusting her tail. "Y/n why do you want to go today?" She whined, pouting. "I cannot take you, you know that?" "I'll go with Chan then." You said, firmly, trying to end the conversation. You hadn't been up on the beach in a long time, four months to be exact and you were greedy. You were greedy to go up there. And greed never exactly suited you because when you wanted something, oh Lord, give everyone around you strength and patience.

"Fine you can go with Chan." Menthe finally gave in. "But, if you even try to run away, I will seriously kill you." You giggled at her sentence, knowing that she couldn't even lay a finger on you if she tried to.

"Chan! It's so good to see you again." You swam up to a stout Siren with broad shoulders and the most adorable dimpled smile. "Y/Nnnie!" He swam over to you and engulfed you in his arms, giving you a sense of warmth from the surrounding cold water. "Going up today? You ready?" You balled your fists up and nodded frantically. To say you were excited would be an understatement. You were basically a hyperactive squirrel today.

"Be safe alright?" Menthe hugged you once last time and gave you a conch shell. "You know what the shell does right?" She quizzed you. You rolled your eyes at her, knowing that you've gone through this routine every single time you wanted to go up to get high by the beach. "It calls you incase I run away and you have to get me because I am a careless incompetent brat." You grumbled. "Well atleast the careless brat part is correct." Menthe chuckled before pulling you in for another hug and finally letting go of you.

"Why can't the sunlight reach down to the water Chan? I love this warm feeling so much." You and Chan stepped out from behind some moss covered rocks completely dry, despite having being submerged in water just a few seconds ago. The secret entrance to what the humans called 'Mermaid land', was known to only a few of the Sirens. It was a bunch of rocks and a humorous piece of driftwood which invoked curiously in the humans, although they never went near it. It was funny, you thought, how humans were scared of just driftwood. It was funny how humans feared everything and that they made up myths to explain their fears. Menthe had very patiently explained to you how humans weren't very smart but you didn't believe her much. If they weren't smart, how would they have invented so many things which made their lives easier, like fire?

"Do you want to go to the market first Y/N?" Chan asked you as you set foot on the warm sand on the beach. You loved the feeling of sand. It was like having a thousand needles prickle the bottom of your feet, except that the needles massaged your feet instead of pricking them, to make them bleed your precious blood. "Sure." You said to Chan. "We can go to the market first and then we can come relax on the beach before going back down. Is that alright Chan?" Chan nodded and smiled again, showing those adorable dimples to you. The people of the town knew Chan, since he came up more often than any of the other sirens. The people knew him not as Chan, but as Christopher, the mysterious stranger who could come down to town often to give remedies for human illnesses, since, to be frank, the creatures of the deep had much more knowledge about medicine than humans did. They didn't question him or ask anything since the dark plague when he basically saved every single child in the town, and the townspeople pledged their loyalty to him. Chan was peculiar to them, not saying a word to anyone but the children who would laugh and go after him, calling out 'Uncle Chan!'.

"The marketplace has gotten more prettier since I last saw it." You let out a breath of amazement at seeing all the trinkets and food being sold in the market. It was a wide lane, flanked with stalls, selling seafood, vegetables, mirrors, cloth, jewelry and tiny trinkets. "You saw it about four months ago Y/Nnie." Chan chuckled softly, as you tried to keep up with his pace. He was more used to walking on two legs than you were, and as you walked slowly behind him, he kept a protective arm around your waist, ready to catch you incase you fall. "Ooh Chan what are those?" You excitedly pointed towards a brass thingamabob. It was like a pillar, with many open top, where something was carved into it. It also had a tiny painting of a rose on it. "That's called a candelabra Y/N." Chan responded calmly. "Humans use it to light fire, in order to bring light." "Can-de-lab-ra." You pronounced the foreign word slowly, making Chan chuckle again at your cuteness. "Can I have one pleease?" You pouted to Chan, who you knew couldn't refuse anything when you asked for it. Two minutes later, you strolled deeper into the marketplace, holding the candelabra and a flower in your hand. Chan had a medical job he had to do in town, so he suggested you come with him and wait outside while he finished the job. "Menthe would kill me if I left you alone, but it wouldn't hurt to tell her." He shot you a mischievous smile. You didn't mind being left alone. You knew enough about humans to interact with them, without Chan's knowledge so you were excited.

"That's the house!" Chan called after a few minutes of walking. He pointed to a brick mansion, which looked like a palace. It was beautiful, with ivy coating its walls and lavender growing in the garden. You could smell the roses and herbs too, and you could hear the meowing of a cat. The mansion was far away from the main town, so you assumed it belonged to some rich family. That's how human society worked, as Menthe had told you. The richest lived far away from the common folk, merry making and drinking wine while the poorer ones starved under a candle. The humans who invented this system of society were cruel and unfair, you thought. Every siren in your universe was always treated fairly, no matter where they came from. And that's how you thought everything worked until you found out about humans, not knowing that you were a human yourself.

"Y/N-" Chan stopped you before you two knocked on the iron gate, guarding the house. "When we go inside, you need to bow when I bow okay? These are some important people according to human society so we need to respect them. And put on your hood to protect your identity. To them, you're my little sister alright?" You listened intently to all of his words, wanting to impress the first humans you would probably see up close. "And also, don't talk too much. I know you love talking, but these people don't really prefer it, okay?" Chan stroked your hair gently before kissing the top of your forehead.

"Ahh Mr Christopher wasn't it?" Most of the humans you'd see everyday seemed kind and lively and approachable but this man standing in front of you definetly wasn't. He had a bulging stomach, smooth, flattened greying hair and a magnificent, protruding moustache which made him look very much like a fat, angry walrus. "Your grace." Chan bowed to the man, surprising you. No one was addressed by 'your grace' except for the princess! It took you a second or two to realise that this was human land. Their rules were entirely different from yours, maybe even worse, you thought as you curtseyed to the walrus man. "And who is this beautiful young lady?" The man looked you up and down, eyes full of hunger. Chan stood slightly in front of you, shielding you. "She is my sister, your grace." His firm voice rang through the humongous hall. "Now I believe your niece and wife are the affected people in the household whom I was summoned to treat?" The walrus man looked slightly furious at Chan's words, but he didn't let his anger flow and instead said, "Yes. Yes they are. I shall guide to upstairs where they are resting. Meanwhile, your sister-" he shot you a look again. "-can explore our house perhaps? I shall send a servant with her." Chan looked at your pleading eyes, and gently smiled. He kissed the top of your forehead and whispered, 'be safe, don't do anything out of line.' and went off with the walrus man.

Was this what freedom felt like?, you thought as you strolled around the huge courtyard of the house, with a servant following you. She didn't talk much, instead preferring to cough every now and then, to remind you that she was there. Sand felt really good on your feet, but grass felt better. You had taken off your shoes, much to the disdain of the servant, and felt the dew-filled grass tickle your feet gently. Butterflies were flying here and there and they reminded you of the starfish that would accompany you whenever you and Menthe would go explore sunken ships and other ruins.

You were about to take a whiff of the lavender bushes you had so excitedly run up to when- "Oh where did you come from?" There was a strange creature tugging at your dress tightly. It had black and white fur and the tiniest paws you had ever seen. A dog. This was a creature called dog. Chan had told you about them on your second trip to the surface and you had always wanted to meet one up close. You bent down to pet the dog, seeing as it was tugging on your dress so tightly, when suddenly it ran away at the speed of a lightning bolt.

"Hey!" You shouted, quickly picking up your dress and running after it. "Come back here!" You ran after the dog, who seemed to be running to a more kempt part of the garden where weeds weren't growing and the grass was trimmed, and as you tightly clutched your skirt so as to not trip over it, you couldn't hear the servant behind you screaming at you to not go there. You could spot a figure in the distance holding something in his hand, and the dog was running up to the slender figure.

"Hey!" You called after the dog. "Wait for me! I'm not used to running!" "You wicked wrench stop right there!', a rough voice called after you and as you finally stopped running and looked back, a stout man jumped onto you and pinned you to the ground. You shouted out in pain, in response to your head roughly hitting the ground. You could feel the man's horrible breath against your ear as he said, "got you now you wrench!"

"What is going on here? Martin get off of the young lady." You heard a silky voice say, on whose command, the man on top of you, got off quickly and stood up straight. The man with the smooth voice extended a had towards you and helped you get up. He was handsome, with black hair framing his face perfectly and the most attractive eyes you had ever seen. His lips were smooth, and cherry red, like an octopus' and his figure was carved by the Gods themselves. He had a strong yet soft grip to his hand, which threatened the shredded appearance of his skin.

"Are you alright Miss?" He asked you, mesmerising you with his voice. Being a siren meant that you had the power to understand the most random. Whether it was the chirping of a bird or the clacks of the claws is a crab, it all meant something to you. It was basically music, or whatever the humans called it. But there was something about this man's voice, that you couldn't decipher. It was silky yet cracked, smooth yet with a tint of roughness to it. It was.... beautiful.

"Uh Miss?" The man said again, waving a hand infront of you, which made you realise that you were probably staring at him. "Oh I'm so sorry! Yes I'm quite fine, thank you." You said, keeping your tone calm. "Ahem Sir." The man named Martin gave a cough. "She was trying to enter the private garden sir. Surely you must punish her." The way he said all of that with a widening smile on his face disgusted you, but the man next to you spoke before you could. "Martin hasn't anyone taught you manners? You mus'nt ever touch a lady, leave pouncing on top of her! Would you like to be out of a job Martin?" Martin looked down at his shoes and shyly shook his head muttering the word no. "Apologise to her. Now." Martin bowed to you and apologized before hastily leaving.

"Im sorry about that Miss." The man bowed. "By the way what were you doing chasing Kkami like that?" "Kk-ami?" You slowly pronounced the word, trying hard not to keep staring into the man's beautiful eyes. The man chuckled softly as the dog you had been chasing ran up behind him, intertwining itself between his legs. "His name is Kkami. If he perhaps bit the seams of your dress, please forgive him. I really do not know why he does that, Miss- uh?" "Y/N. My name's Y/N. And Kkami's forgiven." You smiled at him, as he pronounced your name, spelling out syllable and syllable in his smooth honey voice. "My name is Hyunjin." He introduced himself. "Hwang Hyunjin. May I ask what you are doing in my house?" "I-"

"Y/N! We need to go!" You heard Chan's voice shouting your name loudly, and as you turned around in the direction of his voice, you saw him hurrying down to you and Hyunjin along with the walrus man. "Ahh my son." Walrus man sighed out. "I see you've met the sister of the man who had just saved your cousin and mother." Chan slightly blushed as Hyunjin extended a hand towards him, slightly leaning to shake hands with the shorter man.

"Nice to meet you. Well we really must get going. Thank you for your hospitality Mr Hwang." Chan bowed to the walrus man and hastily took your arm, leading you out of the big iron gate as the walrus man and Hyunjin stood there, blinking at the both of you leaving.

"He was sooo handsome Menthe! Like Apollo himself." You were currently brushing Menthe's long black hair and telling her all about your trip above, especially mentioning Hyunjin atleast a hundred times. "You have only talked about his features, my Y/N." Menthe chuckled. "What of his persona?" You thought for a moment and came to the realisation that you didn't know anything about this man. Just that he was the son of the walrus man, a dog owner and he was pretty kind. You shrugged your shoulders to Menthe, who chuckled again. "Ahh my sister." She sighed, with a smile imprinted on her face. "You're so innocent you are."

"By the way-" she added. "Chan's going up again tomorrow to check on that fat human's wife again. Do you wish to go?" She raised an eyebrow at you, as you jolted out of your shared bed. "OH COURSE I WANT TO GO I LOVE YOU MENTHE." You shouted, startling her as both of you giggled under your breath and went off to sleep, with the water floating calmly around you.

"Y/Nnie come on! We're going to be late!" Menthe shouted at you, as you delicately brushed your hair, making sure each strand stood as perfect as carved stone. "I'm coming!" You yelled back, as you took one last look in the mirror and went off to see Chan and go up to the heavens again.

"Whaat are you two up to?" You peeked your head out of the front door to see Chan and Menthe whispering to each other, about God knows what. Once they took a glimpse of you, with your eyes all curious and your head wrapped around the door, they immediately got away from each other's tails and stood awkwardly with their hands behind their back. Chan's ears got redder and Menthe fiddled with her fingers, a common thing they do whenever they were shy or embarrassed, or hiding something.

"Let's go Y/N, we're already late." Chan said, adjusting his satchel and ruffling his hair as he always does. "You know humans don't like tardiness right?"

"Chan why did you take me up again?" Chan stopped in his tracks as both of you walked up the path to the mansion again. He looked at you, with glassy eyes, and sighed, and then led you to an empty lane. "Y/N, I need you to listen to me very carefully." He sternly said. "The Hwang's eldest son, Hyunjin, the boy you met yesterday has asked for you again if I were to come to treat his mother one more time. He said he would like to talk to you. But I'm telling you-" his voice became deeper. "Do not, in any circumstance, reveal who you truly are. If he asks you where you and I are from, just say we are from a neighbouring village alright? Humans do not like beings like us. So if he finds out about what we hide under the waves, we're done for." He finished his impromptu speech and led his way along to the mansion again, with you meekly following behind him. It was scary to see Chan all serious like that, since he was probably the smiliest siren in all of the Kingdom.

"Mr Hwang." Chan bowed low to the walrus man, who was donning a velvet suit today, making him look like a fat plum. Behind him, stood the beautiful figure of Hyunjin, who eyed you up and down a number of times. "Well Mr Christopher-" Mr Hwang clapped his hands together. "My son wishes to spend some time with your sister for as long as you treat my wife and niece, if you allow. I promise that no harm will come to her." Chan looked at you, with what looked like pitiful eyes and bowed again to Mr Hwang. "I allow it, your grace. But please. I hope your son will be respectful to my sister." Mr Hwang waved his hand carelessly and muttered words of 'yes' and then left with Chan up the staircase, leaving you alone with Hyunjin.

"May we go out into the garden?" Hyunjin asked you, slightly bowing down, his silky black hair falling on his face. "Will Kkami be there?" You blurted out, eyes widened. Hyunjin chuckled and nodded, his eyes calm and collected. He led you out of the front door, letting you be in front while he silently followed behind. The garden felt much more livelier than it did yesterday. However, there was a new addition to the garden. There was large patch of tall, handsome flowers growing over in the spot where you chased Kkami down. They were painted with the hues of dark purple, pink, white and a bit of lilac. "Are you perhaps eyeing the hyacinths, Miss Y/N?" Hyunjin's voice snapped through the air, which made you lose the staring competition you had going on the flowers. "Hy-a-cinths?" You pronounced out, concluding that that was the name of those handsome flowers, which were all huddled together like crabs on the beach on a winter day. "May I touch them?" You tentatively asked him, to which he raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you can. Apparently they're very good poisons, or as my father and the library told me so." "You have a library here?" You had often read about libraries as big rooms with shelves everywhere, stocked with hundreds of books which humans could borrow and return within a time limit. Siren's weren't really that used to borrowing and returning things, so you and Menthe usually had a large collection of books at your own home. Human books had always interested you. How the pages fade with time, how humans like to breathe in their scent claiming it calmed them down, how they used to write stories and make collections of them.

"Miss Y/N?" Hyunjin tapped lightly on your shoulder, distracting you from a butterfly that had landed on one of the hyacinths. "Kkami's here." You looked down to see the same dog, nudging against your foot. Thankfully he wasn't chewing on your skirt and as you bent down to pet him, you noticed how much he looked like Hyunjin. You decided not to voice that thought out loud, sensing that it might be considered rude up here on land.

"He's very pretty." You told Hyunjin, still petting Kkami, who seemed to be enjoying the pets. You had a question burning within you though. Why would this man, who looked like the reincarnation of Apollo himself, ask for you when the only interaction you had with him was mumbled apologies and thank yous?

As if he had read your mind, Hyunjin knelt down next to you, and scratched Kkami's ears. "You must be wondering why I had especially asked for you, Miss Y/N?" God he smelled so good too, like fresh seaweed and the silver coating of Menthe's arrows. The most prominent feature of his, that stood out like a crab in a stingray's nest, was the tiny mole on his nose. It was like a blackhole that you would love to dive into and sleep in. "Well I was wondering about that, Mr Hwang." He smiled softly. "Please, Miss Y/N. Call me Hyunjin." "Then stop calling me Miss Y/N. Just Y/N is fine too." He chuckled at your words and stood up from his kneeling position. "Why don't we take a walk around the garden? I would love to show you the gazebo under which I paint."

The rest of the garden was, in a word or two, simply gorgeous. It was far larger than you had initially taken it to be, and as you took in the sweet scent of nectar, and the lively chirping of the birds, you realised that this house was as big as the Queen's Palace. These people surely weren't royalty. After all royal people have crowns don't they? And Chan hadn't told you anything about their lineage or where their from or if they were someones of importance.

"You look very familiar to me." Hyunjin said, making you slightly jump at his voice cutting through the silence. "As if I've seen you somewhere before." "Is that why you asked for me?" You raised an eyebrow at him, slightly picking up your pace to catch up to him. "If I say yes, would you be mad?" Hyunjin chuckled. "But yes, that is one of the main reasons I wanted to talk to you. Secondly, Kkami told me that he likes you, so he wanted you to come over." You looked down at your feet, to Kkami who was walking happily in between you and Hyunjin. You giggled under your breath. Hyunjin was adorable.

"Well who do I look like then?" You quizzed Hyunjin. His eyes faltered for a split second, as he raised his hand and pointed forward. "Let's talk under that gazebo." His hand was pointing towards a beautiful red structure, supported by four gold-coloured pillars. It had carvings all over it which were, from what you could decipher, love letters. You traced one of them saying 'Mea Vita', before settling down on the green bench next to Hyunjin.

"You look like the exact carbon copy of my late wife, Priscilla." Hyunjin sighed heavily as he said that. "I know it is stupid, rude even to summon you, just because you look like someone I used to love, but I need to know who you actually are, and where you're from." He sighed again before continuing. "She was taken from me, kidnapped, when we were 26 to God knows where. And now, here I am, a 30 year old man, lamenting about someone who I don't know even exists. So I need to know-" he leant closer to you holding your hand in his. You could feel his breath against your skin, as he said in a deep voice, "Are you Priscilla?"

Something in you burst. Something in you wanted to scream 'Yes!'. Something in you said, 'if you say yes, you can stay with him'. Something in you told you to ignore your old life and start a new one. Change is inevitable right?

"I-" "Y/N!" Before you could answer to Hyunjin, you heard Chan's raucous voice again, slicing through the air like a horn. "What are you doing with my sister, Hwang?" Chan spat at Hyunjin, who immediately let go of your hand and stood up. "I was not doing anything, Mr Christopher." He stated simply. Chan took your arm and dragged you out of the gate, before you could even say goodbye to Hyunjin.

"Chan why did you do that? I was talking to him!" You shouted at him, when both of you were well out of earshot of the mansion. "Y/N what was he telling you?" Chan said, taking on that stern voice again. Your mind faltered for a bit, wondering whether or not you should tell him about Priscilla. "He was telling me about the flowers in the garden Chan. Nothing else." You felt your stomach sink at telling Chan a bitter lie, but your mind was currently being controlled by your heart, and you were letting it.

"Y/N are you lying?" Chan looked you up and down, as if he could see right through you, but your mind didn't budge. You went closer to him, put your foot down and said in a tone as if to end the entire conversation, "He talked to me about flowers and nothing else."

"So I heard you upset Chan today." Menthe fiddled with a thread and needle, trying to sew her initials onto a handkerchief. "That's not like you, Y/Nnie." You put your own needle and thread down, and let out an exhaustive sigh. "I didn't upset him Menthe." You picked up the needle again, to continue stitching your crab across the handkerchief. "There was simply a misunderstanding."

Menthe sighed heavily and put down her needle and thread on the bedside table, swimming up to you and putting her tail next to yours. "You can't get close to humans, you know that right?" She put a hand on yours and kissed it gently. "I know you love humans Y/N. But under no circumstances, are you to get close to any of them, understand?" You gulped and nodded gently, kissing Menthe's forehead. It was a wild day today, and it was only about to get wilder. If only Menthe knew what was about to happen that night, she would have bound you to your bed right then and there.

Midnight. That was when Menthe usually fell dead asleep. It was a routine for her and everyone in the Siren Kingdom to fall fast asleep at midnight. You didn't know whether this was a spell or just pure habit, but it was weird how all of them fell collectively asleep together. But you weren't going to be on your bed tonight. Tonight, you were planning to do something. Something dangerous. Something that you wouldn't ever do. Something which was prompted by your newly acquired wings.

The moment you heard Menthe's snores rumbling through the sound of the serene water, you kicked off your blanket and silently got the bag of possessions you had packed and silently crept out of your house. There was certain feeling hanging in the air, something which you just couldn't describe. It wasn't guilt nor excitement which you felt. It was a serene feeling, like the ocean wrapping around you, like feeling a fire for the first time and it felt good, as you crept out of the water, leaving your place behind, possibly for forever.

The sand never felt warmer, even as it was bathing in the moonlight. The blowing wind never felt better, even when it was cold and chilly. The night never felt so alive, even though you had just abandoned the only home you had ever known.

You walked up along the dark and empty street, all alone, to Hyunjin's house. It was scary to be all alone, but I guess it was your determination which got you through the night to reach the iron gates of Hyunjin's house.

"Hello?" You called out, screaming at the top of your lungs. You couldn't see a thing in the darkness, but you could hear footsteps coming from afar. "Who's there?" A harsh voice called out. "Please!" You screamed with all your might. "I am an accomplice of Hyunjin's. My name is Priscilla!" For a moment, it seemed like the footsteps had stopped. You then heard more harsher footsteps and rough voices sounding through the air. And before you knew it, the gate was slowly opening and no more than six men ran up to you, one of whom you recognised. "You! It's you!' Martin said, pointing his finger to you. "Please-" you begged. "I need to see Hyunjin."

"How dare you speak the young master's name like that? You wench!" One of the guards grabbed your arm roughly. You roughed around, trying to break out of his hold when- "What is all this?" A familiar voice rang in your ear. Hyunjin. He came out of the darkness, holding a lamp, in a red robe. "Y/N? Is that you?" He asked you slowly as he held up the lamp. "Hyunjin." You said, silently.

"Let go of her, you bastard." Hyunjin growled at the man near your arm, who let go of you instantly. "Y/N, what happened? Wh-why are you here this late?" Hyunjin wrapped his arm around your shoulder.

"Hyunjin, it's me." You breathed out. "It's Priscilla."

"How do we know you really are Priscilla?" You stood before the walrus man and a thin old woman, who you assumed was Hyunjin's mother. She looked like him, the same eyes and the same lips, but she had an air of someone who liked everything to be perfect. "You may test me or ask me anything." You responded, keeping your head high. "Rest assure, I will answer."

The walrus man scoffed and put down his smoking pipe and leant forward. "What is Hyunjin's best talent, which got him into trouble when he was fifteen?" You smiled widely, and put your hand to your chest. "Forgive me my lord, but please. Do ask something more harder. He got into trouble with the mayor because he had painted a picture of his daughter, nude. Well of course the best painted in town needs the best muse doesn't he?" "And do you know, Priscilla? Whose daughter you are?" Hyunjin's mother asked. "Well, you all know I do not go by my family name anymore. I prefer to be the called, the Girl in blue." Hearing your words, the walrus man and the thin woman gasped. The Girl in Blue. That was the name of the painting which Hyunjin had painted of the mayor's daughter. Or more precisely the painting which he had made on Priscilla. Or should I say, you?

"Y- only Priscilla knows who the girl in that painting is." The thin woman said, in a barely heard whisper. "You- oh my! Priscilla!" She got up and hugged you tightly as Hyunjin smiled widely behind you. "Priscilla my darling." She kept whispering into your ear. Her hug was comforting.... Genuine. And it felt good. It felt so good. That a family like this had fallen for a little girl's lie.

"She did WHAT?" Chan screamed at Menthe and the other guards. They were at a meeting, when Menthe thought it would be good it tell them about the current sticky situation. "I don't know how she did it. Or why she did It. But I can see that she is at that boy's house." Menthe sighed. "Hwang's."

"You know how much trouble it would be if she's there." One of the guards, Changbin said. "She doesn't know of her past and it could be her strong point." "What of her past?" A stern voice came into the room. Minho, the chief advisor to the Queen and one of your friends had strolled in, with his strong black tail, decorated with golden scales.

"What of her past, Chan?" He questioned again, glaring at everyone in the room. "I only know that she used to be human, but someone-" he glared at Menthe. "Turned her into a siren. So I ask you one last time-" he leaned forward, putting both his hands on the table. "What of her past?"

"If I may, Minho." Jisung, one of the younger sirens, and Minho's best friend spoke up. "Y/N didn't use to be just a human. She was the daughter of the mayor of the town under whose waters we live in. She had a twin sister, Priscilla, who loved this boy called Hwang Hyunjin. They got married soon after Y/N turned 26. But unfortunately both the sisters got kidnapped one day. You know how these humans are." He let out a short laugh. " So greedy for money, that they would resort to violent methods. Once the ransom was paid however, the man who kidnapped them, didn't let them go. He had fallen for Y/N's beauty." Chan clenched his jaw at that, catching Menthe's attention. "When she rejected him, however, he grew angry and threatened to throw Priscilla and YN off of the ship. And it seems that Priscilla had offered to take her sister's place. But you know Y/N's persona. Headstrong and stubborn. She must have done something to anger the captain, which ultimately led to where we are right now."

Minho sighed heavily as Jisung finished with his speech. The room turned quiet, with a tense atmosphere. "Does she have the normal powers or anything else?" Minho turned to Chan, who looked down at his tail. "She is an extraordinary siren Minho. But she doesn't know about most of her powers, which us normal sirens do not possess. For example-" chan crossed his arms, showing off his veins like lighting bolts. "Mind reading." The room collectively gasped as Menthe held her hand to her chest. "Is-is that how she tricked them? The Hwangs?" She whispered, her eyes filling with tears. Chan simply nodded as Minho's eyebrows furrowed. "We cannot get her back. We simply cannot. If we try to, the entire human population will be after our kingdom. On behalf of the Queen, I cannot risk that." He swam over to Chan, and put his hand on his arm. "I'm sorry Chan." And he left the room, leaving the rest of the Sirens shocked and wounded.

The day was perfect. The day was pleasant. It was filled with flying birds and bells and bouquets. A sprightly day for a wedding.

You had spent a lot of time with Hyunjin after the day you had proved to his parents that you were 'Priscilla'. It was a pleasure to will away the seeds of dead time with Hyunjin, sitting in the garden, painting. He taught you how to paint, joking about how you apparently used to love colours but could never manipulate them as well as he did. You learnt how to paint his favourite flowers, hyacinths and you gifted him many handkerchiefs, embroidered with hyacinths. You learnt how to play something called a piano. You had seen something similar in the shipwreck you and Menthe had gone to last month but never actually expected it to make noise. It was mesmerising to watch Hyunjin play the piano, how his fingers delicately moved across the buttons, creating melodies only your dreams could ever produce.

The people of the town loved you. They never questioned about where you were from or how 'Priscilla' got back to her lover. You never really knew why, but as the Gods watched from above, upon a scene of you singing to the town's children, not knowing about the power of your voice, they shook their heads in disapproval. You learn how to be more human now, slowly taking in their habits and learning how to hunt, run, jump, climb up trees and nurture flowers.

You learnt the history of humans, about wars, battles, bones and bloodshed. That was the part about humans that you hated the most. That they never learnt to co-operate and live in harmony, like sirens did. One thing that did surprise you though was that you never had a day when you missed the ocean or your life there. You knew you couldn't go onto the beach, because if you did, the beautiful scales on your magnificent tail, would start to glimmer again. And a girl's got to keep a lie, doesn't she?

"Priscilla darling!" Mrs Hwang's voice rang through the dressing room. "Oh my! You look so beautiful." Indeed you did look beautiful in the gorgeous blue gown that Hyunjin had given you, reminiscing about the time when you first got married. Your hair was done up into a gentle ponytail, which made you wince every now and then, from the pain of it sticking to your scalp. "Thank you mother." You smiled at Mrs Hwang. "Might I ask, what you are doing here?" Mrs Hwang let out a tiny laugh, and clutched her hand in yours. When she let go of it, you saw that she had placed something on your palm. An ornamental comb. It was beautiful, green glimmers here and there with a giant blue jewel adorning the top. Tortoise shell, you assumed, as you traced the outline of the comb. It looked oddly familiar. "I thought you'd like it dear." Mrs Hwang said, as she fixed in into your hair. "It was you sister's was it not?" You gulped and nodded, not being able to understand anything. "Poor Y/N." Mrs Hwang breathed out. "She was so sweet." She said, before leaving the room, leaving you confunded and slightly scared.

The wedding was beautiful and as you walked down the aisle, accompanied with three girls, who called themselves your friends, you couldn't help but feel something weird. Something like everything was going to come crashing down any second. Something, like disaster.

"My muse?" Hyunjin cooed to you, as both of you sat on his ivory bed. You sat on Hyunjin's lap, still in your wedding dress, as he pulled you closer to him, wrapping his arms around your waist. It was almost midnight, since the walrus man insisted that they pour another shot of barrel wine until midnight. And now as you sat peacefully on Hyunjin's legs, feeling his hot breath hit your neck, there was an overwhelming sense of worry filling you.

"Priscilla? Darling are you listening?" Hyunjin said, cutting you out of staring at the bluejay outside the window. "Y-yes, my love." You stuttered. "What is it?" Instead of answering you, Hyunjin pulled you to him and kissed your lips harshly, biting them. "Hyunjin wha-" "Allow me to do this, my muse?" You nodded slowly, not knowing what the man in front of you, the man you gave up everything for, was about to do to you.

"God you're so pretty, my darling." He chuckled lowly as he moved his hands to your legs, sliding them up your thigh. You moaned out in pleasure, though you didn't know what he was doing. "Hyunjin~" you moaned as he took off your undergarments, and made his way down between your thighs.

"Oh I have been wanting to do this for so long." Hyunjin laughed, taking off his belt and putting you properly on the bed. He kissed you neck softly, all the while keeping his hand between your legs, massaging your privates. "Hyunjin- oh my!" You breathed out as he started moving his fingers faster.

"Priscilla?" Hyunjin slowly got out of the bed. "Priscilla what is this?" He gasped, his face turning into one of horror. "Hyunjin? What happened? Darling are you alright?" You asked him, while he kept staring at your legs. "You-you're not Priscilla." He whispered. You looked at his face, tears forming in his eyes and then looked down at your legs.

Of course. The Gods would never permit a siren and a human together would they? In the joy of the moment, of turning into a human, of getting a man whom you admired, you had forgotten one essential thing. You couldn't stay human, for more than a month. And you had been on land for two months atleast. Lies must always be revealed and yours seems to have come quicker. The scales. The scales of your tail had started reappearing from your thighs. And lucky you, Hyunjin had just saw it, as he bent down to your legs.

"Hyunjin! I can explain! No wait!" You cried as he picked up a dagger from the wall, as screamed for his guards. "Who are you, you wrench?" Pure fury ran through eyes. "What have you done to my Priscilla?" "No- Hyunjin I haven't done anything to her! I don't-" you cried. You could feel everything crashing and burning. You could feel Mother Earth wrapping her arms around you, telling you it was time to go. At that moment, all you could think about, was the ocean, the sea, the fish you would see everyday, Menthe combing your hair, Chan sending you a dimpled smile everytime he saw you. "Guards" Hyunjin commanded. "I want her by the hanging pole by sunset." He spat at you, before leaving the room. "Find out everything you can."

Love is a peculiar thing. We cannot ever exactly define it. It could be obsessive, friendly, or a dying hunger for each other's body. There were nine forms of love too, weren't there? Menthe always told you that you shouldn't ever go after the last form of love. Mania. That it was dark and cold and benefited no one. You would often heard the story of the boy who loved the sun so much that he flew towards it, on melted wings, and scorched feathers. No matter how much he fell, he still flew. And he didn't know that the Sun knew him too.

And the Sun always watched. Apollo watched from his golden chariot. He watched with his eagle eyes, along with Artemis, how Chan destroyed the town that night. How Menthe helped him, to set fire to every house, starting with the biggest one, where hyacinths grew aplenty. How Chan shed heavy tears over a girl who didn't know about him. Apollo watched, and he sighed, remembering the boy who flew towards him, begging for his love. Begging so much, not realising that the Sun couldn't reach him, and when he did, Icarus was all in Persephone's realm, buried deep underneath the sea, hearing the Siren's call one last time.

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tending-the-hearth · 4 months

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god i'm thinking about how "the stolen chariot" takes place post-"titan's curse" and how that's a turning point for percy and clarisse's relationship, and how clarisse probably saw straight through percy's facade and saw exactly how he was treated during that time at camp and how sad and lonely he probably was because grover was tripping over himself around the hunters and chiron was so focused on thalia and annabeth was gone

and that leads me into thinking about the head counselors again and how maybe, in their own ways, they gave percy little things to show their support. moments of help, little gifts.

silena sitting in the pegasus stables with percy, holding onto his arm and being a big sister presence to him. not talking, just being there for him, giving him some semblence of stability

beckendorf dragging percy off to test new weapons he made in the arena, turning it into a game that had a smile spreading over percy's face for the first time in days

travis and connor sneaking coke and candy into camp for their honorary brother, leaving it in the poseidon cabin with little cards that had the corniest jokes written on them

clarisse spars with percy more, pulling him to the arena when she sees the stormy look in his eyes, when he can't think about anything else but how frustrated he is

lee pulls percy into the medical tent to test his healing abilities with water, because it's been an obsession for the apollo cabin since percy arrived, and he can't help but make percy laugh with his eagerness

castor and pollux convince their father to let up on percy, just a little bit, to let him have a looser curfew, letting him sit out by the lake for as long as he needs, sometimes sitting with him in the quiet

katie leaving little plants in the poseidon cabin, little succulents and flowers that are easy to care for, something small that makes percy's eyes light up every time he gets a new one, and he lines the windows of the cabin with them

malcolm, bless him, is so aware of his sister and percy's crushes on each other, and takes it upon himself to make sure that his sister's best friend doesn't waste away, and he's the one who makes sure percy eats and sleeps and stays healthy.

and clarisse will deny it until the day she dies, but percy knows that she's the one setting everything up. it was her suggestion, though the other counselors know they'll get fried if they say anything.

and he doesn't say anything, not until after "the stolen chariot", when he and clarisse are sitting down for a burger, and he brings it up quietly. and clarisse just huffs and rolls her eyes, and percy's heart warms so much at the fact that, despite the winter being the worst one of his life, he was surrounded by people who loved him and supported him.

(annabeth definitely gives hugs to all the head counselors when malcolm tells her, because they kept her seaweed brain going)

#i also have a hc that percy and pollux are super close #percy's promise to dionysus made me think abt them becoming good friends #more percy and clarisse sibling content bc of course #PERCY AND CHARLIE SAW EACH OTHER AS SIBLINGS YOUR HONOR #i think post-last olympian thalia sees percy and clarisse #and she probably had this idea of the big three kids being able to be close and be a family #but because of how things went down during tc #there's just a layer of tension that never really healed #so seeing percy and clarisse goofing around and acting like actual siblings #there's a slight pang of jealousy #whether it's due to the fact that she'll never get a close familial relationship with percy #or the fact that percy and clarisse remind her of her and jason #who knows #percy jackson and the olympians #percy jackson #clarisse la rue #annabeth chase #silena beauregard #charlie beckendorf #travis stoll #connor stoll #lee fletcher #katie gardner

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thehollowwriter · 7 months

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Summary: Finn stays at Mostro Lounge after closing to enjoy the quiet, and Jade gifts him a mysterious box to open only on his birthday

(Pls reblog and leave a comment ❤)

After Hours

It was wonderful after hours.

Mostro was at its best after closing, that Finn could guarantee.

The music had been turned off and every customer and member of staff had left, leaving the small restaurant to relax in a glorious bout of silence. It was dim, only illuminated by the glow the glass wall looking out onto the colourful sea beyond.

Finally alone, Finn closed his eyes and sighed in content. He was seated at one of the tables facing the glass wall, revelling in the rare peace he had been granted.

This is why he was always the person who locked up the lounge at night. Once everyone leaves, he takes a seat by the glass wall and just... enjoys his peace.

Phone switched off in his pocket, earphones neatly packed away and hat and coat discarded. Alone and revelling in the silence.

Next time he would be sure to bring his painting equipment. He wouldn't mind fending off Azul's requests to sell his work if he got to enjoy a night of painting in such a perfect environment.

....Maybe he would paint the lounge itself and charge Azul to use it as advertising. Just maybe.

Thoughts of deals and money were distant in his mind, though. He was too happy, too floaty, to consider any of that.

He was going to savour this more than he ever had before. Tomorrow was birthday, after all, and it was going to get loud.

Sitting here in the dark surrounded by water, Finn was overcome by a wave of nostalgia. This almost reminded him of home.

But it wasn't home.

Mostro Lounge after closing was close enough. Better than nothing. Better than the loud hubbub in the Octavinelle common lounge, filled with lights and excitedly chatting students.

Oh, how Finn missed home.

The current rippling through his hair. The comforting pressure of the deep sea. Being surrounded by a heavy silence and pitch black darkness as he darted in and out of seaweed and chased crabs across the sandy ocean floor.

But he wasn't home. He was on land. It was dry, bright, and loud. Finn would've hated it if it weren't for the opportunity to fly and view the natural wonders that could not be found in the ocean.

Then the sudden sound of footsteps ripped Finn from his paradise and he sprang out of his seat, scanning the vacant lounge with sharp amethyst eyes.

"Oya, did I frighten you? My apologies."

Finn's posture relaxed slightly at the familiar voice of Jade, and he turned his head to find the eel in question making his way towards him with an amused smile on his face.

"No- no you didn't, I was just surprised." Finn let out a sigh. "I didn't know you were still here."

Jade hummed and came to a stop in front of Finn, heterochromatic eyes gleaming in the low light.

"I was making sure Azul wasn't staying late in his office again. Luckily this time he has gone to bed early."

"Oh that's good." Finn sighed. "I was concerned about him. Azul always works so hard, he really... needs to... to..."

He trailed off as his still sleepy brain slowly registered the fact that Jade was closer now, leaning forwards slightly and gazing at him with an indecipherable expression.

Finn stammered and blood rushed to his cheeks at the sudden closeness.

"You always stay here late after closing." Jade said softly. "You look so peaceful, staring through the glass the glass like that. You don't notice I'm there most of the time, not even when I leave. What are you thinking about, I wonder?"

"I-" Finn flushed further as Jade tilted his head at him curiously. "I was just enjoying the quiet. And thinking about home."

"Oh I see." Jade nodded slowly and his expression shifted to one of understanding. "I miss home as as well. So many fond memories."

A pause.

"I remember trying to find you in the kelp forests when we were younger, but you darted away too quickly for us. How mean you were."

Finn huffed. "Well its no fault of mine that I get the wrong idea when you're four times my size and suddenly lunging at me. I didn't know you wanted to play."

A smirk flashed across his face. "Besides, it's not like you tried very hard. Your whole posse stopped short the moment I got onto Papa's territory."

"Floyd and I wished to continue." Jade's voice was lamenting. "However the "friends" we were trapped with for the day were afraid to cross the boundary. They said they... what was it now... did not want to be 'butchered'."

Finn stifled a laugh. "They thought that? How ridiculous."

"Indeed." Jade was grinning now, his teeth glinting in the light. "We all know you would much rather eat them as they are."

"Jade!" Finn lightly pushed at the eel's shoulder. "Don't act as if you wouldn't eat them raw too."

Jade's soft chuckles echoed through the empty room, reverberating off the walls and making Finn's poor heart flutter.

"Hmm true. It truly is best like that. No shame to Mr Clearcove's practice, of course, he has the best meat in the Coral Sea. I imagine he'll be sending you some five star cuts for your birthday tomorrow?"

"Oh most certainly." Finn said with a smile. "I look forward to it."

"Lovely."

There was brief silence before Jade spoke again.

"I have something else for you to look forward to tomorrow."

Finn lifted an eyebrow as Jade procured a small wooden box from seemingly nowhere. It was dark oak with glittering gold hinges and... butterflies etched into the wood around the frame.

"Oh my." He mouthed as Jade presented it to him, blinking owlishly.

"Please, open this when you wake up tomorrow morning." Jade's voice softened to a whisper, like he was telling a secret. "And... don't share it. It is for your eyes only."

Finn took the box from Jade with wide eyes, looking at it incredulously before looking back at Jade.

"For me?"

Jade nodded. "For you."

"Oh... thank you so much, Jade!' Before Finn could stop himself, his lips stretched into a wide smile, putting every single one of his teeth on display.

His eyes widened when he realised his error and he slapped a hand over his mouth, mumbling a sheepish apology.

He was taken off guard by Jade gently taking hold of his wrist and pulling it away, leaning in so close their noses were almost touching.

"Don't be so ashamed." He breathed. "Your teeth are beautiful."

"W-wha-" Finn's ability to speak abandoned him suddenly, rendering him stupefied. "You- my-"

Without warning Jade suddenly straightened again, pulling his face away. He tipped his fedora at Finn and smiled that placid Jade smile.

"I must be going now. I have some bioluminiscent mushrooms to observe. Have a good night, Finn."

Finn uttered a weak, slightly confused "You too" as Jade disappeared out the doors, and just like that he was alone once more.

His heart was beating so fast he was afraid it would leap out of his mouth and he gripped the box so tightly his knuckles were surely turning white under his gloves.

The box was so exquisite Finn dreaded the price tag. It was smooth and cool under his fingers, the grooves of the butterfly markings giving a delightful dip in the surface.

He wanted to know what was inside so so badly. He bit his lip and steepled his fingers to stop himself from opening it.

It was a gift from Jade. It could be anything, really. It could be the most innocent little brooch or mushroom in the world or the most dangerous plant the eel could possibly find.

Whatever it was, Finn knew it would be a surprise. Jade always kept him on his toes with his eccentric ways and Finn loved him so much for it.

Finn sighed to himself and held the box to his chest. His little bubble had been shattered long ago, so he might as well lock up for the night.

He double checked the kitchen to make sure everything was powered off, closed it up and then exited the lounge, locking the door behind him.

Finn barely registered the walk back to his dorm room, his brain all fogged up thinking about Jade. Handsome, intelligent, eccentric Jade~

He was quiet as a mouse when he entered his room, careful not to wake his roommate as he undressed and got into bed.

Finn placed the box on the side table next his bed and smiled to himself.

He couldn't wait for the next morning.

***

Finn was awake the moment the clock struck six.

Usually he was a heavy sleeper and it required a number of alarms and occasionally his roommates shaking him to wake him up, but not today. Today he was too excited to sleep all that deeply.

He could open the box now!

Finn sat up straight and gently took the box in his hands, blinking away the sleep in his eyes until he could focus properly.

His fingers almost trembled with excitement as he gently lifted the lid, eyes sparkling when he spotted the letter inside.

The paper was cream coloured and graced with a practiced teal script. Jade's handwriting.

Finn's breath hitched as he began to read the letter.

Happy birthday, Finn.

I wish you a good day filled with everything you could possibly wish for

Please, take my offer into consideration

Jade Leech

It was brief and to the point, but drenched in caring well wishes that made Finn's heart lose all semblance of control in his chest.

Jade's... offer?

Finn turned the letter over, trying to see if there was some deal or other on it, but there was none.

He placed that letter down, looked into the box, and gently lifted up what was inside.

It was a bracelet, a necklace and two earrings.

The bracelet was composed of many cowrie shells strung onto a thin red string.

The necklace consisted of many many... teeth. Finn could not quite name what type of creature it was, but it came from a predator and it was certainly an achievement to get this many.

The earrings consisted of two small nautilis shells. They were golden in colour- shiny and beautiful, a perfect little pair.

Everything was clearly handmade, put together with great care and precision that stretched beyond a gift for a schoolmate.

Handmade jewellery.

Jade had gifted him handmade jewellery and called it an offer.

Finn's heart lurched.

Jade had given him a courting gift.

-End

....................................

A/N: Thank you so much for reading! O hope you enjoyed and that you aren't sick of the splurge of Finn content haha. This story is more just fluff lol

Tagging: @azulashengrottospiano @krenenbaker @the-banana-0verlord @jaylleoo14 @whspermy-name @officialdaydreamer00 @cynthinesia @distant-velleity @kitwasheree @elysia-nsimp @twisted-wonderland-but-gayer (if you'd rather not be tagged in this sort of thing please let me know!

#jade leech #finn clearcove #jade leech x finn clearcove #octavinelle #twisted wonderland #writing #twst oc #twisted wonderland oc

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ariellewm · 4 months

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💖SFW OC's Valentine's Day Headcanons Special 💖

**Here is a collection of stories involving the reader and my OC's in a lovely setting. Feel free to click on any that have a link attached to learn more about them.**

Enjoy!

Prince Edlin Silverleaf - "Under the Moonlight" Audio Roleplay

It was getting rather late. You’ve been dancing and socializing with the nobility for many hours now. As Sol Estrela’s sun princess, you excused yourself for the evening. The back of your mind, however, wondered about your love and his whereabouts.

“I’ll see you later this evening, up on the balcony.” Edlin whispered softly into your ear. It was the last thing he said to you before leaving the ballroom. You and the elf prince were in a secret relationship. So, everything between you two had to be kept secret—well, maybe not from everyone. Obviously, Aelene, your maiden servant, was aware of your secret with Nem Naalore’s moon prince.

You’ve retired to your boudoir (bedroom), the same way it was left before the start of the festivities. There was one exception, though. A trail of lavender petals that led out to the outside balcony of your chamber.

After getting into your nightgown and brushing out your hair, you followed the blossom path before you. It ended at the center of the balcony. The night was clear, and the moon was full and bright. The sounds of crickets surrounded you. You jumped as a delicate hand covered your eyes. A familiar, playful voice breathed, “Guess who?” You knew exactly who. Abruptly, you turned around, his hand leaving your eyes. There, still dressed in his formal attire, was your beloved moon.

He had one hand behind his back while the other rested on your waist. Slowly, he revealed a bouquet of white and silver flowers. There was also a hint of amethyst, the same color as Edlin’s eyes. Colors you happen to adore.

Paired with the bouquet of flowers, you were surprised with a box of chocolates. Edlin also knew how much you loved sweets! Especially chocolate—any kind of chocolate. But these were no ordinary chocolates. They were chocolate truffles from his kingdom! Dipped in dark chocolate with a white chocolate drizzle and sprinkled with flaky sea salt. Inside held a hazelnut ganache, a perfectly silky nut blend. You knew quite well that you were going to finish all six of those little truffles before bed.

Edlin leaned in, his soft lips brushing against your flushed cheek. “Happy Valentine’s Day, elen nîn, my star.” Goosebumps always got the best of you whenever he spoke to you in that elvish language of his. He chuckled.

Adonis Acquati, Atlantis' Sea Warlock

Date night involving both of you crafting a potion? With your lack of magical abilities and alchemy, this should be fun. And you selected the hardest potion out there with the rarest ingredient.

“Really? You want to brew this one?” Adonis questioned you. You nodded. He sighed annoyingly. “You realize this is going to use up the one ingredient I use for human transformations? Pearl dust, one of many rare ingredients of the Atlantic?”

You nod again. A bigger sigh from Adonis, “You stubborn little kraken. You couldn’t have picked an easy one for us to do together?! Although,” a devilish smirk appeared, “I shouldn’t complain. You do have exquisite taste, darling.”

He showed you his process for crafting potions. While you began mixing the starfish nectar and seaweed, he went on to organize the herbs and ingredients needed. Adonis was particular about his organization. “It’s called mise en place. Everything in its place. I don’t like being messy when it comes to crafting.”

“Pass me the nectar.” You place the small bowl of nectar in one of his tentacles that reaches for you. It coils back to be poured into the smoke-boiling cauldron. Other tentacles were grabbing other ingredients to be poured in.

Finally, the pearl dust. Adonis made sure you were careful about how much you scooped up before adding it to the cauldron. He chuckled, noticing your hesitation. But you managed. The dust caused the cauldron to erupt in more smoke.

Adonis began his incantation. He spoke in unknown languages. Were they Latin? Greek? Portuguese? This went on for only a few minutes until the brew became a simmer.

“At last,” one of his tentacles grasping the ornate vial, “behold the most powerful elixir of all the Atlantic Ocean: Siren’s Elixir.” Two of his tentacles coiled around you to bring you closer to Adonis as he continued with his banter, “Made by me and you—ahem—well, mostly made by me of course I did all the work after all.” You gave him an annoyed face.

“Darling, darling, oh ho ho, don’t give me that adorable pouty face.” His hands reached up to cup both your cheeks. “You did well, my little apprentice.” Adonis kissed your forehead, looking deeply into your eyes. Suddenly, his pet black moray eel appeared. “WHAT?! What’s soooo important that you had to interrupt my—”

“A customer is here seeking a love potion, master.” The eel hissed. Adonis smirked at his precious pet. “Excellent timing, my pet. Go, fetch them in. I’ll deal with them in a moment.” Adonis turns to you, his evil smirk still present. You knew exactly what he was thinking. “Care to see me charm a customer into taking the elixir, darling?”

Prince Czar Agskaga, The Naga Prince - "Coils of the Naga" Audio Roleplay & WIP Novel

It’s Valentine's Day! Your lovely naga prince has many things planned out for you on this very special day. Starting off with a lovely lunch out by the amber lily fields, strolling nearby the beach and seaside harbor, and ending with the night watching the sky lanterns illuminate the sky.

Unfortunately for you, you’ve been feeling unwell all morning. Tucked away in the circular bed with several blankets buddling you up.

Czar slithered into the bedroom chamber to see you within the soft velvety blankets. He was dressed in his usual royal naga outfit. A thin himation draped over the shoulder and wrapped with the rest of his body, still showing his sculpted chest. He fashioned a long white robe held by a golden serpent on top of the himation.

“My dear, are you ready for today?” He sat near you, his coils shifting and moving about. You quickly hide yourself underneath the blanket. A hiss emitted out of Czar, tilting his head to the side. “Darling, what’sss the matter?” He reaches with the end of his tail sliding up to the bed to pull down the blanket covering you.

You were red. In fact, you probably felt much more flustered after seeing the godlike outfit he was showing off. His hand gently pressed against your forehead, checking your temperature. He sighed, “You don’t feel sssoo well. Poor thing.”

“Don’t worry my sssweet, we don’t have to go anywhere today.” Then a thought came to him, “Ressst dear, I’ll figure sssomething out that we can do.”

So, he left you, but not without leaving a soft kiss upon your forehead. Several minutes go by, an hour, then two. Your eyelids drooped, sleep weighing you down from being sick. A nap would be best until Czar returned.

You were then awakened by the smell of roses and amber lilies that filled the room. It was as if the bedroom chamber turned into a rose garden. Ruby and white candles illuminated the chamber, creating a romantic setting. The table nearby was neatly organized and prepped with all the food you would’ve had outside of the Amber Palace. There was also some homemade soup made by the cooks.

Czar was right next to you coiled up in his usual sitting form, reading a book as he watched you stir up from your long nap. Your beloved naga set the book aside and caressed your hair, “Did you sssleep well?” You nodded. Czar smiled in response, “Good. I figured since you weren’t feeling well, I thought I’d bring all the activitiesss we were going to do here. We can enjoy sssome tea, eat lunch, read a book, and if you’re feeling up for it later, we can watch the lantern’sss from the palaccce balcony tonight.”

He was so sweet, thinking about your condition and doing everything he could to still make the day perfect. You decided to eat the lunch that was spread throughout the table. As you sat down, you noticed a letter on top of the plate. Czar served you as you read the letter written by the prince. A bowl of soup, some bread and fruit for you to enjoy.

Czar noticed that you were finished reading. Tears streamed from your eyes. It was the loveliest letter you’ve ever read. The naga reached down to kiss your forehead once more, the end of his tail wrapping gently around one of your ankles. “Happy Valentine'sss Day, my love.”

#fantasy writer #valentines special #valentines day #fantasy story #fantasy #writer #happy valentine's day #valentine's day #fictional characters #my ocs #my original characters #valentine's special

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fizzyfizu · 2 months

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Accursed in the Lake’s Depths

Chapter 1.3 : An Odd Discovery

Harry J. Potter / reader

MASTERLIST : The Archives.. ⊲ previous ༄.˚₊ 𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟 ₊˚.༄ next ⊳

Harry swam through the thick seaweeds, using them to hide himself from the merpeople guarding the supposed task. When he finally found the clue, thanks to Cedric’s help, he certainly didn’t expect to have to search the Black Lake for something dear to him.

“Blimey, I can't see anything here..it’s only the second task and im struggling already. Godric, just how hard will the third task be?” he thought. Though maybe the dragons were enough of a warning.

Finally reaching a clearing in the seaweeds, what he found was definitely not expected…

The fogginess of the water dissipated, and a young girl could be clearly seen. Around Harry’s age, no older than 14 surely. Was this who he needed to save? But then the clue wouldn’t make sense now would it, as this girl is for sure unknown to him. Much less dear to him.

Despite his reasonings he threw them aside and quickly went to free her from the rope bindings that held her down. The ropes were thick, covered in algae, and were slimy, prompting him to make use of his wand. “Diffindo!” Harry tried to cast a spell, he wasn't expecting bubbles to come out of his mouth instead of the incantation though. It seems that the gillyweed hadn't given him the ability to speak underwater. Never minding that, the spell had worked as intended, and the ropes were severed—causing the girl started to float upwards slightly.

He quickly grabbed a hold of her wrist and started to kick his flipper-like feet as much as possible. And Merlin's beard was it hard, sure Harry played Quidditch a lot, but he barely made use of his legs during matches and right now he feels as if he had just ran a marathon despite making minimal amounts of progress. He couldn't be sure, but it felt as if the water around him was pushing him upwards, as if the water around him wanted the girl out and back onto the surface. Eh, must just be him getting delirious from exhaustion.

After what felt like decades (15 minutes at best) Harry finally reached the water's surface. The gillyweed was still in effect though and he couldn't breathe in the fresh air properly just yet, so for now he's just gonna have to settle for keeping his head under the water until it wears off. And wear off it did! Thankfully it didn't take long for his body to return to its original form. He worked his way through the water and onto the shore, but there was one key detail that told him he did something wrong. And it was that his surroundings were..well–they weren't the stands full of onlooking students any longer, no, in their place stood plenty of tall, lush trees.

And as Harry looked around more, he couldn't help but notice how he definitely went off course. But Harry quickly recognized the obvious sight before him, Hogwarts. And he could also make out the front entrance of it from where he stood. Orienting himself from that observation, then he should be south-east of Hogwarts..right? Banking on his theory being right, he started to follow the shoreline west-ward.

A/N: Thats it for now ^^ I hope this was a fun read bc omg this took me way too much brain power to write

#harry potter x reader #hjp x reader #harry james potter #harry james potter x reader #slow burn #strangers to friends #friends to lovers #fluff #goblet of fire #harry potter #fem!reader #female reader #hufflepuff #hufflepuff reader #hufflepuff!reader #i am going insane #black lake #hogwarts castle #The Water's Depths—Accursed in the Lake's Depths ₊˚.༄

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winter-dayz · 7 months

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Luring

Pairing: Yoo Kihyun x Reader Siren AU Genre: Fluff; Horror (if you squint) Words: 1206 Warnings: implied murder

Masterlist | Fictober Masterpost

Taglist: @soobin-chois

Captivating. Enchanting. How does one describe a voice so beautiful? A voice so mesmerizing that you could tune out anything and everything else. A voice so hypnotizing that you wanted to forget everything else.

🎃

You hadn’t meant to find Kihyun. Although, you weren’t so sure if you found Kihyun or if he had lured you to him. Walking along the beach, you felt compelled to explore the rocky coves nearby, and the closer you’d gotten, the louder the singing was.

You knew what a siren was and how dangerous they supposedly were; but, when he had you in his sight, he smiled and the sun seemed to shine a little brighter.

🎃

You’d been visiting Kihyun for a couple weeks. He was a bit shy at first and would only sing to lure you to him, but as time had passed, he opened up. He was sweet, a great listener, and decent at giving advice. You also learned that he was quite the smooth talker when he wanted to be.

He told you stories of sea creatures and sailors. He told you stories of the love he watched his friends experience and how he longed to experience it himself someday. Your heart fluttered when he eyed you a little longer after saying it, but no one else needed to know that.

The next time you returned to visit, he had set up a picnic of sorts. You weren’t sure how he got all the items, since he was a sea-locked being, but maybe he had a secret friend or something to help him.

It was a lovely lunch and a bit romantic, but you quickly realized that was on purpose. He was trying to woo you, and it was working. He had wine and dined you; his eyes never strayed too far from your own, and then he serenaded you again with a more sensual version of the song he so often entranced you with. As the evening unfolded, the atmosphere became charged with an unspoken tension. The sea breeze played with your hair, and Kihyun’s words lingered in the air like a promise.

🎃

You visited Kihyun more often after that.

And when you did, you both sat a little closer; your hands lingered longer, and lips pressed places they probably shouldn’t have. You told him stories of traveling and of city life. You opened up about your family, and he cried with you when you told him about some of the sadder moments of your life.

It only took another week before you both uttered words that should’ve been forbidden to creatures from different worlds. You said it first, but he didn’t hesitate to follow; and you shared the night together—acting as though your first might be your last together.

🎃

When you woke, you were wrapped in a soft fabric and surrounded by the smell of seaweed and salt. You opened your eyes to a dark, but beautiful, cave—the only light came from the reflections of water against the walls. Your clothes were back on, though they sat a bit weirdly on your body. Kihyun had likely tried his best to dress you after you fell asleep last night, but he wasn’t able to get you dressed quite properly. As you remembered your sea-bound lover, you wondered where he might be. He must’ve been the reason for your being in the cave.

You looked around at your surroundings. The fabric around your bodies was the picnic blanket from a few weeks ago. The cave looked rather empty, but a few things were neatly piled around in a far corner.

You carefully made your way over to the glittering objects. Jewelry, coins, utensils, even shiny junk, layed in a carefully curated heap. It occurred to you that it likely belonged to Kihyun, so you were careful not to disturb it too much, but rifled through it with curiosity.

Maybe what those people say about curiosity is right because as you came across a particular ring, you felt your blood run cold as though you died on the spot. You pulled the object closer, inspecting it in the darkness of the cave, praying you were wrong about what you had just discovered.

The ring was one you were all too familiar with. Your family’s crest engraved into the top and on either side were the birthstones of your parents. You had admired the ring many times growing up, twisting it around your father’s finger in fascination time and time again. But the ring had disappeared along with your father about four years ago. Neither were ever seen again.

One morning he went out for an early beach jog, and the next morning the police were telling you they would do their best to look for him.

Your heart pounded in your chest and ears; your stomach felt like it took up residency in your throat. Your eyes darted around the cove—you weren’t sure what you were looking for exactly, but you knew whatever it was didn’t bode well for your anxiety.

When no immediate danger made itself known, you allowed yourself a shaky breath. No skeletons littered the walls either, which was also a good sign considering the path your mind hand wandered down. Perhaps it was as simple as Kihyun finding it lost in the ocean post your father’s disappearance rather than taking it from his corpse.

All you could do was wait for the merman to return. Your fingers fidgeted with the ring in your hand, toying with putting it on and taking it off. Eventually you fell asleep.

🎃

You awoke several hours later to a gentle humming and a hand caressing down your hair. You blinked up at him, unsure how to react to his presence as your nerves returned tenfold.

Wordlessly, you held up the ring to be eye-level with him. He eyed the shiny treasure with recognition; his eyes briefly strayed to glance at his small horde of other shinies. You asked him how he got the ring and when his head tilted slightly in contemplation, you felt your stomach lurch again.

Your jaw clenched in anticipation, awaiting his explanation. When his eyes finally brightened with recognition, his face slowly morphed to a rather unnerving smirk. He told you the story with pride.

An early morning, usually undisturbed, a man had wandered upon his territory. Kihyun had not lured him, rather he happened upon him. They had talked for awhile, but Kihyun could easily tell that the man was planning on telling authorities and news outlets about him and his rocky cove.

According to Kihyun, his eyes shone with greed, and his questions were lined with ulterior motives. Kihyun had done what was necessary to protect himself and his kind. He spared you the gory details, but that didn’t stop you from expelling the minimal contents of your stomach.

The siren rubbed careful circles to your back, but the touch made you want to shrivel up inside. Despite his confusion at your reaction, he did his best to try soothing you; he even began humming the tune you’d grown to love so much.

But rather than comfort you, the sound echoed in your head like dissonant warning bells.

#monsta x #yoo kihyun #reader #yoo kihyun x reader #monsta x x reader #fluff #horror #siren au #oneshot #fictober

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natusvincere · 7 days

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Bottle It Up || Vic and Marcus

TIMING: about a year ago LOCATION: Downtown PARTIES: @natusvincere & Marcus SUMMARY: Vic goes walking in town and finds a stinky, dishevled Marcus. CONTENT WARNINGS: none!

Vic wished she had never decided to turn over a new leaf. It was easier than what she was doing now to write people off- to ignore them or insult them or to assume that they were all out to get her. Now, she sat up at night wracked with guilt about the things she’d done and the people she’d hurt. Other times, there was guilt about the guilt, because 300 years of knowing nothing other than hatred for humankind and, more importantly, the undead, was hard to forget.

It was even harder to give people grace when they were dressed like slobs, though, like the disheveled man who was currently wandering around across the street from her. But maybe a fashion emergency was just what she needed to start with when it came to her self redemption. Despite her better judgment, she approached the man, instantly regretting it when she did so. “Have you ever heard of deodorant?”, she asked, because all she could smell was fish and seaweed. It was practically permeating the air around him, and it was insulting. “Are you lost? It’s embarrassing to look lost, and I’m hoping to save you from that fate.”

It was Marcus’s first night in town and to say he was out of sorts was putting things mildly. The man had no clue where anything was and couldn’t tell who was friend or foe in this town. He had only come from the sea a few short hours prior and he was exhausted. Not to mention his clothes were soaked with sea water and he reeked of low tide. Being a “mythical” creature himself, he had some knowledge of the town’s more mysterious inhabitants, but that didn’t mean he could identify danger from anywhere. Suddenly, a voice from behind him startled him to attention. A very rude voice.

“Excuse me?” Marcus turned around, ready to chew out the owner behind the voice. He wasn’t above getting into it with somebody in a public space if they were being disrespectful. “If you must know I just saved myself from drowning. You know, there should really be somebody patrolling the beaches here in case stuff like this happens again.”

Marcus looked at the woman, eventually admitting he was lost. “I’m uh…not exactly from here. Lost my way at sea and ended up washing up here.” A half truth, a type of lie Marcus was great at telling if needed. “Can you tell me what the name of this place is? And why everything looks so…” Marcus paused to take in his surroundings. It certainly had your typical small town feel but there was a pervasive ominousness that he couldn’t quite place yet. “Unsettling” was the word he decided on.

There was a pang of guilt when she was challenged, and for a moment, Vic wondered if her mouth would decide to bite back like she always did. It didn’t seem right, not in this case, but looking weak and going back on her word felt worse. Would this man laugh at her if he found out she was weak? On her face, she hoped her falter was only for a moment. “You’re asking a lot from a town that experiences a new tragedy by the hour and has yet to figure out how to handle it. You’d think after years of bullshit that they’d know how to prevent this sort of thing.” She pressed her lips together, thinking. “If you were to write up a petition, I’d definitely sign it. No reason why the beaches shouldn’t be safe for our youth. Or… local stinky men.” Vic looked the man up and down, hoping he realized how little she approved of his stinkiness.

Now, Vic felt even more guilty. Some unsuspecting person ended up in Wicked’s Rest by accident? “A town called Wicked’s Rest. In Maine. In the United States.” Vic paused, and then decided to clarify further, just in case. “On Earth.” She looked around, mirroring the man’s curiosity and sensing his apprehension. “Unsettling is one way to put it. The town has some nefarious rumors about it, if I’m being honest. It’s got a reputation among certain circles.” There was always a fear if she revealed she knew the truth about the town, that she’d end up being found out. Instead, she often chose to tread lightly. “It’s really up to you if they are rumors you’d believe.”

Marcus listened to the woman closely. What kind of place was this? A new tragedy by the hour? There was a general creepy vibe to the town, but he wasn’t yet sure if there was any substance to those feelings. He figured maybe it was like Salem, branding themselves under spooky or foreboding tones as a way to attract tourists. Yet…it really didn’t seem like a touristy town. Usually in tourist towns you’d see statues and museums on every corner. This just seemed like an actual town people lived in.

“Well maybe if this town put some effort into safety there wouldn’t be so many tragedies. Don’t you have, like, a town council or something? Surely it couldn’t be that hard for them to figure it out.” Marcus had no interest bearing the responsibility of protecting the citizens of this town, he was on a mission. He was simply passing through on his quest for his pelt, nothing more. “I’m glad you at least think it’s a good idea. Did you really have to call me stinky though? You probably wouldn’t smell great either after a couple hours being tossed around in ocean water.” Shit. A couple hours? Was that a normal amount of time for people to spend in the water without drowning? In Marcus’s experience, no. He hoped that the strange woman wouldn’t pick up on that.

“Well thank goodness I’m still on Earth. For a minute I was starting to doubt that,” Marcus said sarcastically. “Nefarious rumors?” Marcus’s interest was piqued. He wondered exactly what sort of strange dark cult of a town he may have stumbled into. He wondered how many of those “tragedies” were accidents rather than intentional. “Well with a name like ‘Wicked’s Rest’, you’re sort of asking for rumors, aren’t you? What do they call that? Nonsense determination? Anyway, I’m hoping I won’t have to stick around long enough to find out about those rumors.”

“We have a town council, a neighborhood watch, a local Mothers against scary people committee… you name it. Perhaps the problem is a lack of organization, but groups have been arguing that their own solutions are what will make the town safer for years. The problem seems to be that the situations that tend to arise aren’t always… predictable. In fact, they never are.” Vic sighed, unwilling to admit that she was unsure of what an actual solution would be, anyway. The people who had tried had all thought they were putting up a good effort, was it fair of her to be criticizing them?

“Would you rather I lied to you?” she asked earnestly. “Stinky people who don’t know they’re stinky end up embarrassing themselves more often than not. I’m doing you a favor here, and I’d expect the same courtesy from you if the situation were reversed.” She squinted her eyes at him, his words finally registering in her brain. “Wait-... a few hours? However did you manage to keep yourself afloat and alive for so long? Have you visited a hospital since you found land? Dry drowning is a real threat, you know.”

Vic raised her eyebrows, crossing her arms over her chest. In her experience, people tended to either lean into the rumors of the town or dismiss them completely. She theorized she could already guess what sort of reaction this man would be having. “It’s sort of like a chicken and the egg situation, isn’t it? I’ll admit I’m unsure if the town was named first, or if people changed it’s name after all the rumors about this place being a supernatural cesspool. All bullshit, of course. The tragedies around town aren’t due to ghosts, or weird seal-people, or vampires”,- she had to bite that last one down, even now. “They’re due to bad leadership. And that’s the long and short of it.”

“Lack of organization is one way to put it. Sounds like you’ve got worse problems than an unprotected coastline.” Marcus said, taking another look at his strange new surroundings. The foreboding shadows suddenly felt much more real, as if they could rise up from the ground and strike at any moment. Had he found the local crazy woman, or was there really more beneath the surface? She had mentioned seal people, did that mean there were other selkies in town? He’d love to meet any, if he did find them. Comfort in numbers and all that.

“Look, I-” he hesitated as he realized she had a point. Nobody wants to be stinky. If someone is stinky they should definitely be informed. “I need a place to crash, that’s all. And a nice warm shower. That would be lovely right now.” It was true. He was exhausted, defeated, and scared for what the future held for him. He’d just gone AWOL, will likely be presumed dead after wasting hours of manpower in a frivolous search for his body, and all because of some fucking thief.

“Oh, I’m an expert survivalist actually. Trained on surviving harsh conditions. Although, like I said, if I don’t find a place to warm up soon I may end up with some severe hypothermia. I’m thankful the water was relatively warm tonight.” It wasn’t a lie, per se. His human form was quite capable of drowning so he did need to learn how to survive at sea for long periods of time in the case of an emergency. And boy was this quite an emergency.

“These tragedies…I’m guessing they’re of the more mysterious variety? You know, random attacks with no official identified assailant? Just, if we’re discussing ghosts, vampires, and seal people, I would assume there’s talk of other creatures as well? Werewolves, zombies, et cetera? I mean, if this is a beacon for supernatural activity you’d have to think all sorts would be hanging out here, right? Even the dangerous kinds.” Then Marcus thought for a bit. The vampires he had known near his home were vicious manhunters, but further along the coast in NorCal they tended to be pretty chill. Very reclusive, what with all the sunshine, but decent folks all the same. “Of course, just like with people, there’s good and bad in every group of creatures, right? That is, if you believe in that sort of thing?”

“Way more. And none that have any chance of being solved any time soon.” Vic wondered what unfortunate karma this dude must have been packing to accidentally wash up on the shores of such a horrid place. It made her want to take a step back from him, just in case the karma was contagious.

“I think you should prioritize the shower, warmth or not.” There was another pang of guilt tugging at her chest when he said he needed a place to stay. She thought back to all the space she had at home, including 5 large bedrooms and a nice, hot shower. And then she thought of the small two-year-old sleeping in one of those bedrooms, and she knew that would be extremely dangerous. As okay as this guy seemed, she could never risk Rosie’s safety like that. She let out a breath, looked around to make sure no one was near them, and pulled out her wallet, holding two crisp hundred dollar bills out to the man in front of her. “This should be enough to cover a night in the hotel down the street over there”, she gestured in the direction of the hotel with the bills as she spoke, “Plus a meal or two at the restaurant downstairs.”

“They are, sometimes, but that doesn’t necessarily prove anything, does it?” She was a bit uncomfortable with being so forward about the supernatural, maybe it was safer for her to pull it back a bit. “I suppose that those that believe some are here believe all are here. Whatever all may be.” Years ago, she would have been jumping aboard the train that said that the world was more set in stone than he wanted it to be, that people like her were monsters and it was important to eradicate them. Now, she wasn’t so sure. “I think that people will prove you right if you believe they’re bad. I suppose the same would be true for any supernatural creatures one may or may not believe in. But you seem to be leaning more toward belief than not. Or am I misinterpreting?”

Where exactly had Marcus just ended up? As if this day from hell couldn’t get any worse, he had to contend with a town plagued by crime and mystery with practically no governing oversight? His entire life had been regimented with rules and orders, and he had always been told that if he listens to the powers that be that everything would be fine. So what, then, was he expected to do when the powers that be were effectively useless?

“Right, I guess if I’m going to be here for a few days I should probably at least leave a good impression when I meet people and look presentable. After all, I have an image to uphold.” It was a phrase he was so used to saying, but he didn’t really know what that image meant anymore. The entire legacy and “image” he had built up was completely undone now. He’d be branded a deserter at best and spend the rest of his life on the lam with no legal identity at worst.

He looked down at the money the woman was handing him from her wallet. He almost couldn’t believe it, she was handing over $200 to a total stranger! One whose smell apparently really offended her. He could say nothing other than a hesitant “thank you” to the woman. He didn’t like accepting money from others, Fremonts never took on debts they couldn’t pay back, but in this situation he didn’t have much of a choice. “This is really going to help me a lot until I’m more steady here. I really do appreciate it.”

“I think that if people want to believe in something, they’ll find it wherever they can. Sometimes things falling off of shelves could just be because they were placed on the shelf carelessly, or it could be a ghost. It depends how the viewer interprets things, of course.” Marcus then examined the woman carefully, weighing his next sentence carefully. “However, when you see a pale man with fangs drain the life out of somebody with your own two eyes, you either start believing in vampires or check yourself in some place to get your head checked out. But you’re right, all creatures are owed the chance for redemption. I don’t believe that anything or anyone is truly evil.”

“Exactly”, Vic answered with a proud smirk. “I have to admit, my opinion of you when I first glanced your way was rather bleak, but I’m impressed you know how important a good first impression is. I apologize for letting your general sloppy appearance and insulting stench cloud my judgment.” She had never liked the phrase ‘don’t judge a book by it’s cover’, because people weren’t books and monsters were monsters inside and out, and no one had ever proved her wrong before (besides Lyra)... (and Rosie)... (and vampires, when she gave them a chance)... (and-... well, shit, maybe a lot of people had proved her wrong). Perhaps, somewhere deep down, there was some sliver of respectability in everyone, just so hidden because it was clouded by the hand of cards life had dealt them.

But god, how weak it felt to give everyone on Earth the benefit of the doubt.

She watched him as he took the money, apprehensive and shy, almost as if he expected her to snatch it away. Money had always been a touchy subject for people, even three centuries ago, one’s financial status determined how the world thought of them even more than one’s stench did. But regardless, people never enjoyed feeling like charity cases. “It’s more for me than you”, she answered matter of factly, stuffing her wallet back into her pocket. “I, uh, own that hotel down there. So the money will just come back to me anyway.” A lie, of course, but Vic figured it was a harmless one.

“You’re onto something with your theory, which turns this town into a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy, in a way.” Not all of the rumors were untrue, of course, but when people flocked from all around to see a giant leg in the forest, they’re bound to see outlandish things out of nothing, because they suddenly feel like they have proof. Just like a few years ago, when a man was sure he was being visited by the spirit of Ronald McDonald because of the way he burnt his toast. Ridiculous. If it could have, her face would have gone white as the talk changed to vampires. Instinctively, she wrapped her arms around her stomach.

There wasn’t much conversation for them after that. She pointed the man toward the direction of the hotel again, he shared again how grateful he was, and that was the end of it. For her part, Vic was proud, not so much for donating the money (that amount was barely a drop in the bucket for her), but moreso for helping out Wicked’s Rest, one stinky man at a time.

#this was like a reply away from being finished so I tweaked my last reply to post!#w:marcus #w:biu #w

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coffyao · 1 month

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if brown leaves could be saved part 2.

“Hey.”

Ah.

It was yet another monotonous day, and it was the time that Yoonbum usually dreaded the most, lunch.

He disliked it because he never had an appetite, nor did he have anyone he could share his thoughts with, perhaps over a bowl of kimchi jjigae, or even a side dish of nori seaweed.

Everyone avoided him and his teachers merely tolerated him.

But someone talked to him yesterday.

And it wasn’t forced because they had to take part in a group project.

And their words weren’t unbearably doused in honey because they wanted a favour from him.

They treated him like an everyday nobody.

But maybe special.

And that was…

“…s-seungbae, was it?”

And because of him, he was in the mood to eat, despite being in an obnoxiously loud environment, where certain types of gossip were spewed, and the tables being so close together even while being isolated at the end of the lunch hall, made him uncomfortable.

Seungbae sat down opposite him and opened a rectangular lunchbox, containing steamed white rice, with an egg on top and sticky tteokbokki next to it. It was simplistic yet very filling.

He liked analysing people by looking at the type of food they ate because he believed it revealed a lot about them.

“…um, who made your food for you?”

Seungbae took a piece of tteokbokki in thought, and said, “I made it myself.”

Not unexpected. He seems independent.

“I see.”

Yoonbum continued picking at his food. Now that he was here, having a conversation with someone, he didn’t know what he wanted to try eating first.

So, he decided to ask more probing questions.

“…but don’t your parents make it for you?”

“Uh, well,” as Seungbae used his fork to entangle it with soya-covered noodles.

“...don’t worry about that,” Seungbae finally said and slurped them awkwardly.

“o-oh.”

I pried too much.

Yoonbum knew he was socially awkward, but he tended to overstep boundaries when he became overly curious, maybe a little too excited. But when he wanted to know someone, the normalcy of those feelings would transition into something beyond abnormal, uncontrollable even.

And when they stepped away; he stepped forward, despite how painful it was.

And this situation wasn’t an exception to that rule.

“…s-so, is it something you don’t want to talk about then?”

“…no, not particularly.”

But I want to know.

However, yoonbum didn’t want to possibly ruin the early start of a friendship and…

Wait.

“…h-have you not made any friends here yet?”

Usually, when there is a new student in class, an inquisitive air starts to surround the room, as the robotic school routine temporarily becomes forgotten and newfound excitement starts to boil over this new person, and no matter what they looked like, there was always, always potential.

And whether that was being the class jester, the next target for bullying, or a nicely slotted coin to fit in with the rest, was callously decided within the next few minutes of superficial conversation.

But Yoonbum didn’t have the chance to witness much of it, as his never-ending insomnia caught up to him, and he could barely keep his eyes open for most of the day.

He had to find out why he even had company in the first place.

“… I wouldn’t say it's that, everyone seems nice enough here so far.”

Then Seungbae took a spoonful of rice and egg, putting it into his mouth.

“But you seemed the nicest, so I wanted to have my lunch with you.”

Nicest?

Upon many others' first impressions of him, he was often described as ‘nice’, but that word had many connotations, and it almost always implicitly included pushover, doormat, or at worst, a snack delivery boy.

“Your so nice.”

Usually led to,

“Can you bring me…”

And,

“You said you would do x and x.”

But when Seungbae said it, he didn’t hate it.

At least…not for now.

“I see,” yoonbum said, and he finally picked something from his tray of food.

It tastes cold.

----

#yang seungbae #killing stalking #killing me softly #yoonbumxseungbae #yoon bum #a03 link #ao3 #ao3 fanfic #fanfiction #a03 fic #seungbum

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sirlonius · 7 months

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“Adrift”

My heart has been adrift in an ocean of tears since I last saw you.

Your smile used to be the guiding light leading me to shore.

And since you've been gone, I've been unsteady and unsure.

Replaying the moment my world capsized after you told me I wasn't what you wanted.

I lay awake every night thinking maybe things would have been different if my scars didn't reveal that I was a man less than perfect.

If I was able to compartmentalize and find what next part of me I needed to change to make you happy.

But I was too in love and too caught up in trying to save us to realize you already abandoned the relationship.

As I watched you walk away through the torrential downpour of my tear flooded eyes.

I thought you were looking for a life vest but found another man’s arms.

You said he pulled you free of the crashing waves of our despair.

And I was left there, in ruin, as the waves came washing over me into a cyclone cycle of never ending sleep.

Where the comforters we once slept on transformed into seaweed like arms and legs and dragged me 10 thousand leagues under the surface.

I was sinking, slowly, with only the memories of our last kiss being the oxygen mask that kept me from drowning.

But as those lonely nights started to turn as cold and dark as the deep you currently left me in I began to see a light.

A warm glow emanating from the currents below showing me a shipwreck filled with old discarded memories of self love and compassion treasures hidden beyond depths.

And it took the death of our love for me to realize all of the love of me I lost on the journey to loving you.

So, now when I proudly declare that I love myself I don't do it cause I'm boastful. I say it with my chest for all the years where I couldn't say it as strongly.

So, when you see me out here smiling more, living my best life, surrounded by all these beautiful black faces, and ask "who got you acting different?"

I'll tell you that it's me.

I have found all the pieces of myself that you discarded as meer trinkets, but we're actually gold. And then I'll let you go.

Cause holding on to someone who doesn't love me anymore may have seemed like the only thing keeping me from drowning, but were actually anchors.

And upon release, I realized that I could not only float, but I could fly.

#sirlonius #spoken word #adrift #poetry #black poets on tumblr #poets on tumblr #love #love lost #life #open mic

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thelaughingmerman · 4 months

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Some of these are personal headcanons, we can't all live in the slow burn fanfic playing inside my head on loop. I took some of the questions off because I didn't want to bother with them.

First to Confess- Eugene is quick to fall in general, and it's been a detriment to him in the past. His personality and charm wins him favor on the stage, but off, some have found him to be too much to handle. He's quick to brush off hurt feelings with humor, because they're uncomfortable to deal with. Even still, past failed relationships don't keep him from confessing, perhaps too quickly, yet again.

First to Apologize- Franklin hates being angry, it makes him feel gross and staticky. And the aura an argument leaves hanging in the air stays over his head like many storm spirits having a raucous discussion. Even the smallest disagreement can feel like thunder in his head, so he's quick to apologize. Even in cases where he's pretty miffed he'll simmer down easily if given space, he's willing to just let bygones be.

More Popular- Although much has changed for Franklin the past few years of his life since he traveled to the bay surrounding Trolberg, he's still pretty introverted. Somewhat more talkative to be sure, but he lacks the charisma of Eugene, both on and off the stage. It's OK, because he's got more than enough for both of them.

- Franklin cares very deeply about his friends and family. It's not something he would have ever thought to come from him, but ever since meeting the Fisherman Henrik, he's opened up tremendously and proven to be a compassionate and caring person...where his friends are concerned at least. He may not give strangers a second glance. Even still he will try his best when his partner is ailed. All he really knows how to do is cover him in blankets and sit next to him, read a book to him if he's up for it. But it's the thought that counts, surely.

Does the Cooking- Merfolk, by design, don't really need cooked food. And by culture, really only indulge in cooked meals by personal preference. Franklin likes trying good food, but anything not foraged or caught is usually made and given him by his Fisherman friend, Henrik. They also don't need to eat as often as, say, a human. Therefore, neither of them cook, and if they do (it has been attempted) its not bad but not better than raw fish on a seaweed salad, so why bother. That time can be used for other things.

Does Most of the Speaking- Eugene, most definitely is the talker. Especially in company Franklin is unfamiliar with (though as his confidence gathers, he chimes in a lot more). Even still, he defers to Eugene, who he claims is the brains of their outfit. Their intelligence is on par, but Eugene is full of big ideas, so we'll say we agree with Franklin and move on.

More Overprotective- He may be small and quiet, but Franklin is strong. While he doesn't really give those outside his very small circle a second glance, he's got a big heart, and is willing to help a friend in need. If he feels a situation is dire, he'll break his normal silence and stand up. He's not going to let anything bad happen to the people he loves.

Better Penmanship- A showman, of course, has to have a steady hand. It won't do to give the fans a sloppy signature, will it? Next to Franklin's chicken scratch, his name looks elegant in cursive swirls. Whether it's more legible is another matter entirely. What do Merfolk even use to give signatures underwater? Don't ask me questions I don't know the answers to.

More Experience- Eugene's been around the block a couple times, but nothing really lasted. Largely because he'd really like a committed, long term relationship. Which he rarely mentions up front. His tendency to deflect from serious emotions with humor and charm doesn't help.

One Who Proposes- Would they propose, maybe down the line. Things are just good where they're at now, but who knows a commitment like that might seem a happy occasion. Either way, by that point Franklin's confidence will have sky rocketed, and he'd be much more open and willing to make the step. Good and bad, depending on how you look at it, Eugene has similar plans for the same day. Franklin manages to have his moment first (a big deal for him, it took a lot for him to make that step!), to the (admittedly purposefully overdramatic, given the circumstance) outrage of Eugene, who had a whole thing planned. He'd been rehearsing, you can't take this from him. Let's start over.

#this was a distraction so i can maybe stop having a panic attack #fish in the sea #i dont feel like elaborating further right now my sensories are overloaded

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queen-beefcake-sqx · 2 years

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Out of every MXTX ship, beefleaf deserves a mermaid AU the most

Okay, okay. Hang on. Beefleaf does deserve more mermaid AUs, but I raise you one better - selkie AU. My brain is rotating this so hard. Consider this, anon:

Shi Wudu is heir to a massive fleet of commercial fishing vessels, and the largest supplier of seafood in the region. Shi Qingxuan is his adorable little sister who is wildly uninterested in the business side of things and just wants to wander the beach and collect seashells.

Except Shi Qingxuan is deathly afraid of water; as a child she fell overboard and almost drowned. Of course she was miraculously rescued and left ashore but has absolutely zero memory of her savoir. Shi Wudu always says he saved her from the water…

One day she finds an injured person on the shore. They’re incredibly beautiful, pale and inky black long hair, and horrifyingly naked, allowing SQX to see injuries that look like harpoon gouges. She’s no doctor, but sewing up a wound can’t be that much different than sewing up a ripped sail, right? Right! :D

He Xuan is Not Pleased at being woken up in this state. They’re defensive, silent, refuses to answer any of SQX’s questions or let her near their wounds. They speak without showing their teeth, eyes out toward the ocean. It’s only with extreme convincing that they allow her to sew them up and bring them a sailor uniform from the docks. They part ways as He Xuan insists on staying at the shore, searching for their “lost things”.

(Later, SQX hears one of the sailors got into a fight aboard one of the commercial vessels when a strange person climbed aboard the ship and attacked them. Like a monster from the depths, surrounded by billowing black hair like seaweed. Surely a coincidence, right?)

And because it’s beefleaf they just… keep running into each other along the shore, and eventually by the docks. Shi Qingxuan pries information from He Xuan a parcel at a time — his family is all gone, his home somewhere he cannot return to, rendered unlivable. Shi Qingxuan tells him about her life inland, her brother and his business, her love and fear of the ocean.

Of course there has to be a whole montage of He Xuan teaching her to swim. That’s a given.

And He Xuan seems genuinely soft at how much she enjoys the water, the freedom she feels in the waves as the breeze rocks her back toward shore. And he knows, quietly, that he’s in trouble.

Shi Qingxuan slowly shows He Xuan their little fishing village, introducing him to her friend Xie Lian, who weirdly tells her to be careful with strange people… but He Xuan is her friend, too! There’s no reason to mistrust him, hahahaha! Silly Xie Lian!

(If Hua Cheng makes knowing eyes at He Xuan over Xie Lian’s shoulder, SQX doesn’t notice it. Hua Cheng also lost all his family and wandered alone for a while, maybe they could be friends?)

(Author’s Note: Hua Cheng totally knows, because he’s a selkie too.) (The HuaLian selkie AU also writes itself and I’ll totally write a follow up post for that)

Shi Wudu is Not Happy with SQX’s new friend, and warns her to stay away from them. SQX pointedly ignores this and continues sneaking out to the beach while Shi Wudu is out at sea.

Eventually she mentions the incident from her childhood, and He Xuan is… strangely cold to her after this. Shaken, if she didn’t know them better. They ask if she ever wondered how her brother saved her from the waves. She doesn’t know, never bothered to ask.

And of course Shi Wudu is totally dismissive when she asks. Because it isn’t like he’ll admit what he did…

It isn’t like he’ll admit he saw her pulled ashore by a large seal, who hovered over her with jaws like it might bite down…

It isn’t like he’ll admit to firing the harpoon gun he always carried with him, spearing the creature he saw as a threat to his little sister...

It isn’t like he’ll admit to watching as the skin fell away — revealing a woman, struck dead by his impulsive actions — and collected it even as he bundled the woman in his boat and sunk her body to be reclaimed by the sea and those within it…

It isn’t like he’ll admit the skin hanging on the wall of his room in their home is the same one from that night, and the skin he found by his commercial vessel after the fisherman attack sits bundled in a chest at the foot of his bed.

The same skin He Xuan desperately wants back. Because they know Shi Wudu took it. They saw him fish it from the waters as his men fired harpoons on them. And now that Shi Qingxuan has told him so much about their business, he understands that the only boats out on the water were ever under Shi Wudu’s control. He dropped He xuan’s fiance back into the sea to be found by her lover. He overskimmed the nearby seas, resulting in less and less food every year for the selkies and mermaids, leading to He Xuan’s family’s starvation.

But Shi Qingxuan knows none of this. No one will tell her. No one will rescue her from her ignorance. Instead He Xuan convinces her to take him to her house, because he knows the skin must be there. And of course Shi Wudu comes home as he’s in the middle of removing his dead fiance’s skin from the wall.

All havoc breaks loose. Shi Wudu is furious - he warned her, warned her to be careful of the stranger from the beach. He Xuan bares their sharp teeth for the first time before SQX, revealing themself to be a selkie. And with Shi Wudu’s harpoon gun in hand, he offers the choice - Shi Wudu can die or lose his sister to the sea, turned into a monster like them. A life for a life either way.

Of course Shi Wudu dies. Losing SQX to the sea was never a choice. Everything leading to this moment was to keep her away from the water, away from the dangers lurking there. He Xuan leaves SQX there in the home, mourning her brother’s body, taking the skins with them.

… And it is a very, very long time before Shi Qingxuan visits the water again. Months, a year. But slowly she begins walking out to the waters again, sitting on shore where she met a beautiful person with a beautiful heart that was twisted by cruelty and trauma. She knows that now.

And she visits every evening, religiously, sitting on the sand where the water barely kisses her toes and waits until the nights turn too cold to continue sitting.

And one early spring evening she falls asleep by the water, and wakes up to find an old tattered cloak draped around her shoulders, the same one she used to wear to visit He Xuan, the same one she left with them the last time before…. Everything…. And she catches sight of a seal diving beneath the water.

Of course she runs in. Of course she forces her limbs to remember everything He Xuan taught her, braving the icy waters to try to reach him. The waves pull her under, knock her about. Isn’t it ironic her brother’s sacrifice would be in vain? She really would let the ocean claim her…

Except again for a second time in her life she’s saved by a seal dragging her ashore, teeth latched onto her clothes and pulling until she’s breached the surface and gulping air. She clings to them, unwilling to let go. Refusing to let go, even as they try to squirm to the sea again.

And she tells them everything she’s felt for months, all the fear and the sadness but even more than that, the loneliness and ache for her friend. And she doesn’t beg them not to leave, but instead… take her with them. Let her come be with them.

He Xuan doesn’t, that night. It’s many more reluctant visits, quietly rebuilding what was lost between them, before He Xuan sheds their skin again and wraps them both in it, walking them into the water.

and I'm stopping it there because this got wildly out of hand. Anyway that’s it that’s my selkie AU. [bows]

#beefleaf #who dares me to write this after I finish my Calamity!SQX fic #shut up sadie #tgcf #tian guan ci fu #heaven official's blessing #he xuan #shi qingxuan #sadie writes fanfiction

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gamerbearmira · 2 years

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BatB AU: what cryptids/myths are the Madrigals now? For Isabela, I'd like to suggest la Madremonte. It's basically the Colombian mother nature myth(I think). And moths have wicked hearing so maybe moth girl for Dolores? It maybe something bat-related, since they're sharp-eared too. Minotaur for Luisa? She's probably one of the more docile ones... How wild is everyone? And how friendly?

Ok the ones you have so far are good! So. Yeah.

Someone before mention Antonio would be a chimera of sorts so there’s his :))) Camilo, maybe a kitsune of some kind, seeing that those creatures can shapeshift pretty freely. Pepa is some sort of cloud being, with her emotions basically affected her body and the surrounding area. She’s literally made of clouds. Fèlix is sort of like a sun/light being??? Can’t look at the dude for too long,especially when he’s super happy,he’s way too bright. I don’t know sun and clouds are so cool though.

Julieta is some kind of. Frankenstein like being??? Stark contrast to her gift, but I love irony. Undead/Stiched together healer haha. Agustín, idk why but that mfs gives me swamp monster vibes. Why you ask?? He’s always tripping over stuff, and if he was covered in vines/seaweed, swamp material etc etc, he’d be trippin over that too.

Bruno is. Idk. A yeti mix. Shiiiii with those mfs living in the mountains and Bruno being a little distant (but not as much as before,only a tad bit;he feels like heshould’ve saw this family, but the family assures him it’s not his fault…except for Alma, she plays victim card a little too much in this AU…) idk 😭😭😭I’m clueless on Alma 💀💀

As for the more wild ones, def Camilo, Antonio and possibly even Agustín. Antonio and Camilo for obvious reasons, Agustín cause he can’t not move, and he somehow always ends up in the most random places. No one knows how, he just does. Kinda freaks them out but they can’t do much about it.

And like the og movie, they’re all very openly friendly to Mirabel, even Isabela. She left when she was 5, and they were cursed at that time as well. They didn’t have any kind of way to grow distant with her. Had no reason to hate her; in fact they missed her, greatly. She was always such an optimistic little girl, and the family wished that she stayed, so that even if they’re cursed, they could find some kind of hope and happiness in Mirabel, because she saw the best in everyone.

And Mirabel, while spooked first, eventually (very quickly, actually) is just as welcoming to them. One might think they would blame Mirabel for the curse but they actually blame Alma. Mirabel was 5, and Alma was the one who kicked her out, so it’s Alma’s fault. Casita is even very expressive when Mirabel is around, and if Casita likes her, the family has no reason not to like her. Alma is the only one who has a problem with Mirabel right out the gate, but it gets better over time.

They treat her like family, more than anyone outside Casita (not including Agustin’s parents). And she likes that, she knows that they didn’t mean for her to be thrown out like that. She knows they didn’t intend for her to stay out of Casita; in fact most of them had been informed that Mirabel had simply been taken out of the house for a little while, and Alma was going to put her in her own room once it was mad, til she officially announced Mirabel wasn’t gonna come back. Hence why the family is a little rocky around Alma, but they don’t objectively hate her. They’re more disappointed and upset if anything.

Can you guys tell I’m way too invested in this AU.

What hast thou wrought upon me?

#encanto #my asks are open #my asks #encanto au #au #encanto mirabel #beauty and the beast au

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dullahandyke · 1 year

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Can I flunk the mocks if I post my entire composition section online. Guess I will find out. Anyway um transgender people in the woods story, second-person omniscient maybe-unreality fuckery, as heavy handed as God intends all English subject essays to be

The thing about people like me is that they should not be talked about. Their stories should not be written. This makes committing this to print much more difficult. However, I owe this much to you, and I cannot pass on something like this through fragile oral tradition, so carved into the ogham it shall be.

One day, you found yourself in a forest. Sudden. You had not arrived here by magic nor teleportation, but rather, you had come back to yourself. After an undeciperable absence, consciousness hit you.

The first clue was that it was dark, but not the deep darkness of a past-midnight, nor the rising hope of before-dawn. It was the uneasy grey of a clocks-went-back evening, and this unsettled you. The last thing you remembered was staring out into the blankness of the midnight sky, taking note of the light contradicting its reputation. The shining of the moon and the stars had basked everything in monochrome. Your garden had been draped in monotony, shining down from the open sky above your house. In these woods, covered by these thick trees and these interwoven branches, not even the light grey of the evening reached the ground below you. Your surroundings were steeped in the sparse light trapped within its domain, holding desperately onto what little illumination it gave them.

You had left when it was darker. It was getting dark again. Almost a full rotation of the sun.

The next thing you noticed, once your mind had sped up from its lazy considerations of the light fogging the forest, was the pain scarring every inch of your body. You felt like a man possessed, a puppet whose strings had pulled too tight and whose limbs had been cut away at by your pitiful excuse for a stage. Your plastic boots were waterlogged and filled with undiscernable things, like stones or mud or seaweed, imprinting on the soles of your feet and cramping your toes. Your knees and your thighs were lacerated with thin cuts and grazes. Your skirt, their only protection, was littered with pine needles and thorns and the tooth of a barbed wire. Your arms were quickly bruising and spattered with mud. Debris hung onto them, embedded, as if you had fallen onto your forearms. The same debris was wedged in your hands, punctured and impaled, as if you had pushed yourself back up.

You remembered none of this. There were no woods where you had lived. You had never been the sort of child to get into scrapes and explore. You felt hunger pangs and dehydration and a newly distinct awareness hit your head all at the same time.

Fatigue rushed through you, muscles aching and the world spinning around you, and you found yourself being caught.

The final thing you noticed, of course, was me. I can’t blame you for not noticing me at first; you had a lot on your mind, and I have always blended in well to the trees. Why else would I have led you there?

‘Led’, though, is a strong word. It would imply that it had been a conscious decision on my part. You were led there much like a salmon is led to its birthplace; by no fault of the river, and by no fault of the salmon. The salmon and the river simply did what they knew.

I greeted you; you greeted me back, numbly, dazed. I watched as your posture changed, in a way not easily described. Hands into fists, pupils wide – you didn’t know where you were or who I was. The film over your eyes, shoulders sagged – you were tired. I didn’t sound as mythical as they say I should. I sounded like your parish pastor, like the assistant in the corner shop, like the people off of Raidió na Gaeltachta. A little too exuberant for where I was situated, maybe, but a familar voice saying hello to you.

You noticed that I had you in my arms. You jolted, like a newborn lamb desperate to escape its mother, and I lowered you to the ground that you might not faint again.

You stumbled back on your hands, into the trees thick in the midst of the forest. The clearing – the usual stopping place of those led to my woods - was barely on the threshold of the spot you had awoken in. You scrambled away from it with wide eyes, caught in contest with mine.

The stories speak often of locking eyes. Immobilized, breath hitching. Your heart pumping blood around your body so quickly that you can feel it rushing through your skin and the horrific thumping engulfs your hearing. What the stories do not understand is that it is not romantic. Not never, for sometimes it is. But in that case, in that forest, in those eyes, cliché and story was overwritten by terror.

I crouched next to you, taking one of your hands in mine. I was not careful with the thorns impaled into your palms. Absentmindedly, I began to pick them out, ignoring your hisses of pain and your breath speeding up as I opened my mouth.

I asked you your name. I compelled it, demanded it, forced you to give it. But the tone was gentle and only lightly questioning.

“Sinéad.”

Amusement rose within me as I fiddled with the brambles taken from your hands, passing them from hand to hand before storing them in a pocket.

“Wrong answer.”

Despite yourself, you grew indignant. Your eyes narrowed and you scowled at me, your grip around my hand tightening. Might have been painful.

“I think I know my own name, ma’am.”

My head shakes, and out falls a script centuries old.

“It’s ‘sir’. Kid, what’s your name? Tell me.”

You froze for a second there, near the start. I could feel your eyes roving over my short hair, my flat chest, the sideburns adorning my face – or, well, ‘face’. You didn’t know what had compelled you to call me ma’am in the first place.

“Oh, I... Sorry, sir.”

You studied my expression, weighing your options. When I met your eyes, you retreated into yourself again.

“Sinéad. Says so on my birth cert, and I’ve not seen reason to change it.”

I hummed as I picked more debris off of your arm.

“We both know paperwork doesn’t hold the soul. You don’t feel attached to it. What’s the story?”

You stiffened. Your eyes met mine again, forcefully, panicked. You felt that I knew something you had never told anyone. You stayed silent.

“I mean it, kid. Don’t know exactly why you’re in my neck of the woods, but now that you’re here, might as well talk about it. What am I gonna do, tell your whole community that you’re a transgender?”

Then, your panic turned from confusion to indignance to something even I had difficulty reading.

“I’m not- I mean, it wouldn’t be so bad if they- But I’m not, not properly-”

You were sputtering. I watched you, and you couldn’t read my eyes. I saw in you what I had seen in a thousand different people over the years.

It took a moment for you to calm your breathing. To stop sputtering. I rubbed your arm and nodded for you to continue. Eventually, you did.

“Mostly, I’m fine with being a girl. ‘Her name is Sinéad’, most of the time that’s fine. It would feel wrong to get rid of it, even.”

I raised an eyebrow at you. But?

“I want them to see that I’m not just female. I want to hear voices other than my own calling me ‘he’.”

I raised the other eyebrow at you. But?

“But, I don’t want to give up Sinéad. She/her, maybe, but I like Sinéad, I like dresses! I like being a woman, and I don’t want to reject it just so I can also become a man!”

You sighed. I felt it in my bones.

“People are getting more familiar with non-binary people, and I have a friend who’s a they/them, and people are great about it. But people only barely get it. And I don’t think they realise that instead of being neither, I’m both.”

You leaned against my shoulder. It felt so tired.

“If I want a legal gender change, if I want to go on hormones, if I want any of that, it’d feel like committing. So much trouble correcting people on pronouns when my preferences change quicker than I can track them. And I don’t want that. It’d probably be harder, getting misgendered so much, but I wish I was like my friend. I’d rather be able to reject it than have to learn how to embrace it, but nothing else feels right.”

I stayed silent beside you. There was nothing I could do. No inhuman figure in the woods could solve that.

Slowly, I took a long piece of cotton from my pocket and started wrapping it around your hand.

“You do not have to change things entirely, but you can make a start. If it will help you, if it will make you any bit happy, tell people. People will care for you, Sinéad.”

You nodded against me, hazy. The cloud was fogging your eyes again. This deep into my woods, it did that; it covered you so completely that you felt nothing of the outside.

I finished wrapping your hand, and though the rest of your body surely still ached, you were still. I was content to leave you.

Your eyes fell shut and you fell asleep there. Still battered, still starved, still parched. I doubt you remember it. Surely you remember the coming back – the missed phone calls, the unopened mail, the sting in your bones as you climbed to your apartment – and you still remember the night before you left, staring out into the deep void of sky. But you will brush aside the rest; an episode, delirium.

Here is more unopened mail, Sinéad, for you to remember the night by. I hope you look at the strip of fabric wrapped around your hand and think of me. Most of all, I hope you know somebody who can read Ogham.

#ending feels rushed but i wrote it in an hour and a half max so poggers

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